The man next door

I have lived in my house for almost 7 years.  Frequently, the man who lives next door will make dinner on his grill, typically while wearing no shirt.  It is chilly and overcast today and has been drizzling on and off for most of the day.  Out he comes, ready to grill wearing no shirt. Man, oh man he must be cold.

Gulf oil spill

I have purposefully not looked at any of the photos from the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico because the sight of animals drenched in oil would be heartbreaking.  Somehow yesterday I stumbled upon some pictures of it and I was right, they were heartbreaking.  When I was buying my new car I test drove a hybrid because I wanted to do the right thing but I just didn't like it as much so bought the regular model.  It's been a miserably humid day so we have the air conditioning on.  All of our dependence on oil frustrates me because I believe that we should certainly have the technology by now to prevent this from happening in the first place or at the least, to do a better job with the cleanup. 

How everyone is

I thought that some of the dogs might miss Maddie after she had passed away but no one seems to even remember that she was here.  Bear has spent essentially his whole life with her but hasn't sniffed her cage once.  Yet, I know that sometimes a dog will seem to mourn the loss of a companion dog.  The differences are fascinating. 

I took lunch in my car today in the Cathedral of the Pines parking lot.  Not the nicest of days, rainy and cool, but I could watch a flock of wild turkeys in the yard of the house down below.  There were three hens and one tom.  One of the hens came walking out of the woods while I was watching.  The closer she got to the tom the faster she started walking until she was trotting to join the other two hens.  It looked like he was saying to her "get over here on the double."  All the while he was strutting around with his tail feathers spread, keeping watch for the ladies. 

Card from Carrie

I received card with a very thoughtful note from my sister today about Maddie's passing.  It's been a week today that she died.  Tonight I was doing a headcount to make sure that all of the dogs were back inside and I thought for a moment "Where's Maddie?"  My Sweet Piggy.  We miss you.

Malted eggs

I went grocery shopping yesterday and was looking at the Easter candy.  For a split second, I thought to buy malted eggs because Maddie likes them.  Then it hit me that my Sweet Piggy isn't around any more.  I miss her in the odd moments.  I remember how light she was the last time I carried her to bed, how I could feel her ribs and how delicate they felt.  I remember how much she liked to kiss me and how I liked to give her a kiss on the "piggy head."  I remember how, when we got her, she would ride in my lap while I drove and how she fit between me and the bottom of the steering wheel just fine.  I remember the last few walks I took her on.  My Sweet Piggy.

My Sweet Piggy has gone home

Maddie passed away on Friday. I. came home from work and found her lying on the floor, with her back to the wall, as if she just went to sleep and didn't wake up. She looked very peaceful and not like she had been in any distress when she died. We miss her very much.

My first husband and I bought her at a pet store on the day she arrived at the store. We were told that papillons don't bark which we soon found out was not true. She was in a struggle to be the dominate being in the house almost immediately. At first she would sleep in bed with us and would literally sleep on my head. At the time I thought it was cute but later found out that this was a sign of dominance.

I have some favorite memories of Maddie. When we bought her we bought a very large cage for her to sleep in. There were large spaces between the bars on the bottom of the cage so to keep her from falling through them we flipped the cage upside down. One night we put her to bed and then went to the living room to watch TV. Not too long after, she appeared in the living room. She had somehow climbed up the side of the cage and out through the large spaces in the top. I didn't believe it for years until I saw a video of a dog climbing up a chain link fence. Another memory is from when we got Bear. We lived in a two story home at the time and Bear could not go up the stairs when we first brought him home. Maddie figured this out and carried all the toys to the top of the stairs so Bear couldn't play with them. She was her own dog and was whip smart.

We miss you, Miss Nips. I hope you are at peace.

Maddie

This morning Maddie was very lethargic and was having trouble breathing. We packed her up and went off to Tufts where she is now. They kept her overnight to try to figure out what is going on. The ultrasound that they did today showed fluid around her heart and a possible growth around her heart as well. The ultrasound that our regular vet did a couple of weeks ago didn't show any growth that I'm aware of. I hope that they can figure out what is wrong and come up with a treatment plan to keep her comfortable for as long as possible. She was a trooper, though. Please be well, my sweet piggy.

Some pictures I took today for my Project 365. I was planning on participating in the New Year's Sunrise challenge but the sky was so overcast today that I didn't get to see a sunrise.

Wishcasting Wednesday

Today's prompt is "What do you wish to give?" I wish to give OKness. By this I mean the belief, deep in myself and yourself, that we are OK just as we are. That none of us are perfect nor do we need to be. We are enough as we are.

Found my quote

"The older you get, the more you realize that kindness is synonymous with happiness." Lionel Barrymore

A beautiful day

I. and I spent a beautiful afternoon out in Petersham at the North Common Meadow Trustees of Reservations' land. Perfect weather, so nice in fact that I took a little nap lying in the grass next to I.


Mr. Jack has recovered from surgery. It's a long story but we first thought it was another disk issue, this time in his neck. However, thanks to our vet, who I haven't been thrilled with in the recent past, we discovered that it was an abscess in a salivary gland. The vet removed it and now, about 2 1/2 weeks post surgery, Jack is his perky self. How blessed we are that it wasn't a disk and that the lump wasn't cancerous. Very blessed.

My new favorite poem

Write it on your heart...

Write it on your heart
that every day is the best day in the year.
He is rich who owns the day,
and no one owns the day
who allows it to be invaded with fret and anxiety.
Finish every day and be done with it.
You have done what you could.
Some blunders and absurdities, no doubt, crept in.
Forget them as soon as you can, tomorrow is a
new day;
begin it well and serenely,
with too high a spirit to be cumbered with your old nonsense.
This new day is too dear, with its hopes and invitations,
to waste a moment on the yesterdays...

~Ralph Waldo Emerson

Blessings

I. and I had a wonderful dinner at Gibbett Hill tonight. It was a beautiful summer's evening, warm, a little humid and a bit of a breeze. I had the free range chicken and I., the prime rib. Both very good. Didn't do much else today besides nap and get my hair cut and colored.

I am blessed to have come across some wonderfully written blogs that give my soul a bit of peace. Love the quotes I find on them, too.

From here: "In the tempestuous ocean of time and toil, there are islands of stillness where we may enter a harbor and reclaim our dignity." ~ Abraham Joseph Heschel

and

Prayer of Metropolitan Philaret

Lord, give me the strength to greet the coming day in peace. Help me in all things to rely on Your holy will. Reveal Your will to me every hour of the day. Bless my dealings with all people. Teach me to treat all people who come to me throughout the day with peace of soul and with firm conviction that Your will governs all. In all my deeds and words guide my thoughts and feelings. In unexpected events, let me not forget that all are sent by you. Teach me to act firmly and wisely, without embittering and embarrassing others. Give me the physical strength to bear the labors of this day. Direct my will, teach me to pray, pray in me.

Amen.


From here: "Make it your ambition to lead a quiet life and attend to your own business and work with your hands...." 1 Thessalonians 4:11


I am not religious but these speak to my heart and are good reminders of the life I strive to live.

Something I thought I'd never see

I am in shock.

Stupid Facebook

Facebook is giving me fits. In hopes of preventing my last name from being found out, I deactivated my old profile and created a new one. Still the old URL shows up in Google searches. It's such a user-unfriendly program. I'm beginning to HATE it.

It's a good week though with lots of "me" time culminating in my going to the Chanel counter on Wednesday night to check out their new colors! I love make-up. Loved it for a long time but have recently rediscovered the love and excitement it gives me.

We took Poochie and Bear to the ophthalmologist on Saturday and it looks like the little red bump Poochie has on his left lower eyelid is a tumor. Dr. Willis said that 95% of these tumors are benign which is excellent news. I worry about the anesthesia and that he has to wear an Elizabethan collar for the two-week recovery period. That will not a happy Poochie make!

This morning it was Pogo's turn to go to Tufts. He has had bloody stool for the last couple of days and then this morning he had a bit of blood coming from his rectum. His blood work was all normal and the test that they did at Tufts was negative so the vet is thinking it's probably colitis. We have to take another stool sample to our regular vet to check for worms, etc. because we didn't have a large enough sample this morning. I'm thinking it's just the colitis though.

Sun finally came out this afternoon and it turned into a beautiful day. Hoping for more tomorrow - noticed a huge difference in my energy level!

Little Poochie

I haven't posted many pictures of Poochie. Interestingly, when I was taking these photos he started growling at me. I don't know if he didn't like me getting that close (although I wasn't that close really) or what. I was crouched down a little bit which I know he doesn't like. Who knows. He and Bear go to the ophthalmologist next Saturday for their regular check-up.



Had lunch with my sister and I. today at Nancy Chang's in Worcester. It's about the best Chinese food around. My sis flew in from CA overnight but was amazingly awake and we had a lot of fun. She always brings cool gifts. This time it was lychee tea from Seattle and a soy candle from New Orleans. Plus pineapple bones for the pups.

Our Global VP of HR comes tomorrow to visit the plant I work at. I'm a little nervous about it. Not about meeting him but about keeping him engaged all day. Wish me luck.

Portland for PRNE

On May 2nd, I. and I took Pogo up to Planet Dog in Portland for an information session for PRNE. We had a lot of fun although it was a pretty quiet day at the store. Pogo was much braver than when we took him on vacation to Ohio. Had a delicious dinner at 555. I can't rave enough about that restaurant. We had a quick lunch at the cafe at Whole Foods right next to Planet Dog. Another great place to eat with delicious burgers and strawberry shakes. I saved Pogo a bit of my burger and when we went back out to the car, I. tried to give it to him. Well, he had been placed in the back seat while we were in Whole Foods and refused to eat until he was in the front seat. What a personality he has.

If you'd like to look at the pictures of our trip, you can see them here:

PRNE Portland visit

Mr. Jack and his good friend Sammy

They love to chase after each other. Sammy is a little slower than Jack but they have a great time anyway. Please excuse the poor camera work, it was hard to hold my mobile phone steady while being pulled by a 23 pound Jack!

And another barker

The need for doggie earmuffs

Kitty watching

So I'm sitting at my desk, typing this, watching a cat seek shelter from the rain under the tarp a neighbor has over his woodpile. I think it might be the same cat that I watched walk through the snow. Anyway, as he walked from the shelter of the neighbor's car to the tarp I saw that he was limping badly. It looks like he has something wrong with one of his front feet. I get so angry at people who let their animals roam loose. I don't know if this is a feral cat or if he's just out for the day. It's maddening. Would anyone let their two year old child roam the streets all day? If they did, what would people say? What would people do?

He's resting now. I hate being stuck like this. If I try to go out to him he might very well run away. If I leave him there I don't know what will happen to him. Grrr.

I. groomed Miss Minnie last weekend and did a fabulous job. She is such a beautiful girl. Just beautiful. This is the pile of fur that was left.


Almost enough to make another Minnie. And here she is, her beautiful self.