Mutts & Minis, part II and a bonus story

When we were driving to Mini of North Scottsdale to see the Halo dogs, the boys were talking non-stop.  I mentioned that I wish there was some silence in the truck.  Chief agreed, "Yes, we need the cone of silence."  (From "Get Smart")  I laughed, which made me think of the "cone of shame" from the movie, "UP." 

We always get a kick out of referencing that movie for several reasons, but the oddest is because of an acquaintance's remark.  I had told this person that we went to see "UP" (when it first came out) and she said to me that they saw, that same weekend, "Transformers," for the second time.  There's a irrelevant story behind why she saw that movie for the second time, which was followed by, "I didn't like 'UP,' it was totally unrealistic."  Total silence on my part.  Later, I told Chief this and his immediate response was, "Was it the floating house or the talking dogs that she found unrealistic?"  We laughed and then he asked if she thought "Transformers" was realistic.  I told him I didn't even bother to ask, because the conversation was too strange to begin with.

For those who were wondering about our dog outing--there were a lot of cute dogs waiting for forever homes.  All but one was little--some larger dogs were already adopted by the time we arrived.  The Halo volunteers were awesome, so, eventually, we will go to their facility and see what they have.  We'd really like 2 larger dogs.  Stuart keeps saying 3.  Here's a dog similar (mostly coat and size) to the one I fell in love with:



google images

Sherman was his name and he had ginormous ears and a larger snout.  He was the most laid-back large, little dog I'd ever seen.  He was later adopted.

Little Man was so excited to see the dogs that he wanted to write them a note.  It was really to the people who brought the dogs and it was to tell them that he wanted to buy one of the dogs, but his dad said no.  The ladies thought it was so sweet of him to write the note--I had to explain what the "no" part meant, that Saturday was a day for looking and that we eventually adopt.

His Lordship is an Ass



We've been watching Downtown Abbey with great enthusiasm and last night Chief says to me, "I wish my wife would refer to me as "His Lordship" when I wasn't around."  We were watching the scene where the housekeeper gives Lady Cora an update on His Lordship's valet and Lady Cora refers to her husband as "His Lordship."  I made sure I heard him correctly, we have a hearty laugh and we continue watching.  A minute later I tell him that he's going to regret ever saying that.  He returns with, "I know I will." 

After we watch the show he was saying something silly and I give him the look and he says, "I know, His Lordship's an ass."  It took me a minute to figure out that he was referring to himself.  You see, whenever he's being jokingly rude I always tell him "he's being an ass" and he responds with "yes, I know, I'm an ass."  It's a funny exchange we do to rib each other--it's always preceeded by the look.  I roared with laughter and told him he'd done it--I'd have to blog about that one!

I'm not sure I'm prepared to start calling him His Lordship, even if in jest.  I had to stop calling his cell his "girlfriend" because the boys started calling it that.  Chief's cell would ring and if on the rare occasion it wasn't on his person, the boys would bring it to him saying, "It's your girlfriend," as they handed the cell to him.  You can see how that sounded and looked.  I don't think people would get our "Lordship" joke at all.  Do you?

If you get a spare moment and are looking for something different to watch, I highly recommend Downtown Abbey.  It well done.  Even for those addicted to nasty reality TV, because this is filled with backbiting and drama and a lot of good one-liners.  Tastfully, of course.  Maggie Smith's character, Cousin Violet, has a good share of them.

A Sign! Mutts & Minis

It's a sign!  I was talking to our pest guy, Tony, about Buddy--all the service people are asking because Buddy made it known that he was here & this was his house.  It was reciprocal entertainment, actually.  At one point Tony mentioned Halo rescue shelter.  Halo is one of his clients and when he's done working there, he goes in & plays with the dogs.  We chatted a bit more and then he said he was going to go home & hug his English Bulldog.  I'm surrounded by sensitive ponytail guys--it was very sweet.  You have to love that!  Coupled with the dogs are Minis--hear me out...while I love my Mini it's getting a little small for the boys in the back seat & hot, as well.  We've been looking at the Countryman (it's the kind of a silly looking SUV Mini--like a Mini on steroids, wearing platforms; it's the silver 4-door in the pic), but it fits the boys comfortably in the back, Jon can manage in the front while the boys are the back (can't in the Mini) and it's grown on me.  Besides, it's still a Mini.  I just had that conversation with Tony (the pest guy) last Friday and about a week ago I had the Countryman conversation with Tony (the mailman--he's a Mini fan & was chatting me up about my Mini).  This shows up in my inbox this morning:



Tell me that isn't a sign?  Please pass your comments on to Chief, so he can get on board, too.

Yes, they both are named Tony.

Profound Statement by the Wee One

http://www.graphicsfairy.com/



The boys were sick, again, on Monday.  However, Stuart rallied pretty quickly and was non-stop into everything.  As an aside, he's paying for it the past two days because he's feeling worse than he did on Monday because he didn't rest when he stayed home...we've had this lingering flu-like cold that has come equipped with a death-cough for weeks now.  Max was home with 103.5 temps off and on for a week, two weeks ago, but the rest of us has been gimping along.  It's not been pretty. 

Max felt bad for me when he finally got up, which was around noon--he was so exhausted from coughing all night and the lingering cold.  I told him not to feel bad, if you're sick you're sick there's no need to apologize.  He could tell Stuart was jumping on my last nerve by that point of the day.  He responds with how I had to stay home because of them and I told him immediately that my first job is to take care of them and you both needed the rest.  Then Stuart chimes in with, "Yeah, and your second job is to have fun with us."  He said that with all seriousness.

Food for thought.

Hard campaigning begins...now!

I asked Stuart to go get a book so I could read to him before bed.  He returns with "Dogs and Puppies," which is a child's guide to procuring and caring for dogs and puppies.  A kind of "things to think about" before you choose a pet book.  It's a good book.  I actually bought it for Max when he was in 1st grade, so he could think about all that went into dog stewardship.  It didn't get read a whole lot back then...

The funny thing is my yoga buddy (more on that later) asked me if we were going to get another dog.  I took a long pause and said, well, eventually.  I said the boys and I would like 2 dogs and I think Jon only wants 1.  However, if Stuart had it his way he'd get enough for a sled team.  No joke.  He thinks 3 is reasonable and in the cards for him.  He's really pushing for a sled team.  I think I've finally convinced him Daddy will never willingly allow us to get a Chihuahua or any other small dog--I think the tea leaves told me that one, wink, wink.  He talks about building a sled-like vehicle for our streets (versus the snow he wishes we had), which is really funny because when Buddy and Trigger were young and wild I saw a dog chariot in DOG magazine.  Before you scream animal cruelty, this article was about a woman who was rehabbing (Did I spell that correctly?  Is that really a word?) her dog after surgery for a torn ACL.  Playing fetch wasn't doing it and so she build this chariot so the dog could get exercise without reinjuring itself.  It was an interesting article and then I, too, became obsessed with a street chariot pulled my 2 dogs.  Seriously, the things I spend my time on!  Like those 2 could agree which way to go, ha, ha!  So when Stuart carries on about a team of dogs, I whistfully think about it before I espouse the party line (with tongue in cheek). 

There's actually a company that sells dog carts (see video link below), not quite what the lady from the article had built (hers was an actual chariot), but it still makes me roar with laughter.  I think Daddy's in big trouble.  Stuart is one hell-bent child and he likes to built and create.  I'll keep you posted on the dog front. 

http://www.youtube.com/v/nnNvJUWVX6U&hl=en_US&feature=player_embedded&version=3%22%3E%3C/param%3E%3Cparam

Dogs and Delivery People

This is kind of a two-fold story.  Part of it has to do with dogs and part has to do with the mailman.  I preface today's story this way, because Chief was making fun of me (in a good way) about my relationship with our mail carriers.  It starts like this...

A couple of days ago, the mailman left a package for me at the front door.  I went to the porch to pick it up and went around the corner, to holler "thank you!"  Tony, the mailman, comes back and very quietly and tentatively asks, "Is everything o.k. with your dog?  I haven't heard him in a while."  I explain what happened and he tells me how sorry he is and how he knew that he made Buddy's day.  He most certainly did!  Nothing gave that dog greater joy than letting the world know that this was his home and he has his hairy eyeball on you!  He was yelling at the UPS guy the day before we had to put him down--stomach cancer be damned!  Nancy says that Buddy is in doggy heaven, kickin' ass and taking names.  I'm pretty sure he is, too.

At any rate, this leads to Tony telling me a story about his last two sets of dogs.  (I told him that Chief wanted a break between dogs.  The boys & I would love more, now.)  He had a Tibetan Terrier, who was allegedly as dumb as a box of rocks.  It was a kind of medium sized dog with long, silky hair.  Once, it was lost for two days and one of the other mail carriers saw a sign for him.  Tony went to the lady's house to get his dog, but the dog didn't want to come home because she was getting ready to cook bacon.  I told him my kids would probably do the same thing to me if someone was getting ready to cook bacon, but that's a different story.  At any rate, this dog's day finally came and Tony decided he wanted to be dogless for a while.



Tibetan Terrier via google search

He said he has some neighbors who were apparently a little odd about animals.  One day, the man rang Tony's doorbell and told him his dog was outside.  Tony tried to tell him that he didn't have a dog any more, but the man insisted.  He shows him a Lhasa Apso.  This dog is a lot smaller than his old terrier but similar in coloring and long haired.  The man then insisted there were two.  Where?  Around the corner peeks another one.  Apparently, they were brother and sister.  From no dogs to two and in no time!  Tony tried to contact the owner, but she had moved and left no forwarding address with licensing.  He even went to her old neighborhood to look for her.  He also had all of his carrier friends look out for signs.  No luck.  He's now the proud owner of two dogs, which he says are the smartest dogs, ever.  He even showed me pics on his cell. 



Lhasa Apso via google search

Now, as I'm telling Chief this story he's chuckling at me.  I'm becoming annoyed because I think he's making fun of my idle chatting about dogs.  No.  He thinks it's amusing that I'm "friends with all the mailmen"--his words.  He thinks it's even funnier because Tony never really talked to me before and this is the second time in a couple of weeks that I've mentioned him.  The first was our long conversation about our love of Mini Coopers.  He's been on our route for a couple of years now and he's just now warming up to me.  Always friendly, but on the shy side.  Pat, our old mailman, loved to chat.  Loved to chat and was no wallflower.  If he had a package for me, you better believe he was ringing the gate to let me know he was a coming.  So, Chief says, you're the only one I know who is friends with the all the delivery people.  I don't find that odd at all.  I think I'm pretty darn blessed to have such great delivery people coming to my house.  What I think is so funny are the stories these people tell me.  Yes, they are nice and have funny stories to share.  Who doesn't like to get to know someone better, especially when it involves a good-natured laugh?