roomies

So Sam and Gracie and I have a couple of new roomies. 

One of the roommates is Kealey.  He's an 11 month old shitzu puppy.  Sam is very very slowly starting to adjust/warm up to Kealey.  Gracie so far is being cautious. 

Puppies have a lot of energy.  Sam and Gracie will both be turning 9 next month. They are not quite seniors yet but I can see it's going to take them a little while to get used to having someone who just wants to play, around all of the time.

It's actually pretty adorable to watch Kealey. He follows Sam around and wants to be everywhere Sam is.  Sam is not too thrilled about it but he's getting used to it.  When Sam growls at Kealey, Kealey mimics it back to Sam.  Pretty sure Sam thinks that Kealey is being a smart ass but I think he should be flattered!! Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery after all, right?

He's going to have to, I don't think Kealey will be going anywhere for a good long while.

keep your doggies safe

I saw this image today, courtesy of the wonderful folks at PeaceandPaws.org. It's a terrific reminder that not all pets are happy about troops of kids banging on the front door, in costumes, after dark, all evening.

Every year on Halloween, Mark takes our pups downstairs and the three of them camp out in the basement while I stay up and shell out to the various zombies, princesses and Harry Potters who visit our house. Sam and Grace don't like it much but it's better for them than getting stressed out by trick-or-treaters.

Halloween can be a very stressful time for your pets so please don't leave them alone and definitely don't let them outside unsupervised. / of my public service announcement (without guitar) - have a happy Halloween!!

Happy News Year

Double Rainbow Saturday
Originally uploaded by Julep67

I feel like I start almost every post with an apology for not having posted recently. This time, I'm not apologizing, I'll just acknowledge it. It's been a while, hasn't it?

I decided that it may be easier to do a category driven update, it'll be easier for me that way and I'm all about keeping things easy / simple for me.

Work Stuff
Just before the Christmas break, I moved into a new office space. It's so nice, I can't get over what a difference it is making. The room my office mate and I were in before, was an “inside” room – we did not have windows which opened to the outside and lacked fresh air. The building I'm in was constructed in 1837 and has been added onto a couple of times. The room I had occupied previously was next to a stair case which had been added sometime (likely) in the 1960's or 1970's when the building stopped being a home and became offices. Our windows faced into a stairwell and thus needed to be sealed shut for fire regulations. My new space is gorgeous and features a large, deep window (I love large window sills!) and a view of Lake Ontario. Our old space has been turned into a meeting room and we've been working at getting organized.

Last week, I returned to work on Tuesday. It was very quiet around here because most of my colleagues with school-aged children took the week to be home with them. It was quite nice to ease back into things last week

Home Stuff
We had a really lovely holiday season this year. I convinced Mark to take the few days off between Christmas and New Years and stay home with me. Normally he works that week and business is so slow that it turns him into a miserable grump. We spent the week doing very little. Visits with some family and friends, vegging out, sleeping in and watching all four seasons of "Sons of Anarchy" is how we spent our holiday. By the time it was over, we both felt well rested and recharged for the new year.

Pet Stuff
Unfortunately, poor Sammy fell ill last week. Thursday night, his bottom seemed to be bugging him and I was a little concerned about him as we went off to bed. Through the night, he woke us all up, pretty miserable. Eventually we were able to get him into bed with us and he seemed comfortable. He'd never had a problem like this before and I thought that he may have been constipated. He wouldn't let me get anywhere near his bum so I couldn't see if anything weird was going on (with two long-haired dogs, we're very familiar with back-end clean ups or “dingle-berry-ectomies” as we like to call them – they're more “fun” that way!). We got him an appointment to see the vet on Friday afternoon and discovered that he'd had an abscessed anal gland. Once they expressed it and packed it full of antibiotics, he was like a whole new guy. Fortunately, the wound wouldn't require sutures/drains but we did need to start him on a course of oral antibiotics and pain meds and try to keep him away from his butt! Not easy if you know anything about dogs. The drugs were easy to disguise but helping keep the wound clean was difficult. The first time I applied the cold compress to it, he yelped so loud that I thought my heart would just break. Last night, for the first time, he didn't make a sound when I did it (although he did flinch a bit). I can tell that it's healing nicely and he's done with the pain meds. He's going back to the vet for a follow up on Friday and he'll be taking the antibiotics until Monday but it's over the worst of it. Thank goodness. I have to say, the only thing I HATE about dogs is their inability to tell us when they are not feeling well.

Sam's butt aside, we're starting the new year off well. We've got some goals and plans for 2012 but I wouldn't call them resolutions. They are really more like projects. I hate resolutions because I never keep them. Projects though, I can do!

winter lights and paw prints

winter lights and paw prints
Originally uploaded by Julep67

I guess all of the snow we didn't get in November had decided to visit us all at once. It feels like it hasn't stopped snowing since Sunday morning but I actually know that this isn't true.

Winter. It's definitely here and it looks like it'll be here for a while. Good thing I gots me some new boots huh?? My old ones were literally falling apart so I splurged out on a new pair just before Christmas. They are really sturdy and warm but I'm having a bit of a time adjusting to them because they are a little higher than my old one (they are like a hiking boot - I have big ass snow boots for shovelling in).

I've managed to survive the first two days of being back to work in spite of the fact that for some reason I got almost no sleep last night. I woke up every 40 minutes or so, either too hot or too cold or just plain old uncomfortable. I suspect I will sleep like the dead tonight, based on how I feel right now. I hate when I have nights like that because honestly, I really enjoy sleeping.

The one nice thing about this snowy cold snap is how happy it makes Sam. He LOVES the snow. Loves it! Last night, in a minus a million wind chill, he was sitting at the top of the steps on the deck, smiling his big joker grin while the snow swirled around him. If we didn't drag his butt into the house, I think he'd stay out there all day. Gracie is enjoying it more this year than last (she HATED going out in the cold last winter) but she does not dig it as much as the Sam man does.

So yeah, there truly is a silver lining to every snow cloud, right?

waiting for squirrels

waiting for squirrels
Originally uploaded by Julep67

Just got back from running an errand on campus and cannot get over how hot the midday sun is today. We're in the midst of a humid spell and I'd love nothing more than some lungs full of fresh cool air.

I think the weather is getting to the dogs too. They have access to the air conditioned house, lots of shade in the yard, water and ice cubes but they both seem a little off the past two days.

Sammy woke up in the middle of the night, whimpering to go outside. when I got up to let him out, he ran outside when I stepped onto the deck (to turn the motion sensor lights on). He was a little skittish though and every time the bug zapper zapped, he jumped. Eventually he was able to do his thing but it seemed, well let's just say different, like he was a little upset (his tummy). He then ran back into the house and normally, he likes to do a little "hey I just pooped" dance before doing that.

When we came back into the house, he ate a little of the kibble which was leftover in his bowl and then settled back to sleep. Shortly after we woke up, he barfed the kibble up (on Mark's side of the bed). On the weekend, he got a hold of one of Mark's work gloves and I think he ate part of the thumb so that could be what's got him out of sorts, could be the humidity too.

Gracie seems to be faring a bit better although since we had the carpet cleaned, she's full of piss and vinegar. I still haven't put the room back entirely so there is a little more room for her to play in and she's taking full advantage of it, chasing Sam, at top speed, wanting to wrestle with either Mark or I (and getting us to play along).

Btw, the carpets turned out well. I'm pretty impressed and wondering why I've not done it before!

Sam in pre-bark mode

Sam in pre-bark mode
Originally uploaded by Julep67

. Sam can go from zero to bat-shit crazy barking in the blink of the eye

. other times, he's on a slow boil and I can tell when he's going to get loose and bark

. he doesn't bark for the sake of barking

. Sam barks with purpose, usually to let folks walking on the sidewalk in front of our house know that they don't have his permission to be on his sidewalk

. Sam also barks at our asshole next door neighbours

. I think he knows that we don't like them any more than he does

. his fur is starting to grow back. he is looking a little bit less like a baby lamb every day

. our office barbecue yesterday was fun. the weather was gorgeous, I laughed a lot, it was a nice break from the usual Wednesday afternoon stuff

. I was saddened to hear about this this morning. Going through the process for an international adoption is difficult at the best of times. What's going to happen to the 500 families and potential adopted children, who are now in limbo?

status update on the peanut

icy gracie
Originally uploaded by Julep67

. I have many names for our Miss Gracie: Gracie, Princess Grace of my Heart, Peanut, Peanut Butter, Princess Peanut

. happily, I can report that she's much better today, almost too much better

. too much because she's wrestling like crazy with Sam and I'd like to see taking it easy but you can't always tell her what to do

. she's still on her meds (every night with dinner) on the advice of the vet but I may take her off it on the weekend

. things are awesome at the moment, the weather is lovely, work is going well, life is good

. I really can't complain about anything because when I put it into perspective (and I do try hard to do this) and compare our lives with those of folks who live in war-torn places bitching about money or having a dirty house or whatever thing I'm moaning about seems pretty petty

knot my problem

knot my problem
Originally uploaded by Julep67

. I'm slightly over tired tonight

. it's not surprising

. we were shaken out of bed on Sunday night by a massive thunder storm

. last night, we both slept with one ear open, listening for Gracie

. poor Gracie hurt herself and had to go to the vet last night

. still not 100% sure what is wrong, seems like some soft tissue damage, the vet thought that nothing was broken

. she's on a daily dose of some pain medication and if the problem doesn't go away from the pain meds and her resting a bit (she's been very good about taking it easy), she'll have to get some blood work done and have x-rays

. she seems a bit better now, had a bad spell earlier this evening but I think the meds I gave her with her dinner have kicked in

. I hate it when the dogs are sick because I feel so helpless

. I hope we all get a good night's sleep tonight and feel better in the morning

Sammy's got a new doo

Sammy's got a new doo
Originally uploaded by Julep67

. I'll admit that it took me almost an entire day to adjust to Sam with his new, cool, summer hair cut. The only fluffy bits left on him are his tail and behind his ear. Gracie had to sniff his but a bunch of extra times when he got home to make sure it was Sam.

. Today is my last day in the office for a week. That's right kiddos, I'm off next week. Keep your fingers crossed for me that it's sunny and nice, I have outside painting I need to do next week.

. Of course, if it did rain, I could hang out in the gazebo with the dogs and a pile of trade paperbacks I have.

. I tweeted this last night but feel that it needs repeating, this is not a good week for pop culture icons from my 1970's childhood.

. In a way, I'm sure that the O'Neal / Fawcett must be a little relieved to be pushed to the edge of the spotlight right now. Given what they've been going through for the past 3+ years as they've supported Farrah in her battle against cancer, I'm sure they'll be grateful for some peace.

doggy day trip

doggy day trip
Originally uploaded by Julep67

Today we had a great day.

For a whole bunch of reasons, both Mark and I booked off today and in amongst looking after the stuff we needed to look after, we took a road trip to Trenton. Gracie had never been to the Quinte West Dog Park and Sam had a blast when we took him so we thought we'd go again.

It was awesome (although the wind was pretty cold). They had a great time, running around, meeting some new dog buddies and hanging out in the van. They are good road trip dogs. We even took the Glenora Ferry to Adolphustown (and were at the front of the ferry) and they were really good. It's a much smaller ferry than the Wolfe Islander so they could see the water and didn't freak.

Good doggies huh? Of course now, all four of us are tired. Too much fun and fresh air I guess. It was a great way to end the weekend.

inaction balls

inaction balls
Originally uploaded by Julep67

The raccoons are here to stay, we think.

On Friday morning and again this morning, we saw them. Quite late in the morning, well after the sun came up.

Tonight, they were on top of our shed, taunting the dogs.

If this keeps up, it's going to be a long summer. I feel badly for the dogs because they are doing what's natural to them, barking at the raccoons and defending our home. Unfortunately, it's noisy and we live in the city and until we told a couple of neighbours what had happened on Thursday morning, they were cursing us, I'm sure.

On the other hand, if someone was trying to break into a neighbours' house, I think they'd bark at that too so...it's not always as bad as it might seem.

our hero

Saturday Sammy
Originally uploaded by Julep67

Don't ever let it be said that Sam is not protector of his domain!

This morning, we awoke to the sound of what we at first thought were geese. Because it was 4:40 a.m. though, when Mark said, "oh no, I bet the dogs will start barking at the geese when they go out" I couldn't help but think it seemed early for geese. It was still dark out, by some folks standards, the middle of the night even.

Of course, as soon as the door was open, the dogs flew off the deck, barking loudly. They wouldn't come when I called them so I too went out onto the deck (in bare feet) to try to get them back. They were both down at the bottom of our yard, barking up toward the top of our 6 foot fence. A top the fence sat Daddy Raccoon. He was a big Daddy and I was terrified that he was going to lunge at the dogs. Those boys have razor sharp claws and can kill a dog if they're cornered.

It seemed like Daddy Raccoon was dancing along the fence. At one point, he dropped off the fence into our neighbours' yard, Seconds later, he popped his head up and seemed to be taunting Sam and Gracie. All the while, I'm still calling the dogs, my feet are frozen and I'm on the verge of tears. Mark came out (smartly wearing shoes) and was able to grab Sam and get them back in the house.

We sort of thought that the drama was over. Once we got back into the bedroom though, we could hear the geese sound again. Almost at the same time, we both wondered aloud if there wasn't a raccoon nest next to our house because we were now thinking that there baby raccoons somewhere. The sound was coming from the west side of our house which is a completely fenced area containing our air conditioner and some bark chips. The sounds we kept hearing were like something crying and scratching.

Mark went to the window and noticed that there were raccoons now up on our neighbours roof. What we think happened was the mommy and two babies got up there and the babies couldn't get back down. Daddy was trying to figure out how to get them down and then Sam and Gracie came along. He was taunting them earlier, kind of like "hey, look at me, don't look at the house next door where my family are trapped." We stood in the window, listening to the distress calls and seeing poor Daddy pacing across our fence, snorting like a piggy. Honestly, I've never heard raccoons before so this was educational but upsetting.

We started to get concerned about the dogs. We knew that we couldn't let them go back outside until the raccoons were gone and we started to worry that if the raccoons were trapped, Daddy could attack our dogs or one of the many dogs who would be coming out for their morning walks.

I decided to call the police communications office and find out if they had a 24 hour animal control line (because I couldn't find anything on our city website). They were nice and friendly but not really helpful. I ended up calling the Humane Society and put out a page to their emergency people. A lovely woman called me and when I told her what was going on, she assured me that as the light came up (this was around 5:30 a.m.), if mom and dad were around, they would move heaven and earth to get those babies down. She did say though, that if the sun was up and the raccoons were still up there, we could call back and they could coordinate some folks to help get them down. Fortunately, at a little after 6, just as the sun was coming up, I saw the mommy and the last baby on our neighbour's fence, heading for wherever home is.

I was really relieved that they were going to be okay. I waited another 30 minutes or so before letting the dogs out again. They didn't bark when they went out but they did go to the fence and sniff and explore everything, just to make sure it was safe. They're very good doggies.

Hopefully, our neighbours won't be too pissed about the barking so early in the day but sometimes, it just can't be helped!

i love this face

on the ferry, heading home
Originally uploaded by Julep67

If Sammy didn't like to play out on the deck when I was leaving for work every morning, I think I'd never leave the house.

Speaking of our deck, I'm really excited about the plans Mark and Andy have made for it. We're going to remove the old deck boards, reinforce the frame and put new floor boards in. The guys are also going to add a 10' x 10' extension to the deck. It'll be about a foot higher than the rest of the deck and we'll put our gazebo on it (we'll be reusing some of the wood we purchased to build our little gazebo platform last year).

Originally, we'd planned to put this off for a while but we decided that we would take advantage of the cash back deals that the home improvement stores are doing, as well as the tax credit thing that the feds introduced. We should be able to do this relatively inexpensively if we do it this summer. Sammy will have a lot nicer space to roll around on all summer once it's done.

Today I'm at work and am freezing. My hands cannot warm up. We tried to get by without having to turn the heat up in our office but about an hour ago we had to break down and do it. These old hot water rads take forever to kick in though so it's just starting to feel like heat as I type this.

I think that after the weekend, we were fooled into thinking that it was actually going to stay warm and things like furnaces and sweaters can be pushed out of our tiny pea brains for a while. How wrong were we!? Pretty wrong it would seem. I'm trying hard to not complain though. As long as the snow stays away, I'm a happy kid.

what's in a name?

new friends
Originally uploaded by Julep67

Last night, Bella went home. Again, about an hour before Annette came by to pick her up, she sat in the living room, patiently staring out the window. It was pretty cute.

When Annette did finally get there, we were having a bit of a visit and Bella, who is normally very quiet, was making all kinds of "hey, I'd like to go home now" noises. I think Sam and Gracie were kind of missing her last night at bed time.

Speaking of Sam and Gracie, I saw this today and had to share it. It's a "what does my dog's name mean" thing and for our two, it's very accurate, spooky.

SAM – Sam is a carefree name given to dogs with a good outlook on life. They seem to know what is important and that have a special place in your heart. They are loyal and kind. Origin: Hebrew. The meaning is: Heard by God.

GRACIE – Dogs named Gracie are often graceful, agile and sweet. They can be described as sincere and devoted companions. They are often energetic and like to play. They often have an inner "wild" steak that occasionally comes out. Origin: Latin. The meaning is: Faithful.

activity ball

activity ball
Originally uploaded by Julep67

We had barbecued ingredients in our dinner tonight. It was so awesome! For the first time in a while (probably since November some time), Mark grilled us a bunch of veggies for our pasta. The weather was really mild today and yesterday's ice was almost gone so it was a great opportunity to fire up the bbq.

The dogs were pretty impressed too. As I've mentioned before, they live in hope: hope of food being dropped on the floor. The odds of dropped food increase significantly when the food has to be transported from the deck to the kitchen. Add to that, an icy in spots deck and well, they were pretty excited. Of course, Mark didn't drop anything so they had to settle for kibble for dinner.

Tomorrow, Gracie goes back to the vet for the second half of her booster shot. She was really well behaved for the vet the first time we took her (in mid-December), I'm not too worried about tomorrow. The only thing that mildly concerns me right now is the weather. We're due to get another dump of snow over night and into tomorrow. Of course, it might never happen so I'm not getting too bent out of shape about it. I just don't like driving around in anymore than is absolutely necessary when the weather is bad.

Even though it's technically winter and this type of thing is to be expected at this time of year, I'm hoping that it stays mild. It would be really nice if we could keep barbecuing all winter!!

happy new year

gracie models
Originally uploaded by Julep67

Is everyone having an excellent 2009 so far?

We have been having a great day here. I finally took down the Christmas tree this morning while we watched the Tournament of Roses parade on the tv machine. Over the past few days, I'd taken down almost all of the decorations, except the tree. It feels good to have it down and packed away. I was able to clean the living room and rearrange the furniture again so that's kind of nice. I still have a bunch of ornaments in one of our spare bedrooms which need to be packed away but I think I'll do that tomorrow. I want to sort through stuff this year and maybe give some of my old ornaments to someone who is crafty and can do something with them.

Last night was a quiet evening for us. We had a nice dinner together and then just watched some tv. I know that we were up later than normal but we didn't make it to midnight. New Years isn't a massive deal for us so we don't usually make a big thing of being awake at midnight.

One thing I did do yesterday was go to the grocery store for the first time in over a week. It was kind of snowy and bitterly cold (and it was early in the morning) so it wasn't busy when I got there. As I was leaving it was filling up though so I'm glad I got it done when I did. I'd been advised by one of the ladies at our local pet store to go in after Christmas for discounted rawhide treats for the dogs. While I was there buying candy cane shaped rawhides at half price, I picked up a little sweat shirt for Gracie. She's really sensitive to the cold so I thought I'd find a sweater for her. I picked up a little pink "Roots" hoodie for her. I'm not much about labels so the Roots thing didn't matter to me as much as the price and the quality of it. It was on sale and it is really well made. She looks absolutely adorable in it. Fortunately, she doesn't mind wearing it which is great because it's been quite cold here for the past couple of days.

So yeah, the new year is off to a quiet, peaceful, productive-ish start in our house. I have a feeling that 2009 is going to be a good one for us, I hope it's good for all of you too!

waiting for the dough to drop

waiting for the dough to drop
Originally uploaded by Julep67

enjoying a sociable holiday season = not a lot of time in front of the computer

I'm not complaining though, I'd rather be seeing people and laughing and having conversations than sitting in front of the computer, if I'm honest.

Over the past week or so, we've had a few more people 'round the house than we normally would. Gracie has been taking it all in stride but Sam's been doing his typically Eskie thing and barking like mad at folks. With each new visitor, the outbursts are shorter but it's a little embarrassing.

In a way, he's a little bit like a goldfish. He'll meet a guest, bark and bark, and eventually chill out. When he comes around the corner again and sees them again, it starts all over again. Fortunately, the barking jag is not long but it's still sort of funny, in a loud barking kind of way.

Mark's been back to work the past couple of days but I'm still off. I go back on Monday. It's been a great break for me and he's been able to take a few days off here and there so he's a break as well. I think I'll start to pack up Christmas tomorrow. I put our gifts away on Sunday evening but the tree and the decorations are still up for the moment. They are pretty and I love them but it's almost time and goodness knows it'll be easier clean once everything is put away!

sofa king sam

sofa king sam
Originally uploaded by Julep67

I think that Bella is totally tuned in to Jamie and Annette in a semi-spooky way. When we got home last night, I called them to find out if they were back in town and if they wanted to pick up Bella last night or tonight. I got their machine and left a message. We went about our business, fed the dogs, got our dinner ready, just regular after work stuff.

While we were sitting down to dinner, Sam and Gracie were hanging out in the kitchen. See, they live in hope that something is going to fall from the table and into their mouths. They aren't greedy, they don't beg, they just watch us very closely, and they hope. Normally, Bella is with them but last night, she was sitting by the front door. Bella never sits by the front door, that is Sammy's spot. She's usually behind the chair, near the furnace register, snuggly and warm.

I tried calling her into the kitchen but she started to sort of cry, sort of softly howl. I think she knew that Jamie and Annette were back in town and she wanted to go home. It was the saddest thing that I'd heard in a while and I'd never heard her do it before. All evening, she was a little off, sort of clingy and sad. Eventually, we started getting ready for bed and the phone rang, it was Annette. She asked if we wanted her to pick up Bella at that time or wait until tonight. Given how sad Bella had been, I asked her to come right over. I think Bella was pretty happy to see Annette, after all, she'd been with us for 2 weeks and the accommodations had definitely changed since her last visit. What had previously been a very relaxing, pampered time had turned into non-stop puppy playfest and I think she'll be happy for the peace and quiet of her country home.

As much as the dogs have been wrestling and carrying on with each other, I think Gracie was missing Bella this morning. She seemed a little out of sorts and I think she was looking for her. Of course, she'll have forgotten all about Bella by the time we get home tonight but was interesting to observe all the same.

waiting for Mark

waiting for Mark
Originally uploaded by Julep67

The three dogs continue to get along. Bella will be here until at least Monday I think, possibily Tuesday.

Whenever I see them tearing around the house or the yard, I muse about how silly it is to buy expensive, pet store toys for dogs.

I saw the three of them get more fun out of an empty paper towel tube than they ever did from the giant kong which is always under foot.

I guess it's like kids huh?? They'd rather play in a refrigerator box than a plastic playhouse any day. Thinking about it, I can't say that I blame them!

the pack

I think that the dogs have finally bonded. Now that they are officially a pack, I think that Mark and I should probably be very nervous. They do out-number us now, after all.

After a couple of days of pooping and peeing and fighting (in the kitchen - yuck), things have settled down. The dogs are grooving together and playing well. It's pretty funny actually. Over the past couple of days we've had a tiny amount of snow. Of course, as I typed that, I glanced out the window and noticed that it's almost gone now. Okay, this morning, there was actually snow in the yard. I let the dogs out after Mark left for work (around 5:30 a.m.). I thought that they wanted to come in at one point but they just ran around the kitchen, realized that there was no snow on the floor, and ran out again. Even Gracie ran out (and she normally needs to be tossed out - she has fun when she gets there but needs convincing).

The pack stayed outside playing together in the snow until I left for work (around 7 a.m.). It seems that they run so hard and have so much fun out there that they don't mind being inside all day. I mean, Mark gets home a couple of times in the course of the day to let them out but I'm pretty impressed with how good-natured they are. Oh and cool. We have three cool dogs at our house right now. It's pretty awesome actually.