The Results Are In! - 03 January 2024

 As you can imagine (just look at these pictures if you have trouble), I get a lot of comments and questions about our dog, Billie, when we're walking around town. "What a beautiful dog!" "What a strange looking dog!" "What kind of dog is that?" "Is that a dog or a goat?" and on and on they go.

Well, after telling folks (pretty much at random) that she's a mutt, or a rescue, or a Canardly (as in you canaradly tell what kind of dog she is), or a Flemish Pointing Griffon, we decided it was time to get her DNA checked. 

We were really hoping there was no fainting goat in her background, and we were overjoyed to find out she came back 100% pure canis familiaris. That should put the questions to rest, I think.

Mass Hysteria - 03 January 2022 - Plague Journal Day 662

Micah 6:8
Deuteronomy 22:9-11
Yes, your life matters.

Some of you are still sheltering in place, but fear not: I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Dogs and cats living together? Mass hysteria... or not.

We may have reached the point where our animal friends begin to tolerate one another, possibly even to like one another!
I'm not saying they're going to curl up together for a nap today, but we've made immense progress on the canine-feline axis here. We had two cats in the living room at the same time as the dog and no blood was shed. (N.B. - no blood has been shed at any time, but they've not been hanging out even remotely together until now.)
In fact, I had Roma sitting on the couch with her head on my lap so I could pet her, and Billie sitting (nicely) at my feet so I could pet her at the same time. When Heidi pulled out her phone to snap a photo, they both thought better of there being any evidence, so they moved away - but we know what happened, and now so do you!

Hope springs eternal, as they say.


Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our insane lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

A Presidential Dog Walk - 27 October 2021 - Plague Journal Day 594

Micah 6:8
Joshua 4:1-7
Yes, your life matters.

Some of you are still sheltering in place, but fear not: I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Today is the 163rd birthday of the 26th President of the United States and Nobel Prize laureate, Theodore Roosevelt. Teddy was a bigger than life kind of guy, from his 7th Cavalry Rough Riders times (I wonder if he was a fan of either the Saskatchewan or Ottawa entries in the CFL) to his Presidency, founding the Bull Moose Party, starting our system of National Parks, exploring, canaling Panama (A man, a plan, a canal: Panama - it's always good to have a palindrome to post), and burying dead bodies in the basement for his "eccentric" aunts who mixed arsenic in the elderberry wine. (that last part may be fictional)

At any rate, I bring this up because the other day Billie and I had what we considered a Presidential walk. Not only did we see all the Presidents of Mount Rushmore, but also visited Denali.
"How could a human and a (still a puppy) dog - no matter how peripatetic - manage such a feat in a single day?" I hear you ask.
Well, we actually only walked in two of the Grosse Pointes, but managed to see the streets named for:
Washington, Jefferson, Lincoln, and Roosevelt in the City, as well as McKinley in the Farms. (Yes, I said Denali, but that's Mount McKinley on older maps if nothing else!) Pretty impressive, eh? (Oh great, that 'eh' probably means we'll have to look for some Canadian Prime Minister streets or something now.)

Keep Calm and Don't Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Show, Don't Just Tell - 01 May 2021 - Plague Journal Day 415

Micah 6:8
Luke 5:13-15
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

OK, everyone keeps asking me about Billie. "What kind of dog is that?" Largely, one supposes, the question comes because she's an odd-looking creature.
I think she actually has a very nice look, but many folks (Heidi!) think she looks like a goat. Her penchant for leaping like a goat doesn't help dissuade anyone. As you can see from the pictures here, she is a bit odd, but she's probably the finest example of a Belgian Wire-haired Terrier you'll ever see. (I'm pretty sure that's right. Check with the AKC if you doubt me.)

As you can see, she really enjoys playing with tennis and lacrosse balls. She'll even actually fetch them! Apparently wonders never cease.

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Dog Report Plus - 28 April 2021 - Plague Journal Day 412

Micah 6:8
Acts 17:24-28    Joshua 24:14-15
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

I'm sure you're all desperate to know how my first day of simultaneously covering work and dog management went. I'm happy to report that all went well.
Billie was good all day - I only had to step out of a meeting once to let her out - and she actually made sure I got enough walking in for the day. Bonus win-win, I guess.

Now for the plus. Today is Great Poetry Reading Day. I'm not sure to which part of that the "great" is meant to apply - the Poetry or the Reading - but I'm planning to pull out my Oxford Poetry collection and reprise my rousing reading of "I Am a Cowboy in the Boat of Ra" by Ishmael Reed. Back in my university days everyone used to ask me to read this ... people sometimes requested ... I once read this poem at a party and wasn't thrown out. Ah, the memories. Good times.

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Dog Day Afternoon (All Day, Really) - 27 April 2021 - Plague Journal Day 411

Micah 6:8
Mark 7:24-30
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Today is the 411th day of our two-week work from home regime. I've had weeks that seemed longer than seven days before, but nothing like this fortnight!
(As an aside, it seems that everyone knows 411 means information. What the younger folks might not remember is that at one time 411 was the number for directory assistance, way back before all the 555-1212 business. It's fun to see how old facts become new slang.)
I know it's not Summer yet, but today is my first Dog Day at work. Yes, there's a new dog here at Cleveland. Her name is Billie (because she looks and leaps like a goat) and she's about six months old.
Normally she goes to work with Heidi, but there's a case of kennel cough going around there, so I'm on duty today. I need to remember to let her out, feed her, all that good puppy stuff.
We'll see how it goes - wish me luck!

She's not old, and her name isn't Blue, but enjoy the Byrds anyway!

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Hi, Pup! - 23 March 2021 - Plague Journal Day 376

Micah 6:8
Luke 15:28-29
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

Today is National Puppy Day - very appropriate, as we seem to have added a puppy to our household. I think she looks like a dog, but apparently she's "unusual" enough that some folks think she looks like a goat. Apparently, one little girl saw her and asked what kind of animal that was. I feel sorry for both of them, I guess. At any rate, due to her somewhat caprine appearance (and her all-legs bounding and jumping around the back yard!), her name is now Billie. (get it?)

Take a look and let me know what you think. Is she a dog? a goat? something else?


Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

Get Up! It's Morning! - 19 March 2021 - Plague Journal Day 372

Micah 6:8
Proverbs 30:29-31   John 18:26-27
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?

 

Heidi mentioned to me the other day that she had heard a rooster crowing in the morning when she let Billie out. This past Sunday, I let her out and stood on the back porch to listen, and indeed, I heard a rooster somewhere pretty close by. That's an appropriate memory (and ongoing reality) today on National Poultry Day. It makes me wish I had some leftover coq au vin.

Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.
The mental health issues related to our lockdown and the pandemic are especially hard for people with depression. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, has a 24 hour helpline: 800-950-6264.

26 June 2020 - Plague Journal Day 106

Micah 6:8
Luke 8:22-25
Yes, your life matters.

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?


If we cross the border to the South here, we'll find ourselves in the Great White North (Canada to those not in the know), and we'll find ourselves there on National Canoe Day.
When I think of Canada and canoes, I go straight to that classic book (and later Canadian National Film Board film), Paddle-to-the-Sea, by Holling C. Holling.
It's the tale of an indigenous boy who carves a canoe with a paddler in it, names it Paddle-to-the-Sea, and releases it into Lake Nipigon. Well, that lake feeds into Lake Superior, and the little canoe manages to make it through the St. Lawrence Seaway right on out to where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean. It's a very exciting (and educational) tale; one which I like to give to kids when they get to the right age to enjoy reading books like that. (Sometimes I even give that book more than once. It's hard to keep track of who has what, and to whom I've given it.)
On a vacation in Ontario a few years back, we came across a large reproduction of Paddle-to-the-Sea in the town of Nipigon while we were getting a tire repaired (perhaps it was a tyre, we were in Canada after all), so clearly I'm not the only fan of the story.

Here's a bonus for you, with a warning.
In these United States of America, today is Take Your Dog To Work Day. These days there's probably more of a need for a Work Without Your Dog Day, but at least it should be fairly easy for many of us (especially for those who actually have dogs). Interestingly, today is also National Chocolate Pudding Day - a tasty treat indeed.
Please, be very careful if you're celebrating both of these!


Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

10 June 2020 - Plague Journal Day 90

We all are still sheltering in place, but I'm here to keep you sane and entertained.
One could hardly ask for much more than that, now could one?


Here's another in the series of things I've written. This is a poem I wrote when my niece, Kayla, came home from the hospital after being in the NICU for some time.

A New Life Greets The Dog

Home at last –
Later than hoped, yet sooner than feared –
Exhausted, exhilarated, her mother
Safely snuggles the new life.


Together, a family –
More anxious than he expected, yet happier than possible –
Beaming, approving, her father
Proudly welcomes the little girl.

Unwontedly calm –
More distant than expected, yet closer than he dares –
Sniffing, exploring, her puppy
Tentatively licks a tiny foot;
And she smiles.


Keep Calm and Stay Away.
I'll be back tomorrow.

The Dogs We Love

from grandteuton.blogspot.com

(I had to use that title, for when a DeWitt sees this post.)

Anyway, it was a dog's life, and we were privileged to share it for over fifteen years.

What a great dog.
From that little puppy watching the mist rise from the surface of Lake Nipigon, to that valiant dog making his final CROP Walk to help end hunger, to that somewhat unsteady old guy who had to be carried up and down the back steps, and so much between, that little dog with the funny tail has given us love and memories beyond measure ...
and to think we weren't ready for him.
 
We would have missed out on him, had Christian and James not picked him out of that litter of nine, and our lives would have been much the poorer for it.
Nice work, guys, nice work indeed.

Anyway, the poor old guy has been fighting a stinking bloody brain tumour for over a year, and we all knew that at some point he wasn't going to be able to keep it up, and now he hasn't; and once again, we weren't ready for him ... to go.

It's hard, but I'm glad I knew him and loved him and shared his joy in the simple act of living and being a dog. Kooder was the best dog that could be imagined, let alone that could be.

Have fun with the cats, buddy.

CROP Walk

Well, another CROP Walk in GP, and it was a spectacular day - thanks, Lord!

Kooder raised another $470 for world (and local) hunger - not bad for a 12-year old mutt.

We had a great time, and thanks to everyone who pledged their support.