My Life with Dogs and Cats

jeanne: hoping the best for you! Glad u got tht FENCE!

jeanne,

A few years ago I broke my leg and I was out of work from June 17 until after Labor Day. It was so wonderful to really rest without worrying about work responsibilities----and I was so lucky I had great friends who made of point of making the time fly. I am sorry you have to have surgery, but as much as you can, try to be very, very kind to yourself.

FINALLY!!! Hunter will go within the fenced area----oh, and so if that's ok....must be ok to go in the dinning room too?

(eye roll) Dog logic --only Hunter understands.

My last post was removed--which is probably good, since it was me being whiny and hating people ringing my door bell.

It's been nearly a month now since my surgery and I'm getting around, driving, gardening, and last Monday I puttered around Maplewood shopping, going to the library, and enjoying Memorial Park.

This must be how the other half (the people who don't have to commute in to NYC every day) live.

I don't remember the last time I was at the Library, or had the time to meander around town looking at all the shops, and spending an hour in a bookstore.

My garden has NEVER looked so good.

Glad you are doing well and enjoying your recovery time, Jeanne!

What Holiday is today???? I just called my car insurance company to cancel my policy with them, and the message I says they are closed in observance of the holiday.

Now which one of these holidays could it be?
Ingersoll Day?
National Raspberry Bombe Day?
Play in the Sand Day?
Presidential Joke Day?

Or are they observing yesterday's holiday?--National Lazy Day?

Google to the rescue! (Yes, I'm avoiding some tasks so I'm doing MOL and Facebook instead.) Apparently that office is in Rhode Island where Victory Day or VJ Day is celebrated on the 2nd Monday in August.

"President Truman declared September 2 as the official VJ Day in 1945. In the newspapers across world that day, there were hundreds of photos of soldiers and civilians rejoicing together. VJ Day is a legal state holiday only in the state of Rhode Island. Rhode Island has celebrated this day since 1948."
"State and municipal offices are closed in Rhode Island on Victory Day. Most banks are closed (although not all) but federal offices are open as are many stores, including retail stores, liquor stores and supermarkets. Mail delivery is on a regular schedule. Some bus services may not operate to their usual schedules during state holidays so those planning to use public transit services may need to check with the appropriate transport authorities prior to travel."

Either that or someone was too lazy to change the default message from July 4th!

Thanks musicmz!!!

Also celebrated in the East Hanover, NJ office of AAA. Maye the main AAA offices are in Rhode Island, so all the pilot offices get the day off too.

That explains it all!!!

I was leaning towards the NATIONAL LAZY DAY celebrations tho.

SO--what's it like to have a small pack of dogs living with you in the morning when you just want to sleep in?
THURSDAY August 14, 2014:

5:30am: Heavy breathing near persons face.
5:33am: 2 out of the three dogs are outside--eating grass and just sniffing around.
5:40am: Dog # 3 is still upstairs, looking out the window barking. (Sorry neighbors!)
Around 6am: Zombie-person makes breakfast for the pack. Dogs are wide awake and playful.
6:15am: Dog #1 goes back outside. Success!!!
6:20am: Dog #3 isn't interested in going outside and heads back to bed. Dog #2 goes outside to bark at the garbage man picking up the trash. (Sorry neighbors!)
6:33am: Everyone sleeping--snoring and kicking so the zombie can't sleep. Dog#2 keeps pushing zombie-person over closer and closer to the very edge of the bed.
6:35am" Dog #3 thinks now is a good time to go outside. Dog#1 stays in the bed. Dog #2 goes outside too, but does nothing. After checking with dog#2 several times, Dog#2 reassures zombie-person there is nothing to be done.
6:55am: Everyone but the zombie is peacefully resting in bed.
7:15am: Zombie-person finally nods off.
7:29am: Terrible smell awakens the zombie-person.
7:30am: "Who made this mess?" No dog confessions.
7:45am: Everyone sleeping--snoring and kicking so zombie can't sleep.
8:15am: "Is it really an emergency?"
8:18am: Everyone sleeping again....but zombie
10am: "I can go to the bathroom by myself. I don't need company in here!!!"
10:06am: "Who threw up in the bed???"
11am: Everyone is starring at zombie-person while zombie eats breakfast.
11:15am: Everyone sleeping on the couches--snoring....but the zombie

12:18am: "DOG WALKER IS HERE!!!!" (and the neighbors know it from the loud announcement from the beagles)

12:20am: Peace in the house with just one sleeping dog.
(flash to one dog fantasy)

12:50am: Chaos!!!!! (multi-dog reality is back)

And I thought the cats were bad in the early morning hours!

This week was my first full 5-day-week back at work.

.....I must find a new way to live that does not include working......I forgot....I hate it!

hmmmm my turning point for early retirement was 2007, when I broke my leg and was home (and not sick, just not able to work)from mid-June until September. I retired at my earliest opportunity and have never looked back. Start planning your escape, now!

it is perfectly fine for your dogs to bark at the neighbors. Now.

I will remind myself to refer back to the above post whenever I am having a moment when I consider adopting another dog. (This usually only happens when our dog is sleeping peacefully and looking unbelievably cute with his velvety soft beagle ears.). Then he wakes up and is a total terror as only a beagle can be and I am snapped back to the reality that one beagle is really equivalent to about 10 dogs of another breed!

And definitely start working on your exit strategy. Your dogs and your sanity will thank you! Any chance you could begin working from home part of the time?

cupoftea said:

...
Any chance you could begin working from home part of the time?

This is genius... any chance, Jeanne? Or could you find another position that would allow telecommuting at least part of the time? That made all the difference for me when I was getting good and sick of commuting to NYC and struggling with all it entailed. Until I retired on disability, that is.

So, Now I've been back at work a month.

...so I just dyed my hair tonight because...I must be crazy...driven there by my work....yeah, I said it, I blame work for this new hair!

Color?

Hah. I stopped coloring my hair very soon after I was laid off for the last time and retired into the Land of Disability and Unemployment. There just wasn't any point in continuing to dye it if I wasn't going to be trying to maintain that work image any more.

Thank goodness my salt-and-pepper with silver highlights and an ombre effect from very white in the front to darker in the back turns out to be pretty interesting. I think I get more compliments on my natural color now than I did when I was having it colored light blonde!

And yes, we want to know what color you went with, Jeanne.

(on Facebook) Looks like a warm blond-brown base with pink/orange ombre ends. She says it needs grape!

OKay..so the top color is my own natural color, and the bottom is Kool Aid cherry and watermelon. I do think I need to add grape to the ends tho.

Or a nice, dark auburn on the ends! Fun...

I want your natural color (which I had until I was 8 or 9 years old.

Does Kool Aid make an auburn color???? I really am limited--most the Kool Aid has red--even the blue berry!

Wait... am I really slow on the uptake here? Do you mean you actually dipped your hair in honest-to-god KOOL AID? How did I miss that this was intended to be taken literally?

.....LOL.....yes PeggyC....it's Kool Aid hair!

My Life With Dogs:

Simone has been afraid to go out the front door for some time, but tonight she insisted to go out front. She played a little, sniffed around and was outside (OUT FRONT) for about 10 minutes. Maybe she's on the road to NORMAL again.

It would be so much easier if she was willing to go out front--I could get her out, in the car and over to the vets to get her nails clipped.

jeanneh said:

.....LOL.....yes PeggyC....it's Kool Aid hair!

SNORT!

I'm glad Simone is back to being OK with the front yard. Hope that good trend continues.

I must be feeling better....or all these months on drugs has rotted my brain.

Yesterday I spent most of my "working" morning trying to save a 14 year old beagle from euthanasia. I had it in my head that I would take him in and keep him--that would be 4 dogs living in my house full time, 3 of them beagles!--I MUST BE CRAZY!!!! But there I was inquiring about the dog with the New Hope Partners and convincing my rescue coordinator it was the right thing to do.

The dog was taken off the list, but for 3 hours I was sure he was coming into my rescue. I was researching therapeudic dog beds, and estimating the costs for pain meds and special food into my monthly budget.

Around 3pm, I was both relieved, and disappointed to learn another rescue had taken him.

I guess this was just a trial run for me to see if I was really ready to take on another foster.

I'm clearly ready....

3 beagles!!!!! That is insanity I can barely handle 1 . . . . And yes, it does sound like maybe you are ready for another foster.

cupoftea said:

3 beagles!!!!! That is insanity I can barely handle 1 .

I totally get that! I can't handle the two I have. I sometimes have a 1-dog fantasy. But then the howling starts, and I'm abruptly brought back into my 3-dog reality.