Hunkered Down

Most of the time, when the weekend arrives, we hunker down and relax. Not that we don’t go for walks or have play time, but it’s nothing like when we’re working. That’s good because I often need the rest and so does Gretchen.

So when a vacation rolled around, I was looking forward to four days of hunkering down. It didn’t happen. Nope. I was busier over Thanksgiving than I am during my busiest weeks of the year. First, there was the trip to Grandma and Grandpa’s for Thanksgiving dinner. Oh it was yummy. Not only did I get turkey with my meals, I also got whipped cream.

I have the coolest Grandparents and showed my appreciation of the lick and the love. I also got to visit my friend, Tucker, who I usually only see on Thanksgiving. But this weekend, I got to see him when we ate the big meal and then again the next day when we went for a walk. Tucker really likes me and I call him the White Shadow because he follows me everywhere. I don’t mind. He’s very sweet.

Not only does he follow me everywhere, but throughout dinner and when we walked the next day, he spent a great deal of his time sniffing and staring at me. It made me nervous at first, but once I realized he meant no harm, I just ignored his rather rude insertions.

After those two busy days, you’d think I’d get to rest, but no…I got to see my friend Ginger and her Dad, Richard as well as Monty and Quillette — my friends and neighbors. In addition, I met a new dog who, I must admit, stole my heart. Her name is Olive and I can hardly wait to meet up with her again! What a beaut!

By the time Sunday evening rolled around, I was pretty tired, but then Gretchen reminded me that today was a work day and even though we only had three walks scheduled, I needed to be rested and ready to go. I think that’s why Gretchen left me at home when she went off to school this morning. It allowed me a little more time to recuperate from this busy, busy weekend.

The actual walking business started with Gemma. She, too, had a great Thanksgiving with her family and friends, and while she didn’t get any whipped cream, she did get a taste of gravy. Maybe that’s why she was raring to go after our walk when we landed at the tennis courts!

After we got tired out, Gemma walked me home so I could rest up a bit and then they picked up Oshi and Perrito next door. When O and P met Gemma the first time, they didn’t want much to do with her. She was, after all, a puppy and like any puppy a bit too rambunctious for the boys. But now, after some time and some maturity, Gemma and Perrito (at least) have hit it off.

The three of them went for a walk and once again ended up at the tennis courts where Perrito ran himself ragged chasing after a still frisky Gemma. Oh how she loved that! When Gemma figured out that Perrito wanted to chase her, she raced around the court with a ball in her mouth just egging him on. He loved it. Oshi, on the other hand, hung close to Gretchen. He hasn’t accepted Gemma into his circle of play friends as much as Perrito!

Oshi and Perrito walked Gemma home and then Gretchen walked the boys home. They frisked around their living room when she let them off the leash, but soon settled down to a cool drink of water and a nap in their beds after such a frolicking good time.

Gretchen and I ate some lunch, but then, after a little bit of work, we headed over to see Saber. Oh my how he’s grown. While Gretchen had planned a walk, Saber asked to go to the courts, too, so what was I to do? I guess one should never argue about more play time!

Unfortunately, Gretchen got frustrated with her camera and decided to lay around with the settings. Instead of shooting everything on automatic, she played with speeds and settings and learned a bit more about her still rather new camera.

Saber and I played models chasing after the ball, each other, and practicing what Saber calls Sumo wrestling — where he butts his head under me and tries to lift me off the ground.

After a nice play session, we headed over to the school to see if we could meet up with our student who has been on vacation, too. When we pulled up to the school, everyone was out standing in quiet lines for a fire drill, so we (Saber, Gretchen, and I) waited patiently for the drill to end and when it did, we got to hang out with our student! It was great to see him and even though he didn’t get to take any photographs today (it started to rain), he worked on teaching me to dance on my back legs. I’ll do anything for a treat.

Saber will, too, but just getting Saber to sit and lie down takes all of our energy! What a puppy!

So now that our Monday is complete, it’s time to once again hunker down. Whew…that’s what I’m saying. Still, I had a great vacation and am happy to be back at work doing what I love — hanging with friends and playing all day long!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Before Giving Thanks

Right now we’re listening to Bob Marley. He’s singing “Taking it easy, taking it slow” and it only seems fitting to be doing so on the day before a holiday. But before we give thanks with our family we want to give thanks for all the joy in our lives.

I know, it sounds kind of sappy, but hey, you’ve got to do it because, well because life is short and there are a lot of happy things in the world. Here are a few of mine:

Sleeping In

I had such a great time at agility class last night it was impossible to get up this morning. I am thankful that in the morning after Gretchen gets up, she lets me sleep on the big bed where it’s warm and comfy. I got to sleep in for an extra long time this morning and though it looks like I’m complaining about the flash of the camera, I’m really just snuggling under the covers a bit more!

But then the sun came up over the horizon and I realized I had to get to work. Ann and I walked Gretchen to school and then I got to rest at home because, like I said, I had a lot of fun at agility class and I needed to rest.

Monty

I know you’re not supposed to have favorites, but I will admit that Monty is my favorite buddy, my best friend ever. Sure I love all my other friends, but Monty has a special place in my heart. I mean, when I was little, Uncle Monty taught me the ropes. He taught me how to play, how eat, how look for squirrels, how to fetch, how to wrestle, how to beg for treats — the list goes on and on. He’s always been pretty patient with me and whenever we see each other, he’s as excited to see me as I am to see him. I love that we get to spend two days a week together. Of course, though he’s taught me a lot, I have yet to learn why it’s fun to jump on the bench while playing at the tennis courts.

Playing

Yes, playing with Monty is my most favorite thing in the world, but playing in general is fun in general. Today we got to play with Saber…twice! First in the morning on the tennis courts where Saber bulldozes me across the courts or stalks me while I run away from him.

Then we got to play in the afternoon where we busted out on the little field and ran and ran and ran again and again and again. I like that very much. Here are the photos from both our play sessions with Saber. Notice who thinks a stick is far more fun than a ball? Silly guy!

Sharing

Okay, I had to learn how to share and while I’m not the best at it yet, I am learning the value of sharing my time, my toys, and my moms. Today I had to share Gretchen AND my toys with Oshi and Perrito. The boys got to go out while Monty and I rested after lunch. We always have to rest after lunch even though we’d both rather go out and play more, but Gretchen says it’s healthier for us to digest our food before we run around.

So while we rested, the boys, in their new hairdos, got to play. Lucky them!

Fetch

Now, I know you think that playing fetch is playing, but there’s something special about playing fetch in an open field. The grass (and mud) get between your toes and teeth, the wind whisks through your hair, and you get to be with your buddies. While I like to play at the tennis courts (less dirty) and Monty and Saber do too…

…but we also LOVE to play fetch in the big open field!

My Family

I have lots of friends, but I really have a nice human family, too. Tomorrow I get to see Grandma and Grandpa and that is always fun. They have a big fat raccoon who lives under their deck and oh, it’s such fun to sniff and smell and see if that raccoon is out and about. Grandma’s a really good cook so I can hardly wait to see (and smell) the wonders she’ll whip up tomorrow and the wonders that may drop on the floor.

Vacation

I love my job, don’t get me wrong, but sometimes it’s nice to take a break. That’s what we’re going to do tomorrow and through the weekend! I’m really looking forward to it!

So until then…and please have a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Rubin

Hard to Believe

In our walks around the neighborhoods of the Central District, we meet a lot of people and see a lot of things. It’s astonishing, really, how much you can learn just walking around with a bunch of dog friends. Today was such a day. While I expected yesterday to be an easy day, it turned out that today was much easier than yesterday. We only had four walks to complete and two were with the same dog, Saber.

The first dog we walked was Ollie. We picked him up after teaching in the morning and ran into his mom who had taken the day off of work. Why? Because she is fostering a dog, a very cute, but very forward dog named Doris. We didn’t have our camera with us, so we didn’t get a picture of Doris, but after I told her to get out of my face (she’s very, very forward) I got to like the little white dog.

Doris is a rescue from California. According to Ollie’s mom, there are a lot of dogs needing homes in California because of all the fires they’ve experienced. So many poor dogs lost their homes and their families that the rescue shelters are full up. So Ollie and his family are fostering one of the dogs, which means Doris will live with them until she is adopted.

It’s hard to believe that Doris can’t find her family, but hopefully she’ll find a new one soon. Until then, she’s hanging out with Ollie who seems to really like her.

Ollie, his mom, and Doris walked us home where Gretchen fetched her camera and gave me my breakfast. I stayed behind while Ollie and Gretchen walked over to Saber’s house. It’s hard for me to believe that Saber is only 5 months old. I mean, look at the two of them together — Ollie’s over a year old and Saber towers over him.

It’s also hard to believe that Gretchen took this photo only a few months ago…

…which is pretty much the same as this view…

…but then it’s hard to believe the kind of weather we’re having lately. Socked in, that’s what Gretchen calls it and today it was definitely socked in. These two didn’t seem to mind, though!

Saber walked Ollie up through the Mt. Baker neighborhood and then back to Ollie’s house where they were met by a barking but joyous Doris. Then it was Saber’s turn to head back home until later in the afternoon when we picked him up for a romp.

Before that, though, Gretchen took Rosie out for a walk in the misty rain. When Gretchen showed me the pictures, I was surprised to find out that these two feet both belong to Rosie. Can you see the difference?

Yep, three of her toes have white toenails and one has black. Who knew! Rosie was surprised that Gretchen was so surprised.

Of course, Rosie wasn’t surprised for long. She wanted to smell everything she could get her nose on and then pose for the camera!

After Rosie went home, Gretchen came back and did some cooking while I played sous chef curled up on my kitchen bed, lifting my nose to the scent of bacon. Oh, how I love bacon. If I’m really good, I might just get some in my dinner. Yum, yum!

It’s hard to believe I don’t get bacon for every meal!

Next, we ventured over to Saber’s house for one last romp. We got to play fetch at the tennis courts because the fields are really soggy soggy. It’s hard to believe how saturated the ground is. Since Gretchen is trying to keep me fairly clean before dinner at my grandparents, we had to play at the courts, which was fine with both of us! Playing is playing, isn’t it?

Saber went home happy and tired and Gretchen did the best she could to dry him off before he went back into his kennel. It’s hard to believe, but when we take Saber back home, he is so excited to go into his kennel, but there you have it!

Perhaps the hardest to believe is that it’s been two weeks since my last agility class. Boy, have I missed it, but today we headed south to Kent where I got to romp and run, jump and weave once again. Agility makes me very happy, which may be hard for some believe, but trust me — aside from bacon in my dinner, nothing is better than a day of agility!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Can you define “easy day?”

I woke up to Gretchen nudging me this morning, “Hey, Buddy, you need to get up. We’ve got to go to work.” I was dreaming about Thanksgiving — turkey and gravy, fallen tidbits, and family love. It was a nice dream, but then I realized it was Monday and we had to go to work. I moaned, rolled over on my back, because I always get a belly rub in the morning, and Gretchen said, “Don’t worry though. We have an easy day ahead of us.”

So I didn’t worry. I walked to school with Gretchen, hung out with the kids who read and wrote and gave me lots of pets, and then rested back home while Gretchen went on a walk with Rosie and Tyson. Originally, Rosie and Tyson weren’t on the schedule, but their parents had a change of plans and so they got put back on the schedule. I usually don’t walk with them so I rested, ate my breakfast, and waited for Gretchen to return for our “easy” day.

Rosie and Tyson got to visit the tennis courts today before they headed out for a longer walk through the park. Tyson LOVES to play fetch. Rosie likes to give Gretchen those pleading eyes hoping that treats fall out of her pockets and into Rosie’s mouth. Tyson can plead, too.

When Gretchen got back from her time with Rosie and Tyson, she leashed me up for a walk with Oshi and Perrito, but instead of just walking, we headed up to Dog Mania– THE GROOMER!  Wait one minute, I thought to myself, wasn’t I just here? But it wasn’t me that was scheduled for a grooming. It was the boys’ turn. Before they “went in” Gretchen took pictures of us on the large boulder on the steps to the groomer. Since we weren’t the ones to pick them up, you only get to see a “before” pictures. You’ll have to wait until Wednesday to see the “after.” I’m just glad it wasn’t me going under the scissors!

Once we dropped off the boys, we headed down to Gemma’s house and this is when I realized the day was going to be different than what I imagined. “Gemma wasn’t on the schedule for today,” I said to Gretchen.

“You’re right. It was a last minute addition,” Gretchen explained and then added, “And Woobie, too.”

Oh my. So we picked up Gemma, walked to Woobie’s house, and then walked down to the tennis courts. For those of you who don’t realize the distance of this route, well, it’s a long one and while I was happy to see both Gemma and Woobie as well as get a chance to play at the tennis courts, I was surprised when Bella showed up to play with us.

Whew…this was turning into a busy day.

We dropped a tired Gemma off at her house and then walked back to our house for a bit of lunch. Woobie and I both had a snack while Gretchen ate some leftovers before we headed out the door to pick up Saber. Now Saber was originally on the schedule, but with the two extra dogs earlier in the day, my legs were a bit tired. But there was no time to complain. We headed first to the tennis courts for some play time…

…and then walked Woobie back to her house the long way through the park! Saber was thrilled with the extra time, but once we got back to our house, I went straight to my bed and said in a very irritated voice, “I sure hope tomorrow isn’t this easy!”

Until then,

Rubin

Wrangling

Chihuahuas

There are three little dogs that live around the corner from us.  Two are chihuahuas and the other is, well, I haven’t a clue, but she’s little and she always has some fancy coat on. We rarely see them though occasionally they go on a walk with their owner who talks to them the entire time they make their way around the block.

Well, today we saw those little dogs two times and each time they were running loose without any owner in sight.

The first time, Monty and I were coming back from our morning walk and romp with Saber. We’d walked through Judkins Park and then picked up Saber who was thrilled to see us. Of course, Saber is always thrilled, but you could say he gets particularly thrilled when Monty and I show up.

Anyway, we played at the tennis courts (the only real clean place to play) and then went for a walk up the hill and then back to Saber’s house.

Yes, that’s Saber looking dignified and almost adult-like followed by his fascination with Monty’s leash, which he pulled off the bench where Monty likes to hang out…and jump off of when his ball rolls off the bench!

At the tennis courts, our play was interrupted by squirrels. Six of them, racing around in the trees, leaping from limb to limb, and rustling around in the leaves. Good thing there’s a locked fence around the tennis courts or those six squirrels would be toast!

So Monty and I were kind of tired after we dropped off Saber, but when we came around the corner by our house and were met by three barking, scurrying little dogs we kicked into gear. Monty went into overdrive because he LOVES other dogs and he seems to have a particular fondness for females and little dogs. Not that these little ones would let us get close to them, but still, Monty was a zealot in trying to get a closer look. But every time we got closer, the little dogs raced back toward their house.

This pleased Gretchen because she knew those little dogs shouldn’t have been out and unsupervised. So even though Monty and I didn’t realize it, we wrangled those dogs back into their house, but unfortunately, the door wouldn’t shut all the way so Gretchen wasn’t sure what to do. She did the best she could to keep the door closed, but she had a feeling she’d see those dogs again.

Monty and I ate lunch and Gretchen headed out to pick up Gemma. After a short walk, they headed back to Oshi and Perrito’s house (who live next door) and yet again, ran into the three loose dogs. Gemma was beside herself with the prospect of wrangling something small and energetic. I think she imagined the three dogs were squirrels and she herded them, once again, back into their house. This time Gretchen put the recycling bin in front of the door, worried they’d get out once more.

After picking up the boys, they too headed over to the tennis courts for a romp. Usually Gemma’s energy is way too much for Oshi and Perrito. They stay away from her as best they can, but today, Perrito thought she was the best playmate ever and he chased her around that court like a man on a mission.

They even practiced levitation!

Meanwhile, Oshi stayed away or head between Gretchen’s legs while she squatted down to take photos of the other two.

After their romp, they walked through the park and up through the neighborhoods and finally back to Oshi and Perrito’s house. Gemma got even more of a walk as they headed back to her house venturing a completely different direction.

When Gretchen made her way back to our house, she looked for the scurrying chihuahuas, but luckily the owner’s car was parked in the driveway and she could hear the dogs parking from behind the door. Emphasis on behind!

Our final walk of the day was once again Saber. If he was excited to see us the first time, he was exuberant to see us the second time! Even though she knew we’d get dirty, Gretchen let us play fetch at the little field so we could help Saber burn off some of his energy. We loved that. He loved that.

Of course, then he found a stick…I mean, a branch, and Saber got really silly while Monty and I got muddy chasing after the ball!

By the time Saber got back home, his tongue was hanging out and he had bits of the branch stuck between his teeth. Now that’s the sign of a good time!

Even though our walks were done for the day, we still had to make our way over to the school for our visit with the student. Gretchen made a deal with the boy: If he had five good days in a row she’d get him a dog training treat bag. Well, what do you know? Today was the fifth day and there he was! Five good days! I made sure to give him lots of kisses and wiggle my best wiggle when we said hello and from his smile, I think he was as proud of himself as we were of him!

He likes to take photos of Monty, who got to play a bit more fetch. The student loves taking photos and is, apparently, quite a good artist. Maybe soon we can see the drawings he’s done of us. The next goal? Ten days in a row! The reward? A box of colored pencils. I bet he can do it! Maybe as another reward, we can wrangle those three little dogs down to the school to see him!

I hung out by Gretchen and though I’d really wanted to play more fetch, I must admit that I was pretty tired from the long, wet work week. So, I watched Monty chase the ball a few times and then rest while the student practiced his photography skills. Not bad!

Have a great weekend…stay dry (if at all possible!)

Rubin

Not a Day for Cameras

We packed up the camera today, but I’m not sure why. We never had a chance to pull it out because of the rain. Okay, I promised myself I wasn’t going to write about the rain again, but there you have it. Rain. Lots of it. Too much for us to take pictures, so I took it upon myself to ask the dogs we walked today a question.

This is the question: If you could vacation away from this rain, where would you go? And here are their answers:

First up was Ollie. He looked at me and said, “There are other places to go? Really?” And then he said, “Well, I’d very much like to be somewhere warm and dry. I’d very much like to be curled up by a fireplace.”

While we don’t have Photoshop to insert faces into different scenes, we did search for what we like to call “Brochure Photos”…photos of where we think our friends would like to vacation.

So here is what Ollie looks like (on a dry day) and here is where he’d rather be on a rainy day.

Next up was Gemma (they actually walked together, Ollie and Gemma) and she had a much different place she wanted to vacation on a rainy day. “Can I go anywhere?” she asked, and then listed off a million different vacation spots. Here are just a few — first, Gemma on a dry day and next her top vacation spots!

After Ollie and Gemma went home (soaking wet though Gretchen dried them off!), Rosie was next. Now for Rosie, every vacation spot MUST include Tyson, her brother and soulmate, but it must also contain love and warmth and most importantly, cookies! Here’s Rosie on a dry day, and here are all the things she’d need on her vacation.

Rosie got toweled off after her wet walk, too, and then we headed up to get Woobie. And wouldn’t you know it, no camera in Gretchen’s backpack and it stops raining. Well, I suppose it’s only fair that she must tell us her favorite vacation spot, too. “Vacation? You mean, we’re not on vacation now?” Isn’t she sweet? Woobie thinks any vacation would include dog friends and lots and lots of play time! So here is Woobie on a dry day and here is Woobie’s brochure for her vacation spots!

Woobie and I walked to Saber’s house and let me tell you, getting him to focus on a vacation spot was like nailing down Jello. In the end, we got him to confess his love for Gemma. “Can I go where Gemma goes on vacation?” he asked. And then added, “And I want to go where I can swim again. I really liked swimming.”

Of course, we could have gone swimming today with the depth of the rain puddles, but I have a feeling Saber was thinking of something a bit warmer. Anyway, here is Saber on a dry day and here he is vacationing in the same spot as Gemma!

I know the photos aren’t as fun as the ones we take only because they aren’t pictures of the actual dogs we walk, but you have to admit, it’s pretty interesting to know where all our dog friends want to vacation, isn’t it?

Me? All I can think about is the upcoming vacation — Thanksgiving — and the possibility of gravy for dinner. Yum, yum, yum!

Until tomorrow!

Rubin

In My Stead

Today, I had to go to the Spaw. When I found out, I was miffed because going to the Spaw meant I couldn’t play with the dogs today. Monty walked me up to Dog Mania and while I has happy to see Liliana, the groomer, I was sad when Gretchen and Monty walked out the door leaving me to the bath, the dryer, the clippers, and all the other stuff they do to me.

And so Monty, my dear and faithful friend, had to take over my duties as a dog dog walker. I asked him if he wanted to write the blog and all he said to me was, “Dude, I’m way too tired.”

So, not only did I have to spend the day being preened and primped, not only did I miss out on the walks and the romps and the treats and seeing my friends, I now must write about a day I didn’t have much to do with.

Alas.

But…

I sure look pretty!

And just in time for the upcoming holiday!

And as you can see, I shouldn’t complain. It was a slow day at the Spaw and while I wasn’t the only dog there, there were so few of us that I got to go out on the last adventure of the day. And what an adventure it was!

But I’m getting ahead of myself.

After Monty dropped me off at the Spaw, he and Gretchen walked down to Saber’s house where an excited Saber could hardly contain himself. While I know he missed me, well, everyone likes Uncle Monty so Saber was happy to have a playmate. They didn’t exactly play on this first visit, they just went for a walk, but to Saber that was golden!

And so was the sun. Yes, though it’s raining like crazy right now and the wind is howling, most of the day is was windy and sunny, as you can see from the photos…

Yes, that’s even blue sky behind Monty and Saber. The sky was actually magnificent today or at least, that’s what Monty tells me and as I looked at the photographs from the day, I could tell even Gretchen was mesmerized by the sky…

…and the snow in the mountains!

Of course, Gretchen switched out her zoom lens for a regular one and so she was disappointed that she couldn’t quite get the shots she wanted. Still, you can tell the clouds and the sky were mighty volatile today.

After Monty walked Saber home, Monty got to rest at our house since he’d just eaten his lunch and has to be careful not to bloat. He appreciated the rest while Gretchen headed over to Gemma’s house for a big outing in the volatile. They headed down through Frink Park first where Gemma got to smell the wet ground and look at the destruction the wind had already made to the park.

After they played in the park, they walked down by the lake and then headed toward the tunnel where Gretchen was once again captivated by the mountains and the sky…oh, and Gemma!

After Gemma went home, Gretchen picked up Monty again and then they picked up the boys next door — Oshi and Perrito. And still no rain. The boys liked that and begged Gretchen to go over to the tennis courts where they could run in the wind!

While Monty played fetch and hung out on his bench…

Perrito pushed around a ball with his nose, grunting the whole time, and Oshi turned his nose to the ever increasing wind.

Oshi and Perrito went home pretty tired, but Monty still had work to do and while they were getting ready to go out again, Gretchen got a call that I was ready for pick up! Yippee! And to make things even sweeter, Jessica called and asked if we wanted to go for a walk. So Gretchen leashed up Monty, walked up to Jessica and Quillette’s house, then over to Saber’s house and then they came to pick up me! What a handful we all were, so very excited to see each other, so Jessica and Gretchen decided to head back down to the tennis courts to let us burn off some of our unbridled energy!

And guess who had the most energy of all…nope, not me! Monty

Of course, we all got a little wild (must have been the wind) so we had to take rest stops in between our play time.

But that didn’t last too long…at least, not for Saber. He was thrilled to have so many friends to play with!

Of course, then we had to pose for the treat, which took a lot of finagling on Jessica and Gretchen’s parts. Yes, that’s Jessica’s hand trying to get us to stay!

We dropped off a very tired Saber and then walked over to the school to meet up with our student for the third day in a row! We asked Jessica if Quillette could join us and so, Quillette, Monty, and I waited outside the school and then went for a walk in the wind. The student used Gretchen’s camera to take our photos. The student really likes us, but he has a special warm spot for Q and Monty. Okay, he likes me too and showed me so by picking me up and rubbing my newly washed soft hair against his face!

So even though I had to go to the groomer and even though my best friend had to cover for me, the day ended on a pretty good note. Of course, it’s now super stormy out and the branches keep smacking against the house, but all and all it was a fun day!

Until tomorrow!

Rubin

Little Surprises

Last night wasn’t a good night for me. I ate my delicious dinner in a hurry and then threw it all up. I rarely eat anything quickly, but I was hungry and Gretchen gave me some yummy tidbits in my dinner so I wolfed it down and what do you know, up it came. I didn’t feel so well after that and headed straight to bed to sleep it off.

So, while I got to teach at school today, I didn’t get to play as much as I would have liked. That was the first little surprise. The other was that it didn’t rain on us until the last 2 minutes of our last walk. While the vomiting wasn’t fun, the sunshine was and made up for the fact that I spent half the day recovering at home and not working.

Gretchen worked, though, and she started the day with Ollie. I got to see Ollie, too, since he lives close to school, but then they walked me home so I could rest up and make my tummy feel better. While I really would have liked to work — walking Ollie and then Saber — only Gretchen got to do that.

After dropping me off at the house, Ollie and Gretchen walked over to Saber’s house where the excited boy was happy to see them. He likes Ollie very much though Ollie is a bit leery of Saber’s enthusiastic greetings. I get it. I’m not so fond of them either, but once they got to walking, all was well. Because it was such a surprisingly nice day, they walked up the hill for a picture from the view point overlooking the city. The first picture of this blog was the view of the city and snowy Olympics off in the distance and then Gretchen posed the two boys on the lookout. Ollie was freaked out by the grate (another thing we share in common) while Saber had no qualms whatsoever about walking on the grate or looking down through the holes to the ground 10 feet below.

It’s funny because Saber thinks umbrellas are the devil, but walking on air (which is what walking on a grate feels like) doesn’t phase him at all. Go figure.

Saber walked Ollie back home and then Gretchen walked Saber back to his house with the promise that she’d be back with me for an afternoon play date. Then she walked up the street to fetch Rosie who was thrilled by the sunshine and nice weather. No raincoats today!They walked through the park and then headed to a spot where you can see the same buildings that are in that first picture from the lookout. It might be hard to tell, but over Rosie’s shoulder are those tall buildings of the city. The sky’s changed a bit, but still no rain and no wind. What a surprise after yesterday!

As I’ve mentioned before, Gretchen struggles with Rosie in two areas. First, if she lets her leash-drag and tries to take a photo of her, Rosie just follows Gretchen around because she knows Gretchen has tasty treats in her pockets. Therefore, it’s very hard for Gretchen to get a photograph of Rosie, or the ones she gets are always close ups. So Gretchen ties her leash to something in order to keep Rosie in one place.

The other problem she has is getting Rosie to look at the camera. Rosie is shy and would rather look out over the city and the park than into the lens. Therefore, Gretchen has to be very patient and make all sorts of weird sounds to get Rosie to look in her direction. Rosie’s favorite noise is when Gretchen meows. That’s my favorite, too!

Once Rosie went home, Gretchen came back to get me and I got to eat some lunch, which I ate slowly and deliberately so as not to give us both anymore surprises (if you know what I mean!). Gretchen did some work while I continued to rest and then we headed out a little early to pick up Saber. I was antsy and ready for some play time so Gretchen decided Saber would enjoy some extra time for his afternoon outing. Boy did he!

And you never know what kind of photographs you’ll get of Mr. Silly Saber. He was playing fetch, but then Gretchen called his name and he spit out the ball right at the second Gretchen took the photo. Pretty funny!

After we played and then walked up on the hill and down past the museum, we took Saber home before we headed over to the school. On the horizon, the clouds were turning black and moving toward us as if on a mission.We had fun with the student who, it turns out, is quite a good artist. Gretchen had him take photos of me so she could give him the photos for sketching. He took a close up of me, a full body shot, and then one where it looks like I’m climbing a tree after a squirrel. I like that one the best!

I knew the sunshine couldn’t last all day, but we got to spend time with our student before the clouds opened up and started hailing. Luckily, we were a block away from home before the hail pelted us. Whew.

But now, as I type, the clouds have past and the sun is bright and round on the western horizon. Another surprise. My last surprise (or so I hope) for the day is that is that I get to go along and play with my big friend Ben in his big backyard and spend time with his family for dinner. Hope it’s not raining when we do! I love visiting Ben and his family and at dinner, I love lying under the ginormous dining room table and listening to everyone laugh and call my name. “Rubin, you’re such a good dog!”

Maybe the last surprise will be when a morsel from the dinner table falls down to the floor. Or maybe when Stephen, Ben’s dad, decides to feed me some of Ben’s dinner. Yummy! Who knows what surprises will show themselves tonight!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Getting Out While the Getting Out is Good

A little over a year ago we started our business — Wags n’ Words — a dog walking, freelance writing service. While we’ve had success in both venues, in only one area — the dog walking — do we get wet.  I mean really wet. This was the case today. The weather forecast was ominous from the beginning — high winds, lots of rain, and possible flooding. Possible flooding? Usually the flooding happens elsewhere, not so much here in the city, though there have been cases in the past where the flood waters have caused massive damage and even killed people and animals.

We haven’t had that kind of weather for a few years now, but it looks like this winter may just turn out to be one of those kind of winters. Evidence of potential flooding was everywhere today. Pools of water expanded on grassy areas and puddles turned into lakes on many of the roads. We’d walk along and hear SPLASHSPLASHSPLASH as cars dove into those lakes over and over again. And of course, there was the SPLASHSPLASHSPLASH of our feet and boots in the rain.

I usually don’t mind getting wet, but I have to say, even today I was a bit reluctant to go out.

Even more, I was reluctant to go out in my red raincoat. But Gretchen insisted.

I walked to school in my red raincoat though all the way, I tried to lick it off of me. It didn’t work. It never works. Luckily, though, I didn’t have to wear it on my way back home. The rain wasn’t as bad this morning as it was later in the afternoon so while I didn’t have to wear it every time we went for a walk, I did have to wear it this afternoon and man, was it awful.

Of course Gretchen would tell you that the weather was awful and since she went through two raincoats herself, I guess I shouldn’t complain.

The day started, as I’ve noted, with a work session at school. I helped the students with their writing assignments and then Gretchen brought me back home to rest up and eat my belated breakfast while she fetched Rosie and Tyson both of whom had to wear their coats. Apparently, Tyson isn’t so fond of his raincoat either though he doesn’t, Gretchen informs me, try to lick it off. Instead, he just avoids putting it on. I try that too, but it doesn’t work. I always end up wearing my coat if Gretchen wants me to wear it.

So, the weather made it difficult to take a lot of photographs today. Gretchen took some, but to protect her camera, she only took a few. First up, the coat wearing Boxers — Rosie and Tyson playing fetch at the tennis courts before their walk through the park.

Yes, both Rosie and Tyson are giving that look, that look that says, “Do you realize how wet it is out here?” To which Gretchen responds, “Yep, but let’s play anyway!”

Rosie wasn’t so sure about playing. Instead, she kept her nose at Gretchen’s treat pocket and tiptoed through the puddles trying to avoid getting wet. Good luck. Meanwhile, Tyson played fetch, but without much enthusiasm, though he was sad when Gretchen put the ball away and announced that maybe it was a better idea to go for a walk than slide around in the puddles of the tennis courts.

Next up, Oshi and Perrito who sopped up water like mops. We played at the tennis courts, too since it’s ironically the driest place to play and definitely the cleanest.

Oshi wasn’t buying it. I was having a hard time buying it, too, but I did my best playing fetch and letting Perrito chase after me, though sometimes it got a little annoying.

When Gretchen toweled off the boys, her towel was soaking wet! She had to get a new one to towel me off. And then we got to hang out at the house for a bit where I dried off even more, but a lot of good that did me because by the time we got Saber, the skies had opened up and the rain was really coming down.

Did that stop Saber? Not on your life!

And when Gemma and her Dad showed up, Saber was oblivious to the rain! In fact, he got so hot from chasing Gemma around, he cooled himself off in a puddle. Yep, in a puddle!

After playing hard for awhile, we walked through the park and over to the school to meet up with our student. We didn’t think he’d want to come out and play, but he was all ready for us when we arrived — warm coat and all. Saber was thrilled to see him and the student was equally excited to see us, though not so thrilled about the rain.

Once our visitation was over, we took Saber home and soaked up yet another towel wiping the puppy off. Of course, Saber’s not really puppy-sized is he?

The weather report calls for high winds again tonight and then again tomorrow along with more rain. While we’ll try to get outside while the getting outside is good, something tells me that my raincoat drying in the bathroom will be called into service once again.

Darn!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Thinking About the Rain

After two glorious days of sparkling blue weather and fairly warm temperatures (for this time of year), we woke again to rain. I’m not going to complain, but I have a few observations.

First, rain ruins your hairdo.  Not that I have much of one — it’s just curls — but I get really curly when it rains. So does Monty. Saber, on the other hand, not so much. Gretchen says she once new a black lab named Otter and like an otter, the rain just rolled off his back. Same with Saber. See how he can just stand there with the rain falling all around him and not even look like he’s wet?

Not so with me and Monty!

Which leads me to my second observation — raincoats. In Seattle, everyone has a good raincoat. You’d be silly not to, but in Seattle dogs have raincoats, too and that, my friends, is a crime. So what if I get a little wet. So what if my hair turns to tight curls. So what that Gretchen has to towel me off every time I come in from the rain. Coats were not made for dogs. They were made for humans. End of story.

Okay, so they didn’t slow us down that much…

Next, some dogs, like Oshi and Perrito are more like sponges than dogs. Their bodies, so low to the ground and so furry, soak up the water like a Brawny paper towel. It doesn’t matter that today, when Gretchen took the boys out, she made sure to go out when it wasn’t raining because the ground is so saturated with water that no matter where they walk, you can hear the sucking sound of the water clinging to their fur.

Poor guys. That’s why Gretchen picks them up and puts them on a bench to take their photo. She feels sorry when they have to pose in the soggy wetness of the ground. So she picks them up, plops them down on a dry bench, and desperately tries to get them to look at her. It’s a hard task. Oshi always jumps down first and then wanders around NOT looking at Gretchen while Perrito waits pretty patiently to be “escorted” from his perch back down onto the wet ground.  And when it’s time to towel them off, the towel is drench so much she can squeeze out the water.

As you can see, Friday turned out to be not a very busy day. We saw Monty and then Saber twice and the boys next door and that was about it. I didn’t mind because it meant that I only had to wear my raincoat for a little bit. And it’s Friday. I’m usually pretty tired on Fridays, though Monty wasn’t. He kept trying to get me to play — first at the tennis courts and then at home and finally on our last walks of the day. I finally gave in because playing with Monty, rain or no rain, is the best thing in the world.

So, on our last outing we got lucky. The clouds parted, the sun came out and Gretchen took us to the field to play some fetch. Well, we played fetch and Saber stalked us….

…until Gemma showed up and then the two of them played and played and played.

More observations? Okay, today’s rain wasn’t that bad. It was sporadic, which gave a chance to dry out in between the cloudbursts. A few weeks ago, the rain was constant, coming down in sheets for hours upon hours. That wasn’t very much fun, but today was more than tolerable. While I had to wear my raincoat in the morning, I got to take it off when we walked Saber on our second outing. A few weeks ago, I had to live in my raincoat, or at least, that’s how it felt. Today, not so much and that was nice.

After the romp at the field, Gemma had to head home and to keep Saber from chasing after her, we headed over to the tennis courts for one last romp in the dwindling daylight.  Well, Saber and I romped. Monty decided to sit this play time out on the bench.

Why does he do that?

The rain looks like it might move in again tonight, but with these cold temperatures, we might just see some snow. Oh how exciting that would be.

After we dropped Saber off at home (the tired pup), Monty and I went for a long walk up on the ridge. Gretchen wanted to see if the Cascades were visible and lo and behold, just a patch of them were highlighted by the setting sun. See that snow in the low lying hills just beyond Bellevue? Yeah, I see it too!

Have a great Friday and rest up this weekend. We’ll see you all on Monday if not before!

Rubin