What Will I Do?

The weather reports predict that this will be one of the best weeks all summer, which consider the summer we’ve had is either saying a lot or not saying much. I was looking forward to a week’s worth of dog walking in predictable summer weather knowing that it would include trips to the lake and perhaps even a trip to my friend Ben’s swimming pool.

What I didn’t foresee was that I would not really be working this week because Gretchen is in school from Tuesday through Saturday on her way to earning her small animal massage license. When she first told me, I cringed and my jaw dropped. Then I cocked my head and asked, “What will I do?” And then I thought of all the things that won’t happen: I will have all this time on my paws. I won’t be able to see all my friends (as in clients). I probably won’t go to the lake and even though there’s a slim chance I’ll go to Ben’s pool, I still won’t be pounding the pavement helping to earn my kibble (well, it’s actually homemade food with a bit of kibble thrown in).

And when will Gretchen and I hang out?

She tried to soothe my worried brow and she even took me away this weekend to the river where I got to play in cold water, hangout with my little kid friends, and go leash free for miles and miles.

But when she told me that today was going to be our only day of work for the rest of the week, a mournful moan came from my belly and filled the house with such sorrow I know I made Gretchen feel bad.

“I’m so sorry, buddy,” she said. “I think I shall go crazy, too. I have to be inside all week, on the best week of summer, and I won’t be able to go on long walks or play fetch with you or go swimming. I promise though that when I come home, I’ll take you out in the evenings and we can do whatever you want to do okay?”

I didn’t answer her. I was pouting. I think I’m still pouting even though I had work to do today. Still. I feel bad not only for myself, but for all our clients. I think they will miss us as much as we will miss them.

Gretchen says I should focus on today because, despite the outlook for the rest of the week, it was a good day.

It started with Rosie and Tyson and while I don’t walk with them, I love seeing their beautiful faces when the photos return…and the beautiful flowers popping out of their heads!

Then we walked Gemma with Oshi and Perrito. Ann came with us and I suppose now is the time to focus on what really matters — Happy Birthday, Ann! Of course, I think we gave her a bit of a headache — I rolled around…Oshi rolled around…nobody would sit where they were supposed to…and Perrito just wanted the ball out of Gretchen’s backpack.

Surprisingly, Gemma was the only dog who would cooperate!

Gemma played with me at the house for awhile, but mostly we just hung out in the shade. Then we picked up Saber and joy of joys we went to the off leash park where Saber dove right in, stole another dog’s toy, and then spent the rest of the afternoon stealing mine!

And we met a really sweet dog who posed beautifully for her photo!

After we were thoroughly wet, Saber and I walked with Alice and despite Alice’s nervousness about the “walrus” (Saber’s nickname) she seemed happy to see us today though she still wouldn’t sit too close. Of course, if you look closely, I was kind of rolling around again!

And I really shouldn’t complain because after we dropped Saber off, I got to go to Ben’s house and swim in his refreshing pool. It was kind of a surprising trip because Gretchen gave me a bath yesterday and then combed me out this morning and I didn’t think she’d want me to get messed up so soon, but she didn’t seem to mind.

Me either!

So normally I’d say, “Until Tomorrow” but that wouldn’t be the truth. The truth is “Until Next Week” and it pains me to write it…in fact, it pains me so much I think I’ll just say…

…Until Next Time,

Rubin

Wrong Impressions

You can’t judge a book by its cover nor can you judge a dog by its breed (or breeds). A picture may be worth a 1000 words, but sometimes those words don’t tell the whole story.

These are the lessons I’ve learned today and it started this morning when we went for a long walk with Oshi and Perrito. Oshi thinks he’s a cat and when we are out walking he is always lagging behind (hoping to turn around and go back home where he can lie in the sun) or pulling ahead once we’ve started our route back home. This has always been my assumption — Oshi doesn’t know he’s a dog — but then I started to notice that whenever we pass another dog or see another dog (especially one behind a fence) Oshi gets all huffy puffy and stands tall like a dog, not like a cat.

Man, did he have me fooled all these years. Here I thought he wasn’t really a dog because he never really wanted to go for a walk and he never really seemed to enjoy himself. (Whereas Perrito always thought being a dog was the best thing to be in the world!)

As for Rosie and Tyson, I’ve always thought they were big, tough dogs. I’ve seen so many photos of their strong, regal faces I thought for sure they were tough cookies. I mean, even their breed name (Boxer) sounds gnarly! But Gretchen tells me that while they may have some issues with fear and anxiety, they really are incredibly sweet. Another lesson learned.

I had to think twice today — did I learn anything from Gemma? Oh yeah, she’s really matured. I thought she’d stay a puppy forever and while she still has her moments…

…that she can stand in a stay position for photos and not race off after the squirrels is truly a picture worth a thousand words!

Of course, I can be good, too!

Alice’s pictures, though, do kind of tell a truthful story.

I know, I know, I know…she always looks like she’s going to crawl out of her skin with nervousness and while she’s nervous when we first pick her up — especially when we bring big, goofy Saber along — she really does settle into the walk and calms down quite a bit.

But still, she sits as far away from Saber whenever we pose for pictures because she’s not quite certain about his big, goofy energy.

And big and goofy he is! After we walked Alice, Saber came over to the house and we played towel games. Yep, he snagged a towel and I took it from him and then shoved it back in his face whereupon we play tug for awhile and then he barks at me.

It’s a lot more fun than it sounds especially when Saber barks to get it back. Now these photos is one where the picture doesn’t tell the whole story…

…he looks pretty mean, doesn’t he? There’s not a mean bone in this guy’s body! He’s a enormous clown and I, for one, love to joke with him. Goofball!

So those are my lessons for today. Thankfully it’s Friday so I can give myself a bit of a break in the lessons learned department. Hope you all have a great weekend.

Until Monday,

Rubin

Mostly Cloudy

Most mornings when we get up, we turn on the radio to listen to the news. Lately, though, we’ve listened to music. Gretchen says we need a break from all the negativity and that music gives us time to reflect and relax before we begin work. But this morning, the radio was turned on long enough for me to hear the announcer say, “Mostly cloudy all day.”

You might think that this would make me depressed, but in actuality, it made me dance a bit. It’s been hot. Not as hot as where my Aunt lives (in Virginia) where the temperatures have been over 100 degrees of late, but hot enough to make me want to just lie around on the cool bamboo floor right in front of the fan. But last night, when we went to bed, the fan wasn’t turned on, the windows weren’t open as wide, and a cool, brisk breeze blew the curtains around.

It was heaven.

And this morning, evidence of rain tickled my toes as I went out in the yard to take my first constitutional stroll. Blissful (the tickling mostly, but also the constitutional). I knew today was going to be a relaxing day even though it was the beginning of our work week. But I was ready after my nice weekend for something less hot than last week.

The weekend was active with visitors. First, Quillette came to stay with us for part of the weekend. It’s always nice to hang out with her. She teaches me how to make sad faces so I can get more treats!

Then the girls came over and we practiced dancing in the backyard. Well, they practiced and I watched on the lawn. Even then the weather was starting to change!

When our work started this morning with Rosie and Tyson, they were happy to see the change in weather, too because neither of them are big fans of the heat. They were hoping to go to the tennis courts for a romp, but the cooler weather didn’t stop the tennis players. So they posed in front of beautiful flowers…well, they posed pretty well until Tyson saw a large plane fly overhead! Then they looked longingly at Gretchen for their reward!

Gemma had to be told that it was colder. Nothing fazes her, though I did notice her desire to lie in my pool was mighty strong last week. This week she was bouncy and full of her typical terrier energy — much to Oshi’s dismay. Since Ann is off for the summer, she decided to help us out with Gemma, Oshi, and Perrito.

All of us went on our bouncy, tangled-leash stroll and headed to the tennis courts to see if they were free. Lo and behold they were and Perrito was particularly joyful about it all!

Oshi was his typical Eeyore self — slightly complaining that it was too cold to be away from his house, his family, and the new baby in their lives.

I was happy and Gemma, never one to let a little rain or a grumpy friend (Oshi) get her down, nosed us all into action.

The final walk of the day was with Alice who, despite her nervous barking when we first arrived, was happy to see us. She loved the cooler temperatures, too and we took off on a nice, long walk through the amazingly-gardened neighborhoods around her house.

Alice has two poses…the “What is that?” pose and the “I don’t see you taking my picture” pose. One day we’ll get a photo of her running. I have a feeling then she’d look a bit more relaxed!

I barely had time to say goodbye to Gretchen before she was out the door to her job at the pool. I spent the rest of the afternoon and evening with Ann and we completed some chores around the house including taking a nap in the living room — one of our favorite things to do together.

Hope you all enjoyed the cooler temperatures. We’ll see what tomorrow brings!

Until then,

Rubin

Crush

Dogs aren’t like humans. You know that, of course, but I was thinking about it on a different level. Humans, for instances, get crushes — maddening attractions to people and things that they often can’t control. I’ve seen it happen. Gretchen has a current crush on coconut gelato. She wants to eat it every night, but knowing it’s not the healthiest of crushes, she’s trying to refrain.

Dogs don’t get crushes, at least not that I can tell.

Wait just a minute, little fella.

Gretchen, I didn’t know you were reading over my shoulder!

Well, I passed by and saw the title, which caught my attention. Then when I read the first few paragraphs, I had to interrupt.

So I take it you disagree.

Yes, emphatically!

Alrighty then, tell me why.

Let’s take you for example.

Moi?

Oh, don’t play innocent with me. You have your fair share of crushes and while it might not be on coconut gelato, I can think of some serious crushes you have.

Name one.

Just one? Okay, how about Richard, Colleen, and Jessica?

Those are my human friends.

Yes, but when you saw them this weekend, you almost crawled out of your skin with joy.

That’s because I hadn’t seen them in a long time.

They hadn’t seen you either, but they didn’t jump all over you and scream with excitement.

Did I do that?

Let me continue — while those are some though not all of your human friends, their dogs — Ginger, Monty, and Quillette — equally excite you!

And Wally, don’t forget Wally.

See? You were thrilled when you got to see them all this weekend.

Does that make it a crush? And is it possible for me to have some many crushes on so many different people and dogs?

Apparently it is.

But that’s it, right?

I’m not so sure. There are all the dogs we walk.

But they’re our clients. It would be unprofessional of me to have a crush on any of them.

This is true, but you wiggle with excitement when you see them.

I want to wiggle with excitement to see Rosie and Tyson. How come I never get to see them?

We’re working on it, buddy, but for now, they’re enough for me to handle on my own. Throwing your excitement into the mix will require another human to help me out.

Am I that out of control?

I plead the 5th.

What does that mean?

Let me continue…

Please do…this is turning out to be very entertaining.

One word — Gemma.

No way. I don’t have a crush on Gemma, Saber does. And Ollie, too.

More than one dog can have a crush on another dog.

They can?

Let’s take a look at how you play with Gemma.

What of it?

Well, most dogs find Gemma’s style of play annoying because she constantly pesters them.

That’s so true.

But you just give in. You let her chew on you, roll around on you, and grab your ankles. You wouldn’t let any other dog do that.

How does that make it a crush?

If you didn’t like her so much you wouldn’t put up with the behavior and when we’re heading over to her house, you get a certain bounce in your step.

Hm. But I definitely don’t have a crush on Oshi or Perrito.

Yes, I’d agree, though Perrito has one on you.

I know and maybe even Oshi who walks by my side constantly. He’s like my shadow.

You make him feel safe.

So what about Saber?

What do you think?

I think he adores me.

And  you, what do you feel about him?

I like him a lot, but I don’t think it compares to what I feel — or what you think I feel — for some other dogs.

Like Monty and Quillette and Ginger?

And Paige, let’s not forget about Paige.

Yes, but we didn’t walk her today.

Fair enough. Then what about Alice.

Alice is an interesting case. I think she might be too nervous to have a crush, but she definitely trusts you.

I agree. She’s a lot more comfortable when she sees me on the front step than she is when she sees Saber.

She’s warming up to Saber though.

Yeah, he’s easy to warm up to.

So do you want to restart this blog and retract what you’ve said about humans and dogs and crushes?

Look at the time! Aren’t you supposed to have some coconut ice cream about now?

Very funny. Unfortunately we’re out.

And it’s my bedtime. Good night all! Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Listening for Love Songs

Today, on our walk through the neighborhoods, I heard an interesting sound. “What’s that?” I asked Gretchen.

“Someone is singing, I think.”

I turned my head slightly in the direction of the sound and listened intently. “But what are they singing?” I asked.

“It sounds like a love song,” she replied.

“How do you know it’s a love song?” I’m three-years-old and I ask a lot of questions.

“Well,” she paused for a moment, “The song is slow and the melody is kind of romantic.”

“Can you make out the words?”

“No because I think they’re singing in an Asian language,” she said.

“A what?” I was stumped. Dogs only speak one language so we can all understand each other.

“Humans have different languages they speak,” she explained. “You know how when Liliana, your groomer, always talks to you in Spanish?”

“She does?”

“Yes, she does, but you understand her completely,” Gretchen pointed out.

“I guess I do, but I never thought it was any different than how you talk,” was my response.

“Well it’s different, but Asian languages are really different than Spanish or English.”

“How so?” I was obsessed with questions today.

“Oh Rubin, it’s hard to explain,” she said, but tried anyway. “Asian languages are more tonal. Like one sound can have different meanings depending on how they are said. Whereas in English, the words carry the meaning more than the tone.”

“I don’t agree,” I said. “You change your tone quite a bit when you’re talking to me and the other dogs and we know the difference between “sit” said in a soft down and “sit” said in firm tone.”

She laughed. “Yes, I suppose you’re right, which is why explaining the difference between Asian languages and English is hard.”

We walked in silence for awhile until I was compelled to ask, “So how did you know it was a love song, Asian or not?”

“Because music is a kind of universal language and I could just feel the tenderness of the song even though I couldn’t understand the words,” she explained.

I thought about this for awhile. “Does everyone sing love songs?”

She laughed again, “Yes, I think everyone does at one time in their life.” And then she surprised me when she asked me, “Do you ever sing love songs?”

I know it’s hard to imagine a dog blushing, but today it happened for me. “That’s kind of a personal question,” I replied.

“Are you blushing little man?” Gretchen looked at me closely. “Don’t be embarrassed. I think everyone likes to sing love songs. They make us feel, I don’t know…”

“Loved?” I offered.

“Yes, loved and the language they are sung in really doesn’t matter,” she added.

We headed on down the road and sure enough, not ten minutes later we saw a man on a park bench and he was singing.

“It’s a love song,” I explained to Woobie (who is staying with us for awhile).

“Yes, I know,” she said, “And he’s singing in Spanish.” It was clear she’d been paying attention to our earlier conversation though she hadn’t participated.

“Do you sing love songs, Woobie?” I asked.

“Oh yes,” she said. “I sing silly songs and happy songs and sad songs and energetic songs, but the songs I love to sing the most are love songs.”

“Would you sing one for me now?” I asked shyly.

“Sure, what language would you like me to sing in?”

“You know more than one language,” I asked amazed.

“All dogs know all languages, Rubin,” she reassured me. “You just aren’t aware of all the languages you know.”

“I’m not?”

“Don’t think like a human,” she said. “Don’t listen to the words like humans do. Open up and let your heart be your ears. Listen to everything else besides the words and tell me what you think that man over there is singing.”

Woobie is older and wiser and so I did what she said. It took me a little bit to get the hang of it, but when I did, all of the sudden my whole body was filled with a happy glow. I must have smiled unknowingly because Woobie said, “You hear it, don’t you?”

“Yeah, I guess I do,” and with that I spent the rest of my day listening for love songs. Let me tell you, they are everywhere! The world is a much happier place, I’ll admit, when you let yourself hear love songs.

Try it some time. You won’t be sorry.

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

PS — Gretchen says I’m supposed to tell you that all the photos from today are from our walks with Monday’s clients — Rosie and Tyson, Oshi and Perrito, Gemma, Saber, Alice and yes, Woobie and me. They listened for love songs, too throughout the day.

PSS — Gretchen says that’s why she likes spending time with dogs — they help her hear love in a whole new way.

PSSS — I’m blushing again!

The rest of our day in photos…

I’m pestering Woobie to play with me…and she takes the bait!!

Rosie and Tyson have a party of their own…but only Rosie dances!

Gemma asks us where the party is…

Saber and Alice party at the lake…well, maybe only Saber…Alice just tries to stay out of his way…

Variety is the Spice

We’ve shifted gears here at Wags n’ Words. We’re transitioning from our life with children to our life with dogs. You might think I’m happy about it and in many ways I am, but I will miss the children for many reasons, but chief among them is because they loved me. They loved me so much they made a clay statue of me (seen here on Gretchen’s laptop)…

I am enamored with this statue. It smells funny and amazingly looks a lot like me only a smaller version. I can’t keep my eyes off of it…

But we’re transitioning away from these days as Gretchen truly, this time for real, leaves teaching. I tell her they’ll be other opportunities she won’t want to pass up, but she assures me that life with dogs is now her calling. And the way business is booming these days, a life with dogs is exactly what she’ll get.

Today wasn’t booming, but that was okay because yesterday was and tomorrow is as well. Yesterday there were 7 dogs to walk (not including me) and tomorrow there are 8 (not including me). But today there were just 4 and that was a needed reprieve.

First up was Rosie and in keeping with the idea that variety adds spice to your life, Gretchen decided to play a new game with Rosie. As you may well know if you are an avid follower of my Dog Blog, Rosie is a bird hunter. Swallows are her favorite and as the grass around here grows like wheat, the swallows are every where chasing the bugs in the open fields. There’s one field in particular where the swallows swarm like locusts. Rosie knows this field well and whenever they approach it, she goes on high alert. If swallows appear, it’s almost impossible to make any forward progress, so lately Gretchen’s been avoiding the field.

But not today. Today Gretchen packed the long line and walked right over to that field. Rosie was thrilled! Gretchen hooked her up and then they waited for the swallows.

While the swallows came and played a bit, they didn’t play as much as usual. Still Rosie had a blast and, as you can see, got kind of foamy at the mouth with excitement. I think this is going to be a game they play every once in awhile!

Gretchen came home and got me so we could go to Alice’s house. Alice got moved from Monday to Thursday this week and so she was surprised to see us when we came into the house. But she was more than happy to go on a walk. Her variety came in our destination. We headed to the lake, but since we don’t have a ton of time, we only got to visit, much to our dismay!

Still we had fun and maybe one day, when we are so busy, we’ll go for a swim. I think Alice might be quite the swimmer. We’ll have to see sometime soon!

Gemma and Saber were next. Gemma was sound asleep on the couch when we marched up the stairs, but she stretched and yawn when she saw us. “Finally,” she said, “I was wondering if you were ever going to get here!”

This is a distinctly different greeting than what we get from Saber who is often also asleep in his kennel. He yawns and says, “Is it that time already?”

While variety would have been piling in the car and going to the dog park or down to Seward Park, we simply changed tennis courts. That’s because it was kind of warm and while we had more time today, Gretchen wanted to rest up from yesterday and for tomorrow so an extended walk just wasn’t in the cards. Still, we had fun and at times, we had to work for our fun patiently practicing our sit/stays.

By the time we were done, all three of us were wiped out. Our tongues hung to the side of our open mouths long and happy. While variety adds spice to our lives, it can also wear a guy out…well, variety and transitions. Tomorrow is our last day of school. I’m gonna make sure we bring that clay statue home to remind myself of my life as a teacher!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Crossing Paths

Gretchen often tells her students that what goes around, comes around. I think she’s trying to tell them that if they are kind to everyone, they’ll receive kindness in their lives. But in many ways, what goes around, comes around can be more than a lesson in kindness and karma. It can also be a lesson in the beauty and brevity of life.

I’ve been reading a lot of philosophy lately (in my spare time while Gretchen is working at Wellsprings) and I am constantly fascinated by human obsession with eternity. Even today, as we were driving to our work, we heard an author talk about his need to believe that there was something after this life, something more wonderful than the aches and pains and tragedies of each day.

“Do all humans believe this?” I asked Gretchen.

“Not all,” she said, “But a fair amount believe that there must be something after we no longer exist.”

I was shocked by this information. As a dog, I believe the world of now is far more entertaining and glorious than the world we cannot see, in the world we hope will be there when we no longer are in this moment, this life. I believe that all time is now and that my passing (whenever that may be) is not about the extinguishing of a life force, but about my life force moving into a bigger sphere.

Take, for instance, my predecessor Chester. He was a beloved dog who spent 14 years in a living form. When he passed, after a yearlong battle with a brain tumor and subsequent seizures, he was not forgotten. In fact, his photos still perch on shelves all around our house and his ashes sit on the nightstand right by where I sleep.

Occasionally, I’ll hear stories about Chester — about how he ate chicken bones and never got sick, about how he snatched up some dried duck legs off the beach and Gretchen tried to get them out, how he ate a hot dog on the day he was found by Ann, how he had the nickname Mr. Pajama Pants because of his pantaloons, and how, after a seizure, he tried to eat his way through the glove compartment in the car to get to the dog treats he could smell within. He loved the snow, but wasn’t fond of the water. He loved long walks, but was a bit testy with other dogs. He loved to look in your eyes long and serious while you petted him. And he loved to clean up the floor if someone spilled cheese.

See! He’s not gone. He’s here and every day, I can feel his presence. Our paths cross, as it were though technically I never really knew him.

But there are also little ways in which our paths cross. Not necessarily Chester’s and mine, but with all the people and places I’ve known in my short, but rich life. What got me thinking about all of this –aside from my time reading Plato and Voltaire– was that Gretchen told me she got to see Wilson. Wilson was a dog we walked last year while his Dad served in Iraq and his Mom worked nights as a nurse. Wilson and I played in the yard…

…swam at the lake…

…and played fetch at the little field…

Until Gretchen mentioned his name again, I hadn’t realized how much I missed Wilson, but when she came home on Saturday from her work at the pool, she smelled like Wilson (and chlorine, too) and all these wonderful memories of my time with Wilson came flooding back.

“How is he?” I asked.

“He had surgery awhile back on his knee,” she told me, “But he’s recovering well and I’ll be working with him at the pool.”

See how paths cross? And it doesn’t even stop there. Nope, the pool where Gretchen works is on 25th Ave. SW. We live on 25th Ave. S. The cross street is SW Dakota and today, while we were dropping bread off at our good friends’ house, I noticed the cross street was S Dakota. We teach at a school that’s in the same zip code as our house and all the dogs we walk have interesting connections — like Woobie’s Dad works at the same place as Saber’s parents (just to name one interesting coincidence).

Gretchen says it’s called six degrees of separation, but I’m beginning to think it’s more like three degrees and sometimes it’s just one degree.

Anyway, Wilson had his first session in the pool and though he was nervous, he soon relaxed in the warm water and enjoyed the massage.

When he’s completely healed, we’re hoping for a play date, but even if it doesn’t happen, I know he’s with me both in memory and in my universe. I don’t need to think about meeting him in some beyond time. Instead, I’m happy to have had him (and still have him) in the circle of my life even if it is just his scent at this point.

So today, while we walked our current clients, I tried to hold the memory of our moments in the beauty of the now in which I live, though I must admit, I’m glad to have this blog so I can look back at all the fun times we’ve had.

And even though there are some dogs I may never actually meet (like Rosie and Tyson…though I’m still hoping we’ll meet one day), their scent is a part of my life every time Gretchen comes home from walking them (as she did today).

Others — like Gemma, Oshi, and Perrito — are IN my life and though I didn’t walk with all three of them today, I can tell from the photos they had fun at the field chasing the ball and rolling in the freshly mowed grass.

Saber is in my life almost on a daily basis and today, as we passed the off leash dog park and saw that it was empty, I let loose and got Saber to play a rousing game of chase, which creates some of my favorite memories that will stay with me for my entire life.

I only see Alice once a week and I have to admit, at first I didn’t think she liked me much, but today she was almost beside herself with excitement. In fact, Alice didn’t even bark when Gretchen entered the house (something Alice often does even though she knows it’s Gretchen) and when Alice and I got to run on the grassy boulevard, she actually smiled and nudged me as we ran side by side.

Of course when we stopped for a photo op, I kind of freaked Alice out by rolling around in the cool grass. She thought I was kind of cuckoo and for a moment, I suppose I was, but still, Alice is someone who will remain in my long term memory because she, like all of our clients, is unique and connected to me through scent and our time together.

I don’t know if I believe in god, but I do know that I believe in DOG and in all the possibilities and opportunities to have our paths cross whenever and where ever that may be.

What goes around, comes around and so…

…until tomorrow, when it comes around once again…

Rubin

Beauty…

…and the Beast

I’m not sure why I titled today’s post “Beauty and the Beast,” but when I was uploading pictures from the camera today, I was struck by the contrasting feelings of these two photos. The first was taken on our last walk of the day (with Alice) where we were posed on the steps of a beautiful garden…

…and Gretchen found the orange poppies extraordinarily stunning…

I have to admit, the garden was particularly spectacular. In Alice’s new neighborhood there are lots of magnificent gardens and some pretty amazing houses.

But these poppies kind of captured our eyes.

And they were everywhere. It was as if every house in the neighborhood had poppies growing in the front or side garden.

Maybe the seeds traveled. It’s hard to say, but whatever the reason, they were out in full bloom today and simply gorgeous.

Don’t you think? Well, Alice was too. Kind of her own puppy poppy, if you will.

But earlier in the day, the walk right before Alice’s, was a completely different story. It wasn’t about beauty at all, but about romping! And the photo of Saber and his silly face exemplify so perfectly.

Of course, Monty and I were there to keep things a bit more serious!

Okay, so maybe that last photo isn’t so serious. We played at the different tennis courts today — the ones without benches — so Monty had to find somewhere to hang out and he chose the backpack.

And since we’re moving backwards through the day, I’ll tell you about Gemma. She practices being beauty today…

Beauty kind of implies patience and today Gemma didn’t have too much of it. Gretchen was lucky to capture her in her more sedate phases — ready to play and posing with Monty — but Gemma was her usual vim and vigor today. But so was Monty for that matter. He did tire out, though, a bit quicker than Ms. Gemma. Hey, even I tired out before she did!

Of course, before Gemma came to visit us, she’d been out with the boys next door – Oshi and Perrito. Gretchen took them over to the big, big field by the school and was hoping to photograph them running and playing. Only Oshi rarely runs and Perrito, while he’ll chase after a ball, just flops down on top of it…much to Gemma’s frustration.

The real beast today was Gretchen. She’s just starting her report cards, which is a deadly process for everyone involved (well, except the students). She has to write two pages for every student, explaining their strengths and weaknesses (though I think they call them challenges). It takes her a good hour to write one and with 22 students, she’s feeling like she’s climbing a mountain.

She’s not that fun to be around right now, but don’t tell her I told you so.

Rosie and Tyson didn’t seem to notice though. They were beauties and beasts all in one play session today…

Beauties…

Tyson begged to play fetch at the courts today, so Gretchen obliged him. He’s very serious about his game of fetch, but today was particularly warm (despite some scattered showers) so the pups wore out pretty quickly.

I mean, it’s rare that Tyson pants and shows his tongue, but after some vigorous fetch he was one smiling happy dog.

Though no one can smile like Rosie. Of course, it’s hard for Tyson to show his beautiful smile with a ball in his mouth and trust me, today he really wanted that ball in his big, big mouth!

Still, they had some fun “beast” shots as well…

I guess you can’t be beautiful every day, though Gretchen tells me I’m just as beautiful when I’m beastly. Ah, shucks!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Up and Running…NOT!

I keep blogging. Gretchen keeps taking pictures. We keep hoping, our paws and fingers crossed that this time the cable service can fix the problem (low to no signal), but even after the guy came to fix it, it’s not fixed.

I’m really bummed. I feel like I’m letting you all down and my routine has been totally blown out of the water and it’s making me a frustrated pup.

But I persevere. One paw in front of the other.

I was so hoping that today, Monday, would be a day when everything was up and running, but well, as you know, it’s not.

Still, we worked and this is how it all flowed (no low signals here!)…

I went to work with Gretchen, but the cable guy called and we had to come back home shortly after. He worked for about 45 minutes, claimed it would be better, but alas, it wasn’t so another person’s coming tomorrow to work on the cables outside.

Gretchen left when the cable guy did to walk Rosie and Tyson. She was happy to spend time with them because they make her laugh. She calls them the two stooges because they often bump into each other with utter excitement.

It happened today apparently. Their Dad opened the gate at the top of the stairs for the siblings to come down to get leashed up. Tyson came first, but then Rosie rumbled out, slamming into Tyson and the two tumbled down the stairs.

They went for a walk up on the ridge and found some beautiful flowers for their photo shoot. I know, they don’t look like the two stooges, but Gretchen says looks can be deceiving.

Gretchen came back to get me and this is when she found out the internet was still not working, so she got back on the phone and complained…only she couldn’t complain long because the line got disconnected. This has happened before when she’s called the cable company, so you can imagine how much it fueled her frustrations.

Mine, too.

So we headed over to two other siblings, Oshi and Perrito. We both needed to laugh at this point. But as we walked, the cable company called back and man, did they get an earful. We listened intently as we played at the courts…and then Perrito decided he REALLY wanted the ball in the backpack at which point Gretchen finished her tirade and played with us….whew!

Next up was Saber. I told him we had to make Gretchen laugh and Saber said, “Don’t we do that every day?” He’s right of course. We play kind of rough, but it always makes Gretchen laugh!

And then we headed down to the lake, which was kind of funny because Saber couldn’t keep his eyes off the water! Sorry, buddy, it’s not warm enough yet!

For the final walk of the day, we walked with Alice who was excited to see us and headed up to the boulevard for our walk.  Alice likes to pose…can you tell?

Of course, none of you are reading this or seeing the photos from the day because our signal is still weak and mostly nonexistent. Sure hope it gets fixed tomorrow!

Until then,

Rubin

The Art of Racing the Rain

There’s a popular book out called “The Art of Racing IN the Rain” written by a local writer, but I think he should have named it “The Art of Racing the Rain” because we do that a lot more around Seattle than actually racing IN the rain. But Gretchen tells (she read the book) that the book has to do with racing cars, not dogs racing around in the rain.

Oh.

Well, today we raced the rain not in it even though we thought the weather was going to be blue skies and wind. It was definitely wind, though it’s hard to tell from this photo of Rosie and Tyson since they short hair that doesn’t really blow around in the wind. And the blue skies hung around far longer than we could have ever imagined.

Usually, the rain clouds travel up from the south or across from the west and while the wind came from that direction today, the clouds we eventually saw (and raced away from) raced down from the north. It was odd. Northern clouds usually mean snow, but that wouldn’t be right this time of year, would it?

But those clouds weren’t there as we walked to school the morning and they weren’t there when we walked home. There was just wind, blowing strong and steady with a few big gusts that scattered seed pods across the street. When Gretchen headed out to walk Rosie and Tyson, leaving me behind, there was no hint that rainclouds were on the way. In fact, it was so beautiful out, Tyson asked in his most serious voice, “I don’t mean to be pushy, but can we play at the tennis courts?”

And so off they went, first for a short walk and then to the tennis courts where Tyson chased the ball and Rosie chased after treats that were carried farther than normal since the wind lofted them a much greater distance.

They played so much, Tyson’s most serious face relaxed into a happy grin!

Gretchen came back to get me after that and when we went next door to get the boys — Oshi and Perrito – clouds were just gathering on the northern horizon. “That doesn’t look promising,” I said to Gretchen, but she estimated we had a few hours before the clouds made it to our location. Still, it was odd that the clouds were moving south even though the wind was pushing north. It was almost like we were caught up in a swirl — a chance of rain whirlpool.

Oshi and Perrito didn’t care. They just raced along the walk sniffing and smelling and tangling their leashes as they went along. When we stopped for a photo, they were happy for the sun and basked in its warmth since the bench and trees sheltered us from the wind.

Now you may be wondering why Oshi and Perrito are always on a bench. Well, they have a habit of wandering off. Not far and not dangerously, but to the point where we have to scurry around to gather them back up. When they are the bench, with their leashes behind them, they don’t jump off or race away. Hence, always a bench shot unless we’re running around on purpose!

Like at the tennis courts…but when we’re “posing” we have to keep a close eye on the wandering puppies or they’ll end up at opposite ends of the city — Oshi as close to home as he can get and Perrito lost in the fun and thrill of every sound and scent. And when the wind blows those sounds and scents are abundant!

Next up was Saber, but we drove to his house because after his walk, we needed to drive to Alice’s house. Saber and I played at the small first, though, so that Saber could drain some of his endless puppy energy. It didn’t take long since despite the wind, it felt pretty warm. Not warm enough to stop us from wrestling, but still warm enough that we had to play in the shade for awhile.

We went for a walk after that up on the ridge and that’s when we worried a bit more about the rainclouds. They were gathering big and black to the north and we could see the rain coming down in dark gray sheets. That’s when got an idea. “Let’s go back to the car,” she said, “And head over to Alice’s house before it rains.”

“With Saber?” I asked.

“With me?” he asked perplexed.

“Yep,” said Gretchen, “both of you.”

“Yippee skippy!” Saber sang, dance like a walrus at the end of his leash.

So we piled into the car, drove to Alice’s house, waited for her to come out on the porch (she’s always a little scared about our arrival so Gretchen waits on the porch for her to muster up the courage), and then all of us went for a walk. Now Alice, being the kind of skittish girl that she is, was a bit leery of Saber, but Saber, being a dog of good nature, was patient and polite and soon enough, we were all walking (and posing) side by side.

We thought for sure that the rain would come after we dropped Alice off, but it didn’t. And then, we thought for sure it would rain after we dropped Saber off, but it didn’t.

“Why’d we do all that racing around?” I asked Gretchen.

“I guess I miscalculated,” she said. And even as I type, those threatening rainclouds appear to be skirting around us.

So while we have not mastered the art of racing the rain, we may have to master the art of racing IN the rain tomorrow. We’ll see.

Until then,

Rubin