Category Archives: Saber

May 15, 2011

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My Life Without Photographs

I was reading in the New York Times the other day that the more we tell a story, the more we change the details. In other words, the truest representation of the “facts” of an event are when we tell the story the first time. After that,the details all get murkier and murkier or, as is the case with most humans, more and more

Two years ago it was warm enough in May that I got to swim in my own little pool!

embellished and exaggerated.

This is, I suppose, why humans take so many photographs. Or at least, that’s my theory. They know, even if they don’t want to admit it, that their memories are malleable and impermanent. A photograph, they think, will sear the details into something tangible and solid, something not so illusive and annoyingly deceptive as memory.

This is also why, I suppose, Gretchen is so upset that 1) she still hasn’t found her camera battery charger and 2) has had a very difficult time locating one. In fact, we’ve been to parts of this city I never knew existed searching for the battery charger that appears to be no longer in use.

Last year it was so warm in May, Tyson actually panted. He rarely pants!

I find this very perplexing.  We bought the camera only 2 years ago and for some reason, the batteries, which I might add are exactly the same as the current model of the camera, require a special kind of charger and while camera shops around town might have the batteries, they don’t have the chargers. This makes absolutely no sense to me (or to Gretchen, for that matter) and so we’ve resorted to trying to purchase one online.

But this has proven difficult as well because the exact model must fit “H” type batteries and while we can find an abundance of chargers that fit A B C D E F G and I, we struggled to find H. Go figure.

But this has also proven to make my life (and my work) feel rather empty of late. Every morning I get up, put on my leash, and head out the door in anticipation of meeting up with my canine clients. I know there are some past photographs where I look bored with the whole “posing” scenario and I know our computer contains over 20,000 photographs (most of me and my friends), but I kind

Rosie pants, but last year's May was really pant-worthy!

of miss reviewing my week in pictures.

And what, then, does NOT recording my life in photographs do to my memories of the past week? How does an absence of digital photographic evidence alter the stories I tell?

These are the questions I’m pondering and while you see photos of the dogs we walked this week on this blog, please know they are

only representations. They do not, by any means, capture this week’s stories/memories that ranged from thrilling to annoying, glorious sunny to miserably rainy. No photos of soggy dogs hunched together under the umbrella of a cedar tree or happy pupssplashing in the lake on our one warm, sunny day. No photos of me sleeping, no photos of my friends romping, no photos of the spring flowers or the snowy (yes, still snowy) mountains. No photos of rain dripping from every surface and corner or the brief, but glorious sun shimmering off of the puddles (and poodles).

For the fear that I might alter these memories past the point of recognition, I am refraining from telling the stories lest the details morph or transpose themselves into something not quite as pure and remembered as each day of my life. Instead, I will hold these stories behind the squinted eyes of my memory and hope that soon the correct camera battery charger comes in the mail  so that I might capture the beauty of my life frame by frame.

Cross your paws everyone!

Rubin

PS: Here are more photos of May not circa-2011…

Woobie panting underneath her long locks!

No panting, but flowers in bloom. We have flowers now, but the rain is rolling off of them!

Two years ago, it was warm enough that we could do some water therapy with Monty who sinks like a boulder, by the way!

But Gretchen and I helped him and he swam like a champ!

May 2010 had sunshine. You can tell by the shadows.

In addition to panting, Rosie is squinting in the sun. Remember those days?

We actually met Roux in the month of May last year. We don't have many photos of her, though.

We walked to lots of sunny places in previous Mays so we could stick out our tongues at the camera!

And yes, I got to do lots of swimming during a much warmer, drier May!

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January 15, 2011

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It’s Time

I knew this day was coming, but now that it’s here I have mixed feelings.

Our business is changing. Now that Gretchen has a full time job at the pool as the manager, she’s had to cut back in other areas of

Gretchen in the pool with Tony the Face. He LOVES his massage!

her life. She says that if she were 20 years younger, she might be able to walk 7 miles a day, spend 6 hours a day in the pool swimming and massaging dogs, and survive 12 hour work days, but she isn’t so therefore something’s gotta give.

So, she’s cutting back on the number of dog walking clients she’ll have per week.

What this means for me is that I’ll get more walks with Gretchen just by myself and

while I am very happy about this (I enjoy our alone time), I’m also sad because I won’t see some of my friends as often. It also means that I won’t be writing this blog every day. Again, it’s kind of nice to think about not having to write every day (sometimes, as you know, it’s been tough to keep up), but in one way, I’ll kind of miss it. Keeping a daily journal, as it were, is a great way for me to reflect upon my day and my life.

But Gretchen says that I shouldn’t dwell on the sadness, but rather embrace this day as a day to celebrate my friendships. So let me begin…

Waiting with my friends for a mid-morning snack!

My closest friend in all the world is Monty. We will be keeping him as a client so you’ll read more about our work adventures (days when I walk him), but you’ll also read more about our friendship adventures (days when we’re just hanging out and NOT working). Monty’s a special guy. He’s taught me more than any other dog I’ve known and I’m looking forward to more wisdom and fun with my big, woolly buddy in the years to come!

We’re also keeping Woobie who, as you know, has been staying with us this week. She goes home tomorrow and we know she’s very excited to see her family once again. Yesterday, when we were driving around on some errands, Woobie got really excited at one point in the car. “What’s with Woobie?” I asked Gretchen.

“Look where we are,” Gretchen said.

We were one block from Woobie’s house. I guess I’d be excited, too if I passed by my house after not being there for three weeks.

“Soon, Woobie, you’ll be home soon,” I told her and she wagged her big, wavy tail and smiled.

Gemma is a dog we’ve passed onto another dog walker (or two). I’ve known Gemma since she was a puppy and it’s been fun to watch her grow up. I will miss her lively spirit and her willingness to go anywhere and try anything. I didn’t think I’d miss when she bites my neck or pushes me around with her butt, but then when I really thought about it, I realized I actually would. Happy adventures, Ms. Gemma.

Oshi and Perrito will also be moving on. While I’m sad that I won’t see them as much as I used to, the live right next door so I will at least get to watch them on their porch as they scurry around and chase each other. When the weather gets warmer, I may just invite myself over there to scurry around with them.

And then Saber. I’ve known Saber since he was a puppy as well and boy, has he ever grown! I’m miss a lot of things about Saber but the one I’ll miss the most is his goofy happiness.

Every day, no matter the weather or my mood, Saber makes me smile. He loves life and has taught me to embrace every moment with exuberance and zeal.

I sure hope we can arrange play dates in the future because playing with Saber is about as fun as it gets!

Even today, when he knew this was his last day with us, he laughed and laughed and laughed in the rain as we watched Woobie battle the wind and Gretchen forced us to sit on a cold, stone bench and pose for yet another of her many (too many, I might add) photographs.

Okay, I’m gonna kind of miss all of this, but I’m not going to dwell on that…I’m going to dwell (and laugh) on the happiness of friendships…

And to you, my faithful readers, thank you for your support these past few years. Please keep checking in for I will still be writing about my adventures and my thoughts and everything in between. They’ll still be photos and witticisms and the humble contemplations of a maturing Labradoodle (that would be me), but they won’t be as often. I feel like I know each and everyone of you personally and I’d hate to lose that connection just because the focus of my work is changing.

And yes, it’s changing. Turns out I’ll be a pool boy accompanying Gretchen to work at Wellsprings K9 and assisting my friend, Paige as she blogs about her work at the pool.

It’s time and so I step forward into my new adventure in life and I sure hope you follow me! All the best to my four-footed friends and their families who have touched my life in such wonderful ways. I know I’ll see you on the streets of this fair (albeit wet) city and I hope your tail wags as much as mine!

Until next time,

Rubin

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January 13, 2011

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Dry Spots

Okay so the rivers running down the middle of the street stopped and I bet you think that because the picture of Rosie to the right looks dry that we had a fairly weatherproofed day…

…but I’m here to tell you that it just ain’t so.

It was wet. So wet, we went searching for dry spots.

We didn’t find many.

Okay, under Rosie’s new raincoat was one, but on the whole, we were pretty much just as wet as we were yesterday only today Gretchen braved the elements and pulled out the camera for a few select (and quick) photos.

I know…Rosie looks grumpy and she was. Two reasons: The first was that Woobie and I went for a nice long walk this morning (in the pouring down rain) and so we dried off and rested while Gretchen walked Rosie…by herself…and she was none too pleased about it either. “Where’s Rubin? Where are my friends?” she pouted to Gretchen.

“It’s just me today, Rosie. Sorry,” was Gretchen’s pathetic response and for that, Rosie gave her the cold shoulder for the entire walk!

The second reason she was grumpy was because she had to wear her new coat and the rain just kept coming down. She doesn’t mind her new coat as much as I mind my coat, but still, she just wanted to either walk in the buff OR wear her old coat.

But aside from it being rainy today, it was warm — 52 degrees warm — and this new coat is unlined and therefore not as warm.

Rosie wasn’t buying it so she got a grumpy walk today.

I thought for sure we’d get to walk with Gemma and Saber, but since it was STILL RAINING Gretchen decided she only wanted to walk two dogs in the wetness and not four. Boo hoo.

The only dry spot they could find was in the tunnel and so Gretchen posed them in front of one of the murals of Seattle. It depicts a brighter, happier, drier time in this wet city and frankly, Gemma and Saber wanted to just get on with the walk and not hang out in the tunnel.

You’re probably asking yourself — “Where’s Rubin in these photos? Where’s Woobie?”

We found the driest spot I know! And we both liked it very very much!

Until tomorrow (and cross your paws for NO RAIN!)

Rubin

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January 10, 2011

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Ubiquitous

Now there’s a big word! And yes, I know what it means. That’s why I had to laugh when a young man, who lives up the street, saw us out walking twice today — once in the morning and once at lunch time — and said, “Rubin is ubiquitous!” Our neighbor had seen us first about a mile from our house and the second time miles away from the first spot. The same neighbor works at a Daycare facility and we sometimes walk over by his work as well. He drives to work and we walk over there.

So yes, I guess I am ubiquitous — everywhere at once…or so it appears.

I glad somebody appreciates the miles I put in. Or perhaps they admire that I’m always out and about without really knowing that I log about 6 miles in a day (some days more, some days less). It makes me feel proud to be the “face” of dog walking and while we wrap up our last week of full time dog walking work, I find myself nostalgic, reminiscing about the past two and half years.

But I won’t go there today. Instead, I want to focus on the dogs we walked today. Well, I didn’t get to walk with everyone because I kind of had an upset tummy last night and Gretchen felt it was important that I rested.

Whatever.

The day started with a walk with Woobie. She’s staying with us for a bit while her parents finish up their trip to Africa! Woobie and I walked in the chilly morning and as our agreement, Gretchen doesn’t take photos on our “non work” morning walk. Despite the lack of a camera, we had a good time and slowly my tummy started to feel better.

Rosie and Tyson also got a morning walk and it was equally chilly for them, too. They headed over to Leschi where they pose on the brick wall and did their best to win over more treats from Gretchen’s pocket.

Gemma was next and she got to go out with Oshi and Perrito where the three played fetch and “prayer” ball (Perrito’s favorite activity) on the icy courts.

Well, Oshi didn’t play, but he supervised from the perimeter. He LOVES to walk the perimeters.

Woobie and I got to walk with Saber. Saber thinks Woobie smells pretty…

Woobie, as you can see, just ignores Saber and Saber wonders why…

“She’s just like that,” I told him, “But don’t worry. She likes you! Just look at her tail wagging?”

“Which end is her tail?” asked Saber.

He really is a funny guy.

What you can’t see in these photos, though, is all the snow in the mountains just beyond the lake. Gretchen was really hoping they’d pop out, but the lighting was too flat and gray so all you see is white sky.

Trust me. There’s snow in them thar mountains and I can hardly wait until the weekend when we get to romp in it.

Woobie and I rested more after that while Gretchen went off to work at the pool.

They’re talking snow tomorrow and so, I head off to bed dreaming of the white stuff.

I know snow throws everyone’s schedule off, but I sure hope it comes down and stays for awhile. I love snow!

May it be as ubiquitous as I am!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

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January 7, 2011

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All the little things…

This morning I watched Gretchen maneuver her way through an online tax website so that she could file her city B & O taxes. She gets pretty tense about it all and so I sit under the desk and rest my head on her nervous feet.

It doesn’t seem to help much, but I do what I can.

It’s amazing, actually, how many little things are involved in running your own business and we’re a small small business. I can’t imagine what it’s like to be twice our size or even bigger. Of course, if you’re bigger I imagine you hire someone to do all those little things for you — someone who, perhaps, enjoys it though I can’t imagine anyone finding pleasure in the work.

There are other little things that you never even think about — like maintaining this website and blog, organizing your billing, making schedules, planning for changes, blah, blah, blah. The dog walking is the easy part and thankfully walking dogs, according to Gretchen, makes all the paperwork on the back end worth it.

And it’s January, which adds to the stress since all that paperwork filed and piled in the office must now be sifted and sorted and prepared for the tax person. Thank Dog we have a phenomenal tax woman! She holds Gretchen’s hands (not her feet like I do) better than I ever could.

But those little things can clog up your day and make your work more difficult than usual. Like today. Gretchen forgot to take care of one of the little things — charging the batteries for her camera — and so we don’t have any photos from the day. Of course, it rained all day long — the kind of rain that gets you wet in 30 seconds or less so we probably wouldn’t have taken photos anyway, but it’s a good example of how one little thing can impact your day.

So our apologies to the families of Monty, Rosie, Tyson, Oshi, Perrito, and Saber — all dogs we walked today…in the rain…without a camera.

Good thing it’s Friday…perhaps we can attend to more of those little things this weekend and then be all caught up…oh wait, Gretchen just mumbled, “Fat chance!” so I guess I was being too hopeful. Oh well. I think I’ll go rest my head on her feet again and see if that helps.

Until Monday…have a good weekend,

Rubin

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January 6, 2011

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You’re One of Those…?

People ask some of the strangest questions of me as we’re out walking. This morning, on a wet, rainy walk with Gretchen (our special alone time) a woman stopped us and asked, “You’re one of those…” and then she snapped her fingers.

“A Labradoodle,” Gretchen filled in the blank.

“Yeah, that’s it,” said the woman.

Sometimes people ask if I’m a Wheaten Terrier or just a plain poodle. I know it can be confusing because there are lots and lots of breeds of dogs in the world and Labradoodles in particular come in many different shapes and sizes.

I also know I’m a particularly interesting mix since my Dad was a miniature poodle and my Mom was a first generation Labradoodle (her parents were a Lab and a Poodle, respectively). When Gretchen and Ann adopted me, they really liked my Mom. She was calm, confident, and a perfect size. When they met my Dad they thought he was cute, but were surprised by his energy, his re-activeness, and his level of nervousness. “Oh, that’s the poodle,” they convinced themselves and since they’d already fallen in love me, they adopted me anyway.

Little did they know that while I might look like my mother, I am definitely more like my father in temperament. We’re all working on it, but let’s just say I’m a work in progress. Thank Dog for Chinese herbs!

But I’m not the only one who is questioned about what I am. Rosie, for instance, is constantly asked, “Is that a pit bull?” or “Is that a mastiff?” Both of which are incorrect. Rosie is a boxer through and through — from her flues to her stump of a tail.

A lot of people have no idea what Gemma is. The common suggestion/guess is Airedale, and while she is a terrier, she’s an Irish Terrier. Most of the time, though, people ask, “What kind of dog is that?” and we have to explain.

Saber is also confusing because unlike most Labs he is not black or yellow or chocolate though AKC folks say he technically IS a chocolate Lab with a silver coat. Then again, there’s a whole other group (non-AKC folks) who call him a silver-coated Lab. Still, when we’re on walks people ask, “Is that a Weimaraner and Lab mix?”

Nope…pure lab, through and through.

I guess it just goes to show, you can’t judge a dog by his coat or his size or his coloring/markings or even his temperament.

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

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January 5, 2011

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Connected

It’s true that I have to moms, but somehow I’m more connected to one more than the other. Not that I don’t love them both equally. Not that when one or the other comes home I’m not thrilled and all wiggly to see them, but it appears that on a more unexplainable level, when Gretchen gets sick, I get sic. Or worse, when I get sick, Gretchen gets sick. I’m not sure why that’s worse, but maybe it’s because I feel bad about it.

Anyway, last night my stomach got all gurgly (is that a word?)…it started to gurgle. Loudly. I didn’t feel well and in the middle of the night, I got up and hurled on the carpet. Not a pretty sight, but all night long Gretchen kept feeling worse and worse and though she kept her side of the carpet clean, she said she felt like she could leave a spot somewhere inappropriate.

Turns out we both have intestinal distress. This is not the first time that it’s happened. Sometimes my left shoulder will hurt and Gretchen will get the same pain. When her left knee was gimpy, mine was too.

This is what I mean by connected. It’s eerie. We talked to the doctor about it this morning when I went in for my acupuncture appointment. “It’s not uncommon,” she said and went on to explain how many clients and their pets have the same ailments and conditions. “As a practitioner,” she explained, “I have to protect myself not to take on the energy of my clients.”

I thought this was kind of weird so I talked to Gretchen about it on our way home from my relaxing acupuncture appointment (and surprisingly, my tummy feels much better — must have been those needles in my stomach points!).

“You do massage on dogs,” I asked, “Do you sometimes pick up their ailments?”

“You know, Rubin,” she responded, “I’m not your typical woo-woo kind of person and I would have been the last to believe that such a thing could happen, but the more I work massaging dogs, and time with you, I realize just how amazingly we are connected. It’s true, if I open myself up too much in a massage, the pain the dog is feeling sometimes transfers to me. Not with the same intensity and it’s not like my knee is injured or my discs ruptured, it’s more of a general pain in that area. So, I’m not surprised that since you and I spend so much time together and we love each other so much that your sore shoulder is mine and mine is yours.”

Wow. If you knew Gretchen well like I do, you’d find this pretty surprising information and I suppose, if I were a scientist, I’d question the results, but I guess, in a way, we’ve kind of run our own experiments and the evidence is pretty clear to both of us — we’re connected.

On another completely different note, we’re “connected” in another way. Gretchen and our friend, Richard have been working feverishly on a new website for Wellsprings K9 (the pool where Gretchen works) and last night they launched it. You can see it here. Ironically, right after it launched, Gretchen felt ill and so did I.

Maybe it’s been the stress of ironing out all the glitches and the hours spent making it look the way we wanted it to, but I guess with all this woo woo stuff in the air (and in this house) I shouldn’t be surprised by the cause and effect.

Don’t worry — neither of us was too ill to not walk dogs today, though we walked slower and Gretchen let me rest more at home during the day, which was a good thing, I suppose.

So while I went on a walk with Monty, he walked some of the other dogs in my stead while Oshi, Perrito, and Gemma were left to their own craziness without Monty or me!

And just like the weather people promised, the temperatures rose and the rainclouds moved in. Thankfully, it stayed dry for our work, but things look mighty threatening right now.

So here’s a quick rundown of the day…

Monty walked with Rosie — well actually, they played at the tennis courts and had a blast (I’m only slightly jealous!)

Hard to see, but Rosie is chasing Monty...can you see her right behind Mr. Wooly!

Gemma walked with Oshi and Perrito, and yes, the gray skies tell it all!

And I got to walk with Monty in the morning (no photos, though) and then Saber in the afternoon.

Then I got another nap…so did Gretchen…and frankly, we both needed it. Monty enjoyed it as well. I wonder if he’s connected, too?

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

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January 4, 2011

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Same as it ever was…

Mount Rainier in the morning's changing weather...

If there’s one thing I’ve learned about humans, they live their lives in constant flux. Change, as it was said so many years ago, is constant and as much as they try to live their life in predictable routines and make resolutions to solidify those constants, life happens and chaos lifts up to shake even the most steadfast resolution by their roots.

This is difficult for creatures like myself who find comfort in routine. When my schedule is broken — when change interrupts my life — I struggle to maintain my equilibrium. Holidays really throw me for a loop. The past two weeks have been a challenge for me. As a result, I haven’t been eating very well. And I’m a bit more nervous than usual.

That’s why I was happy to get back to a routine on Monday though it appears that that routine is, once again, about to change. As I mentioned yesterday, Gretchen’s cutting back on the dog walking

Our favorite tree by the lake with early morning lifting light to the east...

and taking on more full time work a the pool. Not sound self-centered, but I asked her this morning what that means for me.

I guess I should say that while the morning routine stayed relatively the same (and yes, I ate most of my breakfast), Gretchen and I went for a really long walk down by the lake and while we do that often on weekends, it was kind of sweet to spend some “alone” time with her on our own adventure. This is when we had our talk…

“I know it’s going to be different for you, Rubin,” Gretchen began, “And it will be equally hard on me since I really enjoy your dog walking buddies.”

“I feel a ‘but’ coming,” I mumbled.

“Yes, but…this opportunity to work with and help dogs at the pool just presented itself and fit right into the direction I’m heading with canine massage,” she explained. “So I had to make a tough, tough choice and while I feel bad about letting go some of your dog walking pals, it will mean that you and I get to spend some time together not working, just playing.”

Frost and ice on the shores of Lake Washington...

I knew, of course, that Gretchen threw the word play in there because I love to play and will do just about anything to have more play time in my schedule.

She continued: “Walks like this, for instance. We’ll have more time to take adventures farther afield. We can get up early and go skiing or hiking or swimming at the lake and in the afternoon, when I work at the pool, you can come with me and be my faithful assistant there just as you’ve been my faithful assistant dog dog walker.”

It sounds pretty inviting, I must admit, but still it’s a transition and I’m not really good at those. Gretchen knows this and so she said, “It will be rough for awhile. Both of us will have to find a new rhythm to our days, but we’ve done it before and we can do it again.”

Today’s rhythm started with a long walk down by the lake as I’ve mentioned. It was chilly this morning even though the temperatures were warmer than normal. The winter sun hung low and I got to practice waiting and coming…it was great fun!

And the mountain and the light met as the morning slowly emerged from its slumber…

Morning mountain slumber

Meanwhile, though, there is work to be done and while today wasn’t as busy as yesterday, we still had obligations to our dog walking friends.

First up was Rosie. It’s been nice forming a new friendship with Rosie. She’s very happy to see me when I arrive and I must admit, I like the attention. We went for a walk and watched the weather change right before our eyes.

“The rain’s coming!” Rosie stated confidently.

“Yep!” I confirmed.

And with that, we bumped bodies (as we do whenever we walk) and continued on our way.

Weather's changing, yep it is...

Next was Gemma and while I helped pick her up, I got dropped off at home (since I’d had a long, long walk in the morning) where I rested. Meanwhile, Gemma picked up Saber and the two of them frolicked at the tennis courts…they sure love each other!

…and then headed on their own walk, tired and happy.

Gemma and Saber are two of the dogs we unfortunately have to say goodbye to, but I’m not going to think about that today…

Instead, I’ll think about how the weather changes and never seems to mind the different routine. I’ll try to be like the weather in these coming weeks — happy to bring warmer temperatures or a cleansing rainfall or an unexpected snowfall. I’ll let you know how it goes!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

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January 3, 2011

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Busted

For those of you who follow this blog, you know that I try to post a new piece every day. But you also know that some days I forget or I get too busy and then I must go to bed. Generally, I write the blog I miss the day after and write from the perspective of the day before. It can get confusing to be living in a Thursday but writing about a Wednesday. I do my best to remember what day I’m writing about, but some days I forget.

Like last week. I got too busy to write Wednesday’s blog so I got up early on Thursday and wrote about Wednesday. Only I wrote about Wednesday as if it were Thursday. Are you confused? Well, apparently I was too and the result was that I forgot to write Thursday’s blog. Of course, then the three-day New Year’s weekend happened and it all got messed up so now I must make amends or at least confess that I’ve been busted for my little white lies about what day I’m writing about.

Gretchen tried to console me with some phrase about “you’re only human” and then she caught herself because we both know I am not human. When I was feeling kind of bummed about it all, she said, “Give yourself a break, Rubin” and then I felt a tad bit better, but I suppose I’ll only feel better if I apologize directly to all of you.

So…I apologize for missing and misnaming my blogs. I’ll do my best in the New Year to keep up, but I suppose this is as good a time as any to let you know that my life will be changing after January 14. After January 14, we’ll be cutting back on our dog walking so Gretchen can work more full time at the pool. While it saddens us both to say goodbye to some of our most loyal clients, I know this is the best move for Gretchen who’s been working 12-14 hour days both putting in miles during the day and hours at the pool in the evenings.

She promises me that I will still get the same number of hours of play and walks and adventures and that I’ll get to go help her at the pool more often, but still it’s hard (as well as exciting) for both of us to make this transition. What this means for the blog is that I’ll be keeping a weekly blog instead of a daily one (though I might cheat and do a blog every couple of days). I know my grandparents will be sad about this because reading my blog is part of their morning routine — coffee, newspapers, and Rubin’s blog — but I also know they’ll understand.

But that, of course, is in the future. For now, I must catch up on all the activities over the past few days.

Thursday, December 30, 2010

It was a short but beautiful day. Gretchen walked Rosie and Tyson while I went out with Ann and my Auntie Jessica and her dog, Quillette. While I had a good time, it looks like Rosie and Tyson had even more fun playing fetch at the tennis courts on a cloud, crisp, blue-sky day!

I did get to walk with Saber and we headed down to the lake where Gretchen took us out on the dock. “I’m not sure this is a good idea,” I told Gretchen since Saber LOVES the water and would do just about anything to go for a swim…

…but even he had to admit it was way too far down to take the plunge.

So instead, we hung out in the sun as Gretchen tried to capture our silly expressions!

Friday December 31, 2010

And then we packed up the car and headed to the mountains! I thought it was cold on our side of the hills, but let me tell you, my paws were mighty cold in the 8 degree temperatures by the Wenatchee River. Here’s just a sampling of our time at the River…

That’s Lake Wenatchee on the left and the river on the right…

And this is me on both sides (tee hee) dressed for the chill (10 degrees in these photos), but I’m being very impatient. Good thing there is no sound in these photos because I’m whining, begging to keep going on our snowshoe trip.

I love to snowshoe and ski, but I wish Gretchen would buy me a set of skis and snowshoes so I wouldn’t have to wear these boots!

When we got done snowshoeing, I got to play with my little pink friend. She throws the ball for me and then chases after me. It’s the best game ever and would only be better if I didn’t have to wear the boots.

Still, it was mighty chilly and so I suppose the boots were a good thing.

Yep, it was so cold that the river got icy! I told my little pink friend to be careful or her tongue would stick on the snow. She didn’t believe me.

Gretchen and I went snowshoeing again the next day. I didn’t have to wear my coat this time, but I did run into some scary folks! That’s a unicorn bunny with a weapon (I’m a bit cautious as you can tell) and I think I know that masked woman!

I know you can’t tell from these photos, but we actually got a little lost. Thankfully, we were in a state park that went around a lake so once we found the lake again, we made it back to the car. Still, it was a long haul and since no one had broken trail yet, it was a difficult long haul.

I bounded my way through and Gretchen smashed the trail with her snowshoes. I’m not sure who was more tired by the end of the day, but both of us were a bit stiff and sore after the hike.

Oh and I had to cross this treacherous passage — it was a downed tree and it was laying across the path in such a way that we had to walk across the tree that had about 2 feet of snow on it. It was stretched out over the lake about 6 feet off the ground and even I, who is afraid of heights, made it across the 30 foot expanse. I was proud of myself! Still who was more tired at the end of the day?

Saturday January 1, 2011

The next day I met a new friend — Scout! — and engaged him in an icy game of chase!

Sunday January 2, 2011

We drove home…kind of boring, but then I liked the long nap in the car.

Monday (today) January 3, 2011

And finally, today. The past few weeks have been kind of slow with people on vacation, our travel plans, and the holidays so when we got back out on the road, I was kind of surprised at the 9 miles we put in. Whew…I haven’t done that for awhile!

First up were Gemma, Oshi, and Perrito. We hadn’t seen Gemma for awhile and though I stayed home (to rest), Gretchen said she was very excited to see everyone.

Gemma, as you can see, has a new collar — a Halti — which is designed to keep her from pulling. Much to Gemma’s torment, the new collar really works and Gretchen’s elbow is very very happy.

Oshi and Perrito are particularly wooly, which is a good thing since it was about 24 degrees this morning. Not the -5 degrees from our trip to Eastern Washington over the weekend, but still rather nippy for the start of 2011.

Oshi and Perrito were happy to have their wooliness!

The chilly day made for spectacular views and so Gretchen, Rosie, Tyson, and I walked up to our favorite viewpoint to capture the grandeur of it all.

Despite the chill, the sun felt warm and wonderful and we soaked it up!

Well, I soaked it up with my eyes closed! Rosie and Tyson were just waiting for a treat.

Saber was last dog of the day (he usually is) and we went for a long walk down by the lake and up through Frink Park. I told Gretchen it was a bad idea to try to take a photograph when we were surrounded by sticks, but did she listen?

I shook my head in disbelief! She’ll never listen!

Hard to say what makes Saber look up, but eventually he gets tired of the stick and raises his head. Today the sun caught him just at that moment and made him look sort of angelic.

Yeah right…

Still, I’m glad he looked up because the stick thing was getting annoying.

Okay, I’m caught up…whew. My paws are tired. I’ll do my best not to get this far behind again, but know if I do, it’s for a good reason!

Happy New Year Everyone!

Rubin

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December 29, 2010

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The Last

These are the last few days of December and the last few days of 2010. While it’s only Thursday, the next time I write the blog will be January and 2011 (as we are going on a ski trip starting tomorrow). But it’s also the last of Ann’s vacation, which means that she got to walk with us today and Gretchen put her in charge of the camera.

Not to sound harsh, but perhaps it’s a last time she’ll get that duty as both of them — Ann and Gretchen — struggled with the changing roles.

First, Ann had a hard time seeing the frame of the photo since, on her walks, she doesn’t wear her glasses. Hence, dogs got cut off at the neck and faces were making odd contortions.

Which leads to the second issue — Gretchen’s insufferable obsession with giving directions about how to use the camera and take the photo. She’s talking in most of these photographs and while she might like to point her finger at Ann for the awkward facial expressions, she has no one but herself to blame for the open-mouth shots.

Ann always says that Gretchen is now a teacher without a classroom and we can both attest to what a dangerous condition/situation that is! Without something to organize and manage, she’s always organizing and managing everything, which can be a bit annoying. Luckily, though, Ann only went with us when we walked Rosie and Tyson so neither of them had to suffer through the other one’s irritations for the entire day.

It’s tough being a dog in the middle!

It was also the end of the warm winter weather we’ve been having. To the north of us and the south snow fell and throughout the day, we could feel the change in temperature. Saber didn’t mind, but Oshi and Perrito were a bit chilly. They wanted to stand close to Saber (he’s very warm), but it’s hard to know which direction he will head next so they kept their distance.

By the time I got to walk with Saber, the wind had picked up and the thermometer dropped even further as we watched the snow fall in the east from our perch above Lake Washington. No snow for us, but we are surrounded by the stuff and it was kind of like being inside a freezer.

I was kind of sad that we didn’t get any snow, but then I found out that at the end of this vacation (Ann’s vacation, that is) we were going to the mountains for some time in the snow and I didn’t feel so cheated.

Until next year!

Rubin

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