Field Trip

I’m a pretty adventurous guy. My job takes me to lots of great places in the city and when I look at how far my range of service extends, I guess it makes a lot of sense that on a day like this one, I’m pretty tired by the end of it. What made this day so special? Well, lots of things.

First, I got to go to the lake with my buddy Ollie. We didn’t go for long and though Ollie got in for a few minutes, I waded in for a long time (check out the skinny legs) and was a wee bit disappointed when we had to leave.

Ollie wasn’t disappointed because he got some treats and that always makes him happy!

Though I didn’t get to go with Rosie on her walk, I did get to see the lovely photos of Rosie smiling in front of the beautiful flowers. I know exactly where that spot is since we pass it in our travels all the time. I’m so glad she got to enjoy it, too!

I did get to walk with Gemma and Woobie as we made our way around a very big loop (from Gemma’s to Woobie’s) and posed in the sun while completing the circle.

And to top it all off, Woobie, Saber, and I had a pool party in the backyard though Saber just wanted me to play with him and Woobie just wanted to rest in the shade of the table on the porch.

But that wasn’t the end of the day. Nope, I got to take my new friend (and a special friend at that!) on a field trip to one of my favorite spots in the whole wide world! Yep, Paige came over to my house and we walked down to the lake, swam and fetched balls, walked back home and then hung out in our backyard.

What made this field trip so special is that I had no idea it was planned. Nope, Gretchen just drove off and the next thing I know, she returned with the lively (and beautiful, I might add) Paige in the back seat. My heart leapt, my tail started to wag uncontrollably, and when Paige bounced out of the car and went immediately into a play bow, I thought I was going to faint with joy!

Off we went, down through the park, down through the tunnel, down the big stairs, under the noisy bridge, and within a matter of moments, we were standing at the edge of the lake where I stood pointing the sights out to Paige. “That’s Mt. Rainier,” I said, “And over there are the nutria nests — stay away because they are nasty and ugly.” I pointed out the nests and though we never saw a nutria, I showed Paige an ugly photo of one when we got back home. She immediately wanted to go back and hunt them!

But I digress. As I was saying to Paige while at the lake, “And if you hop off this ledge, you land smack dab in the best water in Washington. Give it a try. Go for a swim. Gretchen will take you!”

Yep, that’s them out there in the water! You can even see Gretchen’s gray hair and Paige’s long ears if you click on the photo and take a closer look!

Usually I don’t like to let Gretchen leave me behind, but this afternoon, on this unexpected and glorious field trip, I was proud to share all my joys with Paige. She sure seemed to appreciate everything I showed her. (I just didn’t understand why I had to wear the life vest and she didn’t!)

And then we walked back up the hill, back under the noisy bridge, up those long and many stairs, through the cool tunnel, back through the park (only I showed Paige the shortcut) and to our house where we hung out in the backyard in the shade of the old cherry tree. I rolled around, Paige watched, we both got lots of loving, and the smiles were permanently plastered onto our faces.

What a glorious day. The tiredness I feel now was well worth the effort. Work and play — sometimes in my life it’s hard to distinguish between the two and I must say, that makes me very happy!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

This HOT!

And yes, there was much more to our day (see below), but today the tongues said it all.

It was hot. Tomorrow will be hotter still.

Oh my.

I’m gonna go lie in front of the fan now. I wish I had more energy to write about our day, but frankly folks, I melt in this heat.

Stay cool if you can!

Rubin

Sticky Leaves

Everyone has their irritations in life. For me, it’s one something gets on my fur like a twig or leaf. I get very upset. Sometimes, when the wind is particularly whipped up it will blow through my fur and I can’t stand it. I twist and turn and try to get the wind out between my hairs. I can’t, of course, but that doesn’t stop me from trying.

But lately the large maple tree right outside our house (identical to all the others on our block) has been kind of an irritation. First, it has these seed pods that drop all over the place. They’re just the right size to get stuck under shoes or worse, in between my pads. Then these furry pods fall from the tree and the latch onto me like barbed wire.

I’m pretty good at ripping all of that off, but what I really find irritating and the thing I struggle with the most are the sticky, sappy leaves that are currently falling from the tree. I don’t remember this happening last year and Gretchen concurs — for some reason the sap on the maple trees is running wild! Leaves scatter all over the ground — green ones, not yellow or gold ones — and they are covered in something equivalent to rubber cement.  Gretchen calls it maple syrup and I guess, given that the tree is a maple, that just may be what it is.

Regardless, her shoes and my pads are pretty sick and tired of it. They latch on and no matter how hard I pull with my teeth, those leaves won’t come off. Or worse, they come off in pieces — crumbled sticky leaves stuck in my teeth and on my feet and fur.

Yep, that is probably the thing that irritates me the most of late. I think Gretchen’s pretty sick of them too. And the car — you should see the globs of sap that cover it! We washed the car the other weekend and within a day, blobs that looked like resin were splattered all over. One day I even saw a squirrel (they usually catch my attention) who had a big sticky leaf plastered on his two back legs. “Here’s my chance,” I thought knowing that the little guy was pretty crippled — like a tripod trying to make an escape — but when I lunged toward him, he bunny-hopped his way down the street too fast for me to catch.

I had to laugh, though. Even the squirrels find the sticky leaves irritating.

But there are other irritants in life. Each of us has our own list. For Ollie, the irritations come in the form of cats (I can relate). When we walk, he is always on the lookout. If he sees a cat perched in a windowsill or on a doorstep, he leaps up and barks with irritated excitement. I appreciate his alerts because I, too, like to pester the cats, but for Ollie it’s as if the cats were put solely in this work to bug him.

Quillette’s irritant is frisky dogs. As an older gal, she doesn’t much like it when a young dog comes racing toward her with unbridled excitement. She’ll snarl and snap if need be. Luckily, Ollie understood the rules and was very good about approaching the old bird.

Rosie has many irritants — cats among them — but another one is loud and rumbling trucks or buses. Boy do they make her jump! If they rumble by too close, she skitters away and tries to get as low to the ground as possible. That’s when Gretchen finds a beautiful garden for Rosie to meditate and relax. Works like a charm every time!

I’m tempted to say that Gemma is the irritant in many instances, but I suppose that wouldn’t be too nice. Do things irritate her? At first, I didn’t think so, but today as walked up to get Woobie, a city light crew was working on some lines and they had a machine to trim away the branches. Gemma did not like that at all. She, too, tried to skitter away, but Gretchen reassured her and I tried to explain that humans make all sorts of bizarre noises but that we wouldn’t let anything bad happen to her!

Now Woobie, I think, isn’t irritated by much, but then again Gemma was kind of an irritant today. She just gets so excited to see Woobie that she wants to play right away and Woobie, equally excited to see us, races around the porch and up and down the steps to her house that Gemma can’t help but play bite at her. Woobie doesn’t like that much, but Woobie knows amazing restraint. She’ll snarl and then quickly back away and go about her business. Yes, Gemma might be an irritant for Woobie, but Woobie doesn’t hold onto the irritation for long.

Saber is irritated by one thing mainly and that’s his nose collar. He hates that thing. He spends all his time trying to get it off, so much so that when Gretchen has to take his photo, she pulls it off and makes him pose in a stay position. If there were sound for this photo, it would be, “Ahhhh, that feels so much better!”

Of course, when he’s playing with me, he could care less about the nose collar!

I’m just getting to know Paige, but today I got to see her irritations. We headed out on our walk and this time, instead of weaving through the neighborhoods, we climbed up a long couple flights of stairs and ended up in a great little spot with lots and lots of trails. (I’m sworn to secrecy about this particular location, but you’ll have to trust me that it was pretty amazing and fun.) Of course, Paige and I are both nursing mild injuries so we were not allowed off leash. Bummer.

But it’s super bummer for Paige because she LOVES to chase things and the things at this wooded, traily location were rabbits!!! Oh my, oh my, oh my! I got as excited as Paige, but because of some superficial owies we weren’t allowed to chase them. I have to admit, that irritated me as much as it did Paige…well, almost. She got pretty agitated, so much so that we had to abandon the walk on the trails and head back to the safer streets of the neighborhood.

Not before a photo op. Though I must tell you that one of my other irritants is one dogs touch me. Saber will often butt into me or in the car, while we’re driving Gemma will want to be right next to me. I do not like this in the least and will often loudly show my disapproval. But today, while posing with Paige, she sidled up to me in a very affectionate way and I must admit, it was very nice. I didn’t snarl or move away. Instead, I leaned right into her and we both enjoyed the moment.

I think there’s a lesson in all of this — something about trying new things and trying not to be irritated — but frankly, it’s been a long day and the lessons will have to wait until tomorrow.

Until then — I sure hope life’s irritants stay clear of your paths!

Rubin

And they think I’m loud!

It’s true. I like to bark. Not all the time, but sometimes. Like when the crows are perching on the fence or when the squirrels race across the trellis or when strangers come to the door. Gretchen says it’s the poodle in me and I guess it is, but I like to think it’s because I’m guarding my property. Still, when it happens at 6 in the morning or even at 7, some people aren’t so pleased.

But I’d like to point out I’m not the only noise maker in the neighborhood. Take, for instance, the chickens that live behind us. Now that the sun is up pretty early, those chickens start right in laying eggs. When they get ready to push one out, they make a lot of noise. It wakes me from a deep sleep and I look over at Gretchen very worried that something (a raccoon or coyote) might be getting one of the chickens. She reassures me that the gals are just laying an egg. Wow. That must be some egg!

And then there are the crows. Every year they build nests in the big maple trees that line the street on which we live. When the babies get big enough to perch on a branch they can make quite a ruckus calling for their parent or screaming about the distance down to the ground.

And then there’s the dog across the street and the one behind us. They each have their own distinctive barks and they aren’t exactly quiet in the mornings. And what about the garbage trucks on Friday mornings? The boom-boom cars that travel up the street at too fast a speed late at night? Or the planes that fly overhead? My three barks once a week can’t really compare to the cacophony of sound this city produces, so I don’t think the neighbors should really complain about me.

Besides, I’m gone most of the day especially when the day was like this one. I looked at the schedule this morning and my jaw dropped. First because there were 9 dogs on the schedule. There’s rarely ever 9 dogs on our schedule, but mostly my jaw dropped when I read “Four Boys to the Groomer.”

“Which four boys?” I asked myself and then I looked closely at the schedule. There were names conspicuously absent — Monty, Oshi, and Perrito. That made three boys and something told me that I was the fourth.

I hate it when I’m right! So up the hill we went, four shaggy boys!

Okay, so it’s not that bad. I really like Liliana and her brother Claudio. They never put me in a kennel, I get to run around with the other dogs while I wait for my turn, and in this late June heat it feels kind of nice to have a short haircut. Still, I missed out on all the dogs today…well, not all, but most.

After Gretchen dropped us off, she picked up Rosie who was already complaining about the heat! Still, she had enough energy to play some cookie fetch before they headed out on a slow walk (slowly only because Rosie was hot!).

Gretchen says that figuring out which dogs to walk when is kind of like solving a Rubik’s Cube. While she walked Rosie (who she likes to walk in the morning because Rosie gets overheated quickly), Gretchen worked the puzzle in her mind. I usually help her with this, but since she was on her own today, she had to figure it out by herself. And that’s just what she did.

Next came Gemma and together they walked up to Woobie’s house, then down through the park where both of them hung their tongues in what I like to call a dog sweat.

They picked up Saber before dropping Gemma back at her house and then Saber and Woobie piled into the car (which Gretchen left at Rosie’s house). Confused yet? You can see the cube moving, can’t you? Anyway, down the road they drove to pick up Ollie who, as always, was delighted to be with his friends though Gretchen told me that he missed me and kept looking back over his shoulder on the first part of the walk wondering where I was!

I was getting clipped and snipped and pruned and plucked! But after Ollie went home and then Woobie and finally Saber, Gretchen came to pick us up, though not all four of us — just Monty and me. We looked fine in our red bandannas and that’s when Gretchen told us she had a surprise — we were going to Paige’s house!

Monty was excited to meet Paige and when they met, I was surprised at how shy they were. It was most likely because we were greeting each other in the hottest part of the day, but I also think they were both a little smitten. I have to admit Paige is so attractive that I blush when I’m around her so I kind of expected Monty to have the same reaction. Instead, he sniffed and then turned away. “She’s cute,” said Monty, “but I think she likes you best, Rubin, so we’ll just be friends okay?”

Wow, did that make me blush even more! In fact, I was so embarrassed I didn’t even have a quick comeback!

On the walk, though, I could tell Paige and Monty really liked each other because they’d imitate what the other was doing all the time. Still, when it was time to pose for our photo, Paige flopped down right by me. Can you see how much I’m blushing? And no, it’s not from the heat of the day or a reflection off my red bandanna!

I know going to the groomer makes me tired, but I imagine Gretchen is worn out as well having to walk 9 dogs by herself so I’m going to finish up this blog, go QUIETLY lie by her tired feet, and see if she needs anything.

I am a good dog, aren’t I? I know exactly when to be quiet.

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Over Indulgences

Whew, what a weekend I had! Woobie has been our house guest this past week and this morning, she went back home, but for a last hurrah, we took a little trip over the weekend up to Gretchen’s old stomping grounds – Port Townsend. I won’t spend too much time telling you about the wild and crazy times, but suffice it to say, it was dog heaven.

First, our hosts — Buster and Dozer — were gracious, hospitable, and more than anything, barrels of fun. They live out in the woods and they have a great yard in which to play as well as this amazing park right by their house where we went for long walks on wooded trails.

Buster is older and not as active as Dozer who was young and spry enough to chase me around their big yard. Then we walked at the State Park (their backyard of sorts) and Woobie and I got to smell the deer and squirrels and raccoons, and who knows what else. It was glorious!

But the best part is that they live within 3 minutes of a beach. I love playing at the beach and apparently Woobie does too! Here’s just a sampling of our beach fun.

Of course, I over did it and ingested a bunch of sand while playing fetch with my favorite ball. I paid for it later with quite the upset tummy Sunday night and didn’t get much sleep.

So as you can imagine between a wild weekend and an upset tummy I was tired today, but duty called and I had never shirk my duties!

The first duty was to return Woobie home. She was thrilled to see her family and even though I’m going to miss her, I’m glad she is back where she belongs! Sleep well without me, Woobie!

Then we walked Oshi and Perrito. They were so happy to see us because lately they’ve had to play second fiddle to their mom being pregnant. The baby should arrive any day now and it was all Oshi and Perrito could talk about! Well, Oshi talked about it and Perrito grunted and groaned over his special little ball.

I got to rest after that romp, which was a good thing since my over indulgent weekend zapped me of my usual endurance. Gretchen walked Rosie and Tyson while I slept and those two were not only happy to see Gretchen, but equally happy to see their parents who had gone wine tasting in Oregon over the weekend.

According to Gretchen, Rosie and Tyson are a study in contrasts. Tyson is Mr. Serious and his look is always questioning. “Am I doing this right?” he’ll ask when Gretchen requests a pose.

Rosie, on the other hand, can be serious, but underneath it all she’s kind of a clown. When they pose for a photo, Rosie is always contemplating how to walk away. She’s gotten better at staying for longer periods, but in the back of her mind she’s thinking, “I could just walk over there and no one will ever notice!”

Gemma had a house guest too and when Gretchen stopped by to pick her up, Gemma introduced her to Cooper — a whippet. Cooper was a bit skittish so the three of them went on a walk so Cooper could feel a bit more relaxed. You can tell by his ears that relaxation wasn’t in the cards today.

When they came by the house to pick me up, Cooper was quite leery of me, but eventually those ears came up if only for a second. Gemma and I just played around him. I’m not sure if it made him less anxious or more.

Finally, we dropped off Gemma and Cooper and picked up Saber. The two of us got to play fetch at the park after a nice long walk, but Gretchen only took photos of us after the exercise. As you can see, we’re both tired from the game!

The afternoon was uneventful as Gretchen went off to work at the hydrotherapy pool. I didn’t mind. It gave me a chance to get some much needed rest. Gretchen hopes I’ve learned my lesson that over indulging doesn’t always make for a happy Monday!

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Hard to Believe

Monty’s Mom calls this month “Juneary” as in January in June. Yes, it’s been cloudy and gray, we’ve had more than our fair share of rain, and lately it’s been cold — not your typical June in Seattle.

But today the sun came out. Yes, the sun — that warm, glowing star high up in the sky that keeps our planet alive.

So it wasn’t like a normal summer day where the temperatures hovered in the mid-70s and the sky was eye-achingly blue. No, it was a day with a few clouds, no rain, and a bit warmer temperatures, but at this point, I’ll take whatever hint of summer I can get.

Our clients were happy about the day, too as we set out for our final day of a very long dog-walking week. Woobie, our house guest, agrees with the long, hard week. Last night, as we both curled up to sleep – she in my bed, me in hers — she whispered to me, “I feel like I could sleep for days, Rubin. How do you do this every week?”

“It’s my job,” I replied and then said, “You better get some rest because tomorrow will come quickly and it’s another full day.” With that Woobie and I slept and dreamt and sighed really big sighs. It’s nice having her around.

And this morning did come fast and furious. We woke early, ate breakfast and then set out for our money walk with Monty. I think I’ve said this before, but Monty has as serious crush on Woobie. I’m not sure she’s noticed yet, but Monty (whose nickname should be Romeo) does everything he can to share his heart’s desires whenever we’re together and since we were together most of the day, you can imagine how he’s worn himself out flirting!

Gretchen got a special treat on this warmer, sunnier day and that was an extra-long walk with Rosie and Tyson. Since the normal half hour got extended to an hour, Monty, Woobie, and I rested at home while the three of them played and then walked. Rosie was the happiest about the sun since she thought yesterday was way too cold.

Since it was warm and Rosie tends to get overheated, they walked down through the cool shade of Frink Park…

Oshi likes the warmer days the most of any of us. Since he thinks he’s a cat, he balks at going outside if the thermometer drops below 70 and lately, it’s had a hard time pushing 59 so you can imagine it’s been a chore to get him out the door.

Perrito doesn’t care at all about the weather. He just wants to stretch his legs and look for mischief around every corner.

He’s a lot like Gemma in that regard. Gemma sees the outdoors as her hunting grounds. She bounds down the steps of her house on the offense ready to meet, greet, or eat whatever crosses her path. She and Perrito make a good match!

For Saber, each day is wondrous surprise. When we show up, he’s always thrilled to see who’s on the porch waiting for him and he’s even more thrilled when he sees the sun, feels the warm, and realizes he gets to spend an hour with his friends. Of course, he loves some of us more than others!

The day ended with Monty going home and Woobie and I watching Gretchen head off to work at the pool.

“How does she do it?” Woobie asked me after Gretchen walked out the door. “I’m beat and she just keeps going!”

“I’m not sure,” I responded honestly, “but I’m thankful for the time apart because we get to rest and sleep and dream about more warm days!”

“Good idea,” she said. “A very good idea!” And with that we fell asleep until dinner time.

Sometimes it’s hard to believe my life is so wonderful, but when the sun comes out, my wonderful life really glows! Hope yours does too!

Have a good weekend,

Rubin

Attracting and Repelling

There are things I like and things I don’t. There are days when what I like is different than the day before or even the day after, but still, I’m a pretty predictable guy in terms of things that set me off and things that make me dance.

Top of the “Like List” is playing. I love to play more than anything and sometimes that gets me in trouble. I also like to go to new places and today we got to do both — play and explore. Gretchen says I have strong Attract and Repel magnets somewhere in my genes. What I like, I attract to me with full force, and with an equal and opposite force I repel those things I don’t like (usually with a loud growl or bark!).

Top of the “Don’t Like List” is my raincoat, but luckily today I didn’t have to wear it. Don’t think that’s because summer is here because it’s not. Our friend Colleen (Monty’s mom) calls this month “Juneary” and I’m beginning to think she’s right. It was cold out there today, but luckily playing and exploring kept us warm.

It started with a nice, brisk walk with Ollie and off we went exploring the new neighborhood in which he now lives. We found this really long trail right through the neighborhood and even though it felt kind of dark and creepy, we ventured down it and down it and down it. Ollie kept looking at Gretchen slightly worried about how dark it was and Woobie kept looking over her shoulder.

I just tried to stay positive so everyone felt safe. I mean somebody had to do it.

Besides, I could see the light at the end of the tunnel, so to speak, and like a magnet I just kept letting it attract me!

Rosie has serious attractions and repulsions. She’s repulsed by cats (you go, girl!) more than anything and she’s seriously attracted to treats. So much so that she’ll sit and wait for them for long stretches of time…something she didn’t do when Gretchen first started walking her. In fact, she’ll hold a pose even close to the open grated walk, which is right behind her in these photos and Rosie hates those open grated walks as much as I do!

Look at her! She’s doing better than I would have, only when I have to stand for this pose, Gretchen drags me onto the grate and makes me sit there for an eternity.

Grates go on my “Repulsion List” for sure! I mean, why do they do it? Why not just put a firm, solid, concrete slab down or build your park on the ground. Suspending it high above the air and making it so you can see down it is just cruel. Rosie totally agrees!

Gemma’s got attractions and repulsions are all mixed up sometimes. She seems to be attracted and repelled by many of the same things — dogs barking from behind a fence, squirrels chattering in the trees, cats who slither under parked cards — she wants to get to them as much as she wants to GET THEM, if you know what I mean.

Woobie thinks Gemma’s kind of funny, but one of the things I’m learning about Woobie is that she’s kind of repelled by the camera. Every time Gretchen pulls it out, Woobie turns her head. It takes a lot of coaxing to get her to do otherwise. Not Gemma though. She’ll look straight into it every time she’s asked. I think she finds her own reflection attractive!

But eventually, when Woobie is really tired and resting while I’m still playing, she’ll look at the camera. She does have a sweet face even though sometimes it’s hard to see her eyes.

As you know, Woobie is staying with us for awhile and while she has always found exploring an attraction, I think today she may have been a bit repulsed.

“Gee, Rubin,” she quietly whispered to me this afternoon, “I never realized you worked so hard at your job! Your paws must get really tired by the end of the week!”

“Not just my paws,” I complained. “I mean, have you seen how some of my clients treat me?”

Woobie shook her long locks “yes” and after our play time with Saber, I think she got a much better understanding of just how hard I work!

Saber, Saber, Saber — he is attracted to EVERYTHING. Only once have I seen him repulsed by something — an umbrella — though today he was a little worried about the water bags they put around trees to keep them hydrated. But it wasn’t repulsion, just curiosity with a bit of nervousness. Once he smelled it, he was okay.

If there is anything that attracts him the most, it’s my favorite ball!

I pretty much thought the day was over at this point, and I was looking forward to a nice afternoon nap on my favorite (attractive) bed. But no, it was time to not only play and explore, but to meet a new dog!

This is Paige. Gretchen walked her once before, but today Woobie and I got to meet her. She’s a beauty, isn’t she? I certainly found myself attracted to her, so much so that even though I was super tired, I pranced my best prance just to get her attention. I sure hope she noticed!

Every time Paige looked my way, though, I got really shy and turned away. I guess that’s the fine line between things that attract and things that repel. When I was around Paige today, I got all flustered and clumsy.

She didn’t seem to mind, though. Nope, she was the best hostess as we explored her neighborhood. She showed us the trails that cut in and out of her neighborhood and wind around a gentle creek. She even let me walk close to her for awhile, but it was very hard for me because I found her so attractive. Eventually, I got so hot and bothered, I had to walk on the other side of Gretchen just to keep my attractions in check.

I sure hope Paige is on the schedule every day, though Gretchen tells me that it will be more like once a week. I guess I’ll have to take what I can get. Sigh.

What a day, what a day, what a day. My paws are sloppily typing out the last lines of this blog and my eyes are all droopy. Playing and exploring, attracting and repelling, spending time with new friends and old — it’s a wonder I’m still standing by the end of the week.

It’s a good thing I love my job, isn’t it?

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

Accepting

This morning I had a dream. It didn’t feel like a dream at the time, it felt very real, but when I woke and realized I was here in this now and not there in that now, well I realized I was dreaming.

Here’s the dream:

I was walking (without a leash) along a warm sandy beach. All my friends were with me — human and canine — and we were all laughing. For humans that means they were smiling and talking with their hands (that’s what they do if you’ve ever noticed) and for the dogs this meant we were smiling and wagging our tails high and proud. Some of us were racing along the shore chasing waves, others were sniffing the seaweed and driftwood higher up on the beach, and some of us were being really indulgent and rolling in decaying smells (obviously not the humans, though they should give it a try).

The sun was high in the sky and warm and delicious. I’ve only felt that occasionally so far this summer so it was nice to dream about it. At one point in the dream, all of us — human and canine — flop onto the hot sand and fall asleep. What does it mean to fall asleep in a dream where you are already asleep? I think it must mean you are really relaxed and content, so when I woke up this morning, that glow of the dream was still with me. Even the rain against the window couldn’t chase the feelings away.

But the reality of today is that it’s raining off and on and there is no beach and there is no sun and there is no warm sand upon which to take a nap. Halfway through today I realized that my dream was teaching me to accept things as they are. Rain is rain and there’s not much I can do about it. Sun is also sun and when it comes I readily accept it. Therefore, I’ve decided, I must do the same with everything else when it comes my way even if it isn’t exactly what I’d prefer.

There are so many lessons to learn in my life that sometimes I feel overwhelmed with it all, but even those lessons I must accept as timely and important even if they aren’t always the easiest to learn.

So today, as we walked through the accepting rain and the occasional sun break, my friends and I talked about all those life lessons.

First, Woobie. She’s been staying with us and everyone in my house agrees she has a calming influence on me. I like Woobie very much. She’s very friendly and has mastered the art of acceptance. I asked her what’s been her biggest life lesson of late:

Woobie: When finding a place for a nap, always accessorize with a unique and creative costume. (This is precisely what she did this morning wearing my octagon ball as her crown.

We picked up Monty next and since Monty is one of our older friends, he’s had many life lessons in acceptance.

Monty: I’m not sure where to begin, but lately my lesson has been to accept that some days I’ll have bad hair days and even though the rain makes them worse, I’m still lucky to be alive and have such great friends. (Monty had a traumatic surgery awhile back and after reading the statistics of recovery, we are both grateful he is alive and doing well!)

Rosie walked alone with Gretchen, but she too had words of wisdom.

Rosie: My biggest life lesson lately has been to trust more. I’ve always been a little afraid that I’m not on solid ground, but living in my home with my loving family and brother, Tyson, over the years the ground has felt much firmer under me. I’m still learning to really relax into it.

Gemma, of course, is still young, but even she was able to reflect on her life lessons.

Gemma: I have a lot of older friends, like you, Rubin and if there’s one thing you’ve all taught me it’s to play like there is no tomorrow. So each day, especially when I’m with all of you, I play, play, play every waking second and each night I sleep with no regrets.

Oshi and Perrito have much different perspectives on acceptance especially now that their mom is about to give birth to a little human.

Oshi: I need to accept that I am not a cat. I’m still not there, but every day lessons present themselves and I’m slowly learning. I think when the baby comes I may have to pretend sometimes I am a cat and curl up next to it (boy or girl), but now that I’m older, I really need to embrace my canine qualities.

Perrito: Accept? Where is it? Can I chase it? Baby? What baby? Can I chase it?

Okay some are learning more than others!

And then there is Saber who is technically the youngest, though one of the largest dogs we walk.

Saber: I need to accept that I don’t get to eat as much. I’ve been put on a diet and it makes me hungry all the time, but I’m looking thinner aren’t I? More svelte and trim? My parents tell me I have to watch my boyish figure, but it’s a hard thing to accept when there are so many wonderfully, tasty treats I could be putting in my mouth!

Gretchen, too, says she’s learning to accept certain parts of her life. For one, she’s no longer a teacher in a classroom. While she spent 25 years with kids, she’s accepting that now her life will be about dogs, but she says that’s not too hard to accept. In fact, she told me it’s exactly where she wants to be.

Me? I would really like to be on that warm beach rolling in the hot sand getting the scent of seaweed on my curls. How about you?

Until tomorrow,

Rubin

What you don’t always see

We take a lot of photographs, as many of you know. We comb through them every afternoon and winnow out the ones that are too blurry or show only half a dog racing through the frame. We try to focus our blog on interesting topics and often those topics revolve around the photos we shoot. Well, that Gretchen shoots and I often participate in.

But a lot happens behind the camera and unless you are good at reading dog body language, you may never know. So here’s my attempt to explain some of the things that happen that you can’t see. I’ll start with yesterday. I posted this photo of Woobie and me getting rowdy at the tennis courts.

But I won’t to focus more closely on Ms. Woobie who is, by her own account, performing a happy dance. Unfortunately, we didn’t get her dance fully in the frame, but with a little help from iPhoto, we can zoom in on how happy this happy dance was…

…did you notice that yesterday? You may have, but sometimes our lives are too busy or we focus our attention elsewhere. Anyway, this is just the kind of thing that happens that you don’t always or can’t always see.

Today it started when Woobie and I went to walk Ollie. We found a nice little bench in the garden and we waited to have our photo taken. Actually, we waited for Woobie to look and the camera and Ollie to stay put (he’s always trying to get close to Gretchen so he can get a treat…doesn’t want to miss out on the treats!).

But what was happening behind Gretchen was that a whole carload of preschoolers was piling out of the van and racing up the stairs to somebody’s house. It’s amazing we held this pose so well.

On Rosie’s walk, she posed beautifully…

…until she saw a crow behind Gretchen and off she went, but luckily she came right back when called. Of course, she was expecting some kind of reward!

Now when Gemma walked with Zoe, they both looked in opposite directions — Gemma focused on a barking dog off in a distance and Zoe looking forward to the continued walk.

Eventually they looked at the camera…

…but while Gretchen was trying to get a photo of just Zoe, Gemma climbed up on Gretchen’s arm asking for a treat…which they both received.

Gemma also got to play with Saber, but what you may not notice in these photos is that Saber is no longer on a leash drag. Gretchen thought that since I wasn’t there and Saber wasn’t always trying to steal my ball that he might be better on his recall command…

and he was…

…when he wasn’t being held back by you know who!

Now something you may not also really notice here is that Gemma is wearing her raincoat on a perfectly sunny day. When Gretchen picked up Gemma it was raining just a bit and so Gretchen thought, “If Gemma wears her raincoat, the sun will come out” and it did.

We got to see Saber, too, but what you may not be able to see in this photo is that Woobie and I are exhausted. In addition to our work today, we went for a really long walk down by the lake this morning. Both of us are ready for a nap, but we had to finish our obligation and Saber was the last of the afternoon.

There’s a lot more that happens behind the camera, but this tired pup is going to rest up for tomorrow.

Until then,

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…