Photo Moments

Featuring my baby, Mia . . . probably the most spoiled of the 3. Its hard to not spoil when I can remember her being a tiny little puppy curling up on my lap, and she still looks at me with little puppy eyes and starts wagging her tail when she wants something. And she's definitely the most photographed - Bandit is a little more photo-shy and Tucker looks scary in pics.


Here she is sporting her new "purse" - this squeaky toy that she can't seem to get enough of. Don't let the sad eyes fool you either, she might have been growling under her breath at Bandit for getting close to her toy when we took this. Even tries to bring it to bed with her sometimes and we have to take it away.



Checking out G's camera -- just before she licked the lens!

Fresh Dirt

Its been fun to see the daily progress in our garden. We're probably dorks but G and I get so thrilled at every little seedling that makes its way through the dirt. Even the tiniest little spurt of growth is exciting. Our hard work is finally starting to show, too, which is nice. But I think we definitely qualify as gardening junkies now. I salivate over the garden landscapes I see in Sunset magazine. G always points out the nice yards we run across as we're out walking the dogs. Terrible, huh?

The flowers are in bloom. The cherry tree lost its blossoms but has lots of little green cherries, probably 5x more than the small little handful we got last year. The front yard can probably use a bit more work but all in all, its promising to be a good summer.

This last weekend we finally started putting some of our seedlings into the ground. The squash has been coming along well, and they're so hardy that we decided that they'd brave the cold nights just fine. So they've been scattered around the yard.

We have 6 squashes this year so we thought we'd try to plant this one in the shade where nothing else can really grow. If it dies, well, we're already going to have more zucchini than we know what to do with.

These 3 - a zuke, butternut, and yellow squash can battle it out amongst themselves. There should be plenty of room for all of them, but hopefully one doesn't choke out the other.

Maybe the hardiest of the 3, but they're all pretty impressive already. It was crazy, one of them looked a little wilted in the morning so we decided to hold off on transplanting it. But a couple of hours in the shade and it perked right up, getting even bigger than before, if that's even possible.

We planted the strawberries in the front. There's been a lot written these days about edible front yards. And I'm not going there yet, but I have to admit that I'm a little intrigued. We do occasionally get kids messing around in our front yard, so I'd hate to tempt them more. But between the dogs (one night, I let them out when I heard horsing around and some kid who was still hanging around the yard actually kind of dropped to the ground as Mia rushed him . . . probably to lick him, but he didn't know that) and G scaring them off with a pellet gun (that was pretty hilarious too, they took off running), we're probably safe. So we're hoping to start a little something in the front yard this year -- a few strawberry plants, hopefully a blackberry bush if I can find one, and a grape vine for our front porch. If it works, we might be looking at even more crops next year.

One of the strawberry plants already has a few berries!


And of course, our pride and joy is our "pepper kingdom." G ordered a bunch of crazy pepper plants from an online vendor in the east coast. So we're now the owners of some of the hottest peppers in the world. According to the Guinness Book of World Records, the hottest pepper is one from India called Bhut Jolokia. Guess whose house you can check it out at this summer? We have some other super hot ones to0 -- 2 different varieties of habaneros, something else called the Trinidad Scorpion and the Devil's Tongue. Plus we still have the tamer ones we grew last year -- some serranos, jalapenos, thai dragons, cayennes. We planted all of the peppers in a planter box last year and stuck it in our dog run where they get the most sun. This year, we've decided to add to the group by planting the new varieties in individual planters that are big enough to house them throughout the season. The entire collection (along with some sweet peppers) is now ready for viewing. And of course, if you're looking for some heat later this summer, come on by.

Its nice to know that our dog run is getting some use after all, seeing as how our dogs don't actually hang out in it.

Next stop, Ghetto-ville

Sometimes, I have to remind myself that I do not, do NOT live in the ghetto. And really we don't. But every so often, something happens and I think, man, you could have fooled me.

Take for example, that time I lost Tucker while we were out walking in the hills by our house. He took off, and I wandered around for an hour looking for him. Seriously, walked for an HOUR in the sun with 3 other extremely tired dogs (we were dogsitting one) calling his name and getting more and more pissed. Turns out there's a little homeless camp tucked away there, and I wandered in thinking maybe Tucker had been enticed by the food laying around all over the place. The nice homeless man that was there hadn't seen him. But he got on his pre-paid cell phone and called his buddy on the other end of the park to see if a dog had come drifting over to that camp. Sadly, no. All right, you're right, that's not ghetto, that's downright hospitable. Who knew there was such a tight knit bum circle in town.

Well then what about that time I found a homeless guy laying on the street when I got into work one morning? He was just laying there, his head on the curb, his bike lying sideways next to him. I tried to ignore him but then felt bad and went over. Called out to him a few times, no response. Finally decided to call 911, thinking he could have fallen off his bike and landed that way. Big shocker, when the cops came out, they said they'd seen him around town a lot and he was probably just taking a nap. But they couldn't wake him up either and ended up calling the paramedics. I might not live in the ghetto but my old office definitely reeked of it.

Not to mention the alley behind our house could have come straight out of ghetto-ville too. And I know, cuz I got into a ghetto fight back there not that long ago. Our garage is detached and leads out to the alley. But the stupid people that live there seem to think its ok to just park where ever they please. So I open the garage door one morning, in a rush as always, and there's this car parked right in front of the garage. I don't know what else to do so I just start honking my horn, all the while looking for the local police number to call to get a tow. FINALLY, about 5 minutes later, this big fat lady comes strolling out in her bathrobe. And mind you, its not that early, maybe like 9? On a weekday! Anyway, she kind of strolled out, clearly in no hurry and walked over to her car as if parking there is completely normal, and actually looking like I might have inconvenienced her a little. So I might have, er, um, gotten into a little bitch fight -- i mean, just verbal, but there might have a bit of the "oh no you DIDN'Ts" coming out of our mouths.

There might have been a similar incident with the family who let their pit bull out to attack our dogs one night while I was out walking them. A heated um, discussion, that ended with one ass-wipe asking for my # and me cussing him out and threatening to call the cops and animal control.

So anyway, I guess it was only a matter of time before I got another taste of Hollister's finest. . . this time in the form of a definitely funky homeless man walking into our office asking to check his email, leaving a fine odor of BO permeating throughout the building in his wake. Damn, I knew we should have taken off the "free internet for bums sign" from underneath our law firm title!

Maybe love just isn't what its cracked up to be

About 10 years ago, I was channel surfing on a Sat night (cuz I was cool like that) and stumbled on a quirky little show called Cupid. And fell in love. It was the first show I can really remember being completely addicted to (well, I guess other than ER but who wasn't addicted to ER at some point or another). I'd avoid going out on Sat nights just because of it . . . obviously I was giving up quite the social life. And I finally even bought a VCR(!) so that I wouldn't miss any episodes. Anyway, the show was about a guy who believed he was Cupid, sent down from Mount Olympus after angering Zeus. I wondered then, and I wonder now, why the Roman god Cupid would be taking orders from the Greeks, and normally this sort of confusion would keep me from ever enjoying a tv show. But in all other ways, the episodes were perfect, so I let it slide.

Cupid was banished to live as a mortal until he could match up 100 couples and go back home. Or so he said. His shrink, a practical self-help guru, definitely did not believe him. And that was pretty much the show -- "Cupid" trying to match people up and his shrink trying to get him to face reality and figure out who he might be. It was smart, funny, and most of the episodes kind of tore at your heart strings a little. I LOVED it, and critics agreed, but it never seemed to gain much of a fan base, despite its very attractive Sat night time slot. Rob Thomas wrote it, who of course went on to write Veronica Mars. Jerry Piven played Cupid. And basically, it rocked for an entire 10 or 11 episodes and then got canned.

I was so crushed that I even emailed Rob Thomas (and he wrote back!)

Now, I guess ABC decided to give it another go. First episode aired at the end of March. And I wish I could encourage everyone to go check it out so that it makes it this time around. But I think its already floundering. Reviews have been so-so. I finally saw the pilot last night, and I think I can see why. First of all, they've changed the actors!!! Jeremy Piven WAS Cupid, dammit. And the chick that played the shrink (Paula Marshall) was awesome too, I don't know why they didn't bring her back. The two of them had awesome chemistry too, I don't really see it here. They changed the setting -- I think the original took place in Chicago. They changed the theme music. And they changed the episodes entirely. Dude, the show was good for a reason. If it ain't broke, why fix it?

Of course, I'm going to stick it out to the bitter end. But I have a feeling that I won't be as disappointed when it fails this time around. And the episodes that I go back and watch over and over again will most definitely be from the first run. NO, they're not still sitting around in VHS tapes. Years ago, when I mentioned how much I loved the show to G (years after it ended, I was STILL thinking about it), he found pirated versions online and downloaded them for me.

Flight Encounters

About a month ago, I went to Oregon to see my folks. After a frustrating drive up, a scenic drive around the SFO airport looking for the parking lot I had reserved a spot at, and an angry bout with my stupid GPS, I missed my flight to Eugene. Fortunately, there was a flight to Portland that had been delayed and still at the airport waiting to depart. I raced aross the airport and called my family to rearrange my ride.

Waiting to board, I called Gregg, as I always do when I feel bitchy and whiny and complained about my morning. I'll admit, it was in a fairly loud voice. Of course my voice is always loud, but turns up a few more notches even when I'm excited, if you can believe it. But I was shocked and annoyed to be shushed by nearby passengers. I of course blame the inherent bitchiness of people waiting to get on an airplane that's running over an hour late. Because god forbid that it be my fault. First, I got yelled at by a guy kinda near me to go somewhere else. I snapped back, telling him it was a public place and I can do whatever I want. But then this older couple defended the obnoxious jerk :) and I decided it was probably better left alone. So of course, I lowered my voice and continued complaining to G about what an angry group I had around me.

To be honest, I don't think I was that far off about the general short-temperedness of that particular group, and I'm not just saying it to absolve myself of any responsibility. I'm saying it cuz of this conversation I overheard once on the plane. I use the term "overheard" somewhat facetiously as the entire conversation is voices that were far louder than mine had been.

2 pm -- We receive our "please turn off all electronic devices" warning.

2:15 -- We're still on the runway.

Guy (passenger) sitting across the aisle and one seat in front me says to lady sitting in front of me: Is that your phone still on. You need to turn it off.

Lady: I'm turning it off.

Guy: You were supposed to have turned it off 15 minutes ago.

Lady: You know what sir, you need to mind your own business.

Guy: OK.

Lady: You know, how dare you. My granddaughter was just born. And I'm not there to see it. So if I want to look at new baby pictures of her, that's my business. I'm just sitting here minding my own business, so you need to mind your own business.

Silence.

Lady: Do you work for the airline? I don't see your uniform. So why don't you just sit there and mind your own business?

Silence.

Plane starts going down the runway. Lady turns her phone off.

Lady: See, I turned it off.

Woman sitting directly across the aisle from me and I look at each other, trying to keep from laughing

Guy: Good. Thank you.

Lady: I'm a 45yo woman and an adult. I know when to turn my phone off. And I know when to mind my own business. You apparently have no idea what it means to mind your own business. (Approximately another 2 minutes continuing in a similar vein. For a 45yo woman, she has a fairly limited vocabulary, I must say. )

Sadly, the Guy doesn't ask what I so desperately want to know, which is, is her son/daughter who just had this baby at a freakishly young age as ghetto as she is?

Guy (finally): Look, when I'm on the same flight as you, and you're endangering my life by using electronic devices, that is my business.

Lady: How am I endangering your life? I turned off my phone. Could you please explain to me how I endangered your life? You didn't die, did you?

Silence.

One minute later: I just don't understand how me looking at pictures of my baby granddaughter is your business.

Silence. Woman across the aisle and I exchange another glance and smile, particularly one minute later, when the Lady says again: You know, how old are you, sir? Obviously not old enough to know to mind your own business.

Frustrated passenger sitting in front of them: Lady, you've made your point. Can you please just be quiet now?

Lady: opens mouth, starts to say something, thinks better of it, and is finally, thankfully, silent. Woman across the aisle from me and I, realizing that the show is over, settle into our seats.

I'm thankful that some of the people sitting in front of this argument were the same people who had been around when I had been getting chewed out for speaking too loudly. Hopefully, this more recent farce is the encounter they remember from that particular flight.

My going away committee

I came out of the shower this morning to find 2 out of my 3 kids already making themselves quite comfortable on the furniture. Tucker on our bed, Mia in the spare room. Clearly, my leaving has a huge impact on them.

Skunk'd

Oh great -- I thought our dog drama was over for a while. But apparently not.

First, about mid-week or so last week, Bandit started acting funny. She got a little, um, OCD. Kept rubbing her face on the floor, started trying to chew off her paw. Took her 25 minutes to settle down and find a comfortable spot to sleep Wed night. Then she woke up in the middle of the night and again went thru this whole long pacing ritual. Thurs morning, she didn't eat. So I called the vet thinking I could just talk to the doc and she'd had some ideas. But she was pretty concerned and wanted me to come in. So Thurs morning, I found myself calling work and letting them know I had another pet emergency and would be coming in late. Turns out she's ok - probably OD'd on her meds. The meds inhibit her cortisol production, so it makes sense that if inhibited too much, her stress responses could go a little haywire, resulting in some very anxious behavior. The doc gave her a steroid shot and is having her cut her meds for a few days.

THEN on Sat night, we were walking the dogs when Mia got skunked. She couldn't have been more than a few yards ahead of us, so I'm not sure how it happened. But not only did she get sprayed, it seems like there might have been a little scuffle because she came out with a big gash on her cheek and the skunk seemed to have lost big chunks of black fur. Sigh. Thank goodness she's caught up on her vaccines, cuz G says that skunks wandering around in broad daylight like that are most likely rabid.

Last time Mia got skunked (yes, there was another time -- she's apparently dumb and doesn't learn from her mistakes), we used this stuff called Nature's Miracle. It sort of did the trick, I guess, but Mia was still banished to the kitchen for some time. And it was quite a while before the smell completely wore off.

This time, we'd thought we'd try something different, since my friend swore by tomato sauce. Not sure if it was anymore successful. Fortunately, she didn't get skunked as badly this time, so it wasn't as intolerable to begin with. But Mia looks a little orange now, and I don't know if the cross between skunk juice and tomato sauce is any more flattering to her. She did seem to like the remedy a bit better though, since she got to lick the tomato sauce as I slapped it on her. But overall, her mortification was clear.

And for the rest of the weekend, she ran every time I brought the hose out (often, since we were doing a lot of yard work).

Tucker on the other hand, LOVED the tomato sauce. I'm thinking he would have rated the whole skunking as quite successful. Especially after he managed to clean up all the spillage on the bricks AND on Mia. He started licking Mia every chance he got, pretty much capping her misery, I'm sure.