Out of the Silence

Sorry, I was on quite the run there for a bit of posting to the blog and then I ran into my funk, got a reason for my funk and then just kind of stayed gone from the blogging world.

Mind you, in my absence I have not gotten anything of import done. Mainly, I've rested and started the road to feeling better. Feeling better you ask? Yes, feeling better. Previously I wrote of the vicious hate spiral and stated I wasn't feeling well. When I first composed that blog entry, I didn't even really know how unwell I was feeling. But, since then I got worse, then I got an answer as to why I didn't feel well and though I have started back around, it's going to be a bit. And yes, I get that this little ramble doesn't tell anyone much but please recall that though I do blog, I am still quite a private person. I have had a medical condition return that I thought was beat back several years ago. It has been caught and we've begun to address it and with any luck things will be just fine as they were before but it takes time, and energy and some days like today I seem to have precious little of that commodity. But though I feel sapped, I also feel hopeful and happily I am out of the spiral. I passed through it without dragging everyone near me through it with me. Hooray!

Now, onto what I have gotten done:

A few months back I was given a batch of fiber in the "Tardis" color way. While it was in it's original stranding I felt it was very "contrasty". In other words I felt the colors kind of clashed and didn't blend or meld together well. So I broke out those carders I bought a while ago and dove into the fiber with abandon since I have never made my own rolags. As you can see from the above picture, I figured it out.

Then I spun the yarn in to a gradient yarn that went from blue at one end, to white in the middle, and back out to gray. I then chain plyed that bad boy for about 90yards of worsted weight yarn. Much nicer with it's colors fading into one another and I am looking for the perfect pattern for it.

Then I got the above yarn which is a mixed bfl fiber done. It was my first stab at a 4 ply. It was great fun though I had a bit of a time with the ply since I only have a three bobbin lazy kate. A box with a knitting needle stuck through kind of solved it but it didn't hold tension the same way. Still, fun and I ended up with over 300 yards of a wonderful rich hued DK weight yarn.

And last but not least for this months spinning is my very first "crepe" yarn that as it has turned out has been one of my favorite spins so far.

It is a 2 ply wrapped with another ply, and though it looks kind of complicated and fiddly, it isn't. My only real issue was that I didn't ply that first two together as tightly in some areas as i should have to go an ply it the second time with the third one, but despite that it is still a lovely 135 yards of blues, nectarines, coppers, and violets. Bless Scarlet at Huckleberry and her eye for color and her amazing fiber preps. I actually special ordered some fiber from her yesterday since I loved some of her blend samples so much and the colors were just amazing. By next week I hope to have my hands on some merino/bamboo/silk blended fiber in amazing hues.

And with over a week gone by since I last truly posted, spring has surely arrived and started fading into summer here. All the trees but the honey locusts seem  to have embraced the return of the sun.

The iris's bloomed yesterday but we then had a little hail that though left almost everything alone, tore the delicate hoods of the iris so I have no blossom shots. They are not my favorite siberian (to dry and hot here) iris's and instead the double bearded varieties they are still a favorite and seem to be doing well where we have placed them.

The white clematis is in fool bloom. As I recall, last year it was the first to bloom as well.

I hope by next week to have pictures of the purple robe locust that has decided to give us blossoms this year which despite it's slow start with leaves I hope is a good sign that it is doing well.

Well, I have a baby gift to wrap and another to get finished up and blocked and a nap i hear calling my name so I hope you all have a good weekend. But I'm going to leave you with a gratuitous cute shot.

True friends can never be truly separated. Not even by a screen door dammit.

Battling the Vicious Hate Spiral

What is a hate spiral you ask? Well, if you have to ask you have never suffered from one and I'm pretty sure most everybody has fallen prey to a hate spiral at some point in their lives.

A hate spiral is that pattern of thought and events that sets up very slyly as you chauk it all up to the beginnings of a bad day. You wake up one day and every little thing goes wrong. You trip over a dog on the way to feed them and kick the corner of the fireplace breaking your little toe before you've mumbled a good morning to anyone. Then when the cat finally decides to show up for breakfast, instead of going to her bowl where she knows you've already filled, she decides to yowl and bitch at you just to make sure that you are aware of her presence. Not that she wants to be answered or even pet. Oh no, she just wants to bitch and you are her lucky audience.

Basically, from here on out the day is a disaster. You drop everything, you are late to everything and the more it goes wrong, the darker your mood becomes. You soon cannot keep it internal. It expresses itself every time you open your mouth. Even when you try to be kind and nice, your face shows or your inflection is edged by it. It is like a black hole that you slowly revolve around, trapped in it's inexorable gravity as you get sucked towards it's maw. The only hope is to be pulled in and shoved out the other side without damaging your personal relations beyond repair.

So today, I gave up. I am full on its grip and have tried as much as I can to just stay away from others. I've taken steps to reduce the hate spirals effects on others and fallen into it with only the hope of coming out the other side without dragging others behind me. I've ignored calls, left emails unanswered and have put up a self imposed circle of silence. I've worked in the yard and only taken dogs out and come directly home. Throw in there I've been sick as a dog most of the night and this morning and this week long road of ill feelings has gotten old, and I'm done with it. But there is light. I took the time to notice what this weeks rain has done to my yard between trips to the bathroom to throw up even the water I've tried to drink today.

The onion flowers are out.

The grape is slowly unfurling it's leaves.

The original locust tree seems like it may actually bloom and the beginnings of leaf buds are starting to show on the new one. And the lilacs have bloomed...

I'm having a hard time with that one because I'm allergic to them. They smell lovely and I wish that I could enjoy them, but more so, I wish my entire yard was not surrounded by them.

Yes, surrounded. Alas this is one of the things I was trying to miss by an early spin day. Since I have not lucked out with missing this and I have no hopes of being beyond the grasp of the aforementioned spiral; there will be no such spin day at my house this weekend. Add on the fact that many have holiday weekend plans, it seemed and ill fated plan to begin with.

I hope all are enjoying their springs and if you have lilacs, may you love yours more than I mine. Get out in that yard before it's too hot to enjoy. I wonder if it's the warmth and humidity getting to me or if I am having one of those mysterious "painless migraines" I've heard about. Because a migraine aura is kind of what this feels like. Maybe I'll try taking some of my Imitrex just to see if it makes any difference.

Spring Is Here, and It Brought Friends.

Amorous ones even.

Nothing like some lady bug beetle loving to get you moving in the morning, is there? And with the sudden arrival of lady bugs all over the maple I got to looking at it closer to discover we have aphids. But then that is what fresh leaves and hot dry weather does. But luckily for us we started getting rain yesterday and I woke to still falling rain this morning. Many are irritated by this, but just like the snow, I love it. The only worry is with our soil here, if we don't get a break between rains it floods easily.

But this is one of those lovely steady, rain all day kind of rains. Makes me think of home. And between dog walks I found things to do inside. Such as spin.

This was my first disastrous foray into spinning with beads. The Corriedale fiber felted a bit and the beads just kind of hang there. pulling away from the fiber on the polyester thread they were threaded on. It's hard to see here but it was a very unsuccessful attempt. I will in the future try placing them on a finely spun single instead.

And since it was already kind of a crap shoot. I threw the finished yarn in the dye pot.

And considering how rarely I actually dye, it was kind of amazing as to how close I came to lavender I wanted. It was just a packet and a half of grape Kool-Aid and vinegar thrown in to a crock pot for a bit.

You can kind of see here the beads just kind of hanging from the yarn instead of laying in the yarn.

So, with all that said, last night before bed I dove back into some knitting. I swear I will get the autumn leaves stole done at some point but I can tell you, my mind is done with this pattern. As soon as I pick it up I start to fall asleep and I am only just over half way done. I have a lot of knitting left to do on it. Someone want to finish it up for me?

I seem to be on a kick.

Because here it is, and I'm blogging again. Mainly because I need to share the last of my spinning.

I dug into the stash for fiber to take to a spinning workshop this last weekend and came up with some lovely stuff that a friend gave me this last year as a gift. It's from a lovely shop called Gypsy Wools in Boulder, CO. Thank you Alena.

I decided to try long draw and this wonderful commercial roving struck me as a good way to go. I think my newness to the method showed since I should have done some prep but it was lovely and I feel that in the end it did quite well. I have about 170 yds of a wonderful fuzzy DK (13wpi) woolen style yarn. I typically spin a smaller gauge worsted style so I'm expanding my horizons a bit.

Yesterday I was perusing some of my own favorite blogs to read and the YarnHarlot gave me pause. One because of the emotion that was present in her writing, but also because something that keeps coming up in my life over and over again lately. She was writing of a loved one who it sounds is in the process of dying and how she longs to write of it, to speak of it, to yell out her feelings to the world but that to do so at this time on a public forum such as her blog would go against the wishes and need of privacy this person holds dear. And that stand is something I admire.

I don't write a blog to make money, or to entertain. I don't fancy myself an educator with my words though perhaps occasionally someone does learn something of some value from my mental explosions across the internet. But, I also don't see it as a diary per se; for I see diaries as things that are private. They are filled with your thoughts, dreams and fancies you don't put out into general company much less the world wide web. My blog is more of a means to convey my thoughts, doings and life events to my friends and family, and yes, anyone else who happens along to read them. On the note of it being an open to the public blog I try to remain aware of what I place here.

I know, I hear several people right now rolling their eyes and saying, "Really? You worry about what people see here? After that last blog regarding porn shops?" And the answer is yes. When it comes to me, I'm a fairly open book. I can discuss topics that others are ashamed to even think about. Personally I don't have a lot of "shame" when it comes to things I think, do, or have done. I feel that I try to be open because I try to look at my actions and words as windows into who I am. I try to reflect on things when I run across thoughts in my head that shock me, and see if there are underlying issues and come to be at peace with them. We all sometimes do, say, or even think things that can shock ourselves and make us wonder if we truly understand ourselves, and if we don't understand ourselves, how can we understand others? When I run into those I don't care for I often try to pick apart what it is that I don't care for. Sometimes this leads me to understanding something about myself and this often ends up with me liking that person more than I ever thought I would. Sometimes it leads me to something uncomfortable regarding my own thought process. Often it leads nowhere as it just settles a fact I've always known. We all won't get along. Ever. No one is capable of like everyone, so just be honest about it and move on. I try to explore these things when they arise in myself and I think that has made me more open than I would otherwise be to say things because I know where I am coming from.

But all that is not regarding where I was originally going. I was discussing privacy, more specifically, internet privacy. When I tell stories, I often leave out names, or change the names of the person I am referring to. If it's something that I know that person would be horrified by my recitation, I won't tell it. That's a story for them to tell and for me not to share with a very large possible audience. I think this is a respect I can pay my friends, and even acquaintances that costs me nothing to do so and to be honest, something we should all be able to expect from others.

The other day I was discussing with a friend the break down of privacy regarding their kid doing something stupid and their friends taping it and placing it on Facebook. Now, regardless of our age, most of us in our youths have done stupid things. Throw in a couple good friends that were just as young and dumb as you, and well; we get a majority of our tales we tell as adults hoping our children never hear them. But now days, I am sorry for kids to be surrounded with the technology they are. How many of today's youths have regrettable decisions that would normally just be teenage poor discretion plastered on YouTube for everyone who wishes to watch, comment, and share with an ever widening audience?

So, to all those out there that know that I know their dirty little secrets; I know that some of you are scared by my oddly good memory and recall but I want you to be at ease knowing I will try my best not share your stories unless I know you are okay with it and comfortable with my narration. Even when I do tell of times past or things I've recently done, I tell it from my perspective and stride to not drop names or other identifying details. I also ask that those of you out there that have similar stories of their friends, or God forbid, video footage; ask them first if it's okay to share. To share or not to share should be their choice.

This day in age with the ability to destroy someones reputation or harm their standing with friends and family with a simple few pushes of buttons, it is all of ours responsibility to protect our own and each others privacy. Besides, if someone's reputation is crap they are probably well on their own way destroying it with their own actions and don't need our help. I still cringe thinking of some of the stupid thoughtless things I have done and am thankful I grew up before the cell phone became a mainstay of our population and well before every cell phone had a camera or video ability.

With all that said, do you have a friend good enough to use their ass as a pillow?

If not, you should ask yourself why not...

Spring is Bursting At The Seams

And with it has come the heat. Why couldn't we have had a couple weeks of 70's before it just climbed right up into the 80's?

This spring we noticed that along with the normal batch of dandelions in the yard, we have the wild ginger that you see growing everywhere here. Where it came from, who knows but why when we've never had it in our yard it literally popped up everywhere, is an even greater mystery. While we pulled it and the little yellow flowers up by their roots we noticed exactly how dry the ground is. Our late snows did little to dampen the earth and I have a feeling we will have a doozy of a fire season.

Two summers ago we cut out a large pine tree from our front yard that was leaning dangerously towards the power lines and our neighbors house. It was in the process of dying from beetle infestation when we moved in so before the wind took it down where we didn't want it to, we took it down ourselves. Last summer we replaced the pine with a couple of small deciduous trees. One was a maple species closer to the house in hopes of shading both the house and the yard some day. The other is a locust on the front strip of lawn between the yard and sidewalk. We failed to get appropriate protection up and a deer one night decided to use the smaller locust to scrape velvet from its antlers this past fall. The guy who was very pissed about this turn of events has been keeping a close eye on this little tree and has repeated over and over that he didn't think it had survived the deer mauling. I insisted that many a tree has survived such things and to give it time, it may take a little longer to bud out than the other trees due to the missing bark and it's species. after all the tree wasn't completely girdled, only about a 3rd and there was these quite little nodes developing on the branches since earlier in the winter.

Did he listen? Nope... Friday of this past week when none of the trees or bushes were completely leafed out out yet we went to breakfast and he stopped at a local plant store for a replacement tree. While he and the plant guy bartered, BS'd and otherwise wasted time I wondered around the lot looking at other plants I might go back for once I have the ground prepped. Upon returning home I wandered over to the sad little tree to say goodbye and noticed something. Those time little nodes on it's branches had decided in the heat to start to present real buds and some had even started to open. Smugly I walked indoors and told him to go look at the tree. Now we have three trees to replace the one we cut down. And a hot long summer with little hopes of water. So, if you have too much rain where you live, send some our way.

On other news, the new foster dog seems to be settling in. She's been doing pretty good with us. I've discovered taking a hold of her seems to be a trigger for her. She also seems to be just like the last foster who gets herself so excited she hits the panic level and then nips in fear. So, we'll be starting some self soothing work with her. But oh, she loves other dogs, and puppies are just her thing. She loves to play with them.

It's just discouraging sometimes when dealing with these dogs that are so sweet, and not bad dogs, and seeing the damage that irrational and neglectful humans can do to a dog physically and mentally. But, I have hopes, high ones even that we will get her slimmed down, calmed down, and fingers crossed, placed in new home that will continue the work we've restarted with her.

The new onset heat is not treating poor ancient Shiela well at all. She seems to be slowed down in everything the last few days and doesn't even bother asking to go for the afternoon walk. She would much rather stay at home where it's cool and she can lay on the couch. It worries me that this may be her last spring.

Last night while I was spinning up some Romney cross roving a friend (Thanks Alena! It was wonderful) gave me for Christmas. There will be pictures of that later once it's been washed and set, we witnessed Sullivan having one of those rough sleep sessions.

You know the kind. You start off trying to relax with your favorite pillow, erm... I mean soccer ball. Next thing you know you've tossed and turned until your the pillow.

Considering...

I am thinking about a Memorial weekend spin day in my back yard. I was thinking Saturday the 25th. Something mellow with maybe nice thick wonderful sandwiches for lunch and a fiber stash exchange. Sorry, no lasagna.

By the 25th the leaves should be out shading the back yard but possibly not miserable hot yet so we can sit in the sun dappled breeze. What do you guys think? Anybody interested? I know a lot of people will have memorial day plans but that will keep things small, and you can show up as you can. Just a thought right now I came up with as I pulled dandelions before work.

The Aroma of Loneliness and Despair

When I was quite a bit younger I was driving through my hometown with some friends and we were discussing the fact that I was looking at getting a second job due to struggling to make ends meet. As we drove by a seedy and shabby adult sexual paraphernalia store and noticed it's sign stating they were looking for help I joked I could work there. The hours would be great and it would be so educational! Well, if you knew me then, and knew my friends it is no stretch of the imagination to see the following conversation that led them to daring me to do so. I did so. I got the job. I got fired.

It is the only job I have ever been fired from. I worked there for just over two weeks. I can honestly say it was probably two weeks too long for both myself, the owner, and the poor customers. We were not a good fit and considering it was a dare to start with and I never planned on using this little career window on my resume there were no hard feelings when I was told to go and not come back. In fact he paid me from the cash register so he wouldn't even have to mail me a check.

Now, let me describe what kind of shop I was in. Because most people that are familiar with these establishments will recognize this description. It was a small building with wood and paper placed over the windows so people wouldn't stumble by and see something unmentionable. Inside was dark, close, and... dirty doesn't cover it. You felt as though you shouldn't touch anything because you might catch herpes. There were inflatable toys hung from the ceiling with impossible appendages attached and wind up puss's and cocks on the counter that when wound would leap across the counter at you like they were either going to eat you or brain you. This, has been my experience with most of these shops. It wasn't until I was getting ready to leave Alaska that they opened a "Castle" store that was quite nice. Clean, well lit, and lacking the little video rooms in the back where you could pop in some quarters to enjoy some old porn on a wall inset mounted tv. These rooms were connected by a waist high hole that should you be truly lonely you could "share your experience" with the person in the room next door without ever  having to look at their face or introduce oneself. And let us not forget the checkout stand by the door that is raised a good two feet so that the cashier looms over the person who is struggling not to make eye contact with anyone like some sort of judge.

What could get me fired from such a place you would ask? Curiosity and a lack of knowing the rules to work there. Curiosity you ask? Yes. I didn't know what most of these things were for and I figure the best people to ask were the ones buying them. Does that lubricant really taste like grape, and why would I want that part of my anatomy to taste fruity anyway? I was and am of the mindset that if you need to cover up the taste of that then it probably shouldn't be coming in contact with your taste buds, no? And the woman who purchased the pussy mop? Oh, she complained when I asked her what that could possibly be used for. I've seen babies born and nothing that large should be willingly placed in those orfices. I did not state this to her, in fact I thought I was quite polite in how I asked her where she could possibly be placing that silicone medusa's head. Nevertheless, I do know that her complaint was the final straw for poor Mr Baler who informed me that banging on the door of the little video room to evict the toothless old coot who had been in there for hours not paying so that the next person could enjoy whatever they thought was inside that room.

And the rules of working at such a place? Mainly, you do not speak more than absolutely necessary and make no eye contact. Well, unless you were looming over the customer at check out wanting them to think you were about to unleash the power of an angry and embarrassed God on such a sinner. I never took kindly to the Catholic church when I was a kid so I didn't do that to well. Instead, I smiled, I chatted, I took people to where the items they were looking for. I interrupted the toothless old coot so someone else could use that room. I made lots of eye contact and asked lots of questions.

What makes me speak of this you ask? Knit night. That's right, porn stores came up at knit night. I swear, everyone should go to a knit night occasionally just to see what Grandma is really getting up to. Anyway, when these stores came up someone mentioned the aroma of such establishments. And, they're right, there is a particular odor. It's a mixture of bad ventilation, latex, silicone and other man made materials with an under tone of what those stains on the wall in the tv room are comprised of. I looked to the person who mentioned the smell the other night and stated it was "The aroma of loneliness and despair".

Now, that sounds a little harsh, but I can honestly say, the people that use those little rooms, much less the hole connecting the two rooms. They are lonely. And they are most definitely desparate. They weren't doing it for the sexual adventure. They were doing it because they thought it was their only outlet.

Today I was in an online forum that I had previously left and for whatever reason, let myself get talked back into joining. Someone was looking for some advice on leaving a relationship that had been kind of side tracked by dildo's. Don't ask, it's much like a knit night with less niceties. I made a posting, trying for one to show some support for this person who is obviously feeling a bit lost, and two, to be a bit funny and maybe give her a smile. Well, once again, one of the reasons I originally left this online group piped up and took everything I said out of context and made it abundantly clear I was not welcome.

And I fumed. In fact, I was pissed. I was halfway through typing up a response and had been in the act of questioning why she hated me so and why my response mattered that much when it hit me. None of this shit mattered. Not one bit. So I deleted what I had composed and decided to tie up my remaining feelings here on my blog before I go to bed because I don't think it is any more fair to take that particular forum post further away from the topic of the poor girl who started it than it has been already.

So, if you read this sweety, I want you to know that once this is written, you don't matter a pigs fart to me. Why you may wonder? Because you don't know me. You don't know this back story or how I view things or that nothing is sacred to me and I have little shame in admitting to stupid things I have done in my life to get my humor or where I'm coming from half the time. To assume you do is amazingly ignorant and it's obvious by the bullshit you read into everything I write that you are to busy harping on your own agenda to stop and see anything from someone else's perspective. You seem to feel that when I write something I am looking to purposely piss you off. I'm not. It is as simple as that. I don't know you, I don't pretend to know you and I will never know you. You see, we live in this amazing country where I'm allowed to have my own opinions, views, and have a freedom of speech that allows me to state these. As do you, but the difference between us is that I don't think that everything you write in a forum that supposedly prides itself it's all encompassing crassness is a true reflection of who you are or by any means even reflect your true feelings. Especially when a forum is full of sarcastic comments about people, their dildos, how they smell and if they are currently sniffing them to see if they smell of shower curtains. I also realize that I, if you allow yourself to admit it, mean not a flying rats ass to you.

With all this said, I was writing this response on this other site, it dawned on me that all of this irritation is over wasting my time on a knitting site when I could in fact be doing what this site was built for. Knitting. Or pretty much anything more productive such as walking the dogs, mowing the lawn, or making tomorrow's Mother's Day parties potato salad. Which is exactly what I did while I mulled over what I should do about this little issue. So, with that said, when I signed on to the computer to write this blog entry and clear my head up before bed I un-joined this group and will not be rejoining again. I may still peruse their discussions occasionally but membership is not worth the irritation it seems to cause me. I will probably just enjoy the wit and humor in such discussions and not join in there and simply use this website as the knit project and stash tracker it was originally started to be. And what to do with all that spare time? I can think of many many things, but most importantly, talk face to face with friends that do know me, that do matter and feel that I matter. To interact with those that do get me and my sense of humor and aren't to busy riding their own high horse to participate in a real conversation and not just lecture me. Because I would rather know people who recognize the aroma of loneliness and despair and not mistake it for a bunch of people who are "eager, excited people who enjoy sex and want to have lots of it in various interesting ways". Those people are elsewhere actually having sex, lot's of it in various and interesting ways. And I don't think you fall into that category, because your to busy stalking people in the forums and trying to make them feel poorly about themselves. 

So, goodnight everyone. And remember, clean you sex toys as their instructions state or your house will possibly begin to start to have that aroma... you know that of which I speak. And I hope that all those people that I know that have those kind of toys/tools/personal electronic devices are happier since, well you know why. You have such things and know how to use them.

Have you ever?

Had one of those days where you can't seem to kick start the brain? Of course you have, everyone has haven't they? Well, this seems to be mine. Actually, I think my brain is moving it just wasn't moving on the same topics as my body was. You, see I was at work, while my brain was back home thinking about how to handle the last mess.

This morning we had the latest foster dog delivered. That's right, I have another one because I can't say no when I am asked because we are a dogs last chance.

Meet Shaylie.

Shaylie has some issues. Such as biting. To be more specific, Shaylie is a fear biter. As you can see from the set of her head and eyes here she is worried about me though I ma several feet away and using a zoom to get this picture. Right after taking this picture I moved a little to quickly and freaked her out. As frustrating as this kind of behavior can be, I feel truly horrible for Shaylie.

She is a Rottweiler/German Shepherd mix and is pretty though in the short time her last home had her, she has gained about 15 pounds she shouldn't have on. Which means she probably hurts. She originally came to the rescue with a fear of men. They worked quite successfully with her to get over that but then she was placed in a home where they did not continue all her forward momentum, and in fact let her fall back and then when she started the nipping thing, they let her get away with more. So now I have a 70 pound monster on my hands that thinks if she bites me I will leave her alone.

Little does she know...

Actually, she's let me brush her, and we've had an adventurous walk, and a couple sessions of "bite me and pay the piper". She actually seems to be already limiting her nippiness. But mainly, once this behavior starts, it's going to be harder when she leaves my house to not let her fall back into it. It's going to take me some time to gain her trust, and it's going to take a REALLY long time for me to trust her enough to give the go on her re-adoption.

But, byond all that, I finished my Art Deco Beanie that I bought from craftsy.com to support a friend and designer. Let's just say it's done. I'm not a fan of knitting colorwork though I can appreciate other's color work.

Have a great day, I have to go wrangle a mutt and go back to work.

That Time of the Month

Dog Bath Day!

I know what you were really thinking, but no, first weekend of the month is dog bath day. In other words all the kids get their Heart Guard, a bath, and their flea and tick treatment. Here's a shot of four wet dogs in the back of my car after a good romp and bath.

I still get stupidly proud about my dogs on days like this. I walked into the dog wash and their was a gentleman and his two kids using one of the tables to wash their old lab. I got my four dogs washed and out the door and they were still washing their dog. We have it down to a science. I can typically get all four done in 20 minutes. If Bob is there and we have a foster we can get all five of them done in 20.

Yes, yes it was a very dog centric weekend, even more so than normal. We even have a new foster joining us tomorrow.

And don't make fun of my Kia Soul. t fits all the kids just fine.

Me and Tea

Sitting here this morning with my cup of tea feeling like I should make a blog entry and drawing a complete blank because the one thing I want to blog about I feel like I should approach through the proper channels before discussing here. I figure blogging about something is kind of like running to someone else and running my mouth before ever approaching the person involved. That kind of behavior can piss me off so I try not to do it to others.

So, I'll just give you a quick run down of the last couple days. Yesterday was the low cost spay and neuter clinic I often volunteer at. It was a long day and I'm as usual sore from being up and down off the cold cement floor but it was a fairly good day. I got to cuddle cute pups, so what more could I ask for? There were two little pups that were adorable and just were as relaxed and happy as could be both before the neuter and after. Tank and Aussie. Aussie has a bum eye which seemed to make him even cuter. He was a little blue merle with the sweetest disposition. Tank was a white and speckled mutt of undetermined breeding but as quite and cuddly as could be. They both realized quickly after surgery if they were quite and stayed still they would be left out of a crate while I recovered other dogs.

Here's the one picture I snapped in all the hubbub that was today. This is Tank right before heading home with his dad.

Thursday was knit night and we decided to try something a bit different this week. We had our first ever Cineknit. We met at Red Lobster for a feast before heading over to the movie theater to see The Big Wedding. Well, as you can guess we did little to no knitting. In fact I may have been the only one to have knit at all and I only got to rows of a scarf done. The movie was hilarious. I think anyone who has a large family and has witnessed the lying and truth bending in order to save one persons feelings and ending up digging their hole deeper with other family members can appreciate it.

So, that's about it for me today, for the life of me I can't think of what else I can cuss and discuss. So off to pianoguys to watch a couple clips before I head out to teach knitting. Feel free to join me.

http://www.youtube.com/user/ThePianoGuys?feature=watch

Random Wednesday Irritations

Yesterday I was kind of sunshiney and irritatingly positive and upbeat, but fear not, I'm back to normal today. But last nights snow did not cause it, I love the snow no matter what time of year.

But, the snow has caused people to act in ways that do bother me. Here's my simple rules of how to not kill others when it snows.

1. Clean off your car. No, not run the wipers or scrape just the little spot on the windshield that you ever look out, but clean it off. If you're to short, get a broom. Don't be the asshole who can only see out of one little section of windshield causing a moving blizzard that blinds all other drivers as bad as yourself.
2. If it's cold enough to snow, it's cold enough to possibly cause ice on the roadways. Slow down and give yourself some extra time to get to where you need to go. This morning I saw three different accidents on the way to walk the dogs. Three. If people gave themselves time and space they probably could have averted the accident.

That's the main things I think today for driving. I admit, I am not a perfect driver, since a couple weeks ago I told you of my traffic ticket, but even on that snowy day I had done everything I request here and still got to work on time because I had given myself a lot of time in bad weather to keep from speeding or driving stupidly in bad conditions. The officer may have also given me the break on the ticket because my car was obviously cleaned off so I could see and I had a shovel in the back seat in case I got stuck or needed to help someone else who was.

As for other items, I was reading a forum today regarding adopting an older dog versus a puppy when I came across someone speaking of their older mutt they adopted. After telling us her behavioral issues from fear due to an abusive past she states she's a great "service dog" as long as she can hide under a table. Really? That's your service dog? No, that's the dog you put a service dog vest on so you can have an excuse to take anywhere you want. A service dog is relaxed, and calm in all situations due to specialized training to provide you with an actual service due to mental or physical handicap and/or trauma and has been certified by someone with ADA credentialing to do so. And I can tell you right now that if your dog is fearful and hiding under a table, she is not, nor will ever be certified as a service dog.

Or better yet, from ADA.gov:

"Service animals are defined as dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. Examples of such work or tasks include guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling a wheelchair, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, reminding a person with mental illness to take prescribed medications, calming a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during an anxiety attack, or performing other duties. Service animals are working animals, not pets. The work or task a dog has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability. Dogs whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support do not qualify as service animals under the ADA.This definition does not affect or limit the broader definition of “assistance animal” under the Fair Housing Act or the broader definition of “service animal” under the Air Carrier Access Act."

I have witnessed an ever growing population of people who use "Service Animal" to skirt what is allowable for their dogs. Including here locally a woman who works in a pet store retailer with her service dog that regularly attempts to attack other peoples dogs who are supposedly welcome there. And may I also point out that the DA states that only trained dogs, are service animals. Not your parrot or ferret.

Okay, I know I demand a certain level of behavior from my dogs that others do not. I get it. I love to take my dogs out with me every where when able and therefor require them to behave properly (as I was raised myself, thanks Mom) and get kind of pissed when I see people who are clueless regarding their dogs behavior and cannot grasp why they are not welcome everywhere they feel they should be. I also grasp that not everyone loves dogs as I do. I have a friend who is actually quite fearful of dogs and I make decisions when I know she will be around to purposefully not have her and my dogs in each others presence. I know she has another friend who simply doesn't care about such niceties and places our mutual friend in fearful situations with her two dogs. I have a lot of other dog related issues with this person and can simply say that our views clash in many many areas regarding appropriate canine behavior. So, in the long and short of it, this is just my view point on dogs and driving and I hope that my sense of common sense is more popular than I think it is. I'm probably wrong though and right now there's someone else writing on their blog about how domineering and ass-holish my viewpoints are. That's okay, I know I'm already the "Dick of the Dog Park", I can be that here too, it's my blog.

Some gratuitous knitting picture now.

Have a great one guys, and drive safe whether you have snow on the ground or not.