Casualties

It seems to me that when people get puppies they complain about them tearing up shoes, socks, underwear, furniture, or their favorite (insert item here). While Jasper has shredded more than his share of toilet paper and training pads he really hasn't been terribly destructive when it comes to personal items. That was until a few days ago.

It was Sunday morning and I had an early shift at the coffee shop. Michael was sound asleep (as most people are at 5 in the morning on a Sunday) when he heard a colossal crash come from inside the bathroom. He pulled himself out of bed and stumbled to the bathroom to find that Jasper, no doubt fascinated by my dangling necklaces, had pulled my jewelry tree off the counter and sent it crashing to the floor sending my bangles flying hither and yon.

When the mess had been cleaned up Michael went about the process of trying to match up earrings. One set had been completely demolished, and several others were missing their mates. When I came home later and surveyed the damage I found that Jasper had really only been responsible for ruining two sets and that the other singular earrings had been that way for awhile.

"Now where have their matches gone?" I wondered. There has to be a place for wayward earrings like there is for socks who visit the dryer. I don't know how it happens, but it always seems to. You have a pair of earrings that you just love and then one day one of them goes missing, never to be seen or heard from again. And then the question arrises, what do you do with its mate? Do you keep it in hopes that one day the other will turn up? (Which never happens) Do you keep it in memory of what you once had? Do you try and make one that would work as a stand in? I think someone needs to come up with some clever ideas on things we can do with single earrings.

30 Before 30

1. 4 hair colors in one year
2. Shave my head
3. 2nd tattoo
4. Study ballet
5. Join a flash mob
6. Take a last minute flight
7. Take a trip with the girls
8. Write and publish a children's book
9. Secret Goal
10. Be able to do 10 pull ups
11. Figure out which eyeshadow works for me
12. Become bilingual
13. Slap someone in the face. Hard.
14. Go on a cattle drive
15. Buy a piece of art
16. Learn hard shoe Irish dance
17. Start my own business
18. Pursue a patent
19. Improve my knitting skills
20. Get a dog
21. Be a waitress
22. Take up yoga
23. Be someone's bridesmaid
24. Buy a live animal at the grocery store and set it FREE!
25. Take an ultralight ride
26. Go to Greece
27. Learn all the words to a rap song
28. Do the splits
29. Violate an unspoken social rule
30. Have a murder mystery party

Tsunami watch

Hey all! Michael and I just wanted to send out a quick word to all of our family and friends to let you know that as of 11:11 p.m. Thursday evening WE ARE ALIVE and doing just fine. (Well Jasper is trying to attack us but that can't be helped.)

The homeland sirens went off at 9 when Daddy called. He was watching the 11:00 news when he was bombarded with reels from the Japan earthquake. "Hey, I just wanted to call to let you guys know that Hawaii has had a Tsunami watch issued."  "Really?" Michael and I had been out on date night and had no idea what was happening. By 10 p.m. when the Tsunami evacuation sirens went off we were not part of the panicked hoard.

It's kinda fun really. We're having a good time watching live coverage from the safety of our 3rd story apartment. I texted my stand-in boss at 10:15, "Hey, sorry it's so late, but is it safe to say with the tsunami warning that Peet's will be closed tomorrow?" His reply, "No, we'll be open as long as we can. What time is it scheduled for?" "3 a.m." "Ok. At 4:30 we'll know. lol. If Wikes is drowned, no work." 

I may get fired tomorrow. 

We love you and will try and keep you updated! 

Jasper's Tricks

Yep. I'm THAT pet owner who posts videos about her dog. If I wasn't so proud that he learned these tricks in a single day I would probably hate myself. Sorry the quality is poor. And yes, to nip the snarky remarks about 'dogs doing anything for treats' in the bud, he can perform these tricks without treats as well. Be amazed.

New Direction?

Well, hu. I'm a little lost folks.

Most of you know that I've been looking into going back to school for massage. At the end of January I researched several programs and found one that fit my schedule and budget needs. The program was due to begin in early February but when the day of registration came and I called to check the time, I was told that the program director had gone to Japan to speak with the governing board about the program and that February's classes had been postponed until early March.

"Ok," I thought. "This is actually better. Now I will have time to accustom myself to the idea of going back to school."

Well, February passed in a blur with guests and the acquisition of Jasper and evidently March started a week ago. Late Friday night, I realized that the admissions people had said the program would resume in early March and that very easily could mean Monday. But no one had been in contact. So, did it?

Knowing that the offices would be closed all weekend I knew I was up a small creek because I worked Monday and wouldn't be able to call and check until at least 11:30 am, and the afternoon classes started at 12:30pm. That would leave me very little time to get home, showered, fed and out the door after work.

Well, today dawned and of course things ran late at work, but I made it home in enough time to feed, water and bathe myself before I took off to class. As I performed these tasks I continued to think about the whole situation, and found that I was feeling a little less enthusiastic about this particular program than I was at the start. I narrowed it down to two reasons:

1. There seemed to be a huge lack of initiative on the part of the school to keep its applicants updated to program changes. (Very unprofessional indeed.)
2. The thought of leaving Jasper home alone for so long each day made me feel more than a little neglectful.

These reasons made me decide NOT to go in today, but rather to call instead. I'm glad I did. What I discovered was this: The school is going through some serious changes and the recruiters don't really know what's going on. Evidently "Ye old Program Director" is STILL in Japan reviewing the program which may or may not begin in again in May, or perhaps June. Sometime this Summer. "But it looks like the tuition is going to be cheaper! A lot cheaper actually..." How compelling. 

Needless to say I'm not impressed, and cheaper tuition or no I will be looking for another program. Let the search begin again. 

Cold.

I think I'm coming down with something. Maybe it's a sympathy cold. I took Jasper to the vet today because he has had a noticeably runny/sneezy nose for the past few days. They tell me that he has the beginnings of an upper respiratory infection. Sad face! So the wee lad goes on antibiotics for a week.

As stupid as it sounds (-Sighs and shakes head- You know this is going to be less than intelligent.) when my throat started getting a little scratchy this morning at work my first thought was that I caught Jasper's cold. Heck! If we can catch things from birds and swine, why not dogs?

I didn't need to worry however. According to Dr. Shelley Rankin, assistant professor of microbiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, "The virus that causes the common cold in humans is species-specific, which means you can't spread it to your dog or cat, nor can you get it from them." 


Whew. That takes a load off.