Thursday, December 15, 2005
The season improves…
Ok, yeah. I was down yesterday. Really down. I hated the thought of losing my Beau, and I was perturbed by the ongoing car repairs in the garage. But today? Today, I am happy. Very, very happy.
Beau met this woman yesterday, a potential adopter. She wanted a companion dog for her Greyhound. Greyhounds are mostly lovely dogs, quiet and reserved, but with amazing spurts of energy when they want to stretch their legs (which is why they are they way they are – they were built for speed!). However, Greyhounds are also very tall, and Beau has a little bit of the short-man syndrome, and he tends to get a bit snippy with larger dogs when he meets them. Beau did NOT get along with the Greyhound at all, and she didn’t give them any time to get acquainted after he snapped at the poor, tall, skinny thing, which is fine by me. Beau is staying put, at least for the time being.
I wasn’t there for the meeting. I had told this woman to meet up at our house at 3:30p, and we’d introduce them in the back field behind our house, so the setting was a little more neutral than what Beau considers to be his yard. She completely ignored everything I had said and showed up at the house at 2:30p, when I was still at work and completely oblivious, nursing my discontent. Rob, however, was home working on the Jeep (yeah, yeah). Rob apparently has too many days off saved up. But either way, he was there, and he presided over the introductions.
She brought both of her dogs (Greyhound and a small Poodle) into the yard. Rob had wisely taken the NoodleDog and Cooter inside the house for the meeting, so they wouldn’t swarm the newcomers. Beau took a look at the Greyhound and growled, and then snapped around the poor dog’s face. The Greyhound did nothing to provoke him, and reportedly just stood there, feeling very put-upon and probably more than a little worried. The woman just watched, decided Beau was not for her, and left with her dogs, saying “Oh well, no playmates for you today…” (presumably addressing the Greyhound, although I have no proof of that).
He called me right afterwards and told me the good news. Yay!! I felt like someone had lifted the weight of the world off my shoulders, and could breathe, and felt like a new person. I instantly regretted posting my bitter post of yesterday. Rob’s comment was that Beau wouldn’t have suited her little dog family anyway because he’s so rambunctious, he would have torn the Greyhound’s ears playing, and probably would have terrorized the little Poodle. Beau needs someone strong to play with, and someone very tolerant, because he likes to bite ears. Luckily, Cooter’s ears and entire body are well-protected by a good coat of long, long fur, and the NoodleDog is infinitely patient (up to a point, and after that, he just barks his immense bark at whoever is tormenting him).
I floated home, and recharged on the sofa for a few minutes, and then we took the dogs out into the back field and played ball with them. Beau doesn’t get the concept of playing ball – he takes the ball and runs away with it, forcing the NoodleDog and Cooter to chase him all around. He loves that part of it – the chasing. Except Cooter is quite a bit faster than he is, and the NoodleDog is very motivated to get the ball, so he gets knocked around a little bit. Cooter will shoulder-check him, and then the NoodleDog will bark in his face, attempting to reason with him to drop that ball! He’s pretty tenacious about it, though, and keeps a good hold on the ball. We brought a second ball with us, so we could still throw it for the NoodleDog. He does love playing ball, that guy. Everyone frolicked, and it was a pretty scene.
Rob has some great news today, as well. He had applied for a promotion at work – his manager is moving on up the ladder, leaving a vacancy to oversee Rob’s team. He got the word this morning that he has been promoted, and is happy. It will mean more hours working for him, but that’s alright. It’s a good thing.
Smudge still insists on nesting in the Christmas tree. I had thought that after she got up there once or twice, and learned that it doesn’t do anything other than just… stand there, she’d get tired of it and go play with her toys, or torment Cooter by zipping by his nose while he slept from time to time, or pounce on a sleeping Tobey cat, or slide her tiny charming white paw under the Feral Cat’s door. She hasn’t tired of the tree at all. It’s as though the tree is her mission now. She wants to make it DO something. She climbs up to her nesting spot, about halfway to two-thirds up, and she thrashes around. She winds her little lithe body around the trunk, and sort of shakes up and down. Consequently, the Christmas ornaments all do a little dance, and shake up and down, too. Then, she shoots our her little white paw and whacks the ornaments, and when they fall off the tree, she looks very pleased with herself. Pretty, yes. Charming, yes. Deadly to the ornaments, though.
So today is a much better day. I even look forward to battling the malls now, and getting the rest of the presents on my list. I feel recharged and ready to take on the season, silliness and family and business and everything. Merry Christmas, all!! Yay!!
Beau met this woman yesterday, a potential adopter. She wanted a companion dog for her Greyhound. Greyhounds are mostly lovely dogs, quiet and reserved, but with amazing spurts of energy when they want to stretch their legs (which is why they are they way they are – they were built for speed!). However, Greyhounds are also very tall, and Beau has a little bit of the short-man syndrome, and he tends to get a bit snippy with larger dogs when he meets them. Beau did NOT get along with the Greyhound at all, and she didn’t give them any time to get acquainted after he snapped at the poor, tall, skinny thing, which is fine by me. Beau is staying put, at least for the time being.
I wasn’t there for the meeting. I had told this woman to meet up at our house at 3:30p, and we’d introduce them in the back field behind our house, so the setting was a little more neutral than what Beau considers to be his yard. She completely ignored everything I had said and showed up at the house at 2:30p, when I was still at work and completely oblivious, nursing my discontent. Rob, however, was home working on the Jeep (yeah, yeah). Rob apparently has too many days off saved up. But either way, he was there, and he presided over the introductions.
She brought both of her dogs (Greyhound and a small Poodle) into the yard. Rob had wisely taken the NoodleDog and Cooter inside the house for the meeting, so they wouldn’t swarm the newcomers. Beau took a look at the Greyhound and growled, and then snapped around the poor dog’s face. The Greyhound did nothing to provoke him, and reportedly just stood there, feeling very put-upon and probably more than a little worried. The woman just watched, decided Beau was not for her, and left with her dogs, saying “Oh well, no playmates for you today…” (presumably addressing the Greyhound, although I have no proof of that).
He called me right afterwards and told me the good news. Yay!! I felt like someone had lifted the weight of the world off my shoulders, and could breathe, and felt like a new person. I instantly regretted posting my bitter post of yesterday. Rob’s comment was that Beau wouldn’t have suited her little dog family anyway because he’s so rambunctious, he would have torn the Greyhound’s ears playing, and probably would have terrorized the little Poodle. Beau needs someone strong to play with, and someone very tolerant, because he likes to bite ears. Luckily, Cooter’s ears and entire body are well-protected by a good coat of long, long fur, and the NoodleDog is infinitely patient (up to a point, and after that, he just barks his immense bark at whoever is tormenting him).
I floated home, and recharged on the sofa for a few minutes, and then we took the dogs out into the back field and played ball with them. Beau doesn’t get the concept of playing ball – he takes the ball and runs away with it, forcing the NoodleDog and Cooter to chase him all around. He loves that part of it – the chasing. Except Cooter is quite a bit faster than he is, and the NoodleDog is very motivated to get the ball, so he gets knocked around a little bit. Cooter will shoulder-check him, and then the NoodleDog will bark in his face, attempting to reason with him to drop that ball! He’s pretty tenacious about it, though, and keeps a good hold on the ball. We brought a second ball with us, so we could still throw it for the NoodleDog. He does love playing ball, that guy. Everyone frolicked, and it was a pretty scene.
Rob has some great news today, as well. He had applied for a promotion at work – his manager is moving on up the ladder, leaving a vacancy to oversee Rob’s team. He got the word this morning that he has been promoted, and is happy. It will mean more hours working for him, but that’s alright. It’s a good thing.
Smudge still insists on nesting in the Christmas tree. I had thought that after she got up there once or twice, and learned that it doesn’t do anything other than just… stand there, she’d get tired of it and go play with her toys, or torment Cooter by zipping by his nose while he slept from time to time, or pounce on a sleeping Tobey cat, or slide her tiny charming white paw under the Feral Cat’s door. She hasn’t tired of the tree at all. It’s as though the tree is her mission now. She wants to make it DO something. She climbs up to her nesting spot, about halfway to two-thirds up, and she thrashes around. She winds her little lithe body around the trunk, and sort of shakes up and down. Consequently, the Christmas ornaments all do a little dance, and shake up and down, too. Then, she shoots our her little white paw and whacks the ornaments, and when they fall off the tree, she looks very pleased with herself. Pretty, yes. Charming, yes. Deadly to the ornaments, though.
So today is a much better day. I even look forward to battling the malls now, and getting the rest of the presents on my list. I feel recharged and ready to take on the season, silliness and family and business and everything. Merry Christmas, all!! Yay!!
