Not quite a dog

Well, Jimmy and I had the pleasure of doing the "Dirdy Birdy" today. Yeah, yeah, I know what you're thinking but you're wrong. The "Dirdy Birdy" is Portland's muddiest 5K and it was fun! Turns out, this is it's first year, and it was a huge success. The race was a benefit for Big Brothers & Big Sisters, so it was for a great cause, and the best part, was that it was dog friendly so Jimmy finally got to do a race again! His last was the "Doggie Dash" in May which he thoroughly enjoyed! You see, Jimmy is not like other dogs. He is a very strange little guy, who has a personality all of his own! Since his first race back in May, he has become obsessed with running, and flips out each time I get my running clothes or shoes out. Race's are even more exciting for him because he is EXTREMELY social and loves to interact with people and of course other dogs!
Now back to this Dirdy Birdy thing, one would think that running through mud puddles might be fun for a dog, but Jim, not so much. While the labs were laying in the puddles and splashing as hard as they could, Jimmy was tiptoeing around the mud, careful not to slip or get dirty. I even tried running through the puddles myself to encourage him but my efforts were in vein. When we got done with the race, Jimmy had a speck of mud on his butt, and I was covered in it. We got in the food line, got our burger and sat in the field and shared it, then went back to the car to strip off our muddy clothes, or should I say, my muddy clothes. Jimmy wore a t-shirt that was barely soiled. That dog simply amazes me. Later when we got home, he laid in bed and licked the rest of the mud (a very minimal amount) that was on his legs off, so alas, he will not need a bath after all. What can I say, Jimmy is different, but I love him. He never fails to crack me up even when I'm in the worst of moods.

God Bless the USA

Veteran's Day was on Tuesday. Some people consider it just another day off, I admit, I did for a long time. I've always had a job where this day is a holiday, and for many years, I would think about going to a veteran's memorial, but I never did, I always found something else to do, chores that needed to be done that didn't get done over the weekend, shopping, etc. In the past two years however, I have had a revelation of sorts. I finally took the day to take my kids up to the Vietnam Veteran's Memorial two or three years ago. It was a nasty day out, pouring, raining sideways, we were not dressed appropriately, didn't have umbrella's or anything, we barely had coats but we went, and we honored all of the heroes whose names lay, carved in stone before us. I took the time to explain to the kids what "Veteran's" are, what they do for us, for our country, and why we should take time to honor them. They understood, but to them, the world is such a small place, so I knew that this would take many years of repetition and explanation for it to finally sink in.

The Vietnam War has always been a source of fascination for me. One reason being that my Dad served in this war. Somehow knowing someone that was involved, and hearing stories from him makes it more real in my mind. This year, we were honored to get to go with my Dad to the Memorial on Veteran's Day. It was a moving experience for me, and I'm sure for my dad as well. The kids couldn't figure out why their Grandpa's name wasn't on the wall if he was in the war, despite our efforts to convince them that he was not killed in the war and is still alive! Kids are simply amazing. They did try hard to understand though, and again, after we left, I lectured the kids on the meaning of this day, and what role their Grandpa played in all of this. It took us about an hour to walk through the memorial, which didn't seem like a lot of time in the end, but I know that the kids will remember this, and when they're older and able to understand it will mean a great deal to them.


God Bless the USA, and all of the Veteran's from every war who gave their whole lives to us. Even those who made it home gave 100% of themselves to us and will never be the same, it's only right that we honor them at least one time a year.

Vacation's over!

Well, winter is setting upon us, which means for our family, new dogs to take care of and find homes for. Last Christmas we had 16 stockings upon our wall for all of our four legged friends. This large number was not due to the fact that they have four feet each, we had 16 dogs! It was crazy, but wow, what an experience. Since last winter we have lost one of our own dogs, Heidi, but we have gained another, Harley that will probably stay with us forever, so we still have 5 of our own. Nuts I know, but our family knows no other way of life.

On Monday, we took in two more dogs, one a puppy that has already found a loving home but won't "move out" until next weekend, and the other, a beautiful young Shepherd that had been in the shelter for over 2 months and had rubbed the hair off of his nose while trying to shove it through the bars for attention every time a person walked by. It took this sweet dog no longer than about 5 minutes to adjust to the chaos of our home, simply relieved that he could be warm, comfy and loved once again, or maybe even for the first time in his life. This is what makes us continue to do this over and over again. Unconditional love from such a beautiful, innocent creature is the greatest thing in the world. The joy of matching these amazing animals with new families is just as rewarding as giving them the love and attention they are starving to have and it bowls us over with emotion every time.

We get sometimes as many as 10 calls a week from people wanting to "get rid" of their dog for one stupid reason or another. It is amazing how many people in this world think that animals are disposable and it sickens me that these dogs have to go through the heartache that they do. I'm thankful that we are able to provide them with the love they need and that eventually, we are able to find them the most perfect homes. Sometimes it takes a couple of years (no joke), but we always find the right match. Duke and King will be the start of a busy and long winter for us, but we wouldn't trade it for anything.

At a loss...

Well, we start a new chapter in our life soon. Our new president is not what I expected, but this is apparently what is destined for our nation. I've never really believed my vote could count, and now, even more so, I do not believe. Perhaps I'm just ignorant and don't understand the process, but this "electoral vote" crap really makes no sense to me. Whether it makes sense or not, it is what it is and our new president appears to be Barack Obama. I will now have to pay taxes on the money that goes into my retirement fund, will my cafeteria plan still be tax free? I have no idea. Not to worry, I never really had much of a retirement fund anyway! I went to school for Forestry, but for some reason, neither of the candidates cared much about the forests during the tenure of this campaign. Apparently this is old news for the people of America. Who cares about our forests when the world will end in 4 years anyway?

As much as I didn't want to believe that the end of the Mayan calendar might really be the end of our world, after all I've heard about Obama being the "trojan horse", his indoctrination campaign, etc, it really makes me wonder. I have had Nostradamus and all of his beliefs instilled in me since I was young, so this is always at the back of my mind when viewing the world around me. So many signs point towards the end these days...I know it's crazy, but who knows. Time will only tell I suppose.

In conclusion, I never want to argue with people over politics, so really posting this will be pretty bold of me. Most people have no idea who I vote for, or what I stand for politically. I consider it a pretty personal thing, and can detect easily those on my side and only have discussions with those that I know are on the same page. One might say that is cowardly, but to me, my relationships with family and friends are more important than siding with politicians that I do not know, or care to know. At any rate, it is what it is, and the world will be what we make of it, so as I told my kids, we will make the best out of these times. If it means my kids having to share their tooth fairy money with other kids that don't get any, then so be it.