Ode to a Puppy

Three o'clock in the morning

And it looks like it's gonna be
Another sleepless night.

I've been listening to your whines

And gettin' very mad

Wondering what I should do.

Maybe I'm being foolish
'Cause I think I put you out

Just an hour ago.

How I wish I could be sure
You really need to pee

Each time you whine your noise

I pull the blanket up and close my eyes.

You've been whinin' in my sleep

Yelping in my ears

Because you need out

Waking up the house

Depriving us of sleep.
I'm sure we'll never do this

Whining in my sleep,

With peeing on your mind.

Maybe I'm being foolish
'Cause I really thought we had

The schedule figured out

How I wish I could be sure
You really need to pee.

Each time you whine your noise

I pull my blanket up and close my eyes

You've been whining in my sleep,
Yelping in my ears

Because you need out

Waking up the house

Depriving us of sleep

I'm sure we'll never do this

Whining in my sleep

With peeing on your mind. 

-  With Apologies to Crystal Gayle, one of the finest voices ever recorded, Talking in Your Sleep by Crystal Gayle

It's A Dog's World

So, guess who has three dogs in the house. I have a 13 year old, a five year old, and a two month old. Who's-the-insane-one?-That's-a-girl.-I'm-the-insane-one. The 13 year old is a pomeranian-chihuahua princess. She was very well treated and well groomed until her owner passed away five years ago. Because my daughter was the dog-walker, the family asked if we'd take in the princess. I'm not a big fan of small dogs, in general, but she is a sweetheart. She has a good temperament but very little sense of humour. The five year old is a collie-lab tomboy. Hyyyy-per! Her herding instinct keeps the whole neighbourhood on its toes. She sounds the alert from a block away and then corrals everyone in sight. Luckily for us, our neighbours are very easy-going people and most of them have dogs so they don't get worried if they're being herded. The latest addition is the two month old. He is a rottweiler-mastiff cross. In the one week that we've had him, he has almost doubled in size and is about the same size as the princess. Technically, he's my daughter's dog and won't be staying with us forever. In the meantime, though, he's getting a lot of training from me. I am tired but also quite amused by him. I think he may prove to be my favourite dog yet. When he's playing, he launches from all four feet and goes straight up into the air and hops up and forward like a rabbit. This is amusing to all of us except the princess. She's the one he's hopping towards. Like I said, no sense of humour. As for the collie, the pup has learned to give her enough space. The first few days were tense but it appears that the collie has forgiven the puppy for existing. Twice yesterday, she brought him a toy and dropped it in front of the pup to play with. I don't think he's the smartest dog I've ever seen. Yesterday, I took him outside. As he was climbing the stairs back into the house he stopped to lick the metal trim on the top step. It was -20 and his tongue got stuck. I tried to help but I was too slow. He jerked back and left a few tongue cells behind. Thankfully, it wasn't serious and he did learn from his mistake. Now he just quickly climbs the stairs. Have you ever seen a puppy's first experience with noodles? I had some leftover noodles that I gave to the old dogs which the pup discovered. He decided to stalk them. Front legs were strained forward. Back legs spread apart. Tail high in the air. Nose to the ground. I didn't realize what he was doing so I came up from behind and asked, "What are you doing?" He didn't know I was there. Who knew puppies could jump so high?

Hope

The bigger you dream,

the harder you might fall

But ambition raises the chances,

And gives you a cushion

To fall on, Unharmed

And ready to try again.

Hope will never stray,

It will always be there,

Like memories from yesterday

And dreams of tomorrow.

Hope is the key to ambition,

Ambition, is the way to success

- GM