Dogs on Leash

On my way home tonight I nearly had a heart attack. A girl was walking her dog on the side of the road when suddenly he darted out right in  front of my car. He was not on his leash.  Seriously - you are walking your dog on a mildly busy road and you don't put your dog on a leash?  I did not hit - him thank god. It was dark and I could see she was there but she wasn't wearing anything light colored so I had really slowed down to make sure I didn't hit her.  Thank god I did.  Then she stood there screaming for the dog who wouldn't come.

Now I know that Bizz has escaped more than once out the front door and has run into the street. But we never leave the house these days without him being in his harness on leash. He is only let off in the yard or in a leash free park and even then I get him a good distance from the parking lot before he's allowed off leash.

So I promised to post each day and that's what is on my mind right now. I'll try to be more entertaining in the days to come.

Tricorders for diabetics

I spent the day at FutureMed in San Diego.  Qualcomm got up to talk about the Qualcomm X Prize for a tricorder.  The tricorder was the device on Star Trek that Bones McCoy used to scan and diagnose a patient.  There are lots of them coming.  But diabetics, including myself, already carry a tricorder - our glucose meter.

What makes it a tricorder is that it takes a drop of your blood and tells you your blood glucose level.  

Blood glucose readings tell you more than a number - it informs what is happening - just like a tricorder.  How much insulin do I take, do I eat or take a walk?  Do I go to bed or march around the house for half an hour?  

So cool - I have a tricorder.  There are a lot of people here wearing Google Glass - is anyone else thinking Geordie LaForge from Next Generation?

Blankets for Shelter Dogs

There are two Sunday morning shows here in the Bay Area about raising and training dogs.  This morning one of the shows, Dog Tales,  moved me to tears. The show featured a group that is collecting blankets - new and old - for use in shelters.  If you've been to a shelter you'll see that many times the dogs are in concrete kennels.  The shelters just can't keep up with the demand so many dogs end up without a blanket or bed to lie on.  It's been shown that giving the dogs blankets will give them someplace to cuddle up and they become calmer. And a calmer dog is more likely to be adopted.  The show highlighted a group that works with assorted groups to get donated blankets and beds and deliver them to the shelters. 

So next time you are housecleaning and one of your blankets is a bit ratty - don't turn it into rags - wash it and give it to a shelter.  You will bring great comfort to a homeless, friendless little animal while he waits for his forever home.  I have a lot of extra yarn so I'm going to start turning it into blankets to donate to the shelter.  And I go to a lot of estate and yard sales - one group often sells used linens and blankets - I got Bizz 2 for $2.  From now on I'm going to pick up spare blankets for the shelter.

Bizz - Before and After

Played a trick on Isabelle and Kelvin yesterday. Got Bizz groomed and when I took him home I told them I had adopted a new dog.  They really believed it for a minute.  Here is Bizz before and after:

Bizz Before                                                                       Bizz After Groomer

His halter is actually about a size looser now. And look at the difference in his face - you can see his eyes and his ears are amazingly silky.  But still a cutie.

So much for daily blogging so far

ok, I admit it - I pledged to blog daily and immediately fell behind. I blame it on a new job, several clients, and a crazy dog who captures all my attention. So I am going to do 3 blogs today to catch up.  Here is the first - which is a set of photos of Bizz and his Halloween costume.   Bizz came into the office with me on Halloween - my first attempt at having Bizz in a workspace. He actually did very well. He hung in my office during the morning and played with my office mate and her boyfriend who was visiting. He got taken on several walks. And he came to lunch. That was the real test and performed like a pro - hung out all mellow and enjoyed his treats of turkey and cheese throughout.  He also came to a long meeting with me and did fine except when I took a break to use the bathroom. He stayed in the office but whined and scratched at the door the whole time.  Poor little man.

He did incredibly well Halloween night. Every time the doorbell rang I'd grab him and we'd answer the door together.  All the kids loved him and patted him.  One little boy who was obviously special was dressed as Iron Man. I told him that Bizz had never met Iron Man before. The little boy leaned in and told me that he wasn't really Iron Man and was concerned Bizz was confused. I told him to tell Bizz what he wanted to know and the boy knelt on my floor, put his arms around Bizz and told him he loved him.  I nearly cried. The mom did too.  So Bizz was a cutie patootie and won the hearts of everyone - what else is new.  More blogs to come.

Bizz as a devil dog

Check out those wings

His pumpkin costume was a little big but so cute

 

Here is Bizz in the office next to my desk with his beloved Pinkie.  He's wearing an orange halter to honor the day.

A blog a day for the month of November

Hi everyone, sorry I've been so behind on my blogging.  I just started a new job, along with working with several clients from my consulting practice, so things have been a little hectic in my online life. However, next month is a blog a day month on BlogHer.  Given I am a huge fan of BlogHer I've added my blog to their roll and I'm going to be posting something each day - a photo of Bizz (the most telegenic dog in the world), an idea, a story or just me blathering as usual.  All suggestions are welcome.

My story for today is about my car.  So in 2005 I needed a new car. My old one had been hit by a drunk driver and while I was only knocked about a bit the car had a dent that would cost more than the car was worth to fix.  A friend who was a "car guy" helped me to go shopping. A "car guy" is someone who knows everything there is to know about cars - reads the magazines, consumer reports, goes to car shows - in short an expert.  He insisted a drive a Hyundai Sonata. Hyundai's at the time were getting excellent reviews and better still they were a tremendous value.  I couldn't even get a car with all the features I got with my Sonata in another car.

I really like this car - though not as much as my 92 Taurus or my 76 Mustang ( a little car with a giant engine).  But two months ago I believe it went amok.  The car has always had some odd electrical quirks. The left turn signal goes really fast - and yes that is supposed to indicate a blown bulb but the bulbs have been replaced almost a dozen times.  But overall a good car.  Then in early September, as we began to get chillier evenings - the car alarm went off in the middle of the night. Since this was around the time Isabelle's car was stolen we thought someone had tried to break in. But then it happened again, and again. So I took it to the service center at the dealer and they told me they could not find a problem. Then just before my trip back east - it started going off like crazy - 4 times in one hour.  I had learned how to pull the fuse to stop it but back in the shop it went for 3 days.  At last we had discovered the cause of the problem -a faulty door sensor.  $75 later and I was on the road.  Until last week. On Thursday night the car alarm went mad at 2:30 am.  It went off 7 times in less than 30 minutes - the last time it went off with the alarm disarmed, the car unlocked, the doors open and me in the driver seat trying to get my flashlight so I could pull the fuse.  It was NOT good.  So back in the shop it went last Friday.

When I called Friday evening they told me they had watched the car all day but it didn't do it.  "Watched the car?"  WTF dudes. Given our hot sunny days that was not going to fly. They kept it all weekend and nothing. They kept it yesterday - still nothing. Finally today they called the corporate service people and were told there was nothing that could be done. I had asked for them to disconnect the alarm but that is seemingly impossible.  Seriously?  You can't disconnect the car alarm at all?  As my friend Deanna suggested - what I needed is a car thief.

So the car is home again. The fuse has been pulled - I have no choice - I think the neighbors will lynch me if it goes off again. And Bizz and I need the sleep.  All diabetics are encouraged to get plenty of sleep - it helps in blood sugar control. And the car alarm going off is not pleasant when you have an excitable little dog. The alarm went off for 30 minutes, Bizz went off for the next three hours.

So I'm in the market for a new car.  Here is my ideal car - a four door (Bizz likes having his own door), plenty of leg room, sporty with great pickup (yes I like to go fast) but with terrific fuel economy. And most of all comfortable with great back support.  All suggestions are welcome and will be test driven during this search. 

All Dogs Go to Heaven... Don't They?

Things this past week have taken a tragic turn for my own little pack. Yes, I have coming to think of my very unconventional household of myself, Bizz, my landlady Isabelle, her boyfriend Kelvin and their three dogs Pelucci, Truffles and Lucky as my pack.  I rent a house from Isabelle and she, Kelvin and the dogs live in the mother-in-law apartment on the same property. So while I don't share my house we all share a backyard and have become our own little pack.

Sadly, on Sunday, Truffles died.  I was out walking Bizz Sunday morning, a nice leisurely walk on a beautiful sunny day. When I was about half a block from home, out of eyesight but not earshot I heard the most terrible sound. At first I thought it was an animal being killed, then possibly a child screaming. As I got closer to home I soon realized the sound was coming from my own driveway.  When I got there I discovered that Truffles had become ill while in the car with Isabelle, who immediately drove home to Kelvin. Shortly after they got home Truffles passed away.  It was such a shock and poor Isabelle was literally keening and wailing.  Her love for her dogs is so tremendous, she has such a giving generous heart she was just heartbroken.

I gave them their privacy and later we spoke as they prepared to take Truffles to a priest to have him blessed.  Isabelle spoke of how much she'll miss him and we talked about many things including Truffles being in heaven.

I must admit I am not a religious person but as a child my sister told me a story about how when you got to middle school you got to go on a class trip to heaven.  There you would get to see all the relatives who died and went to heaven.  While disillusioned that no such trip was actually going to happen,  I've always treasured the idea that someday you would go and visit all the relatives who passed and I shared with Isabelle my idea of a heaven where my parents and grandparents were all together and with them were all the pets that have passed on through the years.  Surely a dog as sweet and good natured as Truffles would have a place in any heaven.  I assured Isabelle that my mom would have been fussing over Truffles, making sure he felt welcome since being a good hostess was always so important to her, while my stepfather (yes my parents and stepfather are all up there together) was leading him around some celestial garden giving him a lecture on the proper method of composting.   The thought gave her comfort and I admit it made me smile as well.

So I say rest in peace little Truffles.  I will miss his tininess, and his habit of coming to greet me whenever I came out my door.  I remember an evening last winter when I sat outside with all three dogs while Isabelle and Kelvin were out (before Bizz came on the scene) and Truffles just would not stop licking my leg,  I finally had to pick him up to get him to stop only to have him start on my arm.  He was a sweet little guy who will be greatly missed.