Friendships.... When Is It Too Much?

Probably everyone at some time has had a friend who required A Whole Lot Of Effort. I know the old adage "To Have A Friend You Must Be A Friend" is true, but sometimes a friend requires you to put in a whole lot more work than said friend seems to be putting in. Sometimes I just wonder where the line is when you have to put your foot down and just say NO. There's got to be a demarcation between being a good friend, and being a doormat doesn't there? I struggle with this.

I Have Jeans!!

Okay, I've mentioned before that 1) I love to cook, 2) I love to eat, and 3) I'm a short, round woman. In the past if the jeans went around my waist, I could invite the defensive line of the Jacksonville Jaguars into the thigh area. If the thigh and hip area fit, there was a minimum of 4 inches lacking to close the waist. Not a pretty sight, and not comfy. The last time I tried to wear jeans my legs literally fell asleep. Thanks to a friend, I have finally found jeans that are made for people with no waist and a tummy (Thanks Faye!!). I am in no way affiliated with this lady, nor do I profit in any way from anyone buying her jeans, I'm just a fan of FINALLY getting to wear jeans like the rest of the world. Apparently she's on the shopping channel which I have never actually seen, but she also has a website here:
http://fashion.hsn.com/diane-gilman-jeans_c-fa0173_a-88_xc.aspx

I ended up ordering a size smaller than I would usually wear, which did wonders for my self esteem! Just a public service announcement from me!

I Wanted A Puppy?

We have added a Golden Retriever puppy to our family, his name is Winston, and he is very VERY cute..... Which is quite often the one and only reason I've not strangled him with his own ears. As I am standing in the backyard at 3 am in the pouring rain I sometimes question my sanity, but then he does something so heart-breakingly cute that I melt and hug the stuffing out of him. I've always wanted a Golden, but somehow ended up with rescue dogs instead. This time I wasn't going to get sidetracked. I'm getting too old for puppy training, and this seemed like my last shot at the adorability that is a Golden Retriever puppy.

Yes I have cats, and I love and adore my cats, but there is just something about the relationship that one can have with a dog that is special. Dogs are so present in one's life, they love you and only want to please you. I can't imagine not having a dog. Still, there are some challenges that you have to face en route to having that amazing grown up dog. Shall I mention a few? (Oh come on, you KNOW I'm going to mention a few -- why else would I be typing all this?)

The single most difficult problem we've had with Winston is his crate. He refuses to settle down in it, and will scream, yip, bark and howl for the entire time he is incarcerated. I've had well meaning friends, ones who really do know what they are talking about, tell me to just put him in there and let him scream. So I tried that. I put him in the crate and went outside the house. An hour later I couldn't stand it any more and came back in to let him out. Putting a dog into a crate and letting him scream, FOR ME, borders on animal cruelty. Sometimes he has to be crated, but I hate doing it, and really try to minimize the time I'll be gone. I can't let him run amok in the house, he'll chew something up, chase the cats and/or pee somewhere, but I can't wait until he's trained enough not to have to crate him.

Then there is the issue of the cats. There are few things fiercer than a female Scottish Fold. My girls have NEVER run into a dog they couldn't whap into submission with a well placed paw... until now. Winston just knows that they are playing, knows that this is some kind of fun game where they hiss and he chases happily after them. Ummm no. The cats started out with just a soft paw, then they added a hiss, now we are up to full claws out, hissing AND spitting. Winston is undeterred.

Winston starts puppy school on Saturday. I was sad to see that they do not cover issues such as 1) not eating cat poop, 2) not throwing a hissy fit if Mom isn't in your line of sight, or 3) not slithering under the love seat and eating the webbing. I suppose that sit and stay will be useful, and I know that having a reliable recall will stand us in good stead..... still..... don't you feel like these other concerns are equally worthy? I know that *I* do. Stay tuned.....

Doggie Pledge.

Oops.. kinda small. click on it and it should enlarge!

Food Glorious Food

I like to cook, Mike and I both like to eat. These are good things. I love to go through magazines and food sites to find new recipes to try, and I do that regularly. I keep them in file folders sorted by type (Beef/Pork, Chicken, Pasta, Soup, Salad etc) so that when they have a sale on, say, ground beef I can find recipes that might possibly include ground beef. Aren't I the organized one? Some of the things we try are a hit, some a dismal failure, some are just so-so. I only keep the recipes that we really liked, and these go into a 3-ring binder so I can find them again. That binder is a great thing - when I need to find something that I know we like I look in there.

Why is it that some recipes SOUND so good.... but don't TASTE so good? I made one last week that I really thought was going to be spectacular. Chicken, sun dried tomato pesto, and fettuccine. The first bite was amazing, but by the fourth bite it was far less successful. It would probably be a great appetizer, but as far as a main course? Not so good.

Last night's was a keeper. A crust of Bisquick and sharp chedder rolled out and then formed around a filling of ground beef, corn, hot salsa and more cheddar. YUM. A keeper. Tonight I'm trying out pasta with asparagus, parmesan, and pine nuts. We'll see.

The More Things Change.....

Things never stay the same do they? I guess that's a good thing. Nobody wants to go through life without different experiences do they? Our 21 year old son is in the process of moving home. His financial situation was just not making it feasible for him to live on his own. DH and I are thrilled, we love Rob, Rob is a lot of fun to be around, and we've missed him. Rob is depressed. He feels like moving home is a failure, and besides.... Mom and Dad? Oh ugh. I expect that all of us will have to make some accommodations. I'll be finding dirty plates and large shoes lying about, Rob will have to let us know when he isn't going to be returning home at night. I'll have to remember exactly which two things Rob will deign to eat for dinner. Rob will have to refrain from bitching when I make something he doesn't like. We'll manage, although I know it won't be without some snags.

We are going to be adding a puppy to our family. A Golden Retriever. It's been a long time since I've had to potty train anything, and I know that there's a lot of work involved in a puppy, but it is going to be SOOOOO worth it. I've always wanted a Golden, and this breeder has SUCH amazing dogs. It's all very exciting. But still, more change.

Static would be bad. New experiences are a good thing, but sometimes they are scary. It's hard not to fret about all the bad things that COULD happen, instead of looking forward to the wonderful things that WILL happen. Stay tuned. The next few months should be interesting.

Losing Harley

I'm finally starting to get to the point where I feel less like "I Killed My Dog", and more like" I Did The Right Thing". It's been a hard road, and it's been aided in large part by Flinders, the Golden Retriever next door. Flinders' family has been in Australia since 4 days after we let Harley go, and we are dog sitting for him. It is so very different. I don't have to live in terror that the maid and the yard guy will show up at the same time. I take Flinders for a walk and don't have to worry about seeing another dog, or a kid on a bike. Sometimes I think to myself, "oh! This is what it's supposed to be like with a dog." *light bulb goes on over head* Of course, then I feel guilty and disloyal to Harley. But...... I'm coming to realize that I shouldn't feel so guilty. We truly did explore every avenue open to us. We tried diet, medication, training and re-training, counseling...... if its out there, we tried it. While I still miss Harley and her funny, ear-flapping ways terribly, I'm at peace with what had to happen. She wasn't a happy dog, and in turn nobody else was happy either. But .... did I mention that I miss her?