Tree roots and skin staples

Ah... an intriguing title... no? Well, read on...

Donny and Marie were out for their afternoon chase the other day and Donny apparently cut his foot on something. No biggee, we thought... just cleaned it up a little and put him in his crate for the evening at about 5:30 since we were going out for my birthday dinner at Red Robin. By the time we came back, his foot had swollen up and he was limping pretty badly. After taking a look at it, it seemed like he had a small hole up underneath the toe on his front paw.

Now if you know anything about greyhounds, they do not show pain AT ALL. For him to be limping the way he was, we knew he must have really been in pain. So... off to the emergency vet we go. Sarah and I are old pros at this by now, what with Marie's frequent trips back when she needed her chest sown up multiple times after having the skin ripped open during a Christmas stay at a border... but that's a story for another time...

I called the place the vet recommended, and luckily they were open 24 hours. No appt necessary, and it's the largest facility in the tri-county area. We decided that Sarah would stay with Ethan while I took The Dons with me, so Sarah grabbed Donny's pillow, while I grabbed the Donster -- man is he heavy! -- in a cradle-carry and we went out to the car. He didn't squirm or anything, so I know he was really hurting. It was 10:30pm on my birthday. Happy Birthday, Jeff... so much for that Chimay chillin' in the fridge.

After an examination by the vet, he told me there was a puncture wound about 1/4" wide under the toe (which I had seen earlier), and they would need to sedate Donny, clean out the wound, and then staple it shut. He also recommended an X-ray, which I agreed with... just to make sure nothing was broken. It was now 12:15a...

Luckily there was nothing broken -- which would have been a whole 'nutha ball-o-wax. Donny came through with flying colors, and although he was a bit disoriented from the drugs, he limped out to the car and we headed home 1:40a...

2:15a... back home. Carried the dog inside. He didn't want to eat... just wanted to lay down somewhere. I obliged. And then went to bed myself. Whoopie... and now it's no longer my birthday. Oh well.

So we think that we're gonna have to do something in the backyard. Marie cut herslef the other day while outside, and my guess is Donny did something similar by stepping on an exposed tree root or stick or rock or something. The ground is really uneven out there, and we might have to resort to having a landscapre come in and even everything out, re-sod, etc. -- most likely a $1000+ proposition. It's either that or keep spending hundreds of dollars on doggie foot therapy. Yuk. There's no good option...

Happy New Year Everyone. For all my "animal lover" friends out there...

May your furry friends be in perfect health
And may every day in 2008 and forward
Be a reminder of what joy they bring to our lives.
Despite the hardships, vet bills, messy feet and accidents on the floor,
Despite the late night walks in the cold and incessant barking,
Despite their curious nature that often causes more harm than good...
We wouldn't trade it for anything,
Our lives are better for having them here with us.

Christmas update 2007

Returned yesterday from Tuscola IL where we spent Christmas with Benji, Liz & Mimi. It was a nice visit, and we had ample time to hang out, eat, and just chill. Ethan was really pretty good, all things considered, and the doggies got along with Sampson (again). All is right with the world. We ended up not leaving until Sat AM (actually, it was more like "Noon-M") since both Sarah and I were asked to play for the big Christmas drama "A Cat Named Bruce" at VCC. Sarah also got to sing "Here With Us" (Joy Williams) with Benji on Christmas Eve and I accompanied... only after finding out that Sarah had mistakenly sent the ORIGINAL song instead of the track. DOH! Benj learned some bg strings and sang harmony while Sarah did the lead, and I pianoed. It was loverly. Sarah even had a request to sing at someone's funeral... and they weren't even dead yet. That was one of the all-time weird moments in my history as a musician... seriously.

Sarah and Liz cooked up a scrumptious Christmas feast complete with Honeybaked Ham, mashed taters, Sarah's baked apples, Cauliflower gratin (an Ina Garten recipe we saw on Food Network), rolls and a yummy salad. And dessert... whoa. Sarah made the Chocolate Hazlenut Mousse Torte again and it was freaking awesome. I'm stuffed just thinking about it.

Packed everyone up and hit the road for Decatur to visit with Sarah's aunt and uncle and cousins. Donny & Marie got to spend most of the evening in the upstairs room -- where we were going to be sleepnig -- and actually got to go crateless for the whole vacation. They did really well... perhaps that's a sign of things to come? Are they settling down perhaps? Either way, I sure am glad I broke down their crates and bungeed them to the car and then got to set them back up again after I got back... :-)

I left early Wed AM for a 5 hour drive back to Cincy with the dogs, took a shower and headed off for work. Sarah actually stayed on for another night and returns later today with Mimi & Ethan. It was nice to be a bachelor for a night (which happens rarely) and I thought I'd take advantage of it and set up the PlayStation, watch some TV or something... but what did I end up doing? Cleaning. Yep. Did the dishes, straightened up a bunch and before I knew it, it was 12:15 and time to go to bed. I invited the puppies to sleep in the bed with me sort of as a reward for their good behavior over the vacation, and I think they were kinda happy... wish I coulda taken a picture. It was a sight to behold I'm sure... :-)

Christmas pix to be posted as soon as Sarah gets abck to town. Love to all of you this Christmas season!

Now that they have Santa, all they need is a vowel

Kyrgyzstan touted as ideal delivery hub for Santa

Oh, THAT's where he lives. Silly me, I thought he lived at the NORTH POLE!

It's that time of year again...

Christmas music. Crazy malls. This year, however, I am actually DONE shopping! Gotta love Amazon.com!

There are still one or two things I would LIKE to have completed if possible, but for the most part I am done. Since Sarah took care of most of the family shopping already, I only really had to concentrate on getting some things for her. I LOVE BEING MARRIED!

Sarah's really good at the whole "present thing" -- perhaps that's because she loves Christmas so much and loves getting gifts and little "special somethings" for people. I'm truly grateful for that... and I wish I were better at it, honestly. But I'm trying...

Went to go see "Christmas in Lights" up in Mason... perhaps you've seen a video of it from past years online. It was actually featured in a Millier Lite commercial a few years ago (or was it Bud Light?), and for all you doubters, let me tell you it is 100% REAL. Check it out online here... http://www.snopes.com/photos/arts/xmaslights.asp

The display had gotten so popular that they had to move it out of this guy's neighboorhood and now it's in a local park. There are actually 4 songs that are choreographed complete with a live broadcast of the music that you tune your car radio to in order to watch the show. It was really quite cool -- and they take cars in groups, and everyone turns off their headlights... so it's really a nice viewing experience. It was definitely a fun thing to do..

We're also involved in the original Christmas play they're putting on at church -- check it out here: ACatNamedBruce.com. We'll be playing in the band Thu and Fri nigths, and then it's off to Illinois Sat AM with Mimi and the doggies to spend Christmas with Benji and Liz (and Sampson!)... we're looking forward to it. Because Monday the 24th is technically a holiday for our company, I'm taking the morning of the 26th off and will be returning to work that afternoon. It will be a nice break and a good visit, I'm sure.

Cool Stuff: 30 Years of LucasFilm Christmas Cards | /Film

Cool Stuff: 30 Years of LucasFilm Christmas Cards /Film

This is WAY cool. Yoda ROCKS.

Christmas in LAME-son (... I mean "Mason")

I thought it would be fun to go and do something as a family... and there's this event called "Christmas in Mason" that's about 45 minutes north of us. There were supposed to be carolers and a parade and Santa Claus and all kinds of fun events... even a parade where the doggies dressed up in Christmas outfits. I thought it would be fun.

"Thought" is the key word.

Can you say "Over Promise and Under-Deliver?"

It. Was. ROTTEN.

And I do not use the caps unsparingly. If there was a "Caps-Cap" I would use it here. Maybe this will give you an idea of how I feel about it...

HORRIBLE.ROTTEN.STUPID.POINTLESS (.com)

They should get that as their web address next year --
http://www.horrible.rotten.stupid.pointless.com

(I actually think I'll suggest that.)

It was raining a little, so I'm sure that took away from the festivities.... but it was really just a whole bunch of stores that stayed open later and a lot of teenagers walking up and down the street (4 blocks or so) throwing snowballs at each other. When the highlight of the evening is a 5-minute shuttle rider on a school bus, that's saying something.

Yeah, something ROTTEN. :-0

Slashdot | MP3 Format Still Gathering Momentum

Slashdot | MP3 Format Still Gathering Momentum

Quote of the Day...

"I'm just gonna go ahead and wait for MP48's, so I can play them on my HHDDVVDDBVD player."

Chris Farley lives?

Who said there's no such thing as reincarnation?
 

I think this baby was born in a van... DOWN BY THE RIVER!
 

My pet peeves, Volume 1

Here is a list of my pet peeves, in no particular order. I'm sure I'll post more later, but here is what I've come up with so far...

1. People who make their smiley faces upside-down (:
2. The fact that there's no official playoff system for NCAAF. Division II schools have one... so why can't Division 1? Could it be... oh I don't know... GREED?
3. People who pull into the left-hand lane before making a right-hand turn (except for Trucks -- they're allowed).
4. Christmas decorations going up before Thanksgiving.
5. People who don't throw their trash away when in public places (like sports arenas, movie theaters, etc).
6. Stereos (and subwoofers) turned up so loud that you can't hear your OWN stereo inside your car when your windows are CLOSED.
7. People who say they can "probably come" or something like that when they already know darn well they're not going to attend and just don't want to say No.
8. The NFL blackout rule.
9. People that won't try new types of cuisine... at least once. (Weird stuff that you'd only see on Fear Factor or Bizarre Foods doesn't count here...)
10. Rude patrons.
11. Form letters that don't answer the original question.
12. Newspapers and other circulars that you never asked for which are delivered in little plastic baggies and that sit on your front steps until YOU have to pick them up. I wonder if we could fine their distributors for littering?
13. PEOPLE WRITING IN ALL CAPS FOR NO GOOD REASON.
14. People using the "Reply To All" when I don't care what they have to say, especially when I'm on a mass distribution list.
15. People that let their dogs roam the neighboorhood, pooping on anything they darn well want to.

That's all for now... more to come.