The local news channels and newspaper have featured a horrible thing, the raid of a puppy mill here in a county nearby. There were 76 poodles that the poodle rescue we work with aquired from this raid that are now in dire need of help. Coastal Poodle Rescue's resources are stretched to a breaking point. There is a big fund raiser tomorrow that Andy and I will be working at, but that was one that was planned previously, and now there is a HUGE additional drain on the pool of money available to save these dogs.

I talked with one of the other volunteers today, one that had been to the place where the 76 dogs are being kept now, and she says it is incredible how much it takes to take care of them all. It is back-breaking work, just keeping them clean and fed, and even to keep track of which one is which. We are going to need some serious donations in order to save all of these poodles. I hope the illegal breeder goes to jail and never gets out. I can't even imagine how someone could treat dogs that way. Poor little things.

If you can help these dogs, even a little bit it would be greatly appreciated. Andy and I will be giving as much as we can- both money-wise and time-wise. Since Cody's emergency stomach pumping that cost us $1,100 the other night we are not able to give as much as we would like to. And due to our track record with fostering dogs- we kept both of the dogs we tried to foster because we couldn't bear to give them away and currently have five- we can't take dogs in, but we will do any other things we can to help the rescue group, like working at fund raisers, checking references of potential foster parents, and so on. But we can't do it all.

If you would like to help the poor neglected poodles, around thirty of which are just tiny puppies, you can follow this link here to go to Coastal Poodle Rescue's site where you can donate money by PayPal or e-gold or get the mailing address to send a check if you prefer to help with the massive expenses of getting these dogs taken care of until they can be adopted out into loving families. If you would like to donate and don't mind you can leave a memo on your PayPal payment or check that Jen sent you so I will see that you came from this site. Please, these poor babies really need your help. I don't normally ask this of my internet friends but this is a desperate issue. Without the money to take care of these dogs, some of them will die. Remember, three of my dear babies, including Denny who is pictured above, were once in the position that these poor dogs are and depended on people to save their lives. They and Andy and I really appreciate anything you can do to help. Thank you.

I took little Cody to the vet early this morning because the doctor wanted to see him again and check his glucose level after all of the trauma he had been through. His blood sugar was still very high, so the vet decided to keep him for a few hours to give him some IV fluids while he still had a catheter in his little arm. He was still fairly pathetic looking this morning, but he is a lot perkier tonight.

I had my first dog obedience class with Denny this morning, so Andy was on deck to pick Cody up, and Denny and I headed off to class. I was kind of worried that Denny was going to embarass me, as he doesn't know how to do anything, but due to his nippyness I knew he needed socialization and training and I was willing to just suck it up.

I was pleasantly surprised in a couple of ways at class. First off, Denny was one of the best dogs in the class; he did exactly what he was supposed to. He learned to sit and watch me when I commanded and walk with me rather than pull ahead or lag behind. He was great, really. I guess poodles are really smart- he picked up the things he was taught in seconds. The other big surprise was that the obedience class was a lot of fun. I really and truly enjoyed it. Besides Denny and me, the class was made up of another poodle of about Denny's size, a six month old doberman puppy, a mix breed medium sized dog, a seven year old golden retriever, a pug and their owners. I think Denny had a really good time there as well, so I am looking forward to next week.

After Denny gets trained, Andy and I will probably join the training club and put the rest of the dogs through the program. The little girls might actually be great at some of the agility events even, as long as they do well in obedience class. I have high hopes for them- they definitely are smart enough and are very athletic.

Cody is back home again finally, resting comfortably after his long ordeal. I took him in to the emergency animal clinic at around 7:30 last night and was there with him until almost 11:00. Then they told me to go home. During the night they called to keep us informed of his progress. When they first started working on him, they had to relieve some of the gas that had built up in his huge swollen stomach, so they used a needle to pierce him through his side, kind of like popping a balloon. Relieving the pressure allowed them to get a tube in so that they could pump his stomach. It took a very long time to pump his stomach because all of the dog food was whole- he hadn't chewed it at all, just wolfed it down, so it was too chunky to go through the tube. They had to try to liquefy it before they could get the food out.

The doctor said that they got an amazing quantity of food out of him, about four and a half cups, and there was still some left in him. Keep in mind that he is only an eight pound dog, and you can see how that could cause some real problems. Of course the food he ate probably wasn't quite four and a half cups in volume, but when he drank water it swelled in his stomach. The emergency clinic was open until eight or so this morning- they are only open weekends and off-hours-so I had Andy pick Cody up from there this morning and transport him directly to our vet's office. I had to be at work, so I made the arrangements for him at the vet over the phone so Andy could bring him straight in. He brought all of the records over from the clinic and our vet took care of him today and monitored him until I picked him up this afternoon.

The poor little beast is fairly worn out now. His blood glucose is a mess still, so even after he spent the whole day today at our vet's office, they want to see him again first thing in thhe morning. He has weird little shaved patches all over him- three of his legs have shaved patches on them where they took blood from his little bitty veins to test his glucose on two legs and one where his IV was. He has a large rectangle on his side that is shaved where they pierced his side to let the gas out of his stomach, and they shaved around his mouth a little presumably when they were pumping his stomach. Poor little guy. I am just glad he is alive, because I have no doubt that he wouldn't be with us today if I hadn't taken him for emergency care.

Emergency care doesn't come cheap, either. We have already paid over nine hundred dollars to the clinic that worked on him last night, and tomorrow we will get the bill from our regular vet for what they did today and whatever they do to him tomorrow. That was some expensive dog food!

Here's the shaved patch on his side with the little hole where they deflated his tummy.

I have spent most of the night tonight at the emergency vet. Cody, while under Andy's care this afternoon, got into the other dog's food and ate a ton out of their bowl. Due to his diabetes he has a voracious appetite and pretty much won't stop eating until the food is gone. He ate so much that he was in real distress this afternoon so I had to take him in. An X-ray revealed that his stomach was swollen to gargantuan proportions and was pressing on his heart and lungs and other organs because it was taking up his entire abdomen. He was dry heaving and couldn't poop, and the vet said that while his stomach didn't appear that it had twisted, it had so much food and gas in it that it very easily could twist, and if that happened he would have only minutes to get emergency care or he would die.

I had to leave him at the hospital so they can monitor him all night. They may try to pierce his stomach by inserting a needle through his side in an effort to relieve some of the gas, like popping a balloon, and to lessen thhe possibility that his stomach will twist. They may try to pump his stomach but the vet is hesitant to put him under anesthesia because of his diabetes, so she is trying to avoid that. I am terribly worried about my poor baby- I love him so much. I had to select options for whether I wanted them to resuscitate him or not and to what degree and that was very hard. So please, say a little prayer for my Cody that he will get some relief and come home safe to me tomorrow.

UPDATE: It is now 5:25 in the morning and Cody was doing all right the last time the animal hospital called. It was around 2:30 and they were almost finished pumping his stomach. Andy is supposed to call them at 7:00 and then should be able to pick him up shortly afterward, but he may end up bringing him to our regular vet for further care. I am headed off to work now for a few hours since there is nothing I can do to help the situation anyway, and that way I can plan to come home early if need be. I think Cody is going to be okay. Thanks for the well wishes.

This afternoon I went to the consultation for my upcoming liver biopsy. I am having it done on Monday and it shouldn't be too big of a deal. It is going to take up most of the day, but doesn't sound too scary.

On the way back, I decided against my better judgement to stop at Wal-Mart to buy a hair clip I wanted so I could do my hair differently tomorrow. Just a simple, brown hair clip. I used to like Wal Mart back around my high school years when it first came to our town. It was the first store of its kind to come around- vast selection of good stuff at low prices. I mean, there was always Kmart and all, but as Rainman said "Kmart sucks." Since those days when Sam Walton was alive, Wal-Mart has gone way downhill. I normally never shop there anymore because it is evil and populated by the world's most annoying people, but it was on the way and my dear Target was in another direction. I think it has been a couple of years since I had last been to Wal-Mart. I should have known it was a bad idea when an old lady almost ran over me in the parking lot as I approached the store.

When I got in the store I realized how much I dislike the idea of having a "greeter" in the front of a store. I just want to get what I need and be left alone. The process of shopping there is unpleasant enough as it is, I don't want to prolong it even a second more with any smiling or chit-chat. Wal-Mart was packed and its crummy narrow aisles were overstuffed with people and carts so that I could barely get through. I got stuck in a traffic jam behind an old man in a motorized cart that couldn't figure out how to drive it properly; he kept stopping and backing up. I finally got past him and wove my way in and out of people who were stopped with their carts in the middle of the aisles, nearly catatonic. I don't know what it is that happens to people in Wal-Mart but it is like their IQs drop to match the air temperature of the store as soon as they cross the threshhold.

Eventually I got to the section of the store that has the hair stuff. Amazingly, they didn't even have the simple little barrette I was looking for, and I was actually GLAD because that meant that I could just leave the store without having to go through the checkout line. I made a beeline for the exit and vowed that I would never again return to the hell that is Wal-Mart. I stopped at a crappy little drugstore after I got the hell out of there and they had exactly what I needed. So much for Wal-Mart's vast selection.

At least I reminded myself of my distaste for Wal-Mart so that I won't be tempted to go back for several more years at least. They may have low prices, but it seems that they are only a few cents below other stores around here, so it makes little difference. And with the annoyance factor of shopping in their stores I would happily pay twice as much or more just to not have to go in there. Sam Walton would turn in his grave if he knew what his company has become.

Tomorrow afternoon I have a consultation for a liver biopsy. I guess they'll tell me everything I need to know to prepare for it and then schedule the actual biopsy. From what I understand it is a needle biopsy type thing and not that big of a deal, but I think they make you lay there afterward for something like six hours to make sure it doesn't start bleeding. Fun, huh? But it is about damn time to figure out all of my liver crap. I am tired of getting the runaround, and II am sick of worrying about it.

Remember this post and this one where my liver enzymes had gone nearly back to normal when I started taking zinc, but one doctor ruled out a possible diagnosis without even testing me? Since then there has been an interesting turn of events and I have been through a lot more tests which have been rather inconclusive, so now it is time to find out what is going on, assuming the biopsy turns something up or at least rules things out and hopefully points doctors in the right direction. I have a lot more about this whole story to tell, but I am planning to wait until I find out the results of the biopsy to post most of it, so it all makes sense.

I didn't post yesterday because I finally got my act together and did a bunch of cleaning, organizing, and cooking that I wanted to get done this weekend. Andy comes home today- in fact I think he has probably left already- and I don't want him to think I am a total degenerate vegetable without him around. He'll be back this afternoon by the time I get home and I can't wait to see him. The "kids," furry and feathered will be beside themselves with happiness. They missed him a ton. This was the first time Louie spent a night away from his dad since we got him at six and a half weeks old.

Andy is in Ohio right now, and I am home alone and up way past my bedtime. He left yesterday morning and it is just me and a house full of animals, but we are all doing fine. I haven't gotten crap done- I had all kinds of big plans but I have whiled the time away so far by putzing around on the computer rather than doing anything productive. That means tomorrow I have to get moving and do the grocery shopping for the week and all the cleaning and organizing I wanted to do this weekend. It is so easy to NOT do all of that stuff though, and to totally lose track of time. Which is why I am still awake at this late hour. I think I am going to go crawl into bed with my dogs before the whole night is gone!

From a phone conversation between Andy and while I was driving to an appointment and he was at home:

"Your tortoise is in his tray eating and he just laid a big turd."

"Well, it IS a real time saver to eat and shit at the same time. Imagine if you could combine pooping with your meals how much time you could save."

"Gross"

"Just think, you could have dining tables with toilets all around them instead of chairs. Think of how efficient it would be."

This morning at work I was presented sort of an award, but not really- more like a mention or something for a safety issue I had identified and worked on. I got a certificate presented to me and they insisted on taking my picture with the presenter of the certificate. Later, the picture ended up in an email that went to everyone in our department. It wasn't a bad picture, but no Glamour Shot either.

One of the guys I work with announced upon seeing the picture in his email, that I should watch out, there may be some Photoshopping to come. He said this with an evil gleam in his eye meaning that he might take the picture and make some "modifications." I said "Fine, if you must Photoshop it, at least make me look good in it, okay?"

I am the most horrible person in the world. I cannot for the life of me after weeks of searching find the perfect birthday gift for Andy and his birthday is Thursday. I have even resorted to asking him what he wants, but even that did me no good as he said "nothing."

Friday morning he leaves to fly up to Ohio to visit his family for the first time in five years or so, and I will have to spend the whole weekend without him. I want to do something nice for his birthday before he leaves but I am at a complete loss, because I am apparently a dumb ass. If anyone has any fabulous ideas, let me know. And sweetie, if you are reading this, don't read the comments in case someone has a good idea that I want to use!

This morning after I had just gotten in the building at work and it was still dark outside, one of my co-workers came in and asked if a raccoon had tried to follow me in. I hadn't seen a raccoon, but apparently as he got out of his truck, one ran up and tried to follow him into the building. And when we looked out- the double doors to the outside have windows in them- he was out there looking in at us. If we opened the door he would try to dart in.

Just then another car pulled into the parking lot, and the raccoon hid behind the bumper of a car right next to the door so he could try to follow the next person into the building. It was actually pretty smart of him. I went out a different door so I could warn the person coming in so that she wouldn't freak out. She came in the other door, and the raccoon ran over and around the corner of the building and tried to follow us in the other door. Then he sat out just outside of the door, yawned, scratched, and waited.

Eventually we had to call the wildlife officers to come out. He finally left just before they got there, but they put out a trap and will relocate him elsewhere. We figured that someone on the night shift must be feeding him. We didn't want to have him trapped, but it was either that or we would have to get him a desk and a computer in the building, because by God, he was coming in. We can't have a wayward raccoon accosting people in the parking lot for their lunches.

I heard this afternoon that the reason the raccoon is so unafraid is that someone has been feeding him pretty regularly. He is so brazen that the night shift workers often have him walk up to them and tapp them on the back of the leg and then hold his hands out begging for food. Apparently he will eat right out of a person's hands. That is neat and all, but not a very good idea. I wish that people would realize that they are not doing the animals any good by feeding them. They have survived without our help for thousands of years, and the last thing they need is to become dependant on our junk food and to learn not to fear humans and potentially put themselves in danger. Poor raccoons.

With five dogs in the house we can always count on someone to make a big mess with some regularity. Usually it is my girl Annabel that gets into things- as you can see in the first two pictures, she is a very messy eater and loves to knock the food bowl over, and she likes to play in the dirt.

This afternoon, Denny followed her lead and dug a nice hole in the dirt and got himself all kinds of dirty. His snooter was just covered in dirt. He was pretty pleased with himself. So he and all of the others got a bath today. And I mean ALL of the others; all five dogs were bathed, plus Charley the parrot and Virgil the tortoise had their respective baths. What a bunch of filthy animals.

We actually spend so much time leaning over the tub washing dogs that we have put an elevated built-in dog wash in the plans for our new house. Above is Denny dirty and happy, below is him clean, soft and puffy.

Today I got to see things in a whole new light because I went wih Andy and got my first pair of glasses since I was a small child. I had one pair of glasses as a kid because I used to squint, but being the rotten little kid that I was I never wore them and just kept on squinting. Anyway, my vision is not bad at all. It comes out as 20/25 and by squinting I can correct that to 20/20, but sometimes I get headaches from squinting too much, and I am getting a nasty wrinkle on my forehead from it as well.

So, the prescription I got was very weak, and I don't notice any difference up close at all, but at a distance with the glasses things are a bit sharper and clearer. If I squint with the glasses on, nothing changes, so hopefully that habit will go away. I don't need to wear glasses all the time, just whenever I want to alleviate eye strain.

Here are some with and without glasses photos- I don't think they are too bad at all. And they have come a long way from the ones I didn't wear as a child; they are way more comfortable now. Andy likes the way they look on me. He thinks I look like a whole new person. I was surprised that they looked as decent as they did since I have a very crooked face. What do you think?

Some of you that have been readers here for a long time remember that we had all kinds of issues when we had our swimming pool put in, and that it was a nightmarish experience that took an entire year to complete. Since then, we have put all of that behind us, except we have one lingering issue with the pool, a leak near the top of the pool, at a component that they forgot to seal. They installed it without sealing it, and then the deck was poured and it could not be sealed properly. We have "lifetime" warranty on the pool against leaks, but all that has meant is that they will come out and apply some putty to the leak when we call them, and then six to eight weeks later, it will leak again. They tried all different kinds of products to seal it up, epoxies, putties, some kind of crap that they use to repair cruise ships, and something that they called a "hydraulic patch." None of it worked. The leak would always come back and the water leaks out until the water level is just barely above the bottom of the skimmer, and it causes the pump to pull air through it, which is very bad.

Andy and I have always been concerned about the recurring leak, especially now that we will be trying to sell this house when the new one is built, and no one is going to want to deal with that leak, but we would be forced to disclose it. Well, a couple of weeks ago we went to a home show and talked to different vendors. We didn't even bother with the pool people that were there, but we were talking to a lady with a local mortgage company, and she told us we should talk to the pool guy at the booth next to hers. We had a little chat with the guy about our leaky problem, and he said he thought he could fix it. He quoted us a hundred bucks to fix it and we thought that sounded like a bargain if it really worked. We decided to give him a call.

First off, we could tell this guy was not like most of the pool people we have dealt with because he showed up on time, actually it was even a bit early, for the first visit to assess the problem. And for the second visit, there was an emergency that happened with his dog, but he called in advance of when he was scheduled to show up to reschedule. Again, this is something we have never seen before when dealing with pool people- generally they don't show or call. He showed up this morning to do the repair, and Andy described what he had come up with to me. It was actually quite ingenious and should be a permanent solution- one that our rotten pool company should have come up with a long time ago. He managed to stabilize a joint that was previously subject to motion which was causing it to crack any putty or substance that was used to stop the leaks. It is way more complicated than that, but you get the idea.

We are so thrilled that the leak is now a thing of the past- and we couldn't believe it only cost us a hundred bucks. We were happy to pay it not to have to deal with it anymore. Isn't it wonderful to work with someone that is reliable, courteous, and does a good job? You would think that would be the norm, but we know better. It is hard to get good help these days, don't you think?

Andy had a nightmare last night that I left him- at least he says it was a nightmare, some may question that, he he. Anyway it must have been quite realistic because when I got home I had flowers- mini sunflowers, which are my favorite and some other mixed spring flowers- a card, and even a little present!

I know how he must've felt because Ii have had dreams like that before, where I woke up almost in a cold sweat after dreaming that he left me. At least when I woke up from those kind of dreams he was there to reassure me. Andy woke up from his bad dream after I was already at work, so he didn't have that. Have you ever had dreams that were so realistic that it took you a while after waking up to shake them off?

I apologize wholeheartedly, but I am incredibly boring right now. My brain has turned to mush. I have some interesting developments going on right now but I hesitate to post about them until I know what the outcome is going to be, hence bo-ring blogging. It is probably the product of me trying to post about anything other than what is primarily occupying my mind and it just falls flat. You know the whole "elephant in the room" thing? Have I piqued your curiosity at all? Then please keep coming back- I promise the borings will go away soon.

At night we have a sort of order in our chaos. There are five dogs in our queen size bed with me, and then after Andy gets home around 11:30 from working second shift, the five of them are with the two of us. It can get a bit cramped, and some of the dogs get a bit grumpy when disturbed. Every dog has an "area" of the bed where they generally sleep, but sticking to these is not always the rule. Little bitty Michaela curls up into a tiny ball between our pillows. Cody always sleeps at the foot of the bed. Louie is usually in the lower leg/calf area somewhere. But the problems lie with Denny and Annabel. Lately there has been sort of a "power struggle" between the two of them. I am quite flattered as they both want to sleep hugged up next to me, but they kind of fight over the positions during the night.

Initially Denny slept next to me ever since we brought him home, and Annabel has been sort of flaky. She has a hard time deciding where she wants to sleep, but when she wants to snuggle, she wants to snuggle. And she is quite a cuddly little dog. I hope everyone can fall back into some semblance of a routine again, because the fighting over who can sleep closer to Mom's head thing is getting old quick. If you don't have a whole pack of dogs like we do you may never have fully experienced the pack dynamics like we do here. It is a completely different situation. Andy gets kind of ticked off and aggravated at them sometimes when they "argue" at night, but heck, they're just dogs. And for the most part everyone is fine. They just get a little pissy if someone else- meaning another dog- lays down too close to them. What is your night time routine? Do you have to deal with the feelings of many others when you lay down to sleep or can you just sleep?

Andy and I took Cody to the Kennedy Space Center All-American Picnic, where we volunteered with the poodle rescue group again like we did last year. There are lots of games for kids and exhibits at the picnic; there is a car show, pie-eating contest, and chili cookoff as well as tents for lots of different rescue groups like ours to show off the dogs to people and get publicity.

Even though our Cody is not a rescue poodle, I chose to take him to the event because he looks so different from what people expect a poodle to look like and he is great with people, including the smallest kids. He loves to be petted and people just love him, so it works out great. I sat in the front of the tent, where Andy is sitting in the photo below, with Cody in my lap and all day a steady stream of kids came up ooohhhing and aahhhhing over Cody and petting him, hugging him, and so on. I think he was the most photographed dog at the event, too; it seemed like everyone wanted a picture of him. He loved every minute of it.

At the end of the day, we walked over to a small pier at the park and took a little walk to enjoy the scenery. The park where the picnic was held is part of Kennedy Space Center property and is located right on the water. It was a beautiful day and we had fun. It is amaginz what a difference the weather can make; when we volunteered at the same event last year it was held in April and it was very hot already. This year's picnic was much more enjoyable.

So, I lied. Well not really, I just changed my mind. After I found out that Andy screwed up our benefits enrollment so that I have no vision insurance I said I wouldn't go to the eye doctor, but I actually went today for the first time since I was a small child. I was getting sick of getting headaches from squinting and I think you are supposed to have your eyes checked every so often.

Anyway, when I got home from my appointment I did what every normal girl who couldn't see well would do and sat down at my iMac and took lots of funky pictures while my pupils were HUGE. Everything was very blurry then, but I was still able to see enough to use some of the fun effects in Apple's Photo Booth. I swear I could play with Photo Booth for hours. I guess I am easily amused.

We go through a lot of training at work, and some of it is quite repetitive. Every year we go through a series of online training sessions on topics such as ethics. The ethics trainer was something we were all pretty familiar with as it was reused for several years. I took my ethics training today only to find that it had been completely redone and even introduced some concepts that I had never heard of. One of the new terms that I was introduced to in the training was "microinequities." Am I just the last one to the party? Does everyone else know what it means?

For those that might be in the dark like I was you probably know exactly what microinequities in the workplace are, you just didn't know they had a name. From Wikipedia: "Microinequity is a term for a variety of disparaging messages, typically subconscious in nature, that may discourage and devalue someone. A microinequity may be a gesture, rumor, look or even tone of voice. The cumulative effect of microinequities can impair a person's performance in the workplace or classroom, damage self-esteem, any may eventually lead to that person's withdrawal from the situation...An inequity implies there is some comparison. For example, if your boss doesn't listen attentively to you, that in and of itself is not a microinequity. However, if your boss listens attentively to almost all of your co-workers, but not to you, that would be a microinequity."

I never knew there was a name for those kind of things, but I am very familiar with the concept. An ex-boss of mine is a master of these microinequities. I never knew what it was that he was doing, I only knew that he made me feel like shit no matter how great of a job I did and I couldn't pinpoint exactly why. Have you ever experienced this phenomenon? Thankfully I am in a good place at work now, but I think it is interesting that companies are actually recognizing these subtle little negativities and pointing them out to employees. I wonder, when the managers that are the major purveyors of microinequities take the training, will they stop and think, "hey, that is what I do all the time" and see the horrible impact it has on employees?

Aaagh! I've spent the time I should have been posting here and then some sucked in to reading a post and all the comments of one of Stacey's posts at Jurgen Nation. Girls, you have got to go over there and check out all of the great beauty recommendations! Stacey asked readers for testimonials on their favorite beauty products, jeans, drinks, etc. And guys you can stop over there and tell us what things you notice and like on women, or just add some hilarity to the conversation as some of the guys have already done. Stripper smell, WTF? Hysterical! So, go check it out and leave your best recommendations there as well.

I guess I am naive or too trusting, though I like to think of myself otherwise. I am quick to recognize scams and have no problems with being swindled out of money or anything, but in personal aquaintance relationships I have been conned a few times.

I just learned of another case where I was led to believe a certain person when they told their side of a story, and it turns out that the whole time I was being fed lies. The lies turned out to be inconsequential to me, they were about the person telling them and I really don't care that much, but I am rather shocked that I was in the dark for so long when everyone around me knew the truth.

I had always had my suspicions about this person, and due to that I always kept them at arms length, but I did believe them, even when all of the evidence was to the contrary. I guess I want to see the best in people and I give them the benefit of the doubt. And once again, I have been had.

A couple of you have asked for some updated dog pictures and were wondering how the pooches were doing. Since it gets dark shortly after I get home and settled, Cody and I took some indoor photos with the camera on my iMac for you- we used the sepia filter for fun. As you can see, Cody was not terribly enthused about the photo shoot; he could hardly keep his little eyes open, he was so underwhelmed.

The dogs are doing fine. We had the pool fencing installed so that Cody can't go for an accidental swim again, and Louie has quit licking/chewing his arm as much and the hair has grown back. He is still on his anti-depressants, though.

Annabel doesn't go out back and bark as much as she used to, but I think Denny has taken up where she left off. He will use any excuse to run out there and bark his head off. He still loves to lay around on his favorite lounge chair on the back porch, and sometimes he gets up in the middle of the night and goes out there to sleep on his chair. What a nerd.

Michaela's fur has grown in very soft and thick in a way I didn't think was possible back when we first rescued her. It is hard to beleive that it hasn't even been a year yet that she has been with us- it seems like longer. She gets so excited when I come home from work that she jumps up and grabs a bit of my clothing in her mouth to try to pull me down to her level. She often gets part of me underneath my clothes with her little pointy teeth when she does this and she has also torn one of my shirts, but she gets an A for enthusiasm. Andy thinks it is hysterical that she bites me on the butt when I come home.

I love the way these two things look together- a 1933 Chevy and an OMS Pod from Space Shuttle Endeavour. And it is not so much a juxtaposition of old and new, as the shuttle represents the best of say, 1970s technology, but I still think they look neat together. The car belongs to one of my friends at work who lovingly restored it herself. Pretty amazing, isn't it?

Denny, one of the dogs we rescued last year, has some slight issues with visitors to our home. As in he wants to sort of bite them a little bit at first. We don't have many people over so when we do we have to restrain him on a leash. I decided that he needs training because he HAS to get over this so I called the local dog training club and signed him up. His classes don't start until the end of March though.

The lady I talked to from the dog training club asked me a little bit about Denny and I told her how he had been picked up as a stray with a broken foot, an injury that was already about six weeks old when we brought him into our home and he underwent surgery to repair it. I told her that he was a very "needy" dog. She said that when he leans up against me and forces me to pet his head it isn't so much because he is needy, but is him trying to be dominant. Basically he has trained me to do what he wants.

And as for the wanting to bite people, she said that it didn't seem very unusual for a dog in his position. She said that when a dog has been rescued from a really bad situation and then brought into a loving home, that he might fear that anyone that comes around is trying to take that away from him and that is why he would want to bite visitors. So Denny is protecting his place in our home.

Anyway, I hope that through some good socialization away from home and training he will come around and learn that biting is not acceptable and that he has nothing to fear. What a big goofball. If it works out well I'll have to cycle some of the other dogs through the class, one at a time. It sure would be nice to have them obey a command once in a while!

The other day I set up an eye exam for myself at the same place that Andy goes to. I have not had my eyes checked since I was a little kid- except at work, and in light of the eye strain headaches I have been getting, I decided it was time. I set up the appointment and gave them my insurance information. By the time i got home from work there was a mmessage on the phone from them. I called the receptionist and was told that I had no insurance. I told her that she was wrong, of course I did. I have had vision insurance, same as Andy for the past seven years. And then I went upstairs to the file cabinet and looked at our benefits information.

Our company switched the company that administers our benefits this past fall, and we had to go through and re-enroll in all of our benefits. The way it has always been done is that you either got coverage in medical, dental and vision for just yourself, or yourself and your spouse, or yourself and your spouse and kids. If you got the medical, you automatically got the dental and vision; they were a package deal. Apparently at this last enrollment, you had to select who you were covering for each of the three: medical, dental, and vision. Even though we both work at the same company, Andy has always carried me on his insurance, because it is cheaper for him to insure himself plus me that it would be if we each just insured ourselves. The weekly premium is slightly less that way.

I think you have probably figured out where this story is going. Andy screwed up the enrollment and I now have no vision or dental coverage for the entire year. I had the eye appointment scheduled, and now that is out the window, and I am having to cancel my dental appointment scheduled for next month. I was planning to have the mercury amalgam fillings taken out of my teeth and replaced with the ceramic ones but forget that. Andy feels terrible, and I really don't blame him for the mistake; I blame myself. I should have looked at the enrollment confirmation statement, but I assumed he had it taken care of. And we aren't even saving any money by me not being covered; the difference is only pennies. The worst part of it is that if we had discovered the problem only two weeks ago we could have had it fixed, but now it is too late. Andy wants me to go to the appointments anyway and pay for them out of pocket, but I'll be damned if I'll pay good money for something that is due to us anyway for no extra cost. I'll wait the friggin year, headaches and dirty teeth be damned.