14 seconds of pouncing

pouncey's first day

we were worried that the name pouncey wouldn't stick because he was sooo sleepy yesterday. like he was drugged or "special" or in shock. his alternate name is pants. but today he was much pouncier.

he has not had an accident in the house. he went 6 hours through the night. you take him out put him on grass and he goes. so good. he eats like a pony.

the day started off cold and rainy and he snuggled the morning away in my office with very patient and gentlemanly eli and nacho. 

the sun came out and we all did a lap around the house.

at first he was scared but he got the hang of it. 

pretty soon he was pouncing!

then he fell in a bush

then he collected himself

did some ear biting

did some more pouncing

and then got stuck in a bush. 

  the end.

pouncey

we found some pups on craigslist last week. they were in waynesville and not from a breeder, two yellow labs in a family 'got together' and had a litter.

we were going to JUST go LOOK at them and MAYBE pick one out, to POSSIBLY bring one home next week. 

but then we got there and that was impossible. 

this is pouncey. 

he is very very calm. he was born on the ides of march. he weighs 14 lbs.

eli and nacho have been very sweet to him and vice versa.  

 

spinach and lettuce

we spent the great majority of this earth day weekend doing yard work. 

we made a trail and kevin used some old railroad ties to build stairs down to the river. it's not wheelchair accessible, but it's healthy adult wearing sneakers accessible. 

we planted some greens in the new rabbit-proof garden. it's not bear proof, and it's not SNOW proof, so we'll see how these things fare. it's SNOWING right now. the poor cilantro. gotta love wnc. 

also planted some blueberries and a kadota fig tree. not sure we get enough light for these to thrive, but am hopeful.

also fell in love with some puppies for sale on craigslist. more info on this as it becomes available. 

smiling miss maizey

happy earth day! happy 420!

 instead of driving miss daisy, here's smiling miss maizey.

she's 11. she's sweet like honey. her mom answered an ad in fairbanks alaska for 'black lab pups' and this is what she got.

we're dogsitting her this weekend - lucky us!

breakdance teddy bear 1982

i found some treasures in the basement this weekend which my mom was kind enough to box up and send down here. 

 this is what i was thinking about in second grade. breakdancing teddy bears.

dressers of a feather

could these dressers be any more similar? 

identical size. 3 drawers. top drawer opens with round pulls. bottom drawer pulls are 95% identical. 

 the one on the right was in my bedroom growing up in rhode island, the one on the left in kevin's while he was growing up in tallahassee. 

i was shocked when i went to visit him for the first time in 2008 and saw it. 

i think it's so strange that we both kept them, and ended up with them as adults. 

they're old and scratched and dinged and heavy and his is missing a drawer pull, but they're sturdy as hell and i love them.

automobiles, trains, and planes

asheville cancelled their direct flights into new york, the closest you can get now is newark, which is not new york and is more shipping containers than anything.

you can still get to new york via fairly easy mass transiting, though, and you can take beer on the LIRR, and they sell a 32 oz high gravity IPA with a straw for $6.50 in penn station.

a "hot sausage" from a hot dog cart does not mean bratwurst, it means a hot dog with fiery red peppers dumped on top.

if your office bans microwaving lunch because disgusting smells and you have a window, you can make a solar cooker. 

a woman who is not at all crazy about animals can fall in love with a dog like my furry brother henry.

a boy as cute and sweet as my nephew willie will be immediately bombarded by cute older girls at the park who will take him by the hand. 

 

and push him on the swings. 

 

he is only a month away from turning 2, but taller than 50% of 3 year olds. the cutest little beanpole.  he likes being thrown in the air and looking at books and putting toy trucks in order. he smiles on command and eats anything you put in front of him.

my other nephew rilan is only a month old and has gained 4 pounds in that month. 2 pounds are in his cheeks. 

 

henry would like some bacon. 

 a great way to end a trip is with a bite or two of a goodbye mcgriddle. 

nursery school picture day

 i gave this vintage western shirt to my friend who has two studly boys under the age of two point five. 

she said this is the outfit he put on for his school pictures. she said he wore the shower cap because he was cold.

littering and

i haven't seen a display of littering like this since the 80's. 

830 am. 

waiting for the light to change. 

girl in maxima goes through the mcdonald's drive-thru. 

rolls down window. 

tosses out some coffee onto pavement. (okay fine). 

20 seconds later tosses out plastic cream container. (not fine) 

10 seconds later tosses out another plastic cream container. (seriously) 

10 seconds later tosses out a stirrer. (no joke)

*****

had i been a male, i would have gone up to her window and confronted her. 

as it stands, i encourage anybody who knows this girl who drives a black nissan maxima, maryland plates 9FL D49, to throw your trash on her doorstep.

just sittin here...with the chuckit in my hands...in case anybody wants to play ball...ever...

new good things

gonna get back on the blog horse from the new house with a list of good things:

1. the internet here is fast and reliable. this may seem like a small deal, but for somebody who had aggravated charter repair visits on a more-than-monthly basis for the last 2 years, this is a Big Deal.

2. the water pressure is awesome. my shower is no longer a clawfoot tub designed for a child. the plastic shower liners do not sweep in and give me unwanted mildewy hugs.

3. kid D's sweet little girl teylor scores a soccer goal.

4. betsy's " great list" - i love this idea. i love her attitude of gratitude. i love her link to our old friend from san diego dr. adam tibble's letter from afghanistan to anderson cooper. 

5. there are surprisingly good restaurants around here in east asheville. who knew? i didn't. east village grille. cafe azalea. pomodoro's (which i mistakenly thought was 1. a chain and 2. like olive garden based on their signs. note to  restauranteurs - be careful of too-slick/clean-looking marketing material!)

6. my biggest t-shirt order of all time came this week: 10 t-shirts to a girl in texas. yee haw!

7. the amaryllis in the photo re-bloomed 1.25 years later. i kept watering it and the leaves kept growing for a year and then a new shoot shot up and now BOOM giant pink flowers towering many feet in the air above the pot.

8. had a couple rugs and couches cleaned today. they look and smell like new, now with 98% less dog fur. thank you five step carpet care

9. eli turned 8 this week. he got a big ball of raw hamburger meat. he enjoyed this. nacho got a miniball. he enjoyed his, too.