eli & pouncey vs a tree trunk

once upon a time, eli found a stick.

this stick was the size of a tree trunk, and eli was happy.

pouncey saw eli chewing the tree trunk and thought, "hey, that  looks like fun."

so he pounced over to watch eli and see how it's done.

pouncey said, "yee haw! we're gonna chew this tree trunk right up!"

he took a little bite and he liked it.

and that's how pouncey learned how to chew up a tree trunk.

the end!

say hello pouncey

hello pouncey!

no puppies were hurt in the making of this photograph

all's well in pouncey town.

he's learning very quickly. he's not afraid to jump off things. or chew things. we fenced part of the yard so they can go in and out on their own.

eli's face says it all here.

and here

pouncey plays with balls and eats sticks and leaves.

nacho thinks something is funny.

naptime!

RIP buddy

buddy and pouncey

got some sad news yesterday amidst all the hilarious daily puppy comments ("OMG pouncey, you are adorable as f$%k. I want to make you chili by a campfire and share marshmellows lady and the tramp style. If I am ever in carolina I will steal you and rub you all over my face!" and "Awesome darling! I love you! my tight hug for you!" being my favorites) that buddy, pouncey's father, passed away sunday night.

With a sad heart, we said good bye to Buddy. He passed peacefully during the night. His last day was a good one...a ride in the truck with Blizzard and the rest of the day watching us plant flowers around the campground. All the while being showered with hugs and kisses. For those who knew him personally could you share some of your happy times with us so we can celebrate his life as we mourn our loss. God bless you Buddy...always in our hearts ♥ 

-via Trails End RV Park Facebook

he was old and rickety, they said he'd been hit by a car twice. but when we met him last week he was still chasing balls through the grassy valley and hopping into pickup trucks. he was so mellow and gentle. and so handsome.

pouncey looks just like him and i think will have his same velvety coat.

rest in peace buddy! great job making people smile and making awesome puppies!

here's pouncey's mom, blizzard:

 

talk about a sweet animal. she is older too - 8 or 9 - and the same color and size as nacho. which is probably why pouncey keeps looking for nacho's teats!

the daily puppy!

Guess who is the featured puppy on The Daily Puppy Today!

POUNCEY!

The comments are cracking me the hell up.

Please go to the site and give him 11 biscuits! 

pouncey coming through the front door

pouncey had his first bath yesterday. he freakin hated it. in retrospect i probably should have put him in the sink with warm water instead of spraying him with cold water out of the hose. 

he is a total tick magnet. much grosser than a chick magnet.

glamour shot pouncey

i can't stop posting puppy pictures, i'm sorry.

car dealer on a cow

here's a break from our regularly scheduled programming of puppy pictures to highlight another insane local ad. 

ford dealer. riding a cow.

squashed face pouncey

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.

run for the river!

we have moved. it is wonderful. 

moving trucks coming this week, we camped out all weekend on an air mattress at the new place. 

happy happy river dogs. 

the tar heels lost. it was a great season.

bonnet shores 1989

packing up boxes i came across some old photos that needed scanning. 

 i'm not going to identify the people in this picture because it's just too ridiculous, but one of them is me, and this is a normal typical scene from my childhood. 

one of these girls had just cut her own bangs with manicure scissors.

best chant ever

don't even worry! 

we gonna make it! 

[repeat] 

2005 carolina basketball national champions, led by david noel in this fantastic chant. 

 what a way to start your day! 

don't even worry!  

we gonna make it!