To Spike

It was ten years ago today that we said goodbye to Spike. He was a wonderful dog, and we think of him often.

Spike was just over a year old when we brought him home; he spent 13 years with us.

Spike was fun--he loved to chase and be chased by other dogs. He loved running and swimming after his balls. He was a good traveler too. 

Here's to Spike. 

A Family Holiday

Our great niece Daphne turned one today. I even got our presents to her early (not like she'd know.) I was happy with the gifts we sent. Got a nice text from our nephew about the photo. It made me feel good.

Today is also the 23rd anniversary of when Spike came to live with us. Spike was a wonderful dog. No wonder we got two beagles after him. 

We love you, Spike!

To Spike

As I was writing my Festivus post, I realized that yesterday was the ninth anniversary of Spike's death, and I didn't think of it yesterday.

I feel guilty about that. On the other hand, it's more important to remember Spike's life than his death. It's not like we forgot about him. 

We will always love and miss him. 

Election Day and Spike's Birthday

It's been a long, exhausting election season. I'm appalled at the money spent on ads--we probably could have fed the whole country on the amounts spent on primarily negative ads. After today, the most annoying ads will will focus on the Medicare enrollment period.

I'm avoiding news about the election until later tonight. Lucky for me, I have something else to think about.

Today is Spike's birthday. He was born in 2000 and lived with us from March 2002 until his death in December 2015. Spike was special--not just because he was our first dog, but also because he was such a great dog. 

We still love and miss him.

A Photo Post

I haven't done one of these for awhile. Here goes.

First, I saw this pink dumpster walking Jace. When did we move to Barbieland?

Here are some recent photos of Jace. It's tough to get a good picture of him. He won't cooperate. 

This is from a Saturday afternoon at the 314 Beer Garden in South Norwalk. It may be blurry, but you can see that he's happy. 

I recently looked through a thumb drive that had photos from one of my old phones. Here's a great photo of Spike from the old Burger Bar.Talk about happy!

And just because I like this photo from September 2013.

Monday Musings about a March Weekend

Saturday, I visited the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in NYC with my brother and his girlfriend. Unfortunately, it was a rainy day--the woman checking our membership said the museum is always packed on rainy days. I found the people taking pictures of the art and of each other in front of paintings very annoying. We probably would have stayed longer if it hasn't been so crowded.  I enjoyed the art especially Van Gogh's Starry Night and Dali's The Persistence of Memory. I also liked Hopper's Gas, and Monet's Water Lilies.  I impressed myself with how many of the other artists whose work I could recognize: Picassso, Klimt, Pollock, Mondrian, Seurat. We had a nice pizza lunch afterward in a restaurant we had to ourselves.

Yesterday was the 22th anniversary of the day that Spike came to live with us. He is often in our thoughts, especially on his birthday and anniversaries. We'll always miss him. In the past 22 years, we've only been without a dog for eight weeks: four between Spike's death and Lola's arrival, and another four between Lola's death and Jace's arrival. 

A week from today is April. Hopefully, April will bring warmer weather for good. April also means the year is one-quarter done. I need to take another look at my goals. I continue to fail at writing. I need to figure out just what is wrong.

Big News!

Jeff and I have been approved to adopt Jace! 

Truthfully, I was leaning to a girl dog, but when I first saw Jace's picture online, I sent it to Jeff saying, "This could be the one," and texted my brother, "I think I'm in love." 

We had a talk with Jace's foster mother this morning, and there are no red flags. Okay, he barks at dogs he doesn't like. That reminds me of Spike and the "evil white dog." Lucky the Yorkie across the street didn't like the white dog either. That's why we called him "evil."

We're waiting to hear back about a "meet and greet" with Jace. We can go as early as Thursday, and take him home with us on the same day. We're not sure of any additional paperwork needed and the exact cost (Jace might qualify for the senior discount.)

We're excited; we miss having a dog around. I wonder if we should have gone away again before Jace joins us.  At least we got a few days in Delaware. We can take Jace with us on our next trip. 

We're going to get a beagle!

A Walk at Calf Pasture Beach

I've rarely walked at Calf Pasture Beach when I had a dog (Spike or Lola.) I only remember going once to meet my friend Melissa. Jeff and I have visited a few times in the last few weeks. Sometimes we have a drink or snack at Ripka's Cafe. 

Today I went on a solo walk. It was nice to walk outside--after barely leaving the building yesterday. The air smelled fresh.  

I'll always miss the waves of the New Jersey shore, but I never lived as close to the water before. I also miss the white sands of New Jersey. It's taken me years to get used to trees along the beach. 

When I walked to the end of Shady Beach, I saw Adirondack chairs at the apex of the property on the sound. I felt a pang of envy. Okay, it was more than a pang, but how much is a pang anyway? I imagined myself sitting in one of those chairs with coffee, tea, wine, gin and tonic, whatever. I guess that's not in the cards for me. 

I was also envious when I saw people walking their dogs--the dogs all seemed so happy. Getting another dog will be easier than getting a house on the water, but we're just not ready. I need to enjoy what I have now. 

Cinco de Mayo and Lola's Birthday

Today is Lola's designated birthday. I had wondered if (and hoped) she would make it this far. But it wasn't to be. It was a beautiful day, and we would have loved to spend it with her.

I was cleaning/organizing earlier today and picked up the book Dog Heaven that my friend Darlene gave Jeff and me after Spike died. I cried as I re-read it. It helps to picture Lola and Spike together having fun. We had even asked Lola to say hi to Spike for us. 

Today is also Spike's half-way day. 

It Was 20 Years Ago Today

Spike came home to live with us to stay.

We will never forget him--he gave us so much love and fun. I'm confident we did the same for him. Someone at Taylor Farm Dog Park called him, "the dog with the perpetual smile."

Spike--smiling through the years.

Honoring Spike

We said goodbye to Spike six years ago today and still miss him. He came to live with us in March 2002 when he was just over a year old. We introduced him to meat; I still remember how he sniffed at our broiler when he first moved in. 

Spike was a wonderful dog, companion, friend, and family member. 

For Spike and Lola

Today is Spike's birthday; he would have been 21. Okay, I know that's not a realistic age for a beagle; we were happy that Chinese herbs helped Spike reach 15. Spike joined us when he was one-and-one-third years old. We gave him a good life, and he gave us love, joy, and new dog park friends. Every year around this time, I think a lot about him. I still love Spike and miss him. Here are a few of my favorite pictures of him.

Lola joined us four months after Spike died. She was around five then. She's been with us for over five-and-a-half years. We didn't know her real birthday and picked May 5th because it's Spike's half-way day

Here are some pictures of our sweet Lola. 

Jeff and I have been blessed with two wonderful beagles. For one thing, both Spike and Lola like to sleep in. We never had dogs getting us up at 5 or 6 AM. 

Beagles are love.

Thursday Thoughts

Thursday night feels like the end of the week even though I'm not working, and if you think of the week as running from Monday to Sunday, it's really mid-week. 

Whatever. I'm feeling like another week went by with minimal accomplishments on my part. For one thing, I'm committed to driving Jeff for treatments for his foot twice a week. While he can drive himself, we feel more comfortable with me driving. Sometimes his foot burns afterward and it's a 45 minute drive. I use the 45 minute appointment time reading, playing Spelling Bee, doing New York Times crossword puzzles, and occasionally journaling. 

Lola still has toxins in her kidneys, so she is getting fluid injections three times a week. Usually Jeff and I both take her, although either of us can do it alone. For the past week, we've scheduled Lola's appointments at 9 on Monday, Wednesday, and Friday and Jeff's for 10:45 on Tuesday and Thursday. It's easier to plan around the appointments when they are consistent. This is still a work in progress. Jeff's been on this schedule for two weeks, and Lola for one.

I'm doing most of the walking with Lola (sometimes both Jeff and I go.) It's frustrating because she no longer will walk around the neighborhood--I can't explain it. It's also frustrating to take her somewhere such as the Norwalk River Valley Trail--a 30 to 40 minute roundtrip--and she walks for barely 20-25 minutes. I've been trying to enjoy our walks more while the weather is nice. We've had a string of beautiful, unseasonably warm days, and I know they won't last. I'm letting Lola off-leash more. So far, so good. She runs a bit and seems to enjoy herself more. I just realized that I can now take her to Westport beaches (as of October 1.)

I've really fallen behind in cleaning and writing. Both areas will require more planning and scheduling to get back on track. I can't wait for convenient times or moods. One good thing is I've gotten back into a gym routine the last two weeks. 

I'm continuing to try new recipes usually from the New York Times. Last night it was Skillet Chicken with Black Beans, Rice and Chiles. It got rave reviews. We were disappointed. I was also annoyed that it was billed as a one-pot dish, when you needed two. It took about an hour to cook, which can be too much on a weeknight for most. 

Throwback Thursday. I finally backed up my computer and looked through some old photos. I found this of Spike from our New Year's visit to Daufuskie Island around 2005? He is in his element with a favorite squeaky ball, taking a rest from chasing it down the beach. As much as I love Lola, I still miss Spike.

Five Years Ago...

...we said goodbye to Spike. It was time. We had kept him alive for a year after he appeared to fail. We gave him a good life (he came to us when he was just over one-year-old.) He gave us so much love and happiness. 

Spike was a wonderful dog and companion. We'll always love him.

Here's to Spike. 

Happy Birthday Spike

Spike's been gone for almost five years, but he is still often in our thoughts. We will never forget him. He would have been 20 today. 

Jeff suggested we honor him and Lola (this is her designated half-way day) with a steak dinner. That works for me.

Here are a few of my favorite photos of Spike.

Here's one of Lola.

A Post of Photos

I was looking through some photos on my phone and decided to post a few.

This is Oyster Shell Park; I liked the color of the trees.  They reminded me of these.

Here's another painted stone I saw along the Norwalk River Valley Trail. 

Last week as we did a loop at Oyster Shell Park, Lola and I were surprised when a hawk swooped down, flying about four feet off the ground. It landed in this tree. Lola stood and stared in the hawk's direction for a few moments.  

It's amazing how much larger the hawk appeared in full wingspan than it did perched on this branch. I stopped to take some photos; I couldn't get a good shot. While taking the pictures, I dropped a glove and bent to pick it up. When I looked up, the hawk was gone: thin tree branches swaying in its wake. The hawk had moved on to a taller tree. 

Apparently hawks are generally solitary and territorial. I guess this is the same hawk I've seen before at Oyster Shell. 

Jeff gave me this ornament on Saturday evening. I love it; I've often said that I would loved for Lola to have met Spike. Here she sits with us and angel Spike. 

Thinking about Spike

As we were walking along the NRVT on Sunday, I suddenly realized why I'd been thinking so much about Spike lately.

Today is his birthday; he would have been 19. Here are a few pictures of Spike from this blog through the years.

Spike was special; he is special. That's why he's the star of this blog with 169 posts so far.

I need to write his story.

Today is also Lola's designated half-way day. Since we don't know her real birthday, we chose May 5.

We're lucky to have shared our lives with these two special pups. 

Lola's Birthday Weekend

Sunday was Lola's designated birthday. I had hoped for nice weather so we could go out for lunch at Sedona Tap House or The Beer Garden in Stamford. Jeff and I both bought steak for dinner. We hadn't discussed our purchases beforehand--just thinking along the same lines.

The weather was nice Saturday and it was New Canaan Dog Days. First, we did the Paws Walk on the New Canaan Nature Center's trails. Lola loved it--lots of good scents for her. Then we checked out all the vendors and got many food and treat samples.

We stayed to watch some Doggie Fun Zone runs. We used to see Doggie Fun Zone at Taylor Farm; Spike loved it. I remember staying at the park all Sunday afternoon so Spike could run it over and over. At first Lola seemed scared of the sound of the lure; later she acted as if she wanted to run the course. We signed her up, but she didn't even complete the first turn. Oh well.

We had lunch al fresco at Sedona Tap House. Sliders, fries, and a flatbread with a flight of four margaritas. Later Jeff made us a steak dinner.

Sunday was raw and rainy day--not a fun day. We made the best of it and celebrated with a duck dinner. We remembered Spike. May 5 was his half-way day. That's why we chose it as Lola's birthday. It was a way to honor both of them.

To Spike

17 years ago today, Spike came to live with Jeff and me.

He'll always be a part of our lives. We love him and miss him.

Happy Anniversary to Spike. 

Thinking about Pets

The other day was National Love Your Pet Day. Maybe I was a bit condescending when I wrote about it, but a pet is more than a one-day-a year commitment. I don't even like the word "pet."

Jeff and I've gotten a lot of crap about how we love/care for our dogs even from fellow dog lovers. We can deal with that. We'll gladly admit that we spoil our dogs.

Here's a story to prove the point: someone gave us filet mignon for Spike when Jeff helped with his computer. As I cooked the filet, I made a chick pea stew for us. (By the way, the chickpea stew sucked.) When we went on a NYC getaway, I heard a friend that we took Spike with us because we didn't have kid. Whatever.

Together Jeff and I have had two pets: Spike and Lola. Spike had a tough adjustment, but only for a few weeks. I remember the first time in the car, he threw up.That worried me because we wanted to take him places. Luckily that was a one-off situation.

Lola's adjustment has been tougher. She apparently had a much harder life; we'll never know for sure. I remember when I picked up a yardstick to measure something--this was after a year with us--and she ran from the room. Someone must have abused her.

Lola's made a lot of progress, but is still often fearful. We do what we can to love her and make her feel safe. That's one of our most important jobs.