Dogs – Pamme Boutselis

For quite some time now, it seems like most weekends have demanded an early rise; not quite as early as a normal workday, but early nevertheless. This weekend promised to be the first in a long time that I had no definite morning plans – no reason I had to get up early and I was psyched. Chances were I wouldn’t sleep all that late but it was nice knowing that I had nowhere I had to be.

Last night, however, I was out until fairly late and as a pet owner, that meant my dogs had been kenneled off and on a good chunk of the day and evening. In addition, one of my sons had asked me to watch his dog for the weekend, too. I arrived home and took the first shift of dogs out (mine) and got them settled before visiting briefly with our ever-growing kitten that would not be welcome upstairs once my son’s dog entered the equation. His dog would like nothing more than to ferociously chase the kitten around, barking like crazy, terrifying the kitten to no end. I have a feeling that the dog would simply stand there looking silly if the cat stood its ground, but I’m not going to take that chance. Next up, it was dog #3 out of his kennel and outside for his walk.
Continue reading “Pet Shifting” →

This has been a memorable, yet exhausting month that began with a landmark family event and ended with a huge event of global proportion that was shared, coincidentally, with the very person involved in the beginning of the month event – and what a month it’s been!

My eldest son married his longtime girlfriend-then-fiancé on September 2^nd, and the rehearsal and dinner were the evening before. While for most, Labor Day weekend is often greeted with sadness, signifying the end of beloved summer, for us it was a weekend to look forward and the primary focus of our summer months. In fact, summer fun seemed secondary this year as we busily prepared for this momentous family event. In a flash, that wonderful weekend was over and we plunged into the next things on the docket as the happy honeymooners made their way to Jamaica. Within a day or so, my youngest son left for his second year of college and all of a sudden, I was alone – living alone for the first time in my entire life; well, as alone as one can be with 3 grown cats, one frisky kitten and two insubordinate dachshunds.

Continue reading “Gratitude for a Magical, Manic Month” →