Lesson Learned...And Football!

This is what I've learned from NaBloPoMo. It makes posting in my blog feel like a chore, rather than something I want to do. I've learned that while some people can post every day and make it interesting, I am not one of those people. So, I'm dropping out. See, I feel better already.

High school playoff game #1 tonight. We're playing the team we beat two weeks ago in overtime. I'll bet that won't be on the minds of the other team at all, right?

And then, if we win tonight, we get to play the team we've never beaten again. I think this might be a very short playoff season for the Wolves.

I'll be there rooting them on, anyway. Go Wolves!

A Bargain Dog

It occurred to me yesterday when I used the picture of our dog Bo in my last post, that I'd never properly introduced this member of our family.

This is Bo. We got him from the pound, and the pound people could only tell us that he'd been dropped off two days before, he was about a year old, and he was a pug/chihuahua mix.

Whenever I tell anyone that we have a dog that is a pug/chihuahua mix, I can see them trying to process in their head what the dog might look like, and I almost always get a remark ranging from "Ummm." to "Ehhh." As you can see though, he's a cute dog.

We paid $10 for him at the pound. This was $5 per day for boarding, since he'd been there two days. We got him in December of 1999, so we think he's about 10 years old.

Back in the day, we called dogs like these "mutts." Not a pure breed, but a mixture of two or more breeds. I think we got a bargain when we got him for $10.

A few years ago, we were at a puppy store at the mall. We saw, in one of the little windows, a dog called a "Chug", which was described as a chihuahua/pug mix. Suddenly, our little dog was no longer a mutt, but a Chug! He'd been vindicated! Validated!

I rushed home to tell him that he wasn't actually a mutt, like we'd always thought, but a Chug. I also told him that his relatives were being sold at the pet store for $1500.

He snorted, jumped up on the couch, laid down in the exact center of it, and went to sleep.

There are all kinds of these designer dogs now. What we used to call mutts are now coveted, expensive pets. The Chug is an interesting combo though, because the look of the dog can really differ, depending on which body parts are pug, and which are chihuahua. Bo got a chihuahua face, and a pug body, complete with a curly tail.

This guy has a more puggish look to him:

This little guy definitely has a more chihuahua look to him. In fact, on the website I stole the picture from, he was called a "pugwahwa." No, I'm not kidding. So I guess Bo can either be a Chug, or a Pugwahwa...depending on how he's feeling that day.

This little guy is a Labradoodle, or a labrador/poodle mix. I don't even want to know how they accomplished that one. They can also go for around $1500 in the pet store.

This is a Puggle, or a pug/beagle mix. Again, I think we used to call these mutts. Now they're called "pricey."

Here, we have the unfortunately named "Schnoodle." A cross between a poodle and a schnauzer, I'm guessing?

This guy is my favorite. This has got to be the cutest mutt ever. He a cross between a Bichon Frise and a ShihTzu. (Pronounced Shit-zu, in less sophisticated circles) He's called a Shichon. I have no idea how you would pronounce that, but I'm sure they'll tell you at the pet store, for about $2000.

So what I'm saying is that we got a righteous deal on our Chug. Pugwahwa. Mutt. Whatever he is, he is a great dog and a beloved member of our family.

This got me thinking though. When Steve and I first moved in together (yes, we lived in sin, I know you're shocked, get over it), I had a golden retriever named Majerle. For those of you not familiar with former Phoenix Suns player and total hottie, Dan Majerle, it's pronounced "Marley."

Majerle was a female golden retriever. Steve decided he wanted a dog too, so he went out and got a cute chocolate brown and white cocker spaniel. We named him Ziggy. Ziggy, Majerle...get it? Anyway.

Ziggy was a male. Since I was a stupid college kid and had never bothered to have my dog spayed, the inevitable happened after a while. Majerle ended up having five puppies. Four of them were black and white females, and looked like little cocker spaniels. The fifth one was a male, and he was all golden retriever.

Here's the part I regret. We gave these dogs away for free. For free, people! Do you know what I could get for a cocker spaniel/golden retriever mix now, in these days of the designer dog? I even thought of the perfect name: The Cockretriever.

Silliness

My hair is turning gray at an alarming rate. I have never colored my hair, other than an unfortunate incident with Sun-In during college, but I'm seriously considering it now.

You know it's getting bad when your six year-old goes to hug you, and then says,

"Mommy, ALL your hair is turning gray!"

I think that may be a slight exaggeration. It's not ALL gray. In fact, it's more brown than gray. But since she was so nice to point it out, I told her that all my gray hairs were named Kylie. Then I amended that, and decided that half of them were named Kylie, and the other half were named Shannon.

She said,

"What about Danni?", who was sitting on the couch three feet from me.

I said,

"Surprisingly, only a couple of them are named Danni."

Danni then gave Kylie her best smug "I am the favorite child" smile.

Let me point out that I do not play favorites among my children. Danni was only my favorite yesterday. This may change tomorrow, or even today after school. It's very situational. Shannon might even be my favorite again. Someday.

Then Kylie kept trying to get me to admit that some of my gray hairs were named Bo. Bo is our dog, and the only member of the family who has never given me a gray hair. Nevertheless, she kept on with her insistence that some of my gray hairs must be named Bo. I said,

"No, but there are also a few named DADDY!"

We all dissolved into giggles. We were having fun, and I realized that the cheerful mood in the house was most likely because Shannon was at the mall.

After husband went to pick Shannon up later, she came into the house and flopped on the couch, not missing a beat in her texting. Danni walked in the room, and I looked at her and said,

"A dark cloud descends upon the house."

Then we both busted out laughing.

Shannon was not amused.

Veteran's Day

To all veterans: To those who served in peacetime and in wartime, to those who volunteered and those who did not, to those who came home, those who were injured and disabled, and those who never returned...to all of those who have made personal sacrifices so we can enjoy the freedoms that we have...

Thank you.

Hamster on a Piano

As you can probably tell from the title, I got nothin' today. I mean, really...nothing. I came home to find my two youngest kids in hysterics over this video. I have no idea why.

How Many W's?

Writing something every day is hard, y'all! I'm going to cheat today and steal something that my friend Jen posted on her blog a few days ago. Like she said, it's too funny not to share! I watched it and laughed and laughed, then I sent the link to a couple of friends in my office so they could laugh too.

Now I'm passing the funny on to you.

Old people: As of Feb 17th, 2009, no more TV for you!

Foiled Again

I hate going to this game every year, because it always ends the same way.

Last year, we got pummeled because our team wasn't very good. This year, we were good. We are good. But last night, they were better. Because for us, a lot of good things happened, a lot of great plays and exciting moments. Unfortunately, for every good action, there was an equal and opposite reaction. Touchdown, blocked extra point. Touchdown, only down by 7 now, intercepted on the next series. Frustrating.

When you know your team sucks, and you know you're going to lose, you just kind of accept it. When you know your team has a chance, and you know that they could have won if they had made fewer mistakes, that hurts more.

Oh well. Maybe we'll get 'em next year, Wolves. On to the playoffs!