New Star Trek, Old Spock

Features crazy lady's very first crush when she was 6 years old...

Worm cat

Awwwww...snack time?

New York, New York

From a recent speaking engagement at NYU:I wasn't there because of Master B's fear that I would trample his "delicate babies" (sorry about the poor photo quality, it was taken from Master B's phone):No comment.

Stewie

Fresh Pond

One of the best, dog friendliest places in Cambridge is a wonderful off leash park called Fresh Pond. It's on the other side of town, but worth the drive. There's a great trail around the big pond, and small ponds available for doggy swims:I stayed close to crazy lady, the Princess and her mom. I even stood in front of the Princess and warned other dogs away from her, especially when they wanted to jump or chase the Princess on the trail.Crazy lady called me "the protector" and the Princess' mom was very impressed with my behavior. A stranger said I was "incredibly well behaved" because I was quick to ignore the other dogs and follow my family around the park. Obviously, there were no deer this morning...

Cambridge dogs

I love dog parks. In California, I often romp at this dog park with Isis, Boomer, Phoebe, Popeye, my man Otis, and other mutts. Owners are very responsible, and they understand the difference between "play" and "aggression." In Cambridge? Not so much. Crazy lady calls it the "land of irresponsible dog owners." Many (not all, but most...) Cambridge dog owners believe that magic fairies pick-up poop, doggy waste melts in the snow, and a good body slam constitutes aggressive dog behavior. They also decline to leash their dogs in "leash only" areas, even when the dog is out-of-control and children are playing. I was bitten last year by a spastic Weimaraner at North Point Park, and the owner refused to control his dog. He actually argued with crazy lady over leashing his aggressive animal, and he refused to pick up the dog poop. The Cambridge Animal Control department took the report, but never followed-up. Instead, crazy lady had to listen to a lecture on how Cambridge needed more off leash dog areas on the east side (true) and education programs (also true). If the same thing had happened in California? First, the owner probably would have apologized and leashed his dog. If animal control was involved, they would have fined the dog owner, and given both of us a health and safety notice since I was bitten.Well, Spring has arrived, and summer is almost here. And the irresponsible Cambridge dog owners? They are popping up, everywhere. We saw the aggressive Weimaraner last week, still running loose at the park and terrorizing small children. Since animal control and the park rangers don't enforce the rules in Cambridge, crazy lady has changed my play schedule. She is taking me to designated dog parks with responsible dog owners, and scheduling play dates with trusted friends. She spends a lot of time educating folks about "herding" behavior, and how my play is "normal" for a dog. She misses the educated and responsible dog owners in California, but I don't mind the Cambridge dog parks and play dates. I love the car rides and spending time with my friends.

Be more empowered

Happy Birthday!

Yesterday-- April 15th-- was tax day. Many, many dollars were sent to the "big boys" to support our social, political, economic, legal and military systems managed by power hungry white men and human resource managers.Crazy lady has stopped mailing letters to the IRS, telling them where to send her thousands of dollars. She's getting old. She wants to avoid having them freeze her bank accounts-- again-- because they didn't appreciate her letters. Go figure.Plus, April 15th was crazy lady's birthday. How did she celebrate? Did she spend the day with me? With friends? With apple-tinis and lychee martinis? Nope. She spent the day at the Boston Public Library with the Princess and her mom:She later spent the day giving a lecture on the trials & tribulations of POD business models in our current climate. Yes, spending time with her family, libraries, and teaching are some of her favorite things. Silly woman. At least, the architecture is amazing at the library: Happy birthday, crazy lady!

A dingo ate my ancestors

This is not me:And this? Definitely not me. What about this? Not me. One of crazy lady's geekazoid friends was curious about my heritage, especially since the U.S. and Japanese labs kept saying I was "100% unable to classify as dog." So, she had my blood tested at the Tokyo and Taipei universities. It turns out that I am 78% Southeast Asian dingo (related to the Australian and Thai dingos, but smaller). They still can't identify 22% of my genetic make-up, but the results definitely say Southeast Asian dingo. It makes sense. Some researchers suspect that the Formosan breed is derived from the Southeast Asian dingo. Others disagree, and insist the Formosan dog is more related to Japanese breeds. For now, however, crazy lady has decided to call me a "Formosan dingo."

This is me, the fun-loving Formosan dingo, playing with my friends at the park:Great booty shot, huh? And here I am, giving "dingo face" (aka "attitude") to the camera:

Sunrise

It has been 2 weeks of illness--first, I'm sick. Then, crazy lady is sick. We're finally feeling better. Crazy lady celebrated by taking early morning pictures of the Cambridge sunrise:I, of course, slept:

More Star Trek

Family Day

Sunday was Family Day. It's rare that all of us are free, but crazy lady's sister-in-law wrote to say they could visit from Maine. I stayed home while crazy lady went to the Princess' house for the impromptu party. The visit coincided with granny and grandpa's 46th wedding anniversary, so we video conferenced with the family in California:Pretty cool, huh? Here are more pictures:Crazy lady had to leave early, but she had a great time.

Sick dog

Goose poop is deceitful. For something so delicious, so flavorful, so amazingly tasty, it is demon spawn and most likely related to those evil ones (cats). I've been good for weeks. I drop ("out") the poop that accidentally lands in my mouth, and "leave it" when I'm caught eying the tempting morsels. I would sneak a piece, but what's the harm? Heck, there are dogs who graze and consume gallons of bird waste, with no problems. Me? One little piece, and I spend 4 days pacing and whining because of constant diarrhea and tummy cramps. For three solid nights, crazy lady would take me outside every hour. Neither of us slept. The vet (and test results) said it was due to bad bacteria from the goose poop. The antibiotics are helping; and crazy lady has been giving me warm baths to reduce the muscle cramps. I eat the bland chicken and white rice, and stare at my friends playing in the park. No fun for me (or crazy lady) this week.

50 Animals Who Hate Baths

See entire list here.

Spring arrives!

Wow, the first day of Spring and it's a beautiful morning at the park. The flowers are starting to bloom:I was (to quote the crazy lady) "full of beans," running after sticks and eating goose poop:Sunshine! New grass for grazing! Gotta love life, on this first day of Spring.

The sun will always win

I am not a big fan of the cold. I love to play in the snow when it's light & fluffy; but I hate rocks and salt trapped in my paws during severe storms. Plus, snow men are evil creatures that MUST be destroyed at all times. You see, I prefer the sun. Crazy lady calls me a "heat seeking missile" and says I remind her of a cat. Shame, crazy lady, shame...do you want me to glare at you all day long? I am nothing like a cat. You will pay for your insult, witch.Okay, enough threats...earlier this week, we had a sunny day. I was bathing in the heat, lazy on the windowsill, and ignoring the world at large. A strange man entered the apartment to fix the brand new drier. Nice hole in exhaust tube, huh?Did I greet the man with a warning bark? Did I try to protect crazy lady? Did I even bother to get off the windowsill and explore the stranger who entered our sacred home? Those would have been my normal reactions to having a stranger knock on the door. But today, the sun was too precious. A storm was arriving by the end of the week. I had limited time to soak in the heat. I could care less about the repairman. I had my priorities, and SUN ALWAYS WINS.

Vote for me!

I learned about this weekly contest from Wild Dingo, and thought "hey, I'm gorgeous, why not me?" So, I waited until Loki and Juno finished their time in the contest (why decrease my chances by competing with those beautiful dogs?), and signed up for opportunities of wealth and glory! (okay, maybe not money, but just a teeny, tiny bit of fame...) Thank you for your vote!

Squishy face and ignorance

Ah, the perfect spot for a nice rest:Here's a close-up of my face:Lovely, huh? The couch has a permanent indentation from my muzzle.

So, crazy lady has received a lot of emails from folks "concerned " over the venom from the anonymous comment in the RescueInk post. This is a fairly mellow blog. It's a place to post pictures, thoughts and ramblings for friends and family. Comments are usually thoughtful, with the occasional drunken messages of "love you!" Crazy lady didn't find the anonymous comment especially hateful or venomous-- just angry about the loss of Bideawee's adoption center. This person also had a lack of understanding about the role of animal rescue organizations and funding. They felt the need to blame one group for the loss of another. People are entitled to their opinions, and it's not a crime to express anger. As you know, crazy lady believes that there is a place for animal rescue shelters in this world. She also knows that I would be a dead dog, if I was ever placed in a traditional shelter. Bideawee understood this philosophy through their Second Start program. Furry Pals Rescue was started with the need to rescue dogs from kill shelters, to give them a second chance. In my case, it took the work of a grassroots, loving organization of dedicated volunteers to find me a forever home (thanks Judy at Walkin the Bark!). You don't need an adoption center or shelter to run a rescue organization. Sometimes, all it takes is a network of volunteers who are willing to give up time & space to foster animals and find forever homes. There's a place in this world for adoption centers-- and, there's a place in this world for a collective group to organize and rescue creatures who are abandoned, neglected and/or abused. In the end, we all have the same goal: health, security and happiness for animals like me (yeah, and even those evil demon cats deserve a chance in life...sigh...)