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Me Myself & Riggins

Tag Archives: Asscher

Mother Nature’s Wash Machine

26 Wednesday Feb 2014

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

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Asscher, clean, Dog, dogs, Hollywood, Los Angeles, rain, Riggins

photo 2 (9)You know I dislike cleaning my house and since I have a zillion dogs coming in and out I have to do it all the time.  It’s exhausting.  Here is my current absolutely genius idea.  Starting tonight it is supposed to rain in Los Angeles for a few days.  It happens so rarely I’m sure it will make national news.  In fact, if I turned on the news right now I’m sure there would be some kind of “storm watch” countdown happening.  It just so happens my kitchen floor mats need to be washed.  Why don’t I just put them out on the back fence and let the rain wash them?  Then, when the rain stops, lay them out to dry? photo 1 (10) Isn’t that genius?  To tell you the truth my big mat has been hanging out there for a while already.  Someone peed on it and I cleaned it but felt like it needed to be aired out and then never brought it back in.  Not just anyone peed on it.  A dog peed on it.  It isn’t like one of my friends came in, pulled down her pants and squatted right there in front of my kitchen cabinets.  What I’m trying to say is this whole plan will take very little effort for me.  I’ll just have to add the little mat and then when it is all said and done bring them both back in.  Is there an easier way to clean a rubber backed kitchen mat I ask you?  Nope.  Great.  I’m glad we are all on board with this plan.

(Pictures of kitchen mats are boring so here are some pictures of Asscher, Riggins, and me on our hike this morning.)

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Hiking Thoughts

20 Thursday Feb 2014

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Asscher, Dog, dog poop, dog walking, dogs, gangs, great dane, Griffith Park, hiking, poop, Riggins, tagging, trail

photo 3 (3)This morning Riggins, Asscher and I headed up to Griffith Park to check out a new trail.  Not a new trail to this earth.  A new trail to us.   As I’ve mentioned before when I’m hiking I don’t listen to music or podcasts so that I can be alert for critter/snake/bad people sounds.  This means it is a good time for my mind to wander.  Here are my random thoughts from today’s adventure.

* Why all the nature tagging?  Recently I’ve noticed an increase of tagging on my hikes.  Why?  (I suppose the real answer is an increase in gang activity and a decrease in police activity but I don’t want to think about that.) I’m not an expert but these do seem to be gang/territory related.  It’s bad enough when buildings and property are covered in spray paint but it just plain ol’ sucks when it starts showing up on trees and rocks.  Today I saw a side of a hill tagged.  Side of a hill?!?!?!?  First of all, what good does that do?  Someone has to walk uphill a good 1/2 hour before they even see it.  Have gangs now become more health conscious?  Have they added cardio to their daily routine?  Why there?  The scenic overview of the golf course is a great place for a drug buy?  I’d also like to point out that you have tagged dirt.  Although I find this almost humorous it is less than permanent, which I think is your ultimate goal.  When LA eventually gets a good rain your “art” will get washed away.  You are also making it very difficult for me to take nature photos of the dogs.  Lots of the good views are now scarred by your markings.  Please stop.  It’s really disgraceful.

photo 2 (4)*  Hey fellow dog folks … pick up your dog’s poop.  First of all it’s the law.  I know you are laughing at me as I’m the “no leash on hikes” gal law or not but this law I actually follow.  First of all poop all over the trails is gross.  It smells like … well like poop and that is not pleasant.  It’s the number one reason non-dog owners give for not liking dogs on trails and paths and who can blame them?  Don’t give them that ammo.  Just pick it up like a good dog owner.  Those who don’t pick it up will tell you it’s natural fertilizer.  They are full of crap (ha ha ha … crap … get it).  Dog poop is not always healthy.  It can contain viruses, microbes, and bacteria that will eventually make its way into the water table.  Dog poop can also contain nasty stuff like adenovirus, parvovirus, giardia, coccidian, roundworm, and tapeworm (bad gross bugs).  It just so happens that dogs like to eat other dogs poop so not picking up your dogs number twos makes it harder for another dog to walk past such delicious temptation.  Your dog may have a clean bill of health but the next poop dog may not.  Best to keep all temptation away.  Just like shoes, socks and cell phones (all of which have been munched on by Riggins at one time or another).  I realize it’s a pain in the butt sometimes (butt … poop … get it) but just do it.  Hard core dog poop advocates will tell you that you should flush your poop.  I don’t go that far.  Just pick it up in one of those biodegradable bags and toss it in a trash can.  Sure then it is doing bad stuff to landfills but baby steps.

photo 1 (5)*  I really didn’t like the guy walking his great dane on the trail today.  He was trying to be a good dog owner and “correct” his dog as he walked but he was just being a big ol’ mean man.  When I saw he was being super strict I pulled Asscher and Riggins toward me to keep them from distracting the poor dog.  I give the dogs a lot of freedom on trail walks.  Sidewalk walks they have to “walk pretty.”  That means walk next to me like you would see Cesar Millan doing in one of his many TV episodes.  The trail, though, is their time to sniff around and have fun.  Honestly this guy is lucky I had the two of them on leash at all.  Apparently he did not agree with this philosophy as he was going to make his dog stay next to him, head straight come hell or high water.  The dog had a choke chain on, which I hate.  I realize many people use them and they have proven to work for many.  They just scare me.  I feel like they could harm a dog’s throat.  I much prefer walking harnesses that correct in other ways.  He would yank on that choke chain with such vicious anger it was scary.  His face would get all twisted up.  He was the alpha.  He was in charge.  He was the human … GOD DAMN IT!  It made me sad.  Great danes don’t have a long life span.  Only 6-8 years normally.  They are gentle giants and the poor guy just wanted to say hi to the other dogs on the path or watch a squirrel go up a tree.  His dad didn’t need to be so rough with him.  I wanted to punch the guy in the kidneys, tell him his dog’s deserves to be cuddled not tugged during his short life, grab his dogs leash and take off.  I suppose that would have been a little over dramatic.  I’d like to think he is actually a very well taken care of dog with an owner that is just strict on walks.  Perhaps he went home to a nice comfy bed for a peaceful post hike nap!

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Sweet Doggies Everywhere

30 Thursday Jan 2014

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

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Tags

Asscher, Creature, dog sitting, dogs, dogsitting, Riggins, Vesper

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Lousy

During my dog sitting business I’ve watched a lot of dogs and most of them come back to stay more than once.  Some, like Dragon (schanuzer) or Asscher (golden retriever), are with me enough that I remember their personalities, likes and dislikes without having to reference anything.  Others like Vesper (german shepherd), I have to be reminded about their personalities and special individual needs.  Luckily when a dog leaves me to go home he/she gets a “Report Card” that reviews what we did during his/her stay and a few stories about the dog and his/her interactions.  When a dog is coming back I don’t fully remember I look back at their old report card and end up giggling all the way through it.  I find all these dogs so amusing!  Here are a few snipits from these write-ups:

Asscher

Asscher

“Asscher finally lived up to your warning that she doesn’t like hats and glasses.  Tuesday she jumped in my lap when I had my feet in the pool and snatched my hat off my head.  She was nice enough to give it back to me even when I made her pose with it on and take pictures.  Today (Friday) I was sitting on the ground in the park taking her picture and she decided I could do without my hat and glasses.  All I could hear over my own giggles while pushing her off, was the rest of the humans in the park laughing their heads off. ”

“Jax and Bear celebrated Riggins birthday with him on Sat.  Bear wouldn’t wear a hat but Jax played along and all three got an extra treat for posing in pictures!”

“I can’t even express in words how much Dragon and Jax love each other.  The two of them are inseparable.  Dragon is going to have a tough time after his friend leaves!  My favorite thing they did was play tug of war which Jax always let Dragon win at.  It was adorable.  Sat after everyone got a bath Jax sat nose to nose with Dragon as I combed out Dragon’s hair.  He wasn’t going to let his buddy deal with such horrors alone.”

Dragon

Dragon

“Friday night I was in bed sleeping and the dogs heard something at the front door.  Dexter was on it and I could hear his bark as he lead the charge.  Dragon (a schnauzer) and Riggins were on his heels to back him up.  In the meantime Kona (a pit mix) ran the other way, jumped on my bed, and buried her head under my arm.  That was how it went for the whole weekend.  If barking was required, Dexter would sound the alert and Kona would run the other way.”

“Lousy was definitely the leader of the pack.  He would “jump in” any of the dogs that tried to join them.  Once they proved they could hang with him he was happy to include them in the fun”

“I would laugh every time Dexter got in the car.  Riggins would go first and get comfy.  Then Dexter would jump up and immediately crawl on top of Riggins.  Riggins would give me a look like, “this kid … what are you going to do?”  Dexter would then find a spot VERY VERY close to Riggins (close as in partly on top of).  The two of them are so sweet together!”

“Riggins can sometimes be a little old man but he LOVED playing with Peanut.  Peanut would jump on him or give him nonstop kisses until Riggins engaged.  Then the two of them would play for hours”

“Sometimes when we went on our hiking/walking adventures she [Creature] would squeak the entire time.  While at Hahamonga/Rose Bowl my friend who was with us was in awe of her little squeak.  It made us both laugh.  Someone who passed once asked me if she was sad and I said, ‘Nope … she is thrilled to be running around!'”

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Creature

“At the dog park Ike was quick to engage in play with other dogs.  Riggins would want to jump in but didn’t know how.  All that energy would end up with Ike humping some poor dog and Riggins humping him.  None of the dogs ever seemed to mind.  I broke up a lot of hump trains this weekend!”

Don’t you just want to cuddle them all?  (Just a second I have to go let Vesper out of time-out for being mean to Dragon.  BRB.)   What I NEED to do is write out the “Wendy only notes” on the report cards before I save them on the computer.  You know those little things I need to remember but aren’t really highlights of the trip.  Things like,

“Had to get used to putting Vesper in time-out for being mean.”

“Tends to want to pee in the dinning room.”

“Tends to want to pee on me.”

“Wants to eat all male runners on the hiking paths.”

“Wants to eat all the horse poop on the hiking paths.”

“MUST sit on my shoulder at all times.  Like a bird.”

“Will only eat if I feed her by hand.”

Who am I kidding.  Even with their little oddities I adore them all!  If you want to see more pictures of cutie dogs being happy head over to my babysitting page at http://www.dogvacay.com/pro/wendyandriggins.

 

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Above the Barre and Leash

05 Thursday Dec 2013

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

≈ 4 Comments

Tags

Asscher, bar method, dog walking, dogs, Riggins, Shadow

photo (17)I just finished walking the dogs around the neighborhood and it was tough!  When walking multiple dogs one or more are going to get you tangled up in their leash.  When this happens I lift one leg up and over the offending leash (and sometimes dog) and then the other.  I credit Bar Method for my ability to do this with little trouble.  I feel like earlier in my life this little bit of stretching would have been a disaster and left me flat on my face tied up in leashes and fur.  Normally after a few minutes, the dogs get it.  “Oooooh,” they say to each other, “we all have to stay on one side of her.  Got it.”  Well not today’s gang.  They never quite figured it out.  Obviously not mensa members.  The extra leg lifts did remind me of a post I have been wanting to write.  The things I don’t like about Bar Method.

Gasp.

I know.  Don’t get me wrong.  I loooooooovvvvveeeee Bar Method.  It’s the bestest in the westest and you should definitely go to a studio and try it out right this second.  That being said no one is perfect so here are the things I don’t like about the exercise:

* Not getting corrections.  I’m always super annoyed when the teacher doesn’t give me corrections.  A lot of times I can tell I’m doing something wrong and fix it myself but a number of times I have no idea.  In arabesque (Butt exercise where you stand an arms distance away from the barre while your feet are turned out.  Lift one leg up to hip height while bending down over the bar.  Then push your chest back up in a cobra-esk pose. Finally do lots of little movements with that leg that is up in the air.  It’s my least favorite exercise because I’m pretty sure I look like a dancing hippo when I do it.) the instructor will tell you that the hip of your working leg (the one in the air) can be 2-3 inches higher than your other hip.  HOW AM I SUPPOSE TO KNOW IF MY HIP IS 2-3 INCHES HIGHER?  I can’t look back and see it.  Although I’ve certainly tried and in the process just look even sillier.   If the teacher doesn’t come and correct me I can guarantee I’m doing it wrong.

It annoys me just as much when I see other people doing it incorrectly and not getting “corrected” by the instructor.  I feel like if they are getting away with it so am I.  The difference between the exercises working and not working is being in the correct form and I need a lot of help to get there!

* Missed counting.  I’m pretty sure this is a pet peeve of anyone in any group exercise class.  The teacher tells you 20 more and starts counting then goes to correct someone or tell a detailed story about the muscles you are working.  In your head you have been counting this entire time and are almost done.  Then the instructor jumps in with “5 … 6”.  Whoa there lady.  We are on 18 … get it straight!

*  New instructors and instructors in training.  This is a totally unfair dislike of mine.  Teachers who are now my favorite where once new and, to be honest, I didn’t like them when they were new either!  Isnt’ that horrible?  New teachers are guilty of the missed counting worse than anyone else.  They also tend to make the exercises too hard.  That sounds ridiculous I know but there is a fine line between almost dead and dead.  While doing arm lifts if 99% of your class can’t maintain form because you are on set number 1,000 it’s time to move on to the next exercise.  I also don’t by it when they give me corrections.  Totally unfair of me especially since some of my best corrections have come from new instructors and more than likely they are paying super close attention to all their students since there is someone in the back of the room taking notes on them.  Still … I don’t buy it when they come by and change my position.  I think “fine I’ll do it this way for you but tomorrow I’m going back to the ‘right’ way.”

*  When I forget to bring water or when there are no clean towels.  The amount I sweat is almost comical.  Without water to dehydrate I may crumple up and die like a dead leaf.  Without a clean towel I’m going to make everyone and everything around me sopping wet.  It’s gross.  I admit it.

*  When an instructor doesn’t push me.  I NEED the instructor to make me push harder.  If it’s left up to me I would come out of that room looking and feeling like I didn’t do a thing.  I need that instructor to tell me to get back up on my toes for push ups, dare me to take an arm option during sit ups (usually this means to release your hands from the grip you have on your legs to keep you in position and force that work all into your abs), and tell me my leg can get higher (after all I have dogs to walk).

photo (16)*  Finally I strongly dislike when the instructor does both chair (Stand toward the barre with your feet hip distance apart.  Pull your body back so your arms are straight.  Sit down like you are sitting in a chair.  Except there is no chair.  There is just air and your burning thighs are what is keeping you in that position.  Then do a zillion little up and down movements.) and water ski (stand beside the barre with your heels together toes apart.  Lift your heels up as high as you can.  Walk you feet together so your heels are touching but your toes are still turned out.  Bend your knees as far as you can making a diamond shape with your legs.  Grab the barre and lean back while pushing your hips up.  Then do a zillion little up and down movements. It’s horrific.)  I know it sounds ridiculous as I just said I want to be pushed by the instructor but give me an f-ing break.  One of these exercises has me in tears.  Both of them together can easily be considered cruel and unusual punishment.

All that being said.  You should go try it out!

(Since there is a chance one or more of my instructors will read this blog I may be asking for it.  If they are reading then I can tell them the thing I love!  Anytime they say “at the barre.”  Pretzel at the barre.  Ab work at the barre.  Love.)

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Pillow Meet Pillow Case

14 Thursday Nov 2013

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Asscher, bed, chores, how-to, linens, pillow, pillow case, Video

I’ve been making my bed for years.  Weekly I suck it up and strip down the dog hair covered linens and replace them with crispy clean new ones.  For my entire life I’ve put pillow cases on one way.  I grabbed the end with my teeth (some folks put them under their chin but I wasn’t one of them) and then forced the pillow into the sack and then violently shook it with all my might.  It didn’t work well and I nearly gagged each time I did it.  Still I stubbernoly continued doing that specific chore that way for years.  That was until I figured there had to be a better way.  A way that took less time and didn’t cause me to want to throw up.  Logically I knew there was no way every maid on the planet was making beds this way.  It was just too horrific.  I Googled other ways to do it and although they seemed super simple I couldn’t figure it out.  I used what I could from the tutorials and put together a signature move.  The Wendy Lobster Shimmy.  It is the best way to make naked pillows less naked!  (I realize people have been probably been using this method for years but I don’t care … it’s mine).  Here is what you do:

* Grab your pillow case and turn it inside out.

* Push your hands in and grab the two end corners from the inside.  Making lobster claws.

* Use your lobster hands to grab two corners of your pillow

* Flip the pillow case over.

* Shimmy it down!

Ta Da!  Confused.  No worries I made a tutorial video for you.  I look horrible in it so you are lucky I’m sharing it with you.  After watching it I thought about putting on make-up and shading, getting better light, finding a better location, and locking away the dogs.  All that seemed like a lot of work and I had already tried two takes so I wasn’t doing it again.  Please pretend I did …

Take 1:


Didn’t teach you much did it?  No worries here is take two (proof I need a professional make-up artist/team … and yes Asscher is humping me … she was excited by the entire production).

Take 2:

 

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Caged Animals

06 Wednesday Nov 2013

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Asscher, Bee Rock, dogs, Griffith Park, hiking, LA Zoo, news, Old Zoo, Riggins

photo 3 (1)I’ve known the old LA Zoo existed for a long time and knew you could wander around in it but never tried to find it.  That is until this past Monday when I packed up Asscher and Riggins and decided to figure out where this mysterious place was!  Turns out it was pretty easy to find since it is also the location of LA’s Haunted Hay Ride (as well as Shakespeare in the Park) and it was the Monday after Halloween.  Crews were all over the place breaking down the spookiness.

For those that know the park the old zoo is on the East side just above the carousal and Shane’s Inspiration (universally accessible playground).  That is once you walk around the small hill that is in your way.  It’s a quick 5 minute walk from the carousal 2 parking lot or a shorter 2 minute walk from the old zoo parking lot, if you are smart enough to find it.

The entire old zoo is now a super cool picnic area.  There is a big open grassy area and lots of picnic tables and trees.  It has to be the best family picnic location of all time.  There are big animal caves (used in the Anchorman movie) and smaller metal cages a little further up the path.  Behind the caves is an old shed with more cages.  It’s all a little spooky.  The area is supposed to be haunted but I couldn’t figure out by whom or what.  Riggins did try to put on his brakes heading toward the caves and tried to wiggle out of his harness and retreat back.  If I believed in ghosts I would say he was afraid of other worldly beings waiting for him to stumble into their world.  I don’t … so I’m pretty sure he just wanted to stay and snack on all the crap that the Halloween picnickers had left all over the ground.

You can walk around in the caves and many of the cages.  The dogs had fun going in and out so I assume it would be a blast for kids.  Of course the entire place kinda smells like urine.  Not animal urine mind you the human kind.  I’d suggest a hot bath for all when you get home.

photo 1 (2)Now for some history (according to my Google search, so I’m assuming others already verified all this information).  The old zoo was opened in 1912 and shut down in 1965.  Although there were many visitors the zoo had a number of problems.  Built on the wacky Griffith J. Griffith’s ostrich farm it had 15 animals for its grand opening.  There was continuous hubbub about how the cages were too cramped for the animals and made for poor living conditions.  During the war they weren’t allowed to feed the animals beef and were forced to substitute horse meat which caused all sorts of health problems (I suppose that means the zoo is haunted by pissed of animals).  In the 1930’s the park was expanded by work crews from the Work Progress Administrations.  Finally the city passed an $8 million bond measure to create a brand new zoo and the old zoo was closed in 1965.  Animals were moved to the new zoo a few miles up the road.

photo 2 (2)My goal on Monday was to go to the old zoo and then make my way up to Bee Rock.  It is supposed to be a short 2.5 mile hike (round trip) that has a decent amount of elevation but isn’t horrific.  From this area you are supposed to have a great view.  Sadly we went the wrong way and ended up on a little loop back to the parking lot.  I’m not one to give up so we went there again this morning.  Unfortunately we, yet again, went the wrong way.  I’m not great with trail maps and directions.  That makes Griffith Park a great hiking location for me.  I’ve read about people getting lost but I don’t see how.  Just get to a peak, any peak and look around.  You will see some part of LA and just need to head in that direction.  We walked up and up for quite a while (further than the 2.5 miles we were originally going to go) and finally turned around and headed back.  It looks like the trail would have eventually gone around to the front of the park (by the Los Feliz entrance) but we didn’t have that kind of time!

Here is the kicker.  This afternoon a dead body was found at Griffith Park.  The place is enormous (4,310 acres) so there is no way it was found where we were.  WRONG.  IT WAS FOUND RIGHT WHERE WE WERE.  Supposedly hikers stumbled upon the body just above the Old Zoo by Bee Rock.  AAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHH!  I’m telling you it is only a matter of time before Riggins brings me a human hand as a present on one of our hikes.  Imagine if I had figured out the right trail?!?!?!

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Self Binding Receiving Blanket – How-To

04 Monday Nov 2013

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Asscher, baby blanket, baby shower, blanket, craft, dog blanket, dogs, how-to, receiving blanket, Riggins, self-binding blanket

Asscher and Riggins model.

Asscher and Riggins model.

I tricked you again!  This isn’t really a step by step how-to since those are boring to write.  Instead I’ll just link you to the ORIGINAL how-to that I used.  You are way better off getting instructions from that lady than me.  Believe me.

This past weekend I went to a friends baby shower.  I’m not good at baby showers.  I never have been but it has gotten worse in my old age.  I don’t know if it is all the pastels (this party theme was “Breakfast with Tiffany” since the mother-to-be’s name is Tiffany so the colors were pretty cool), or maybe the overwhelming scent of flowers everywhere.  Perhaps it’s the silly games (games at yesterday’s function were painless … we have gone to/thrown a lot of these and have all learned) or the claustrophobic nature of oodles of women crammed into a small space.  If I’m being honest the entire event just leads to me being sad.  If you are a single with no children woman, like myself, baby showers can be somewhat torturous.  Thank goodness all your friends are around and it’s a joyful occasion or it would be too overwhelming.  Me?  I head right for the booze in a “Don’t (Note cupcakes.)mess with me just pour the champagne sans orange juice before my jealousy causes me to go insane and dive head first into those carefully displayed cupcakes!”  That’s right mothers-to-be if you want to know what your single/no children girlfriends are thinking during the festivities its pure jealousy calmed only by the soothing love of alcohol.  I suppose I may be the only person on earth who feels this way but I doubt it.  Perhaps I’m the only one who admits it.  

Still … baby showers are a happy time and even in my state I can see how overwhelmed with joy the mommy is.  Plus a friend’s baby shower gives me a reason to get out the sewing machine and be crafty.  THAT I really love!  (There is a JoAnns opening in my hood this Friday … I’m giddy.  I’m not going to be in town for the opening which kinda bums me out.  I bet it will be fabulous.)

photo 2 (1)My mom had recently made some receiving blankets for a friend and told me about them.  She had me at “self-binding.”  If you have ever made a baby blanket of any kind you know the binding is a real pain in the butt!  This blanket is “self-binding.”  THAT is something to celebrate.  

My mom and I carefully picked out material.  Of course I headed straight for the dog themes, as if there was any other choice.  My mom asked if the guest of honor like dogs and I said, “sure … who doesn’t?”  Since I felt bad for forcing my theme onto my friend I also picked out one just for her.  Because of my dog obsession my friend would get two blankets.

When I was ready to get started on the blankets I watched this how-to video.  HOW EASY IS THAT?  It’s kinda brilliant.  Self binding … and the corners … loving it!  Oddly enough it was as easy as the nice woman in the video made it seem.  The blankets turned out great and I HIGHLY suggest you give this a try.  It’s super fun and the result is an amazing burrito baby blanket!  Not just for babies … you can make them for anyone.  My mom photo 3made one for my sister’s puppy!  I love anything that can be marketed to both dog parents and human baby parents.  They are the two craziest of consumer groups and are goldmine!

To finish off the blankets, and make it painfully obvious they were handmade by yours truly, I added a couple little tags safety pined to each.  Everyone loved them and since you are in charge of the fabric choices you can control the colors and theme. Creativity at it’s finest!

There you go!  Get to sewing.  I’m off to take MY babies (Riggins and Asscher) for a walk!

  

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Happy Ending for Lab Animals

29 Tuesday Oct 2013

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

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adopt, Adoption, animal testing, Asscher, beagle, beagle freedom project, dogs, dogsitting, experiments, foster, fostering, lab animals, Lulu, Miles, Riggins

pizap.com13830707453031I like to live in ignorance.  It makes my life much easier.  I don’t want to know how the chicken I’m eating is raised, killed, or prepared.  In general I don’t want to see the face of anything I’m planning to eat.  If I had to there is no doubt I’d be a vegetarian.  I also don’t like to know what is tested on animals, what kind of animals, and the side effects.  Personally I think testing of certain drugs on animals can be life saving (for us silly humans) and I agree animal testing is an important step in some research.  Just as long as I don’t have to see it.  Testing things like eyeliner on animals?  That’s ridiculous.  I don’t want to purchase any make up that someone in the lab thought, “Hey … this may be toxic.  Before we let women slap it on their face let’s see if Fido reacts to it.”  All that being said animals that are used for experiments, even those I give my reluctant stamp of approval on, don’t have a good life.  In fact I dare say their lives suck monkey butt.

Last Friday the dogs (Riggins, Asscher, Miles & Lulu) and I headed out to go to the Laurel Canyon Dog Park.  We were almost there before I remembered it was closed on Friday mornings.  I grabbed my phone and clicked on my “DogGoes” app to see if there were any parks close.  There was one in North Hollywood, not to far away, that we had never tried before.  I decided to give the Whitnall Dog Park a shot.  When we got there the first thing I noticed was that the park was a muddy mess.  I knew that would make all the dogs happy and there would have to be baths all around when we got home.  Asscher (golden retriever) was in heaven.  It took her no time at all to get muddy.  Mud is her middle name!

pizap.com13830706460351Since it was so moist it was kind of crappy.  They seemed to be working on cleaning out the mud and putting in some sort of drainage.  If it wasn’t for the mud the park would be great.  It’s huge and there is small park just as big (actually it’s 1/2 the size but still way more space than is usually given to the wee ones).  The two parks don’t share a fence like most dog areas, so if you go to the small park just drive a bit further down the street to find it.  There is a lot of grass (swamp land) so I can see how, once dried out, it would be fabulous.  Best of all the people and dogs were nice.

I met this one woman who introduced me to her 3 dogs.  One of her dogs was an older beagle.  She told me his story.  (I don’t remember his name.  Let’s call him Bob.)  Bob had been a lab animal for years.  She adopted him about 2 years earlier from the Beagle Freedom Project.  I said he was a lucky dog and her response was that she was the lucky one.  She said the little dog had taught her so much about trust and love.  When Bob came to her he was very skittish, wouldn’t take treats out of her hand, and would be very hesitant to walk on grass.  He would only sleep on hard surfaces, probably similar to the feeling he had in his lab cage.  She had him sleep on the bottom of a crate and then slowly added towels one by one and then a pillow so that he would be more comfortable.  His dog siblings taught him how to be a dog since he hadn’t had that experience before.  Now he is in a loving home and gets to go to the dog park everyday!

According to the Beagle Freedom Project 96% of animals used in laboratory research are beagles.

“Beagles are the most popular breed for lab use because of their friendly, docile, trusting, forgiving, people-pleasing personalities. The research industry says they adapt well to living in a cage, and are inexpensive to feed. Research beagles are usually obtained directly from commercial breeders who specifically breed dogs to sell to scientific institutions.” – Beaglefreedomproject.org

Although most of their rescues are beagles they do help all animals that they can that are released by the labs, and even recently took in a couple of pigs!  All their rescues are done legally, which I like.  They aren’t suggesting violence or destruction of these labs but instead are there to work with them to help the animals on to the next phase of their lives.  The good phase!  This wonderful organization is always looking for people to adopt and/or foster.  They also have events to help raise money and will be happy to receive any tax deductible donation.  Just visit their site and friend them on Facebook page for more info.

(Pictures are of Riggins, Miles, Asscher & Lulu enjoying the dirty muddy park!)

 

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Humpty Dumpty

10 Thursday Oct 2013

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

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Asscher, bar method, bruises, clumsy, Creature, Griffith Park, Griffith Park Observatory, Hydrogen Peroxide, Pinterest, Riggins

Earlier this week one of my good friends, Martha, came over for dinner.  Post food while we were chatting over whatever TV we were watching I excused myself and came back with a giant bottle of hydrogen peroxide that I have turned into a spray bottle, pulled up my pants and sprayed down one of my newest scrapes.  Martha’s responses:

photo (17)* “You hurt yourself so much you have a hydrogen peroxide SPRAY BOTTLE?” – Yes.  Well technically the spray bottle’s actual purpose is to make using hydrogen peroxide for house cleaning easier (search on Pinterest will offer suggestions on what exactly to use it on) the fact that it makes disinfecting my tortured body easier too is just a happy accident.  No pun intended.

* “Aren’t you suppose to be all graceful and junk in that class you take?  Aren’t ballerina’s good at balance?” (Perhaps not an exact quote but this is how I remember it.)  Sigh … yes.   First of all let’s get one thing straight.  I’m not a ballerina.  Sure my exercise of choice utilizes a barre but, tragically enough, it is used mostly to help balance yourself while you do near to impossible exercises.  I’m extra clumsy in Bar Method class.  I ALMOST fall over at least 1/2 dozen times a session.  Every class starts with leg raises (just march really … that’s all it is … marching).  Which I constantly fumble at.  After basic bicep and shoulder work you move to a position that was created by the devil.  You stand with your feet parallel then move one foot (let’s say right) back and turn it out a bit.  Then you lean over at the waist, roll your shoulders down and pull them together, align you neck, hold in your stomach, open up your chest, lift your right arm (in this case) above your hip as high as you can while keeping your shoulders and hips level, then straighten your arm as much as possible.  Once you get all that together you spend the next 3 minutes or so going through little arm motions continuing to keep it above your hip and as straight as possible.  You can use the mirrors around you in the room to make sure your back is flat (which is what really kills me) and that your shoulders are level (which they probably aren’t).  Each time I check a mirror I don’t gracefully return my gaze down to a few inches ahead of my toes, as suggested.  I bobble my way back to position barely making it there without tripping over my own feet.  There are a number of times during heel raises (is what it sounds like … raise up on your toes and down a bunch of times) and stretching where you are encouraged to “take a balance.”  Every now and then a nice supportive teacher will call me out and tell me to give a balance a try.  In my head I scoff at her/him and think, “Yah right.  I almost fell over and died when I put my leg on the bar for stretch earlier.  I know you saw that.”

photo (16)So there you go.  I am destined to be covered in bumps, bruises and scrapes.  I have a number of dog related paw sized bruises and nail scrapes but right now my big issue comes from falling down on my hike with the dogs on Tue.  We were coming down the trail from the Griffith Park Observatory.  Wide path.  Very little incline.  No reason at all to fall.  I stepped wrong, twisted my ankle, and fell down on hands and knees.  To add insult to injury NO ONE came to help me and/or check on me.  5 people actually walked by me without saying a thing.  Can you imagine?  Oh well at least I had the dogs.  Nope!  Riggins, who is normally very loyal in these situations, just kept walking down the hill with Asscher following (after she tried to steal my hat when I was down on the ground).  Only little Creature stayed to keep me company as I picked myself back up.  From this incident I have an ankle that hurts and a giant scrape on my right knee.  The burn  and chunk of missing skin on my finger from crafts a couple of weeks ago is still healing and, if hit wrong, hurting.  Then Tuesday as I was dropping off Asscher at home I parked on a steep incline.  I got out of the car and moved to open the back door for her as my door swung itself closed into the back of my head.  That’s right folks.  For the second time in less than a year I hit myself in the head with my own car door.  I screamed, “YOU HAVE TO BE FUCKING KIDDING ME.” when it happened.  Then, while cooking dinner for my friend, I casually cut my finger while chopping something.  I estimate this happens about 33.33% of the time I have a knife in my hand.

I suppose the lesson here is stay far away from me and if you do get close make sure you have a first aid kit packed somewhere on your person!

(My clumsy self.  One of my favorite topics was also written about here.  In case you want/need to read more.)

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The Most Delicious of all the Corns

02 Wednesday Oct 2013

Posted by wendynewell in Uncategorized

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Asscher, candy, candy corn, Chief, corn, Dragon, Fall, Halloween, Odo, popcorn, sugar, treat

I love corn.  It’s simply delicious.  On the cob, topping my salad, popped, anyway you want to make it and give it to me, I’m all in.  I seriously considered going to the movies today JUST so I could get some movie popcorn.  Remember a year or so ago when some scientist health freak type people got on the internet and started bad mouthing my precious corn?  Something about it being a “bad” vegetable.  Too much starch or something.  Lumping it in with the also delicious potato?  I refused to listen.  Leave my corn alone!  LEAVE IT ALONE!  It still goes in the “fruit and vegetable” section of the food pyramid right?  Then zip your pie hole internet.

photo 1 (1)Of all the corn deliciousness there is one that stands out … candy corn.  Ok.  Technically it is not corn at all but it is good enough to proudly carry the “corn” name so it gets to be part of the club.  There are few things more exciting than knowing that October is here and candy corn will be gracing the isles of every grocery store in the US (technically it is always there year round but now it’s in your face … where it belongs).  Saturday I wasn’t feeling well so to pep myself up I bought a bag of yumminess.  I haven’t purchased a bag in years.  You know why?  I eat it.  That’s why.  And I did.  Wow was it delicious.  Today I finished off the last 16 oz. all by myself.  When I say today I mean this morning for breakfast.  The bag of open candy corn sat on my counter for the past few days and I’d happily take a few pieces every time I walked by.  For 5 glorious days I’ve been riding a sugar high that has been amazing.  My taste buds are dulled to any other taste beyond “sugar,” my eyes water a little, slight gagging in the back of my throat, slight eye twitch.  All signs of sugar overdose that causes you to grab more and stuff it in your face (or in the case of candy corn carefully eat off each color starting with white and ending with yellow).  I gotta have it man.  The bag is like a magnet to my soul and just draws me in.

In this world there are two types of people.  Those who worship at the candy corn gods and those who dismiss them with a shake of the head.  I just don’t understand the “no thanks” people.  What is wrong with you?  It’s a delicious sugar treat shaped somewhat like a giant corn kernel with festive fall coloring.  How horrible was your childhood that you can’t see the goodness in a piece of candy corn?

Granted I can’t give candy corn a pass and say it’s healthy.  Although it is fat-free so that has to count for something ,…. right?  Right????  A serving size (24 pieces although they should just measure by the handful it would make it a lot easier) has 150 calories, sodium, carbs, and sugar.  All other “nutrition” is 0%.  Exactly what you want from a piece of photo 2 (2)sugary goodness.  So the words “glaze” and “wax” are included in the ingredient list.  So what?  What are you doing looking at the back of a candy corn package in the first place.  Stop being such a square and eat it already.  Enjoy the sugar high with me!

(Gotta catch you up on the dogs that have visited over the past few days.  Dragon was here for an extended weekend and Asscher has been here during the days this week.  New faces, Odo a lab mix, stayed for the long weekend too and Chief, a lab, spent Sunday with us.  I’ve included some pictures so you can see how adorable they are.)

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