Tag Archives: Riggins

In Memory of Mr. Squirrel

25 Thursday Apr 2013

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Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid

As you know I have set up the Death Race in my backyard.  It requires the neighborhood squirrels to successful bound from tree to tree to get a tasty treat with a dog (or two) barking up at them.  The Death Race has been set up for years and not once has a squirrel met his maker because of it.  Once or twice one has fallen during his jump, but all have managed to scurry quickly back up before nearing the sharp teeth of its predator.   I can’t say the same for other creatures of the backyard.  I’ve found a handful of dead baby opossums.  I assume the were playing opossum instead of running away which gave Riggins plenty of time to snatch them.  There have been 1/2 eaten snakes, and good ridden to them!  Every once in a while I’ve found a partially gnawed on bird.  I assume it was sick and couldn’t fly otherwise it never would have been caught.

Source

I don’t consider any of this death my fault.  I love animals and all but there is such a thing as a circle of life and I have warned these critters more than once, that they shouldn’t hang out in the backyard with the big dog.  It’s not my fault they don’t understand English and logic.  My neighbor has tiny little dogs and birds.  That yard is a safe zone.  Hang out there.

Riggins is a hunter.  It was passed down to him by his German Shorthair Pointer Mommy.  It’s why, when he has a stuffed toy, he will aggressively shake it back and forth … “killing” it.  It’s why he “skins” his tennis balls, methodically ripping off the fuzzy part strip by strip.  A domesticated dog is still an animal!

Yesterday Lousy was going nuts so I let him out back.  He made a beeline for some bushes.  Riggins had been under those bushes the day before so I figured something was happening in there.  He disappeared and came back with a squirrel in his mouth (This is actually shocking.  Lousy isn’t a very talented hunter.  His bounding makes too much noise.  Every time Riggins and Lousy went out back and there was a creature to chase Lousy would quickly screw it up and Riggins would look at him as if to say, “you have got to be kidding me.”).  I yelled and he dropped the still living creature giving me time to grab him and pull him away.  As I was thinking the squirrel might be okay Riggins came darting out of the house, through the back gate and straight for his prey.  Within seconds he had picked up the poor thing, dug his teeth in and whipped it around until it was a lifeless fuzzy corpse.  Lousy didn’t mind Riggins coming in on his kill.  Apparently he was under the impression they would share in the feast.  Not on my watch.  Circle of life or no circle of life eating a dead squirrel is gross.

I got Riggins down with the squirrel still firmly in his grip.  We then started the game I like to call “I always win.”  That’s when I stand over Riggins with my hand on his throat demanding he “drop it” and he ignores me until he realizes I’m eventually going to win and let’s go long enough for me to pull him away.   I did take a time out in the game to go get my camera.  I realize this is morbid of me but he looked so regal and Duck Dynasty-ish.  A hunting dog that Uncle Si would be proud of!  Sadly I didn’t get the picture I had hoped for.

Eventually I got the squirrel and threw him away.  I felt sort of bad for the poor thing.  He was actually pretty cute.  As cute as disease carrying rodent can be.

I’m sorry to Mr. Squirrel and Mr. Squirrel’s family.  I realize yesterday was a tough day for you.  In the future remember dog is god spelled backward.  You mess with one of them there is a chance you will meet your maker!

Wendy’s Life Choices – An Interactive Discussion

24 Wednesday Apr 2013

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wendy dogsI think it is fair to say that, although happy, I haven’t exactly made what some may consider the “right” life choices.  If you would have asked me as a college student where I would be at 39 the answer would have included a home, husband, kids and a brilliant career.  I have none of these things.  Oops.  So where do I go from here?

I propose the following …

MOVE TO A LOCATION WHERE I CAN HAVE SPRAWLING LAND AND RESCUE/LIVE WITH APPROXIMATELY 10 OR SO DOGS.

Your assignment:

  • Give pro and cons to this lifestyle.
  • How can Wendy earn a living given the above scenario?
  • Brainstorm on how Wendy can own a chunk of space that is both crazy woman and dog friendly in an area that is still close enough to a Target and movie theatre that Wendy won’t go even crazier.

Lousy’s Last Night

23 Tuesday Apr 2013

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photo (3)I have to admit I’m pretty torn up about this being Lousy’s last night with Riggins and me. Despite of (or maybe because of) his need to kill friends and strangers I just adore him.  Although he may want to kill you, he is a giant cuddle monster to me.  I can’t move far without his adorable little wiggle butt somewhere beside or on top of me.   Right now he is under my desk unhappy that he can’t be in my lap.  By far the cuddiliest dog I’ve ever meant.

Running the Rose Bowl trails.

Running the Rose Bowl trails.

Since he is three and is Riggins’ almost 1/2 brother he reminds me of how Riggins acted at his age.  Lousy is a calm bunny compared to Riggins.  At that age I could not just watch TV.  I had to watch TV AND throw a ball down the hall over and over again.  Lousy will happily curl up and go to sleep at bedtime.  At his age Riggins would grab a squeaky ball and sprint around the house while I prayed to every god I don’t believe in to get him to stop.  In the morning Lousy will happily jump up on my bed and curl up at me knees for a few more zzzzzs.  At that age Riggins would be up and ready to go.  I’d have to semi-tackle him and soothingly pet and murmur statements of love to get him to settle down for a bit more shut-eye.

Almost 1/2 brothers at the dirty dog park.

Almost 1/2 brothers at the dirty dog park.

Riggins is older and calmer now.  MUCH CALMER and has been a champ with Lousy this week.  Although there have been a few warning barks, in general they get along great.  Riggins has even figured out how to use Lousy’s energy to his advantage.  Riggins will camp out on my bed or on my lap and when he hears something going on outside he will start barking letting Lousy know that he needs to check it out.  Lousy will then bound up from wherever he is and make a beeline for the door ready and willing to defend his new castle.  Riggins thinks it is great!  He gets to be the guard dog he wants to be without even getting up!

Runyon (It was hard to get him to leave my side so I could take a picture.)

Runyon (It was hard to get him to leave my side so I could take a picture.)

Tomorrow I’ll pack up Lousy’s things and get him ready for his parents to come home.  I’m sure he will be ecstatic to see them … but I think he will miss us just a little!

 

 

An United Stand

22 Monday Apr 2013

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Clean and Cuddily

Clean and Cuddily

As you know Riggins and I have had a doggie guest for the last few days. As a three-year old the unfortunately named Lousy, has the extreme energy level of a much younger Riggins. Recently Riggins started limping a bit so I put him on a long/walk and hike time-out. He has been spending his exercise time out in the backyard chasing squirrels or at the dog park. Lousy, on the other hand, needs some extreme tiring out. I have been taking him running around the neighborhood or around the Rose Bowl trails and up Runyon. Both dogs, no matter what their exercise routine, have spent valuable time outdoors and then feel like their indoor time needs to be spent snuggling next to me. Needless to say the two creatures needed a bath to make cuddle time more bearable for their human.

Normally, when I’m doggie sitting, it is an extra service and cost for me to give the dog a bath. This time it was on me! As I told my mother Lousy’s cleanliness was more for my sanity than his parents. I had hoped that Lousy would be a better bath candidate than Riggins but alas, I believe Riggins’ water anxiety was shared by his almost half-brother Lousy.

Almost half brothers united in their fight against the man (aka me).

Almost half brothers united in their fight against the man (aka me).

After coming back from the hill with Lousy I started to get the bathroom ready. Riggins immediately knew what was happening and took a solid stance on my bed. Lousy followed his lead and held firm at his own bed. When I went go get them I managed to get Riggins to budge and leave the protection of the bed/throne only to have him make a beeline for Lousy’s bed where the two of them put up a united front. It was the first time both of them could be found on that bed at the same time. If they were going down they were going to make sure they went down together.

I finally got them both in the bathroom closing the door and locking them into their destiny of being clean. First I got Riggins all bubbly and let him out of the shower into the bathroom, to chill for a while. His special shampoo (Yes he has special shampoo. He is a very fragile baby.) requires a 10 minute soak before washing off. While Riggins was in time-out bath mode, I got Lousy into the shower. As I washed him he pressed his nose against the corner of the door and wall sucking in the smell of freedom leaking in from the outside. Riggins stood on the other side of the door, their two eyes were locked on each other. I couldn’t tell if the two of them were plotting my punishment for forcing them to become clean or if Riggins was talking down his little buddy letting him know it would all be over soon. Once Lousy was finished I rinsed off Riggins and let the two loose. They ran around the house like they were on fire until they calmed down and accepted their fate as clean and wet creatures.

BATH PTSD

BATH PTSD

They may not have been happy with the whole ordeal but based on the muddy color of their bath water I would say my actions were necessary. Now both are clean and can be cuddled without me looking like I had been wrestling around in the dirt … well at least for right now.

Pinterest Recipe Update

19 Friday Apr 2013

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image (4)I first posted some of my successful Pinterest cooking experiments awhile back. I’ve tried a few more and wanted to get you the 411. There are some really funny blogs out there of Pinterest fails. The theme being, the blogger will attempt something off Pinterest and then showcase their failed creation. They are hilarious. They also make me feel pretty cocky. After all, my attempts have, overall, turned out pretty good. If I’m to be honest with myself (and who likes to do that) it is because I’m picking easier things than these comedian bloggers. I’m having an annoying day … on my last nerve and boarding on a menace to society … so let’s just give me this one … okay?

CAULIFLOWER FRIED RICE – I made this last night. Giovanna was coming over to study Algebra and those nights demand food and tea (which we sometimes substitute with wine). More on Giovanna’s night in a second. First dinner. I had NO FAITH at all that this would turn out. None. Zero. Zilch. I could not have been more wrong. This stuff is DELICIOUS and actually does taste like fried rice. Perhaps a little earthier tasting but could easily fool a child and my dad (if he didn’t see you making it). What a crazy healthy meal! I’m so impressed with this I can’t push it hard enough on you. Try it. I’m going to be honest with you … I didn’t measure anything. I had shredded (via my trusty food processor) a small head of cauliflower and was planning to use it all. I just estimated ingredient amounts around the mound of white faux rice. Worked like a charm. A few other tweaks, I hate onions so didn’t use them. I hate egg yolks so just used whites. Finally I added shredded chicken. Delicious!

Okay back to Giovanna. I had told Giovanna how adorable our houseguest Lousy is and had no doubts that he would love my fellow dog loving friend. When she came in I had Lousy and Riggins outside and once settled I went to go let them in. Riggins made a beeline for one of his favorite people with Lousy close behind. I, being human with only two legs, was a bit further behind. Next thing I know all hell was breaking loose in my

Pictorial proof that Lousy is actually a cuddle monster.

Pictorial proof that Lousy is actually a cuddle monster.

dinning room. Lousy had gone into kill mode and was mean growling and biting in Giovanna’s direction. The poor woman leapt onto my dinning room table to save herself. By the time I got there Lousy had felt his duty was done and had left the room. When I called him back to scold him (Giovanna still on the table — I really wish I had a picture of that) he strutted in like he was the star and was shocked when he was forced to lay down on his side with my hand at his throat. He totally didn’t understand why he was being marched back outside where he was forced to stay alone for the rest of the night. Every time I checked on him he was sitting exactly where I left him looking toward the back door with sorrowful eyes. My assumption is that Lousy thought Giovanna was an intruder and went on attack to save the house, his bff Riggins, and me. Not a bad quality for a dog …. unless that intruder is actually one of your really good friends. Although it isn’t surprising for a dog to be protective of his space, humans and things it is a little odd that Lousy is so bonded considering it isn’t really his house, his brother, nor am I really his human. I also stand by my statement that Lousy is one of the cuddle-ist dogs I’ve ever meant. If he had his way he would spend all day in my lap. Lesson for all — if a dog has teeth he/she can always bite, so be careful. Learn the signs of a dog in distress so you know when to back off and when all else fails be sure you have a dinning room table nearby to climb up on!

BROCCOLI GRAPE HARVEST SALAD – I made this. It was okay, not great. I left out the grapes which I suppose could have been the big problem. Grapes/raisins are poisonous to dogs so my house is grape free. I’m also not sold on the “yogurt can be used as a substitute for mayo” thing. Yogurt is disgusting and makes me gag. Mayo is sent down from the gods to make salads and sandwiches delicious. Now that I look at the recipe again I didn’t really follow it at all. Maybe it is better if you actually do what they say.

PEANUT BUTTER COCONUT CUPS – These were freakin’ awesome! Peanut butter, oats, and coconut … oh my! It’s like someone took items from my favorite food list and stuck them in a food processor and then smashed them into a cupcake tin! Add chocolate and the dream is complete! I used milk chocolate and didn’t care about it being raw or whatever it is they suggest. You already know I keep coconut oil for slathering on my body and don’t cook with it. I used olive oil, but just a tiny bit. Finally I didn’t have maple syrup so used honey … and, as usual, gave up measuring as soon as the first ingredient hit the bowl. These things are a good time …. you should make them.

ZUCCHINI FRITTERS – These were yummy too. You could probably call them hash browns and trick your kids and my dad (if he didn’t see you make them). A little cakey but there is a good chance I put too much flour in them. They did well in a Tupperware and put in the fridge to eat the next day. Thumbs up on veggie hash browns!

ROASTED CHICKPEAS – I was looking for a popcorn replacement and came up with these. They take an annoyingly long time but if you can wait they are delicious. I did nothing it said short of use chickpeas, oil, and an oven. For seasoning I used some California Mix I picked up at Ralphs. Fancy … I know.

CROCK POT BAKED POTATOES – The fact that these even have a recipe is hilarious. BUT I can never get my baked potatoes made the old fashioned way or even the nuked way, to turn out well. These were delicious! Seriously … super yummy. My stomach had been really causing me issues a week or so ago and baked potatoes with veggies on top was the only thing that sounded good. Stop shrinking back due to your hatred toward the evil carb-by baked potato. They have some good qualities and if you are going to eat them might as well make them good! I added olive oil & some salt before wrapping them up in tinfoil. These are one of the recipes where I think afterwards, “huh .. that worked … shocking.”

There you go. Maybe you can try some of these this weekend. Have fun and stay away with any dogs that have teeth!

 

Good Listening Skills – by Riggins

17 Wednesday Apr 2013

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As a former salesperson I’ve sat through oodles of sales meetings.  Ask anyone who has been to those with me and they will be able to tell you that I think they are crap.  The most valuable thing about sales meetings is the bonding time between you and your co-workers. This is especially valuable for those working outside of the home office.  The meeting themselves …. zzzzzzz …. snore fest.  Even those portions I’ve had to lead as a sales manager were useless.  Something about the stale air of a conference room makes everyone zombies.  Anyway, most sales meetings include a guest speaker/teacher who will impart his/her selling skills to the group.  This usually ends up in the good kids nodding their head in approval, the annoying kids fighting back saying it won’t work in our industry, and the bad kids (aka me) figuring out more effective way to pass notes to other bad kids.

I remember being in a classroom like setting at a conference and being given a test by our guest sales guru.  It was to show us how good of a listener we are …. good listening = good selling to this specific gentleman.  My friend, who was sitting in front of me, and I started laughing.  Laughing out loud … we were going to fail … we knew it.  I continued to giggle while taking the test as I could hear him mumble, “always,” “of course,” “sure,” “yup,” etc.  By the time the guru got to the part of the “lesson” where he asked us to raise our hands depending on how we answered I was in stitches.  Of course most of the room went with the correct answers while my friend and I decided to just be honest.  “Do you interrupt people while they are still talking?”  Our hands go up …. “I mean if they haven’t got anything good to say that isn’t our problem.”  “Do you sometimes judge people based on what they first say to you?”  Our hands go up … “To be fair it isn’t sometimes it’s always.”  It continued like that until a VP asked if we needed to be separated.  HA HA HA!  We were grown adults being separated in school like kindergarteners.  Sadly it wasn’t the only time I’ve been told I couldn’t sit by someone specific during a conference.

Given my poor listening skills I shouldn’t be surprised by Riggins actions on the hill today.  Please view the video below.  Note at the very beginning Riggins is the black spec near the top of the hill.  He is hard to see because of his coloring so you have to look carefully.

photo (1)(We are currently dogsitting an adorable puppers, Lousy.  I’m told that name was his dad’s idea.  I can’t make fun.  If it had been totally up to me Riggins name would have been Poopers.  Lousy is part pointer and part pit.  That makes him Riggins 1/2 brother.  Riggins treats him just like a younger brother.  I had to remind Riggins that when he was 3 he had as much, if not more energy than Lousy.  Like any little brother Lousy crawls all over Riggins and snuggles his way under Riggins and into my lap.  He is definitely a cuddle monster!)

Ranger Riggins of Runyon

15 Monday Apr 2013

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The main path at Runyon Canyon.

The main path at Runyon Canyon.

Riggins has been hiking Runyon Canyon (a dog park/mountain/hike in LA) since he was a puppy. Actually before he was really supposed to do it … shhhh. You try to raise a rambunctious puppy in an apartment on the third floor then you can judge me! There is no doubt that Riggins is one of the many dogs that feel like they own the mountain. He struts around like a King demanding the attention of his people. If you are leaning down, going slow, make eye contact, and/or breathing, Riggins will come up to you and lean in for a pet. If you are a child with food it may be considered hill tax and be taken.

There are two different paths for each Runyon route. The regular and the dog only. The dog only paths weave their way in and out of bushes and around trees. Riggins likes to stick to these paths or start making his own. He is a trail blazer. This is why he gets the rattlesnake vaccine. Like any good ranger Riggins suggests/demands that all humans stay on the path. If you don’t Riggins will make sure you know that you have gone against park rules. His mistrust for those who are off path runs deep.

A look at the Stairs from the top.

A look at the Stairs from the top.

Recently, near the bottom of the hill, an older woman was doing Tai Chi. That isn’t a problem BUT she was doing it off route past some bushes in a tiny clearing. Not on Riggins watch! He made his way up to her, got down into a crouch and started growling. No amount of calling on my end was going to break his concentration so I had to double back to grab him. By the time I got to him he had the woman cornered. She was NOT HAPPY about it. In fact, I would say she was scared speechless. I tried to tell her that he was scared of her because she was off path and he knew that was wrong. It wasn’t helping so I gave up and drug him away. It may seem heartless of me but come on … you are in a dog park. Perhaps you should Tai Chi in a neighboring canyon. There is plenty to go around.

Now we know that Riggins has no problem scaling down the side of a mountain but he will

Riggins patrolling the top of the Spine.

Riggins patrolling the top of the Spine.

not allow humans to do the same. If you have two legs you have no business being off path. Last week Riggins came to a halt on our way down the hill. He was pointer ready with his stare focused on something across the canyon. After searching the cliff I finally found some idiot who was SLIDING down from the topmost path, the spine, to the easiest route. Sliding. Causing dirt and rock to fall down with him. Riggins started barking and slowly making his way to where the man was going to hit the ground. I grabbed him and walked him further away. The man came up to me and asked if Riggins was the one that was barking at him the entire time. I said yes that Riggins was worried about him (when in fact Riggins wanted to eat him for his inability to follow rules). The crazy man said that was nice but there was no need to worry. He “surfs” the hill all the time. Sigh …

All this wouldn’t be that big of a deal but I have witnessed people being rescued by image (2)helicopter on that hill. That is time and effort of our fire/police AND taxpayer money. Recently two teenagers got lost in the mountains in Orange County, CA. They were found, luckily safe.There was a good amount of outrage from the community about how they were so irresponsible to have gotten themselves in that position in the first place. Last month a teenager died at Eaton Canyon (another local hiking spot) because she went off path. On a hike near Eaton Canyon I once didn’t take enough water and it caused a problem for Riggins. I swore that would never happen again and now carry way more water than I will need. Just in case. I’m not saying everyone who hike is irresponsible. Far from it. I’m saying, if you are going to go hiking don’t be a moron. Know some basic hiking rules AND FOLLOW THEM.

This weekend I caught Riggins again patrolling the hill (see video). Near the end of our hike he spotted something unusual across the way. Enjoy his reaction. (I had to stop filming as I was walking backwards up a hill and to break Riggins concentration I was going to have to jog a bit. I am not nearly coordinated enough to jog backwards while filming with an iPhone.)

Thumbs Down to Dirty Birds

11 Thursday Apr 2013

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Riggins chillin' on the "locked" bed. I had just gone running which makes me sweaty and delicious.

Riggins chillin’ on the “locked” bed. I had just gone running which makes me sweaty and delicious.

When I decided to quit my job my biggest concern wasn’t how Riggins and I would survive with no income … it was how I was going to survive without my cleaning lady. I LOVE my cleaning lady. I love her more than almost any other human I know. She has been with me through numerous apartments and has been loyal to me longer than any man I’ve ever dated. Telling her that I couldn’t pay her until I got a new job was one of the hardest things I’ve ever done. I almost cried. I have a friend who once said she would rather go without food than go without her cleaning lady. Who can blame her? Food only allows you to survive. Your cleaning lady allows you to be happy!

What was I going to do? I simply can not live in filth. To be able to breathe I need vacuumed carpets and clean counters. The only option I had was to … gasp … do it myself. I am NOT a domestic goddess. I strongly dislike housework. Not that anyone loves it but I SERIOUSLY dislike it. I’m really good at throwing crap out. I can do that all day long but the actual scrubbing and cleaning. No thanks!

Speaking of throwing crap out. You’d think I would make a great hoarders therapist don’t you? You’d be wrong. First of all I can’t even watch the show Hoarders on A&E. It honestly gives me the chills and makes me gag. WHO WOULD LIVE LIKE THAT? WHO????? I saw part of an episode once where some guy thought throwing away his dog’s shed hair would kill the dog. DO YOU REALIZE WHAT KIND OF HAIR HOUSE I’D LIVE IN IF I THOUGHT THAT WAS TRUE????? Gross. Gross with a capital GR. I’d have no patience for those people. I realize they are sick and have a condition and blah blah blah but you can bet I’d have to be dragged out of there kicking and screaming, “that stack of newspapers means nothing … NOTHING … BURN THE PLACE DOWN!!!!” I actually have a brilliant plan for any hoarders therapist/cleaner helper person. This is what I’d do. After introductions and shock/awe at the state of their living conditions I’d make them a bet. They can be all weird about ever single scrap of paper and empty ketchup bottle UNTIL I find a dead animal. Any dead animal. Then all bets are off. They have to vacate the premises and I get to throw crap out willy nilly. They will come back to a nice clean house that will stay that way for at least a good week. Sure they won’t be “cured” but really how often do those shows really cure people? Brilliant right? They ALWAYS say there is no way something is dead in their house and there is ALWAYS a cat or rat corpse. ALWAYS! GRRRRROOOOSSS!

Brilliant daily chore chart.

Brilliant daily chore chart.

Back to me. I’m no good at dedicating an entire day to cleaning. It just isn’t going to happen and that only keeps my house clean for a day or two so what is the point? Pinterest to the rescue (as always). I found lots of suggestions on Pinterest on how to do a chore a day so that you have a rotating cleaning schedule. I thought I’d give it a shot. To keep my chore list close to me and top of mind I put it on my phone. I’ve been doing it for a few weeks now and I’m sold! My house is never super-duper crazy clean but it is always tidy and clean enough! Of course I cheat and skip a day or two. Honestly I’ve only dusted once because dusting is boring. I could bump my vacuuming up to two times a week but that isn’t going to happen. I do have a few time-saving tips that I’m happy to share:

* Get rid of your husband and kids. I realize this works well for me because it’s just Riggins and me. Men and kids are dirty.

* Move to a smaller house. I live in a two bedroom one bath. That helps a lot!

* Quit your day job. Really frees up your time and gives you the chance at a higher daily chore success rate.

* If you have a Riggins “lock” your bed and sofa. This means covering locations Riggins sits and sheds with a sheet. Sure it doesn’t look great but if company pops over then you can pull that sheet off and have a clean bed/sofa. LIKE A MAGICIAN. TADA! (Although I usually just leave the sheet on. Less trouble.)

Dirt from one pass through my living room. DIE DIRT .... DIE!

Dirt from one pass through my living room. DIE DIRT …. DIE!

* Get a good vacuum. I heart a good vacuum. I’ve been obsessed with Dyson since it became a brand. I want everything they make. Sadly each item is approximately 1 zillion dollars. For my birthday lots of friends got me Target gift cards so I could get me a fancy Dyson. I got a Shark instead. To be more specific a Shark Rotator 3-in-1 Lift Away Vacuum. I just couldn’t pull the trigger on a zillion dollar dirt sucker. The Shark is still the most expensive vacuum I’ve ever owned and about $200 less than its Dyson rival. It got great reviews so I figured I’d give it a shot. I used it for the first time this week. I love it. It’s my new favorite thing in the entire world! (BTW no need to get one with all the attachments. I’ve used 2 and figure I may get as high as 4 but really they just get lost making them useless.) One crazy reviewer vacuumed her house first with her old unit then with her new Shark. Just to see how much more filth was picked up. There was no way I am crazy enough to vacuum my house twice. I barely have the stamina to do it once. I’ll take her word for it.

* Don’t dust. Okay this isn’t true. I really need to dust.

There you go! That is how you successfully keep a clean(ish) house! I’m not getting rid of my other vacuum. If I was a hoarder I’d collect (doesn’t seem so bad when you call it a collection) dogs and vacuums. I may be crazy but at least my carpet would be clean!

My Hatred of the Job Hunt Joke

08 Monday Apr 2013

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If you read my blog regularly you know I took a leap earlier this year and quit my job without having another one in place.  Although I’m madly in love with not working every day and I adore babysitting dogs when I can, mama’s gotta pay the bills.  Unless Riggins and I want to be on the street with a cardboard sign I need to dedicate part of my life to finding a new job.  This task is made harder by my wanting to take a different career path and move out of pure sales.  If I wanted to just have a job I could have easily gotten one that was just like the last, and the one before that, and the one before that.  I’m sure I would be successful and make good money, just like before, but I can’t guarantee I would be happy and I’m really into trying to be happy.

You know what really harshes my happy?  Job hunting online.  Let’s bypass networking in person and all that and just concentrate on how ridiculous electronic job hunting is.  Everyday I check three specific job listing sites to see what is new and if anything looks like a good match to me.  Then I move on to a list of companies and I check their individual web sites for new openings.  I rotate which companies I check each day and end up looking at all at least once a week.

Now let’s ignore that these resumes are going to a computer or someone in HR that simply scans for keywords and specific past titles.  If you don’t make the buzz word cut you won’t be hearing from them no matter how good you are.  That isn’t even my issue today.  Today my main issue is that applying online is a joke.  Why you ask?  Well I’ll be happy to tell you.  It’s OBVIOUS that most companies don’t care about any resumes that come in online.  They are looking at promotions from within and/or word of mouth from those they know.  They post the job to the general public because … well … they kinda have to.  Makes me want to sob into my 1/2 full glass of Cabernet.

How do I know this?  Well besides common sense let me just go over some of the things I’ve dealt with today while trying to apply to jobs online:

* A major consumer products company career website just isn’t working.  This isn’t something out of the ordinary.  It rarely works.  I’ve emailed their hr dept. about it and sent my resume directly to them in the past.  The site still rarely works.

* A major movie studio web site that surprisingly works a majority of the time, didn’t work well today.  I wanted to apply to 2 jobs and each one I had to restart the entire process 3 times for it to fully submit.  The site just stopped responding part way through the very very long questionnaire.

* Another major studio web site has a search option that just doesn’t work.  On the front page it shows most recent job openings, many of which are located in LA.  When you do a search for jobs in CA you get a message saying there are none.  Doesn’t make sense to me either.

* This didn’t happen today but another example. … On LinkedIn a non-profit company had a really interesting job listed.  To apply it linked you to their site.  Where THERE WAS NO PLACE TO FIND ANYTHING ABOUT THEIR OPEN POSITION(S).  I emailed them and was told to go to their site.  Someone didn’t read my entire email … did they?  So I responded to say that I had done that, that I still was unable to locate it, and requested additional help.  They told me the link was at the top of the page.  It wasn’t.  I’m not a moron.  I know my way around a website.  It wasn’t there.  Heaven forbid they just give me the direct link.  I gave up.  I’m sure that was their goal in the first place.

* I attempted to apply to a position at another entertainment studio today.  The listing stated that you MUST include a cover letter with your resume.  You could only send your resume electronically through their complicated online system.  That system did not allow you to include cover letters.  So there you go.  Set up to fail from the start.  I still turned in my application without the cover letter.  Well at least I think I did.  That was an hour or so ago and the website still says it’s thinking, so who knows if it was processed or not.

Come on people.  I know it’s a waste of time and you know it’s a waste of time but can we please just pretend for my sanity?  At least just a little?  Sigh … I’m going to go take a bath with the chamomile epson salts I bought from Target this weekend.  That should bring my blood pressure down a bit … maybe.

On a happier note — Pictures of Riggins and Morgan playing at the dog park this weekend:photo

Bad Hair Day

05 Friday Apr 2013

Posted by in Riggins

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You know how sometimes you have a bad hair day?  There is nothing you can do that can make you happy about what is happening on the top of your head.  When that happens to me I just pop on a hat and go about my business but I understand it can really screw up someones day.

image (8)Morgan is hanging out with Riggins and me this weekend.  When his dad dropped him off I started laughing … and had a hard time stopping.  His mom had told me she wanted to get him shaved down before seeing me.  We usually go hiking and it’s safer for Morgan to have his feet and face hair short.  It’s foxtail season and foxtails are NOT GOOD for dogs.  They can get caught in their paws, ears, eyes, really anywhere and once they go in their natural design causes them to keep going further and makes it very hard for them to come out.  They can be deadly for dogs.  Morgan’s fuzzy hair is a perfect place for foxtails to get stuck and cause problems.  So … he was shaved!  All over … poodle cut shaved.  I’m confident they would have poofed his feet too but his mom had already trimmed them down so they didn’t have anything to work with.  Look at him.  The mouth, the ears, the eyes … it kills me!

Morgan’s mom HATES the poodle cut.  HATES IT.  She still hasn’t seen him in person.  I thought I’d be nice and cut down the poof on his tail but I think she needs to see the entire visual from top to bottom!

On the plus side it was less work for me on the hill today.  Everyone believes Morgan is aphoto (12) labordoodle (his normal cut is very labordoodle-ish).  I get constant comments from people about loving my labordoodle.  I use to correct them that he was just a poodle (and not mine) but they never really believed me so I gave up.  Now I just say, “thank you.”  Today when Morgan got out of the car a woman immediately said, “Oh my goodness.  That is a beautiful poodle.”  There is no mistaken with this hair cut.  The kid is a poodle!

Riggins and Morgan hiked Runyon unaware that I continued to giggle at Morgan’s look.  As usual they strutted up and down ruling the hill and getting the respect they think they deserve.  Our hike was peppered with people admiring Morgan’s unique poodle color and Riggins spotted feet.  They were in heaven!

HAVE A GOOD WEEKEND — with lots of good hair days!