Developing a Little Bit of a Life

The culture shock in moving to Hootersville was more than the slower pace of life but also the lack of intellectual stimulation, urbane lifestyle and friends. In trying to make this a stronger year, I have reconnected with several of my friends from the previous life and really enjoy our snappy conversations. I didn’t realize how much I require interaction with others after years of thinking of myself as a hermit. Up North I got plenty of intensity during the day so at night and on weekends, I liked to settle into my chair and enjoy my home and Beef’s quiet company.

My spirits are slowly lifting as I develop a social circle, such as it is, here in NoWhere, NC. While Knuckles develops relationships at the Dog Park (he definitely has his favorites), it just so happens that I like the owners of these same dogs. Some of us are in training classes together but there are enough outside that circle that Knuckles and I enjoy the park equally. When the owner friends are there at the same time, we sit together and chat. The owner of Knuckles’ special friend (a Weimaraner), works out of her home as a wine distributor.

In the quest to regain my “real” body back, I take Pilates Classes (Tower, Reformer, Cadillac and Chair) and have added on Pilates Ballet twice a week. Thursday is for Pilates Boot Camp which is my favorite. Many of the same women attend the same round of classes and we’re getting closer. This is not witty repartee’ but we do talk about our lives and work so there is some stimulation there.

I stopped by a running store in Mayberry (where most of my activities are held) and they have 2 different running groups. I rarely ran with the RATS but I’m trying to have an open mind. It’s free so if business dives down again, I will still be able to participate when other activities will have to be eliminated. I’m going to wait until the weather allows me to train some independently so I can actually keep up with the group. Knuckles enjoys our walk/runs so he can be my home training partner to prepare.

The most likely candidate for a play mate is my new colorist, P. He’s gay and full of fun and great stories. We enjoyed each other so much that we went out to eat after my first appointment. First I went to Texas, then was sick this last weekend, but I am going to call him today and see if he wants to get together sometime this week. He is the quintessential middle aged flamer who loves his Mother (oddly, she’s called the “Queen” in the family) and collects dolls. I met his mom who offered me her hand and asked if I’d like to kiss her ring. I replied “no, but I’d like to steal it”, which cracked us all up. I see potential here especially since we both live in Whitsett.

Don’t expect any romantic life to crank up. Even if I could find someone appropriate to date (not that I am looking in any way), I am going to move to Texas and it wouldn’t be fair. In this “no collar” area, how do you find someone that understands, much less endorses, that I’m learning 2 new languages in my 50’s?

Baby Love

(Photo of GC with his Dad's hands. He is on the quilt handmade with love by his Aunt Youngest. Notice how the monkey on the quilt is next to GC's little pant monkey).

What a lucky G-ma I am! Just back from a visit to the Son and DIL’s home where I met and fell in love with JellyBean. It is truly surreal to hold your son’s son and just as compelling to watch your son learn to parent.

Not being one for idle compliments, believe me when I say the kid is perfect and I wouldn’t change a thing. He’s alert, handsome, strong, has dimples that will drive the ladies wild, is healthy, has shell ears and is a big fan of Journey (well, maybe I’d change that!). While he rarely is fussy, playing Journey will either calm him down immediately or magically put him to sleep just as quickly. What is it about that Band? Despite our opposite tastes in music, his reaction to their songs is consistent enough to prove his Band allegiance. He officially rocks.

Grand baby matured in just the few days that I was visiting. He was staying alert for longer periods of time. He started cooing and finding his hand to suck. Time just whips by and his parents are appreciating every moment.

The point of the visit was to love on the baby but to also make life easier for the parents and not interrupt the bonding experience. This allowed me to hold and entertain GC for hours on end and allowed his mom to shower, rest and hopefully relax. We had dinner in every evening while I supplied the take out. It was just what everyone needed – low key with lots of love.

My work capacity is tentative (it’s all about the revenue baby) but if things work out to the positive, I’d like to make brief trips on a quarterly basis – I really want to stay a part of GC’s life as we both grow up. And with the same optimist bent, I hope to be living in the same city so we can continue to be buddies for years to come.

He Did It!

Tonight was Knuckle’s first testing in the certification process for dogs. Level one is STAR Puppy which is the precursor for the Canine Good Companion (CGC). The final test, should we aim that high, is the certification as a Therapy Dog. Despite his tendency to pull on the leash, knuckles passed on the first try.

Way to go, training Rock Star!

(In the photo you can see where one pitiful ear is trying to come up.)

Change to Growth - Challenges are good

Unlike the majority (including family members), I do not generally make New Year’s Resolutions. Instead, my years have a sort of theme to them. Last year was the Year of the Big Change what with moving, a short lived change in career, the move to independent consulting ith a home office, the death of Beef, lowered income and a brief depression that worsened following Beef’s demise. At the end of the year I was grossly overweight (kept in context, but over 20 pounds is significant for me), brunette, and with an uncomfortably cranky body. So enough is enough – 2010 is the Year of Great Growth.

I have slowly returned to working out having lost 5 pounds (on a nasty plateau now), started Pilates again (following a back injury), and now hike with Knuckles. I’ve started doing my nails again, found a stylist and am blond again (I didn’t realize how much this affected me). I have lots of weight to still lose. What was I thinking letting everything go post Menopause, because it’s true about the dead metabolism thing. I thought Addisons wouldn’t let me go there but I’m using the same amount of medicine with a lack of activity. Taking care of these personal things first make me feel like myself again, and will give me the mental energy once I have the physical energy once more.

At the moment, the business has only two clients although I am making my monthly nut (at Christmas I was not sure I would have ANY clients in January). I need way more than this to make the goal of moving to Austin, at least with purchasing a home. I have a couple of potential clients that I am going to contact again and I’m going to see if I can bully my Texas guy into hooking me up with the Austin organization sooner than later. There is no reason to panic yet, but I will need to get 3 more clients and place their funds directly into the highest yield savings. Even if it takes until July, I should be okay. Keep your fingers crossed, but BD has always been my forte’ so it is key getting into the Austin speaking circuit. I tend to think more strategically and less implementation so it’s helpful to get some specific ideas in place.

A very special little boy was born this year which automatically makes the world a better place. I am so excited to meet GC and be a positive part of his life. In order to be a good influence, I have to actually BE a good influence. I look forward to being a loving role model and playmate.

I am really missing ASL classes but finances dictate that only one class is possible and at this point, Knuckles’ obedience training is a priority. I am meeting nice people in class and we chat at the dog park. As the weather grows more pleasant, more people will begin to attend. When we left last night, he was barely walking and almost tripping over his tongue - he was that tired. Knuckles is a lot of work but worth it in the return of love and comfort. Pilates also allows for some human contact although I still miss my intellectual hommies.

Yesterday I allowed myself a selfish activity - I went to see Shutter Island at the $5 showing. I enjoyed it even with the rush back home to take care of my boy.

I reconnected with some of my friends recently and they are of the belief that I needed to decompress some as part of withdrawal from the rat race and to recover from burning the candle at both ends for so many years. I just went a bit too far. Now I am fighting my way back and getting ready to use force of energy to move even beyond and onto the next phase of my life. Ready, set, go!

In this corner, the heavy weight named Knuckles

In the weeks that Knuckles has joined the family, he has doubled in weight. Today was the day for Knuckles monthly heartworm/flea and tick medications so we weighed in at the vet earlier in the week than usual to confirm the correct dosage. My growing boy is now 50.6 lbs at 4 and a half months. Knuckles has recently discovered his size and is having fun with it which is not always so fun for me. He has learned that if he stands on his back legs, he’s a tall boy and tall boys can reach all sorts of forbidden objects. Today while I was showering, Knuckles got up with his front feet in the sink and was watching to see my reaction in the mirror, thinking I was behind glass and occupied. I merely opened the door and whacked his butt with it much to our mutual amusement. He loves to get caught.

There are a few difficulties associated with having such a big puppy. When we’re in class, we are always in trouble when Knuckles gets in front of me. This is a felony to our trainer. The other class members are much smaller and it is a great deal easier to manage a 12 pound puppy when he tries to stretch the leash than a 50 pound beast. Being a German Shepherd, not to mention a giant GSD, Knuckles needs to be an even better boy than any other schmoo dog off the street and he’s becoming an angel (when separated from Silly). For once we were the good example in class for a mock stranger meeting. He sits perfectly still and allows anyone to pet him. Knuckles has had so much practice, we at last had our time to shine. It felt good to be rewarded for our hard work. He can hold a Stay for a minute – maybe longer but I haven’t tried it yet.

We’ve been hiking the three mile trail at Mackintosh Lake Park. Now, three miles doesn’t sound like a terribly impressive distance but it can be a challenge with the steep up hills and rocks, etc. We have the best time although I need to dress in major layers.

Tonight we went to the dog park where at first there were a bunch of rough and tumble larger dogs. Knuckles would just play around the edges. He usually loves it when the foster pups come to play and although they didn’t make it tonight (the wind was frigid) eventually a great group came. Knuckles has a new love obsession named Sophie. They played chase (he’s not really into the wrestling and biting) for over an hour. He was so tired that he didn’t even protest when we left. Poor tired Knuckles – he didn’t want to wake for dinner. It’s important to give him as much physical as mental stimulation and I’m doing my best. We will both reap the rewards later.

One of Knuckles’ favorite activities is playing in water. The photo above is Knuckles during a fun session with ice cubes.

Happy Birthday Son!

Today is the very important 30th birthday of my son, the new daddy. He's smart, strong, intelligent and bound to be the best father ever. I couldn't be more proud.

Not Our Best Week

The left over weather impacted the beginning of the week with limited new adventures. On Wednesday, I felt like a bad puppy imprinter (he only has another week or so for the major impression period) so we went to a new shopping center that is much larger and always bustling. This is usually Knuckles’ favorite type of activity and this time he met young and old. I’m always grateful when a parent lets a young child pet Knuckles. We had a nice time with a 2 year old. All was well until the return trip to the car. Of all places I did not expect him to poop on the middle of the sidewalk at a center. Hugely embarrassing made all the worse by the runny consistency. I made a quick swipe with the grocery bag and hustled out of there. Yes, Knuckles had diarrhea in a public place. Welcome to the family!

Unfortunately, it didn’t stop there. Knuckles had very bad poo issues for a couple of days – some INDOORS. Gross. The illness topped off on Saturday morning when he began running around the room vomiting clear mucus (around 12 times). That is exactly what Beef did as a symptom of stomach torsion, a health issue common in GSD. I freaked. Called the vet and it takes us maybe 3 minutes to get there. There was no bloat yet so they ended up taking an x-ray rather than take the wait and see approach (they wanted to save me $ but $30 for peace of mind was well worth it). Turns out there were no obstructions - just a nasty virus. We can’t go to the dog park as planned because he’s contagious. They gave Knuckles an anti-nausea shot, fluids under his skin, tummy pills and orders to keep him calm. The only way to do that is the crate so he was forced into extra crate time.

All this has affected Knuckles’ weight so only 4.1 additional pounds this week, yet he continues to grow, just not in bulk. He’s a car sleeper, usually sacked out by the time I hit the main road (and before that on school days). He now fills the entire length of the backseat, not counting his tail. Knuckles moved into a Big Boy crate (made possible through the mechanical skills of Youngest – many thanks).

While Knuckles’ worship of Silly is widely acknowledged, this is not always to his advantage. The vet says it looks like his ear cartilage is damaged so he may not be able have alert ears – she drags him around by them. At his doggy playschool, the trainer says that Knuckles is a different dog when Silly is not there preoccupying his every thought. He participates with the other dogs, is developing friendships and pays attention during his personal training sessions now that she no longer attends. I can see the same change during weekends. Knuckles does not have potty errors, brings me his leash to go out, listens well and follow directions when we are alone. All bets are off when Silly is in the house so we’re going to have to find a way to handle the issue. Since they have to spend a few days apart while his tummy recovers, maybe it will be a good thing.

No new photo because my camera is acting up again. Grrr.