bitter is the new black

ok, i stole that title from a book i read (that actually wasn't good). when i got in tonight, i started thinking about what to post since i was not yet sleepy and wanted to stay up anyway. chopin had been totally sweet: coming in with me when i got home, getting excited about sleeping in my bedroom, cooing at me because she missed me, etc. i thought the blog was going to be all about how great chopin, or all dogs, is/are because they are so into spending every second with you. chopin even gets in the car with me when i move it so dad will have an easier time getting in and then waits in the car while we load him, just to be a part of the action and hang with everyone. then i urney (the journey of urination) and she sits outside the door, upset that we are apart for 1 minute. the only bad part of this is when i don't take her somewhere i go she gets irrationally upset and whines as i leave, which has never happened in the past. but then, in the olden days we were not joined like super glue. so yeah, i was going to write that post. instead, chopin got happy while i was changing into pjs and popped up off the floor into a sitting position, looking at me and smiling. so, like any rational adult, i lean down and smother her face and back with kisses - at which point i hear her growl. i pull away and there is nasty face looking like she is about to bite. i get into bed with her still growling, and tell her NO! when she has finally calmed down enough to still be mad but not have the nasty face more than 80% of the time, i tell her it is a privilege to sleep in my room and not her birthright. she then moves to lay down in another part of the bedroom and retires her nasty face for the night. i growl at her to let her know i am not happy about the shenanigans that just occurred, esp. since i was filled with love for her earlier. we just finished a face off; however, i forget who won. i vote me.

resuscitation to the rescue

today, i learned how to save lives. if some one's heart stops beating, watch out world: i am cpr certified. the hardest part was creating a seal with your mouth on the dummy. we had little things similar to dental damns to use due to germs and if you did the breathing right, your dummy's chest inflated. because it was so tricky, i started to get excited when anyone in my group inflated the chest properly. like a infectious disease, excitement slowly spread to my two group members and then anyone else who could hear me. i began to use the phrase "life-giving breath" like "niiiiiiiiiice, that was totally a life-giving breath!" people laughed but i bet they totally start using it. then, when we got the baby dolls to practice on the focus was off the breath and onto "saving a baby's life" or "giving this baby a future." it turns out i am all about the sarcastic use of serious statements for nursing school. 1-2-3-4-5-6-7-8-9-10-11-12-13-14-15-16-17-18-19-20-21-22-23-24-25-26-27-28-29-30.

old dog, new tricks

my sweet dog is getting old. biting aside, there is a lot to love about older chopin. instead of getting up and nestling against you all the time, she now remains on the floor and just howls until you come love her. it is amazing how many times a day she does this. in her 80s it turns out my doggie just wants love. i, too, am totally shocked, but, at the same time, not because it is my dog and all i do is kiss her and snuggle. she also has begun to love car trips. they are her new favorite (except for treats) and she freaks out when i tell her we are going. i guess because it is like a walk but she doesn't really have to move. genius. everything remotely edible in the car has already been destroyed, a small price to pay for chopin in the passengers seat. even wrappers she has already torn to shreds, she continues to lick and tear since i do not clean the car. i guess sometimes it gets boring though and she gets hungry and curious. due to the sheer volume she sleeps, i always imagine she just takes a quick nap when i'm out in the store (when not destroying). today, sleepiness be damned, she was inquisitive. which is why when i reached to change my cd, i discovered my brand new car stereo was covered in dog slobber. upon closer inspection i also saw licks that had already dried, so who knows how long this has been going on. interestingly enough, the majority of the licks were around the cd changer and a few actually were on the cusp....which i think means CHOPIN PUT HER TONGUE INTO MY CD PLAYER. maybe it even sucked it in automatically when she did it! it never occurred to me to ever attempt such a thing, which is why i'm so impressed my ancient dog not only tried it but continued to experiment while i was not in the car. i'm really proud we are related.

a little bit of heaven

roxie and i have had a long strange journey together. sometimes we love each other, sometimes we don't. her noises make no sense to me, and i'm pretty sure she has no idea what my noises mean either. despite all this turmoil (does she love me or hate me?) i continue to pick her up everyday to snuggle. dad, for the time being, has gotten over roxie but i still think she should be played with a lot. since i'm moving soon, i've upped my holdings of roxie to approximately 3 a day. i like to think of it as building up a surplus for the coming drought. since i'm not a big fan of touching, i never really understand the certain nuances that can occur or how things can change. really, i just don't understand touching. i think its like if i only thought the color blue came in one shade. touching is just one shade for me. but this afternoon i was transformed into a giant puddle of love by roxie. her legs are really little so i guess i always just assumed her whole body was against me but today i actually felt her chill out and really nestle in. it was SO GREAT. this little furry creature just melted into me, she completely relaxed and all of a sudden it was a much deeper, sweeter snuggle with her huge belly pressed against me. now i am entirely addicted. it was all i could talk about during dinner and i have decided that i want a minimum of 12 guinea pigs all over my body relaxing at the same time. this will clearly never happen and it kind of freaks me out but it could also turn out to be that much better. i have internally settled this dilemma by compromise: if the opportunity of 12 guinea pigs is offered to me i will take it, but, if not, i will not actively seek it out. i'm turning into such a rational grown up. yay roxie.

we find mobility exciting

today we got a new wheelchair that is super cool. it has features we had not even imagined - like arms that come off so it can fit under a table or padded backs for his legs when they are resting. amazing! my excitement level was off the charts, but eventually it wore off on the rest of the family. dad wheeled himself outside and he made it all over the house all by himself. we then called everyone we know to share the news. watch out world, independent george is on his way.

it is kind of like narnia

this is the way to my favorite place. not only are trains lucky, generally, but these railroad tracks, in particular, also seem magical each time i walk down them. i am scared to give any more information away due to overpopulation concerns.

acceptance is key

today was a day of destruction for the possessions of one n.e.b. i will begin at the beginning. chopin and i go to the pharmacy but i forget i have cough drops in the car. i come back and they are all eaten. during lunch i get up to help dad and come back to chopin licking my plates clean while half way up on the couch. after lunch, i clean roxie's cage, placing her inside the wire with her little hutch and food dish. foolishly watching roxie so she does not become a small snack, i neglect to move to the food dish when i am done cleaning and am placing her back into the cage. chopin eats every morsel of guinea pig food. we appear to spend the rest of the day together in relative peace. much sleeping is had by my adorable dog. at approximately 7:10pm i enter my bedroom. my plastic tower of drawers, otherwise known as my extremely tall nightstand, is on the floor. the lamp shade has come off the lamp due to the impact of falling 4 and 1/2 feet. two candles have been shattered. everything is out of the drawers, covered in glass. a box of vitamins has been eaten. my make-up has been chewed on. (i know: make-up, but i'm serious). any clothes on the floor, which is really all my clothes, have to be shaken and washed to avoid glass shards. the vacuum clogs due to the heavy use for torn paper, broken glass, and dog hair. it was quite a destructive dog day indeed. oddly enough, as annoyed as i was with her i recognized it was all my fault. she is a dog. i should have emptied the car, not had food anywhere within her reach, and closed my bedroom door. the verdict is still out on whether this hairy monster is worth it but i'm going to chalk today up to my poor choices. my middle name now becomes vigilance. the end.