I consider this blog a window on my world, a way of letting people know that writers lives in general and this writer’s life in particular don’t amount to toiling away in an attic in utter solitude and silence. So here are some of the things I’ve learned this week, in outline form. I am NOT using Roman Numerals because I have a terminal fear of Roman Numerals which accounts for why I don’t outline my books.
1. It is almost impossible to get out of a chair with a sleeping puppy in your lap. This is true for two reasons.
a. Holding sleeping puppies is NICE.
b. Standing up with a flailing puppy in one hand is a lot like trying to get up when you’re very pregnant. (By the way, when I used the term “very pregnant” in a book, a number of people wrote to say that there’s no such thing as “very pregnant.” You either are or you aren’t. All the people who made that comment were men.)
2. Things puppies learn in a hurry.
a. How to operate the doggy door.
b. How to win your heart.
c. How to dribble kibble into their water dishes no matter how far away the food dish is placed from the water dish.
d. How to grab the orange pull tabs on the PetsMart pee pads and turn them into toys, thus making them utterly useless for their intended purpose.
3. Things puppies do NOT learn in a hurry.
a. Not to bite the hand that feeds them.
b. Where they should “get busy” and where they shouldn’t.
c. That it’s a very bad idea to try to steal the senior dog’s food. Bella, the senior dog in question, a rescue of indeterminate age, has had more than a few teeth removed, but she still has enough to deliver a corrective nip when the occasion requires it.
4. Things I have learned about Dachshund puppies.
a. They are very low to the ground.
b. They are very quick and hard to catch, a lot like the rodents they’re bred to eliminate.
c. The have minds of their own.
5. Things I have learned about PADD—Puppy Attention Deficit Disorder and things that make it impossible for Jojo to “get busy” where she’s supposed to.
a. Rain.
b. Sirens.
c. Pile driving equipment pounding pilings.
d. Leaves.
e. Moss.
f. Any loud noise, especially Bella barking.
g. Wearing a collar.
6. Why Bella and Jojo are not allowed out in the yard on their own and why I carry a 5 pound rock when I’m walking my 10,000 steps. By the way, this photo was taken at high noon on the patio of the house next door, which is just across our driveway. The bobcat wasn’t the least bit scared, either.
7. What I’ve seen and learned in the yard this year while walking my 10,000 steps. My daily average for two months is 9273, so getting a puppy dropped my score for a couple of days.
a. I now love Ceanothus. When I saw those wonderful blue flowers I had to learn the name of the plant.
b. I loved watching the lavender Wisteria come on and then seeing the blossoms drift away only to be replaced by bright green leaves.
c. I loved watching the little Hosta sprouts, standing clumped together like so many little green and white tin soldiers, gradually grow into magnificent clumps of green and white leaves.
d. I’ve loved seeing how sun-light shines through new growth Photinia leaves creating one of the most intense reds I’ve ever encountered.
e. I loved watching the fish gradually come out of hibernation in the pond.
8. What I’ve learned about herons.
a. The nerf gun I received for Mother’s Day is capable of firing sponge bullets from our back porch all the way to the fish pond. If I aim over the pool house, the bullets land on the same patch of grass as the heron. The bullets whistle in the air. The heron was surprised and hasn’t been back.
b. According to KIRO News some people in Ballard, people WITHOUT fish ponds, were celebrating the “birthday” of seventy heron hatchlings. I have it on good authority that herons are HATCHED not BORN. I wonder if any of my “very pregnant” commenters above notified KIRO News about this error. No doubt some of those hatchlings will turn up in our yard next year, looking for a handout.
9. What I’ve learned about walking 10,000 steps every day.
a. It takes time
b. If I use pennies or pebbles to count the laps, I can think about something else rather than compulsively counting.
c. When I walk and don’t count laps, I can think about writing. If I can’t think about what to put in the next chapter, (In this case Chapter 7 of the next Ali book) I think about writing the blog. Which is what I’ve just done. (Yes, grammar checker, I am well aware that is a sentence fragment. I did it that way for emphasis.) Tomorrow it’s back to Chapter 7.
Have a great weekend!
My Mother who had 10 children, chastised me for saying very pregnant. Same thing, you are or you aren’t. That was years ago and have never said it again.
Been a fan for as long as you have been writing, love your blog, and how fun to share your love of puppies. We have just been adjusting to our old dog and rescue active pugapoo for the past year. Every word is so true, i see it all happening as you write.
I love the dog bed shaped like a car. It’s a cute idea.
I felt very pregnant during the last weeks of my two pregnancies. I can’t think of another way to describe it. I was on a no-salt, calorie restrictive diet both times. Not fun.
Oh yes men will tell us what pregnant means. Of course they have absolutely no idea what they are talking about in this area . I was only pregnant once but every women knows what VERY pregnant is/was.
Puppies they are the most WONDERFUL little things in the world. We had one last fall she was a Jack Russell. (Not good for a senior) I found that if you exchange the name from puppy to baby and treat this little one just as a baby you will have great sucess. Also we napped when she napped . I found I had more energy and was so happy when Patches was with us. ( she went to live with her brother, high energy)
I alway wondered if you did your books by outline. I had heard that a lot of Authors do. However you write, you do it so well I am impatiently waiting for this new book . Always waiting for one of your new books.
You have a wonderful week and we’ll meet back here same time same place next week .. Jan O.
I have a 13 month old long hair mini. She is everything you describe and more. I love her to pieces and she is the queen of my house. My ex-BF hated the fact that I got a dog without his “permission”. I chose the dog. Today, she came to the office for the day and is busily going from office to office to see all her friends. I have to watch her like a hawk because she still gets excited and forgets to go outside to pee. I don’t think much work will be done today. LOL
And, I totally understand “very” pregnant. I totally got it when I read it in your book. When you are 5’2″ and 100 lbs at the start, at about 7 months there is no more room for baby. When you need help standing up, getting out of bed, forget about tying shoes and can’t even pee, then you are very pregnant.
I just talked to my Granddaughter last night and she is in her 7th month of pregnancy and feels “Very, Very Pregnant”. I told her to quit complaining the worst is yet to come, Hot Weather and Humidity don’t add to the comfort level. Baby due in August.
I’m jealous of your Puppy Postings. My Ziva needs a new playmate but I still can’t get over the loss of my Sam.
I do love the adventures of Bella and Jojo. Keep them coming.
Nice to see that Bella and JoJo don’t have to make do with a raggedy old blanket for a snuggle spot (snerk). Yes, very much like child rearing again… And anyone who doesn’t understand “very pregnant” hasn’t been pregnant. I empathize with your other correspondent whose granddaughter is due in August: My daughter was born August 30, 1969, a very warm summer. And she was at least 2 weeks late for her debut. I was beyond “very” and well into “morbidly” pregnant.
When we built our house in Prescott we wanted to put a doggie door to our back deck which is about 8 feet above the back yard. The architectural committee said no because we too have bobcats and coyotes and they are capable of getting up that high to get a miniature poodle! Love the doggie bed.
Awesome doggy bed race car and the puppies are adorable. I have never gotten the knack of Roman numerals, either; and I am 63! I think that bobcat visited me here in Tucson last month. He was sitting right outside my kitchen window watching me inside cooking dinner. Our vet here, told us to never leave a small animal unattended outside, the coyotes are worse than the bobcats. We have a doggy door and snakes have come in through it. It is super glued shut now forever!
Bobcats in Seattle? I had no idea! I was sure the Bobcat was in Tucson until I read the part about the heron. Love your dogs. Now I know what was the problem with my Lab/Chow mix. She had PADD. For 12 years! Loved that dog…
So nice to read your blog each time it arrives in my inbox and with pictures, no doubt, lovely backyard and sweet Bella.
The big “kitty” are over running us in Roseville and rocklin killing most of our poor deer but they are protected. Wish the State could leave food out with birth control pills in it. Ha ha.
I am so happy you’re working on the next Ali book! I so enjoyed the last one. I love all of your books. You keep your amazing style but the characters are all so memorable and unique!
And I have been pregnant, then very pregnant, then very, VERY pregnant. Twins will do that to you!
Thanks for the peek into your world.
You commented about my favorite things this week.
Wisteria–I loved it when I lived in southern Japan. Unfortunately, it won’t grow on the cold, east side of Oregon. I miss seeing it.
Herons-well, cranes-are my totum animal. I’m glad you just scare them away with your nerf bullets. Because… I also love–Koi, another hold over from my time in Japan.
Puppies–I like. I’m not a “dog” person, more of a “cat” person.
Have a fabulous week.
The description pregnant is a statement, very pregnant paints a mental picture, holding the back and everything that goes with the condition.
A FitBit Charge to wear on your wrist eliminates having to count the rounds of walking. Get the HR model and it will log heart rate, too. Figures in stairs. Logs sleep. Don’t swim in it, it’s not waterproof.