Photo of the Week
General Discussion
One year ago, we walked over to the parking lot at the church across the street from our house and introduced Athena to Apollo. It was love at first sight, and his owner tearfully said her goodbyes and handed over the leash. We’ve all had a few bumps and bruises since (and there was a lot of inanimate collateral damage in the beginning), but Apollo and Athena are still best buds to this day.
Last year, he ate his way out. This year, he’s cool as a cucumber.
I thought a comparison photo would be appropriate, and as you can see above, he’s come a long way with his crate training. He’ll often run to his crate without even being told when I’m getting ready to leave in the morning or just after lunch, because he knows the routine, and he’s good with it. In a few more months, we’ll start working on letting him stay out with Athena for short periods while we’re gone. We just need to work on that impulse control a bit more (don’t we all?).
He’ll be two in April, and he’s filled out a bit since we got him, though I doubt he’ll get any taller. We’ve been working on his reactivity to other dogs, especially while on leash, and when I have him out by himself, he’s starting to do much better. Athena is working on her own reactivity, so they’re still quite a handful when I walk them together, but we’re making progress, and I have plans for some more comprehensive individual training once the weather gets nicer. I don’t know if we’ll ever be able to break him of that entirely, but we’ll see.
He’s got lots of energy as a youngster (though not nearly as much as Athena), but I can see a definite lazy streak in him foreshadowing a serious couch potato nature as he matures. Whereas he and Athena drag me off the couch now, I can see myself having to drag him out for walks later in life.
His favorite thing in life is his ball, and he will chase it for a good hour in the house before he needs a break, but isn’t much for chasing it out in the yard. He’d rather chase the squirrels and bunnies. Heaven help us if he gets a hold of one – to him, all small fuzzy things are just squeaky toys meant to be destroyed.
I can’t imagine not having this big, goofy boy in our life. Yet again, the right dog found us at exactly the right time.
Currently Reading
I’m reading two books right now – The Valentine by Denise Grover Swank, and Creative Self-Publishing, by Orna Ross. Something fun, and something informational.
Incidentally, has anyone else heard about Storygraph? It’s like Goodreads, only not tied to Amazon (and from what I’ve seen so far, with less drama, but it is new). I’m trying it out for book tracking/social reading, and it seems to have a very good recommendation engine (talk about needing impulse control). Check it out, and if you join up, find me! I think we can be buddies, though I haven’t really experimented with that just yet.
Video Highlight
So…I did a thing. I joined TikTok, and of *course* my very first video was of the dogs. Check it out, if you’re so inclined:
httpss://vm.tiktok.com/TTPdSweafd/
httpss://www.tiktok.com/foryou?_r=1&_t=8QGmsl8XMFS&is_from_webapp=v1&item_id=7069980280257531182#/@jamiedebree/video/7069980280257531182
Song of the Week
This was my alternate song for the dog video. And I’ll just say up front that I know it’s by a Russian composer, and I didn’t pick it for that reason, but…I think it’s a good reminder that art transcends government and political structures.
httpss://youtu.be/M93qXQWaBdE
httpss://youtu.be/M93qXQWaBdE
Pop Quiz!
What’s the thing that tests your impulse control the most?
At the moment, mine is definitely food. *sigh* So many yummy flavors and textures…and such a good dopamine hit…
Post Round-up
The Writer’s Desk (last updated: February 26, 2022)
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