Trip to the park

Pug in the park
Originally uploaded by wombatarama

You were expecting a dog park maybe? Silly.

Unclear on the concept

There is a nice store in our neighborhood called Living Ruff. Now that the pugs know that they give out free dog cookies there, Lilly will not go for a walk in the morning unless I clearly state "we are going to the STORE."

Sometimes there are other dogs there and the excitment level gets so high that the cookie feeding frenzy looks like it's about to turn violent. This is usually Lilly's fault, so as in this picture, she gets picked up and put on the tall chair for a time-out.

Someone elsewhere on the internet commented that this was the happiest he'd ever seen someone in time-out and I realized, this is because she keeps getting cookies. I think we are a little unclear on the concept.

Internet wisdom

New optimism test, instead of "glass half empty/full?" is as follows: "Do you read the comments on things?"

-ferociousj on Twitter

General Annoucement to Pug Dogs

When I am lying in bed in the morning trying to sleep, if you absolutely must lick your foot, PLEASE do so without making that UNGODLY RACKET. I know that this is possible, because I have licked my own paw for comparison purposes and it is UTTERLY SILENT.

Thank you.

Self-Improvement

I have finally reached one of my goals in life.

For years, I have been swearing that I would stop putting my t-shirts away inside-out. Finally, in the last couple of months, I have managed to get into the habit of turning them right-side out before I fold them, when they come out of the drier inside-out, as they usually do.

Don't let anyone tell you that people can't change. I am living proof.

My theory of Art, or at least music

1. Sometimes stuff is good even if it's popular.
2. Sometimes you don't like stuff even if it's good, and there's nothing wrong with that.
3. It's only rock n roll. Don't get your knickers in a twist.


I said this somewhere else and one of my imaginary friends liked it enough to copy it onto his Facebook page, so I figured it was worth plagiarizing myself here.

Inspiration

marriedtothesea.com

Still a nation that values reading

Here's a story I forgot to tell last month, so I can give the latest update. In July, a bus driver was photographed reading a book while driving, but the story I read left out a crucial detail, resulting in this letter of mine in the Post:

I don't want to seem flippant about the safety issues involved if the Ride On bus driver in the July 14 Metro article "Bus Driver Who Had Book Is Off Md. Route for Now" was really reading while the bus was moving.

But how could your reporter have not asked the obvious question: What was the book? Those of us looking for a good summer read would be interested to know what book would deserve a blurb like "Couldn't put it down -- even when driving a bus!"

The story disappeared after that, but the resolution was hidden at the end of another article today. I was actually sort of pleased with the comparison among the punishments for the various recent offenses.

Metro has been faced with a series of embarrassing incidents involving bus and train operators this summer. The Washington Post reported this week that a train operator who tested positive for drugs is in rehab after bringing a train that was two cars too long to the Greenbelt Station. In July, another train operator was suspended for 12 days without pay after he was videotaped apparently sleeping behind the controls of a moving train.

Metrobus has also had its share of embarrassing episodes. In the past month, a driver has been charged with kidnapping a passenger; a driver was discovered driving with a suspended license; and another received a written reprimand for reading while transporting passengers.

Only a written reprimand. I still want to know what book was worth it!

Goals

Yesterday I met a local blogger and my first thought was "He sounds taller in writing." My second was that I hoped that I do too.

How to save the publishing industry

The other day I started the fourth book in a row that I did not want to continue reading past the first few chapters. And I thought, you know, maybe I just don't like to read books anymore. Lots of people never read books. Maybe I'm one of them.

Of course this makes it a bit awkward that I still want to write books. I mean, if I don't buy books anymore, how can I expect there to be an industry left to publish mine?

But my Technical Staff pointed out that the solution was very simple and logical. All I have to do is buy books and not read them. The genius of this, of course, is that it's what I am already doing. Now if we could just get more people to follow suit. Who knew that it could be so simple to save the whole book business?

Life with pugs

A while ago, I was visiting my sister in New Jersey. As we were walking with the pugs, a woman came running toward us, waving and shouting "Pugs!" She had a pug puppy with her, so of course this made perfect sense.

We stood around and talked and took photographs. It was all totally normal. The only thing that was a little unusual was that she had one of the kids run back to her house to get treats so we could show them our tricks, but it was just a couple houses down the street, so it was really no big deal.

My sister's conclusion was that pug people are nuts. I told her that even people without dogs come running after us all the time. In fact the other day, I was walking past a shop in my neighborhood WITHOUT the pugs and a woman came running out - also without a dog - to tell me that she always saw me walking past with my dogs and that she really loved them.

If a person who actually had a pug with them didn't stop, that would so be weird that it would actually be suspicious - I'd think they were fleeing a crime scene, or something. And of course, this would never happen, because anyone who had a pug would know better than to take it along to do a crime, with all the attention they attract.