Random Thoughts

Poodle Promises

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I met a 22-year old poodle this week, and he gave me hope.

Let me explain.

Small white poodle sitting on a sofa with 6 plastic squeaky balls at his feet

Benji

<—This is Benji. He was the first dog that was only mine. I adopted him when he was 6 months old, after he’d been abandoned and passed around so much that he became permanently scarred for life. I promised I would never abandon him, and I didn’t. After years of illness, he crossed the Rainbow Bridge at 16 1/2. I was heartbroken.

Six months after I lost Benji, I adopted Duncan. In some ways, Duncan has turned out to be more my soul dog than Benji ever was. Like me, he’s an introvert, an observer. He too was abandoned, found in an open field during a polar vortex winter. I adopted him a couple of months later, and I made him the same promise I made Benji: I will never abandon you. At the time, Duncan was almost completely shut down. It’s taken time, but finally, in the last few years, he’s started to show his personality. It turns out, he’s a funny little man.

When I adopted Duncan, I was still grieving Benji. Duncan was 7 1/2 when I got him, and I knew I would have fewer years with him than I had with Benji. So I asked Duncan to make me a promise: stay with me for 8 years.

Duncan

It’s a promise he seems to be keeping. Duncan is now 14. He’s in perfect health; the vet said he’s the healthiest 14-year-old she’s ever seen. In the back of my mind, though, I’ve known we’re approaching that eight year mark, that my time with him is likely winding down.

Enter Cooper, the 22-year-old poodle.

There’s no question Cooper is an old man. In fact, he’s the oldest living poodle I’ve ever met. He has clearly been loved and cared for, like Duncan is. And it hit me: if Cooper can live to be 22, so can Duncan.

So I came home after meeting Cooper the Elder and asked Duncan for a new promise: stay with me until you’re 22.

So far, he hasn’t said no.

Giving Thanks

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It’s Thanksgiving day here in the United States, and as is my tradition, I’m making an inventory of what I’m grateful for.

This year, Twitter is at the top of my list. I joined Twitter eleven years ago. I had been working from home for a couple of years at that point, and I was eager for some “water cooler” conversation. I found so much more, though—a community and friendships that have helped me through difficult times. I don’t know what Twitter’s future holds, but I will always be grateful for the people I found there.

Whatever you are thankful for, and however you are spending today, I wish you a Happy Thanksgiving. Thank you for spending part of it here with me.

WANTED: One Time-Turner

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Remember the time-turner in the Harry Potter stories? The one that Hermione used to double up on her classes? The one that she used to help save Buckbeak and Sirius Black?

I need one.

It doesn’t need to be new. I don’t even need to own it. Borrowing it for what’s left of the month of November would be enough. Because whoo, boy, is my plate overly full for the next few weeks.

First, I need someone to tell me how the heck we’re already in November. Shouldn’t it still be August? I swear I blinked, and the calendar pages just flew away.

Now I have two weeks to get about four weeks’ worth of tasks done. Some are work tasks, and boy, am I feeling the pressure there. I have manuscripts to review that are coming in faster than I can read them. I have templates I need to create so that the next set of manuscripts can be written. And I need to map out the curriculum for our next project before the end of the month, because we need to have the budget and pricing done by mid-December.

Then there are home tasks in preparation for my family’s arrival for the Thanksgiving holiday. Things like making sure I have enough seats for everyone (Spoiler: I don’t. Yet.) and making sure my dining table is cleared off so we have a place to eat (which means finding a place for all the random stuff that currently call my dining table home).

I’m also in the middle of redoing my home office. I switched jobs in September, and while I still work from home, I have found that the new job requires slightly different logistics than my previous one. So my home office is currently mid-rearrange while I wait for the furniture I ordered to arrive.

Plus there’s the usual time needed for the normal day-to-day stuff—cooking, cleaning, taking care of the dogs, writing, reading, walking, etc.

I feel like I need another 12 hours in a day.

So if you happen to have a lead on a time turner, please do let me know.