In My Life: June 2008

Wednesday, June 18, 2008

The Grandpuppies Come To Visit!

What a parent won't do for their kids ... doesn't matter if you are talking about Mom and Dad or Dog Mom and Dog Dad.

That would include driving 318 miles, round-trip to meet our son and daughter-in-law and pick up the grand puppies, Abby and Spencer, so their Mom and Dad can enjoy four days of camping in the Boundary Waters. Yes ... they have some very nice kennels where our children live but I wouldn't be able to sleep thinking about Ab's and Spencer in a kennel - but I couldn't stand the mental picture of Abby and Spencer with their cute little noses pressed against the chain link fencing wondering when their time in crate-jail would be up. Even with gas approaching $4.00 a gallon, it was cheaper than baking a cake with a file and delivering it to the far reaches of the earth. And then there is that issue of the absence of opposing thumbs on dogs and their inability to use a file.

Spencer is one of 'our' puppies - the unabashedly alpha tri-colour whose personality and drive made us fall in love with her from the moment she arrived. The sentiment is not, however, shared by her sister, Lucy. Whenever Spencer arrives for a visit, Lucy - otherwise known as HRH The Queen of Everything and MeMe Von Lucy - would make sure Spencer knew who was the Queen - that is until their mother, Emma, was around - the alpha of the dog family.

Abby, a 4-year old Flat-Coat Retriever, is the newest member of our family. She was surrendered when her previous owners could no longer care of her due to a diagnosis of cancer in the family. Chris & Ashley located her and fell in love with her. A new forever home meant a name change from Sabrina - to Abby. She is smart, head-strong and such a joy of life and fits in with so well with our family you'd think she was one of 'ours.' In fact - I'm certain she thinks she's an English cocker.

The two 'extra' kennels have been added to what we refer to as the "Cocker Hotel" and to keep everyone on equal footing, I've arranged a full itinerary here at Camp Cocker where we are equal opportunity puppy providers - even if you look like a Flat Coat Retriever.

Monday, June 16, 2008

In Honor of Dad

Once upon a time - in the not too distant past - while presenting dad with his Fathers Day gifts, dad picked up a wrapped box - holding it next to his forehead (a la Johnny Carson's Karnack) my dad made a guess at his gift, "Plaid or plain." My sisters and I, who until then were beside ourselves with excitement at having dad open his presents, were crestfallen. The gift, a pair of golf shorts, were, in fact, plaid. And so was born the family joke, uttered at every gift opening event ... plaid or plain.

Mercifully for my mother, she no longer has to worry about what gifts 'the girls' are going to get for Dad; I can't imagine how difficult it must have been to come up with several gift ideas, back when she had to help us pick out Dad's gifts. He is as difficult to shop for as he is to cook for - raspberry pie, Aunt Florence's rye bread and rice krispie treats not withstanding. If you buy him a jacket, he might enjoy it as long as the sleeves aren't too tight around the wrist and the collar is soft enough - sweatshirts can't be too baggy and knit shirts need to be the perfect weight. Which probably explains why he has enough hankerchiefs to last to the middle of the century.

My dad has coined a number of 'ism's' that are now family legend from "I wouldn't walk down the street for this" (describing the main entree at Easter Brunch) to "plaid or plain." I inherited my father's sense of humor, being at ease in new situations, love of Big Band era music (especially Sinatra) and a touch of clairvoyant.

Happy Plaid Father's Day Dad ... plain just isn't in your vocabulary.

photo in possession of Cindy Bergeron Scherwinski; Bergeron Family Papers

Friday, June 13, 2008

That First Akward Post

A blank canvas ... a clean slate ... unlimited possibilities. I feel like the first day of school with an armload of notebooks filled with bright, white paper and a packet of pencils. Okay ... here we are with the brand new blog and very little idea of how to begin. Yup ... okay ... uh-huh ..

When in doubt - bring out the puppies. After all they're cute and a great way to break the ice.

Not actually a puppy ... but pretty darned close. Jinny is our 4-1/2 year old English cocker spaniel and as you can see ... she can peg the needle on the cute meter without breaking a sweat.

Whew .. creating an account, overcoming that first akward 'what do I say' post AND uploading a photograph? I feel like I've just received a gold star sticker!