dogs in the rain

So, Sal's other Grandma died. I feel sad because my mom is dead. I liked Millie also, back when I used to hang out with her. She was funny and quirky and a pretty good cook. She sired some sensitive boys and they seem to have done the same. Now the only grandparent Sal has, besides step-types, is my dad. An amusing and annoying fact. I miss my mom, its strange how life goes on without people even though you may not want it to be all regular.

So last night there was a zine/printed works fair over at the Northampton town. Actually, I may have been the only one with "zines". There were people with gorgeous printed art work and one annoying lady with bad teeth who had a "literary quarterly". Whatev. It was kind of neat to see my work all laid out there. I didn't have every single issue of Who Is Johnny Cash? (there were 45 of them spanning from 1995-2000) But a fellow bought every issue I had with turned out to be 36. Then the same fellow (a collector of cool things, I guess) wanted one of all the others. I had all the issues of The Observation Deck with me and he bought the 15 of those (spanning from 02-07) and he wanted all 6 of this year's Pawl Bitt. His request was a little mindblowing and I was perfectly straight when he asked for one of each but I was so flabbergasted at the request that David had to help me put them together for the guy. We gave him a deal, 56 zines for $50.

On Wednesday I finished issue 6 of Pawl Bitt, specifically to have for the event, and I was so happy and excited that I put it up on Etsy with the other five issues and before I was able to push "refresh" so I could see all the issues lined up pretty I noticed that iss 6 was gone! Some nut had purchased it within the 3 minutes I was loading the thing. I had to relist it and then I noticed, 12 hours later, some wacky lady from Cedar Rapids bought the entire catalog of Pawl Bitt. So now I have to mail her the things and relist again! I actually never imagined selling the things on Etsy, truth be told, I only print the things to keep the US postal service in business, ha ha. So it has been a busy and exciting zine week. I took #6 to the H+O to hand out to the stars of the issue and I was amused to overhear Jim say to some employee who works there as he showed it to her, "guess who that person is?" "guess who that is?" I think I am going to do one more bug and restaurant issue to make it a set of three and then do a different type of theme. We'll see.

David bought a butcher block table for the kitchen and I am getting used to it slowly. We've been hanging around drinking coffee on it and it is beautiful. I can't wait to roll out some dough on it. It's almost cool enough to bake today.

so! flowers lovers and plant observers, pay heed:

Hey!

remember a couple blogs ago when I wrote about those darn morning glories?
well, they are a-bloomin' now! check out the ones on the back porch:
This is today when I counted 13 flowers. There were two clusters of five and then three more scattered along the vine.




This is the vine I began at home and brought to work.



Sometimes the flowers don't pop first thing in the morning, sometimes they need a second cup of coffee,



and sometimes, most of the time, they are just perfectly lovely.



The plants have been very thirsty this year. Maybe we should all water our plants now. Don't forget!!

I love Pickles

For the last week or so (since Wed Aug 5) I have had something in my eye and went to various eye doctor appt and put loads of drops and unguent in my right eye until yesterday I achieved healthiness. I only felt sorry for myself 2% of the time between Aug 5 and 17th.

Monday I felt worse than ever because my dog Pickles was acting funny. Every day I take him for at least 2 walks and before we go and after we come back I make him sit on the top stair to get his leash put on and taken off. He was very reluctant to do so monday morning and then on monday night when he did the same I pointed it out to DbR who surmised that he was sick, constipated or the like. I immediately feared the worst because that dog eats a lot of crap, pieces of balls, plastic, rubber and the like. Luckily, he has somewhat of a cast iron belly and everything has passed through but he has never acted like he did Monday night after I put his leash on him (without really making him sit) and taking him out.

He walked willingly but with his tail down, tucked between his legs in a most disconcerting way. I realized it was a very uncommon sight and worried very ardently. He did have a bm and picked up his pace a little but not his tail. He continued to haunt the Bricker with his listlessness the next day when I took him out for his morning walk. DbR mentioned he had a morning success in the yard but his tail wasn't too perky and neither was he.

I came home for lunch and he didn't greet me at the door like Peretz did but did get off his bed for an outdoor visit and a treat. I gave him a biscuit with a little peanut butter. I thought about him all afternoon and decided I would give him a treat that night. On the way home I bought a soft serve vanilla ice cream cone from the Pete's Fried Fish Restaurant and when I arrived home Pickles greeted me at the door with a ball in his mouth and his tail up! The three of us went out on the back porch where I ate my third of the treat and gave him the rest. I watched him lick it and thought of the ice cream cone dog and master story shared by DbR's parents and smiled a little at Pickles crunching into the cone. The rest of the night passed with Pickles acting completely normal! He chewed on the bone, loitered in the kitchen while David cooked, begged under the dinner table as we ate our corn on the cob and barked out the window at KiKi the neighborhood calico.

I'm so happy to have a healthy pup!