So what is there to talk about? Well perhaps a little catch up, starting with the dogs as they have been the problem today. In case there are any new B’netters out there reading this we have 2 dogs: Jezebel (Jez), a 2 year old Staffy bitch, and Max, an 18 month old English Springer dog. Max is generally well behaved – Jez is just a very wilful little dog who likes to explore and get her own way.
Take today for example. For reasons that I will explain shortly, I had to cut their afternoon walk short, so Chris took Jez back out to her favourite spot, Delph Woods. Once there she had a great time, as she met her old friend Lenny the Lurcher whom she hasn’t seen for simply ages. So they had a good old play for about 45 minutes. A bit later Chris headed to the car to bring her home. Jez didn’t want to come home though, so she slunk off in the opposite direction. 15 minutes later I got a call from Chris to say he might be a while as he hadn’t seen Jez since she disappeared. By now it was starting to get a bit dark. Luckily though, just after he rang off, my mobile rang. Once I’d tracked it down (it was still in my coat pocket) it turned out to be one of the dog walkers we meet. Had I lost Jez? Cos she had her. It took Chris another 15 minutes to finally meet up and get her back. So the short walk he’d planned dragged out to something of a marathon.
Yesterday was the same (well almost). It was pouring with rain yesterday morning, which Jez usually hates. I took the dogs over the Heath and normally get her back on the lead towards the end of the walk before she has a chance to run off and explore the woods that border the main road. Yesterday she was way ahead of me and, I thought, heading back to the car at great speed due to the increasingly heavy rain. But when I got there (I was pulled in just off the road), no Jez. No, she was off exploring the local housing estate!
She’s a little terror. We thought we’d cracked this running off business – she has been really good of late (well, apart from the odd incident), but this past week she’s been a real pain and it’s happening more frequently again. And it’s worrying. Not that she’s get into trouble as such, as she’s such a friendly little soul, and people look at her little face and say ‘Ah, isn’t she lovely’. We worry more about her running across a road and getting hit by a car.
Anyway, the reason I had to cut the dogs’ afternoon walk short was that about 10 minutes into it (mostly taken up with throwing pine cones for them to chase) I spotted quite a bit of blood on the top of Max’s left paw. We were aware one of them had been bleeding earlier at home, but couldn’t see where it was coming from. This time though, as I looked at Max, I realise the whole of the back of his right leg was soaked with blood, and that it was dripping along the path. So home we came. I’ve washed it off and clipped the fur back and it turns out he’s sliced through the pad that’s part way up his leg. Fortunately he doesn’t stand on it, but apparently pads can take ages to heal. And we can’t stop exercising Max as he’s already a bit of a tubs who is on a permanent diet.
I’d better go now. I’m in the middle of cooking dinner. Butter Chicken, Bombay Potatoes, Rice & Nan Bread.
Saturday, 23 January 2010
It's been so Long
I feel a blog coming on. For some reason a wave of something has swept over me and I don’t know why. I just feel very down for no apparent reason all of a sudden. And that was always my trigger to blog, so here I am.
It’s an interesting question though: why I don’t blog any more? Is it that I keep up with everyone on Facebook so don’t feel I have anything to say now? Is it that my life is pretty much the same one day to the next? Is it that this used to be a Bowienet thing for me, and without Bowienet (where I hardly ever go and where very few of my old friends now seem to remain) there is no impetus? Or is it that this was always pretty cathartic for me, and I used it to share the highs and the very low lows of a period of my life that I have now left behind? Certainly, the writing as therapy was a great help and got me through some very difficult times. I have realised just how difficult they were in retrospect as I find out just how long it is taking me to break free of them. But perhaps more on that another time.
So what is the answer to the question? I think, actually, that it’s a combination of all four. It’s odd, cos I actually have the time to blog now. In fact, I have hours and hours each day in which to write, yet don’t see to feel the inclination. I’ve also tried moving my blog. So far I’ve had it on Blogspot, but I don’t think anyone sees it there and I’m not too impressed with Blogspot – so many things don’t seem to work. I’m wondering about trying Wordpress. I suppose part of the problem as well is that I used to write some things that I felt were very personal that I was happy to share with B’netters but not happy to share with the world at large. And that is still a problem for me, although I think less so than it used to be since I rarely feel the need to write about my feelings any more.
It’s interesting though. Now I’ve started the words just seem to flow as they always did. So perhaps I’ll just change what I write about. I don’t know. I’ll just have to see how it goes.
It’s an interesting question though: why I don’t blog any more? Is it that I keep up with everyone on Facebook so don’t feel I have anything to say now? Is it that my life is pretty much the same one day to the next? Is it that this used to be a Bowienet thing for me, and without Bowienet (where I hardly ever go and where very few of my old friends now seem to remain) there is no impetus? Or is it that this was always pretty cathartic for me, and I used it to share the highs and the very low lows of a period of my life that I have now left behind? Certainly, the writing as therapy was a great help and got me through some very difficult times. I have realised just how difficult they were in retrospect as I find out just how long it is taking me to break free of them. But perhaps more on that another time.
So what is the answer to the question? I think, actually, that it’s a combination of all four. It’s odd, cos I actually have the time to blog now. In fact, I have hours and hours each day in which to write, yet don’t see to feel the inclination. I’ve also tried moving my blog. So far I’ve had it on Blogspot, but I don’t think anyone sees it there and I’m not too impressed with Blogspot – so many things don’t seem to work. I’m wondering about trying Wordpress. I suppose part of the problem as well is that I used to write some things that I felt were very personal that I was happy to share with B’netters but not happy to share with the world at large. And that is still a problem for me, although I think less so than it used to be since I rarely feel the need to write about my feelings any more.
It’s interesting though. Now I’ve started the words just seem to flow as they always did. So perhaps I’ll just change what I write about. I don’t know. I’ll just have to see how it goes.
Thursday, 23 July 2009
Lacock Abbey
So, as promised, here are my photos from Lacock Abbey on Monday.
The Abbey was founded in 1232 by Ela, Countess of Salisbury who was the wife of William Longspee, the illegitimate son of Henry II. William was one of the signatories to the Magna Carta and so Lacock Abbey had one of the original copies signed by King John. It is currently housed in the British Museum.
The Abbey, which was Augustinian, prospered in the middle ages, earning it’s living from the wool trade. It housed between 15 and 25 nuns, but there were a larger number of lay sisters. However, the Abbey was dissolved by Henry VIII was part of his dissolution of the monasteries and in 1539 it was sold to Sir William Sharington, who transformed it into a family home. He preserved the medieval cloisters, sacristy, chapter house and many of the other medieval rooms, although the refectory and dormitory were converted to normal rooms. This is the sacristy…
Sharington added a 3 story tower in Italian Renaissance style and build a stable courtyard with a brewery and bakehouse.
In the 19th century Lacock Abbey was home to William Henry Fox Talbot. The photographers amogst you may know that in 1835 he created the first photographic negative. It was a view of an oriel window on the south side of the abbey (the large window on the right in this photo).
More recently Lacock is best known as the place where the cloister scenes for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone & Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets were filmed.
In these cloisters some of the original medieval wall paintings still survive. This one is of St Andrew & St Christopher.
There were also some medieval floor tiles.
As well as going round the Abbey I also had another wander round the village (you may recall that I posted some photos that Chris & took when we were there last December, but when nothing was open). This time the 13th century Tithe Barn was open…
Those are just a sample of the photos I took. If you want to see them all they are on Flickr: here.
The Abbey was founded in 1232 by Ela, Countess of Salisbury who was the wife of William Longspee, the illegitimate son of Henry II. William was one of the signatories to the Magna Carta and so Lacock Abbey had one of the original copies signed by King John. It is currently housed in the British Museum.
The Abbey, which was Augustinian, prospered in the middle ages, earning it’s living from the wool trade. It housed between 15 and 25 nuns, but there were a larger number of lay sisters. However, the Abbey was dissolved by Henry VIII was part of his dissolution of the monasteries and in 1539 it was sold to Sir William Sharington, who transformed it into a family home. He preserved the medieval cloisters, sacristy, chapter house and many of the other medieval rooms, although the refectory and dormitory were converted to normal rooms. This is the sacristy…
Sharington added a 3 story tower in Italian Renaissance style and build a stable courtyard with a brewery and bakehouse.
In the 19th century Lacock Abbey was home to William Henry Fox Talbot. The photographers amogst you may know that in 1835 he created the first photographic negative. It was a view of an oriel window on the south side of the abbey (the large window on the right in this photo).
More recently Lacock is best known as the place where the cloister scenes for Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone & Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets were filmed.
In these cloisters some of the original medieval wall paintings still survive. This one is of St Andrew & St Christopher.
There were also some medieval floor tiles.
As well as going round the Abbey I also had another wander round the village (you may recall that I posted some photos that Chris & took when we were there last December, but when nothing was open). This time the 13th century Tithe Barn was open…
Those are just a sample of the photos I took. If you want to see them all they are on Flickr: here.
Wednesday, 22 July 2009
Hope little girl
Time for a bit of a catch up, as quite a lot has been happening.
First of all Chris’ Mum & Dad had a week’s holiday in Bournemouth, so we had them, my Dad & Pat over for lunch one day. Fortunately it was before the weather turned too wet so we sat out in the garden & chatted, and I did a large salad spread for lunch. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and the 2 sets of parents met up the following day (Dad took Ann & John out into the New Forest and then back to Mudeford Quay).
We have also had Mark and Katja round for dinner (that was last week). It was so nice to see them again after all this time. We had a lovely evening chatting (it was as though we’d only seen them a short time before – we just seemed to pick up where we left off). Dinner went down ok. I did Thai Fishcakes, followed by a Malaysian Thai Curry with rice & stirfry veg, then a summer fruit and mascarpone dessert.
On the decorating front the kitchen is finished. And yesterday we finally ordered the new floor covering (which I have been meaning to do since I first re-decorated the kitchen in March 2000 !). We’ve also ordered new flooring for our en suite bathroom, and carpet for one of the bedrooms (which I plan to decorate next). I’ve still got to get new blinds for both the kitchen & bathroom. After I finished the kitchen I started decorating the main guest room (which Chris normally sleeps in). This is one of the rooms we’ve never decorated, so I’ve had to strip wallpaper, which has meant scrubbing the paste of the walls so we can paint them. And one of the walls was in a really bad condition under the paper, so took a lot of filling. Anyway, it’s now coming along nicely, although is taking 2 coats of while on the walls followed by 3 coats of colour! And the woodwork was grey, so I’m having to cover that well as I’m painting it white. I’ll move onto the 2nd guest room next – the only remaining room in the house which hasn’t been decorated since we moved in (in 1993!). But then it had been newly decorated and was quite nicely done in blue & white.
On the dog front, it was Max’s first birthday last Friday.
Of course, he had presents, which Jez had to help open…
Once opened he seemed to like them…
Chris gave them a blueberry muffin at lunchtime
And I made a Victoria sandwich which we all had later. Here are a couple more photos of the 2 of them, and a couple of Max on his afternoon walk.
And so onto Jez. Her left hind leg was getting worse, so a week last Monday I took her to the vet. He referred her on to her orthopaedic vet and we went to see him on Monday. She was booked in for a consultation and an operation. However, when we saw the vet he said there was nothing wrong with her patella at all (ie her knee wasn’t slipping). Rather, she has damaged her cruciate ligament. She had an Xray and a further examination when she was under the anaesthetic and so relaxed. He doesn’t know if it’s just strained or partially torn. For now though he’s not going to operate as it may not be needed. So he’s leaving her on her anti-inflamatory meds and as referred her for physiotherapy. I was interested to find out that Chartered Animal Physiotherapists have to first quality as a human physio (4 years) then have to do a further 2 years training in animal physio on top of that. The woman he suggested actually treats both humans and animals. I’m not sure yet whether her vet will arrange an appointment with her (as she’s in Bournemouth so about 7 miles away), or with the person they normally use who is in the New Forest and so further away. Meanwhile we have to take her for lead walks to build up her muscles so that they support the ligament and let it heal (although she is very muscular), and stop her running around like a maniac and playing with Max. The latter is not the easiest of tasks, although at least the episodes of play are sporadic throughout the day, so we just have to step in to stop them when they start.
As for me, well my hip and lower back has been quite bad, so I went to the doctor. He confirmed that it is almost certainly caused by falling oestrogen levels as a result of the menopause. I too am taking anti-inflammatories (which seem to be easing it) and have been referred for physiotherapy. The bets are on as to whether my or Jez’s physio appointment comes through first.
Lastly, which Jez was at the vet’s in Devizes, I took the opportunity to go back to Lacock and to go round the medieval Abbey there. I haven’t quite finished tweaking the photos, so I will post them separately.
First of all Chris’ Mum & Dad had a week’s holiday in Bournemouth, so we had them, my Dad & Pat over for lunch one day. Fortunately it was before the weather turned too wet so we sat out in the garden & chatted, and I did a large salad spread for lunch. Everyone seemed to enjoy themselves and the 2 sets of parents met up the following day (Dad took Ann & John out into the New Forest and then back to Mudeford Quay).
We have also had Mark and Katja round for dinner (that was last week). It was so nice to see them again after all this time. We had a lovely evening chatting (it was as though we’d only seen them a short time before – we just seemed to pick up where we left off). Dinner went down ok. I did Thai Fishcakes, followed by a Malaysian Thai Curry with rice & stirfry veg, then a summer fruit and mascarpone dessert.
On the decorating front the kitchen is finished. And yesterday we finally ordered the new floor covering (which I have been meaning to do since I first re-decorated the kitchen in March 2000 !). We’ve also ordered new flooring for our en suite bathroom, and carpet for one of the bedrooms (which I plan to decorate next). I’ve still got to get new blinds for both the kitchen & bathroom. After I finished the kitchen I started decorating the main guest room (which Chris normally sleeps in). This is one of the rooms we’ve never decorated, so I’ve had to strip wallpaper, which has meant scrubbing the paste of the walls so we can paint them. And one of the walls was in a really bad condition under the paper, so took a lot of filling. Anyway, it’s now coming along nicely, although is taking 2 coats of while on the walls followed by 3 coats of colour! And the woodwork was grey, so I’m having to cover that well as I’m painting it white. I’ll move onto the 2nd guest room next – the only remaining room in the house which hasn’t been decorated since we moved in (in 1993!). But then it had been newly decorated and was quite nicely done in blue & white.
On the dog front, it was Max’s first birthday last Friday.
Of course, he had presents, which Jez had to help open…
Once opened he seemed to like them…
Chris gave them a blueberry muffin at lunchtime
And I made a Victoria sandwich which we all had later. Here are a couple more photos of the 2 of them, and a couple of Max on his afternoon walk.
And so onto Jez. Her left hind leg was getting worse, so a week last Monday I took her to the vet. He referred her on to her orthopaedic vet and we went to see him on Monday. She was booked in for a consultation and an operation. However, when we saw the vet he said there was nothing wrong with her patella at all (ie her knee wasn’t slipping). Rather, she has damaged her cruciate ligament. She had an Xray and a further examination when she was under the anaesthetic and so relaxed. He doesn’t know if it’s just strained or partially torn. For now though he’s not going to operate as it may not be needed. So he’s leaving her on her anti-inflamatory meds and as referred her for physiotherapy. I was interested to find out that Chartered Animal Physiotherapists have to first quality as a human physio (4 years) then have to do a further 2 years training in animal physio on top of that. The woman he suggested actually treats both humans and animals. I’m not sure yet whether her vet will arrange an appointment with her (as she’s in Bournemouth so about 7 miles away), or with the person they normally use who is in the New Forest and so further away. Meanwhile we have to take her for lead walks to build up her muscles so that they support the ligament and let it heal (although she is very muscular), and stop her running around like a maniac and playing with Max. The latter is not the easiest of tasks, although at least the episodes of play are sporadic throughout the day, so we just have to step in to stop them when they start.
As for me, well my hip and lower back has been quite bad, so I went to the doctor. He confirmed that it is almost certainly caused by falling oestrogen levels as a result of the menopause. I too am taking anti-inflammatories (which seem to be easing it) and have been referred for physiotherapy. The bets are on as to whether my or Jez’s physio appointment comes through first.
Lastly, which Jez was at the vet’s in Devizes, I took the opportunity to go back to Lacock and to go round the medieval Abbey there. I haven’t quite finished tweaking the photos, so I will post them separately.
Tuesday, 7 July 2009
All the days of my life
I know, I know, I haven’t written for ages. It’s not that I don’t have the time either – I seem to spend hours either on Twitter or playing computer games (those silly little puzzle ones). But I still think its also a measure of how far I have come, in that I don’t feel the need to write on here anymore. Things may not be perfect in my life, but they are a damned sight better than they were.
I realised very recently thought that I can still get upset by internet communications. I can easily take things personally when they are not directed at me, and it’s easy to mis-interpret what others say. And then I get all upset, and over what. Most probably something (if it’s anything at all and not my imagination) that has nothing to do with me. And part of it is that the internet lulls you into a feeling that you know someone, when in fact you don’t know them at all. And that really doesn’t help.
But enough of that. The reason I decided to write today was a feeling I have last night. I believe I am coming to the point where I have finally left work, and all the upset it caused me, behind. I still don’t like to think about it too much, but it definitely feels like it’s firmly in the past. Which is good, as perhaps soon I will be ready to move on. I have been thinking about volunteering to help with a local dog rescue charity. And it was thinking about that, and the skills that I may have to offer them, that led to the surprise feeling about the matter that I had last night. Thinking about what I used to do, the positions I held and my level of seniority I found that I couldn’t believe it was the same person as me. I found myself asking ‘How did I manage that? I am just not that good at anything.’ (And I’m not trying to put myself down here, just stating what I see to be the facts.) I had to question whether I had just managed to rise to the level of my own incompetence (like many others I came across). Certainly for a while in Edinburgh it seemed that I was totally incompetent. But so many times when I worked with people whom I valued, many in very senior positions in what is a very large banking & insurance group, they valued my skills and abilities and trusted my opinions. I was known to get things done. But like I say, that seems like a different person – I can’t believe that was me. It is a very strange feeling.
Oh well, moving on. Not a huge amount has been happening. I have re-decorated the kitchen and finally painted all the internal doors. Now I am about to start on the second bedroom (which has entailed first clearing out the 3rd bedroom). Max has settled in really well and has turned into a very nice dog. He’s still a great big dopey lump though! He will be a year old in just over a week. Jez remains the little sweetheart-terror she has always been. She just breaks my heart most days: partly because she is so independent and won’t allow any shows of affection (no hugs), and partly because her left knee is really playing up. She is on new meds, but we have to restrict her walks and she is often very stiff and clearly in pain. She won’t be two until September. All we can do is try and make her life as interesting and comfortable as possible. She and Max get on really well though, and it’s great to see how happy he makes her.
Oh well, better get on. Poop to scoop and a bedroom to clear out.
I realised very recently thought that I can still get upset by internet communications. I can easily take things personally when they are not directed at me, and it’s easy to mis-interpret what others say. And then I get all upset, and over what. Most probably something (if it’s anything at all and not my imagination) that has nothing to do with me. And part of it is that the internet lulls you into a feeling that you know someone, when in fact you don’t know them at all. And that really doesn’t help.
But enough of that. The reason I decided to write today was a feeling I have last night. I believe I am coming to the point where I have finally left work, and all the upset it caused me, behind. I still don’t like to think about it too much, but it definitely feels like it’s firmly in the past. Which is good, as perhaps soon I will be ready to move on. I have been thinking about volunteering to help with a local dog rescue charity. And it was thinking about that, and the skills that I may have to offer them, that led to the surprise feeling about the matter that I had last night. Thinking about what I used to do, the positions I held and my level of seniority I found that I couldn’t believe it was the same person as me. I found myself asking ‘How did I manage that? I am just not that good at anything.’ (And I’m not trying to put myself down here, just stating what I see to be the facts.) I had to question whether I had just managed to rise to the level of my own incompetence (like many others I came across). Certainly for a while in Edinburgh it seemed that I was totally incompetent. But so many times when I worked with people whom I valued, many in very senior positions in what is a very large banking & insurance group, they valued my skills and abilities and trusted my opinions. I was known to get things done. But like I say, that seems like a different person – I can’t believe that was me. It is a very strange feeling.
Oh well, moving on. Not a huge amount has been happening. I have re-decorated the kitchen and finally painted all the internal doors. Now I am about to start on the second bedroom (which has entailed first clearing out the 3rd bedroom). Max has settled in really well and has turned into a very nice dog. He’s still a great big dopey lump though! He will be a year old in just over a week. Jez remains the little sweetheart-terror she has always been. She just breaks my heart most days: partly because she is so independent and won’t allow any shows of affection (no hugs), and partly because her left knee is really playing up. She is on new meds, but we have to restrict her walks and she is often very stiff and clearly in pain. She won’t be two until September. All we can do is try and make her life as interesting and comfortable as possible. She and Max get on really well though, and it’s great to see how happy he makes her.
Oh well, better get on. Poop to scoop and a bedroom to clear out.
Wednesday, 27 May 2009
The girl on the phone wouldn't leave me alone
OMG it’s been so long since I last wrote one of these things! I don’t know where time goes. As I said in my reply to my last post, I seem to spend hours on the internet but rarely get near B’net and don’t get round to blogging. I suppose there is an upside to that, in that I used to blog when I was stressed and depressed, and now don’t feel the need to. Must be a sign that I’m in a much better place from a mental point of view.
So, let’s see. What’s been going on?
Apologies to those of you who’ve seen all of this on Facebook or Twitter btw.
Anyway, firstly I’ve got two poorly dogs. Jez went down with Kennel Cough (doggie bronchitis) last week and was quite ill with it. The vet said Staffies get it badly due to the shape of their chest cavities or something, and there is a danger of it turning to pneumonia. It took about 3 days for her temperature to come down and she was really out of sorts. She’s much better now though and finished her antibiotics this morning. And she’s back having walks – well, mostly only one walk a day at the moment. But now Max has got it. He started coughing last night. He’s nowhere near as bad as Jez though, apart from the fact he managed to projectile vomit all over my bed this morning! So I’ve just taken him to the vet and picked up more antibiotics.
Me, I’ve gone all geeky and got myself a G3 iPhone. I’m really pleased with it except that it’s worse at syncing with the PC that my old IPaq was. And itunes even makes Sony’s Sonic Stage look robust and sophisticated (I’m not impressed). But I can tweet from the phone as I have unlimited internet access on the contract I’m on (although at home it picks up our wireless network). I also have 10 hours of calls a month, but no way will I use even a quarter of that – not only do I have very few people to phone but I never call anyway. I think I caught phone phobia off my father.
And I’ve discovered AudioBoos. For those of you who don’t know of them, the site allows you to make short recordings of up to 5 minutes on your phone and publish them. I Boo when I’m out walking. So if you want to listen to a few WalkingBoos, here are the links.
18 May
19 May
20 May
20May 2
22 May
23 May
24 May
25May
26 May
Let me see, what else is there. Oh yes, Chris has joined Facebook, so I keep joking saying I’ll have to watch what I say in future. And I entered a comp. Duncan ran on Twitter to win a signed Moon – poster. You had to write a poem about a geeky pastime. I didn’t win but I did get an honourable mention.
Finally we’ve (well, mainly I’ve) been decorating the kitchen (AGAIN). We had the tiles replaced and that meant we had to redecorate. It’s a pale shade of pink now: a bit paler than I wanted, but Chris insisted the colour I chose for the cupboard doors was too dark.
There, I think that will do for now. If I think of anything else I can always add it.
Oh – I new there was something else. I got some doggie clippers and gave Max a haircut yesterday. It didn’t go too badly, although Chris is blaming the fact he’s got a cough on the haircut – says I sapped all of his strength – LOL! Here’s a couple of before and after photos.
So, let’s see. What’s been going on?
Apologies to those of you who’ve seen all of this on Facebook or Twitter btw.
Anyway, firstly I’ve got two poorly dogs. Jez went down with Kennel Cough (doggie bronchitis) last week and was quite ill with it. The vet said Staffies get it badly due to the shape of their chest cavities or something, and there is a danger of it turning to pneumonia. It took about 3 days for her temperature to come down and she was really out of sorts. She’s much better now though and finished her antibiotics this morning. And she’s back having walks – well, mostly only one walk a day at the moment. But now Max has got it. He started coughing last night. He’s nowhere near as bad as Jez though, apart from the fact he managed to projectile vomit all over my bed this morning! So I’ve just taken him to the vet and picked up more antibiotics.
Me, I’ve gone all geeky and got myself a G3 iPhone. I’m really pleased with it except that it’s worse at syncing with the PC that my old IPaq was. And itunes even makes Sony’s Sonic Stage look robust and sophisticated (I’m not impressed). But I can tweet from the phone as I have unlimited internet access on the contract I’m on (although at home it picks up our wireless network). I also have 10 hours of calls a month, but no way will I use even a quarter of that – not only do I have very few people to phone but I never call anyway. I think I caught phone phobia off my father.
And I’ve discovered AudioBoos. For those of you who don’t know of them, the site allows you to make short recordings of up to 5 minutes on your phone and publish them. I Boo when I’m out walking. So if you want to listen to a few WalkingBoos, here are the links.
18 May
19 May
20 May
20May 2
22 May
23 May
24 May
25May
26 May
Let me see, what else is there. Oh yes, Chris has joined Facebook, so I keep joking saying I’ll have to watch what I say in future. And I entered a comp. Duncan ran on Twitter to win a signed Moon – poster. You had to write a poem about a geeky pastime. I didn’t win but I did get an honourable mention.
Finally we’ve (well, mainly I’ve) been decorating the kitchen (AGAIN). We had the tiles replaced and that meant we had to redecorate. It’s a pale shade of pink now: a bit paler than I wanted, but Chris insisted the colour I chose for the cupboard doors was too dark.
There, I think that will do for now. If I think of anything else I can always add it.
Oh – I new there was something else. I got some doggie clippers and gave Max a haircut yesterday. It didn’t go too badly, although Chris is blaming the fact he’s got a cough on the haircut – says I sapped all of his strength – LOL! Here’s a couple of before and after photos.
Monday, 4 May 2009
What in the world can you do?
What I can’t understand is why, after all the time and effort, it turns out that we – or should I say I? –are absolutely crap when it comes to dog training. You watch all these programmes on TV and they make it look so effortless. Any fool can do it – can’t they? I know all the theory. I’ve read the books, I’ve researched the internet, and I’ve watched the programmes – hours of them. And then I get my dogs and it all goes hopelessly wrong. You see, it turns out neither of them have read the books, done any research, or watched the TV programmes. So they don’t know how they are supposed to behave. In fact, they don’t behave anything like those dogs you see and read about at all.
The reason for this outburst is Jez. Well, mainly Jez. She’s decided she is definitely not coming back to us, unless it’s under her terms, i.e. normally when he’s worn out or bored with sniffing around. And worse, yesterday Chris took her over the Heath (to test whether she won’t come back to me over the Heath or whether she just won’t come back) and she ran off. Chris lost her while she decided she was going to explore the local housing estate. I got a panic phone call while I was in the middle of painting the kitchen.
Obviously we did get her back, but we really don’t know what to do about her. And her trainer seems to have run out of ideas. So since then I’ve had her on the lead. I’m trying to do recall training with her on the extendable lead. But I’ve tried this before and it hasn’t worked yet, so I don’t know what makes me think it will work this time. You know, if you keep doing the same thing, you get the same results. Trouble is, I don’t know what else to do.
And, of course, everyone you meet is an expert. They all know exactly what you should do, having watched TV or tried something that worked for them, or having known someone who knew someone who had a dog that it worked for. But of course, their dogs aren’t Jez. She is a law all unto herself.
Worse still, Max seems to be catching her bad habits. At the moment though, I’m putting it down to his age (terrible teens for a dog) and gaining more confidence. I just keep plugging away at him. He should settle down better.
And what’s worse virtually everyone I see has their dog quietly trotting out there side, doing what they’re told. Everyone except me. If my two are off lead they are about 20-30m ahead of me (but rarely together), and if they’re on lead at least one of them is pulling like mad. Sometimes both of them are – normally in different directions. My shoulder, far from getting better is getting worse. And my left glute is really painful again – which I’m pretty certain is from the dogs pulling.
So all in all feel like a complete and total failure. My Dad says I should give them a good thump - but I refuse to do that. I do get really upset about it though, and often it keeps me awake at night. I don’t know what to do, or where to turn for help that isn’t going to cost me a fortune. And the bit that really upsets me? These behaviourists say you have to make yourself interesting to your dogs. And just how am I supposed to do that? Once again, I’ve tried it all. I’ve even laid flat on my back in the middle of the woods. But in the end, to know that your dog would rather be doing anything other than to be with you really hurts.
The reason for this outburst is Jez. Well, mainly Jez. She’s decided she is definitely not coming back to us, unless it’s under her terms, i.e. normally when he’s worn out or bored with sniffing around. And worse, yesterday Chris took her over the Heath (to test whether she won’t come back to me over the Heath or whether she just won’t come back) and she ran off. Chris lost her while she decided she was going to explore the local housing estate. I got a panic phone call while I was in the middle of painting the kitchen.
Obviously we did get her back, but we really don’t know what to do about her. And her trainer seems to have run out of ideas. So since then I’ve had her on the lead. I’m trying to do recall training with her on the extendable lead. But I’ve tried this before and it hasn’t worked yet, so I don’t know what makes me think it will work this time. You know, if you keep doing the same thing, you get the same results. Trouble is, I don’t know what else to do.
And, of course, everyone you meet is an expert. They all know exactly what you should do, having watched TV or tried something that worked for them, or having known someone who knew someone who had a dog that it worked for. But of course, their dogs aren’t Jez. She is a law all unto herself.
Worse still, Max seems to be catching her bad habits. At the moment though, I’m putting it down to his age (terrible teens for a dog) and gaining more confidence. I just keep plugging away at him. He should settle down better.
And what’s worse virtually everyone I see has their dog quietly trotting out there side, doing what they’re told. Everyone except me. If my two are off lead they are about 20-30m ahead of me (but rarely together), and if they’re on lead at least one of them is pulling like mad. Sometimes both of them are – normally in different directions. My shoulder, far from getting better is getting worse. And my left glute is really painful again – which I’m pretty certain is from the dogs pulling.
So all in all feel like a complete and total failure. My Dad says I should give them a good thump - but I refuse to do that. I do get really upset about it though, and often it keeps me awake at night. I don’t know what to do, or where to turn for help that isn’t going to cost me a fortune. And the bit that really upsets me? These behaviourists say you have to make yourself interesting to your dogs. And just how am I supposed to do that? Once again, I’ve tried it all. I’ve even laid flat on my back in the middle of the woods. But in the end, to know that your dog would rather be doing anything other than to be with you really hurts.
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