Fat Weiner
All we hear on the news is obesity, Obsesity, and OBESITY. Yes, it’s a problem. We mostly hear about its dangers for us and our children. But, it is also a big – pardon that choice of words – problem for our pets. If we do not feed and exercise them correctly, they will gain weight just as we do. That’s our topic for #PetRap this Sunday, July 14 – right before #blogchat – at 5:00 – 6:00 p.m. PT/8:00 – 9:00 p.m. ET.
C’mon, what is the title of this photo? You know it! – – Fat Cat!
Pets and our kids is our #PetRap topic this Sunday – at our NEW TIME of 5:00 – 6:00 p.m. PT/8:00 – 9:00 p.m. ET. We will lead in to the wonderful #blogchat that begins immediately afterward. My little boy poked our beloved Mazel in the eye and got a nip on his face as a consequence. The tiny scar is still there on his 19-year-old face. We saw it happen and we knew is was not our dog’s fault, but it raised the question of safety in our home vis-a-vis our dog and our son.
Everyone who has pets has had those times when their pet does something that simply makes you giggle. Call it a quirk; call it personality; call it whatever! It’s one of the many joys of having pets in your life. Let’s get together this Sunday, June 9 at noon – 1:00 p.m. PT/3:00 – 4:00 p.m. ET and share some of those funny pet quirks.
#PetRap is finally here! If you’re a pet-lover, like me, you’re slightly kooky, passionate, and loving. It goes with the territory. #PetRap begins this Sunday, May 26, 2013 at noon -1:00 p.m. PT/3:00 – 4:00 p.m. ET, with a favorite pet photo contest. Just for the fun of it. Bring your fav photo and we’ll have two winners. The prize for the winners is PDF copies of my two books, but the big WIN is the bragging rights. I am promising to create a community of pet lovers that will get together on lazy Sundays to have fun together. This is NOT going to be an activist community.
NOTE: I just discovered that there is an existing PetChat so we’re going to be #PetRap. Please note hashtag change!
All photos must be submitted DURING our first #PetRap hour on Sunday, May 26 between 12:00 p.m. and 1:00 p.m. PT/3:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. ET. The winners will be announced at next week’s #PetRap and their photos posted in next week’s #PetRap pre-chat post!
Charlotte is my wife’s dog. She’s a Weimaraner and she’s been through hell and back. But, she’s still livin’ life, lovin’ life, and her attitude is a lesson for us all. I love Charlotte. She has spunk and unlike the classic exchange from the Mary Tyler Moore” television show: “Lou: You know what? You’ve got spunk. Mary: Well, yes… Lou: I hate spunk.” Unlike Lou, I like spunk!
I love my wife, I love my boys, and I love my dogs. In that order. As I re-married after a contentious divorce, the blending of my family—my two boys, my two dogs, and me with her and her one dog, was a challenge. She had to deal with more adaptation, without a doubt, but we had to deal with a woman in our midst and one that, surprise surprise, actually cared about cleanliness and order.
For me, the biggest challenge in dealing with the mostly positive changes in our all male household, was giving up the warmth and companionship of my dogs, in bed with me. They were there, for me, in the darkest hours of my separation and divorce, when my boys were with their mom, when our then large home felt cavernous and terribly quiet and empty, and I literally think they saved my sanity.
As my kids get older, each touching corny moment (and I mean “touching” literally, as well as figuratively) becomes more and more fleeting. As I have two boys, the amount of kissing and hugging is reduced to the point of pretty much shaking hands, and with my younger son (13), an occasional hug and air peck on the cheek. At least my (3) dogs still give me affection (and, my wife, of course – if I didn’t say that I’d be in the “dog-house”).
BUT, I had one of those “at this age” unusual and rare sappy parenting moments with my young teen when he and I went to see AVATAR. It was Saturday night so we thought getting there an hour early would be time enough to get tickets for the 7:00 p.m. show. Nope, sold out. So, we got them for the 8:00 p.m. show and went for dinner.
This past Winter Break I ended up with some alone time as my wife and younger son went to Japan and my older one, 16, stayed home to be with his friends and his girlfriend. I went alone to the mountains to ski. I used to be able to bring my dog, Simon, but the place where I stay has begun enforcing archaic HOA rules forbidding dogs of guests. So, instead of a warm, furry body next to me, I had the cold sheets and my wandering mind for company.
