waiting patiently

Then not so much...
Murray loves chasing after things. This neon frisbee is a particular favorite. He'll even sit & stay for it when I tell him to. For a minute, anyway. I'm hoping to expand that minute to 5 when we finish taking the obedience class I just signed us up for..."Bachelor of Arfs." What a name...lol.

haircut #2

There hasn't been too many exciting things happening in Murray's or my life recently, so this post is just to chronicle his latest haircut. Timing and money just haven't been good, and it was getting almost to the point of his previous haircut, which, if you recall, was that he was so matted, they were forced to shave all his hair off.

Well, the other night, a group of us from work had gone out to dinner, and while we were talking, it came up that one of the guys' daughters had started up her own dog grooming business. One thing led to another, and Murray & I found ourselves at her place yesterday. I came prepared with pictures. I'm sure they were thinking I was like one of those woman who goes into a beauty shop with a picture they cut out of a magazine and expects the stylist to make them look just like it...ain't gonna happen. It's just that I didn't want to go through the same debacle as last time. So, I showed them before and after pictures, as well as one that approximated how I liked his hair to look, trimmed around his face, but still scruffy looking the rest of his body.

Two hours later, I got a call that he was done. I was leery of walking in, not sure what to expect. Overall, he looked pretty good. Though, she trimmed too much around his eyes, and took way too much off his best features...his eyelashes and his ears. They'll grow back, soon, I hope. Here's what he looks like today:

If you click on the picture to enlarge it, you may be able to make out the side-part she gave him, where his hair used to stand up. Gives him almost a debonair look that reminds me of the dog in the recent movie who plays a movie actor that has all these different wigs that he wears (can't remember the name of it).

At first, I was thinking the cut around his face was like the typical schnauzer cut, but I changed my mind. I think it's more like the typical westy look (west highland terrier), which I prefer over the schnauzer, but not over his shaggy look. Oh well, at least it's not matted anymore, and it'll grow back.

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On a side note, this morning Murray did something on command, which I had tried teaching him a long time ago and gave up on it months ago. I said, "go get your leash," not really expecting him to, but trying to keep him occupied while I was putting on my sneakers. Darn if he didn't go over to it. And so, I kept encouraging him - "get it, Murray, get it," and he put it in his mouth. "WOW," I thought. "Ok, bring it here, Muray, bring it here." The next thing I know, he's pulling it off the chair, somehow wrapping it around his neck, and he came prancing over to me with it.

Hmmmmm...maybe that was all just a dream. After all, I really was only half-awake. That's the only thing that could explain it.

not as bad as it looks

Sweet, little, adorable Murray:

The same sweet, little, adorable doggie playing with his cousin:

Murray doesn't let the fact that his cousin is four times his size deter him from having some "fun." In fact, it is that much more fun because his cousin is so much bigger, as evidenced by the following video:

murray gets his first bath

...at least, the first one at the hands of his mommy, and he did surprisingly well.

Why I chose tonight to do it, I don't know. I'm not even feeling all that well. Maybe the fact that his grandmother said he stunk yesterday had something to do with it. lol...she's gonna kill me for putting that in print, but it's true nonetheless. I should add that she also said that she was surprised, because she doesn't ever remember him smelling anything but pleasant (am I forgiven, mom??)

Murray wasn't overjoyed when his paws touched the water in the tub, but I purposely didn't put it that high, since it was his first time, and I wanted to ease him into it. I even figured it might just be a water bath, as I wasn't sure he would stand for being soaped up, let alone rinsed off. When things seemed to be going halfway decent, I decided to give the shampoo a go. Although his chin area really needed it, I decided to avoid his face on this first go-round.

Trying to rinse the soap out of his hair was probably the worst part of the whole thing, as by that time, he'd just about had enough and was trying to escape. He enjoyed the toweling off, though, which he always does, even after coming in from a rainstorm. He thinks it's a game and starts attacking the towel.

Using a towel only does so much, though. So, I decided to try blow-drying him. After all, he's made it a habit to come into the bathroom while I'm drying my own hair, almost asking me to turn it towards him, which I do even if I am running late. I think he likes it, because it reminds him of car rides with the window down. Anyway, he loved the blow-drying and kept circling to help me out. Well, really, to try and nip at my fingers that were running through his hair, but I pretended like I didn't notice that :)

So, one successful bath down, many more to follow. Oh, and a bonus...when I went under the kitchen sink to get his shampoo, I discovered a whole box of dog cookies that his grandmom and cousin Oscar gave him for Christmas. I completely forgot I put them down there. Murray is one happy boy!

the best thing since sliced bread

...that's how Murray views a trip down to the basement. As soon as he sees me bundling up my laundry, his tail gets to waggin', and he races me to the door, not wanting me to leave him behind. Acting as if it is a real treat to go down there.

The funny thing is, when I first moved into this old house, I had a fear of going down into the basement. But it was either go down there or have to take my clothes to the laundromat and pay to clean them, so I begrudgingly went down those steps week after week, the fear never really going away.

Then one day, while traipsing up and down, I saw this:



It inspired me to write the following:

The day was dreary...rainy, cold and windy. I had just come up from the basement with my laundry in my hand, doing my best to duck the raindrops. As I entered my apartment, I turned to close my back door and spotted this beautiful rainbow. It reminded me how often wonderful things have followed bleak times in my life, and that if we persevere, we'll get to see the rainbow at the end.

It also gave me a different perspective of the basement.

That's what looking at the world through Murray's eyes has done for me too. Seeing it so fresh...so new. I can't imagine my life without him now.

when something becomes a habit

I think Murray's been talking to Oscar (his doggie cousin). You see, Oscar has Mom trained now to take him for a walk around the neighborhood at the crack of dawn, every morning, even in the coldest of weather. Oh sure, it's good for her, I'll admit, but you know, there are days you just want to veg. He won't let her do that. And he's one persistent fellow when he wants something, so just to shut him up, you'll do it (I know...he's got me trained to do stuff too).

Well, I thought I'd outsmart Murray...train him not to expect anything on a regular basis, other than to go outside to do his business. But something must've gone wrong with my plan, or Oscar gave him a pep talk, because the past two mornings, Murray has shown definite signs that he was waiting to go for a walk. He stood his ground where IF we go for a walk, we usually take off from, and he just stared at me. And when I asked him what he wanted, he just smiled at me and wagged his tail. How could I say no to that?

So, why is it so easy for them to train us, but when we want them to do something simple, like roll over, it's like pulling teeth???

christmas happenings

Last Monday, I arranged my first event at my new job...a holiday party for 24 at a local restaurant. It was important to me to have it come out perfect, because ummmmmm...well, because I really want to impress them so that they want to keep me. There was one hiccup, but otherwise it was a big success...Woo Hoo!

Last Monday was also Murray's first sleepover without me. Mom was kind enough to offer to watch him so that I could have a good time at the party and not worry about him. From what Mom said, he was a good little boy. Though, she could've done without his bony feet digging into her when he decided to wake her up by walking on her chest.

Another highlight so far this Christmas season was going over to Mom's house on Sunday to learn how to make her pierogies, which are a Christmas Eve tradition in our family. I asked my 12-year-old niece Christine to join us, and we had a great time. Murray was getting a bit underfoot, literally and figuratively, so I put him and his cousin Oscar out in the backyard. I got so involved in the cooking and writing down the recipe that I didn't even hear their barking. Mom finally went down to let them in and discovered it had been pouring and that they were soaked. Oops. Oh well, at least the temperature wasn't too bad.

That's all so far. Murray and I will be sleeping over Mom's for Christmas Eve. I'll fill you in on what Santa brings him. In the meanwhile, here's Mom's recipe for pierogies, which is very detailed because, what can I say, I'm anal...lol. I've added pictures of the different steps at the very end, which you can click on to enlarge.

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PIEROGIES

Pierogies are a semi-circular stuffed dumpling, which have strong ties to the Slavic culture.

Pierogies have become a Christmas Eve tradition in our family. Though, Mom makes them periodically throughout the year too. They can be made with other fillings, but we usually eat them with a mashed potato filling.

This is the recipe that was handed down to my mother from her mother-in-law (my grandmother), who was born of Ukrainian decent. Mom usually makes it by touch and sight, so the measurements are just estimates.

The following is a recipe suited for large gatherings, such as Christmas time. For a smaller meal, you'll want to half the quantities. Please note: you probably could make the mashed potatoes beforehand, but what's written below is how Mom does it, all intermixed.

• Peel and cut up potatoes and boil them in a small pot until they are soft when pierced with a fork
• At the same time, put a large pot of water to boil for the pierogies
• For dough, whisk 4 eggs in a large mixing bowl, add 3 teaspoons of salt and fill bowl half full of water. Continue to whisk and start adding all-purpose flour until consistency is too hard to keep stirring
• Put big handfuls of flour onto your work surface and add part of the dough. Gather in flour and knead dough until it is tacky not sticky
• When you think dough is ready, prepare it for rolling out by pressing down once, flip it, and press down once more
• Remember to check potatoes for doneness
• Roll out dough until the right thickness, flipping it periodically and rolling it in multiple directions, aiming for it to be round and about 1/16" to 1/8" thick (Note: If dough forms holes as you're rolling it out, it wasn't kneaded enough. So, just roll it all back together, add some flour, and knead some more before trying to roll it out again)
• Using a hamburger maker or a glass that's about 3" in circumference, cut as many circles out of the rolled-out dough as you can
• While waiting for the potatoes to finish cooking, put the circles aside, flipping them over so that the side covered in flour is against the table. Also put the spare dough aside to be re-used later
• You'll keep repeating rolling out the dough and then cutting the circles, but in the meanwhile, the potatoes should be done cooking, and you have to stop and make the mashed potatoes
• For mashed potatoes, drain the water out of the potato pot, add salt, pepper, 8 slices of american cheese, 2 sticks of butter, cover & let melt. Beat until smooth, not lumpy. (Note: Don't add milk like you might usually do for mashed potatoes, as they won't be the right consistency for the pierogi filling)
• Put about a tablespoon of potatoes into each circle of dough you cut out, fold over, and really pinch the ends together so that no openings can be seen, use some flour if you need to
• To cook pierogies, gently place 10-15 pierogies at a time into the boiling water, stir gently to make sure they are not sticking to bottom of pot or each other. They will float to the top when done, in approximately 8 minutes. Use slotted spoon to remove, put in strainer and rinse with cold water, cool, then rinse a 2nd time. (Note: The 2nd rinsing is really important, otherwise you'll wind up with just one big lump of dough) Keep repeating this until all the pierogies are done cooking.
• To serve, some people like to eat them at this point, either plain or with butter. We'll sometimes sample them, but usually when they'll totally cool, we'll place them in a plastic tub and then later on fry them up in some oil and serve them plain with butter or with fried onions. Other serving options include mushrooms and sour cream.

Some additional notes:

• You can re-use the leftover dough from cutting out the circles by combining it all together, add a small amount more of flour, roll out and cut circles. But anything leftover after that should be thrown out, as it will contain too much flour to be good.
• You can make the pierogies a day or two ahead of time if you're going to eventually fry them.
• While Mom was teaching my niece Christine and I how to make these, it took us about 1 to 1 1/2 hours to make them. We didn't count them, but we probably made between 50-60 pierogies from this batch.

hip

Sporting the new look of the season...


Murray has taken to his new all-weather jacket surprisingly well. In fact, I suspect he's up to something, because he's being too good about it all. It's so unlike him. Heck, he even sat down the first time I told him to so that I could take this picture.

Who would've thought that I'd find the perfect jacket for him at Old Navy (yes, that's how hip he is)? I almost never go in there myself...I'm nowhere near hip. I only went in to do a bit of Christmas shopping, and as I went to leave the checkout counter, there they were, a whole bunch of dog coats. And for 50% off, I might add...even better.

I couldn't tell you the number of stores I went into expressly to find Murray a coat, which was only necessitated by the whole haircutting debacle from last month. His hair is taking its own sweet time growing back in, and so with winter's chill on the way, I've been on a mad hunt for the perfect coat for his highness. So many had to be rejected, because they were either so light as to be useless, so bulky that he would have been like the marshmallow man trying to get around in it, the wrong color for his salt & pepper coloring, too girlie for this manly man, or wayyyy overpriced for my pocketbook.

The coat Murray's modeling above is a little lighter than I wanted, but it's easy to get into, water-repellent and, as I just found out tonight, reflective as well. The only downside to it is the hat. Not sure who designed it, but I don't know what they were thinking. If I put it down, it goes so low that he can't see, so I can't use it. And in weather, like tonight's wintry-mix, his poor little head got soaked.

So, if you're looking for a coat for your little boy or girl (dog, that is), make sure you check out Old Navy.

Just found a new favorite. I love it when his tongue is sticking out. Too bad I took it after I had already made the cards up.

not the final one either

outtakes

Sorry for being so lax about posting here. Haven't had much to report, and I guess Murray just hasn't been doing anything so cute that it warranted keeping you informed :)

I have been busy with my new job, which I love, but getting used to a straight 8-hour day is taking me longer than I thought. I'm tired by the time I sit down for dinner every night now, and I'm not sure why. It's not like I'm so stressed at work, because heck, they've hardly given me enough work yet to fill 6 hours, let alone 8. Maybe that's why; I'm just twiddling my thumbs too much...lol.

As for Murray, he isn't too happy about my 8 hour days, as evidenced by all the stuffing he's taken out of his pillow and then the new bed that replaced it. And I've even been stopping by during lunchtime most days. I've noticed, though, that he seems to do fine during the morning. It's just after I leave him to go back to work after lunch that he gets destructive. So, on Friday, I'm not gonna stop home at lunch to see if he'd be better off without me stopping in halfway through my shift.

We finally had our first snow yesterday, and Murray was in his glory. I had a feeling he'd love it. He was zooming around in it, he loved it so much. My old dog was the same way. I wonder why it has that effect on dogs.

I took a whole bunch of pictures of Murray the other day, hoping that I could use one of them for a Christmas Card and to post here once it got closer to the 25th. The poor dog...I must've taken about 50 pictures...lol. Giving him treats of pieces of his regular food helped. Well, I don't want to ruin the surprise of seeing his gorgeous Christmas mug, but here are some outtakes from our photo shoot:





I actually kinda like that first one, because it makes it seem as though Murray and Santa are up to no good. If only Santa knew that he couldn't trust his partner not to tear him to shreds when no one was looking :P~~~

a walk in the park

murray gets a hair cut

THE BEFORE:


THE AFTER:



If it weren't for the fact that Murray immediately tried to attack Oscar, like he always does, when we walked through the door after I picked him up from the groomers, I would've thought they gave me back the wrong dog. Even his coloring has changed. I miss my scruffy murray :(

The groomer said it may take a couple months to grow back in. I plan to be more diligent with his grooming in the future to avoid all the matting so that I don't have to go to the extreme of this haircut again.

Day 4 and still surviving

...at least, I am. Oscar might be another story.

Watching all 3 boys this week was a nutty undertaking, but we're managing and getting into a routine. I'm not particularly fond of the morning routine, though, as it seems to keep starting earlier and earlier. Once one of them is up, the other two are soon to follow, and when you have 2 little dogs walking all over your prone body, it's only a matter of time before your feet hit the floor.

One of the things that has been amusing me the most is catching Murray staring at himself in Mom's mirrored closet doors. He'll be sitting in bed real still, so I look over to see what he's up to, and he's just admiring himself in the mirror. One time, he sat on the floor in front of the mirror, and I stood behind him talking to him in the mirror. I walked to the right and he followed me, still staring into the mirror, and then he was totally confused when I all of a sudden disappeared from in front of him (my reflection was no longer in the mirror). He tried to find me behind the corner, but to no avail :)

Well, it's 6:40am, and we've been up for nearly 2 hours, mostly just lazing around in bed after a quick run outside. Murray's trying to engage his cousin Disco in some horse play, but he wants nothing to do with it. He just keeps stretching and yarning and giving me the occassional kiss. Oh darn, I spoke too soon. All hell's breaking loose. They all want to go out NOW!!! That's how it's been all this time, one minute all's calm and the next, there are 3 blurring bodies.

Well, I best go answer their call before they take over my keyboard. I'll report some more in future posts.

murray landed us in jail

Well, okay, not really, but it wasn't for lack of trying. We were out for our last walk of the evening around midnight when two guys on bikes came around the corner. As they approached us, I realized they were police officers and breathed a sigh of relief. Murray, on the other hand, didn't care who they were, he just wanted a piece of them. So, there I was trying to get control of my little snarling puppy, who was on the end of a 16-foot leash, and there were the cops not a foot past the end of it. Lucky for Murray, they didn't take him too seriously. They just road by saying, "look at that big attack dog...hahaha." If they only knew.

In other related news, my friend Kathy also tried to get me arrested...for drunk and disorderly conduct this time. Though, I guess they can't really arrest you for being drunk on laughter.

We were at her house last Sunday evening just finishing playing a game when she asked, "What should we do next?" While I and her other friend were himming and hawing, Kathy got it into her head that she wanted to do something Halloween-ish. Mind you, it was nearly 8pm, on a Sunday, and anything that was happening on that day was pretty much over. That's when she decided we should get something to put in our hair and walk down the main street of a local town. Friend #2 bailed on the idea, but I was game. What else does a 40-something single female have to do on a Sunday night?

After about the 4th store, we were starting to lose hope that we'd ever find what we were looking for. It was only 3 days before Halloween, after all, and all the good stuff was long gone. But then we happened upon a K-Mart and found the only two remaining hair bands with bats attached to springy things in the entire state of New Jersey (see picture of the strange lady to the left).

We parked the car and made our way to Main Street on foot, giggling all the way. Our first encounter was with a couple hidden in a piazza-like alcove outside a restaurant. They were too busy playing kissy-face to even notice us. We continued on and finally reached our destination, Main Street USA...bright lights, large sidewalks, stores on either side of the road. And practically no people. Ugh. How disappointing.

We decided to walk a block or two anyway, because then at least we could say we accomplished our mission...a boring one, but one nonetheless. That's when we spotted him, a man walking towards us. Finally, someone was gonna see us with our springy bat thingies on our heads. And he didn't disappoint. "Nice costumes, ladies" he said as he walked on by. A fit of giggles ensued. He just made our night. It caused us to become more daring.

"C'mon, let's go into that Starbucks over there," I said to Kathy. "Umm, ok" she replied enthusiastically (NOT). I only had to pry her fingers a little off the door to get her to go inside. We stepped up to the counter to place our order, and no one even batted an eye (no pun intended) at what was atop our heads, not even the bunch of teenagers milling around. Though, I'm sure at least one of them took a picture of us with their cell phone, which will make an appearance on their My Space page as what they will never be caught doing when they reach our age.

We sat outside enjoying our Pumpkin Lattes and giggling over the silliness of the night. It'll definitely stay in our memory banks longer than if we had just stayed at her house playing another game or watching a video. Lesson learned: Act silly...it brings you joy.

road rallying

Our local AAA recently held their second road rally as a fundraiser for a great charity. Unfortunately, I was not able to go on the day of the event, but they were nice enough to email me the directions. And so, on the spur of the moment yesterday, I called Mom and asked if she wanted to join me and Murray for our own personal road rally. She did.

My car, apparently, did not.

On the way to pick Mom up, my car started making a funny sound whenever I put my foot on the gas after being at a stop. Once we arrived at her place, Mom was kind enough to let us use her car, and we set off for our adventure. It was a gorgeous day, and we drove around for over 4 hours, covering 60-some miles while looking for signs along the way to answer some questions, and stopping at some historic places and parks.

Our third destination was Estell Manor Park, where we got to see the remains of a glass factory that was operated from 1825-1877. It's also where Murray got to see his first turtle, a snapper according to one of the passersby. I haven't seen a turtle in years, and Mom hadn't seen one of that color before. And Murray...well, he would've liked not to have seen it.

Murray was walking towards me when all of a sudden something moved in front of him. He jumped straight up in the air in fright and then ran to me for protection, but it was only a few seconds before he got his courage back and went after that little rock-like creature, as can be seen in the following video. You'll have to use your imagination to hear his barking, as my digital camera doesn't have sound.



We really enjoyed all the places they had us go to, which included an old school, a church and cemetery dedicated in 1792, the glass factory mentioned above, a veteran's cemetery, a furnace where they made ammunition for the War of 1812, and an old village.

Here are some more pictures from our trip. Remember to click 'em to big 'em.

play date

I got done work early today, and Disco was looking bored, so I borrowed him for a play date with Murray. We're still in the middle of it, and they're having a blast. We spent a good chunk of the time out back, me on my lap top looking for jobs, while they ran their little hearts out. Here's a picture of them during one of their rest sessions:


I was surprised at how Murray reacted to Disco coming to his house. He gave up his toys without a fight and just sat there looking at Disco, like in this picture:


Though, there were a couple times that Disco chased after Murray, which he just loves, and I'd say he could outrace most dogs. Of course, most dogs get bored with the chase if they have no chance of catching their intended target, and so they just give up, like in this video (where they're also trying to trip yours truly):

my child never did that before

I was watching a PBS show the other night about two people who took "incorrigible" dogs from a shelter and showed that their disposition could be changed by training them to be working dogs. The woman, who was training a bearded collie named Herbie to be a sheep dog, said something that could well fit my little Murray: "He's a really smart dog, but the problem with that is that he can pick up bad habits just as quickly as he can good ones."

Now, I'm not saying Murray is a brainiac. He doesn't instantly learn things I'm trying to teach him. Though, he has managed to train me pretty darn well, like how to drop whatever I'm doing to throw his toy for him. All he has to do is drop it at my feet and give me that look, and I'm off to do his bidding. So, who's the smarter of the two? :/

My family was teasing me last night that I was turning into one of those mothers who thinks their child can do no wrong, or at least, he didn't until he started hanging out with their child. I guess that could be because I've gotten into the habit of saying that Murray didn't do that until he saw one of their dogs doing it. Okay, guilty as charged. Well, except I don't think Murray is a little angel. Just ask him how many times I've yelled at him since he's moved in as evidence.

Here's an example of Murray picking up one of his cousin's behaviors: Mom's dog Oscar will excitedly bark and look back and forth between you and the door to get you to take him outside. I fall for it every time, and sometimes he was out only 5 minutes before I got there. Well, now Murray has picked up on this little trick, but he's added his own twist to it. He barks at me whenever I'm taking too long to do what he wants (e.g., take him for a ride to visit Oscar).

Mind you, all of this is a two-way street, because Murray's cousins are now doing things that they didn't do before meeting him either...lol. For instance, Oscar has taken to opening his mouth wide and placing it around my puppy's neck to wrangle him in. If you didn't know him, you'd think he was aiming to kill my dog. But knowing what a gentle dog Oscar is, we didn't panic at the first sight of him doing this behavior. It's his way of calming Murray down, and believe it or not, Murray loves it.

The thing is, with any of these behaviors, they're kinda cute when they're doing it, so you go along with it, which enforces the behavior, and they keep repeating it. That's when you've got trouble on your hands, because while you may not mind it when it's just the two of you, or even with close family members, it may become an annoyance when guests are over or when you go visit them in their home.

Don't know if there's any answer to this dilemma. Who wants a dog who's 100% perfect all the time? After all, it's these quirky behaviors that give them their personality, and it's that personality that makes them so special to you and brings much joy and laughter into your life.

Talking about joy and laughter, this is Christine's little guy, Disco, acting as if he's conducting a board meeting or something:

rites of passage

Last night, we celebrated all the October birthdays in our family, and there are lots of them within a week of each other. Well, actually, four at last count. Mom made us spaghetti and meatballs, which my OLDest sister, Kathy, couldn't resist telling me, a vegetarian, just how good the meatballs really really were. I'll stick with my buttered and cheesed spaghetti, thank you very much :)

After our bellies were full, we moved into the living room to open presents, and oh, how many there were. By one of her gifts, I could see that my niece, Christine, would love to turn me into one of those people. You know the kind - the ones who dress their dogs up and paint their toe nails purple (sorry, Maria, just had to throw that in there...hahaha). This is what she got me for Murray, who so nicely modeled it later in the evening:

Apparently, Murray doesn't want to be one of those dogs either, as the entire time I was trying to take pictures of him in the costume, he kept trying to grab it with his teeth to get it off of him. And even after I took it off and put it on top of the table, he wasn't satisfied. He jumped up and grabbed the outfit from the table and tried to hide the offending object. Speaking of which, I just glanced down, and guess what is now sitting at my feet? That same pumpkin outfit. Guess Murray's still trying to get rid of it. Either that or he's changed his mind and is asking me to put it back on him...lol.

After presents, it was time for some yummy cake and ice cream. Ever try to sing the Happy Birthday song with four names in it? It ain't easy. Luckily, I only had to sing three, since I'm one of the birthday people (smile). Here's a picture of the cake. We'll just pretend it says "and Ed" at the bottom of it (poor guy, he gets lost between us three sisters).