Secular Confessions

[AmeriBrit]

That's a beautiful photo, L. I'm glad you had a good time at the party. I am so jealous of where you live!

We've got about 6 inches of snow on the ground and it's still falling. It's that teeny tiny kind that just won't stop and seems to accumulate really quickly. I had to take both boys out in it today (Cash to nursery and Travis to school). I got a text from the teacher I work with saying that our school was closed, but no such luck for the boys. The roads are horrendous. I nearly slid in to a parked car (side note-I haaaaaaaaaate how narrow the roads are here and how people don't always have driveways, so they park on both sides of the road, leaving a narrow road even narrower!) Then, I wasn't even thinking and dropped Cash off at nursery, but parked in the parking lot, which is on a hill, so I got stuck in the snow! I had to have staff come out and put some grit down and then 2 men pushed the car up the hill about 10 feet for me. I felt so embarassed; I'm sure they all thought that I was an idiot for even parking in the parking lot instead of just leaving the car on the main road, where I would have had to walk with both kids in the snow for 5 minutes to reach the building. But any how. That's done and over with now. I'll have to go back out in about an hour to pick them up, and I'm going to creep along and be hyper aware of every car around me.

[missychrissy]

That doesn't sound fun at all. It seems weird to me that one school would be closed and another not. How far apart are they from each other?

[AmeriBrit]

I work about 10 miles from where the boys goes to school. I think with T's school, a lot of the teachers live in the village, so they got to school and decided to keep it open. Where I work, most people don't live as close by the school. Also, schools are under a lot of pressure here to never close for anything, so I think that weighed in on their decision to stay open as well. I have had the news on today and have heard quite a few people being interviewed saying how it's just teachers being lazy when schools close for snow!

[missychrissy]

Oh brother....!!! It seems in that sort of thing, schools can't win no matter what they do. I know here, I question my school's sanity when I watch the bus literally slide down the hill 4-5 bus lengths before it can come to a complete stop. Rich is on a hill, but it's not that steep. If the buses can't stop on it, they probably shouldn't be open at all. But then we have Elk Lake school in the area...no one seems to know 100% where that school is, but it's always closed. It's the first one listed on the radio/tv when there's even a hint of a sign of inclement weather. It's kinda a local joke...all the kids wish they went to Elk Lake. lol

[Cosmosmom]

L that picture is beautiful!

Ashley I hope that the roads are in better condition and you have a safe drive. We have some schools here that close more than others. I guess a lot depends on if the school is city or county. If there are a lot of county kids, the schools tend to close more often. Those roads are not in as good of shape as quickly. I'm in the city so it takes more for ours to close. Usually our main roads aren't too bad....my trouble is in getting out of my subdivision.

While our CA ladies are hanging outside.....Bridget and I are freezing! It was -8 when I left for work this morning...with the wind chill it was -30. Boy did I hustle getting to the shuttle bus. Even with a scarf over my face, it was hard on my lungs and just kind of knocks the breath out of you.

[missychrissy]

I hate that kind of cold Jennifer. And those in LA where going on and on about the bitter cold front they were facing...in the 50's. bwahahahaha!

[Bridget]

Yup so stinking cold here that we can' t even play outside and that is very depressing for us all.

Sawyer just had his evaluation and he does not have a delay. He came out ahead on all skills but language where he was at 22 months, so not enough to need services which makes me feel better. She also mentioned that his features were vanquish with his whispy hair and tiny body but when I asked her if she felt it was concerning she said no. I suppose I need to get him in for a well visit but really not keen on bringing him in during flu season.

Drive safe, Ash! My mom ran the school bus company when we were kids so she was the be all end all for school closings. All my friends would blow up our phone during inclement weather, for the inside scoop. lol

I love love love that photo Lydia. And I try really hard not to feel envy but cannot I wish I could have been at that party with y' all!

[Suja]

Lydia, that's so lovely! These are the times I wish I lived on the Left coast.

Ash, hope you had a less adventurous time picking up the boys. I hate driving in the snow, not so much because of the snow, but because there are so many idiots on the road. That's one of the problems with living in this area - so many people are transients, and don't know how to drive in rain, never mind snow. I won't (actually, can't) complain about the cold. Mostly because one of my FB friends moved from upstate NY to Fairbanks, AK, where the cold temps are something like -70F. One wouldn't think that it matters after a certain point, but she says that anything below -40 actually makes life difficult.

[demigraf]

Ash, Eeks on the driving! What's the rationale on keeping schools open as much as possible? Seems almost the opposite of here, where schools have furlough days, just so they can save on operating costs and don't have to pay staff.

Chrissy, your comment about people in LA grumbling about the cold reminds me of the scene in LA Story (one of my favorite movies of all time), where Steve Martin is a weather man and does a really sarcastic newscast about it being 58 degrees, people having to close their windows and their cats refusing to go outside. LoL.

I knew someone who lived in Alaska. He had sled dogs who never came indoors during winter because he claimed the 100 degree difference between 40 below and 60 inside made it tough for them to regulate, internal temperature-wise.

L, that picture is a stunner! If you took it at the Pacifica Pier, I would submit it to one of the local contests. Heck, you could send it to Nat Geo, and win a prize, I think. And if you blew it up and framed it, I bet you could sell it to a number of local businesses or sell it as posters and t-shirts at our yearly Fogfest. It's an amazing shot.

I had such a good time at Bodhi's party yesterday, that I'm still smiling when I remember the little exchanges I enjoyed throughout the day. Bodhi was super-pleased (though, admittedly, these parties are as much for us to catch up with friends and Bodhi would have been super-pleased by a lot if things). DH said he had a good long conversation w/ L's hubby, J. DH also remarked how good her kids were and he loved how they always seemed to "travel in a pack". LOL. J helped little R paint the coolest t-shirt of a volcano w/ a pteranodon (the kids painted t-shirts for an activity). So many adorable kids in one place, I couldn't stand it. It was also awesome to have pepperlu's whole family at my house. Noe is stinkin' cute, and all 3 of us (me, L and pepperlu) are gonna make a playdate happen for all of us SOON. The only thing that would have made it even better would be if you'd all been there. I would have forced a group hug between us all because it was my party, dammit. ;)

L, you were so generous with your gifts! I will thank you properly, but for now at least know that the fossil kit was the first thing that Bodhi played with out of all the presents he received and is still carving away. He looks so cute in his paleontologist field glasses.

I'm sleeping w/ Bodhi tonite just because I feel like it. And one of the last things he whispered to me before conking out was: "Mommy, you stay so sweet! You're the best mommy in my whole life!"

[missychrissy]

I'm sleeping w/ Bodhi tonite just because I feel like it. And one of the last things he whispered to me before conking out was: "Mommy, you stay so sweet! You're the best mommy in my whole life!"

That is just the cutest thing ever!

You wouldn't really have to 'force' a group hug on me. More like, just try & hold me back. I'm glad his party was such a success!!!

[3andMe]

It would have been really cool to have more of us at the party! I'm glad you were happy, Mylah - I was so glad to see you. I didn't get a chance to talk to Bodhi, but he always looked like he was having fun, and he was going from room to room and making sure that he got to see everything and everyone, and that everyone got a chance to say hi to him, kind of like you and your DH -- a perfect young host.

DH actually took the picture of the rainbow and wave at the Pacifica pier, with my camera. He took so many pictures that I didn't get any of the kids jumping up and down screaming "Rainbow! Rainbow! Rainbow!" There were a lot of photographers out that day on the pier, some with much better cameras, so I figured that everyone would have a picture like that.

Every place I lived that was used to a lot of snow only very rarely closed the schools. Only with so much snow that cars couldn't get out from under the drifts in time to get there, for example.

[missychrissy]

It's 9 here today. Not the coldest upstate NY has ever been...but still whine-worthy.

Back to my brother and his foot chase Friday night/Saturday morning. Officer Gavin is his 'buddy.' He's the local, on duty village police officer that makes his presence known to the bar types (like, my brother). Tim always speaks highly of him and says he's really cool. I'm sure that's what motivated Tim and Don to help him out when the say him chasing those guys. Anyway, I'm sure in one part of the story when he said Gavin went up the ladder to the firehouse roof, he said he flew up and mentioned Gavin was a volunteer firefighter as well and was used to those ladders.

I just read an article this morning that one fireman was killed, and another named Gavin seriously injured when they fell through the floor of a burning house. This Gavin had to be taken to Syracuse (90+ miles away) for burn treatments. I don't know for sure, but this is a small, small town and I'm thinking it's the same one that is also an Owego Police Officer. My brother's friend.

[Suja]

Chilly morning here too. It's windy, so with windchill, something like 10 degrees. They're calling for the dreaded 'wintry mix' on Thursday, with the possibility of freezing rain. That, I hate. Chances are good schools will close, because schools close here if anyone even thinks it might snow. When I lived in NY, I had a friend from Toronto that used to roll her eyes at the panic that a few inches of snow caused. Now that I'm here, I'm rolling my eyes at all the panic that a dusting of snow causes.

Chrissy, whether the guy is the same or not, it's so sad, what happened to him, and the other fireman. These people put their lives on the line everyday, and people generally do not show any kind of appreciation for it.

Myles, my friend who is in Fairbanks moved specifically to take up mushing seriously, before she got too old for it. She used to do it recreationally when she lived in NY. She has two sets of dogs, "house dogs" (the ones that basically moved from NY with her) and her mushing team, that all live outdoors. Those dogs have pretty enriched lives, though. Lots of people interaction, and work, which is what they live and die for.

[missychrissy]

Chrissy, whether the guy is the same or not, it's so sad, what happened to him, and the other fireman. These people put their lives on the line everyday, and people generally do not show any kind of appreciation for it.

That is true. And it is the same guy.

My father had beagles that were solely for hunting. They lived in a kennel outside. They all appeared to be happy dogs to me.

[Suja]

My father had beagles that were solely for hunting. They lived in a kennel outside. They all appeared to be happy dogs to me.

I don't necessarily have objections to outside dogs, as long as the dogs are well cared for. And that involves the humans spending A LOT more time outside than we typically do. As a generalization, I think that working dogs that are kept outside are fairly well off - they are doing the work for which they were bred, their brains are kept occupied, and since that generally involves companionship, they are not really alone, or just left in a backyard to figure out ways to entertain themselves.

I hope Gavin will be okay. Burn wounds are awful! They do have good hospitals in that area, though.

[missychrissy]

I know Dad spent a lot of time with his. Even when it wasn't hunting season, he always had them out 'running rabbits'...which was him taking long walks in the woods and letting the dogs go. They'd always stay close to him and if they did get on a trail, he'd stay put. They always herded the rabbit back to him. At the time, I didn't think about how remarkable it all was. He also took my brother and I out when it wasn't actual hunting season so we got to watch it a lot. I can barely get my dog to pee outside 100% of the time...much less herd anything back to me while not on a leash. He used a series of chirps with a whistle to communicate with them. Beagles are quite intelligent dogs. To this day my favorite sound is hearing a beagle howl and bark. And I still love to hike in the woods. His dogs always appeared very happy and they did love him.

Officer Gavin is very young...high school class of '03. He works part time with the Owego Police Dept and part time with the Tioga County Sheriff's dept as well. AND volunteered with the fire department. It's really sad. He's one that lived the 'give back to the community' life. I haven't heard officially what the extent of his injuries are, but some mutual friends on FB seem to indicate he may be fighting for his life as well. Even if it's not that serious, I know he cannot afford to be out of work. I think he was only making just over 11,000 at the OPD job. I hate it when horrible things happen to good people. Well, I hate it when horrible things happen in any case, but some seem sadder and less fair than others.

I don't know anything about the firefighter that lost his life. I'm sure he was also a great guy as well.

[demigraf]

I agree about outdoor, working dogs being generally well cared for too. I was just mentioning that they never came indoors more as a scientific curiosity about their temperature regulation. I guess I shouldn't be surprised, seeing as how I like to stay in a constant 73 degrees.

That is very sad about those two men. I'm sorry that it was your brother's friend, afterall.

[Cosmosmom]

Well for me it was -14 this morning and a feels like -28. Pretty brutal. Told Cosmo that she is NOT going outside today and to just use her box. She used to use ONLY her box except when we were at family or out on walks. Than we got the house and she started to go outside most of the time unless she woke up in the middle of the night and would just potty herself while I was sleeping. Now she is in the habit of almost always going out...which normally is fine because Molly uses the box and we would go through litter way too fast if both were always in there. Except my dogs are NOT meant for cold. When it's really cold, Cosmo goes out and limps and walks really slowly....and I have to stand in the garage door freezing. No way, thinking she can wait until it's at least zero again.

So yeah I'm definitely a dogs inside person but mine are companion dogs and not working ones. They don't have the right personalities or coats. Molly is part beagle (has that beagle nose!) but has the weirdest coat....her belly is naked but the back hair is like 3-4 inches long and is wavy/coarse. Cosmo thinks she is a person. her level of understanding really amazes me.....Molly is definitely not as bright. LOL I had both girls as puppies so I really groomed them to be companions....rocked them and held them a lot (both still like being on lap or being held), they sleep with us and are pretty much always with us.
Cosmo is super clingy to me...Molly is pretty clingy but a little more independent. I found that I really like a clingy dog.....I want one who always wants to be with me.

[Cosmosmom]

Chrissy, that is pretty remarkable about your dad. Beagles are not the easiest to train. They have super cute personalities but can be stubborn and it's hard to overcome the nose.
I adore my Molly but will not get a beagle or part beagle again. she wasn't too hard to train but a bit dense at times and definitely can be stubborn. cosmo was way easier. I'm thinking of getting a mini aussie after Cosmo is gone. Teach her to herd Molly back into the house. LOL Molly will start to come in, get a smell and when that face is in the ground, it's like she goes deaf. I yell for her and clap loudly and Cosmo barks at her...nothing. I have to get into her vision line to get her attention and it's like, Oh yeah mom wanted me. Thank god for the electronic fence or we would never be able to have her outside with us. I don't trust it to leave her outside alone....and we have things like coyotes in our area. I always go outside with the girls. cosmo listens so well that I can just tell her that is far as you go and bam she stops.

So yeah next dog I want something super clingy to their family, something smart and easy to train and eager to please. We spend most of our time with the dogs and playing so I'm not afraid of a smart breed....they are not left to their own devices to get into trouble. Oh and around the 20-30 lbs range.

Of course I hope that I have 5-6 years to research the next dog!

I wonder if that mans family/friends will be putting together some sort of benefit to him. Seems like his medical should be covered being injured on the job but if he was part-time who knows. That is just so awful.

[missychrissy]

I wonder if that mans family/friends will be putting together some sort of benefit to him. Seems like his medical should be covered being injured on the job but if he was part-time who knows. That is just so awful.

Our fire department is 100% volunteer I think. Anyway, he was definitely a volunteer. I know there are benefits that will cover his medical costs, but I'm not sure if there's anything in place to help with the normal bills we all have. I'd hope so...being he's a police officer for two departments. But with all the recent budget cuts, who knows? I know that's why he worked part time for each dept...he's young and there have only been full time deputy cuts in both departments in recent years. No new full time positions. Obviously, his heart had to be in it. I was shocked when I stumbled upon what the village was paying him for nights and weekends. Just a measly 11,000/year.

I'm wondering if you struggled with your beagle because of what you were trying to train her to do? Or maybe it's the other part that interfered? My own experience watching dad with his dogs was they were incredibly sharp. And they were the only breed he'd get for hunting rabbits. He swears they're the best rabbit dog out there. I don't know how he started it, but by the time I came along he already had 2 beagles. He'd adopt a puppy and simply have him/her run with the older ones and learn everything that way. One, Bugsie, would shove his nose between the fence post and door frame to open his gate. Dad didn't like them getting out because they'd go run rabbits without him, and he was afraid during deer season another hunter might shoot them. So he chained that door closed and the dog learned to climb the fence. Somewhere he has a picture of that dog teetering at the very top...it was a wire fence that extended taller than the poles, so he'd sway to and fro a bit and then leap off. Silly dog.

He had one that as she got older wouldn't return to his call. He had a really long chirp to call the dogs back to him at the end. They'd all come running (generally 3 of them at a time) and follow him home. Even if a rabbit ran across their path at that point, they wouldn't go after it because they knew the long chirp was the end for the day. They'd stay with dad and he never leashed them. Muffins, the older runner, would take off for 3 days. I remember laying in bed at night hearing her howling after a rabbit in the middle of the night and my dad muttering from his bedroom, "That g0dd@mn dog! Out there running rabbits in the middle of the night." lol

[Suja]

I like my dogs independent and stand-off-ish, which is why Pan is not such a great fit for me. She's a total mama's girl, and follows me around all over the place. So now that Khan needs help getting around, there's Khan, walking up and down aimlessly, me walking next to her, in case he needs help, and Pan walking behind us both. A regular parade, except none of us are going anywhere. It really does not help that she's so big (a smaller, similar dog, I probably would've stepped on by now) and just kinda stands there like 'Derp?!!?'

We probably won't add a new dog for a while, but I'm guessing something like a Rottweiler, except the logistics on that might be complicated. I have talked previously about being torn about getting one from a rescue (where osteosarcoma/early neuter becomes an issue), and one from a breeder (even though I have references to an excellent one that trials and titles their dogs, and does all the necessary health checks). We'll see; maybe I'll go back and get that Malamute I've always wanted, except that gets complicated, because they are prey driven as a general rule (not cat friendly), and generally dog aggressive, or at least same sex aggressive, and we have too many family members with dogs.

I don't think I talked about it here, but Finn has a double ear infection. And terrible teeth that need cleaning/extraction. And a heart murmur. Since his thyroid is not high, the heart murmur needs to be seen by a cardiologist, and without a cardiologist clearing it, we can't do anything about teeth, since that requires anesthesia. I really, really wish the cat had seen a vet with some greater frequency, so we could've at least known about or prevented some of this.

[missychrissy]

Awww, poor Finn.

My Missy is a maltese/poodle mix and she's up my @ss all the time. I love her, but it also does tend to get annoying. I'm constantly turning quick and nearly tripping over her, or worse stepping on her, because she's always right there. I can't go outside and talk to someone on the sidewalk because she barks at the door, and if I let her out with me she'll stand by my feet and growl at the person I'm trying to talk to.

Speaking of, she's gotten kinda witchy like that. She's always had a tendency to growl a little if someone startled her, but anymore she gets ferocious if someone comes to the house, especially the first time. And in the last month or two she's nearly given me a heart attack by suddenly leaping and snarling at the window of the car just because she sees someone on the sidewalk as we drive by. I'm not quite sure what to do with her beyond yelling, "MISSY! NO!" She scares the jesus out of me sometimes just because it's so sudden and unexpected. If I hear a knock at the door, it doesn't startle me as bad because I anticipate it.

[Suja]

Crate her in the car. Throw a blanket over it, if that doesn't stop the barking. She can't bark (at someone) if she can't see them. It's the safest way to transport dogs anyway (not that I do it; logistical reasons). You can stop the general reactivity to people with redirection/praise, but that takes time to get through.

[Cosmosmom]

Well I do think that Molly is bright...just not as much as Cosmo. It's that she is much more stubborn. Some things she learned pretty quickly and easily...sit, stay, don't jump onto the bed unless invited, learned where the electronic fence is VERY quickly. Other things, I think she knows and just doesn't care. Like not putting your face in the bathroom garbage. EVERY day I tell her no. every single day she does it. Persistant little bugger.

I have trouble with the barking too. Cosmo likes to bark in the house...she likes her own voice I think. Molly is pretty quiet inside but get her outside and it's like OMG, a tree, OMG a car, OMG a person, OMG a leaf blowing.
Molly is super friendly and loves people....after she has met them. Like when the appraiser was over, DH said she was barking like crazy...but was shaking.
I wish she was more a hunter....she has that nose but than nothing. My girls are totally useless for hunting....otherwise I wouldn't have such a gopher problem in my back yard. LOL Well maybe Molly will be better this year....she was VERY interested in wild turkies we had out back for a few weeks.

Hmmm, Suja I think that I would probably hold off on the malamute too for now. Especially with a cat and a small child. I don't know if I would do a puppy at all with a toddler. I'm assuming that I might have like a 5 year old when I'm in puppy mode again.

It's definitely great to have different dogs for different people. I would be so sad with an independent dog. Ok I don't really love when I trip over them in the kitchen. It actually worried me when Molly was a baby and like all of 5 lbs. But now she's probably about 25 and Cosmo is 30 or a bit more and I'm not worried about crushing either of them. I don't shower alone....Cosmo is always in there with me up against the tub (molly sometimes is hanging over the edge staring at me though with the fireplace running, she mostly sleeps in front of that). If I'm in bed, I have at least one of them with me. Sitting watching TV, I usually have one or both of them on my lap. At the table, one or both under my chair or lying up against me feet.


I dearly would love a boarder collie. But it will never be because we just not on a working farm.

[daylilies]

Chrissy, you're welcome to come here and listen to Bo bark since you like beagles. LOL He's not so bad but he barks at the same dogs walking by every day and sometimes when he gets excited about playing with us he'll bark and it startles me.

I'm sorry about the fire chief and your brother's friend. (having gotten only small burns from cooking I can say burns really suck and I can't imagine having a bad burn or a large area burned) It's scary what they do. My cousin's husband is a firefighter and she really dreads those calls from the ER. One happened recently but thankfully it wasn't serious.

[missychrissy]

I covet Tiff's labradoodle. Her mother breeds them and if I'm ever rich enough, I just might adopt one. I need a dog like I need a hole in the head though.

I don't remember dad's dogs being in the house, other than a cornered off section in the basement garage in the very bad inclement weather, or if one had just had pups or was ill. So maybe it was just what he was teaching them that made it seem easy. And for whatever it's worth, the dogs didn't actually get the rabbits...they herded them in my father's direction so he could shoot the rabbit himself. If my dad didn't do that, there still would have been bunnies running around.

All that ended when one of his old-time dogs (one he'd gotten as a teenager) got very, very old. He was Dad's best rabbit dog ever, but his last hunt he was too close to the rabbit. When dad heard him, he thought his dog was further back (where he expected him to be) and when the rabbit came over a log, dad shot. He missed the rabbit and got his dog instead because Bugsie was right there. That was the first time I saw my dad cry and the last time I remember him taking his dogs out to hunt. He'd still take the 2 remaining dogs out to 'run rabbits' but he never took another gun. I was still young then, maybe 12-ish and he's never hunted rabbits since. He does, however, hunt deer. After the remaining two beagles aged and died, he tore their pen down and never got another beagle again. But he does have a few other dogs. They're in the house and treated like his babies.

[demigraf]

For all you ladies in the icy snow, here are some cool crafty ideas you can do with your kids. I'm
in love with the ice marbles. Maybe I'll have to try to
make a few for Bodhi in my freezer.

http://m.pinterest.com/jeanoram/winter-play-for-kids/

[Gwenn]

I knew someone who lived in Alaska. He had sled dogs who never came indoors during winter because he claimed the 100 degree difference between 40 below and 60 inside made it tough for them to regulate, internal temperature-wise.

This makes total sense to me. I have a hard time here in the summer because I am always freezing in the air conditioning when I go into stores. They must keep it at like 70 - and when it's 110 or more outside that's a 40 degree drop and you end up cold. I can't understand the point of cooling that much. I keep it around 80 at home so it isn't such a shock to the system. Then again, I can't handle it being cold inside in the winter after keeping my house at 80 most of the year.

Our little "cold snap" seems to have passed. It's gone from a low of around 17/high of 40 to low of 48 and high of 80 within a week. Make up your mind, weather. This is crazy.

Chrissy, that is so sad about your dad's dog. And about your brother's friend. Dog first, I know, priorities.

L, that is an amazing picture. I also wish I could have been at the party with all of you.

[Bridget]

Mandy, I would like your expert opinion if you don't mind. The woman that evaluated Sawyer was giving me pointer to help him expand his vocab and when I responded to his part blabber/part words by saying, "You want me to put your boots on?", she said that I should say, "I want my boots on?". Say to him what I presume he was saying. I'm having a hard time correcting myself and feeling like that's just confusing his use of pronouns. What say you?

[3andMe]

I'm so sorry to hear about the volunteer firefighter. I had a boyfriend who did that, and they really are just regular people, unpaid, who do training and respond when called.

I think I'm in trouble. DD just said, "Mom, do you know there's a place where dreams come alive?" Can we go there sometime? Some weekend? Mom, can we? Can we? Can we? I really want to." I reminded her that not all of her dreams are good dreams, and she said that last night she had a dream about being a princess, and she also dreamed that she had a piece of black construction paper and out of it, one at a time, cupcakes were shooting out right at her. Those were great dreams!

Ugh. DH and I are not Disneyland-type people. My sister and BIL have offered us free tickets a couple of years in a row and we kept turning them down, but I think we'll have to do it some time soonish.