Dixie & Rascal

Dixie and Rascal are the rat terriers who own Dub and I. They took over our home about 6 years ago . . . and things have never been the same since!

The rat terrier breed of fuzzy faced four-leggers look remarkably like Jack Russell Terriers, but are not directly related. The "Ratter" is much more calm and much less stubborn. They are very easy to train when it's something that they are interested in! Both of our Ratters have a huge vocabulary! When we're outside, they know the difference between "cat", "snake" and "lizard". In the house, if you ask for a toy, they each bring a stuffed animal. If you ask for a bone, they search the corners and bring you bones. When you say ball - they get bouncy balls!

Dixie is the leader of the pack! Poor Rascal is so afraid of getting in trouble with her that he won't go anywhere near her if she's got a bone (which is most of the time). It has gotten so bad that when it's bed time, Rascal will sit in the living room and whine softly until Dub or I come and escort him into the bedroom. Every time Dixie snaps at him, poor Rascal screams like a little girl! Wonder if he'll ever grow up enough to stand up to her and snap back? . . . .

Nope - that'll never happen!

Rascal loves his dog food - - he'll go for treats and snacks, but does well on the dog food we give them. On the other hand, Dixie will only eat the dog food if she is starving! She much prefers whatever Dub is eating. One of her favorites is asparagus. She also likes watermelon, green beans, any kind of pasta, meat, eggs, carrots, french fries and will sit up and beg for iced tea! I think she would eat rocks if Dub was eating them, too! I wonder if that's why her shape so closely resembles that of Miss Piggy?!

Miscellaneous Whatevers

My random thoughts - just a little of this and that - and whatever!

We've been so very dry here on the Space Coast. About 10 inches short on rain for the year. Well, Mother Nature has made up for that in the past few days. On Monday, Tuesday and today we have had at least 3 inches of rain each day -- that's 9 inches this week! And it's still raining! I shouldn't complain; this is really helping with the 100+ wild fires that were burning all over the state last week . . . it's refilling all the swamps . . . and it will really help our local mosquito population maintain the record size we're used to! Not just quantity - but each bug is about the size of an adult Blue Jay!!

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Dub and I cleaned out the kitchen closet this week! Think gigantic junk drawer. Miscellaneous 'stuff' has been entering that closet for over 10 years - and nothing has ever been removed. We had 8,467 plastic grocery bags that we took to recycle. We had every old plumbing or electric part ever replaced in this house. Why did we save them?? If we replaced them, logic would say they don't work - so as I'm dropping each into the trash can, Dub is asking, "Are you sure we don't need that?" There were enough various screws, nails, nuts, bolts, etc. to build three houses, a truck and maybe half of a really nice gazebo. I did keep them - but they are all in one big container! Who knew we had 4 cans of WD-40?? And you can never have enough caulk - is 5 tubes enough? There's rope, string, twine, tie-wraps and 4 different kinds of tape! We don't need all that - 1 roll of duct tape is all anyone needs to hold anything together! Well, it's done - and there's now room for a family of three to live in there. But they better hurry before Dub starts putting 'stuff' in there again!

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Wise words from my grandmother: If money can fix it, it's NOT a problem.

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Poor rat terrier Dixie is terrified of thunder and lightning. Rain - she just hates. So, this afternoon during a lull in the storming I had to get her leash, go into my bathroom, pull her out from under the toilet, drag her through the house. Then I had the pleasure of towing her out the door, down the steps and into the soggy front yard. The "Princess" just can't stand to get her delicate little toes wet. So, I drag her out to the middle of the front yard and tell her to "go pee". Which she immediately does.

Now you would think that when I took off the leash she'd hightail it back into the house, right? Nope. Dixie, little delicate thing she is - who won't get her tootsies wet without a fight - takes off for the nearest, deepest mud puddle! And she runs, splashes, barks, rolls, jumps and just generally has herself a really good time . . . until it starts to rain a little bit. Then she stops in her tracks, lays her ears back, looks around - - yelps, RUNS back into the house and returns to her hiding place under the toilet! Yes, she also hated the bath I gave her immediately thereafter.

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It is now officially okay for Memorial Day to arrive. I have purchased a watermelon. I think it's officially against the law (or should be) to have Memorial Day without a nice, big watermelon! And, speaking of Memorial Day - Don't forget to thank a member of the armed forces for all that they do for us! And don't forget to thank their family members, too!

Have a great Thursday!!

Not Me! Monday!

UPDATE!! They are in CRISIS mode over at mycharmingkids.net - - Stellan was taken to the hospital last night with breathing problems, which pretty quickly turned into heart problems! MckMama is at Childrens Hospital with Stellan and PC is home with the other MSC. There have been a lot of attempts to get his heart under control with no success so far .. .. .. get the prayers going!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I did not buy one of those really, really big GIANT Hershey bars and eat the entire thing, all by myself in only 48 hours. That would be just awful. That would break every possible health and diet rule known to mankind. I couldn't possibly have done that!

The Attack Rat Terriers did NOT just come flying out of the bedroom at about 100mph, barking like mad, fur on their backs standing straight up! Both of them pawing at the back door to get out. I DID NOT have flashbacks to earlier this year of Dub in his boxers and a cat in the pool! Against my better judgement I let them out! Thankfully, it was a false alarm! There really wasn't a madman out in the yard waiting to kill us all!

We have been on water restrictions here because of the drought conditions. It's spring. Every vehicle within 500 miles is yellow from the pine pollen. SO .. .. .. when it started sprinkling this afternoon, it was not Dub and I who rushed outside and pulled the Jeep out of the carport so it could get a bath! It was someone else that our neighbors saw doing that. We wouldn't be that silly, would we??

I have not become thoroughly enthralled with little Jonah Williams and all his ups and downs since his birth. His blog is patriceandmattwilliams.blogspot.com . Or - you can check my sidebar and just click on his box. He sure seems to be one determined little fighter! He has EB and the doctors are still trying to figure out just what degree of the condition he has and how to best treat him. If you have a spare minute, prayers are always welcome!

Got any fun things you haven't done lately?????

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Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

**I absolutely did not sit up until 3:00 this morning just so I could finish a book I was reading! I just couldn't have been that absorbed in it and not even realised that it was that dang late (or early)!

**Wednesday I heard the mail delivery truck coming and decided to walk out and get the mail. Rascal, our shy (I thought) rat terrier came with me. He did NOT jump right up into her little mail truck wagging his entire rear half . . . drool dripping from his jaws! No, he's much better trained than that. And our mail 'chick' did not reach into her box of Milk Bones and reward him for it! Dixie and Rascal were both taught very early not to take food from strangers! How do we fix it now?

**A couple of weeks ago Dub had to have a pretty big chunk of his left ear cut out (cancer) and they used about a zillion stitches - and even had to do a skin graft. Tuesday we had to go have it checked to make sure everything was healing properly. We didn't drive all the way to the doctor's office (45 minute drive) to be told that we were supposed to be at his smaller office which is only about a 20 minute drive from us! Oh, no - we wouldn't do something that dumb!

So, please leave me your comment - what didn't you do?!

Not Me! Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

~~One of our wandering neighborhood cats did not somehow get into our screened-in pool area in the middle of the night Wednesday. And said cat did not alert our two killer attack rat terriers who very vocally told us they needed to go outside. We didn't open the back door as usual - start to head for the screen door when all H*LL broke loose. NO - not two dogs, one cat and Dub (in his Bart boxers wielding a broom) all NOT running around the pool - and me NOT propping all the outside doors open hoping the cat would run outside! The cat did not end up leaping into the pool twice - as I was NOT trying to get the dogs into the house! At one point this cat was not actually hanging upside-down from the ceiling of the screen enclosure! Oh, yeah - just another relaxing 30 minutes here in paradise!

~~I used Dub's truck Friday to help a friend get ready for her yard sale. As I was leaving he said, "Don't be getting any scratches or dings on my fine truck!" We're talking about a 1985 Isuzu here folks! In lots of places only the paint is what's holding it together! It used to be silver but is now a lovely rust color with touches of grey here and there! It has OVER 220,000 miles on it. But it runs well and is darned dependable. As I leave my friends house, we both DID NOT notice at the same time a sheet metal screw completely embedded in the right front tire! I certainly DID NOT have to go home and tell Dub I broke his truck! Well, at least it was a slow leak and I really didn't have to change the tire - and he was able to plug it instead of buying a new tire!

~~I didn't take full advantage of my health insurance last week - with full knowledge that on March 1 I would no longer have coverage. I certainly didn't go get a check-up with my sweet doctor - and then did NOT call the pharmacy and ask them to please give me a refill on every prescription they possibly could! I would never try to take advantage of that poor insurance company like that.

~~It couldn't have been me who got sooooo excited when my Powerball ticket actually won a big $3.00 last week! I'd hate to see what might happen if I actually won a bunch of $$$$$!

On a much more serious note, please check out the Praying for Jonah site (see left sidebar). This family lost newborn Gabe last year and are now fighting to save days old Jonah. They need all the prayers and good thoughts they can get!

Comments - I love comments!! What haven't you done??

Wordless Wednesday & More Reasons to Celebrate

I'm not sure if this is art - or if these people have WAY too much time on their hands! I might have to try that bread thing!

Let's Celebrate!

Bald Eagle Appreciation Days - Make sure your bald eagle knows you love him/her!

National Clean off your Desk Day - Just look at that mess! Clean it up before you go out to play!

National Hot Pastrami Sandwich Day - Can I have turkey instead?

National Dress Up Your Pet Day - I don't know about your pets, but my rat terriers and sugar glider HATE to play dress-up! They rip off anything that looks like clothes!

Not Me Monday! . AND . Pharmacist Day!

I did not get this completely prepared on Sunday evening so that all I had to do was click 'publish' this morning to post it. I'm always bright and sunny first thing Monday mornings and eager to get cranking on whatever job lies ahead!

My little nap Saturday most certainly did not turn into a 3 1/2 hour sleep-fest with my warm, snuggly blanket!

While carrying in the groceries this week I did not trip over a really fat rat terrier and break a dozen eggs in the carport. That MUST have been someone else. I'm way too graceful to do anything like that!

And finally, as I was carefully weeding a flower bed - I really only pulled up weeds! I could not possibly have up-rooted all those volunteer marigolds sprouting under the window boxes! Nope, not me!

AND,

If you have nothing better to celebrate, try these . . . .

National Pharmacist Day - If you have as many prescriptions as hubby and I do, you truly appreciate your local pharmacist! We're on a first name basis and have exchanged CHRISTmas cards for years!
John Hancock's Birthday (National Handwriting Day) - I read recently in the paper that they are considering doing away with cursive writing in schools here in Florida! Pretty soon we'll have things so 'dumbed down' for them that the only thing they'll be able to read will be text messages and tattoos!
Batman TV Day (1966) - Who could forget the old Batman TV series? If you ever get a chance to catch it on DVD or reruns, check it out . . . it's so awful, you'll laugh your hinnie off!

Not Me! Monday! More Odd Reasons to Celebrate!

(Just pretend that the date above says Monday, January 5, 2009!)

Yes, another adventure into the world of denial! All those things that you would never, ever admit to anyone face-to-face - but are perfectly willing to publish for all the world to see on your blog! Thanks to MckMama at mycharmingkids.net for providing us with this outlet.

I did not, nor would I ever, give my rat terrier, Dixie, doggie valium just because she was frightened by all the fireworks on New Year's Eve. I think the neighbors on the next street over hired professionals this year! Starting about 9:15 you would hear a loud "whump", a few seconds later the explosions would shake the windows and light up the entire area! They kept this up for just over THREE HOURS!!

And I certainly didn't spend part of that same New Year's Eve on the bathroom floor . . . . . trying to coax that same Dixie Dog out from under the toilet where she was vibrating in fear!

At great risk to my personal health I didn't choke down enough black-eyed peas to cover my luck for 2009. And I did NOT mix them with a healthy portion of rice and a very UNhealthy portion of real butter!

Finally - I am not spending endless hours doing laundry because someone around here didn't do any at all last week! And I didn't feel sooooo ambitious this morning that I decided I would do ALL the people blankets, doggie blankets and change the sheets today, too!

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And - here are our excuses to celebrate today!

5- Bozo the Clown's Birthday (1959) - A childhood icon for us old folks!

5- National Bird Day - Be sure to cover your car!

5- Hamburger Birthday (1889) - We'd all starve to death without this!

5- National Bean Day - and this!

5- National Whipped Cream Day - Yummmmmmy!

5- Mr. Ed's Birthday (TV Show 1961) - A horse is a horse, of course of course . . .

5- FM Radio Birthday (1940) - Wasn't is always there?

Wondering on Wednesday

I wonder . . . if it's really true what they say about the full moon making things really weird? I know my boss sure gets jumpy and hard to deal with the closer we get to a full moon!



I wonder . . . why Dixie, our female rat terrier will come out of her warm bed to go outside about 11pm every night. As soon as she gets back inside ~ here comes Rascal wanting his turn outside! Why won't they go together? They go out at the same time all day long. Why not at night?



I wonder . . . why Niblet, my sugar glider, starts ringing his little bell immediately after the dogs come in from the 11pm romp? He rings the bell, runs in his wheel, chatters like crazy - just waiting for me to open his cage and let him out. He then pounces on my head and jumps around waiting for me to go to the kitchen. Oh Boy, FRUIT!!! WORMS!!! Once his little dish is loaded, he jumps on my shoulder and jabbers until I take him AND the food back to his cage!



I wonder . . . why they call it 'tourist season' if we're not allowed to shoot 'em!


I wonder . . . why every time I pull into the parking lot at the Magic Kingdom I instantly turn into a 6 year old! Does not happen at EPCOT, MGM, Animal Kingdom, Busch, Universal - ONLY Magic Kingdom!! I stare in awe - and grin like an idiot!

I wonder . . . what would make two fairly rational adults purchase a really PINK hunting rifle for their FOUR YEAR OLD granddaughter? WITH the pink camo carrying case! Well, her brother was 7 when we gave him the .22 he got his first deer with.

I wonder . . . if I'm the only one excited about LOST coming back January 21st?

I wonder . . . if anyone else wonders?

Question: Why to women bitch so much?
Answer: We're not allowed to belch, burp, fart, cuss or sweat! If we didn't bitch, we'd . . . . . . . EXPLODE!!!!!

IT'S NOT ME MONDAY TIME AGAIN!

I did not start doing my laundry yesterday - and quit right in the middle of it. Got enough done to get through a few days. Might finish it today - or might not!

And while fixing a pretty darned good spaghetti dinner this week I would never dip into that new container of chocolate chip ice cream in the freezer!

Saturday, while fishing (not catching), I certainly DIDN'T peel several shrimp and feed them to those really cute little sand pipers that were running up and down the beach!

And I would NEVER EVER pick most of the lima beans out of my mixed vegetables while eating the other night and feed them to the doggies! Who knew rat terriers liked lima beans?

Finally - - I could not have taken a 2 hour nap Sunday . . . nope, not me. It's too close to CHRISTmas and I have way too much to do to be taking naps!

And what didn't you do this week - - hmmmmmm? Leave me a comment!!!