June 2001 Archives
I sat in on the Basic Class at the Joyce Morgan’s Dog Training Center. I'm not sure this is the right place for us. It was kind of depressing: it's in a building in an industrial park that has seen better days. I'm sure the instructors are OK, but it had this tired and old feeling to it. A lot of the people in the intermediate class seemed to be total show geeks. Plus the dogs didn't seem to have much fun (I'm not sure if they're supposed to).
I did get to meet a neat Bernese Mountain Dog named Titan. He reminded me of Switzerland (and how much cooler the weather there is...)
I had to use a Mutt Mitt for the first time yesterday. I think it's great that Austin has dispensers in all its parks and I always appreciate it when I see a dog owner use one.
Using it is actually not that bad (although the warm-n-squishy feeling is a total gross out) but I think I saw the respect seeping away from Homer's eyes as he watched me picking up his waste.
They installed a vending machine in the kitchen at work. Woe is me...
We're looking into an obedience class for Homer. A lady at the park recommended Joyce Morgan's Dog Training Center. It's located close to where we live, but looking at their web site, I am a little concerned. It's a bit too, er, pink! Not just any pink, either, but a sort of old-lady rose. Also, their Hall of Fame is listing five poodles and five mini schnauzers - they also list a Bernese Mountain Dog, so maybe there is hope.
I don't particularly care for toy (any breed with the word "miniature" in its name) and coifed dogs (i.e. poodles, yorkies, etc.) I prefer a dog that looks like a dog and that you can't accidentally step on.
Homer had his second visit to the vet today and got his puppy shots, rabies vaxine and a pill for treating tapeworms (that's what they turned out to be). He was really good through it all and we're looking forward to taking him on walks.
He's gained another couple fo pounds and is now almost 27lbs.
I think Homer's still got roundworms. Going through his poop this morning (figuratively speaking, please!) I saw a couple of flat, white, half-inch long pasta looking thingies wriggling about. Way nasty! I should have thought of grabbing one to take with us to the vet - but I was a bit too revolted to think about that. Hmm, next time maybe I'll snap a picture.
Jfer's got a beef with my thoughts on Army black berets, thinking that I was refering to her triathlon. Nothing could be farther from the truth. I think it takes tremendous effort to train and complete a triathlon, and everyone in that race has earned their recognition. I was especially impressed with participants who really were not physically up to a race crossing the finish line. Also, I didn't feel that just because everyone got a medal for participation, the race winner's accomplishment we being dimished in any way.
Fernando de Noronha Maritime National Park sounds like the place to visit while in Recife.
I'm checking up on Recife, Brazil where I should be come February. "Brazilian Venice" sounds nice. I hope there is some good diving to be found there, too.
I think Homer and I bonded this morning. After feeding him, I went for the usual routine of me trying to get friendly with him while he carefully avoids me. Well, he chased after his squeeky ball whenever I tossed it and, while not exactly bringing it back too me, he was better at bringing it to my general vicinity.
Because of his skittishness, I never know whether he's barking because he wants to play or because he's afraid. I went by the assumption that he wanted to play, so I chased him around the yard. His tail was wagging so I think he was cool with that. Every time I sat down huffing and puffing, he'd come by to chew in my hand. I interpret that as him being friendly with me.
Of course, maybe he just saw me as a big doggie treat and wanted to feast...
Today the Army has adopted the black beret as part of the standard uniform. This, despite the protest of many Rangers who used to be distinguished by black berets - they now get to wear tan ones.
Gen. Eric Shinseki, the Army chief of staff, said that the new berets will unify the force as it is reshaped to respond to a world without a Cold War and a clear enemy. Apparently he developed the idea while attending a ceremony attended by "smartly dressed Army Rangers."
Now personally I don't really care one way or the other about the uniforms but that whole beret thing sounds totally bogus to me. Obviously it's a morale boosting thing - the cool guys (used to) wear black berets, so lets everyone have one and they'll all feel special. It's a bit like giving every participant at a competition a medal - it becomes meaningless when it no longer distinguishes. And how is it going to "unify the forces" if some some groups (rangers, special forces) wear different colored berets?
I guess the Army figured that this is a cheaper morale booster then giving the soldiers a pay raise...
I'm listening to the soundtrack from Moulin Rouge - El Tango de Roxanne is tres cool!
Jennifer ran her second Danskin Triathlon on Sunday and shaved off 12 minutes and 24 seconds from last year's time (and she was the fastest from her office, too). She ran the final 5K with a big grin on her face and didn't even seem tired at the finish line!
The Danskin Triathlon is a great race to participate in (whether you are into that kind of think or not) and it's a fun place to go to to cheer people on. Besides, as Doug put it so eloquently, "it's great spending a day watching thousands of athletic women getting wet!"
I listened to the report of McVeigh's execution this morning and it made me sad. Sad for the people that got killed during his sensless attack. Sad for the survivors and the families of the victims that are still reliving the tradegy. Sad for the fact that the government feels that execution is an appropriate punishment for any crime. And sad for the fascinations and sometimes glee with which the whole thing is rehashed, reported, broadcast, viewed and eaten up by so many people.
I can empathize with the victims wanting closure, but I really do not believe that exacting the death penalty punishes the perpetrator any more than condemning him to life without parole. I believe that for many people this is an act of vengeance and not punishment. The idea that this execution will serve as a deterrent for other potential is totally ridiculous. A public execution like this is the greates propaganda for a nutcase like T. McV. Instead of languishing in obscurity in some prison he gets to become a venerated martyr for the likes of him.
Now I do believe that he is guilty and despite the embarasing blunders of the FBI he got convicted properly. I just strongly disagree with the sentce.
What a cool "truth in advertising" page. I especially like the '50s add of Santa pushing smokes.
The evil empire strikes again with their 'Smart Tags' link "technology". Will they ever learn?
This Peter Pan's site is seriously disturbing. I'm soo glad my coworkers are sharing their favorite links with me...
I set up a domain for Jennifer. I'm not sure she's geeky enough to really appreciate it, but I'm sure that everyone in her family will be impressed. And Meredith, her sister, will want to have one of her own as well - so I know it will have been worth it for Jennifer for this reason alone :-)
It's amazing for how little you can get a hosted domain for these days. I got this one through dotster.com and nozol.com, but you can get a domain name and minimal hosting for $30/year at gnxonline.com!
We took Homer to the vet today. He did pretty well and didn't seem to mind the booster shot he got. According to the vet, he's doing much better and has gained three lbs since two weeks ago - he's now 24lbs.
All think considered, this was his best medical experience this week. On Monday we dipped him in this aweful stuff called Paramite to get rid of mites that might be causing his skin condition. The next day, while trying to make up for the previous treatment we discovered four ticks on his face. One of them was on his eyelid. Another was this gigantic beast sucking on his throat like a vampire. We got rid of them by fire and tweezers, but it wasn't a pleasant experience for anyone involved.
On Sunday we went to Lake Marble Falls (I think) so that Jennifer could practice the triathlon with her fellow competitors. Sitting in a shady spot enjoy the cool breeze made me once again appreciate my lack of athletic competitivenes. I'm not proud of being, uh, lazy, but sometimes you really got to enjoy it.
In the afternoon, John showed me how to throw a cast net to catch small fish near to the shore. That was pretty neat - I cought three or four little sunfish (or so I was told) that the little kiddies then played with and petted. I don't think the fish particularly enjoyed that, but they didn't seemed harmed and it was better for them than ending up as bait.
My company unveiled its new corporate look and feel this weekend. although I like the logo, I don't really care for the new look of the web site. In particular, I wish we'd only use the orange as an accent color. I think it clashes with the blues.
My Fisher Slim1500 "Audio System" has arrived and is now hanging on the wall next to my desk. It actually looks pretty slick. Best of all, I didn't have to move any of the crap on my desk to set it up!
