Category: Skitter

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Experiments In Gravity

FYI Apparently, purses are “in” this year. How do I know? Because VOGUE says so. I do like that the purse handle works as a sort of bow tie.

As Skitter took me and Bow Tie o’ the Day out for my morning walk today, we enjoyed seeing the thick white snow. We ignored the yellow spots of snow dotting the neighborhood yards, close to the sidewalk. I had a brief idea about using Skitter to create a snow dog-angel in a particularly beautiful patch of snow, and then take a TIE O’ THE DAY photo. But my internal voice of reason came to Skitter’s rescue, reminding me that Skitter would be scared by being embedded into the snow to be a snow dog-angel. And honestly, I didn’t really want to lie down in the cold snow by myself. So we walked on, and I thought about some of the snow angels I remember making.

The best “snow” angel I ever made was not made in the snow, nor was it made on purpose. I unintentionally created it when I fell from our treehouse once when I was a kid. Our “treehouse” was a single piece of wood nailed to a high tree limb which hung out over the vacant lot next door. The lot was a dense tumbleweed farm at times. When I fell out, it was into tall dry tumbleweeds. It was as if the weeds held up their arms to catch me and break my fall. I landed atop a clump of weeds, flat on my back, and gradually fell through their snapping limbs to the ground.

No harm, no foul. I brushed myself off and climbed back up in the treehouse, where I looked down to where I had fallen, and I could see where I had left a perfect outline of my body in the grouping of weeds, smooshed down to the ground. I must have been flailing my arms as I fell flat through the weeds though, cuz the impression in that bunch of tumbleweeds looked exactly like a snow angel.

Who says there’s nothing to do in Delta, UT?!

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I Hate Haters

Skitter’s Ties o’ the Day offer up this story for your contemplation. Every day, when we still had the Delta house, and I still had a daily Delta/Mom routine, Skitter would put on a tie and ask to go with me on my daily Diet-Coke-at-The-Pub visit. At first, I told Skitter she couldn’t go to The Pub with me cuz she was a minor. But when she aged out of minor-hood, I then had to break it to her that she would never be legally allowed in The Pub, or other places like it— simply because she is not a people. She had no idea she was “different”, so it came as an enormous shock to her skittish, canine system.

I explained to Skitter about prejudice and discrimination. About its many forms and guises. About bigots and bullies. About how every living thing is “different” in some way (many ways, in fact), depending on what “they” say is the “norm”. I explained that the categories and mechanisms used to commit bigotry are completely arbitrary. They bear no resemblance to the truth, beauty, and goodness of existence. Bigotry is reductive and riddled with the fear of everything except itself.

Skitter pondered seriously about the in’s and out’s, the up’s and down’s, and the sideway’s of what I had told her. She thought and thought, until her tiny thinker was exhausted. And then she said, “But I can still wear the ties, right?”

Now, that’s a nifty perspective: Just go about your life, in wonder and love and ties.

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Christmas Day, Skitter, And A Haircut

I chose a “wrapped gifts” theme Bow Tie o’ the Day to wear on Christmas Day. We didn’t do much but puzzle on Christmas Day, with the exception of joining Suzanne’s family at her parents’ house. Every year, Suzanne’s dad reads the family a Christmas story of his choosing, and tops it off by reading about Christ’s birth from the Bible. I look forward to it. Suzanne’s family is bigly and semi-boisterous and fun. I do miss being around Mom at Christmas though. (And not just for her food.) She tells me over and over she’s grateful to Suzanne’s parents for taking such good care of me. I’m grateful for it too. Now, that’s a gift!

Rowan wore his new haircut over to our place after we were finished at Suzanne’s parents. Skitter loves him, although Rowan’s male voice used to petrify her. You know Skitter loves you when she positions herself near you, then pretends to stretch and— nonchalantly and by calculated accident— puts her front paws on your arm or leg, as she’s doing with Rowan in the photo. She ever so softly and discreetly paws her way into your heart. But don’t look directly into her eyes, or she’ll shake her way to one of her crates. The Skit says, “It’s so hard to be loved.”

As was requested after this morning’s post, I’ve included here three pix of Rowan’s BEFORE hairs. His hair is thick and beauteous, so I don’t have a preference about its length. I am liking his short cut now, cuz it’s what he’s got. If it’s clean and not covering his handsome mug, I’m good with whatever.

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Skitter’s Our Little Reindeer

In this photo, Skitter and I are modeling two versions of the same Tie o’ the Day theme: Christmas lights in reindeer antlers. Although she might appear to be, Skitter was not traumatized by posing in this photo with me. I promise. She’s always a good sport when I say to her, “Skitter, we need to do a TIE O’ THE DAY thing.” She doesn’t run away and hide or get extra-shaky when I get in TIE mode with her.

Six years ago this week, this little scaredy dog let our fam-damily adopt her. She’s a rescue dog, and she had been through a hellish puppyhood before we brought her into our home to be treated like the Queen o’ All Mutts. We are guessing she was about 1 when we got her, which makes her 7 now. We don’t know from what breed she hails. Our best guess is that she is part Chihuahua and part Whippet, so we say she is a Whippet-huahua. If you ever get the chance to watch her run, you will see all-out “Whippet woosh” in her speed.

I almost named her Bambi because she looked like a fawn when we first saw her at the rescue, especially when she curled up. But she was skittish to the core. Hence, her name had to be Skitter. I’ve written posts remarking that Skitter vibrates when she’s out in the world, and she honestly does. As time goes on, she vibrates at a lower level of vibration. Sometimes her vibration is invisible to anyone who isn’t me or Suzanne. I’ve been asked, “How can Skitter be happy if she’s always afraid of everything?” My reply: “Well, she only vibrates around people, places, things, and ideas. Other than that, she’s fearless.” Seriously, she is a happy dog. She knows she is loved and safe. She expresses a range of moods beyond fear. We do, however, realize her skittishness will never completely go away. Unfortunately, whatever abuse she suffered as a puppy is a part of who she is.

We think Skitter has adjusted relatively well. She loves to jump in the car when I say, “Let’s go for a ride,” but she shakes the entire time we drive anywhere— including to Delta. She loves visiting Mom. She hardly vibrates at all anymore when we spend time at Millard Care and Rehab. When Skitter’s sitting on Mom’s bed there, she doesn’t shake.

When we walk to the mailbox, Skitter doesn’t vibrate anymore, but she still keeps her tail between her legs. I’ve taught her how to howl when Suzanne gets home from work. Even though her own howling noises startle her, you can tell Skitter’s proud of herself for knowing how and when to do it.

I admire Skitter. She doesn’t let her fears keep her in her crate all day. Despite the abuse she suffered before we familied her, she’s still willing to trust that we’ve got her skinny canine back. She knows it’s a crazy world. She knows it can be a mean world. Still, she faces each day with oodles of hope and wonder. Sometimes I think she’s better at being a grown-up than I am.

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Skitter’s Merry Pad

Skitter is looking dreamy in her flannel Bow Tie o’ the Day, as she lounges somewhat seductively around her own personal Charlie Brown Christmas tree— in her own personal living room townhouse. She’s looking dapper and cozy in her digs. She’s got a Dean Martin aura of smooth coolness going on. I feel like I should dress Skitter a tuxedo. I feel like I should mix her a dirty hot toddy, and set up a bigly, clunky microphone in front of her so she can croon holiday carols to us as we wrap presents and experience our own asinine people dramas.

Gee. I just realized I want to live in Skitter’s crate and be spoiled by me.

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2 Hats Are Better Than 1

Diamond-point X-mas Bow Tie o’ the Day is simple, yet festive. It’s a practical choice for wearing around the house all day, which is exactly what I did. Bow Tie isn’t flashy and it’s not bigly. Even if Skitter is the only person— yes, she’s a person— who lays eyes on it, it improves my mood to dress up for my day of whatever it is I do with my days. And I, myself, am worth dressing snappy for. I don’t have to leave the house to be worthy of a bow tie.

I’m also wearing Hat o’ the Day inside, to warm the shaved side of my head. It is my latest hat acquisition. Suzanne brought it home from the office last week, but Suzanne does not wear hats. We made it a law. Hats do not work on her, and she knows it. They make her look like she’s in a funhouse mirror which warps the shape and size of her head’s reflection. It isn’t pretty. I, of course, benefit from the No-Hats-For-Suzanne Law by immediately inheriting any hat that comes her way.

I had to search my Christmas prop box for my tiny red-and-green teeny hat. My Spock ear was extra cold this afternoon, and my new beanie alone just wasn’t cutting it. Soon after I gave my pointy ear its own Hat o’ the Spock Ear, it warmed right up with the rest of my head.

It’s kinda fun to have a Spock ear. And I still think it’s my sexiest feature.

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A Cry For Help

In the cartoon, Linus’ baby blue blanket around the base of Charlie Brown’s Christmas tree gave it the love it needed to become its best tree-self. Around our house, Chuck Brown’s X-mas tree thrives by being wrapped in Tie o’ the Day’s rendition of the famous tree.

Skitter and I are especially hoping this tree photo will nudge Suzanne into getting our “real” fake Christmas tree into the house. She has said absolutely nothing about a tree this year, and the tree is her assignment. Skitter and I hope this post will remind her we’re on the countdown to Christmas Day, and we’d like the bling of a decked out tree ASAP. Hint, hint.

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Oldies, But Goodies

I’m swamped with holiday gotta-do’s today. I’m finding no time to settle down to create a new post, so here are a few photos for y’all to check out, from December 2017. I ho, ho, hope you are delighted by them.

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The Breakfast Of Champions

After Suzanne went off whistling to work this morning, I dished out ice cream for breakfast. Holiday Tie o’ the Day is a bigly clue as to who helped me eat it. Skitter didn’t want to be in the actual photo, so Suzanne will never be able to stumble onto any visual proof she ate ice cream with me. We really can do whatever we want when Suzanne’s at work, as long as she doesn’t find out. Suzanne is kind of our year-round version of Elf on a Shelf. We are very, very, very good when she’s got her eye on us. My fear is that she will ask for indoor security cameras for X-mas, so she can keep track of me and Skitter from her work computer until she retires.