Laddie

I'm pretty sure it was 1996 that I adopted Laddie. I had just come back from Pensacola to live with my parents after being burned out working at Lakeview Center. It's frustrating to me that I can't remember 'why' I adopted him. Did I go to Paws on a whim? or was I actively seeking another dog. I remember seeing his advert in the paper. Paws called him Scamp. I remember visiting with him at Paws and actually adopting him at the BX on base. I think I paid 35 dollars. I was pretty down when I came back home, so perhaps I was seeking something.

My other dog had died a year or two before. He also lived at my parents house. It was a weekend morning that I happened to be home. It was around noon when I looked out the back window, and I noticed he was lying in the grass still. It looked odd, so I went outside and knelt down, and when I touched him, it was as if he let out his last breath. Max had lived a long 15 yrs.

Max had a mother named Snoopy. She was my first dog essentially. My parents got her from someone when I was very young. She was a fat ,black, dachsund mix. She gave birth to about 3 litters of puppies. I recall waking up one morning and seeing the new born puppies. I was so fascinated. I tried to keep a puppy from each litter, but the first two died shortly after from worms. One of them I had named Koenig! lol Max made it tho.

Snoopy lived a long time too, perhaps close to 10yrs. She developed a heart murmur in the last few months of her life. It would cause her these wretched spasms. I don't even remember how old I was, maybe 9th grade. I do remember debating on whether to get her euthanized, and I just couldn't do it. I took her out in the yard one night and sat with her for a long time. I held her head and told her how much I loved her, and that I would miss her when she was gone. She died shortly after. And like Max , and the other puppies I buried her.

Laddie died this past Saturday morning in his sleep. He was right around 15yrs of age as well. Like I said it's kind of frustrating that some of my earlier memories of him are not so vivid. I think one of the nicest days I can remember was taking him and Laurie's dog Sookie ( who has also passed) out to Panama City and some small towns. The dogs got to ride around in Laurie's CRV for hours and explore several parks that day. It was a nice day for Laurie and I as well.

Laddie loved his walks, and loved riding in the car. It would always crack me up when we would be walking and he would get a sand spur in his foot. Max was a complete wimp, but Laddie would just pick it out with his teeth and a small wimper. He was a tough dog, dealing with some sort of nervous system spasms every few months for the last few years. He killed a squirrel not but a few months ago. He inhaled his food and escaped the yard more than once. He would also howl whenever I left Fort Walton. He could sense I was leaving for a long time perhaps. Now that it's too late, I very much regret not being able to say goodbye to him or take him for one last walk. It is a thought that I will have to process for a while I think.

I want to thank my parents so much for doing their best to take care of him and for laying him to rest. RIP Laddie.

Cold is gettin old

I think I'm finally ready for spring. It's really hard to get motivated to start all the cleaning I need to get done when it's so cold outside. I really miss riding my bike too. I know I said I was going to ride in the cold, but that Nebraska wind just burns the face. A balaclava just makes my mouth and nose feel weird. Unfortunately, I overhead the weatherman saying more frigid cold was on its way.

My daughter has began the act of being a real consumer. Her current favorite cartoon is Kid vs Kat on Disney XD. She never really saw commercials on Noggin or Nick, so now she sees a commercial for magic beans or pokeman cards and declares "I want that! Let's get that, Dad!" I laugh and say "Yooouuu don't need that!" And she says, "Sure we do!"

There's a commercial they play a lot for a small hover saucer. It looks kinda fun really. Always fun to make my dog more crazy than he already is right?!! Remote control stuff is so cheap these days. I think it's only 24.95. Pfft prolly break the minute it lands on something hard.

Eparg TrebliG

Whose idea was this anyway?



Oh and I just had to add this because this is just too cool!

FREAKY MONKEY PEOPLE!

Diamonds!!

I can't stop laughing at this goofy ad from Old Spice!

I'm On a Horse!!

Dan O'Bannon

I was revisiting some scenes from Dark Star on youtube and saw in the commentary that actor/writer Dan O'Bannon had passed in Dec 09. This information made me pause for a few minutes. I find that I have these moments of reflection when someone in the media dies , more so these days I guess. When Patrick Swayze died, it was more than just a passing thought for the day. I mean how many movies did I see growing up with him in it?

Dan O'Bannon had a list of creative efforts : from wiki

• 1974 Dark Star – writer, special fx, editor, prod design, co-star
• 1977 Star Wars – special computer effects
• 1979 Alien – writer
• 1981 Dead & Buried – writer
• 1981 Heavy Metal – writer of two segments, Soft Landing and B-17
• 1983 Blue Thunder – writer
• 1985 Lifeforce – writer
• 1985 The Return of the Living Dead – writer, director, voice
• 1986 Invaders from Mars – writer
• 1990 Total Recall – writer
• 1992 The Resurrected – director
• 1995 Screamers – writer
• 2010 Silvaticus 3015 – co-screenplay writer

One of my favorite movies ever has been and prolly always will be Alien. To this day 31 years later I can still watch this movie from beginning to end and be in awe of it's execution. I was so terrified of the commercial, I told my parents I wanted to see it. I was 8 yrs old! I remember telling my father 30 min into the movie that this was not scary at all. However, by the end I must have been practically frozen in terror. I can remember talking about how it scared the ever living shit of out me in 3rd grade lunch.

For years, my dreams would incorporate the Alien as a symbol of some anxiety. Along with HR Giger's art, and Ridely Scott's direction so much of what I like/produce artistically has a footprint from that movie. So thank you Dan O'Bannon for making it happen.

Wonder Stranger

This is the nose piece for the nitrous at the dentist. It stinks of super sweet strawberry. Kinda funny they give it to the kiddies as a play toy to remember their visit to the dentist. Of course, I have to wear it too which makes everything smell like strawberry for 20 min.



It's still snowing a couple of inches once a week. Just enough to coat everything in white and remind you that the huge piles from 2 blizzards in Dec aren't going anywhere.



My two goofies just happy to be outside and in their own worlds :)
It's fun to be in the park when no one else is there.



Give me a kissssss!!

And I found an interesting artist the other day. Plaid actually did a remix for her, but her original song is pretty interesting too.

VIA TANIA

Flunitrazepam

That's the real name of the Rufenol or the 'rufi' drug that the guys in The Hangover had. I finally watched this movie last night. It cracked me up in some parts, but didn't have me in stitches like I Love You Man.

I didn't even realize a trailer for Toy Story 3 is out. Looks pretty good!

Check It!