Happy Dogs

Even though I have always had dogs, I have never owned 'casual dogs' before. You know the ones, they ride in the back of pick ups and don't jump out at the gas station. They swim in the pond and don't climb the opposite bank and disappear into the sunset. They get a Krystal when you go through the drive through. They walk around with silly bandanas around their necks and act like they don't care about affronted dignity.

NOW I HAVE ONE. I adopted 10 year old Smoke from the dog pound. No one wanted him because he was A) OLD B) HUGE C) A little spooky looking. I didn't care. I wanted a big dog, a sweet boy who looked a little rough, and hey olds not so bad. Ten I thought, he will be happy watching the evening news with me and snacking on soft food. NOT SO! The boy can go. Car rides, truck rides, walks in the park, swims in the pond. He can't keep up with the spouses German Shorthair, but then neither can I (neither could a racehorse).

Best of all, sometimes he looks around at the trees and sky with an expression that looks to me like:

How wonderful is the world, how beautiful are the trees, the wind feels so
soft,the food is good. I am alive, she took me from the cage, I can see
the sky!

Yeah I know that's a little much for a dog to think, but its what it looks like to me. After he looks at the sky he comes and sits next to me, leans on me and looks at me as if I am god. It doesn't get much better then that.

Chinese Bathroom

After my 9am real estate closing I changed clothes and started on the second stage of the Chinese Bathroom. Three hours later I am waiting on the clouds to finish drying so I can do the fine line black work. The cranes will have to wait though. I am way to cranky and stiff for cranes.

Chinese Bathroom

It sounded like a good idea. Bad ones tend to start out that way. E said "lets do the bathroom (at the office) in metallic gold and chinese red, we can put some oriental stuff in it, it'll look cool". Sure I said. Why not?

Mistake. Serious error. Metallic gold paint is thin and sheer. One coat of primer, one coat yellow base, and three coats of gold later, it looks a nightmare. G-d help anyone who might go in with an upset stomach.

So, in the morning I am going to paint clouds and cranes and maybe, just maybe a pagoda, on top of the gold, just like the big chinese fan in the entry. Wish me luck, I'll need it. And listen up, the next time a middle aged person tells you something will look cool, take it with a big dose of salt and a few extra strength asprin.

Manic Monday

It isn't just another manic Monday. It is a nothing Monday. Only a few clients, not many phone calls, not much to do. If wishes were horses I would have a corral full of lovely tort ponies. Even a new work for hire brief would make me smile.

I knew it would be slow when we opened the new office. I did not know how difficult it would be to be idle for hours each day. I have one closing scheduled, work all done. Everything else is current.

In 1989 I went to work for an aging lawyer. I was 29, he was 55. I was fresh and eager, he was bored and brillant. He had just recovered his license and I had just finished school. Every file we had would fit in a vertical stacker.

One dog case car wreck, one will, two divorces, one DUI, one case of hunting deer with a jacklight. They all seemed hugely interesting and vital to me. When I suggested doing discovery in the divorce cases, the boss was all for it. He grinned, rocked back on his heels, stuck his thumbs in his belt loops and said "might be fun". When we interviewed the DUI and I asked 101 questions, (as taught in school), he was amused. In a low office, nothing is more amusing then watching a novice make enormous mountains out of little sandy ant hills.

I could go back to playing 101 questions with clients, they would probably love it, but once you know what the 5 important questions are, the only smile in the excess is if someone else is asking the questions and diligently noting the answers.