Couch Cuddle

Carlito seeks protection by lying underneath Joey's legs while Teeca jumps right on the couch to sing with Ammala.

A Drink with a View

Newport offers what is perhaps the most scenic cocktail in the area. Jay and I took the opportunity to enjoy one of the last warm afternoons of the season.

Backyard Romp

Joey and Ammala joined us in the backyard during a recent sunny afternoon.
The kids always enjoy a run in the yard, but even more so with Joey and Ammala along to join in the fun.

Going Public

I did it! I finally started leaving my car in the parking lot, and getting to work via a combination of bicycle and bus.

The combined total of my daily commute is just under two hours, and I had long been frustrated with the stress, expense, and waste of the daily drive. My final decision to try using public transportation was made when I realized that it was a change I could make to my daily life to better fit with my own politics. Even still, I was terrified that I would loathe the loss of my independence.

The first day I found it somewhat exhilarating biking in to the bus station, and I arrived with twelve minutes to spare after locking up my bike. I hadn't used a bike lock in five years, and it took me an embarrassingly long time to struggle with the right way to secure the bike to the rack.

While waiting for the bus, I noted that my hands were black and greasy from the bike. Even though I bought a vacuum sealed thermos, I couldn't stop thinking that I was spilling coffee all over the work clothes I'd tucked into my commuter pack. My face was rather sweaty from the ride in, but I was cheered to see that there were markedly less drunk people loitering at the bus stop then there were when I walked by and scoped it out Sunday afternoon.

When the bus pulled up, the driver informed me that not too many people bring their bikes on the bus, but since there is only room to load two bikes I should just make sure I get to the bus stop early enough to be one of the first two people with bikes in line. I sat down, and pulled out my thermos. I quickly realized that I would have to hold my thermos either between my legs or feet, since the seats do not come equipped with any type of drink storage. I pulled out my book, and relaxed until I arrived at my destination.

By my second day of not driving, I already began to test my limits of how late I could push leaving the house without missing the bus. I made it in plenty of time, and loaded my bike onto the bus. I sat down, and found that I have an embarrassing lack of tolerance for others. I was enraged, irrationally angry, because the man in front of me had his window open. Not only was he causing the air conditioning to run inefficiently, but the wind was blowing my hair and tickling it about my face. While I was somewhat surprised at how much this bothered me, I did take note of "Window Man," and sat farther away from him on future rides.

I have now been commuting without driving my car for over two months, and the experience, despite a few minor inconveniences, has been largely positive. I love the feeling that I get when I can proudly tell people that I choose to not drive to work. I love knowing that I am making at least a small difference by not buying over four hundred dollars worth of environment killing gasoline each month. I especially love how alive I feel biking in each morning, and the powerful feeling of my body getting stronger and more in shape. We'll see how tough I am when winter swoops in and begins to chill the morning air, but for now I love not driving to work.

Sammy Wants Some Cake

We recently had some cake with Richard on his birthday, and I was reminded that Teeca and Carlito aren't the only hounds that feel entitled to partake of all meals. Sammy is an enthusiastic and wonderful Italian Greyhound, and he very much wanted to help Richard celebrate his birthday by chowing down on some cake.

There's the Rub

Poor 'Lito.

What started as a small irritation turned into a full blown abrasion after Carlito began obsessively licking the spot on his leg. Since the sore was getting worse and he clearly wasn't going to stop licking his wound, we bought the E-Collar and cleaned his leg.

As soon as we set him up with the hated collar, Carlito's leg began to heal, and he is now fully free of the plastic torture device.

Carlito loves the open road

Not long after we departed our driveway and headed for the mountains, Teeca quickly adjusted to her spot in the back seat by using the door's built in arm rest as a head rest.


While she napped for the greater part of the drive, it seemed that Carlito would never relax. He spent the first half of the trip standing up on all fours, eventually settling down enough to at least sit down. His chosen perch was rather stiff, as he propped himself up with his front legs and peered out the small triangular window behind the larger back window.


He seemed to never tire of staring out the window, almost eager to not miss any of the sights along the way. While his posture did look a bit uptight, he appeared to enjoy keeping watch, and would seem to grin out the window as the wind met his face.

While driving home in the rain, I remarked that he may never relax enough to nap or lie down in the car. As if only to prove me wrong, about an hour away from Providence Carlito left his perch and turned away from the window to face Teeca. He paused here for the next twenty or so minutes, and then began making a few nervous and awkward attempts to lie down. Just as we neared the Rhode Island border, he finally relaxed enough to fully lie down and rest his head on Teeca's back.

This is one dog that doesn't easily embrace changes to his routine. That being said, we were all glad to see our dry, clean, comfortable home.

Adventure Dog

About as much adventure as you can have tethered to your mom, that is.

When preparing for our hiking trip in the White Mountains, we knew we needed to find a new solution to curb Carlito's wanderlust. The typical walking leash doesn't afford enough flexibility for us to safely hike. Even if we aren't using trekking poles, it is better to have both of our hands free. Another flaw of the hand held leash, is that one could easily be pulled off balance.

Once we figured out the best way to attach the bungee belt leash, this proved to be the way to go. At the sight of a squirrel or a rabbit, Carlito has been known to run off and not return. We've also learned that if both dogs are off leash during a hike, they become competitive and start racing each other to see who is the fastest. We then spend the entire hike yelling, "Stop!" and "Come!" while they race ahead out of sight and then finally race all the way back to us. Since losing Carlito or screaming at the dogs while they race provides an undesirable high stress edge to the nature walk, we were relieved to discover the bungee belt.

Outfitted with the bungee and his pack, Carlito was able to carry his own food as well as pack any trash out.

We knew that we would be crossing a number of streams and brooks, much to Teeca's delight and Carlito's displeasure. While Teeca joyfully bounded down the trail and jumped in the water for a swim, we had to plead and coax to get Carlito to enter the water and cross a stream. For more shallow crossings, this wasn't much of a problem, but he had to be almost forcefully pulled across deeper water. He was though, considerably more brave if he saw a clear path of rocks and could cross without having to get very wet. This was not always possible.

During our first hike, we entered a marshy area that was thick with mud. We learned to test the mud with our trekking poles when Jay turned a corner and his leg was submerged in the muck up to his knee. I quickly vowed to test each step to avoid being coated with the stinking, black goo. About two and a half miles before the hike's end, I was watching Carlito choose his path and took a bad step. Finding myself with one leg submerged to the knee, I quickly followed with the second leg. By cursing and pulling with my poles, I managed to remove myself from the mud pit, but not without coating the inside and outside of my shoes and socks. We were able to rinse off in a brook, but of course this only does so much good.

With our boots not entirely dry, we set out the second day for a hike with a higher elevation. At about 4,500 feet elevation and probably a half mile from the summit, the sky became ominously dark. Concerned about the impending weather, the waning hours of daylight, and the aggressive angle to which we would be descending, Jay had no sooner made his case for turning around when the rain began. As we began to descend, the rain gave way to storm and the sky was splintered with lightning. Thunder roared in our faces and we were slapped with hail. We decided to descend as quickly as possible, since there was very little cover at that elevation. Carlito, on the other hand, thought we should seek shelter immediately, and ducked under an evergreen tree. We kept moving.

After we made it down safely but drenched through and through, we changed clothes and piled into the car. I felt exhausted, and I was done with roughing it. We drove to a Mexican restaurant for hot food and beer.

That's Hair-ible

Even with regular brushing, the amount of hair that comes off of these two never ceases to amaze me. Teeca doesn't mind the brushing routine as long as she has a carrot or something to chew on, while Carlito pretty much freezes in fear throughout the entire brushing. Neither of them care much for this necessary exercise, both tolerating it with an air of disdain.

Providence Walk

Most weekends the kids join Jay and I on the Providence walk, which is punctuated with a couple of expected encounters.

There is a landscaping wall that runs the length of the Whole Foods, and Teeca loves to scale this wall. The wall begins at the height of a single brick, and continues to build until it reaches over my head. Teeca steps onto the wall at the low point, and wants to continue on until the bitter end, long after she is comfortable jumping off on her own. If we allow her to walk this far, she needs to be pulled down off thewall, which makes her somewhat nervous. As soon as she realizes she has to descend, she thinks better of it and tries to escape higher, up the landscaping, thinking that perhaps the easier route will save her the indignity of not being able to jump down herself.

They own everything

I remember when we first brought the dogs into our home, we were adamant that they would not be allowed on the furniture. He knows he owns this place.

The Hunt

Had I not heard the sound of her paw smacking the side of the dish and run into the kitchen to investigate, I'm sure Teeca would have consumed the entire dish of pork loin marinated in peanut sauce. By the time I interrupted her, she had jumped on her hind legs, pulled the dish to the edge of the stove, and had eaten about half of the pork loin. After I took the pork away from her, she spent much of the rest of the evening lying in front of the oven, licking peanut sauce off of her coat, staring with fondness at the site of her most recent catch.

Ah yes, girl, the hunt was fruitful this evening.