A movie of my photo shoot ...

My Human has been in this cleansing, organizing, purging kick ... and in that process she ran across this movie that Photographer's Guild made of my photo shoot back in March of this year. It makes me smile .... I guarantee, if you watch my movie, you'll love it too, especially if you know my story and what a rough start I had ... those days are long gone!!

Thanks Karen (of Red Lake Rosie's Rescue ... for rescuing me and my pups!)

Will you help my friends?

This past school year I began volunteering at The Lab and began working with "R" (that's us looking into each other's eyes ;-) The Lab is a program of St. Paul Public Schools and serves at-risk youth to discover, understand and share their voices through creative and experiential opportunities. Sometimes humans have been hurt so much that it's hard for them to trust -- that's what I've learned about all of these great kids, and in particular "R". "R" and I got teamed up and I got to hang out with him every week. I remember the first time we met ... I could tell he liked me (and I liked him too!) but he really wasn't sure what to do with me. As weeks passed (and there were days when all we would do is hang out together while he played word games with my Human) I could feel his heart opening up ... I think my heart also started to open up to. Every Tuesday morning my Human and I would wait for "R" to arrive at The Lab. He would arrive in a St. Paul yellow cab with a couple other kids, escorted by an adult. As our bond grew, and weeks passed, "R" would dart out of the cab and run into the building to meet me. I would wait for him to walk through the door. I love to see the big smile on his face and how he would get down on his knees and give me a big bear hug. The first time the other kids met me, "R" said "This is my dog, AH-NUNG" and he hugged me for the tenth time. My pal "R" -- he can hug me a hundred times and that wouldn't even be enough.

The Lab is a really cool place because they have programs where dogs can participate. Me, i'm pretty mellow, and rather than the dog obedience stuff, I like to work 1:1 with kids like "R" ... for me, it's about relationships and connecting and simply hanging out. Like "R" i went through so much before I was rescued by Karen of Red Lake Rosie's Rescue (heartworm, lymes disease, gun shot, starvation - and I have no front teeth to prove it! You name it, i'm a survivor!)

Anyway, I need your help now ... The Lab has been nominated for a $10,000 grant - a grant called "Grant for Change" and supports artists, activists, and athletes doing good in the world. The recipient is based on votes. The Lab NEEDS your vote, and it needs to be done by 8/31, so no procratinating my friends ;-) Together, we can make a difference in the lives of more "R's" in this world ...

To vote, visit the Nau Grant for Change site.

And spread the word!

Hugs from "R" and slobbery kisses from me (ahnung)

I've got this play thing down now!

Okay, so it's only taken me 7 months to figure this thing out but i've got it, by George, i've got this play thing down! I've been sitting back watching my brother Mister play with Missy and also the cat, Henry. I admit, i'm not so sure about Missy yet ... i've tried to jump in and join Missy and Mister when they play but Missy will start chasing me and it kinda scares me. But Mister ... oh, Mister is just one crazy boy who makes a LOT of noise. The other day my Human had Missy hang out behind the baby gate so that Mister and I could play. Boy oh boy, was it fun! Check out the video .... then my Human had to go ruin it by letting Missy back in (who, by the way, was barking and whining in the background) .... I mean, I love Missy ... I think we just need a little more time to figure out how to play well with each other. After my Human let Missy back in I decided to sit back and watch again even though I could tell Missy wanted to play ... poor Missy .. I think she was a little upset and couldn't understand why all the fun stopped. But watch the video -- you'll see that Mister gives her a kiss at the end. He is such a sweet brother AND a great play teacher.

What i've learned after 6 months

It's been over six months now since my Humans adopted me along with my four-legged brothers Mister and Henry (he's of the feline species) and sister, Missy. What can I say ... life has been good. I've been sitting back watching Mister and Missy play, Mister and Henry play and snuggle up together. Mister plays soooo hard with both Missy and Henry. I'm learning a lot from the crazy boy. He always greets our Humans with something in his mouth. When they come home he drags the blanket off of the couch and makes sure he has something to offer them. He used to offer shoes, socks, pens, wooden decorations and other goodies he'd find off of the tables but our Humans have started putting everything away before they leave ... hmmm, must be that they don't want Mister eating it. I still remember the day our Humans came home and Mister had munched on a blinking device with small buttons (editor's note: it was my blackberry/cell phone) .... he munched on it good and my Human was NOT -- I repeat, NOT ... a happy camper. After a couple minutes though she started to laugh. It seems like she can't stay mad at my brother. I think his cuteness must score him some points. Anyway, I've been learning to put stuff in my mouth too. The other day I followed Mister upstairs ... he had my Human's flip flop in his mouth. My Human went after him. I decided to join in the fun and I grabbed my Human's other flip flop and put it in my mouth and ran upstairs too. Hey, I've seen Mister and Missy play and I want to join in too. My Human seemed shocked to see me with flip flops in my mouth. I don't get it ... she's not surprised when Mister has stuff in his mouth, why does she have to look at me like i'm an alien when I'm just doing what Mister has been doing all these months????!!!

The other day Mister and Missy were playing so hard upstairs ... Missy does these cool somersaults. I think she must practice doggie yoga because she's pretty flexible. Mister just yanks on Missy and bites him so hard and makes all these loud noises. At first I thought they were fighting. They put their butt up in the air a lot and stretch out their front paws ... I think they're saying i'm ready to play. I decided to join in ... man, I got scared ... Missy turned around and started chasing me. I think she was playing but i'm not sure. My Human laughed as she saw me turn around so quickly and run down the steps. Yes, I ran faster than i've ever run before. Give me a few more months ... i'll get the hang of this crazy play thing. I'm kinda likin' it so far :)

And you have got to just see Mister play with Henry. I don't know how many times i've seen Henry's entire head in his mouth. Those two just love each other. Dog ... cat ... human ... who cares what species we are -- we all love each other.

Best friends --- that's what we all are.

Glamour shot

Okay ... so i've been on break from blogging. You have to remember ... i'm used to the cold weather of northern Minnesota so this heat wears me out. All I want to do is sleep (my Human tells me that's what I tell her no matter what the temperature is ... what does she know!). Anyway, I don't have many words to say so I thought i'd just post one of my favorite photos from a photo shoot that I had at Photographers Guild a few months ago. It shows me looking perky ... well, don't be fooled. It's only because the photographer is taunting me with treats. Yes, i'm food motivated, aren't we all????

Most of the time you won't see me looking this perky. Most of the time ... yes, my Human is right ... i'm sleeping :)

On that note, time to go back to bed.

The infamous Filipino "Balut"

My Human just got back a few days ago from visiting her mom in the Philippines. While she was there she took photos of my fellow stray dogs and cats and wrote about it. You should check out her blog.

What she didn't mention was how she asked her cousin Edith to eat a "balut". A balut is a Filipino street snack and a delicacy. It's essentially a duck egg with a fetus inside - between seventeen to twenty days in gestation. When she was a kid she was challenged by her cousin Edith to try one ... she was told "you're not a real Filipina unless you eat a balut!" Well, my Human thought she could take on that challenge. As instructed, she poked a hole in the shell and sucked the juice out. She claims that was tolerable ... or at least, from what she can remember. Then she was told to peel the shell off. Her stomach started to turn. She tells me though that as a kid she was very competitive and was not about to lose a bet or not take on a challenge! After peeling the shell off what she saw was an undeveloped duck embryo, lots of blood vessels, veins (the photo on the right is from the Deep End Dining blog,) what looked like eyes attempting to develop, maybe a beak .... she closed her eyes, and took a bite. Some are lucky enough to bite into soft meat. My Human wasn't so lucky. Her first was a crunch into the beak and her mouth felt the sensation of duck feather --- she says that at that point she knew she couldn't take the challenge any further. She gulped down what was already in her mouth, quickly grabbed a glass of water, another glass, another glass, and yet another glass --- her memories of that experience remain with her decades later and never again has she ever eaten a balut. In fact, she's a vegetarian now and has been one for over 20 years. I wonder if that formative childhood experience had anything to do with it?? :)

My Human grew up in Thailand. You would think she's be used to all this "interesting" delicacies. Her family had a maid growing up ... she tells me how she would often find her maid snacking on fried bugs (water bugs and sometimes worms) with jasmine rice. She would hear the crunch of the bug as her maid Tong would be relishing the flavor of the bugs blended with rice. She said that Tong always had a smile on her face when she was munching on bugs and rice. It appeared to be one of her favorite meals. In Thai she would ask my Human, "you want some?" I'll give you one guess on what her answer was! [If you'd like to learn more about eating bugs in Thailand check out this website].

Well ... my Human has had the opportunity to enjoy baluts and bugs ... I keep telling her how lucky she is to have been given that opportunity. She doesn't quite see it that way. Me?? I'm not picky. I'll eat both baluts and bugs!

Shadow's 2 year anniversary

It was two years ago today when my Humans said goodbye to Shadow. I can sense in their heart how much they still miss him. My Human rescued him from the country roads of Owasso, Oklahoma -- she was training for a triathlon and after a hill workout on what was referred to as "killer hill" she saw him wandering the roads, ribs protruding, dried blood on his ear (obviously a wound that had healed) and filled with ticks and fleas. She took him in that hot summer afternoon. She later discovered that he had been shot ... x-rays revealed he had lead in his skull. Apparently, someone had shot at him and took a little piece of his ear ... as the bullet hit his ear it shattered leaving pieces of lead in his skull. My Human tells me Shadow hated July 4th and fireworks ... on June 18, 2007 he was diagnosed with intestinal cancer and given a few weeks to live ... he was a smart boy and decided to tell my Human early in the morning of July 2, 2007 that it was time for him to go. He told her by burrowing himself in a hole he dug by a bush in their backyard and laying in it -- something he has never done before. He was not about to go through another year of fireworks and trauma!

My Human created a video to celebrate his life. It's a beautiful tribute ..... my Humans lost both Shen and Shadow in an 8 month period - Shen to spleen cancer and Shadow to intestinal cancer.

I hope they know that their spirits continue to live on in Missy, Mister, Henry and myself.



My Human also wrote a poem for Shadow on July 4th, "Whispers from Rainbow bridge" -- you can read it here.