Saturday, December 4, 2010

Larger home ???




Our small home has become smaller for the weekend with the visit of Abby, a brindle female mastiff. We are keeping her while her parents are out of town. She is smaller than the Boyz but manages to put them in their place. The schipperkes are not too happy about the arrangement as they have never been socialized and the addition of another dog throws them out of sorts. They all manage to play in the backyard without any conflicts but due to the smallness of the house interior, the schips have to be watched as they will be snippy towards Abby. They can be little devils and do live up to their name, Little Black Devil. Abby is a love and it would be extremely easy to become attached to her quickly. Good thing that her parents won't be away long!! What's one more dog in the mix..............

Sunday, October 31, 2010

Continuing..........


It has been almost 3 months since my last posting. The two new schips have settled in nicely. Everything is a new experience for them, almost like having puppies around only on a larger scale. I have taken them to the bay on a couple of occasions and Trip seems to like to play in the water. Sammi is not so sure. Of course, they also did not stop quite soon enough when running through the yard and they both went off the end of the walkway into the large pond. No harm done, but it is rather funny watching a schipperke try and walk on water lilies.

I have had one more pet sitting job since August which lasted for 5 days. The dogs were great, especially the elder Rhodisian Ridgeback. I was filling in for the regular house/pet sitter who was out of town on vacation. Great place, back in the pine trees.

Wednesday, August 11, 2010

New happenings............


My pet sitting marathon comes to a close (with many hoorays from my husband) in two more days. Once again, as you can see from the picture, it has been very stressful. Hardship duty.... Sweet little yorkies that bark when you are in the pool. Doing their protective bit I think.
My son has closed on his new (and first ever owned) home in Englewood. It is a roomy 2 bed/2 bath home with a Florida room at the back of the house. Smallish back yard, but big enough for the pups. Move in should be next week. He is having a refrigerator delivered today and then we will be moving more of the smaller pieces of furniture. It will be great having the whole family closer together. It was becoming a drag driving back and forth to Sarasota to visit, see the pups and do anything with my cousin who shares the home with Ed.
We have adopted two schipperkes from rescue that are living with us at the Englewood home. I have also snagged the elder schipperke female from the Sarasota house and she is with us also. So now the animal family is complete with the mastiff Boyz (Dodger and Jack) and the schips, Bits the elder, Sammi the young female and her male companion Trip. The newbies were spayed and neutered on Monday and should be ready to be set loose with the pack by next week. Trip's hormones are still raging so we are keeping him separated from Sammi until they calm down.
Now, if the rain would just stop so we can go back to the beach it would be great..................

Saturday, July 24, 2010

Pet Sitting...........




I'm on the second leg of my marathon pet sitting run and I guess if you have to do a job as tough as this one, it is always good to have great scenery. And, of course, suffer with an inground pool with a temp of 90 degrees!!!! And to think I gave up the graveyard shift of dispatching for this.......!!!!

Friday, July 2, 2010

The big furry loves of my life.......


I have always had pets in my life - the occasional stray dog or cat when I lived at home with my parents and many too numerous to list ever since. Most of the time the dogs were small to medium in size and at one time I actually considered my springer spaniel to be rather large. That, of course, was before I was introduced to Dodger and Jack......

Dodger is the larger of the two weight wise and is tan and black in color. Slightly overweight ( let's say portly to be nice), he weighs in around 240. Dodger is believed to be between 6 and 7 years old. Jack (short for Jackson) is a little over 2 and still a puppy. He weighs in around 180. Jack's favorite toy, which he plays with in the yard, is his bowling ball. He has become quite adept at picking it up and dropping it on my foot....

In my attempt to find something for Jack to play with in the house, and knowing a bowling ball was out of the question for obvious reasons, I opted for one of the milk bone toys with the knotted rope running through the center and hanging out on both sides lengthwise. My idea was great and Jack caught on right away to the fact that this was a fun thing to play with......however......
These toys are not made for a dog over 20 pounds !! Dodger got in on the action right away with no encouragement and the sound of ripping and tearing material could be heard throughout the house. After picking up handfuls of fiberfill stuffing that came from inside the bone part of the thing, I managed to salvage the rope. Not nearly as much fun I am sure, but much less mess to clean up. Someone out there needs to make a toy that the boys can have fun with in the house while not destroying the toy or the premises.............

Thursday, July 1, 2010

Graveyard Shift....


I strongly believe that if you have worked as a police dispatcher you are destined to never again in your lifetime sleep like a normal person!! This is the second night this week that I have seen 4AM come and go. I am blaming the lack of sleep on my previous life style as I can't come up with any other logical reason. I'm not worried about anything that should be keeping me awake and I can't blame it on the dogs as they are not sleeping with me. I did do something to my back a couple of weeks ago and I have been to see the chiropractor a few times now. My back is feeling much better but we haven't been walking the beach at night nor have we been swimming the past few days as the afternoon showers seem to be starting. I suppose lack of exercise could have something to do with not sleeping also.
I start my marathon pet sitting this coming week. Staring July 7 through the middle of August I am booked solid. Nice for me - not so much for husband. The first 10 days will be in Sarasota so I will be able to have dinner with my son and cousin, and hopefully Steve will drive up for a couple of family meals. After that the job is closer to home so I will see more of Steve. The extra money will be nice but I'm not so sure about being away from home for such an extended period of time. I will miss the mastiff boys and will have to make sure I get down here to the house to see them.


Wednesday, May 5, 2010

Beach time ..........

Got a late start today, but managed dinner and some beach time. Not a long walk, but enough to relax the body and mind. We missed the sunset but the water was warm and soothing.....There is something to be said for living near the water.........Something very primal.....I know when I am leaving I can almost feel the water pulling me back towards it. I think I have always felt this way. As much as I enjoyed learning about the culture in New Mexico, I always felt something missing....something pulling me back closer to water....I feel a great peace listening to the waves crashing, watching the power of the water pulling the sand from the beach and then tossing it back in again...........

Monday, May 3, 2010

Beach time again........Yah!!!

While I am doing kitty sitting, Steve and I are having "date nights". As I stay overnight with the kitties, I feed them their dinners and then head to our house in Englewood for a few hours. I either fix dinner there or we go out to eat and then head for the beach. The water is much warmer than our last visit and I had to fight a very strong urge last evening to keep from running into the surf. The sunsets are truly beautiful and being there with Steve makes it all that much better. Some nights we head for Dearborn Street in Olde Englewood and go to the Ice Cream Shoppe. Their mint chocolate chip is super.

On a less positive note: I think I am fighting a losing battle with the house in New Mexico. As much as I don't want to be a "hard nose" about the whole thing, I am really tired of being patient and I am starting to feel slightly used. I feel bad for our buyer as I know what it is like to have your spouse leave and I also know what it is like to lose a job. But I think I have been patient long enough and it is time to move on, both for myself and for the buyer of the house. Maybe it was just not meant for him to own that particular home. At any rate, I see another trip to New Mexico in my near future. Not that I don't want to go again; it's just that it really strains the budget and until the house sells I have no other source of income other than social security and the little I make from pet sitting. I'm tired of playing a "wait and see" game...............

Sunday, May 2, 2010

Kitty Sitting.......


I am 4 days into my kitty sitting and all is going well. The cats are great! They were all just a little feisty last evening and I did find some chunks of fur on the floor this morning. No one looks the worse for wear and they seem to have gotten it out of their systems. I have tried several times to get all of them in a picture at one time, but it never seems to work. Can't seem to do that at home with the dogs either.

My cousin has arrived and is settling in. She has been alone for many months since her husband passed away and has become accustomed to cooking for one and eating alone. Now she and my son are sharing the house and she will have to relearn cooking for two. Unless, of course, she wants to spend the extra money for Stouffers for two! I am sure she will be back in the swing of things in no time. She ventured out on her own yesterday for the first time to the drugstore and Publix. The dogs think it is great because she is with them all the time. I don't feel quite so much that I have abandoned them now as I will be spending more time with Steve at his home. We still have some work to do there, finishing painting, etc. It will look much brighter when we finish.

I have 4 days between this pet sitting job and the next and I think Steve and I will take a day and go down to Boca Grande and do some shelling. Not too far to travel, but still "out of Dodge" as they say...............

Sunday, April 25, 2010


I am hoping that by now my cousin is on the road and on her way to her new home with us in Florida. I have not heard from her, but she was to leave Delaware yesterday and is riding with a friend who is driving the truck with her belongings and towing her vehicle. I am excited and will be so glad when she arrives. I think I have the house set up so that we will just have to carry in her furniture and set the pieces in the empty spaces.
I haven't been to the beach lately and am hoping for lots of sun today and a walk tonight after dinner. I have several pet sitting assignments coming up so my evenings of beach walking will be limited. On a very positive note, two of my sitting assignments have inground pools in the yard so swimming (exercise!!) will be a plus.
I think the rest of this year is going to be good.................

Tuesday, April 13, 2010

Flashbacks.....

I think I must be having a flashback to my dispatching days. Here it is 3 AM and I am still wide awake. I was hoping that once I got the new mattress I would sleep better, but I guess that is not the case. I have a good friend in New Mexico who dispatched for 30+ years, retired in 2006 and is just now starting to sleep normally - most of the time!
I painted the second coat today on the living room wall that we use for accent to make the room look larger. Feels like I accomplished something good. After I scrub the floor behind the sofa, we will push it back where it belongs and I can work on the ceiling. I want to try and get as much of the painting done as I can before the hot weather gets here.
Steve is putting together a bog garden on the screened porch for me. I have never had one before. I have always grown my plants in dirt so this will be a new experience. We may even have a few goldfish in it. There is a small pond in the front courtyard of the house and I found a rather large goldfish in there. It is hard to get a look at it as it hides whenever it sees a shadow. Thinks I am a big bird and it doesn't want to be dinner..........

Sunday, April 11, 2010

Latest happenings......


We, being myself, Steve and our good friend Lea, went to the Venice Shark Tooth Festival on Saturday after getting soaking wet walking Turtle Beach in Sarasota on Friday night. Seems as though we have a good time no matter where we go or what we do. Sorta like the 3 muskateers. I honestly didn't think there could be that many prehistoric shark teeth in the world!! I also think that finding them on the beach while walking is more fun than buying them from someone else...

Steve and I have started doing some work around the "Lake House". We bought some paint last week and have started painting the ceiling in the living room. Picked up a color called "Jute" to do one wall in the living room as an accent. We have also been picking up small pieces of wicker/rattan furniture and hope to find either a small brown/green leather sofa or love seat or a wicker/rattan one to replace the sleeper sofa that is there now. Leather cleans so much easier when you have mastiffs that are always trying to be of help. And the cushions on a rattan sofa would be easy to wash. The boys help in other ways also, such as putting their favorite toy, a bowling ball, in the lake behind the house so that Steve has to go swimming to retrieve it!!
We went to Wal-Mart and picked up some hibiscus for the yard to add a little color. The pink one is planted in a pot that I won a few months ago in a drawing at a local consignment shop. I don't usually have that kind of good luck. I was very surprised and pleased. The pot is in one of the landscaped areas of the yard. We have another pot sitting on the deck outside the screen room with a beautiful orange hibiscus growing in it. Thank goodness things are greening up after the awful winter that south Florida had. It is so much more beautiful with the flowers blooming and everything green.........








Friday, April 2, 2010

Beach walking and Pet Sitting


Our beach walking each evening has been put on hold for a few days as I have had two concurrent pet sitting jobs. Festus is the head honcho in this household and has two smaller companions. One is a long haired chihuahua who greatly resembles a pappilion and the second is a lovely kitty named Chloe. I have spent the better part of the last 4 days in the home of these guys.
The other two dogs, both schipperkes, are our home with my son and our 3 schips. They are all getting along well together. I was rather concerned about our youngest male schip as he had not been socialized, but he has taken to the two guests and has even been playing with Sammi the male. Lakota always steals toys from Tala, our female, but backed down from Bitsi when she had a toy in her mouth. Love that pack order......

Saturday, March 27, 2010

Another beautiful day for the beach people. Steve and I went to Venice beach today and walked from the public beach almost to Venice pier where Sharkey's restaurant is. Got some sun and found a few nice shells. Only one shark tooth. The beach replenishment seems to have depleted the supply of teeth that use to be so abundant. We went into Venice for some frozen yogurt and then back to the house. Life is treating us well.
I finally finished the sweater that I have been working on since last July. I have a scarf to finish for my daughter in-law Kim and then I hope to start on a project for myself. My cousin should be here soon. We are anxiously awaiting her arrival. Even the dogs are looking forward to her being with us again................

Sunday, March 21, 2010




Walking on the beach is just as lovely in the evening after dinner even when the day has been rainy. Cleared up enough for the walk and exercise to be great............Just wish the water was a little warmer.

I think I understand now what this retirement deal is all about. You can walk the beach as long and late as you want (or the law allows) and not have to worry about getting up to go to work the next day. The screaming kids are usually "put away" for the night and one can enjoy the beach as it was meant to be. I hope to be able to make this at least a twice a week part of my new no-work schedule.

Friday, March 19, 2010




This is not one of my favorite pics of myself, but this was a fantastic day. After doing the Arts and Craft Show on Holmes Beach, Steve, myself and my friend Lea Baker went to Rotten Ralph's Marina on the north end of Anna Maria Island and had lunch. It was a windy day but the sun was warm and the company was great. For those of you who aren't familiar with the area, I am attaching a picture of the waterway. I am looking forward to more good times like this throughout the spring and summer.

Thursday, March 18, 2010


It has been brought to my attention recently that a great deal of time has passed since I last posted to my blog. For a change I have happy news that doesn't involve packing up our house and moving yet again. The charming gentleman that I mentioned in my last post is now my husband as of March 16. His name is Steve Shaw and he has become the light of my life. He makes me laugh and smile constantly. I can't believe how much we have in common and how well we are suited to each other. Since we both have homes and neither is large enough for the extended family that I live with, we are dividing our time between the two houses. My cousin will be moving into the Sarasota house shortly and I will then be spending more time at the house in Englewood. We haven't combined the animals in our households yet and I am inclined to leave them separated - not that I have any doubt that the mastiff boys would accept the schips with no problem. The schips, however, are not the most hospitable critters when it comes to a breed that isn't the same size and color as themselves. My cousin is great with the schips and they are very fond of her so once she arrives they will be spoiled rotten and I won't feel so guilty about being gone for a few days at a time without seeing them.

The Englewood house seems like a quiet retreat from the city noise. The yard reminds me of a tropical setting from Better Homes and Gardens or a scene taken from Sarasota Jungle Gardens. There are two ponds with a waterfall and beyond the property is a small lake. The yard is set with tropical and semi-tropical plants. Native birds put in an appearance on a daily basis. Even though the house is in a residential area with neighbors all around, the property is landscaped and fenced so that it is very private and seems secluded. I truly enjoy the time I spend there and look forward to being there more often. I love the mastiff boys and they seem to be very fond of me. If you can imagine a 200 pound dog galloping towards the door to greet you - that would be the scene at the house when I open the front door.


I also just returned from a week in New Mexico. I felt I needed the trip back to make sure there were no lingering ghosts and that I had closed all the doors behind me. I had a very good visit and left with high spirits and hopes of being able to return soon for another visit. I didn't get to the Santa Fe area, but I made several trips to Ruidoso Downs where I had worked as a dispatcher. It was great seeing everyone that I had worked with. I had missed saying my goodbyes to some of them when I left last year. I really hope to go back with Steve and show him all the places I have seen and introduce him to my friends and former co-workers.

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Moving on..........

I have met a most charming gentleman who is slowly but surely stealing my heart. We have much in common including dog rescue. There is, however, a slight difference in the size of our rescues - he works with mastiffs while I am still working with schipperkes. His dogs are truly amazing - gentle giants who seem to love everyone. Their toy of choice is a bowling ball. Such sweet boys........

My good friend and veterinarian, Lea Baker, Steve and myself have been going to antique stores and shows and most recently went to a Native American Pow-Wow in Webster. Freezing cold the Sunday we were there. Having lived in New Mexico for 4 1/2 years, I am amazed at the difference in the Native cultures. I have been to both Intertribal Ceremonials and Pueblo Feasts and both the participation and attendance was far greater for all of them than any I have been to in Florida. There is another Pow-Wow in Sarasota the end of this month and I am looking forward to going.

Packing seems to be going well and much easier this time. My cousin will be moving in with us within the next 3 months and I am not yet sure how much she is bringing furniture wise. This house does have a family room, so there will be an extra room to fill. Should work out just fine. I am anxious to see how the dogs like the big fenced in yard. We are picking up the key tomorrow and taking the first loads of belongings..................

Sunday, January 10, 2010

Moving Day - Again


It would seem that once again that old fickle finger of fate has pointed in our direction. Our Florida house that seemed so perfect in July when I rented it has turned out to be another of those going back to the bank. Rather than be turned out into the street on short notice, we have opted to find another home to move to. This one is further north, located in Sarasota. Older home, established neighborhood near Doctors Hospital. As my son has been pulling most of his security jobs in the Manatee County area the new house will be much more convenient for him for travel time and wear and tear on his Jeep. I will still be close to my friends, Sharon and Mike, who live in North Port and closer to those in Bradenton/Palmetto/Ellenton. Moving should also be some easier this time, as we have lightened the load possession wise. And I have someone lined up to move the few heavy pieces that we have. I am looking on this as another one of life's little challenges - although I am getting rather tired of them !! The yard is completely fenced at the new home, which will be good for the dogs. They have only had a small x-pen to roam in at this house, so a fully fenced backyard will be a treat for them I am sure. The move is going to happen suddenly so the next posting should be from the new home. Pictures to follow...............