Saturday, October 26, 2013

Let's Catch Up!

It's been a busy couple of weeks around here and I find I have less time to browse through my favorite blogs lately.  Since it is something I enjoy doing so much, I am going to make time for it because I need to catch up with what's been going on with all my blog friends!

I feel like I'm wearing a lot of different hats these days.

One of my favorite books when I was little!

I get up early most days, grab a cup of coffee, fire up my computer, get my lesson plans ready and do two classes with my Japanese students.  For me it is 6am, for them it is 10pm at night.  I say "good evening" to them, and I'm not mixed up because it's still dark outside here.

I'm loving teaching these classes!  Because these students are adults and motivated, the classes are fun and interesting for me as well as for them.  I learn something new everyday too.  For instance, I didn't know that they drive on the left side of the road in Japan!
Yep.  They do!

After my classes I will somedays have to rush off to take care of a morning client, such as this guy, a sweet terrier mix.

"I didn't like TBL at first, but she won me over with all those treats and her squeaky voice"

His "parents" were gone on vacation for a week so I would visit him twice a day.  The first day I showed up he was standing on top of their bed, teeth bared, barking and growling at me.  I knew he was supposed to be wary of strangers, but I did not expect that.  Fortunately the owners had left some of his favorite treats and I was able to coax him outside.  I worked with him all week, each day getting closer to my goal of being able to scratch his tummy.  Did I reach that goal?
  Yes!  
By day seven, we were on good terms.  He would come down stairs, go outside, let me pet him, take the treat from my hand, lay down, roll over and let me scratch his belly.
I felt really good about that!

Most weekdays I have two puppies I visit for mid-day breaks while their owners are at work.

You've already seen my stress therapist, the golden-doodle.  He a little bundle of fluffy energy, but I did manage to catch him in a pensive moment this week.

"I wanna play with the big kids, TBL!"

My other puppy is a female Rhodesian Ridgeback, who is just a sweetheart.  I have an hour visit with her while her dad works, so we go for walks and learn things such as "sit", "come", "leave it".

"Don't hate me because I'm beautiful - I'm also a funny goofball!"

She lives in a very nice neighborhood not too far from us and when I first arrived I saw house-filled hills behind her house. 



 I knew I'd have to go up there and take a look one day and this week I did. 



 Lots of winding roads and no pullovers, so I will have to rely on Mr. T to drive me up there so I can take some pictures of the lovely homes and the views.



This week also brought some Hollywood glamour to my day as I found out they were filming a home-improvement show across the street from the Rhodesian Ridgeback.  I leashed her up thinking the crew would be charmed enough to tell me which show.


They were charmed, but not enough to give me any juicy details.  This trailer is still parked there so we will be investigating further during walks next week.


After my mid-day dog duties I usually come home and teach one or two more classes to my Japanese people.  By then it is early morning for them, so they are the ones sipping coffee and trying to wake up.  This week they had an earthquake in Japan with Tsunami warnings.  I always try to have something to chat with the students with at the beginning of the class and I was excited to find out about this earthquake.  None of them even knew about it!!  I told them it was on the evening national news here in the US. "We get them all the time" I was told. They seemed amused that it had made it to our news here.

Look who's visiting!  Dexter!  And there's blurry Bumby trying to look blase in the background.

If I have canines, such as the terrier I mentioned above whose people are on vacation, I start to get ready to go back for my evening visit and tuck them in for the night, usually around 7-8pm.

Of course, with Dexter comes Darcy with her own brand of blase.

And that's been my typical day for the last couple of weeks!  If it is spaced out nicely, it is no problem, but one day I had five dogs to tend to and four classes - that kept me running!

So, I'm enjoying this new phase of life.  It's a big change for me, but a good change that I am finally adapting to.

The Maven is in Orlando visiting her college friends and look who she also saw while she was there:



Reunited again.  Orlando Grandma and The Maven.  
It's good to see that picture of them together.
(I hope one of you ate tuna in my memory!)

And my final thought is about this:


Brussel Sprouts on the stalk.  They are very popular here in Cali. I didn't like them as a kid, but I'm thinking there must be a new, delicious way to cook them that I am just not aware of.  Anyone have any good Brussel Sprout recipes??
Share away please!

Hope your weekend is great!

13 comments:

Anonymous said...

Glad the Maven is having a good time. Such a great photo.
Your day makes me tired just reading about it! Glad you are adjusting and most of all, that you are happy.
Loved seeing the houses in the hills.
Hope you have a lovely evening.

Patricia @ 9th and Denver said...

Wow... I consider myself caught up!
Now I know how y'all must feel reading my wordy blog posts...where to start when leaving a comment?!
LOL...
The pups are great, glad you won the little terrier over. No doubt you are the Queen of Pups, in my book!
The Remodel filming sounds interesting. You must get the scoop. They are all over there telling each other hurry up and get that finished before the crazy Dog Walker/Stalker comes back!!!
he he he
Yay! the Maven and the Orlando Gramma! cute picture.
glad to catch up.. .hang in there.
OHIO!
Pat

Unknown said...

I love the catchup! You sound like you are enjoying the new work a lot. I imagine that snuggling the dogs during the day helps with stress so much!

ps. Tell your perth relatives that I am planning my trip to Perth area at Christmas time!

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

What energy and drive you have, my friend! I know you are enjoying this time of your life with all of it's twists and turns. How neat to meet so many interesting people and live in such a beautiful part of the country. Love seeing the family pics, too. We just made a trip...I'll blog about it tomorrow! haha! Everything is subject to blogging, isn't it?! Sweet hugs!

Linda @ Itsy Bits And Pieces said...

You sound very busy but enjoying life, Ann! Fun to hear what you're up to!

Mr. Connor said...

Wow ~ what a time you have had . BUSY ~ BUSY ! What is to happen trick or treat night ? See Cats are ready ! Don't the animals go crazy with all the smells ?

Unknown said...

Had a great visit with the Maven and her friends they were so glad to be together.
You are a busy lady. You show us that one can make life interesting or dull. It depends on the effort we put into it.
Now we are getting some Japanese culture thru your blog too, good deal.

Debby@Just Breathe said...

I've never even seen that Dr. Seuss book! Such a sweet story on your morning buddy. You are becoming the Dog Whisperer! I think I would be very good at a job like this. Glad your days are going so well. It's good to be busy. How great that The Maven got to see Orlando Grandma. I've been seeing those brussel sprouts on the stalk at Trader Joe's, had never seen them like that before. One woman told me they are amazing. There are many recipes on Pinterest. I broil them in the oven. Great catch up post! Debby

Decor To Adore said...

Mr. Decor LOVES Brussels sprouts. Me, not so much. But I drizzle them with olive oil, a bit of salt and pepper and some finely chopped bits of bacon. Then they are roasted in the oven until tender.

Remember when he lived in Japan? :)

Olive said...

You are busy my friend. CC and I talk at those times you teach. I cut Brussel sprouts in half and toss them in olive oil and salt and place them on a cookie sheet in the oven at 400 degrees for about 15 to 20 minutes. The roasting kind of caramelizes them. I oven roast a lot of veggies this way. xo, olive

Robin Larkspur said...

Thanks for the newsy catch-up. You are wearing me out!!!!
Love the tail on the little golden doodle!!Great to see Orlando Grandma again, and glad your daughter is well enough to travel!
I roast almost all my fresh veggies in the oven, especially cauliflower, brocolli and brussels sprouts. Completely different and tasty flavor. Oven at 400 degrees, cookie sheet with parchment paper drizzled with olive oil. Then I just spread the veggies on, bake for about 20 minutes, give or take. Smells good and tastes lovely. And of course, you can always just smother the brussels sprouts in cheese sauce!

the cape on the corner said...

I am exhausted just reading about all your activities! I've been away from the blog for a while, just b/c work has been so busy, and that's where I blog, lol. how neat about the home improvement show!

LeeAnn at Mrs Black's said...

Gosh! You are very busy indeed. We miss you, but sounds like those dogs need you. Lovely tales tails hee hee) and photos. I want to steal Dexter, he is so cute. x