Whatchu Talkin' Bout Willis?

Well, that's what he said anyway.  Who's he? He is my dadz.  Dadz took me to my most recent grooming visit, where they bathe me, and then blow me dry with this super cool machine, and end it all by trimming my nails.  My grooming visit, scheduled by my momma, just happened to be on New Years eve.  This is how it went....

My dadz friend just opened a pub in the neighborhood where we live, right across the street from my groomers.  The pub specializes in micro brews, where aside from guitars and music, this topic rates fairly high as a basis of discussion for my dadz and his friends.  So, when momma said, "Mattie's grooming appointment is on New Years eve," dadz, knowing that he could meet his friends for some fun, happily said, "Oh, I'll take him," momma was a bit suspicious, but didn't say anything.  New Years eve came and around lunch-time dadz took me to the groomer and then walked over to the pub to meet some of his friends for a burger and a beer, and some billiards.

Me, I was all happy at my groomers.  She uses some great organic shampoo with a special essential oil blend that my momma picked out for me.  I get to float around in their big hot tub, which is more like a warm tub, bubbles all over the place and I have fun dog paddling around a bit until my groomer says, "scuba dog, it's time for your blow dry."  Then, after my bath, my groomer, her name is Sandy, puts me in a little kennel that has warm air blown in it from all sides - it's like a huge, box-shaped, low-volume blow drier and I'm in the middle of it, just feeling all toasty and snuggly as I get softly dried.

In the mean time, back to the pub, dadz was playing pool and enjoying his beer with his friends.  While at the same time Sandy was putting the finishing touches on me, waxing my chin-fur in to a perfectly quaffed foo manchu, and then walked me over to the pub to meet my dadz and his pals.  Dadz friends are all excited to see me, and I even get a french fry for looking so suave.

Sandy, picking up a pool cue and nailing a shot, asks dadz, "are you all ready?"  Dadz, thinking Sandy is challenging him to a new billiards game, says, "you bet!" And, at dadz response, Sandy puts down the cue, puts on her coat, takes my leash, and says cheerily to dadz, "lets go!" Dadz, puzzled, says in his best Gary Coleman interpretation, "Whatchu talkin' bout Sandy?"

What dadz didn't know, and momma neglected to tell him, was that after I was done getting groomed momma had agreed to help Sandy down at the local food bank--we were going to pick up some meals and hope to find dog and cat food so we could take to some of the people who had signed up for the free food delivery.  Dadz, a bit started to learn that he had unwittingly volunteered for this duty, let alone to find out that some of our neighbors needed help, quickly recovered and asked his friends to join in. The meals were covered, but it was the pet food that was in short supply. My dadz friends, eight in total, went out and purchased big bags of dog and cat food, and together we made the rounds, delivering our goodies, and making this New Years Eve special....

Special, not for the individuals who received the food, but for my dadz and his friends.  Dadz said it was his best New Years eve ever, and he didn't need to wish for anything in 2012, that he was truly blessed.  When we got home, dadz didn't say anything to momma, just walked up to her and gave her a hug.  I watched them for a little while, and then walked over to the fireplace, snuggled up in my doggy bed and took a nap.

That was our New Years eve!  Hope yours was just as wonderful!

Lub and blessings,
MattieDog

A Test of Wills

Every day I wake up really excited, looking forward to my breakfast of sweet potato.  Lately, I've been progressively waking up earlier in anticipation of my tasty breakfast...Momma seems cranky about that.  Dadz on the other hand doesn't seem to notice, he sleeps through it...Momma seems cranky about that too.  I sleep on Momma and Dadz bed and in the morning, when I'm hoping to encourage someone to get up and feed me, I like to roll around, wiggle to and fro, and then come within inches of Momma's face, staring at her until she opens her eyes. Hello! I say to her in my Mattie-like way.

She always opens up one eye and peeks out at me.

I'm all smiles, tail wagging.... Momma pulls the covers over her head in response.

I'm not daunted.  I happily take my paw and gently pat her face, or at least what I think is her face...hard to truly tell because her face is all blanket covered.  Pat, pat, pat.  She pulls the covers down and stares at me.  Unphased, I'm all smiles and I stare back at her, all happy with my fluffy little tail wagging.

"Mattie, go back to sleep," she mumbles and rolls over.  Sometimes, in the morning, I think that's my name..."Mattie, go back to sleep," on any given morning my Momma mumbles that to me about 5 times. I think she's hoping I'll go back to sleep, but I can't be sure.

My best guess is that she needs more encouragement.  So I always walk to where Momma's rolled over to on the big bed...I dig around in the covers until I find her head. I like digging in the covers and so this is one of my most favorite morning rituals - dig, dig, dig!

She uncovers her face, and even though it's still nearly pitch-black in the bedroom, we have a stare down.  I'm all happy, wiggling with excitement - hard to tell what she's feeling, Momma gives nothing away, just stares at me.

We are having a test of wills.  We do this over things other than breakfast as well - space on the couch, bath time...mine not hers, cheese left overs, and sometimes just because the mood strikes me to have a good old fashioned stare down.

But this morning, like all mornings, I've got a plan - happily stare at her with joy, joyfully stare at her with love, focus all my positive energy into my stare and wiggle with sheer delight. I am determined to summon all my mental energy, package it in a bow of joyous love and to 'will' her to get out of bed and make my breakfast.  Just like every other time I take this approach, her resolve crumbles and Momma gives in - she wakes up and makes me my glorious sweet potato breakfast.

I gleefully eat my treat, and promptly return back to the big, warm bed to snuggle next to Dadz for a nap - leaving Momma out in the living room on the sofa. 

The moral of the story: Sometimes, when people are being cranky or set in their way, they likely just need your help - be persistent, smile, wiggle a bit and motivate them to be the great person you know that they are!

Much lub and blessings,
MattieDog

I Give Thanks

On a fairly consistent basis, momma say's it's important to remember the things for which we should be thankful.  My great grand father, my momma's father's father, was a very blessed individual.  He was a kind and gentle man who was loving and nurturing to everyone he met. I'd like to tell you a story about him.

My great grand father came to America as a little boy who picked fruit and vegetables.  As a little boy he made money for his family.  That's how things worked then, my momma tells me.  His name was Bardamano, Bard for short.  Bard came to the US from Mexico, a little boy who was left abandoned, frightened and outside of the foster system.... there wasn't a foster system for him to go through.

Bard grew up working for a living, not going to school, or making little friends.  When we was in his late teens the owner of a mill, in the town where he lived, took a liking to his work ethic, and asked him to come work for him.  Unbelievably, this was a hard decision for Bard.  Leaving his family and all that he knew was not what he was raised to do or believe in; but, according to my grandfather, he did it because he wanted to give his family a chance at a good life.  So, Bard left his family and went to work in the grain mill, where he quietly made his way up the ladder....not in a large way, but small incremental ways that provided him and his growing family with enough to live on.

Bard lived a quite life. He had a family.  My grandfather was one of his children, and my momma remembers going to their home for holidays...gatherings that were filled with good food and happy times.  It was a good life, and Bard, my great grand father, was happy and thankful to have the opportunity.

My momma tells me that Bard worked hard and made ends meet, and up until he passed she thought that he was "just a good grandfather."  She had no idea that he was a great man.  A quiet, great man that did great things.  We went to my great grandfather's funeral a few years back... I was invited, special, by invitation; and so I went, happy to accompany my momma.

Bard's funeral was well attended by hundreds of people.  We were sitting at his funeral when, one by one, people took turns coming up to the microphone to share how Bard changed their life, and how they were thankful for him.  Throughout the years, and without telling anyone, Bard would take 20% of his income and buy food and school books for the migrant farmers that still lived in his little town.  "It didn't matter if a child was from Mexico or Russia, it didn't matter" said one speaker, "Bard gave....Bard went to every child's graduation."

My momma never knew.  Her father never knew.  The family never knew.  Bard did this quietly.  But, I knew.

Every year, without fail, my grandfather would ask my momma to send me to visit...and, so my momma sent me.  I would go with my great grandfather, and together we would visit the migrants.  "Perro," my great grandfather called me, and so Perro I was when I was with Bard.  Together we'd make the rounds, provide food and visit the little school where the children would learn the tools they needed to grow and contribute.  My momma learned about what we, Bard and me, did together, at his funeral.  My momma sat silently and hugged me and softly wept.

"The Perro Fund," said the speaker in to the microphone at my great grandfather's funeral, "was set up by Bard to continue funding the ongoing education of 5 students a year who go to college."  What my momma didn't know was that Bard asked my dadz, who is a financial controller, to help him create an education endowment to establish and fund scholarships for five local children's college education.  All funds paid, they just return upon their graduation and contribute back to their community.

Bard, my great grandfather, was a beautiful man.  He quietly changed the world.  I am thankful for him and for the love that he showed us all.   

Much lub and thanks,
MattieDog