Pug hobbies

A special Sunday issue of The Menagerie...we focus on Raz and Lucy hobbies. Their favorite hobby is really eating, but since that's not only a hobby, but well, an obsession as well as a necessity for life, we won't be covering that. Raz, being the older, "I'm not really a dog" dog likes to read the Sunday New York Times. She particularly likes keeping up with the latest in the art world. Lucy, on the other hand, has always been the athletic type. She likes to stalk and kill various animals that roam our house- various ducks, a loon, two cows... Ducks are a particularly good prey in Lucy's pug mind.

Duck huntin'

Lucy catches sight of her prey...




Eric tries to take the duck away...




Lucy gets a bit of duck feet (well, she is a Chinese dog, you know, and chicken feet are a staple in dim sum)...



Lucy licks her chops...




And licks them again...




Lucy with her prize duck!

Sunday morning, lazin' about

Raz peruses the Arts section of the NY Times.




Apparently, it meets with her approval.

Where's Raz?

I kept hearing Raz-type noises, but couldn't really pinpoint where they were coming from (wasn't really paying close attention-- kinda in the background..).

Then I realized: she was in one of her favorite places. The coat closet.

Why the coat closet? Who knows.. It's not what you would think of as a comfortable nesting place for a little dog-- what with various shoes piled up and all. But Raz seems to like it.

At the time this photo was taken, I did a quick inventory of our 3 dogs. Raz was in the closet. Lucy was sleeping on our bed (where she's not allowed). Moose was snoozing in the pugs' dogbed (his new favorite spot). Crazy, crazy dogs...

Moose Belly

Moose enjoys belly rubs. Really, who doesn't? OK, actually I don't.

But Moose really does. When he anticipates getting one, he will roll onto his back, all four legs up in the air.

Yeah, that's the stuff....


Here, Moose whispers a secret to Raz: probably, he's suggesting ways she can keep her new anti-barking collar from working.

We got this for Raz because our other anti-barking device doesn't work on her. This is an ultra-sonic "alarm": it sits in the living room and is set off by barking sounds. When it goes off, it emits a loud (to dogs, silent to humans) noise. It works VERY well for Moose (perhaps too well-- he is terrified of the noise and runs away, tail between legs) and pretty well for Lucy (who usually continues her barking in another room). But not at all for Raz: she appears not to hear the 'alarm,' and it also doesn't go off when she barks.

So we got Raz a citronella collar. It sprays a burst of harmless but annoying citronella up towards her face when it's set off. The problem: once again, her barking doesn't appear to set it off, even though the microphone is right next to her throat... we're trouble-shooting it... maybe not tight enough? Who knows... ideas, anyone?

All that is old is new again

These photos are from Roanoke. I just love this kind of stuff from the 50s or 60s or whatnot. Each of them is classic in its own right. The pawn shop was the nicest pawn shop I've ever seen (my experience being limited to a) pawn shops on Law and Order and b) one time when my master's advisor had all her family jewelry stolen and the police advised her to go to pawn shops in the area to see if it turned up). And the cleaner's sign is so awesome I want to own the place! Roanoke also has lots of even older advertisements- painted on the brick buildings, "Addley's Biscuits, 5 cents a package."

And thankfully, there is an independent bookstore downtown! With people in there who know what they are talking about and selling. What a concept (heavy on the sarcasm; those of you who know my "George Eliot- is that fiction or non-fiction?" story will know what I am talking about). And they gave me a free paperback at checkout. It was an advance copy of a book of stories so they couldn't re-sell it, but still. I also found a good, independent coffeehouse (no Starbucks in the 3 block downtown area I explored!) . Downtown there are a number of independently-owned restaurants and shops, including a kind of food court with all kinds of food from pizza to greek food to milkshakes. And the entire town has free WiFi.

All not to suggest that Roanoke is free of all the chain restaurants, Barnes & Noble, Wal-mart, etc. They are there, it's just that the downtown is nice and not dead!

Salem...no, not the Salem with witches...

More pictures from Daniela's recent visit to Virginia. These are in Salem, which is the town Roanoke College is in. Which, if you know Virginia, is a bit confusing as there is a city called Roanoke that is right next to Salem.

Salem is a nice little town with an old-fashioned Main Street, storefronts with cool facades and picturesque churches. A decent number of old buildings are still around. For example, the old post-office building (not pictured) is still there, there's a restaurant in the back but the front still has the old, glass-fronted mailboxes and grilled window for buying stamps, etc.

Snow Dog

It snowed last night and, much to my surprise, we got actual accumulation-- 3 inches or so.

Moose, of course, was thrilled. He really loves the snow-- sniffing, running, digging in it as long as he can.

This morning he tried to get Lucy to play with him, but she was having none of it. He did several "play-bows" to her and even nudged her with his muzzle a few times. She stood there motionless. Good try, Moose, and better luck next time...

Virginia Dreaming...

Is it possible that we might be moving back to Virginia??? Daniela had an interview at Roanoke College, in Salem, VA - a small town right next to Roanoke in southwestern Virginia.



Roanoke's campus is quite pretty- red brick and sand-colored columns and accents and lots of trees and lawns- too bad it's the middle of winter.





...


And then there's the Biology building... Why oh why? Why did the birth of modern biology have to be in the late 60s? On top of it all, they have these massive rust and steel-colored sculptures nearby.

Impressions...

Raz does her best impression of Jabba the Hut:



For comparison purposes...

Puppy Love!

Our friend Jen is fostering a mama dog and her six puppies. We went to visit them the other night and fell in love. If only we could have ANOTHER dog but we can barely keep up with our three as it is! :)

Eric gets some love


How cute can you get?


That's the mama, Penelope in the background.


Daniela gets a cuddle too!


The puppies play one of their favorite games, trying to eat each other's faces.

Eric & Daniela...All Dressed Up

It's not often that we dress up this much so we thought visitors to the Menagerie would like seeing it! This was at a party for Daniela's cousin Jennie Bell.




Cousins reunited! Several of us hadn't seen each other in fifteen years. Above are-- Sallie Bell (Daniela's neice), Roberto Bell (Daniela's brother), DLB, EHF, and Eliza Bell (Daniela's cousin).

Fashions for the New Year

Raz, Lucy, and Moose are sporting the scarves they got from Linda (Eric's mom) for Christmas. We must say, they are quite attractive. Happy New Year from us all!