Happiness is a Warm Puppy
(and a new pair of shoes)

Any of you remember the Charles Schultz book “Happiness is a Warm Puppy?” It was one of my favorite childhood books. I’m here to tell you that Charles Schultz was right: that there really isn’t anything better to make your day than a puppy. Well, that and a pair of new shoes.

Here’s Chance, the newest puppy on the block, visiting work today. Congrats to the JCRT family on the addition of Chance to the pack and GOOD JOB rescuing Chance from the Pound. No one knows exactly what kind of dog Chance is--perhaps a sharpei-chow-german shepard mix. All I know is that he has really BIG paws, he's about 8 weeks old, he's obviously not potty trained yet, he smells like a puppy (mmm!), he's got a great family to love him , he's got a microchip (how awesome is that?) and he is all legs right now. I hope he keeps coming to work to keep that happiness going.

Speaking of dogs, here they are, ever the fashion statements this winter. Here’s Freckles Warrior Princess, eyes closed as usual (for EVERY photo! How DOES she do it?!!), looking extremely morose about the whole coat-and-mitten thing. Man, she hates when I dress her for the weather. (Hey, it was -11 degrees out without the windchill--I couldn't just send her out there naked.) What a god awful photo! Makes me laugh just looking at it. For those fashion-oriented readers: Freckles is sporting a fleece-lined parka, complete with belly protection and elastic leg doohickeys in a sharp, formal black.

Then, there's Lucy, Bark of Poteidaia. stuffed into her coat and mittens. Trying to catch her to put her in her coat is like trying to catch a greased pig. She hides under the table, she runs away, she scoots between my legs--anything to avoid the dreaded coat. Notice how pissed off she looks...but, doesn't she look good in blue? The wife says the dogs are much better off without the winter gear, as when not wearing it, they run out side, efficiently do their business and return in seconds. With the coats on, they stand outside looking around, not hurrying to do anything and definitely refusing to poop.

Okay, so we'll save the coats for only really cold days.

As for me, I am in LOVE with my new shoes. Getting the shoes on the same day as meeting a new puppy is overwhelmingly wonderful. Here I am kissing them. They arrived by mail at work today. I needed some "winter/snow shoe/casual wear" kind of shoe, so the wife helped me find these diddies on line. (Like I wear anything but casual shoes. C'mon!) Got them on Amazon.com, believe it or not, with free shipping and for half price. God love the wife for her sense of value.

In case you didn't know, I love shoes. I love looking at them and looking for them. I love ordering them. I like buying them. I'd buy them every day if I could. I like getting them in the mail. I love smelling them when you take them out of the box. I love admiring them when taking them out of the box. I love putting them on for the first time. It's not exactly a shoe fetish but it's close. Having these new shoes in my possession makes me want to run around in the snow. Good thing it's snowing right now and that there's like two feet of snow on the ground.

As soon as I break them in, I'll try a little snow shoe action. Until then, I'll wear them around the house (quite to the wife's dismay).....

....at least I only came home with a new pair of shoes and not a new puppy....