Keeping an Eye on Me

Happy Saturday!

We're back doing the Blog Hop! It's a busy Saturday as we get ready for summer and do some packing for one of the kids who's going to summer camp. Drive is responding to the excitement in typical fashion.


Welcome to our blog. It's great to meet you, and I hope Drive makes you smile.

Busy busy hot.

It's hot and the end of the school year is causing a bit of a scramble. Drive and I prefer to be cool. And unscrambled.

Do you need to come share the air conditioning?

Meeting New Old Friends

The internet is a wonderful thing for me. Being socially inept at best, my internet friends are very real and very important to me. Because of greyhounds, I've joined forums and met other greyhound owners. Today I took Drive and we met someone in person after internet-knowing her for years. The bonus: her hound, George, is actually Drive's half brother! Now, their sire Oshkosh Slammer is still producing quality litters in spite of his death. There are over six thousand dogs that can claim him as "Dad."

I still feel like meeting this one special hound and his mom was an honor. Thanks for hosting us, Susan, and that pizza was amazing. Sorry Drive pee-peed a little on your carpet!

Behold, the excitement of a visit between greyhounds.

George

Drive

I think he liked me.

Getting down to business.

Be still my heart! I recognize that gaze.

Hard at it. This is what greyhounds do, folks. They lie around and look good.

Gonna cry?

I'm not sure...

But I think I had them both when I left the house...

Oh, Lanie...

In Service

This post is semi-serious, so please know I won't be offended if you look at the pretty picture and leave. I understand.

When I tell you that Drive is my best friend, it isn't hyperbole or cliche. Plainly stated, there are days I would not get through if I could not bury my fingers in his fur or wrap my arms around his neck. This blog is not about me, but I live with mental illness and that is relevant to Drive. Before him, I didn't truly understand the miracle that is Dog. (That's a secular, science-type miracle, for what it's worth.)

Drive does not, I must tell you, have the necessary temperament to be an "official" service dog. The training would stress him deeply. I did have a trainer tell me recently he might "settle down with age."

"He's ten."

"... Oh."

So maybe not.

Are you aware that while most people see service dogs as large breed animals who hear and see, there is a whole separate category into which Drive could fall? I mean, if he could learn the commands and since it took me almost a year to teach him to go up some steps, I have my doubts and I won't force it on our relationship. If you're interested, here's a little information on "Emotional Support Animals."

When I say that Drive is my very best friend, I mean that deeply and truly. Over the past five years, through some of the hardest and darkest hours in my life, Drive has helped me live. He's helped me want to.

Smoochies