A Christmas Miracle, Otis Goes To His New Home

Otis has found his forever home, and what a lucky boy he is.

Yesterday at 1:30 I received a phone call, "Hi, I'm interested in Otis." At first, I felt elated, then I worried it wouldn't be the right fit, but as I talk with Derek, it feels right. I could hear his fiance in the background, "oooohhhh, I want Otis." They were serious -- they asked if they could come down from Massachusetts in a few hours. Just before hanging up, knowing they'd be coming to meet Otis, I could hear Kellie in the background squeal with delight.

How awesome is that??

They showed up at 6pm. Otis greeted them heartily, he was so happy to see them. They sat down, he was right up on their laps. He would come over to me now and again if I moved or went into the other room, he's very bonded with me, but I knew it was right. He knew it was right. This couple is so sweet. Derek is this big hulking guy with the sweetest disposition, a very soft heart. He fell in love immediately and knew he wanted to take Otis home. Kelly was quieter, but so sure, too, that he was the one.

I thought he might end up with me forever, but in my heart, I knew I just had to be patient. I was just worried because the longer he was with me, the more attached he would become and might have had difficulty transitioning to a new life. He was surrendered to rescue when he was one and half years old, then adopted, then surrendered to us again at 3 1/2 years old, then he was with me for 10 months...He's bounced around. You know what, though? It didn't effect his spirit. He is such an awesome boy. I will miss his happy growly sounds, when his face is in my hands or in a blanket or towel. I will miss him jumping up on the bed in the morning after R. has gotten up and I continue to lay there. I will miss him cuddling up to me when hanging out on the sofa or in R.'s 'man chair.' I will especially miss how he looked at me with such love and trust. We had our own mental connection.

But, I am sooooo happy for him.

Per the usual when an adopter goes home with a dog, I told Derek and Kellie that I would be in touch in about a week to see how things are going.

Derek called me this morning. He wanted me to know how perfect it was, that Otis fit right in, slept with them last night and that he just loves him. He knew I had him for a long time and that the attachment was there, he wanted me to know that all was good for each one of them. How sweet and considerate was that? The couple is going to be married in October, Derek asked if I would dog sit since Otis knows me and they don't really have anyone else to take him and they don't want to put him in a kennel. So, this is not the end of my relationship with Otis.

Now Little Bug is alone, and that concerns me a little. Hanzie and Otis gave her a sense of safety -- now she will have to learn to rely on her own strengths and self-soothing ways. I bet she'll end up relishing the single dog life.  

Merry Christmas and Finding Santa(s) ...

I don't know where these past 3 weeks went. I was finishing up jobs, trying to get some organizing done around here, started painting my bathroom and doing a little bit of shopping. Because I do 98% of my shopping at secondhand stores, I get to pick up some vintage Santa's along the way to add to my collection...like Mr. Santa Salt Shaker.

I have a bunch of mini and regular sized hot chocolate Santa head mugs that I didn't pull down from storage, I was off track with Christmas this year and almost didn't even get any kind of tree up. But I did find a stashed bag of mini mugs that were an 'end of the clean up from last year' that never made it into the main boxes. Lucky for me, I found a few other Santa's at the thrift store to add to my collection, so I gathered them under the tree.

And the tree? I did climb up to the top shelf of the garage and get the box it's stored in. I pulled out the top half, took a bunch of the recently found vintage ornaments that were supposed to be for wreath craft day, and pulled out a tree topper that was earmarked for ebay. Voila! My small tree looking festive with Santa's showing off underneath.

I hope that you all are enjoying the holiday season and

have a very Merry Christmas!

Otis is a Funny Guy

The other day Otis had a visitor. Over the phone, it sounded like it could be a good match. I spoke with the daughter and she is a HUGE dog advocate/lover and she was helping her parents find another Schnauzer. I found out they were older but still active and their dog that passed was similar to Otis in nature. That is a very important piece of information -- experience. The Daughter lived only 3 miles away and was around often. I asked all the appropriate questions, all the answers were the right ones. BUT the picture in my head is not who I met. Don't get me wrong, very nice people that dote on their dogs. But, you can kind of tell Mom might not be ready when she comes in with a thick photo album of the dog she lost in May. She talked about her dog and asked all kinds of questions about .... BUG!! She wanted Little Bug I could tell. She didn't make much effort toward Otis and either Otis picked up on it or he really wasn't interested either.

Although the dog would be walked regularly, it sounds like it's Dad that keeps it on a regular 2 hours schedule, and she was not 'active' as I think of active. I have friends in their 70's and 80's that are out and about, etc., are full of energy, going to the gym and living life. So my view of the description is different than theirs. A higher energy than I realized this woman had. Yes, he is dedicated to walks every two hours -- but he didn't make it to the interview because he was still sleeping when they left (around 8:45am.)

I think the daughter is more interested in finding them a dog than it seems they really are. Otis loved her. From what I understand, she's one of those people that dogs go to that would never go to anyone. She's got the dog Kvorka. (Seinfeld, a concept introduced to me by Angela because I seem to have the 'older-men-are-attracted-to-me Kvorka) It's always been that way since I was very small. Anyway, I digress.

OTIS! he is too funny. If you watch your dog and learn to read him/her, they can be quite interesting. Otis went outside when they were here. It was a beautiful day and the back door was open. They had showered Otis and Bug with treats and then Otis was off. Now, you have to understand, Otis goes outside to pee, he doesn't hang out there roaming around. It's not his thing. He likes to be around me. I noticed he hadn't come in yet after a few minutes and I looked outside. He was just wandering around but the look on his face was different. Nonplussed, disinterested. He came back in after a few minutes and looked up at me with a very simple face, almost blank but his eyes told me, "Mom, we're not a match. I'm really not interested in going home with her." The Mom might have unknowingly felt the energy because she said, "I'm not sure if I'll take him."

Her daughter encouraged her to sit down and engage Otis, get to know him a little. She did sit, Otis went over to her, engaged her a little, and jumped off. Mom asked me if I would keep him if he didn't get adopted. I said, "I would not put him down, he will stay with me if no one wants him." and then I added, "but he's not going home with you. You are not connecting with him and are much more interested in Bug." I added that I wouldn't send a dog home with someone just for the sake of finding said dog a new home. She seemed a bit relieved. She agreed she was more interested in Bug. The daughter, on the other hand, Otis jumped on her while she sat on the floor and smothered her with kisses and happiness. Otis doesn't give kisses. The funny thing is...after that day, he started giving them to me once in awhile.

He's a funny guy. A smart guy and a great dog that on paper or with words his 2 faults might turn you away, but when you meet him, you generally want to take him home.

He thinks he is home.

ps: Cindi? don't even say it!! LOL

The Silhouette of Crazy Barking Dogs

Whenever I go outside whether it be day or night, Mr. Otis and Little Bug make their way to the window barking their heads off. In the daylight, it's cute (and annoying at the same time) because Otis's little head is peering over the top of the frame, as you've seen from this side.

Well, my neighbor gets such a kick out of it especially when it happens at night. Ed (he lives across the street) was going into his house when I was coming out of mine and he looked back to see these two crazy dogs because they were barking their heads off. He loves this silhouette, so he ran into his house for his camera, came out and took these shots.

It does make me laugh because it is innocent and cute but the barking drives me crazy and the fact that they scratch the heck out of my sofa and window sill -- but that's what paint is for, right?? Oh, and Bug can't really see anything but shadows but that's enough for her.

Crazy kids!

Hey Mom! I Can See Outside!

A few weeks ago Otis discovered that if he stands tippy-toe on the top of the sofa and puts his front paws in a death grip on the top rail of the window pane, he can see the outside world.

And proceed to bark at it.

Meanwhile the top wood edge of the sofa gets scratched to bits. He also discovered that if he just sits on the sofa and looks out the frosted part of the window, he can see movement, so he sits there in wait.

Damn Dogs.

:)

Vintage MCM Coffee Table

I've been keeping an eye out for a vintage coffee table the past couple years. I like the Castro Convertible that I have but I'm thinking it's a bit too wide, I especially think that when I clock my knee on the sharp corner.

Finally, while looking for hutch tops on Craigslist, there it was, in an ad for a hutch top, looking dingy and forgotten. I called, it was still available, I went.

It's been traveling around in my storage mobile (aka, my Rav4) for a couple weeks now and I had to get it out of there for sanity purposes. So I pulled it into the living room, used some Restor-a-finish on it, and voila! .... but I wasn't feeling it. Maybe because I am used to the yellow/beige of the CC, maybe because I am used to the size of the CC, but I couldn't make myself feel that it was working.

It looks good to me in the photo, but when looking at the whole room, it's off balance. It feels heavy to the right side with the majority of the furniture there. I put the first one back. Maybe I'll just take something else out of the room to 'lighten' it up. Or maybe I'll keep looking and try this again.

Of course, this is not a new occurrence in my house. Thank goodness I get things at thrift stores, Craigslist and tag sales, and therefore, don't spend hundreds of dollars. I change my mind so much. Although I am a very visual person, I have to see items in my space to 'feel' if it's right....and I ain't feeling it.