Friday, May 26, 2023

Where's the Dog?!


This is a foam flower, one of two that seem to be just barely hanging on in our garden. Both of them got planted in a shady spot where they compete with a lot of other plants for light, and I think that's held them back a bit, but they're still with us and I like them.

I was awakened this morning at 4:30 a.m. by a couple of magpies having a vicious (and LOUD) squabble in a tree outside our bedroom window. I went out to see what the heck was going on but couldn't really figure it out. Was there a cat or fox threatening their nest? Or were they being the aggressors toward another bird? Who knows. Wild Kingdom.

It's already daylight by that time of the morning so there was no going back to bed for me. I hand-washed our dishes from last night (because our dishwasher is still disconnected) and tried to tidy up the house. I've found that even amid all this chaos it makes me feel so much better to keep whatever I can neat. I guess it gives me a sense of control.

I had a panic attack at work yesterday morning because when I left the house, the builder was already standing on the front porch waiting for his co-worker, so I left the front door open with him standing next to it. On my walk to work I began to get nervous that he'd walk away to his van or go somewhere else without closing the door, thus leaving Olga to roam the neighborhood unattended. So I figured I'd check the dog-cam when I got to work and make sure she was on the couch as usual.

Except...she wasn't! I kept checking for about 40 minutes and no dog. Finally I called the builder and he said she was there, and sure enough this happened within a few minutes:


She'd probably been in the dining room, lying in a sunny patch on the carpet.

I know. I'm a nut.

The renovations continue, but it's becoming apparent they're not going to be finished by the end of the week (since that's basically tonight). And we have a three-day weekend because Monday is a holiday. So Dave and I cooked up a last-minute plan to go away this weekend to a place where we can at least take a shower and I won't have to think about hand-washing dishes. A massage may be involved!

Last night, as we relaxed on our garden bench, Dave pointed at Mrs. Kravitz's garden and said, "Look at that beautiful yellow tree."

"That's a laburnum," I said.

A beat, and he replied: "Is the tree next to it named Shirley?"

26 comments:

  1. I can understand your concerns about Olga. Haha, tradespeople taking longer to finish a job that they indicated. What a surprise.

    You are having another bank holiday? That's about three in five weeks. It is a great idea to get away and I hope the weather is kind to you.

    Nice work, Dave.

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  2. Nice one Dave!

    Good that the tradesmen are ok with Olga

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  3. Pleased that Olga was there all the time, you must have been so worried for a while. Am I being thick? I don't get the laburnum, Shirley thing! Enjoy your weekend, and your shower.

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  4. Dave’s a regular Lenny and Squiggy. Did you know there’s a foxglove called The Shirley? It has large, hairy leaves. I can't wait to hear where you're going for the weekend. What a treat.

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  5. A weekend away sounds just the ticket.
    I love Dave's sense of humour!! Fully understand the panic attack. She could have had a bit of consideration and plonked herself in her usual spot!

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  6. I wonder where you are going to this weekend. Somewhere nice I hope. The weather should be great. By the way, what makes Dave think that I look like a laburnum in flower?

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  7. Poor old Olga got up on that sofa a bit like me, lol all stiff. What a fright for you, I know I go silly if I can't find one of the cats.
    Briony
    x

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  8. I think you're already a bit tense with the construction, and I can see why you'd panic just on the offchance that O had taken off.

    Good idea to get away. Is Olga coming too?

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  9. I get it about the pets. I get very anxious when people are working in the house that they'll leave a door open.

    As for Dave, I will be saying Laburnam and Shirley all day!

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  10. Brilliant idea to get away for the weekend! I hope you have the best, most relaxing time.
    Dave is, as we say around this house, a "crackie."

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  11. I'm glad you and Dave are going to get away this weekend. That will be so nice and relaxing. I hope Olga gets to go with you and enjoy the trip as well.

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  12. One doesn't know whether to go away and leave the bozos the run of the house or stay and keep order. Maybe I'm reading this wrong and there's no work over the weekend.

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  13. sounds like a good idea. living with construction is bad enough when they are actually working.

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  14. Laburnum and Shirley....I laughed out loud.
    I would be the same way about my dog so don't feel like nut. There are lots of us nuts out there.
    Good idea for the weekend away.

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  15. Clever! I'm always worried about Mari getting out because she is too dumb to understand about the big pit bulls behind us.

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  16. Pathetically, I knew what the joke was, but I could not remember the name of the charachter. I sat there in my befuddlement thinking: I know it was Penny Marshall. What was her name...." I got it before I had to google. Whew! Dementia staved off for one more day.

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  17. Good choice Getting away with the the construction situation and totally worth it just to get a shower! and to protect any chance that they could forget she was there and accidentally let her outside to wander off.
    Enjoy the weekend.
    Sillyy Question, but you are taking Olga with you right?
    Fpxy decodes to hide from us on occassion and can squeeze thru the bars of our fence in the back yard and has on occasion taken off. Other times she will hide in our clothes basket and cover herself and ignore us. We go searching to find her in a sound sleep or just tuning us out and ignoring us, especially if she is annoyed with Jon or I.

    I am going to post on my blog in just a few minutes, but I want to ask a question that you might be able to help me with since you are the only libraian I know. Maybe you can help me or at least give me a direction to go. Thank You in advance and have a fun and relaxing trip.

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  18. You're absolutely NOT a nut, you're a responsible pet owner. I wish every pet owner would be as conscientious as you are.

    Have a good getaway!

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  19. It took awhile, but I finally retrieved Laverne and Shirley from the my memory archives. Good one, Dave!

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  20. Love the photo of the foam flower. Excellent shot!
    Thank Dave for the giggle & grin... Laburnum & Shirley.😊
    Enjoy the weekend away!

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  21. Olga seemed to have quite a tussle getting up on that couch. I think it took her more time than Dave needed to come up with his punch line.

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  22. A dog cam - is that a thing? I've never thought of that - what a good idea.

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  23. I would have been worried, too! Seeing dogs being dogs makes me happy, so I'm glad you shared the video. Mine never met a unpatch they didn't like.

    Will Ogla get to go along on the weekend getaway, too??

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  24. *sunpatch. 🙄🌞

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  25. I'd feel the same way if I wasn't there and worried about Lizzie getting out. Sorry the reno is taking longer but it will be worth it. And I love Dave's sense of humor!

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  26. Andrew: We always have two bank holidays in May, one at the beginning of the month and one at the end. And then we had a special one for the coronation. So, yeah, three!

    GZ: They don't seem bothered by her at all, fortunately!

    Frances: In the '70s in the USA there was a famous TV show called "Laverne and Shirley." Maybe it wasn't as popular here?

    Mitchell: That sounds like our foxglove! So Shirley IS here!

    Caro: I know! The ONE DAY she decides to go hang out in the dining room, I'm looking for her! Argh!

    YP: It's a secret! Dave's mom's name is Shirley too, so I guess we could say the same about his dad.

    Briony: Yeah, she's a bit stiff these days, but she can still climb up there!

    Boud: Yes, Olga is coming!

    Bob: The funny thing is, I doubt Olga would leave the house now. When she was younger she might have, but these days she sticks to familiar territory. I was still worried!

    Ms Moon: He IS a crackie. One of his many endearing qualities. :)

    Robin: Yes, Olga will be coming along, even though I think traveling stresses her even more than the construction.

    Red: I'm assuming they're not working this weekend, but I could be wrong.

    Ellen: Yeah, if everything's paused (as I think it will be) I see no reason to hang around.

    Sharon: It's hard not to be spooked by the thought of an indoor dog running wild in the streets!

    Margaret: Olga is too dumb to understand traffic and cars.

    Debby: Ha! Glad we reawakened that memory cell. :)

    Beth: Oh, yes, Olga is going with us! What's your question? I don't have the URL of your new blog so I can't check it.

    Jenny-O: Well, I don't know. Maybe I'm a BIT clingy. :)

    Allison: I love how he puts these things together.

    Damselfly: Thank you! An escape will be welcome!

    Catalyst: Yeah, she's a little creaky these days. :)

    Bike: Well, "dog-cam" is my name for it, since that's why we got it, but I suppose it's properly called a home security camera. We bought a couple of little, portable cameras through Amazon that function with an app called Bing to show us real-time photos and videos of the house.

    Kelly: Yes, Olga is going! She is a real sun-worshipper.

    Jeanie: I knew when we started it would take longer than they originally said. There's no way they were ever going to finish this job in five days.

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