puppy – FIRST DATE, WORST DATE EVER!

9-11

September 11, 2025September 10, 2025 Posted in 9-11, attack, divorce, fences, memoir, puppy, TV, veterinarianLeave a comment

It was 9:30 in the morning, California time. I was doing my usual clean-up after sending our three young children off to school. The oldest was almost 15, the middle one 12, and the youngest just 7. The new Dachshund puppy needed to go outside, but with hawks around, I needed to go with him.… Continue reading 9-11

Kuma, the Teddy-bear Akita

June 30, 2025June 29, 2025 Posted in 4th of July, Akita, animal training, animals, boyfriend, California, casino, dating, divorce, dogs, father figure, Japan, kayaking, lake, Lake Tahoe, puppy, river, swimmingLeave a comment

(re-run) Beth’s husband had two Akita dogs. She wanted to get one for their six-year-old son. She got Lee a puppy and named him Kuma, which is Japanese for Bear. The two older dogs kept attacking the puppy. The marriage wasn’t going well, either. Beth and her son moved out and got their own place… Continue reading Kuma, the Teddy-bear Akita

A Different Kind of Flip

March 17, 2025March 16, 2025 Posted in appliance, college, Craigslist, fixer, flip, Home Depot, humor, June, kitchen remodel, Las Trampas Ridge, lipstick on a pig, piano, pig, puppy, relationships, tea cups, weddingLeave a comment

(re-run) Fourteen years ago I bought my little house due to a divorce. I downsized and lost 3000 square feet, an angry husband, and many beloved pieces of furniture – a wing chair, an antique trunk, some beds, a dresser, and an antique dresser and mirror that I refinished by hand after buying it in… Continue reading A Different Kind of Flip

Designer Dogs

July 27, 2024July 26, 2024 Posted in dogs, humor, last, memoir, puppy, relationshipsLeave a comment

(re-run) As I watched the end of the Oscars with my dog cozied up in the chair with me and my sister asking when she could go to bed, I thought back on the man I met two nights before, the one who wanted to get a Doodle Dane, a cross breed between a Great… Continue reading Designer Dogs

First Dog, Lost Dog

May 13, 2024May 12, 2024 Posted in animal rescue, best, dogs, farm, high school, holidays, humor, memoir, Midwestern, Nebraska, Omaha, outdoors, puppy, relationships, roommate, small town, SPCA, student, teaching, worstLeave a comment

After moving to farm country to teach high school Spanish, I watched my roommate Kristy come home one day with a German Shephard puppy. “Meet Shane!” she said. She hadn’t asked me. She hadn’t asked the landlord. When she did ask him, his response was, “Not in the house.” Kristy made Shane a bed of… Continue reading First Dog, Lost Dog

Designer Dogs

December 5, 2022December 5, 2022 Posted in dogs, humor, last, memoir, puppy, relationshipsLeave a comment

When a House Feels Like a Home

June 10, 2022June 10, 2022 Posted in college, divorce, fixer, house, house remodel, memoir, moving, neighbors, online sales, pioneers, puppy, sister, yardLeave a comment

It’s been eleven years since I moved into my little house. It has changed so much, and that’s a good thing. I liked the location but not the house. It was vacant. I saw it three Sundays in a row. The third time I looked at it, I decided I could live there. It was… Continue reading When a House Feels Like a Home

Kuma, the Teddy-bear Akita

January 20, 2022January 20, 2022 Posted in 4th of July, Akita, animal training, animals, boyfriend, California, casino, dating, divorce, dogs, father figure, Japan, kayaking, lake, Lake Tahoe, puppy, river, swimmingLeave a comment

(re-run) Beth’s husband had two Akitas. She wanted to get one for their six-year-old son. She got Lee a puppy and named him Kuma, which is Japanese for Bear. The two older dogs kept attacking the puppy. The marriage wasn’t going well, either. Beth and her son moved out and got their own place and… Continue reading Kuma, the Teddy-bear Akita

Designer Dogs

November 26, 2021November 26, 2021 Posted in dogs, humor, last, memoir, puppy, relationshipsLeave a comment

(re-run) As I watched the end of the Oscars with a little dog cozied up in the chair with me and my sister asking when she could go to bed, I thought back on the man I met two nights before, the one who wanted to get a Doodle Dane, a cross breed between a… Continue reading Designer Dogs

Kuma, the Teddy-bear Akita

July 22, 2021July 22, 2021 Posted in 4th of July, Akita, animal training, animals, boyfriend, California, casino, dating, divorce, dogs, father figure, Japan, kayaking, lake, Lake Tahoe, puppy, river, swimmingLeave a comment

Her husband had two Akitas. Beth wanted to get one for their six-year-old son. She got Lee a puppy and named him Kuma, which is Japanese for Bear. The two older dogs kept attacking the puppy. The marriage wasn’t going well, either. Beth and her son moved out and got their own place. Kuma came… Continue reading Kuma, the Teddy-bear Akita