Friends of Homeless Animals fundraiser Barktoberfest

Today was a fun day.  We went to Barktoberfest which is FOHA's (Friends of Homeless Animals) yearly fundraiser.

Theo did GREAT!  He loved all of the attention - from the volunteers and from strangers who just wanted to meet him.

                

              

He was great with all of the other dogs around and was exhausted by the time we got home.

With Spartacus, another FOHA Alumni
who was at the rescue for a quite a while.  

We got a lot of freebies from the vendors and purchased a gift basket that FOHA had for purchase.

The best part was that we got to hear his story.  We met the person who originally picked him up from Southern Virginia.  She said that she thought he was an owner surrender.

The other story we got to hear was when he was surrendered from the adopter who had him for 2 months.  He was dropped off at Dog University for training. He ended up reacting to the situation and acting aggressive towards the trainer.  The trainer ended up telling the adopters that he should be returned to the rescue.  FOHA came and got him back.  The volunteer said that the trainer had been using a animal control pole like this to get him in the crate at night and to lead him around.  She told us that when they went to pick him up, they could hear him growling and the trainer pulling him down the stairway to him.  She said that as soon as Theo saw her and Jack, the volunteer who we met and still keep in touch with, Theo recognized them and his body relaxed.

The adopters have put a bad review on Yelp! saying that FOHA doesn't let adopters know of the history of the animal.  SO NOT TRUE! We read the surrender papers and how he was "aggressive" towards others.  ANY dog is going to become aggressive when put into an unfamiliar situation and with a stranger.  PLUS - Shar Peis are known for challenging, independent, stubborn, and LOYAL.  What kind of trainer doesn't know the KNOWN personalities of a breed?

I will say this - we SAW that personality in Theo during his first few days.  He challenged us to see who was in charge/whether he could trust us.  We saw such a change in him within the first month.

Theo is an AWESOME dog.  He has fit into our lives and we are so happy to have him in our lives. We love him A LOT and was meant to be with us.  It makes me so sad that he had to go through what he went through.  I'm so glad it wasn't as bad as it could have been.  What if the adopter didn't take him back to the FOHA?  What if they had just put him down?  It's amazing how good he is considering what he's gone through.

Not a typical Monday

What did you do today?

I got a new client for my business, started a class to learn a new language, and met an actress/musician! Not your typical Monday!

So excited that my business is growing!  I met with a realtor who needed help with SendOutCards and marketing, and we are going forward!  YEAH!  It's amazing how things fall into place when you put it out there to the universe.  I had written down that I wanted to phase out a client, but with that, comes needing to replace the income.  As soon as I wrote it down, I started to get inquiries about work.  Now it's up to me to keep the ball rolling.

This evening I started my Italian class.  It was such a better experience than the last time I tried to take an Italian class.  Almost everyone is a beginner - like not knowing any Italian.  There is one guy that is way advanced, but the teacher handles him very well when he starts talking in Italian.  There is one person who is from South America, so she might have an easier time, but she was quiet.  Almost everyone in the class has been to Italy and plans to go back.  Some have a trip planned.  The biggest thing was - we had FUN!

The class was 6:30 to 9 and I planned on going to see Alexz Johnson afterwards at Jammin' Java in Vienna. I figured that she would go on like at 9 or 10 - I might miss some, but doubted it.  Well, that didn't happen - I missed the ENTIRE show!  SERIOUSLY!

I pulled in and thought, "Wow, no one came."  I walked in and I asked "Did I miss the show?" and she said, "Yup, we are closing up."  Then I saw a group of people standing around (by the merchandise table), so went over.  She was finishing up with someone, and said 'Who's next?" No one moved forward, so I did. I told her that I just got there and missed the show, thinking that she wouldn't have gone on until like 10, have been a fan since "Instant Star" and love all of her music.  Yes, I said "I'm probably old enough to be your mom." Then it sunk in to her that I missed the show - she said that they went on real early and I should get a refund - and let her know that I was just going to get a ticket at the door.  Alexz and Brendon (part of the opening band/producer) said check youtube that it should be on there.  I said some words of encouragement - to stick with it, you are talented and she said that she's going to keep doing it as long as she can. And I said to come back here (Jammin' Java), and that I know she has in the past.  I mentioned that last time she came I was on vacation.

The best part is that she said "Wow, you are a true fan - to come in even after missing the show to say hi."  Alexz asked if I have the new CD and I said, Oh yeah, already downloaded. I got to chat with Brendon with Dress Black. Told him I would check out the music and another guy was trying to get me to come to the Philly show since I missed last night's show. I asked what they sounded like and he said he produced both their CD and Alexz's - come to find out - it's Alexz's brother.  I was thinking it was, when he said his first name, but didn't say anything.

Anyway, at least I got a picture with Alexz and got to chat with her!

A weekend of scrapbooking

This weekend is a 3 day scrapbooking crop hosted by my friend, Jeannette.  She does this every Fall and Spring.

I have been so busy that I haven't had a chance to really figure out what to work on, but I have been wanting to scan items in so that I can create scrapbooks and throw away the paper (like memorabilia from trips).

It's been slow going and I'm still on the first project that wanted to scan in, but getting there.  Of course, I forgot the cord that I needed to connect the printer to the computer, so Dan found it and brought it to me and brought Theo along for the ride.  My friend, Jennifer, wanted to meet him anyway.  He had quite the fan club and got to meet quite a few of my friends.

I did work on some traditional scrapbooking items because we can get tickets for a raffle that she has and they are for the products/supplements that Theo uses.

When we were doing the traditional items, I realized, I'm done with doing traditional.  There are to many steps and messy.  I was frustrated too since the tape runner wasn't working well.

The project that made me realize it's been way too long since I've done traditional and I'm over it.  I like digital much better.

Another project - this was just a layout that we had to put together to get tickets.  I think maybe I just don't like following directions.  I did go off course and didn't use all of the embellishments.  I've decide I'm just going to donate these items since I'll never use them.

The one good thing about having a 3 day crop is that we have chair massage available and I hooked one of my networking friends up. So win-win.  I get BNI "points" and get to see my friend, Sherry, with Absolutely Massage - oh, and I get to have a seated massage.

VACATION! And Theo's first LONG trip

Trip to Canada – August 26 to September 8

Vacation at the family cottage in Canada (Rice Lake, Keene, Ontario).

September 2, 2017

Catching up on the trip so far. Saturday, August 26, we stopped overnight at my sister’s house in NY.  We weren’t really sure how Theo would do on a long trip, but come to find out he did GREAT!  He loves the bench in the back and falls to sleep on it.

Theo did really well at Joanne’s house.  He was too excited about meeting Dory (Joanne’s new kitten) and Dory taunted him some once she realized we weren’t going to let him get to her.

Sunday, we drove the rest of the way to Canada. Once again, Theo did great. We ended up on some dirt roads in NY thanks to Waze (we forgot to turn off the dirt roads options).  Luckily, we made the right decision on getting new shocks all around on Jeepy.  They have made the ride nice and Jeepy makes less noise.

Before crossing in to Canada, we stopped at a gas station/bait store in Thousand Islands.  First time I ever saw live bait inside a store.  While I was walking Theo around, I found my first painted rock.  It was done by a young girl. Her aunt posted a comment after I posted that I found it.

We stopped in Hastings, Ontario at the grocery store on the way and picked up a couple of groceries.  While I was inside shopping, Dan walked Theo around and found another painted rock. 

I didn’t get approved to the group until today (September 2), because they finally messaged me to confirm that I had selected the correct group to join. 

Monday (August 28) was going out to the grocery store (along with the Dollarama and alcohol store).  We found the BEST cookies ever at the grocery store and have gotten more.  They are brownie like cookies.

Tuesday, Dan went and played frisbee golf and Theo and I just hung around the house.  We have been walking two miles every morning.  Theo got to see his first cows.

Wednesday, we went to the Peterborough Pete’s scrimmage.  It wasn’t like last year when they had a couple of different vendors and even the concessions stand was open.  This year, the store was open and that was it.

Thursday, we had a bunch of fun at the Escape Maze. Every room has an old time theme.  The one we did was Rosie’s Tavern.  The different with the rooms up here are that they only give you 45 minutes.  We did really well – we got out in 40 minutes.  Another cool thing is afterwards, we got to dress up and got our picture taken.

They also have outdoor mazes that we might go back and try.  If not, we’ll probably at least go back and try another room.

Friday, we went to the Farmer’s Market in Keene.  We were hoping that they would have tomatoes since we needed them, but of course, they did not.  We did pick up some homemade raspberry strudel.  We also stopped at the Emporium (an antiques place) and then at the general store to pick up the tomatoes we needed.

We started to do some geocaching too.  There were two that were basic that we could see on the app and on our way back from town.

Today, Saturday, we did some geocaching on our walk, so Theo got to experience his first geocaching.  We went to Keene to the thrift store and I got a couple of shirts and Dan got a puzzle.  We stopped by the library, but didn’t see any books that we wanted (to buy).

Then we headed to Hastings to the Medieval Festival that we went to last year.  It wasn’t worth it.  Entrance was $10 each.  Maybe if you have kids, it could be an all-day thing, but there wasn’t that many vendors or things to do.  We walked around, went back to 2 vendor tables that we saw things we wanted (Dan saw a keychain and I saw 2 painted rocks that I wanted), then headed out.  As we were heading out, Dan saw another painted rock, so we grabbed that.  We tried to find a geocache, but it was right by the port-a-potties.  We tried a few minutes and then said forget it.

Then we went to the store to get more groceries.

Dan’s been working with Theo on training, and we have been letting him run around with a long lead so we can grab him if need be.  He’s doing well.  We are waiting to see if the neighbors come (they are supposed to be coming) and if they will bring their pups.  We’ll see how that goes.

I’ve been working a little on the business – trying to figure out a schedule, doing some accounting and FINALLY reading some (business) books that I have been meaning to read.

Tuesday, September 5, 2017

Catching up again!

Sunday we didn’t do anything, but hang out around the cottage. I read a lot and did some work. The neighbors were here, so we got to catch up with them for a little bit and Theo got to meet their two dogs.  He did well.

Monday, Theo and I chatted with the neighbors again in the morning before they left.  Then we went to the Trans Canada Trail and did some geocaching.

Last night we had crazy thunderstorms.  The thunder just rolls like crazy around here with the hills.

Today, we got up and geocached on the trail again. This afternoon, we’ll be heading to the city for some shopping and for our annual dinner at Berc’s Steakhouse.

Thursday, September 7, 2017

Tuesday afternoon, we did a bunch of running around to different stores to get a couple of things.  First was the bank, which was right by a bookstore, so we spent some time there.  I picked up 4 hockey books. Then we went to Walmart and GameStop. Then it was dinner time.  We were the 1^st of 3 couples who came in for their anniversary and they sat us all near each other.

Wednesday, we did more geocaching in the morning on the trail and hung out the rest of the day. In the evening we walked Theo over the Elmhirst and found 2 more geocaches on their grounds.

Today, we went to Robert Johnston EcoForest Trails for the geocaching. The geocaches were AWESOME there.  The person put a lot of time and effort into the caches.  One was a combination lock that you had to figure out the puzzle to get the right numbers.  The other was a cage that you had to work the log up the cage to get it out.  It took a few minutes, but Dan got it.

The weird thing was as soon as we got them, they were disabled and now they are no longer listed.  While we were walking out, Dan noticed one that showed up on his app that I didn’t have.  Come to find out, it was just posted. So we hurried out and got our first international “first to find” cache.

This afternoon we went back to the Escape Maze.  We did the poker room.  We did really well, considering that is was the hardest room that they have.  We didn’t make it out in the 45 minutes, but we only went over by like 2 minutes.  It was a tough one, but definitely a lot of fun.  I felt like I was the weak link because it was about poker, but there were some clues that I caught that Dan didn’t, so it all worked out.

On the way back we stopped and got a couple more geocaches that were on the way. Then we stopped at Patricia’s Gift Shop, which I thought was going to be like an actual gift shop, but it was an antique store and then at the general store.  This evening has been packing up.

Neither one of us is ready to go home – it’s been nice and it’s gone by fast.  Plus we don’t look forward to the 10 plus hour drive.