He Gets Better Health Care Than Me Too

My dog is spoiled rotten. But I didn't think I was one of THOSE dog owners (you know the ones I mean) because I do try to treat Charlie as a dog and not a child. Until today, when I ambled over to the newly opened Dogtopia doggie daycare here in Waco. We thought we would treat him to an occasional visit there to get him better socialized, since we won't be getting another dog for some time yet. The women that run the center spoke to me for some time about what Charlie would do there and their other services, which include the normal boarding and grooming, etc. And then they mentioned that they offer dog massages.

Massages. For dogs.

That's when I knew I was indeed one of those dog owners. Charlie came out of the evaluation - a short play date with the other dogs - with such a joy in his little quadruped step that I knew I would plunk down my credit card for pretty much anything he wanted. He's got us trained perfectly. Pretty good work for a dog that was on the streets and starving a year ago.

I do have a limit though - he doesn't get a spa day until I do.

Telf... Gennis... Tenif?

Every evening, Charlie and I go for a walk on the undergrad campus, with Jon if he's not working/in class. I've missed a couple nights this week because I've been sick, so I had been missing the cool, breezy spring weather until today. And guess what I found upon my return? The golf-tennis boys are back on the undergrad campus with their little liabilities flying through the air.

I don't know what athletic genius came up with this, but I can't avoid these fools. They walk around the campus with their golf clubs and hit the tennis balls to... I don't know where. The little I know about golf seems to indicate that there has to be a hole in the ground somewhere, but I highly doubt Baylor's administration is letting these pests with their flipped up collars dig holes into their lawns. But they do seem to adhere to the rule of playing where the ball lies. It can be in a flower bed, on the street, on a sidewalk or in the midst of the quad and they're there, waiting all of 2 seconds before I pass by before smacking the tennis ball into the trees behind me. Happy Bunny, as usual, sums up what I want to tell these boys to do with their tennis balls as I duck:


Look, I know the basic laws of physics - a golf ball will fly farther and harder and hit more forcefully than a tennis ball. But that doesn't mean I appreciate playing the part of William Tell's extremely hesitant kid. They clearly have golf clubs. Judging from their designer clothes, they have the spare cash to go to an actual golf course. I've come to one conclusion about why they insist upon playing where numerous people are in their way - they're lazy jerks.

... And I'm officially old and cranky. *sigh*

The Old Man and the Martini

When Italians start taking pity on Americans and their money troubles, it's not such a good sign. Maybe when I go to London, I should bring a little wooden bowl for alms. Hey, it might work.

Although, one thing - 200 euros (roughly US$300) to eat at a place where Hemingway once got drunk and emo? Look, you're in Rome! Go outside, pick a direction and walk towards a big crumbly stone structure. Congratulations! You're standing where dozens of crazy/cool/REALLY crazy yet cool Roman emperors once stood! For free! Or have a sandwich for a few bucks, if you insist! Huzzah!

Trust Me

1. Go to YouTube.
2. Click on any of the Featured Videos on the home page.
3. Enjoy!

Edit on 4/2: Obviously the above was for just yesterday. Here's the video that you could have seen, if you wanted. It went from 63,000 hits when Jon found it at 12:15 am on 4/1 to (last count) over 9 million. :D

WTF mate?

I think the current 3Qs are suffering from a lack of terror in their lives. Prof Civ Pro was sick and didn't scare them to the point of frozen horror in their first quarter. Then Prof LARC left and I hear they get to go through LARC pass/fail. The gravy train doesn't go on forever, people.

My point is, this might explain one of the conclusions my moot court partner found while paging through the 1L briefs - it said simply, "Ice cream."

I Heart Bob the Dinosaur

All the World's a Stage Unfortunately

Last time I mentioned the China-Tibet tensions, I was indecisive - we were giving an award to the Dalai Lama when we desperately need the friendship of China.

But all bets are off. Tiananmen Square apparently meant nothing to the Chinese government - I'm not sure how you can laugh off worldwide condemnation that even I remember, though I was only 5, but apparently they want to try. It's an anti-jihad, really, if you think about it - the Chinese are persistent in stamping out religious freedom. And nothing says "shady" like barring the media from entering the country that you're trying to "stabilize".

It's a shame really - 50 years ago Jon's family (both sides) fled from China because the Communists were quite literally destroying their lives and livelihoods. I won't repeat family history but the things that the government did were so barbaric that the Mongols were the cute, floppy-eared bunny predecessors. And apparently, it hasn't changed in the least. But the rest of the world has and now we can watch every instance of violence in horror and shame that humans are capable of such things.

China's world debut at the Beijing Games this year could have been a monument to change and progress. It's sad that once again, China's image will be marred by Tibet and its failure of diplomacy and peace, when one side wants it so desperately.