Holiday Greetings

This Is Not Funny

No, not at all.  That's right, that's supposed to be me cringing at the top of the stairs after I was cruelly abandoned by "them" in a strange house somewhere in the north woods when they went out for a walk without me.  Supposedly it was too wet.  Hey, I'll decide when it is too wet, OK.  And, by the way, I will have vengeance.  And pretty soon because otherwise I will forget.

Have U met my friend, "Big Bear?"

The first time I saw him I was scared.  I got one look at him and WHOOSH - I ran right out of the room.  That's what I do when there is something I don't want to see.  I turn my head or I just VAMOOSE!
After that I chose to ignore him altogether. 
Then, little by little, I began to accept his presence and managed to get a tad closer to him.  He's a really cool guy.  As the kids say now - "He's awesome!"  Very nice and loves to cuddle.
Now he and I are best buds.  BFF's if you will.
I don't make a move without him and vice versa.
I love my Big Bear Buddy!!

In 20 some very odd days we are going here!

I love there.  This year I'm going for a bike ride.

Walking trails, nights in a strange bed, checking for mice and spiders, sitting in a cold car, being used for a photo prop,  weird food,  shopping trips, being oggled,  barking as much as I like, watching strange woodland critters, its the whole package.

In for a penny, in for a pound.  And I'm "in" baby!

Victory!

The game goes on.  The quest for perfect form.  All that crap.  The point is "I win."  YES!!!

Stretch Time

Put a pixie & a peanut together - what do you get?

A Friend

Cute, but...

Not so handsome as this:

Who is this handsome devil?

White?  Natch

Coal black nose y eyes?  Of course!!

Who he????

Deep Thoughts

If x is the number of toys in my primary toy box and y is the number of edamame on my breakfast plate, what is the square root of π and why aren’t there more edamame there?

Who decides what toys go into my secondary and tertiary toy boxes and why should I care when nobody can explain the number of edamame on my breakfast plate and the relationship of that number to the radius of a circle drawn from Bear’s armpit to the upstairs window?

I think about these questions a lot even though they seemingly have no relationship to the number of salmon treats I am given in the course of a given day.  Or do they?  Maybe it all makes sense or maybe these seemingly random occurrences are part of a grand conspiracy to corner the organic soybean market.

It makes you wonder how I can locate “their” car from among the myriad of similar cars in the park when I could be devoting my attention to even deeper thoughts.

U think HE'S smart??

Hah!  I'm only a "4 legger" but I'm reallylintelligent. 

I have a huge vocabulary, I can do yoga along with "them" and I'm taking up painting, too plus I can spot my jet black turbo Saab a block away!

Yes, I can!

O, I'm a monk's uncle who's related to a chimpanzee

All is well with the sea world. 

All my creatures have either gotten back their hair plus all have been grown back to their original size.  No one is any smaller than mother nature intended.

I am pleased-  now go away and leave us alone to grow hair or not, shrink or grow or not and to eat whosomeever we choose.

Go away or I will eat you!!

Too Bad for You, Creature

Just as I thought the jig was up, the Creature started to mutate and to get really small.  Must have been the DNA the Mad Scientist injected or the Park District Guy the Creature ate, or a combination of both.

Anyway, safe and sound.  Me, that is.  The Creature, not so much.  And he is really small too, down to three or four inches.

The Mad Scientist.  Also not so much.  The Park District Guys nabbed him and put him in the bamboo crate.  He says he will make me great and powerful if I spring him.  What the hell, he was a big help in my time of need.

Where did that little semi-hairy fella go?

You know him? 

He's about as tall as a qt of half and half, weighs about a loaf of pumpernickle bread, has a face like a snowball and a tail like a quill pen without the inky bits.

His nether region is pinky with no spots, and his teeth are like sharpened tic tacs.

Well,  if'n y'all sees him - send him my way, OK?  I got the ketchup and mustard greens all ready for a good fry 'em up!

Restored

So here's the deal.  I was wandering around in kind of a daze after my unfortunate adventures when lo and behold, I ran into the same scientist chap whom I first observed removing his melted thermometer from the polluted pond.

He told me if I was willing to donate a small DNA sample in the interests of science, he could restore me to my former state of unparalleled beauty and furriness.  Well, listen I know the guy looks a little creepy and who knows what he is going to do with the DNA, something about shrinking the monster in the bamboo crate and making him more manageable so that he could someday rule the world starting with this pond, but, really how am I in any way responsible for that if it happens which I do not think it will, can it?

Anyway, behold and wonder in amazement at my restoration.

OK, you'd look a little grumpy too if you had been through the ordeals I have endured in the Summer of Pip.  I mean.

Oh-oh!  Here come those park district guys again.  They look pretty mad.  I'm outta here.

How do you like it?

Well, do you think I could go around looking like THAT (see photo 2 posts below.)

The lady in the store said she thought it brought out the REAL "Me"

I dunno - maybe I'll keep looking!!

Wake Up!

Wake up, sleepy head.  Maybe you were only dreaming.  Or maybe not.  Or maybe you don't know any more whether you are dreaming or awake.  And maybe that just blows your little mind.

OMG - I fell in!!

Holy polluted swamp pond!  I was gazing into the pond (see previous posts) admiring my beauty when YIKES (!!!!!) I slipped on a slippery snail slime trail and IN I went - cute little nose to my long poofy tail - and all parts in between!

I yelled HELP!!!! but in I sunk, bit by bit.  This is what I looked like when I crawled out!  I think there are indications that the water might be TOXIC!!

What can I do???

I'm Telling You

You find a nice peaceful little pond and five minutes later the whole thing turns upside down.  I mean, is this bad luck or what?  First the temperature, then the piranhas, then the weird face in the lawn that got eaten by Big Froggie who was eaten by the Creature from the Black Lagoon.

So now some Park District guys come along and cart the Creature away in a bamboo crate.  Hey, Park District guys, I'd be careful with that dude.

This was supposed to be the Summer of Pip.

Alas poor BIg Froggy, I knew him a little...

  GULP!   smack smack,    yum!!

Too Late

Big Froggie ate him.

Maybe I'll bring Big Froggie home.

HI!

Look who I found on the edge of  the Pond!   He wants to come home with me.

Should I put him in my pocket?

More Trouble at Paradise Pond

That's right.  Piranhas.  Wow!  And to think I almost ventured there.  Whew!

My Auntie Dee Dee....

Excuse my "crazy eyes" - this is my Auntie Dee.

Them and her  is going out to dinner tomorrow night at some fish place in Evanston where she lives.

Do you see the family resemblance?

They are going to see the fireworks later at her hotel but I can't go cuz its too noisy and I have to stay home.  It was really hot today but I still got a good walk by Montrose Harbor.

He thought he saw a bird baby in distress but when he went back to find it (100 degrees!) there was nobody there.  Hope his/her mom came to the rescue.

I may be wrong but.....

Just as me and my science geek buddy were walking away from the Delightful Pond o'Death I turned around and saw something.  Something BIG!!!

Do you think it might be "you know who?"

YIKES!!  And to think I almost went swimming there!  What would have become of me?  Would I end up like Jonah??

Oh-oh!

Went down to the shore of that pond where I met up with some scientist dude who was testing the water.  He fished out his thermometer.

Started having second thoughts about jumping in.  Completely melted.  That might have been my adorable fist of fury.

Dare I do it?

They took me out for a car ride yesterday and a pretty decent walk but it was SO frigging hot!!  I never saw it so hot before.

  It freaked me out. 

When I got back home I was so tired I could hardly muster a good bark and, as I didn't get a nap, I was so exhausted I couldn't sleep and when I did I dreamed of a beautiful pool of cool water nestled in a little vale in the forest. 

All of sudden, me with my long flowing locks and "waterfall" ear hair, decided to jump in!!

Bear Kicking Back

Don't think I could handle it in this heat.  But then Bear is a pretty unique fellow.

Here's mud in your eye!

My cold weather visualization plan is working!!

I guess my thots are more powerful than I knew

This is "him and her" today.  They said the house is freezing and they had to bundle up!

S'gonna be a hunnert degrees tomorrow!

I'm going to visualize winter - you know, with the cold air and the cool ice and the fluffy snowflakes that you catch on your tongue and make a wish?

Brrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr.....get me my snuggy!

Am I Handsome or What?

This photo was taken during a lull in the bed game.  Behold!

Where did this big yellow bear come from?

Did he sneak in when I was napping?
He is quite large but he seem friendly.
Here I'm checking out his foot which appears to be like any ordinary foot of a yellow bear.

Don't I look really little next to him?

Getting Close to Perfection

All I need now is to rest my little head.

This is my favorite blankie in the whole world!

Whenever I'm sad or lonely or down in the dumps I always lay on my cheerful blankie and either take a nap (I'll wake up and feel better) or just zone out til my mood changes.

Here you can see just what I mean....I haven't quite come around yet.

Try me back in an hour or so.

Those eyes!

They look right into your soul and out the back!

He has a lot of presence, that's for sure.  I hope someday we will meet and I will be able to give him a few kisses - is he lets me, that is.

My Real Old Man

Sorry, fans, the photo above is my real old man.  And a fine figure he was and is, though frankly I have little recollection of him.  Was I once just one dog among many?  That doesn't seem right.  I am Pip.

My old man....

Happy bio dad's day, Peanut.

You were all right.  Looking at your photo I guess that's where I got my "high C" bark.

Everyone doesn't appreciate.  "She" says its like being stabbed in the ear with an icepick.

That hurts!

Its my bark and  I'll bark if I want to!!

What is this in my bed?

Did some alien or zombie put a gingerbread house in my upside down bed?

I distinctly left instructions that under no circumstances was ANYONE to leave a gingerbread house on my upside down bed.

I swear, standards are slip slip slipping away.

Real Comfort

Morning Nap

Pretty comfy.

Just Right!

Pillow arranging time.....

Gotta get 'em just right - then curl back up for a wee nap.

Still a Little Sleepy

What can you do?

Ssssshhh!

I'm sleeping.
zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz  zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

New rumor circulating.....

it involves me in a basket on wheels.

The last time this happened it did not go well.

My, they have short memories... this could get ugly but I'm keeping my mind open.

some days its just good to kick back and take a good snooze on the patio. 

leave your worries behind and just zone out.

Action Shots - The Game

Enjoy!

These are action shots from my most recent 'Bed Game", which I won 11-4-0.  Here's how it works.  "Him" and "Her" sit at opposite sides of a bed.  They throw the beloved "Bubba Bob" between them.  I leap in the air and catch it.  If I keep it on the bed, I get a point.  If either of "them" catch it on the fly in a ricochet off my nose or other body part, they get a point.

This is the greatest game ever.  I invented it.  I always win.  I find it particularly offensive when "they" score points, especially "him".  "He" makes a big deal about, squeezing "Bubba" and gloating in triumph.


This is just not sporting.  It just frosts me.  The nerve.  This is not a game.  This is life.  Next to fetch, this is the world's greatest game.  Maybe more than a game.