It's SNOWING!!!

It's SNOWING!

We woke up to 4" of white stuff.

Can't hardly see the mini van.

Kira & the Snow

I'm not real sure what to say about this QuickTime movie. I guess it kind of speaks for itself. It is Sarah's puppy playing in the snow on our deck:

(it is almost 1 meg, and might take a few minutes to download).

While you're waiting for the QuickTime movie to download, let me tell you a bit about how we exercise our dogs around here. Back when Paula was first diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, she went out and bought a treadmill. The idea was that the more she used what she had, the longer it would take for it to go away. So one Saturday afternoon, she pulled into the driveway and asked me to unload and assemble the treadmill she'd bought.

After lugging this VERY heavy box into the family room and spending 45 minutes or so assembling it, we plugged it in and turned it on. GEEEEZZZZZ...what a racket! You couldn't hear yourself think - Crystal (our older dog) was scared to death of the thing while it was running, and her reaction was to bark and growl and make runs at the thing to try and scare it away.

Obviously, something had to give - no way could we put up with all that racket. Sooooo....over the next two weeks, I gradually got her used to having the treadmill around, and eventually taught her that when we called "TREADMILL" she should jump on the thing and take a walk. We kind of went overboard on the praise and treats, and before you know it, Crystal would beg to be allowed to walk on the treadmill. You didn't even have to say "treadmill." Just turn on the electric motor, and wherever Crystal was, she'd come running. It became a kind of "Jetson's" type thing - give the dog her exercise by turning on the treadmill.

Welp, when we got Kira, one of the first things we tried to do was teach her to walk on the treadmill. But no matter how much praise, dog treats, hotdogs or cheese we tried, she never got any better at it than our hamsters and goldfish were. Obviously, the only way were were going to get Kira any exercise was by taking her for walks.

Then one day we discovered that she would chase after the light from a laser pointer. You can stand in the dining room, shine the light on the floor, lead her into the kitchen, then move the light beam into the entry hall, through the living room, and back into the dining room, and Kira would run in a big circle. And keep doing it for as long as you were willing to play. This is more effort that yelling "TREADMILL," but not a heck of a lot more.

If you wait around for the QuickTime movie to load, you might notice the bit of light that Kira is chasing through the snow. That's the laser pointer. Pretty cool, huh? But wait - it gets better. For the last couple of nights I've been standing on my deck in pretty doggone freezy weather, having Kira run around the back yard chasing after the laser pointer. It is cold. It is wet. And I have to stand up because all the chairs and benches are covered with snow.

But tonight, I had a bit of an inspirational moment. It dawned on me that most places inside my home are warm. And dry. And there's very little snow on any of the sitting surfaces. You guessed it - I now sit upstairs by the window, point the laser pointer at the ground in the background, and exercise the dog from the warmth and comfort of my second floor office.

Now if I can just figure out how to mow the lawn the same way.


	We woke up to 4" of white stuff.
	Can't hardly see the mini van.
	Kira & the Snow		I'm not real sure what to say about this QuickTime movie. I guess it kind of speaks for itself. It is Sarah's puppy playing in the snow on our deck: (it is almost 1 meg, and might take a few minutes to download). While you're waiting for the QuickTime movie to download, let me tell you a bit about how we exercise our dogs around here. Back when Paula was first diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, she went out and bought a treadmill. The idea was that the more she used what she had, the longer it would take for it to go away. So one Saturday afternoon, she pulled into the driveway and asked me to unload and assemble the treadmill she'd bought. After lugging this VERY heavy box into the family room and spending 45 minutes or so assembling it, we plugged it in and turned it on. GEEEEZZZZZ...what a racket! You couldn't hear yourself think - Crystal (our older dog) was scared to death of the thing while it was running, and her reaction was to bark and growl and make runs at the thing to try and scare it away. Obviously, something had to give - no way could we put up with all that racket. Sooooo....over the next two weeks, I gradually got her used to having the treadmill around, and eventually taught her that when we called "TREADMILL" she should jump on the thing and take a walk. We kind of went overboard on the praise and treats, and before you know it, Crystal would beg to be allowed to walk on the treadmill. You didn't even have to say "treadmill." Just turn on the electric motor, and wherever Crystal was, she'd come running. It became a kind of "Jetson's" type thing - give the dog her exercise by turning on the treadmill. Welp, when we got Kira, one of the first things we tried to do was teach her to walk on the treadmill. But no matter how much praise, dog treats, hotdogs or cheese we tried, she never got any better at it than our hamsters and goldfish were. Obviously, the only way were were going to get Kira any exercise was by taking her for walks. Then one day we discovered that she would chase after the light from a laser pointer. You can stand in the dining room, shine the light on the floor, lead her into the kitchen, then move the light beam into the entry hall, through the living room, and back into the dining room, and Kira would run in a big circle. And keep doing it for as long as you were willing to play. This is more effort that yelling "TREADMILL," but not a heck of a lot more. If you wait around for the QuickTime movie to load, you might notice the bit of light that Kira is chasing through the snow. That's the laser pointer. Pretty cool, huh? But wait - it gets better. For the last couple of nights I've been standing on my deck in pretty doggone freezy weather, having Kira run around the back yard chasing after the laser pointer. It is cold. It is wet. And I have to stand up because all the chairs and benches are covered with snow. But tonight, I had a bit of an inspirational moment. It dawned on me that most places inside my home are warm. And dry. And there's very little snow on any of the sitting surfaces. You guessed it - I now sit upstairs by the window, point the laser pointer at the ground in the background, and exercise the dog from the warmth and comfort of my second floor office. Now if I can just figure out how to mow the lawn the same way.