apologies

Apologies come in many forms but silence is not one of them.

--Christianne Tisdale

Fearless

I can't imbed. Please travel to

Rasta Magee....

Sums It Up

Happy St. Rusty's Day

Mohamed Adel

Valentine’s Day = no celebration for me.

That’s when all the loonies come out to play. And St. Valentine was beaten to death and then beheaded. What’s to celebrate?

Plus, I’m 48, I’m single, unemployed and I don’t have a dog.* Pretty much rock bottom.

My rock bottom is comparatively pretty shiny. I live in the best city in the world. I have a rent-stabilized apartment, a membership to New York Sports Club (where I can watch 80s pop video) and I’m not going to go hungry any time soon. But once I realized I was deep in the dirt, I decided to slow on down and pick away at the nuggets for a while,

Read more at Elephant Journal

More Lessons Learned

Do take dog to the vet when he itches.

Dogs are far more pleasant when they're far less itchy.

Sometimes underdogs can be the best behaved at the vet.

Do not pet dog while you're canoodling just to get said dog to shut up.

Do not allow dog to create a den for himself on your couch.

Do keep an eagle eye on dog when walking on your street if your street has a middle school where children just drop pretzels all over the sidewalk. A developing nation could be fed from the refuse on my block.

Do brush dog with hair every day.

Do keep dog on the skinny side.

Do keep some fiber in both your and dog's diet.

Do your best to never ever ever witness anal expression. Dog's that is...

Sleepy Metronorth Dog

Lessons Learned

Do NOT try and put Baxter's Sherlock Holmes coat on when we're both half asleep.

Do NOT accidentally brush his butt where the scab is healing.

Do NOT buy a carrier bag that he can't burrow into like a dog cave.

Do NOT deal with the scab healing on his face IN HIS DOG CAVE.

Do NOT believe your apartment is clean. Baxter, at least, is a walking lint brush.

Do NOT play with Baxter within ten minutes of leaving the apartment. Baxter will cry his little heart out and upset Billy the Dog two floors down.

DO let him meet men on his own time.

DO keep his harness on him when a man first walks in the apartment so you can walk him easily into another room.

If you DO work a matt slowly with your fingers, you can get it out.

DO say good boy more than ever possibly imagined.

Dogs are kind people magnets. At least on my block

Bill Berloni is right about everything all the time.

Sister Bertrille

The Flying Nun

Baxter Day

He is home...and had an eventful day. He said goodbye to his friends at The Humane Society, Bonnie and Lowell...which actually made me weep.

He was friendly with a stranger...not a part of his M.O.

He had a rough time walking away from his home at the HSC...but we went a block, had a pee and a poo and jumped in a taxi. We got out across the street from my apartment and established our "Hurry up" walking route. Seems rescues especially need this...a recreated, consistent walk for a while so they can stop being in alert mode all the time.

The look on his face as he climbed the 4 flights to my apartment was priceless. Kinda like when I heard my dressing room was on the 7th floor.

I kept him on his lead as I introduced him to his new home...the mountain aerie rabbit warren. Even after all my cleaning, he found something on the floor to eat...our first confrontation and apology.

The one smart thing I did was put his bed under my dresser. It makes a nice little cave for him, and he feels safe. (Aka, his crate hasn't arrived yet.)

He jumped into his carrier twice. I'm thinking he's not going to love it. But I'm going to give him the opportunity to witness his friend George loving his. If he doesn't follow suit, back it goes.

He actually let me brush him.

I did two outings without him. The first for five minutes, the second for an hour. I slipped out. I tried to slip back in unnoticed, but he was waiting at the door. No barking. No chewing (other than himself most likely). No peeing. PAWSOME. I have no interest in creating a separation anxiety dog.

That being said, when we weren't playing fetch or going for walks, he either slept in his bed or on the sofa cradled by me. Bill told me he would be exhausted. Probably for a couple of days.

I have such mixed emotions...I'm sick that he showed up at THS after living with his family for almost 4 years. I'm sick he has a skin infection.

But without those, he wouldn't be mine.

And I wouldn't get to see him chase a toy with his ears flying out looking like Sister Bertrille.

BC4

One more visit...where Baxter tried to take a bullet for me...the bullet being a strange woman who entered the room as Baxter sat in my lap. Little did I know she was completely new to Baxter until he started barking his fool head off. Lesson learned. Baxter meets NO ONE while sitting in my lap. We had to leave the room. They were surprised when I brought him back saying, "Okay, let's see if you can tolerate the nice lady now." He did. He sniffed her and looked at me like, "Okay...done. Can we move on? "

He got a new toy, a cashmere sweater that smelled embarrassingly like me and an hour and three quarters of play time. (These were not rewards. These were pre. His reward for behaving well was lots of "good boys.")

Yesterday his bed, collar and assloads of dog food were purchased. Today even more things come up off the floor and I decide whether he'll be eating and drinking out of my stuff or gets his own Baxter bowls. I'll try and sleep with his bed tonight so it gets some eau de Tizzy.

I'm also trying to get one extra visit in today but The Humane Society is overloaded. It is fantastic that they are so revered and trusted, yet it's heartbreaking that more and more animals are being given up or abandoned.

And I'm realizing this is not a well-written blog post. It's more a blah post. But my show is closing today, I gave myself food poisoning the other day, I have shin splints and there's oodles to do.

So...blah.

BD-2. So excited I could piddle.

CT

has to write this like a FB status update because first person singular and owning it would be too much to bear.

You know the world has become quite intimate when one of CT's local homeless people is tucked away in his blanket in the subway station, wishes her goodnight like a sleepy child and she looks him in the eye and responds, "Good night, sweetheart."

Everyone was someone's sweetheart in some way, shape or form at some time.

A good thing to remember.

And CT remembers a dear old beau who yelled at the guy pissing on their steps, and then took him in, let him shower and washed his clothes.

Everyone deserves clean clothes.

And sometimes this is all too much to bear. And CT has shin splints. Which is nothing compared to sleeping in a blanket in the subway station.

BC3

I obviously can't do math, because yesterday was BD-6.

BD-5 is where I learn not to throw crap on the floor. Honestly, I live my life throwing everything on the floor. It runs the gamut from dirty underwear to mail to purses to change to curling irons.

Baxter is beautifully trained (despite the poor pee aim) and respectful, but...you know...

A dog's a dog.

And I've waited sooooooooo long for one, I'm cleaning as if my mother-in-law were coming for a visit.

If I had a mother-in-law.

And had to wear the cone of shame.

The Baxter Chronicles 2

Adoption forges ahead. We went for a walk yesterday. He tolerated the harness (something he'd earlier refused), and a jaunty little sports jacket (never did I think I'd be dressing a dog). Not a sign of lack of socialization. Doggy kisses. As always, sat in my lap, but this time facing me instead of the back-turned "I love her but I'm facing out so I can get the fuck out" version. Friendly with everyone. His pee aim is a little off but I guess mine would be too if I had my nuts removed.

If I had nuts.

And had to wear the cone of shame.

BD-7.

The Baxter Chronicles 1

Oh yeah…I’m trying to adopt Baxter from the Humane Society. We met before he was even in the system.

Due date = January 31.

He is delicious…

And initially believed quite perfect by all who met him.

And then he had a bad day. Not with me. Someone else. We've only had one bad moment. For which we both apologized profusely. As with any friendship, issues must be addressed immediately. And Bill the Behaviorist helped me learn how best to expedite that…in both species.

We’re having our third real visit tomorrow. He’s been neutered, shaved (bye bye matts), and had his nails clipped. We’re gonna see if we can get through a day without having to apologize.

Woof us luck.

"Change does not roll in on the wheels of inevitability, but comes through continuous struggle. And so we must straighten our backs and work for our freedom. A man can't ride you unless your back is bent."

--Martin Luther King, Jr.

On the Oops Day of Christ*&^%$

On the Oops Day of Christ*&^*%$, TiZ reveals to you...

I did two repeats, so...

Two more things you may not know about me...

I was proudly published twice this year.

I have only purchased 6 pieces of furniture my entire life. One of them was used. The rest are gifts, hand-me-downs or dumpster delights.

New Year's 3

I see you.

GO!

New Year's Day

You are loving.

You love.

And

You are loved.

Ready, set...GO!

The New Year's Day Poem

Choose Life over the other stuff. Get out of your head. Live. Dress up. Eat. Touch people. Help out. Give up. Love people. Give your best away. There's more. What's the problem? Relax. You're going to die. Throw a party. Eat off my plate. Sing to me. Meet me in the bedroom. Get a massage. Give one. Let your amazement out into the room. Pry open the box you hide your joy in. Be

a

poem.

-John Patrick Shanley

On the Thirty-First Day of Christ*&^%$

On the Thirty-First Day of Christ*&^%$, TiZ reveals to you...

Thirty-one things she would dig in a deep way for 2012...*

Peace on earth.

Goodwill to all sentient beings.

Going on for the quinfucta.

A healthier economy for all.

A re-elected Obama.

A little cupcake of a cottage upstate.

A good solid apology.

Ease.

Grace.

A good, solid, considered apology.

To publish more.

To gain even more of you appreciative bleaders.**

To finally finish and perform TOMB.

More volunteerism.

Looooooooooooooooooooooooove.

More recording. I love recording.

Health...physical, emotional and spiritual.

More yoga.

Getting back to my seat and meditating.

Fabulous attendance at the St. Jimmy.

More honesty. 2011 was a great start.

More clarity. 2011 was a great start.

For dreams to come true for those who desire them wholeheartedly.

To handle the estate with little complication and great joy.

Laughter.

Singing my tits off.

Less spam.

More reiki.

Take a pottery class.

Teach more voice.

Create things of great beauty and substance.

*I looked back through the years. A LOT of these have come true. Really.

**And I DO appreciate you. You can't imagine how much...