A Discerning Snoot

PERCY:  You look like you're giving Jan the evil eye in this picture.  What did she do this time?

MARCUS:  She locked me in the pen so she could play in a big pile of leaves without me.  I wanted to play in the leaves too!

CYNDI:  You mean when Jan made this pile Monday? 

MARCUS:  Yes.  She dug big shovelfuls, hauled branches and leaves, and refused to let me help.

PERCY:  You do know Jan was not playing in the leaves, don't you?  She was moving the mess from beside the pen to beside the road for pickup.

CYNDI:  That was Monday's pile. This is the other half of the huge mound of wet, rotting leaves from December and January she had to finish Tuesday.

MARCUS:  She was playing with a shovel and two rakes and a big container.  She pretended it was hard work but I can recognize fun when I can't share it!

PERCY:  That was hard work, Marcus.  Those rotten leaves were compressed and she could have gotten a hernia hauling them across the yard.  She made the one pile as tall as she could manage and had to start another.

MARCUS:  I wanted to roll in those leaves and ...

CYNDI:  And you would have come inside smelling like rotten garbage.

MARCUS:  I would have smelled great!  Ask Merci and Buddy.  Well, perhaps you should just ask Buddy.  Merci doesn't have as discerning a snoot as we guys do.  She'd prefer to smell like a flower.

PERCY:  The new water line project started on our street in early December.  She couldn't put the leaves out to the curb because of the digging mess.  Then the new sidewalk was laid.  Then she had to wait for the grass seed to sprout and grow. 

CYNDI:  Jan should have hitched you to the container and made you drag everything out to the curb, one load at a time.  Then you could have been the one complaining about being in pain all week. 

MARCUS:  She deserves to have aches and pains.  She deprived me of my canine right to have fun and to smell rank.

PERCY:  I, for one, am glad Jan did not let you play in that mess. 

CYNDI:  Yes, the rest of us would still be walking around with a clothespin over our noses. 

MARCUS:  You cats don't know how to have fun.  I should open a school to teach you the finer things of life. Where to find the best scent for your body chemistry.  How to eat poop.  When to ... Hey, guys, come back here.  Is it something I said?


We are joining the Pet Parade blog hop with hosts Rascal and Rocco,   Bionic Basil, Barking From the Bayou and Owned by a Husky.

Flavored Water

BUDDY:  I do love my water.  I drink lots of it every day.  Even get up sometimes during the night for a long, cool drink. 

CYNDI:  And then you get up an extra time or two for Jan to let you out to pee. 

BUDDY:  That's okay.  Jan doesn't mind.  She's used to popping up and down all night.  It keeps her limber.

CYNDI:  You mean it keeps her awake!

BUDDY:  You might remember a week ago we posted Cloudy and Bubbly as part of the fun we've been having around here since the new city water line was connected to our pipes.

Kitchen water.

CYNDI:  This is what the water from our kitchen faucet (and our washing machine) have looked like since the connection blew.  It was repaired Sunday, February 21 and the cloud descended sometime the next afternoon.

BUDDY:  If it sets for a minute, you can watch it clear from the bottom of the container, as it is doing in this picture.

CYNDI:  Jan was told to let the water run and it would clear up.  Hello, anybody listening?  It's been a week and a half.  Jan has let the water run.  She has done laundry, dishes, cleaning.  Believe it or not, she actually used water - running water - for all of those things. 

Bathroom tap-water on left, kitchen water on right.

BUDDY:  Obviously, letting the water run has not fixed the problem in the kitchen.  On the other hand - or paw - she can run water from the bathroom sink, or tub, or even the outside faucet and the water is clear.

CYNDI:  The water is drinkable, bubbly but drinkable.  Very unappealing, though.  She emailed these photos to the interim city manager yesterday. It will be interesting to see whether someone will explain why after 18 years of clear water, a new water line is installed, and we suddenly have seltzer water. 

BUDDY:  The cats want tuna flavored water.  We dogs think chicken or beef should be the preferred flavor.  Jan wants her water to be clear and to remain tasteless.  Boring!

CYNDI:  While we're waiting for a solution, we might as well have some fun.  Which flavor (or flavorless) water would you furries prefer?  Tuna, chicken, beef, or other flavor?


Join Pepi Smart Dog and friends for the Thankful Thursday blog hop.

And Ruckus the Eskie for Thoughtless Thursday with co-hosts Love is being owned by a husky and Barking from the Bayou.  

Dr. Seuss Day 2016

PERCY:  Last year we re-posted our first Dr. Seuss Day graphic because Jan was recovering from a bad fall and several injuries.

MICAH:  Today we are going to re-post our 2014 graphic.  Jan wanted to make a new one but couldn't make herself replace the old one.

TAYLOR:  This is my first celebration.  I thought it's supposed to be a fun day.  Why are you all so somber?

BUDDY:  Sam was the heart of our Dr. Seuss posts.  He was our hat dog, always just a little out of step with any occasion. 

l-r: Micah, Cyndi, Rusty, Sam, Merci, Cameron

CYNDI:  We decided we want to post this one in honor of Sam and Cameron.  They were both here to celebrate with us last year.

 MERCI:  Our pictures just won't be as classy without Sam in his hat and Cameron in his tuxedo. 

MARCUS:  I can't bring Sam or Cameron back but I have been working on a project to make you all smile.  You are smiling, Merci.  I see the corners of your mouth moving.

RUSTY:  She's probably waiting for the crash.  That hat is obviously too many sizes too big for you.  How in the world are you keeping it up so it doesn't suffocate you?

MARCUS:  Tissues. I stuffed the hat with tissues.  It works well as long as I don't tilt my head.  Or sn ... snee .... Achoo!

BUDDY:  Hey, Marcus, can you breathe under there?

PERCY:  I don't suppose you need a tissue?

Graphic by Zoolatry

Rusty Is 12

CYNDI:  Let's all put our paws together and clap for Jan.

PERCY:  Why should we clap for Jan?  It's Rusty's birthday, not Jan's.

MERCI:  I think Cyndi means we should appreciate that Jan remembered to read her calendar for once and actually made a new card for Rusty.

TAYLOR:  No, she did not remember to read her calendar.  She read it on Dory's Backyard March birthday reminder calendar yesterday.

MICAH:  It sure was nice of Dory to collect Blogville birthdays so absent-minded folks like Jan could be saved the embarrassment of remembering only when furries leave comments because they read it at the Cat Blogosphere.

MARCUS:  Sam would have been 10 on the 9th.  Jan would forget both his and Rusty's birthdays every year.

BUDDY:  Rusty, ignore their babbling.  We all enjoy having you here and wish you the best birthday ever.

RUSTY:  Gee, thanks, guys.  I really appreciate this.  Do you think Jan will make me the tuna cake I asked for last year ... and the year before ... and the year before ...  What's so funny?  Why are you all laughing?