No More Paranormal, Please

Yup.. Still being haunted. Now I'm convinced that something isn't quite right around my house. And I have a dog who will prove it.

This past weekend, I took in 2 new foster dogs. My Bert and Roxi were adopted, and in their places came Luke the Black Lab mix:

And Molly the teeny, tiny Beagle:

Since his arrival, Luke has proven to be quite an intelligent dog. He appears a little menacing and he's just the most powerful dog I've ever met. But he's so sweet and very gentle with those he's bonded with. And his bark is something to be reconned with. But if I follow the pattern, Luke really only barks when you talk to him, or when strangers he doesnt know come into the house.
Luke has been sick since Sunday. Hes got some nasty kennel cough and his barking for conversation has stopped, for now. But no matter how uncomfortable the cough is making him, he has no problem making a scene when somebody he doesnt know walks into the house. He's already protective of me, putting himself between me and whomever he is barking at.

My point? Luke will be watching me. Then all of a sudden, he looks above me, way up to the ceiling, and barks. He will stand up, fidgity, barking. I think he's confused or uncomfortable because he doesnt know how to put himself between me and whatever is looming above me.
Think I'm crazy yet? Saturday evening Red and I and the dogs were all settled down in the living room to watch a movie. When all of a sudden Luke's bowling ball of a head jerks up, and hes staring at corner of the ceiling and the wall. He stands up, his heckles come up, and he backs up, barking. His eyes never leaving the corner.
Red and I look at each other... Then Lukes eyes move across the wall, his head turning, and he continues to bark. Then he stops, paces for a bit, glancing back at the wall, and lays down.
Is my foster dog mental? I think not. Luke doesnt bark at nothing. And now I'm not the only one who has seen Luke confronting this ghost he is seeing.

Last night while letting dogs out, I went out alone with Luker to just get some air. After a few minutes, I heard 2 snaps on the west side of the house. It sounded like sticks breaking when people walk over them. Keep in mind, there is no longer a structure there. No neighbors on either side. It didnt bother Luke, so I ignored it. Then a few minutes later, the same sound was on the east side of the house. This time, Luke stood off in that direction, his body tensing up and his heckles rising. He let out a low growl and I look over to see a black shadow disappearing behind the shops. That was it for me. I think I said "shit' and then I gathered up Luke's leash and dragged him inside.

I dont know why all of a sudden I am being hit with creepy beasts in the night. But I'm getting a little tired of being afraid of the dark.

Overactive Imagination? Or something more?

Maybe it's all of the hubbub of being Friday the 13th. Or maybe it's the fact that it's one of two Friday the 13ths in a row. Or maybe it's because I started drinking this herbal tea and it's giving me crazy dreams. Or, maybe I am just watching way too much MonsterQuest. Or maybe I'm just going crazy.

I started drinking this new tea that I bought at a new local store on Wednesday. Also had some Thursday. Wednesday night and Thursday night, I was awakened in the middle of the night to horrific, evil, dangerous dreams that left me awake in the dark with my heart and my mind racing. Then I layed there for the next two hours thinking I keep hearing noises. Even when daylight returns and life resumes, I am looking over my shoulder for the brindle hyeina on steriods and the big black dog with square, white eyes that have been haunting my dreams and attacking in front of my eyes.

But enough about my dreams. Let's talk about real life.
I think this is going to turn into one of those things like that Jim Carrey movie, '23', where the number drives him nuts and turns up in everything.
I was driving harmlessly to work this morning. It's a typical Friday morning, I'm relieved that it's the end of the work week. I drive on a 55mph road for about a half hour every morning to get to work. About halfway there, I see everybody ahead of me slowing down. Then I see why. There is a black lab with no collar running along the side of the highway. There were too many cars around for me to stop, so I drove on until I came to a spot where I could turn around. My friend Cj and myself run the Black Dog Rescue here in Minnesota, so naturally, I wanted to see if I could help.
Well, this Friday the 13th, the black dog mysteriously disappears. So I turn around again and head on to work. Then I hit a squirrel. A squirrel that would not have been running across the road right in front of my truck if I hadn't turned around to help the disappearing black dog.
And then, as I listen to the radio, they are doing their run down of Friday the 13th history. Did you know that if you have 13 letters in your first and last name combined that you have the luck of the devil? So I counted. 1, 2, 3... 13.

Awesome.

Then I think back, remembering the different ways that this number has touched my life. My volleyball number was and is still 13. The horse that I so dearly loved and rode for nearly half my live's name consists of 13 letters. It goes on and on.

This day better go fast and end well. Else I'm gonna be pissed.

Weather? No.

We have a saying here in the great state of Minnesota~ "If you don't like the weather here, wait 5 minutes" There is truth to it, too. The weather here is unpredictable and it changes on it's own whim.
Take today for instance. It's early February in Minnesota. We are less than 2 months into 3-4 months of brutal winter. The temps rarely rise above freezing... Or zero for that matter. Add wind to the usual mix and your windchills dip into the negative thirties and forties. Most of us hardly flinch at it, and all of us tolerate it.
But today... Today is one of those unpredictable Minnesota days. Its 40 degrees. The snow is nearly gone. Its raining, for cripes sake. The wind is blowing with unusual force for winter.
What is shocking about the whole thing is that none of us are actually shocked. It's just another crazy Minnesota day.
Saturday afternoon the sun shone brightly and the temps reached nearly 45 degrees. I took my dogs hiking in a sweatshirt and jeans. Its early February in Minnesota, and I went hiking in a sweatshirt and jeans.
Don't like the weather here in Minnesota? Wait 5 minutes.

And The Winner IS...

TrainWreck!

Her clever comments could have been coming right out of Jake's big toothed mouth.

"What! I do all that I am told, sit , stay, don't beg, beg, leave the cat alone, outside , inside lay down, sit up...whew all day every day! And all I get is this lousy last year looking garland halo? I deserve wings I tell you! I am going to chew something to shreds!"

What are you saying about my garland, TrainWreck?? You got a problem with my lousy last year looking garland????? Just kidding. It its pretty last year, isnt it. Dang.

Congrats!! Email me at Pelodadegoma@yahoo.com to claim your prize!!!!

CONTEST!

Woohoo! Havent had one of these in a while, have we?

This one is going to be a name-that-photo contest. It will end this Sunday evening (2/8) at 9pm CST.

Winner will recieve their choice of one of the following:
A) $20 gift card to WalMart
B) $20 gift card to Starbucks
C) $20 gift card to Kwik Trip

The winner will be chosen based on the best depiction of the following photo. Leave your answer in the comments section of this post.

NAME THAT PHOTO!

Ahhh... Hmmm...

Its just been one of those weeks, folks. I hope you didn't come here anticipating a brillient new blog posting because I gotta be honest, it just ain't happening today. Maybe tonight I'll think of something. Friday nights can make for inspiring blog posts.
Tell you what. I'll pick up my camera after my meeting tonight and I'll take some pictures of things. And then I'll post them here. Or better yet, maybe we should have a contest!
What do ya'll think about that?
Alright. Its on. Contest will be posted tonight. So keep your puters fired up!

Nothing Much

I have been a little stumped as to what to write about the last few days. I haven't touched my camera in over a week. So I have nothing to share with you, as usually what I write about is based on photos that I have taken.
So maybe I'll just ramble today? Is that okay with you? No? Tough, its my blog and I can write about anything I want to. That's the glory of having your own blog.

I'm pumped that my fighter won on Saturday. Okay, he's not my fighter. But he should be. (heart pitter pattering) Georges St. Pierre won Saturday's fight against BJ Penn by TKO. After trash talking GSP for the past 3 weeks on Primetime about being a quitter, Penn himself quit the fight after round 4.

It's cold here again. I'm not happy. Neither are my dogs. The weekend was gorgeous. It was sunny and wind free and warm, in the high 30's. It was sweatshirt weather. And half of the snow melted away. But it was mean. It was a teaser for whats to come... 2 months from now! Stupid groundhog and his stupid shadow. 6 more weeks of this? Can anybody say cabin fever?

Those of you who have not heard the news (which would be surprising, since I have been shouting it from my rooftop for over a week now) Red has agreed to let me have a fence. I know, doesn't seem like a big deal, right? You're wrong. It's a very big deal. Everybody dreams of what their home will be like when they are young. I have many visions for future homes. I hope that the next place we live will be in the country and that we just wont move again after that. But for now, I adore our little house. I love the gigantic yard. There are 3 things that I have always dreamed of having for my home that we just don't have.
1) A center island. Like a kitchen island. Not a big one, a little one. Our kitchen is big enough. I want an island. Red doesnt. Fine.
2) A weeping willow tree. I love willow trees, and I always dreamed of having one. Red hates them. Fine.
3) A fence. It was just a fact in my mind that when we bought a house that we would have a fence. I had 1 of my 2 dogs at the time, and a dog should have a yard to play in without being hindered by long lines and leashes and cables. We've lived there for 2.5 years now. And still no fence. Bringing up the matter of the fence would only upset Red. He didnt want a fence. Not fine!

Well, folks... I'm getting a fence. Proving only that NAGGING WORKS.
And not an ugly chain link fence that I would have settled for. Not a short black iron fence. Not an electric fence. We are installing a 6ft, stained wooden privacy fence around the perimeter of our large backyard. Its better than pure gold in my book.
I did make the mistake of telling Red that he could probably get anything he wanted out of me only by referencing the fence. Whoops. But I guess that makes up for bugging him about fences for the past 2.5 years.

I have begun spring cleaning a bit early. Every weekend, I choose one little area that has been bugging me. And I clean it. I empty away everything, scrub it down, throw away most of what was there, and voila! Freecycle anybody? You wouldnt believe how much crap I have gotten rid of by posting it on freecycle. One womans trash is another womans treasure. Most recently, I got rid of my Betta fish setup thats been sitting on a shelf for the past 2 years. God rest your souls, Bob & Sam. But I never again want another fish. Rather than tossing it as I'd planned, I put it on freecycle on a hunch and a lady took it the next day.

I'm done talking now. I have work to do.