Deborah Taylor-French's Blog: Dog Leader Mysteries Blog, page 5

Muttopia Hatha Yoga plus Rescue Dogs

A girlfriend, Robbi, invited me to a Muttopia event. This event turned out to be a fundraiser for a pet rescue. Robbi found out about it online and shared the link to sign up. Neither of us had known of this animal rescue before nor, had we gone to any events.

Robbi and I take turns planning new places and fresh events to share. Robbi Sommers Bryant happens to be a published writer too. She is past president of Redwood Writers Club and works as a freelance editor. I will post a bio below and ways for readers to get in touch.

I got a bit frustrated with myself when I drove in and discovered the rural setting. I hadn’t read the description and did not know if the Hatha Yoga with rescue dogs would be held inside or out. Visitors were directed outside to a fenced courtyard. Luckily, I had several light jackets on, a baseball cap plus warm socks inside my boots. Dressed warm enough to participate I felt glad they loaned me a yoga mat.

[image error]Muttopia rescue puppy
Four Volunteers Steered the Muttopia Event

Two experienced teachers led the Hatha Yoga sessions, while two female volunteers brought out the first group of rescue doggies. Puppies. Black Labrador looking puppies came stumbling and tumbling over to the youngest person in our group. An eight-year-old boy lay on his mat while they mobbed his face and hands.

The rest of us sat quietly in a modified lotus pose or a lion pose. Leaders had cautioned us to stay quiet and not reach for the dogs. So, we let them roam and snuffle. Watching the pups investigating the trunk of a tree, I was glad I’d put my handbag up into the opening between the branches. Yes, they marked it. Organizers stood prepared with pooper scoopers and a bottle of white vinegar to clean up any accidents.

[image error]Out for fresh air and a walk these two pups and their rescue volunteers.
No self-respecting dog would not RSVP to his pee-mail.

Soon, we stood in the mountain pose (Tadasana) for a grounding feet to sky stretch. Next, we attempted the tree pose (Vrikshasana). I say attempted because trying to balance on one leg comes as quite a challenge while watching our visiting canines dashing around.

What a joyful way to do Hatha Yoga. I could not stop smiling. Robbi and I took some dog greeting breaks, sitting on our mats, and petting curious mutts and pups. Before our class concluded the teacher taught the bridge pose (Setu Bandhasana). Most attendees knew it. Only three out of over twenty had never done Hatha Yoga before that day.

Rescue mutts came to us, sniffed, licked or waited to get a scratch behind their ears.

As the class came to the final pose, we reclined in corpse pose.

Stretching under the trees

Loved being under the mature trees. Yet due to asthma my breathing had extra changes. A great deal of pollen drifted down and settled on us, as well as fall leaves.

[image error]Muttopia rescue doggie gets a walk.
Compassion Without Borders

CWOB is a 501c3 non-profit dedicated to providing a brighter future for animals in need on both sides of the border.

This nonprofit organization states four main purposes.

 International rescue program for dogs with backgrounds of homelessness and neglect from Mexico.
Central Valley Dog Rescue: California Central Valley Dog rescue due to severe overcrowded shelters.
Local Veterinary Wellness and Spay/Neuter: Animal wellness clinics in low-income, underserved neighborhoods in the U.S. that provide access to veterinary care for dogs and cats in need
Mexico Veterinary Wellness and Spay/Neuter for free and low-cost veterinary care and spay/neuter services.

A Call for Volunteers

I so enjoyed my time with all the volunteers that I am considering becoming a regular dog walker. They need more volunteers from Sonoma County to walk dogs, cuddle puppies, and socialize scared rescue pets.

Find Adoptable Muttopia Dogs Now

When you click this link it will take you to the Muttopia page for dogs in Santa Rosa or fostercare nearby. Please tell them Deborah sent you. Compassion Without Borders Adoptable Dogs

Donate or Join the International Organization

I met a dog in La Paz, Mexico, a few years ago. He stood looking at me through a sliding glass door as I sat writing at a table outdoors. Such a calm and sweet natured dog, of course, he charmed me in less than a minute. His dog mom said she belonged to Compassion Without Borders. She rescued hundreds of dogs along with her group of volunteers. That handsome and groovy big dog came off the streets as a rescue then she adopted him.

(I will have to find my dog friend’s photograph from La Paza.)

If you love dogs, do read the Whole Dog Journal for tips on food selection and other vital health tips. Here is a link to a recent post: Some Dog Food Recalls Are More Critical Than Others

[image error]Robbi Sommers Bryant

Robbi Sommers Bryant’s award-winning books include a novella, four novels, five short-story collections, and one book of poetry. Her work has been published in magazines including Readers Digest, Redbook, Penthouse, college textbooks, and several anthologies. As editor in chief of the Redwood Writers 2018 anthology, she supervised the creation and publication of Redemption: Stories From the Edge. Robbi’s work was also optioned twice for television’s Movie of the Week, and she appeared on TV’s Jane Whitney Show to discuss her article, “A Victim’s Revenge.”

Robbi is past president of Redwood Writers (350 members) and currently serves as vice president. Her professional focus is on developmental editing, content editing, copy editing, and proofreading. She is also a professional writing coach. Find out more at robbibryant.com

 

Read Writing is my Release

via The Go To Girls Blog said Writing is my Release…….

A blog new to me has turned me into a fan.

At first glance, this blogger shares glorious original photography. My, what generosity in each post. Also, I enjoyed the writer’s personal take on life. After reading three posts I read gave a charming yet down-to-earth take on an awakening to world watching. Plus one of her posts inspired me to write this one.

Discovery and seeking new elements in our lives tends to draw me to others. I have kept my sense of adventure and curiosity. As a reader, I expect good things. I expect exciting storytelling or news reporting. I love finding unique phrases, words, ideas, and characters or people in both fiction and nonfiction.

Why else would I become a writer?

Well, way back a couple of decades ago, I wrote for my own release. Same as The Go-To Girls Blog, Writing is my Release, the post I linked to above. We all need a release. People choose healthy or unhealthy habits to release or forget life’s complicated, and often sad situations. As children, we discharge our anxiety more freely. A yell, a sudden wildly abandoned dance or crazy explosive laughter. Children tend to be forgiven their lack of control. Adults who yell or throw things often frighten or upset others. Writing comes like thinking, it must be done for one’s self. Journaling or keeping a diary look and feel acceptable. These forms of an adult release of negative energy rarely draw a stinkeye from others.

The kind of stuff that gets blurted on social media, I dumped into notebooks. I journaled. Looking back, I see my self-involvement. As a private young woman, I admit I feared anyone reading my rants.

Now I see my past needs and wants in the young adults I live with now.

Back then, I wrote like there was no tomorrow.

But “like there was no tomorrow” is trite. A tried worn saying that shuttles readers into an airless room of yellow-paged books. Stuffy and boring, right?

So to speak. Another too well-beaten path pops up in this blog draft. So to speak sounds stale and colorless.  A phrase tossed out by those too lazy to forge fresh ideas.  Perhaps you get my drift? Of course, I could go on and on, teasing you with banal, hackneyed, vapid, and conventional word packages.

Then I visit the thesaurus to dig up more synonyms for “clichéd, platitudinous, commonplace, stock, conventional, stereotyped, overused, overdone, overworked, stale, worn out, timeworn, tired, hoary, hack, unimaginative, unoriginal, uninteresting, dull, uninvolving, etc.” I repeat, don’t use clichés.

[image error]We all need a place to release stress and worry.
I read like a writer.

As a reader and a writer, now writing for readers, I drive myself to come up with fresh phrases, poetic metaphors, oxymorons, and new similies. I want to keep my readers enthralled. Partly, I do it for myself. I detest boring writing and often stop reading if an author tosses too many stock phrases in. Stereotyped characters, dialogue or prose often makes me toss a book. With millions of books in English, why read a knocked out tepid novel? I also like and read nonfiction, too. You can read one of my blog’s book reviews on dogs and animals: Animals Make Us Human by Temple Grandin.

Day by day, I am NOT so easily bored because I have books.

Yet my reading time does not last for fifteen hours like in college days. These days, I read constantly. In between and during when I rise, dress, and eat breakfast. Somedays I can barely leave off reading to go out and garden (another passion).

My passion for reading acts as a brake on reality. I filter everything by carrying a book into every room in our house. I read to the point of being late for everything. This morning it’s my gym class, which I love but dislike being late for, that suffers.

The bulk of my time to read becomes squashed into late afternoons and before falling asleep.

[image error]Bronze sculpture of a man holding a book
So off I go in search of another word.

Much of my revision time for Red Sky at Night: Dog Leader Mysteries involved inventing fresh metaphors to fit the story.  Authors know the competition rises each year. To show what I visualized or imagined in my first mystery, I not only cut boring words, I twisted phrases to help readers follow my characters. The setting descriptions and action had to rate as exciting as the story I told.

News of my first novel

So far, Red Sky at Night: Dog Leader Mysteries has earned six five-star reviews on Amazon. Even better, people buy the book from me, which gives me the THRILL of putting a copy into their hands. My book goes into their imagination. I have been surprised at the things readers remember from my novel.

Shout out to my Aunt Wilma French, and Cousin Ernie Tavaras for buying my book.

[image error]My book on Copperfield’s Books shelves

Happy HOWL-O-WEEN Doggies

Keep those tails wagging!

No matter how ridiculus we act or look to our dogs, they forgive so sweetly. Halloween for pets has become big business and full challenges for our best friends. Do be gentle with your canine or feline friends. If they don’t dig the new costume, don’t make them wear it. Or try them another day after exercise. Keep a bowl of healthy treats nearby. A fresh sugar snap pea, slice of apple or carrot goes a long way to distracting Fido from the orange pumpkin suit or bat wings you want him to squeeze into.

Tip: Involve your dog in costume choices

Better yet, take Fido with you to the pet shop to try on stuff. He or she will let you know what is acceptable and what is not. Always use a cheerful tone of voice, high pitched voices please dogs (can’t figure out why, but studies show that they do.)

Beware of sudden loud noises on Halloween

Dogs hate them. So do most cats and horses. Babies too. So I cover the doorbell and put a sign on my door, “Bell out of order. Please knock.”  Unless your dog is a canine companion, don’t answer the door with him. Freaked out dogs run. They run out into the street. They run under trucks. So please, keep your dog inside, unless he’s a totally unflappable canine. I MEAN it. Never met a 100% unflappable dog. Sudden moves, loud sounds, and wild laughter generally unglue every dog I ever had.

Avoid toxic candies and small toys

A well-experienced dog friend had one of her calmest dogs engage in a new behavior. Her dog choked down an entire bowl of chocolates the moment she stepped out of the room. Of course a few wrappers were ingested at the same time. Don’t end up in a veternarian emergency room with a mutt full of candy or worse. For further reading on what candies and eatables to keep your doggie away from please read these other Dog Leader Mysteries blog posts.

1 more thing more toxic than chocolate for dogs

Dog Chocolate Toxicity Meter

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[image error]Jack-o-lantern Sydney

If you read MYSTERIES or COZY mysteries, please read about my book Red Sky at Night: Dog Leader Mysteries. Currently, it has earned 6 five star reviews on Amazon.

Below you will find a dog related read I think you will like.

Trick or Treat Or a Trip to the ER? The Bark Magazine

 

See the Dog?

About a week ago Marc and I walked downtown around the City of Petaluma. On Petaluma Blvd., North, Marc pointed to a pet store. I looked at the display window.

Of course, I love pets and pet shops. But that’s not why he pointed. Marc said, “Do you see the dog?”

I took a double take. Among the many toy pups in the display, a dog held himself perfectly still. The illusion this canine created among the stuffed doggies made me stop and stare. I did not immediately find the living dog.

Then a slightly movement caught my attention.

A Dog People Watching?

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I figured this dog enjoys people watching. A dog that likes to observe people? Sure my dog watches me. But Sydney wants to know the exact second I make a move toward the kitchen. I have no idea if our pooch would stand in a window waiting for people to walk by.

How About Your Dog?

Would your pet stand like a lawn ornament, watching people and cars go by?

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No chance that our Sydney would standing still. Not for a million Milk Bones. Never the silent type, our mutt loves the sound of his own voice. Making a ruckus is Sydney’s favorite thing to do. Especially when he sees a person he can greet and throw himself into a friendly pair of hands.

Thanks for reading.

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Fall Flies and Sweeps the Skies

“Listen! The wind is rising, and the air is wild with leaves, we have had our summer evenings, now for October eves!”

Humbert Wolfe (1885-1940)

[image error]Our Sydney + plush pals surround my novel, “Red Sky at Night: Dog Leader Mysteries”
Do you read scary stories?

I want to know what you enjoy reading. I love reading mysteries that’s why I write them. But I have never read a Steven King novel. Also a few of my favorite authors, Margaret Attwood and T. C. Boyle, both write thrilling or terrifying novels. But I do not haunt the thriller section of libraries nor of Copperfield’s Books.

Copperfield’s Books emailed an October newsletter, which sparked this post. In Sonoma County, California, Copperfield’s Books has grown from their orignial book shop in Sebastopol (1981) to a total of eight stores with several in Napa, and Marin Counties.

Why write about Copperfield’s Books, a hometown book store?

I have multiple reasons to love this book business. For today, I will mention only three.

I love Copperfield’s because they are an independent local business. I appreciate that their staff are all avid readers willing to help hunt down esotric or rare volumes.
Each staff person reads and recommends books they love all year round they keep those shelves stocked with suggested fiction and nonfiction.
Local book events bring authors of note and newbie Indie authors like Redwood Writers Club and myself, providing numerous book events in the North Bay.

Currently, Copperfield’s in Santa Rosa, has accepted my book and placed it in two categories. If you stop by the store you will find a copy of Red Sky at Night: Dog Leader Mysteries in the section on Mysteries for Middle Grade Readers and on the New Mysteries shelves for adults. I have added a link if you should want to read more about the marvelous book shop that continues to nurture and grow readers.

[image error]My book on Copperfield’s Books shelves
Drop us a comment on what you like to read.

If you like dog humor and tips on new ways to keep your dog healthy, understand dog behavior or want to enter our book release contest, please join our email list.