Marty Essen's Blog, page 254
February 15, 2019
Escape from Al-dog-atraz!
Marty’s photo of the day #2805: Al-dog-atraz is back! Lucy is 15 years old, and we got her at the Humane Association 13 years ago. The reason her original owners abandoned her became obvious the first time we left her alone. We came home to a house totally destroyed. Every interior screen was shredded, blood was everywhere from shattered glass, and she etched deep scratches into the top of our kitchen table.
At that time, Deb was campaigning for the Montana State
Senate, and I was involved in outside political activities as well. No way
could we stay home with her all the time. I quickly bought a sturdy indoor
kennel for Lucy to stay in when we were gone. That kennel lasted about 15
minutes before she escaped, pried open the sliding door in the room she was in,
and destroyed our house again.
Needless to say, Deb and I had a serious conversation about returning
Lucy to the Humane Association. Ultimately, we decided that we would be hypocritical
animal advocates if we did that.
So I searched far and wide to buy the strongest metal kennel
made. Then we left Lucy alone for a few hours. She didn’t escape, but she came
damn close—strategically bending bars in an attempt to achieve her goal. That
sent me to the hardware store, and I reinforced every metal joint with heavy duty
pipe clamps—Al-dog-atraz was born!
Lucy never escaped from Al-dog-atraz, but I think if given
enough time she would have done so. Ultimately what cured her separation
anxiety was getting her a puppy. Once we did that, we were able to put Al-dog-atraz
into storage, and Lucy never destroyed our house again.
A side story about Lucy is that she has bad hip dysplasia
and an inoperable tendon—hanging by a thread—that the vet said would soon rip
and she’d never be able to walk again. That was 10 years ago, and she’s still
going strong.
Now that Lucy is 15, she has bladder control problems. The
vet gave her pills to help, but we still had to clean up after her each morning.
We eventually put her in a bathroom, leaving the door open but blocked with a
baby gate. Lucy thought the baby gate was a great toy and proceeded to destroy
it. Just like old times!
Bringing this story full circle, I have brought Al-dog-atraz out of storage, and it’s working like a charm. We put Lucy in it only at night, and she has been sleeping straight through without wetting the bed. To an outsider, one might think Lucy now enjoys Al-dog-atraz. But I know better. Her little brain is working overtime, planning one last feat before she dies of old age. . . . An escape from Al-dog-atraz!
The post Escape from Al-dog-atraz! appeared first on Around the World with Marty Essen.
February 14, 2019
Great Blue heron
Marty’s photo of the day #2804: Great blue heron, photographed in the Bitterroot Valley of Montana.
The post Great Blue heron appeared first on Around the World with Marty Essen.
February 13, 2019
#10 and #11 on Amazon
Last night the stars aligned, and Time Is Irreverent and Time Is Irreverent 2: Jesus Christ, Not Again! were #10 and #11 on Amazon in Political Humor. Now, of course, I have the new goal of hitting #1 and #2 at the same time. When the reviews and the magazine articles start coming in for the second novel, I think that goal will be achievable.
The post #10 and #11 on Amazon appeared first on Around the World with Marty Essen.
Bringing home dinner
Marty’s photo of the day #2803: This is kind of a strange photo until you know what you’re looking at. It’s a coyote with her kill, crossing a road on Antelope Island, in Utah.
The post Bringing home dinner appeared first on Around the World with Marty Essen.
Laughing in the ICU waiting room
It’s way too early to know if my new novel, Time Is Irreverent 2: Jesus Christ, Not Again! will be a sales success, but this morning I received the nicest email from a woman in Sweden. She had been in the intensive care waiting room at a hospital, while her mother was having heart surgery. She read my novel to pass the time and soon started giggling uncontrollably and laughing out loud.
Wow! I write with the goal of making the world a better place. Sometimes that better place isn’t the world at large, but just one person in an ICU in Sweden. Giving a woman a smile and a laugh during such a difficult time has already made “Jesus Christ, Not Again!” a success. And, yay! the woman’s mother is now out of the hospital.
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February 12, 2019
A baby long-eared owl . . . awwww!
Marty’s photo of the day #2802: For all those looking forward to spring, here’s a photo I took a few springs ago—a baby long-eared owl. Awwww!
The post A baby long-eared owl . . . awwww! appeared first on Around the World with Marty Essen.
February 11, 2019
If you really, really, have to pee. . . .
Marty’s photo of the day #2801: This was the best sign I saw while visiting Italy. If you really, really, really have to pee—push here!
The post If you really, really, have to pee. . . . appeared first on Around the World with Marty Essen.
February 10, 2019
Caught in quick-mud!
Marty’s photo of the day #2800: Years ago, on the first day of my first trip to the Amazon Rainforest, I learned the hard way to be careful where I stepped. I thought the mud along the Amazon River bank was hard enough to walk on. Instead, it was virtual quicksand—or more accurately, quick-mud. Nancy Pelosi wasn’t there, but on the opposite side my wife, Deb, rewarded me with a similar applause.
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February 9, 2019
Nancy’s new chair
Marty’s photo of the day #2799: When I was in Venice, Italy this past December, I saw this great chair in a shop window. I think Nancy Pelosi should sit in it for Trump’s next State of the Union Address!
The post Nancy’s new chair appeared first on Around the World with Marty Essen.
February 8, 2019
Mangrove crab
Marty’s photo of the day #2798: Mangrove crab, photographed in Costa Rica.
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