Word Weaves

Ella and Hobbit are my four-legged sidekicks.  They keep me company while I write and do my art. Ella is a three year old Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Hound mix.  We adopted her from Lost Angels Animal Rescue when she was six months old.  She was semi-feral and terrified of the human world.  The expertise of trainers from Courteous Canine, a dog training facility in Lutz, was invaluable to us in helping to overcome Ella’s fears.  Today she is a gentle, social creature whose favorite activity is frolicking at the dogpark.

We took in Hobbit a year and a half ago.  He’d been found wandering on a busy street at four months of age, and dropped off at our vet’s office.  A friend of mine works there and knowing we were familiar with Jack Russell Terrier’s , she gave us a call.  Hobbit’s a complicated mixture of ferocious terrier drive and dreadful anxiety.  He’s taught us a new kind of patience and tolerance for creatures with behavioral problems.  Medication and training have helped to smooth out some of his wrinkles, but he’s likely to be a lifelong challenge. 

The upside to Hobbit is his ability to learn.  He’s highly intelligent and eager to do almost anything for attention and treats.  Classes with him are fun and rewarding.   Ella instantly welcomed Hobbit into our home and the two bonded like glue.  Both dogs excel as snuggle partners on the couch.  There’s nothing more relaxing than sitting in front of a winter fire with the dogs curled up beside us. 

Hobbit and Ella will soon be stars of their own blog.  It will cover all things interesting to the canine mind: food, play, fellow creatures, and humans, of course.   It aims to appeal to children of all ages.  

Photos – Ella (top)

Hobbit (bottom)

I woke Valentine’s morning to find a beautiful vase full of luscious red roses on my dining room table.  My husband and I don’t usually celebrate that day with any extravagance, so it was a pleasant surprise.  Next to the flowers was a box of chocolates.  My heart was definitely his.  Later that morning I attended an orchid planting workshop at our local garden shop. The weather was picture postcard perfect.  I gathered around tables with a dozen other women, as we learned about potting and caring for the tropical plants.  I chose a white and a fuschia specimen and soon had them nestled in their bed of bark and peat moss.  The orchids are now gracing my back porch.  The roses are on the mantle.  My eye wanders to the petals throughout the day; soothed by their beauty.  Outside, my azaleas and kalanchoe are blooming.  Who could not feel love when surrounded by such intoxicating beauty?

I’m in between. Searching for a good local or online children’s writing course I can afford, and waiting for a portfolio review from an illustrator, who I hope will teach me to make beautiful picture books.  I’ve learned great gobs from my critique group. For over a year, I’ve been reading children’s literature and studying books on children’s writing and illustrating.  But next week, I’ll pass into the third year of my 5th decade and I feel an urgent need to accelerate the learning process.  Why oh why, did I not listen to that voice so many years ago that wanted to write and illustrate? I do believe that everything happens in it’s time, but it’s hard to be patient when you have so much to learn and your on the exit side of life.

I’ve never been a gadget person, but I just bought a mini laptop and I’m totally smitten.  It’s a deep blue Aspire One by Acer.  She’s (of couse it’s a girl!) 9 3/4″ wide x 6 1/2″ deep and a beautiful deep blue color.  I’d been hankering for something that would allow me to write and edit on the go, mostly so I can work on the back porch while I keep my eye on my two hooligan dogs.  My husband and I visited Circuit City last weekend to check out the “Going Out Of Business Sale.”  We’d been looking at the Neo and Dana version of the mini laptops by Alpha Smart, but I wasn’t happy with the screen size.  The Aspire One has a 7″ x 4 1/2″ screen with internet capabilities, moderate storage and a webcam.  I probably won’t use the webcam, but I like that I can use the laptop as a traveling portfolio, since it allows me to bring up my website for potential illustration clients.  The best part was the price.  Research online showed the typical price for the Aspire One at $350.  We paid $269 plus tax.   I feel for all those folks at Circuit City who are losing their jobs, but darn it felt good to save that kind of money!