Having pets is sometimes worse than having children and taking care of them is a big responsibility. Most of us consider them as our children and worry just as much about them. When I was young I simply thought of dogs as dogs of course, but when I got older and I no longer had a child to mother I started feeling different. This last one somehow became my baby and filled a void, he’s going on 11, well 77 human years, sorry I had dog years there.

When we go away I have to make sure someone stays at the house with him instead of putting him in a kennel because I want him to be in his familiar surroundings. I leave a list of his likes and dislikes and numbers where I can be reached. I never worry of course when I go away by myself because I know Bill’s there and my dog loves him more than me even though I had him almost 5 years before I met Bill.

For some reason my dogs have started eating dirt or at least that’s what I think it is. I know the squirrels and rabbits play in our yard all the time and bury stuff and I have no clue what else they may be doing that my dogs are always sniffing and picking and digging and eating. I know that dogs love to eat cat turds because I read somewhere they consider them treats, but yuck, poop is poop.

I’ve given them pet supplements in the past, but it looks like they may be missing something in their system now so I guess it’s time to restart them. I seldom have any health related problems with them except my old guy recently had an ear infection and his medicine cost 33 dollars. I started to get pet insurance when I first got him, but it didn’t fit in my budget then, but I’m thinking now that he’s older I might need it.

Just like older people they start having more aches and pains also. He doesn’t get around like he use to and I hate to think he’s in pain. I know he has a fatty tumor, but at his age I don’t want him put under and have it removed. The Vet said if it grows it goes, but it’s stayed the same for the past few years, he’s slower getting up and down the steps though. He’s even started to snore, but that might have been from the infection.

He has slowed down a lot unless you drop something on the floor then he’s there like lightening. Both dogs are fixed, but it doesn’t stop him from getting amorous thoughts even at 77 he still tries to get frisky. Of course she’s younger and simply flips him around and shows him who’s boss, but it doesn’t stop him from trying and it’s very embarrassing when we’re outside and kids are playing in the next yard and my female dog is acting like the male.

I bought the above patch for my Vietnam Vet and gave it to him last week because that’s exactly how I feel about him and he said uh…oh that has A BAD WORD IN IT and silly me said WOT? I said did you look at that patch, it has your ribbon and I don’t consider Ass a bad word…I think it’s cool and so are you and he had to agree because even though I’m mature I don’t care what anyone says I’m still not senile…YET… even though I’m working on it.

After he looked at it he agreed it was pretty cool so he had it sewn on his vest when he went to the Harrisburg swap meet. He didn’t find anything worth buying for his bike though and said he wasted 15 dollars to get in and it even cost 8 dollars to park, I was aghast at the prices and it was suppose to be a big swap meet and it cost 10 dollars just to sew 2 small patches on… bunch of robbers. At least they didn’t get any money from me so that makes me feel better.

When we first got together it was fun going to all the different swap meets and motorcycle functions, but I soon found out if you’ve been to one then you’ve seen them all. So now I let Bill go with his son so they can have alone time and save money on my end because I don’t need to see all the parts and other junk they pull out for these events. I love riding with Bill and would gladly go any where with him and just wait in a coffee shop somewhere.

I have always enjoyed riding behind, but it was only in the past year that I really got the urge to learn to ride myself. I was really getting into the whole thing until my upset with my son then I put it on the back burner so to speak, but only for awhile. I intend to actually learn to ride my little Suzuki next year because this is my life and I’m not getting any younger and whatever happens everyone needs to experience everything they possibly can. I’ll end this now except to say my Vet can still kick ass.

When Bill retires we are planning on traveling some I just hope the economy is stable by then which will be a year or two from now. I’m not going to hold my breath though, but I can hope. I feel very sorry for families with young children because there’s so much to worry about now a days, but families need time to have fun together even if it’s not a big vacation way from home.

I receive e-mail advertisements all the time for vacation specials because I signed up to receive special deals when they become available. Of course I get them from all over because I like to dream and plan. I often get the Disney packages, but it’s only Bill and myself and if we still had small children that would be ideal. For those families that are planning a get away it pays to check with a travel agent or find online specials.

Disney vacations are one of the top get aways for family fun and excitement. I will never forget the magic I felt as a little girl when we all went to California to visit family and we actually got to go to Disneyland and Knotts Berry Farm. That’s one of the very few good childhood memories I have from the time I lived with my aunt. I got to see my older brother and he rode the rides with me, it was great.

My sister Betty and grandkids go to Disney World in Florida every year and they love it. I have never been to Disney World even though I lived in Florida for awhile. Since Bill isn’t really into theme parks that’s probably one destination that we will miss out on, but I still like getting the special travel deals to see what’s available. Bill has bad memories of flying do to the war so we’ll probably get an RV and trailer for the bike, sounds like fun to me.

Many people are finding it easier to get higher learning online and actually earn a degree. With the economy the way it is many people are opting for online study courses while they continue to work and take care of their family and you can still get financial aid to pay for it. You interact with students and full time professors through a virtual classroom, but you can fit it around your schedule, but you do need to get the work done on time.

I recommended MS nursing to my daughter-in-law who is a nurse because she can do it at home while taking care of Ethan. This is a Master of Science that you can get online from ST. Xavier’s they are also an accredited college. To apply for admission she needs her bachelor’s degree from a regionally accredited college or university which she has and it doesn’t cost anything to apply online.

They have financial aid staff members that will help you fill out forms and help you get the assistance you need and possibly any scholarships that would be open. I’m hoping for scholarships because her other student loans still haven’t been paid off yet, but they could always be combined and when she’s able to make more money that will be a lot easier to take care of.  So for young people or even older students I recommend checking out the online options.

Have you ever thought about publishing your own cookbook? Bill’s sister-in-law did just that for the reunion we went to in Ohio back in 2003. She gathered up all the family favorite recipes put together a lot of old photographs which look better than the cover I scanned and had a really cool keepsake to hand out to everyone at the reunion.

I just checked the last page and it gives all the information for making your own and they also have a web site where you can check it out Morris Press Cookbooks. This would also make a really great gift basket item for people that like to cook, just add a few spices and condiments or whatever and presto a very thoughtful homemade gift.

This is also a good idea for school and church fundraisers or even a great marketing idea for companies. I have been looking at some of their favorite recipes and I thought what a cool idea this would be for some of the food sites I visit. They could make their own cookbook and sell them from their web site or blog.

The cookbook I’m looking at now is full of all kinds of handy tips like use a metal ice tray divider to cut biscuits when your in a hurry. Just press into the dough and biscuits will separate at dividing lines when baked. Cracked eggs should never be used because they may contain bacteria. Instant potatoes are a good stew thickener.

I’ll go through the book later and find all the helpful hints I have never heard of before and make a list. Some look pretty interesting.

We talk a lot about health and fitness, but how serious are we? All we hear about on the news and everywhere else is how fat we Americans are in comparison to the rest of the world and guess what, it’s true. Even the Orientals when they move to our country have proven that eating our fast food junk has made them fat. Are the fast food chain and the health and fitness field in cahoots together?

The health and fitness field is a booming business and they sell us everything from supplements, equipment, gym privileges, special clothes to wear and diet pills with special diet plans to follow to help us get into shape. I think they give the fast food industry a kick back for making us fat so they can sweat it off of us and make more money. I’m not really serious, that was a joke.

Where I live we have a women that reports on TV about the obesity problems and guess what, she’s a doctor imagine that. Dr. Wanda Fowler and guess what else she’s also not the thinnest person I have ever seen. I’m not saying she is obese, but she is hefty and I find it difficult to listen to her even though it’s her knowledge that she is imparting.

I don’t care that she may indulge in a taco or whopper, but it’s really strange to listen to someone over weight tell me I should eat one way while she eats another. Maybe she has a glandular problem, but I would probably listen closer to someone that doesn’t just talk the talk, but then again I’d probably do what I feel like doing anyways regardless of what I know I should be doing.

Of course I worry about getting older and my health, who doesn’t? I’m concerned about social security and if it will be there when I’m actually old enough to draw it. I’m concerned about being a burden on the people I love, yet I continue to do unhealthy things. I would love to see national health care for everyone, it seems to work well in Canada and other places.

Many of us don’t go to the doctor and get the care we need because we don’t have insurance. Good health and healthy living has become the top priority in most peoples life because we want to live longer, but if we don’t get our economy and the world we live in fixed then what quality of life are all those healthy bodies going to experience? Just a thought!