Minding My Own Business

So, I'm sitting in my living room minding my own business, reading a book a few nights ago.  The doggy door flap makes a sound and I look over.  Oreo is standing just inside the doggy door and something doesn't look right to me but I can't quite put my finger on what it is that is off.  Then, it dawns on me.  Oreo is curled up next to me with his body up against my leg, it's not him that I'm looking at at the doggy door.  I touch him next to me, just to be sure.  When I feel Oreo I have an intake of breath that startles the animal in my house, causing them to dart back out of the doggy door, while it awakens Oreo, alerting him to the fact that something is off.  The animal was a cat, a kitten even.

Oreo darted to the doggy door and I guess the cat was just outside because he wouldn't go out it but he was barking like he was in attack mode.  I went to go make sure the cat left my property and there's something about that that emboldens Oreo.  He darted out the back door past me but thankfully the cat was gone.

Here's the deal, I've lived in this house for 20 years this week.  I only lived here a few months when I got my first doggy door.  And, to the best of my knowledge, this is the first time any animal that wasn't mine used the doggy door.  Well, except for Harley - that's how I met him.  But he was in the house when I got home from work one day, not entering when I'm relaxing at the end of the day.  Not to mention that he ended up being mine.  (That won't be the case with the cat.  Not because I don't like cats but because I don't think Oreo would do well with a cat in the house. Also, this cat looked healthy and well fed so I believe it has to belong to someone - possibly someone who also has a doggy door.)

The event scared the crap out of me.  But, I guess it's a good way to get your heart rate up, if that's what you want to do.  As a side note, I blocked off the doggy door for the night but Oreo still watched it like a hawk for hours after the event.  😸

Dressing up the Dog

 We've been having colder than usual weather lately (but nothing compared to what we're expecting in the next few days! Yikes!).  I had emailed some friends and told them the story of how I got all bundled up one morning to take Oreo for a walk.  He thrives in the cold.  The colder, the better.  Or at least that's how it seems.  So that particular day, he was so excited for the walk.  Couldn't wait for the walk.  Was impatient while I got ready.  

 

I make him wear a halti, which he doesn't like and fights me when I put it on.  I also have been timing our walks to log in on an app I use to count calories and my weight loss experience.  I started the timer and then went to put on his halti.  I mention this because I usually do the opposite - halti first because it takes so long.

 

Well, I got it on him and headed out for the walk.  We hadn't gotten far when he was barely keeping up and looking up at me.  He doesn't typically do this.  I asked what he wanted to do and he just looked at me.  So I continued the walk.  The second time I ask him if he wanted to go home and he literally jumped up, turned in mid-air and retreated back to the house.  

 

I take his halti off at the garage door and did so this day.  I came in and checked the timer - we had walked (including putting his halti on and taking it off) for all of three minutes and seventeen seconds!  It took me longer to get ready than the walk took!

 

Well, my friends gave me a bad time and I bought Oreo a jacket. I had to measure him to find one that would fit.  I started with "small" dogs "clothes".  His chest size was too big for the largest offering but his neck fit the extra small offering!

I finally settled on the one pictured.  I tried it on him and I think it's too big for him. He didn't want to move in it.  I kind of forced him to the other day and he came around somewhat in that we took a walk.  It was a much shorter walk, taken at a much slower pace, but we took a walk.

Once he got into it though, he decided to urinate on poles, as male dogs do.  But he couldn't figure it out so he didn't.  It was actually kind of funny to watch.

The front part wouldn't stay zipped though.  I'm not sure why.  I haven't tried it since.

But I imagine if I take him for a walk over the next few days, we'll give it another shot.  😉

It's worth noting that the day we took the three minute walk, as I took off the halti, I said to him "I get credit for this walk!"  And he must have agreed because he didn't ask for another one that day. 

Book Review Club - February 2021

 

This month I will be reviewing You Should Have Known by Jean Hanff Korelitz.

 

 You Should Have Known is a story centered around Grace, a psychiatrist who specializes in couples counseling.  She has written a book about it, also called "You Should Have Known" targeted for women in bad relationships and pointing out all the ways they missed the clues as to why they find themselves in bad and abusive relationships.  Her book is about to be released and her publicist is booking her on shows like the Today show and The View and she's very excited about it.

Grace is married to a pediatric oncologist, Jonathan, who works at Sloan Kettering in New York.  They have a son, Henry, who goes to a prestigious private school.  Their life seems perfect.

That is until a mother of another student at the private school, who also served on a planning committee for a fundraiser, gets murdered after the fundraiser.  Jonathan left after the fundraiser to go to a conference in Cleveland or Chicago - Grace can't remember exactly where and left his phone behind so Grace is unable to reach him to talk about what is going on.

But as details about the murder come out, Grace starts learning things about Jonathan that she never suspected.  Turns out he was having an affair with the murdered mother and is a prime suspect.  Suddenly she starts wondering about the book coming out and if she's really qualified to have written it if she's so in the dark about her own husband.

There's a lot of suspense and in depth detail about the relationship, how they met and things that Grace comes to realize as things are exposed about her husband.  The ending is one that kind of leaves the "what happens next" up to the reader's imagination, in a satisfying way though.

Now, having said all that, You Should Have Known was the basis of the HBO series THE UNDOING.  I watched the series, read the book and then watched the series again.  So, here's the thing about the two "stories".  The series doesn't mention anything about Grace's book.  Also, the hospital Jonathan works at isn't Sloan Kettering.  But the biggest change is that, aside from a couple of scenes, the entire book is covered in the first two episodes of the series.  Episodes 3-6 come from the imagination of David E Kelley, who is great with this type of story.  The series also ends on a note where the viewer gets to determine what happens next, also in a satisfying way, as well.

Both are good stories and worth the time and energy to watch and read - and I would recommend both.  As a side note, Hugh Grant plays Jonathan in the HBO show and, in my opinion, it is - by far - his best work!  Very compelling.  Very unexpected.  Excellent acting.  If you have the opportunity, I recommend watching it, just to see what an amazing job he does in this role.  Anyway . . .

 

For more book reviews go to https://barriesummy.blogspot.com/index.html .

February 2021 Book Club Review

 Last night I finished a book and thought I'd review it now, since we have some time before our next meeting.  😀

 

As a surprising number of my book reviews have been lately, this is also a GMA book club recommendation.  I confess, I order these books without any idea of what they're about because I've enjoyed so many of their recommendations.  In fact, I was on my library's website this morning waiting for them to announce February's book so I could request the library order it, in hopes I'd be one of the first to have the opportunity to read it.

That all said, the book I'm reviewing here is The Push by Ashley Audrain.  I was under the impression, for some unknown reason, that it was a book about two women.  One who wanted to be a mother but wasn't and one who was a mother but didn't want to be.  That's not the case though.

Also, there was talk about the "jaw dropping" four last words of the book.  I think "shocking" and "chilling" may have also been used to describe those four final words.  And without giving anything away, I will say the adjectives used to describe the last words of the book do indeed apply.  However, if you go immediately to the end of the book and read those words first, you'll be wondering what the heck all the fuss was about.  You have to read everything up to that to put it into context and for it to have that impact on you.  It's not like it's a murder mystery and the last four words are "the butler did it".  Just saying.

But back to the "meat" of the book.  It's a book about Blythe Conner and her journey.  I think the best way to describe it is that it's a narration by Blythe about what she went through.  She's written it all down for her ex-husband telling "her side" of the story.  So it's (mostly) told in first person point of view as if she's talking to her ex ("you came home from work" "you stepped out of the shower" that sort of thing).

There's a lot of early reference to her mother, Cecilia, in a "we don't talk about her" kind of way, and that Blythe is not like her mother.  You learn, through periodic non-Blythe narrated chapters, that Cecilia wasn't a good mother.  You also learn that Etta, Cecilia's mother, was also not a good mother.  So you kind of understand why Blythe might be concerned that maybe there was something wrong with her when it comes to the mothering gene.

 

But it's not like she didn't see good examples of good mothering.  Mrs. Ellington, her next door neighbor was a good mother and helped take care of Blythe when she was growing up.  Also, her mother-in-law, Helen, was caring and nurturing towards her too.  But Blythe couldn't get past feeling maybe she was lacking in some way.

And when things start happening, of course everyone thinks it's Blythe.  They all exchange "knowing" looks. Poor Blythe, bad childhood, etc. etc.  Until they reach the breaking point and Blythe feels like she's in this all on her own.

I don't want to go into too much more detail because I think it would give too much away.  But I will say this, I came away with some thoughts on messaging from the book.  They're probably unintended takeaways but they are takeaways all the same.  

They include (but not necessarily limited to): relationships are fragile, hiding your fears and concerns from your loved ones rarely works out well, you can find family outside of people who share your DNA and, just because you're paranoid doesn't mean people aren't out to get you.  Ha!

It was an odd little book but I did enjoy it and would recommend it.

For more book reviews go to https://barriesummy.blogspot.com/index.html or click on the icon below. 

Happy reading!

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@Barrie Summy