I was pressed (actually volunteered) in to action at the shop yesterday . As luck would have it, some guy stopped in...asked if we muzzled and when we said when we need to he said great...when can I bring in my dog for his nails. Of course we handle nails on a walk in basis so we said whenever. He returned about 15 minutes later. It was just after 4....I had just finished drying our last dog and he asked if we could bathe his dog. Since he wouldn't need grooming, just bath,brush and nails we said sure.

This 3 year old Rottie mix had a really cute sweet face. There was a puppy like quality to him.His name was Theodore and he answered to Teddy. 

I took his owners contact information, added Teddy to our scheduling module and soon enough we were off to the bathing room.

Now do you remember the original question" Do you muzzle?"

Obviously there was a reason for his query.

About half way through his bath, as I was applying some conditioner to make his hair soft and shiny,wham-mo! 
He got me!
This dog named Teddy went from Teddy as in teddy bear to Ted as in Bundy in a flash. 
Now I had a soaking wet version of Kudjo on my hands!
I managed to calm him down enough so I could wash off the cream rinse.
I opted to not try towel drying him off and went straight to using the dryer while he was still confined to the tub.
Once again, Kudjo appeared and it became obvious to me that I needed a new plan of action.
So I got a harness around his neck and escorted him out of the tub and into the drying cage.
He was not thrilled at this prospect either,still we seemed to come to a meeting of the minds.
He would stop thrashing about if I would stay and talk to him . So for the next hour that's what I did. We talked about life and attitudes and how if you treat people with respect they will reciprocate in kind.
He seemed to understand and eventually when Susan finished her last hair cut, it was time for Ted to get his manicure and pedicure.
We put the muzzle on with no problem . 
Still we had a feeling that Kudjo had not left the building.
30 seconds later, our suspicions were confirmed.
There would be no nail care today....that was for sure!
I called his Dad and explained that the good news is Teddy was now nice and clean. The not so good news is he was still going to hear tap tap tap when Teddy walked on the hard wood floors because there was no way we could trim his nails.
When Ted's dad came to get him he was very understanding and said it was no big deal,he would take him to the vet as he normally does, He went on to regale us with other stories about how sweet Teddy turns into the beast from hell at the drop of a hat.
Really!
Okay maybe that bit of information might have been useful before I almost lost an arm!
Okay...so it wasn't a bad bite. I reacted quickly and his snarling gnashing teeth barely broke skin. Still.....it was as close as I have come to a real mishap.
Lesson of the day.....listen carefully!
When the first question is do you muzzle and when you reply yes, the customer replies GREAT! maybe you should rethink the situation!
Shavua Tov!

Movie Clip of the Day:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SXn2QVipK2o 

So I had an accident yesterday. Not an "OMG are you okay kind of accident".Other than ripping off some molding on my car, there was no damage.
It was hot out, in the mid 90's.
The Sun was beating down on us.
The other driver was a really rude elderly gentleman with a heavy Eastern European accent.
He hit me.
 He became inpatient waiting for the car in front of him to make a left turn so his obvious choice was to swerve left and scrape down the driver's side of my car. 
Fortunately I saw this happening so I veered right to minimize the impact.
He caught me on my driver's side door and continued until he reached my front bumper.
When he finally pulled over and stopped, he checked HIS car , was happy to see there was no damage and proceeded to proclaim"it's nothing!".
I looked at my molding lying in the street.
I asked myself"is this going to be worth the hassle?"
My insurance will take a hit.....it always does. 
Fixing one stretch of molding on my car would be like putting perfume on a pig
(it would still be a pig!).
And did I really want to deal with this obviously clueless and rude individual?
I started to pull my license from my wallet when I realized that it expired at the end of June. 
Great....if we call the cops, I'll end up with a ticket on top of everything else.
I looked at this old man who seemed annoyed that I was keeping him from whatever he had to attend to.
I asked myself"is anything good going to come out of this?"
The only answer that I could come up with is "probably not!"
I looked at my assailant ,shook my head and said " Be more careful next time".
With absolutely no response or acknowledgement,he got back in his car,sped off once again cutting across traffic . I picked up the trim from my door, placed it on the rear seat and headed off to finish my shopping for Shabbat.
The good news is after spending 2 hours at Motor Vehicle this morning I now have a new license with an updated picture of the new and improved me!
Now if I only had a good body shop!
Shabbat Shalom!

I am dealing with feelings of solitude on this particular How Am I Doin' Friday. I am feeling alone. Not lonely,just alone.
As I lay in bed last night staring at the ceiling (for some reason I just could not fall asleep) I started to think about people who are friends , acquaintances,colleagues, associates, and relatives . 
I don't spend much time with most of them.
I work alone in my office.
I drive my bus which is a fairly solitary event.
I go about my daily business, shopping, banking, preparing meals and other tasks by myself.
I don't feel cut off or isolated in any way. 
I just feel like I am alone an awful lot. 
Susan and I travel to South Jersey every week,spending 3 -4 hours in the car together.
There isn't much if any real conversation that takes place on these trips. We just enjoy each other's company.
I don't have any play dates except my Sunday mornings with my cousin. 
We drive to the gym together and have a quick weekly catch up. Then we workout for app. 45 minutes , each doing his own thing, and after this we spend about 30 minutes chatting over a cup of coffee. 
Occasionally , I have a few minutes to catch up face to face or by phone with a friend, but for the most part my conversations are limited to 3 people, me,myself and I.
Is this a character flaw of mine?
I wonder.
Most days this goes unnoticed. For some reason it is at the forefront of my thoughts today.
A dear friend had a birthday this week. I reached out, via text, and wished him well. I consider him a dear friend. We have not spoken in over a year, maybe 2. I have not seen him in over 3 years. Still I consider him a dear friend.
I suppose there is a difference between dear and close friends. One would imagine that there should be some regular communication and interaction to be close.
Dear has more of  to do with the heart,close is about the connection,the proximity and the availability.
I am not sure what is behind all of this. I know buried deep in this there must be something festering that I am sure will rise to the surface sometime in the future.
Like any pimple or blemish, it's probably best to not pick at it and leave it alone,so that is what I will do for now. 
I can wait until it comes to a head before tending to it . That's for sure. 
Shabbat Shalom!

In the middle of a conversation the other day ,a colleague said to me 'Well you know the grass is always greener on the other side of the fence".
I kept my mouth shut however in my head I heard myself say "bull crap!".
That is such a cop out.
The truth is that there are times that the grass is greener on the other side of the fence. 
How did that happen?
I don't know. 
Maybe they had better soil.
Maybe they had better seed.
Maybe they had more sunlight.
Maybe they just worked harder at making sure they had a greener lawn.
I often look around and find myself content in the particular shade of green of my grass.
I know how much effort I put in to getting it to its current state. I am keenly aware of how brown it was at one point and how much better it looks today than when I started.
I also know that there are days when my grass seems to be fading.
This is a sure sign that I have let things go. I have become complacent or inattentive. 
If I hope to bring the color back , I have to put in the effort.
The same holds true when my envious side happens to notice that the grass on the other side of the fence is greener than mine. When I decide, when I choose to do something about it is when I will have the opportunity and ability to grow greener grass.
Yes I said envious.
I am only being honest.
There are days when I can look around me and see just how splendid the grass on my side of the fence is. On those days I feel truly blessed and I never want to take that for granted.
However, call me flawed as a person,there are times when that greener grass is very attractive. 
I start to feel the urge to have greener grass. 
When the urge becomes great enough, I know it is time for action. When the urge becomes overwhelming I also realize it may be time for an intervention!
That urge I feel is like a fire.
For some that fire burns bright. For others it barely burns. Some believe they can do without the fire.
Personally, I feel as if I am constantly stoking that fire,fanning those flames, all the while being acutely aware of just how green my grass is.
So either I get a higher fence or I do something about it.
But no matter what, I still keep the fire burning!

As I made my way from my car to my bus this morning I happened upon 2 little ones getting set to start their day at camp. The little girl greeted me with a "good morning". I responded in kind which prompted a good morning from her little brother. She was probably 4, he was younger , maybe 3 and Mom was busy putting an even younger one in a stroller.
My new young friend then asked"are you a bus driver?"
"Yes I am" I answered which of course led to the next question.
"Why?"
I explained that some people need a ride to come to the center.
This of course led to the next obvious question....
"Why?"
I said that some people don't dive cars.
Which of course led to another
"Why?"
I explained that sometimes people are too old or too young to drive.
Before I was bombarded with another "Why" which I am sure was about to come at me I asked her if she was old enough to drive.
In her most assuring terms she said" No! Mommy drives".
At which point Mommy chimed in and said "any more kids and I may have to become a bus driver as well".
We laughed and headed in opposite directions,me towards my bus and Mom and crew off to camp. 
As I started to pull my self up into the bus,a little voice called from across the parking lot
"By Mr. Bus Driver....have a nice day".
I wished her the same,smiled and set out to do my job!
After all I am the bus driver and people needed me to drive them.

My morning bus run was very quick today. I was actually home and at mt desk before 10 a.m.
Today is the first time in a very long time where I find myself in the position of being able to catch up.
I am not putting out fires of 1 sort or another. 
I have no demands on my time other than letting my daughter's dogs out and paying a shiva call .
I am not chasing overdue monies or catching up on deadlines of any sort.
Dinner is here and just needs to be prepared.
Besides a conference call with the West Coast and China in a short while, the rest of the day is mine.
As I said, an opportunity to catch up. 
I have some unanswered emails  to catch up on. One goes back to 5/22,which makes me think that this is the first time since Memorial Day that I have an opportunity to catch up with both a clear mind and a clear schedule.
It's kind of refreshing!
Besides the 30 or so archived emails, there are a number of people who I would like to reach out to as well as a number of items that I want to take care of today. 
Although I am not a proponent of to-do lists per se, I do believe that a reminder list is called for. I may not get to every one or every thing. However with out a list I am sure  that something will slip by me.
The shiva call that I will make is to the home of one of my bus patrons. This is the first time since I started driving back in February that I have "lost" a passenger.
Some have left. Some have gone on to alternate care facilities. 
Ellie is the first of my new friends to pass away.
When I took this job 6 months ago, it never dawned on me that I would develop relationships with any of these people.
They were passengers on the bus I happened to be driving. That's it.
It was a job, a paycheck,nothing more.
Little did I know!
So I will pay a shiva call this afternoon. I will not know a sloe there.
I have never mt her family.
They will wonder who this guy is and why is he here I am sure.
All I know is there is a part of me that understands why I must pay my respects.
And I am glad that the day has afforded me to clarity of thought and open schedule that I can choose to carve out a tiny moment in time to follow this.

Monday morning and off to South Jersey. After a bit of a reprieve yesterday,we have chosen to "do the right thing" and make our weekly pilgrimage. Trust me,the other option of a day at the beach was very tempting. 
Bottom line is the beach will always be there and.....well enough said.
I even tried to jam a few hours of sun time in before heading over to them.
A lack of planning om ,y part probably sabotaged that.
Even after deciding to forgo the shore, there was still an opportunity to head out and get in some rays.
The whole thing seemed just a bit to forced and would have meant some fairly finite , exact moves something 30 years of marriage has taught me never really seems to happen.
Instead of creating a chaotic frenzied trip, I have opted to pass on our excursion and find alternative ways to spend my day,including writing to you.
I have an important phone call to make later in the day, one that I want to be in a quiet, uninterrupted state for.
Sitting on the beach would have been just the thing. 
Instead I'll probably find some corner to steal away to where I can concentrate and not be interrupted.
A lunch date with Susan will take the place of the beach date. 
All good!
Maybe next week, weather permitting,I'll plan a little better and we can make this happen.
It would be nice however if every once in a while spontaneous could be part of my world.
 Okay ,one can always dream!