Dillon, day 164 of my life in DC!

Wednesday, 22 March 2017

Here it comes again! When I finished my breakfast this morning, I ran to the door and saw the sun shining and clear blue skies. I was so excited to see that the rain and snow were gone that I couldn’t wait to get out there. Then reality hit. It was freezing out there and the temps were dropping fast.
I don’t understand how that can be. The man on the news said Spring just started, but it feels like winter to me. At first, I was confused. I looked up into the sky to see if I missed a storm cloud or something, but there was nothing. What the heck?
I didn’t wait around to figure it out. I ran back inside and have been here most of the day.
If the weather isn’t going to cooperate, I’m not going to play. There’s a nice warm couch in here with my name all over it. (My paw prints too.) Maybe tomorrow will be warm. I hope so, the squirrels are running amuck out there!

Dillon, day 163 of my life in DC!

Tuesday, 21 March 2017

We all have our little “things” that we do. Some of us are into making lists for everything, some are very tidy, and others are very precise about the process they use to do things. In some circles, that last one might be referred to as having obsessive compulsive issues. There’s a pretty good chance I fall into that category and that I’m a little OCD.
I may have mentioned this before, but Dad thought it was worth mentioning. (And since he’s typing this, he gets a pretty big vote, unfortunately.) I have very distinct habits for some things, like when I go to the bathroom. It is critical that I get lined up properly. If I don’t hit my spot, I have to go back around the tree or bush to try it again. Some days, I might have to circle the bush four or five times.
Once I finally get my stance just right and I’m on my spot, I lift my leg high into the air and let fly. It’s a thing of beauty I tell you, but it’s not easy. It takes strength and balance to get things just right. I’m getting really good at it too. Hmm… I think that’s enough sharing. Maybe I’ll save some of my other issues for another day.

Dillon, day 156 of my life in DC!

Tuesday, 14 March 2017

Ooh! It’s cold out there today. It sure did snow last night. And then it iced! When we went out this morning, I couldn’t see the deck or the ground out back. The snow was so crunchy that I didn’t even sink in.
It was sort of funny. When Dad looked out the back door, he saw only one set of prints in the snow. Those were Micky’s of course! Her little tank-butt sinks right in! He was going to tease her about it, but she was nowhere to be seen. She had gone back upstairs and climbed under the covers. I guess she was going to take a pass on the whole day.
One nice thing about the snow day was that Dad got to work from home. I like when he works from home. I get to sit next to him while he argues with the computer networks at his office. The computer runs so slow that he has lots of time to pet me. I don’t think Dad appreciates this benefit, but I sure do.
Unfortunately, Dad didn’t get to sit and work the whole time. He had to go out front and shovel all the snow off the sidewalk. I would have helped, but it was cold and I can’t really use a shovel. I don’t think he minded though. For some reason, I think he actually likes shoveling snow. What a weirdo!
I wish he had shoveled the snow out of the backyard. This afternoon, I dropped my ball on the stairs and it rolled out onto the snow. This was a bad thing. The little bit of sun that showed up today was gone and the snow had turned back into ice. When I walked out onto the ice, I slid halfway down the hill and never did get my ball.
Everyone thought this was hilarious, but I wasn’t amused. I had never felt such a thing and couldn’t figure out how to place my feet so that I wasn’t sliding. Eventually, I gave up and just waddled along the fence until I got to a flat spot. I thought I might be stuck, but I started up the hill and actually found a treasure buried in the snow as I struggled up. I found a hoof that got buried under snow! Woo Hoo… Even though it was frozen solid, it was all mine. Maybe I’ll find more treasures if this snow goes away.

 

Dillon, day 155 of my life in DC!

Monday, 13 March 2017

Here comes the snow! We’ve been on storm watch all day long. Well, Mom and Dad have been watching for a storm all day. Micky and I have been watching for squirrels! I prefer the rodent watch over the storm watch.
Supposedly, there’s going to be a bunch of snow tonight, but I don’t believe it. I’ll just wait until morning to see what happens. In the mean time, let me tell you about the squirrel that almost met its demise today. Micky and I ran out to chase one and we managed to catch it on the ground. Micky ran one way, I ran the other, and the squirrel didn’t know what to do. He tried to run around the tree, but Micky and I had that covered.
The squirrel then made a grab for the fence. I bet that squirrel thought he was safe when he latched onto the fencepost, but I KNOW he pooped his fur coat when he slipped. Unfortunately, he didn’t slip enough for Micky or me to grab the little stinker. Sadly, he got away. I don’t think that one will make the mistake of roaming around our yard any time soon. Hopefully, he doesn’t tell his buddies. We really like the challenge and the chase. Plus, I’m pretty sure it’s the only exercise Micky gets.
As I sit here making sure this is written just right, the snow has started to fall. What do you know? The weatherman finally got something right. I wouldn’t call it a blizzard yet, but it’s enough to give me an excuse to sit on the couch, snoozing all night. Hopefully, we’ll wake up to a nice white blanket in the morning. The squirrels stand out on the white much better!

Caption: Brrr. It’s cold out there. We’re stacked to conserve heat.

Dillon, day 154 of my life in DC!

Sunday, 12 March 2017

I stopped writing too soon last night. All kinds of exciting stuff happened after Micky’s bath. Turns out that Mom and Dad were having people over last night. And guess what? One of them was my favorite chew toy, Truckee. Yay, Abner and Truckee came over to play with me.
Well, I guess what really happened was their friends came over to visit and the dogs came with them, but let’s not split hairs. It doesn’t matter! I love having doggie friends visit! We started rough-housing as soon as they got here. We ran around the house, bumped into all sorts of stuff, and nobody seemed to care. Awesome! Even crabby old Abner got in on the games.
Speaking of Abner, during a break from our games, the only suitable spot for rest was on the couch. Abner was already parked in the good spot up there, so I hopped up carefully to sit with him. Abner didn’t seem to mind at first, but it didn’t last long. Abner quickly got tired of having me share his spot. Oh well, back to chewing on Truckee.
At the end of the night, I was exhausted. Then, as we were going to bed, Dad started screwing with the clocks. All of a sudden an hour of my life disappeared. How am I going to recover if people start swiping time from me?
I needed the sleep too. This morning was another fun filled day of chasing squirrels and trying to find a warm spot in the sun. There wasn’t much sun, but Micky managed to find a good spot or two. As we rolled into the afternoon, I was planning a snooze.
A knock on the door changed all that! My little apricot honey, Shannon, stopped by for a visit. Oh goody, more fun and games! Shannon likes to play, but she does it on her own schedule with her own rules. As long as she plays, I don’t mind though.
Thankfully, nobody messed with the clocks as I crawled into bed tonight. After two days of hard playing, I’m going to crash hard and sleep until someone drags me out of bed. Whew, what a great weekend!

Dillon, day 153 of my life in DC!

Saturday, 1 March 2017Summer is in the air, at least for one more day. This morning it is was beautiful outside, so Micky and I were out there right after breakfast and didn’t come in until Micky ruined it for us. As usual, I was playing ball and chasing squirrels. (Yes, I can play ball by myself.) Micky participated in the squirrel chasing a bit, but spent most of the time snoozing in the sun. That is, until she decided to redecorate the landscape.
Have you ever had one of those days when you’re just chilling in the leaves, getting some sun and all of a sudden a feeling comes over you that makes you just have to kill something? That’s exactly what happened to Micky! She was snoozing up against the fence, in the sun and nobody was paying much attention to her. Then, as if the voices in her head were talking to her, she jumped up and started digging right where she had been sitting.
This got all sorts of attention. It wasn’t that anyone was upset, but when she starts digging, it usually means there’s a snack moving around under the ground. So, we watched… and watched. She had a pretty good hole going and was really into it. I wasn’t sure I understood what was going on, but I tried to help. I grabbed some of the twigs and vines to get them out of her way. Unfortunately, we never did find anything to eat in there.
When Micky was done digging, we all headed for the door. This was when the sh*t hit the fan. Mom looked at Micky’s feet and our time outside came to an end. Micky’s feet were caked in mud. Mom declared that Micky was going straight to the bath. Oops, too much fun. I guess what they say is true. “Don’t do the crime if you can’t do the time.” I guess everything worked out okay though. Micky was starting to stink anyway.

 

 

Dillon, day 150 of my life in DC!

Wednesday, 8 March 2017

Have you ever stumbled across something you haven’t seen in a while and realized you really missed it? Well it happened to me. I found my squeaky tennis ball and OMG, I had totally forgotten how much I love that thing!
This is one of the reasons that I like to rummage through my magic toy basket and spread them out for a good inspection. If I don’t review my collection from time to time, a cherished toy may start to feel unloved. I find that it is easier to do this by arranging them all over the living room floor.
Unfortunately, Mom isn’t wild about this routine. Worse, she has a bad habit of putting them all back in the basket before I’m done with my inspection. I don’t think I missed my squeaky ball during my inventories though. I really like squeaky things and I’m sure I would have noticed it in there.
I’m starting to think that someone swiped it and hid it from me. It probably wasn’t Micky, because I’ve sort of figured out where she hides my stuff and I routinely check there. I would have blamed Dave, but he hasn’t been here in a while. He gets frustrated when I bring him my ball and wait for him to throw it. He wants to throw it, but he can’t be trusted not to wing it into something Mom likes. Therefore, he’s scared to throw anything for me because he gets in trouble with Mom.
I know it wasn’t Mom. She was the one who gave it to me in the first place. So, that leaves Dad. I’m not sure why he would stash my ball, but I’m going to have to keep an eye on him… again!

Dillon, day 149 of my life in DC!

Monday, 7 March 2017

Battle Stations! All hands on deck! The squirrels are massing outside the fence and the situation is becoming critical. There’s only Micky and me to fend off these little fur balls and we can’t keep them all out. But we’re trying!
I know I’ve been talking about the squirrels for the past few days, but I’m obsessed. I can’t help it. It seems like the little guys are everywhere. All day long, I sit and watch. I’m starting to get the hang of being quiet while I watch, but I still just lose my mind when I decide it’s time to attack.
The noise I make as I bound down the stairs is something to behold. Mom says it hurts her ears, but sometimes in war, there are casualties. Mom’s ears are a small price to pay for the defense of our backyard.
Even when it started raining, I didn’t let down the defenses. I just set up my observation post inside. I think sitting inside is actually better anyway. In there, I can sit right next to the glass door and see the squirrels without letting on that I’m watching. Then, when one makes a mistake by patrolling inside the yard, I sound the alarm and either Mom or Dad releases the hounds. Dad says its the alarm part that is limiting my success. Meh, that’s the part I like the best, so we’ll just have to agree to disagree on that point.

Dillon, day 148 of my life in DC!

Monday, 6 March 2017

ALMOST, I almost got a squirrel today! I was so close. When I ran down into the yard, there was one up in the trees and would you believe the little daredevil thought it would be cool to tempt fate? Yup, he jumped down out of the tree and started running across the yard.
What kind of insane rodent decides that he wants to risk the jaws of death by jumping down into the yard where a lithe, VERY fast dog is already on the hunt? Apparently, these guys are still trying to use Micky and me for the gang’s “jumping in.” I assure you, if I catch one, it isn’t going to be a butt-whooping. It’s going to be a funeral. If Micky catches one, there won’t even be a burial!
As if the initial leap into the yard wasn’t dumb enough, this guy couldn’t figure out which direction to go. First he ran toward one side of the yard and then hooked a hard u-turn and ran toward the other side. It was crazy! Mom was up on the deck hollerin’ the whole time like she was at a NASCAR race or something. I guess it was a lot like one of those races, I was right on his butt the whole time and we might have “traded paint” if he had been a little slower in the turns.
I never did get a squirrel today, but it wasn’t from lack of trying. It’s going to be a long summer and one of those guys is going to make a mistake. Speaking of mistakes, I’m sitting here watching my “ghost writer” to make sure he accurately portrays my day. Sometimes, he gets a little carried away in the “color” department and I wind up looking like a boob. Just goes to show you, if you want it done right, get a girl to do it. (Mom made me say that. Sorry Dad.) Okay, back to my deer antler. I love those things.

Dillon, day 147 of my life in DC!

Sunday, 5 March 2017

The squirrels are everywhere! Now that the flowers are starting to come out and Dad has refilled all the bird feeders, the squirrels think it is time to invade. Today, when Micky and I were trying to get a quick nap on the couch, one of the little peanut stealers even hopped up on the top deck. So, I decided it was time to do something about it. Nap time was OVER!
I wasn’t going to let a single squirrel anywhere near the yard. To get the best vantage point to see the whole yard, I sat, ramrod straight, on the couch and looked out the back door. You might ask why I didn’t just hide on the deck, so I had easy access to chase after any offending rodents. Well, it was barely 40 degrees yesterday, with a lot of wind. So, I sat in comfort on the couch while I waited.
Although I don’t give Dad a lot of credit, sometimes I realize he’s actually pretty crafty. All winter long, the squirrels have been taunting Micky and me from the other side of the fence. They would get close, but never close enough for us to snatch one. Once Dad filled the bird feeders, the squirrels have been a lot more eager to venture into the yard. I’m pretty sure Dad set up the bird feeders where he did, so that Micky and I would have a shot at them.
Every time I saw one of the little furballs creeping into the yard, I ran over to the back door, hopping up and down to let Dad know I wanted out. As soon as the door was opened, I started running as fast as I could for them, screeching all the way. I came pretty close a couple of times, but not as close as I would like. Dad says I need to learn to be stealthy, whatever that means. He thinks I would have a lot more luck if I didn’t make a peep until I was right on a squirrel. He may have a point, but I want those things to hear my war cry and know I mean business.
It is going to be a long summer and Micky and I will have to defend against an enemy with far greater numbers than ours, but we’re up for it. I do it with pride. Micky, I’m pretty sure, does it for the possibility of a snack. Either way, those squirrels better watch their step.