Only 230 Days Away!

Fact or Fiction?

I wasn't always a dog lover. I had a cat (Lenny Kravitz) when G and I met. I loved my cat and I really thought that was the most amount of love I could ever feel for a "pet". I cried for days when I gave him to my friend - G was highly allergic. Don't even start...it was either Lenny or my future husband. And then Robbie came into our lives. The little monster changed everything. I have become a Dogoholic. My love is borderline obsessive. I used to think people kissing their dogs on the mouth or allowing their dogs to lick their face was down right disgusting. Well, Robbie learned the command "Kiss" before "Sit". He knows the power of a kiss too. When he wants a treat or his ball, I get a kiss. When he does something wrong and I yell at him, he tries to kiss me. He loves the taste of my face lotion. And I'm ashamed to admit it but sometimes, I will let him taste (lick) things, like a pretzel or a carrot, and if he doesn't want it, I still eat it. I know! It's so gross! Anyway, G and I have different opinions regarding kissing the dog and we always discuss why I allow/encourage Robbie to kiss me on the lips. And I always say that a dog's mouth is cleaner than a human’s. Haven't you heard that too? I'm not exactly sure who told me or where I read it but it's the perfect excuse for my ridiculous behavior. Well, I really wanted to know, is a dog's mouth cleaner than a human’s? So, today I did some research.

Bacteria in the mouth of a dog are species specific, meaning that most canine diseases, with the exception of rabies, do not generally affect humans. HOWEVER, dogs use their mouths like people use their hands so the bacteria counts in their mouths can be very high. We shake hands when we say hello while dogs give each other a peck on the rear end. A dog's tongue is not only his wash cloth but also his toilet paper. Wow.... And when he's outside, even when you watch him, he still may lick fecal material from other dogs. According to most Veterinarians, your dog could have a nice selection of harmful bacteria cultivating within his mouth. So after sampling the world with his tongue, it's not a good idea to let your dog give you saliva and bacteria smeared kisses.

After thinking about everything I've read today, I know I have to make some changes.

G is laughing.

Hooking up and Hanging out

You know how you meet someone for the first time and instantly, you feel like you've known them for ten years already..….or you start talking to someone and you realize within 5 minutes, they have the same twisted sense of humor as you......or you find yourself talking about things you know you probably shouldn't with a stranger but it just feels right because they are totally normal and real and down to earth……or you talk and talk and laugh until your cheeks hurt and before you know it, three hours have passed by? Das ist Jen.

Sonntags Morgen Brot

Ich habe Vollkornbrot gebacken!

Karma

Do you believe in Karma? To me, it's the basic idea that what goes around, comes back around. What you put out in the universe is what you will receive in return. However you treat people is how people will treat you. I believe in Karma. I always try to be empathetic. And most of the time, G is the same way. This morning, after G came in from taking Roby out, he told me that while he was out, he saw an elderly couple parking in front of the hospital. After they got out of the car and began walking, he noticed a green wallet on the ground next to their car. He picked it up and immediately ran behind them yelling, "Entschuldigung, entschuldigung, entschuldigung!" He gave it back to the lady and of course, she was very appreciative. G tells me this story and then he said, "I wanted to make sure I gave it to them before someone else noticed. I mean, I would hate for that to happen to me." Karma. When we were leaving for Florida last month, we were going through airport security and as my purse and jewelry came through the opposite end of the x-ray machine, included with my things, was a cool tiny cell phone. It looked brand new and to me, although technologically challenged, it looked like one of those new phones that has a thousand other capabilities other than just being able to talk. I asked the people behind me and the people in front but no one claimed it. Even though we were running late, I took the phone over to the security desk. I would hate to lose my cell phone. Karma. When we were in Hawaii, someone left their wallet on a couch, in the lobby of our hotel, with their room key and cash sticking out. We returned it to the front desk. Karma. I'll never forget the time I was in the ATM drive-thru lane waiting for the woman in front of me to finish. She pulled off and when I pulled up, her ATM card was still in the machine and her account still open. The screen said, "Would you like another transaction?" I hit no, took out the card, parked, and took the card into the bank. If I forgot my card in the machine, I hope someone would turn it in instead of stealing money from my open account. Karma. I'm not telling you this to get cool points for myself and G. It's just that I believe that by choosing to do the right thing, even when the wrong thing is the easy and profitable choice, being honest will greatly affect our future. And even if someone doesn't return G's lost wallet or my cell phone from a taxi, the bottom line is that I'd rather just be a good person. Besides, everybody knows...God don't like ugly.

See something extraordinary.

The Usual Suspects

This weekend, we went to my favorite club in Munich, P1. Despite it's reputation for only catering to "the beautiful people", we always find an eclectic and international crowd. And of course, some of the usual suspects:

• Random Dancing Boy - no friends in sight and dancing nonstop in the same spot all night.
• "Mature" Man - old guy with young hot girl - this one was actually smoking a PIPE!
• The Girlfriends - newly single or out without the boys, sitting at the bar, only talking to each other.
• Roamer - strange man in strange clothes, aimlessly walking around looking for a) the girl he's stalking b) other weird friends or c) a new girl to stalk.
• PDA Couple - oblivious to everyone watching them make out.
• The Suits - Men who wear suits to a club....on a Saturday....at 2am.
• Sweaty Drunk Girl - obviously drunk, obviously trying not to fall, obviously won't remember a thing in the morning.