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July
2009 |
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Nobody can make you feel inferior
without your consent.
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Something to think about....
If you are a dog and your
owner suggests that you wear a sweater,
suggest that he wear a tail.
Fran Lebowitz
As some of you know, in December
of '08 my poodle, Rowdy, died just one month before his
13th birthday. I've contemplated getting another dog, and
really want one, but have held off because of the
hassle-factor of traveling and having to board it or take it
with me if the occasion allowed.
A couple of weeks ago our son, Eric, and family were planning their yearly vacation and he was telling me that it cost them $300 to board their 70–80 lb dog, Lacy, who I'm convinced is a Great Pyrenees mix. According to photos I've seen on Google and the research that Eric and Tiffany have done, she's probably mixed with a Flat-Coat Retriever. So I volunteered to keep Lacy. All this led to the agreement that if I get another dog we will swap out boarding times. Eric and Tiffany had reservations about me keeping her because she's hard to control on a leash, sheds like falling leaves in October, and is huge and can easily rearrange your furniture if she gets excited in the house. But I convinced them that I could handle her. So my granddog arrived at my house on Tuesday afternoon. Now keep in mind that the two dogs I've had as house dogs have weighed 10 lbs and 15 lbs. Not 70+ lbs. That's a lot of dog! If you don't know anything about the Great Pyrenees breed, which I didn't: They live with and guard sheep, goats, or other animals that need protecting. They quietly blend in with the animals they're guarding and are very calm and dedicated. So if they're with humans, I guess we become their "herd" and they treat us the same way. Articles I've read this week say it's perfectly normal to see a Great Pyrenees with a lamb, baby goat (kid), or small child asleep snuggled up to it. Honestly, I've never seen a dog so big, yet so calm and easygoing. Where I am, there she is. Quietly watching and waiting, and I totally forget about her―until she hears the least unacceptable sound and she barks. And I about soil my undies! When this dog barks― well, just imagine a horse barking! As you've probably already guessed, I'm totally in love with Lacy. Except―except for the falling, flying, ever-present hairballs. I brush her every time I take her to potty, yet still have to sweep, vacuum or pick up hairballs. Tiffany said, "Now you know why I go through so many vacuum cleaners!" So the following story is why I used the quote above. After a few days I decided to come up with a plan to stop some of the flying hair. I took one of my cotton shell tops, put some elastic in the bottom of it to hold it in place around Lacy's midsection, and put it on her. Of course I could tell she wasn't particularly impressed with the way she looked or felt. But I thought, "She'll get used to it." The top had been on her for a few minutes as she slinked around in the house, when suddenly she came to me and raised up on her hind legs, placed a paw on each of my shoulders and pressed her nose firmly against my lips. I'm fully convinced that she was trying to send me the telepathic message of "Get this thing off of me!" Needless to say, I took the top off of her and just kept cleaning up hair. But I think I know what my future holds. Yep! Another dog. Probably another poodle, since they're one of only a few breeds that don't shed. I have to agree with Roger Caras when he said, "For me a house or an apartment becomes a home when you add one set of four legs, a happy tail, and that indescribable measure of love that we call a dog." Emphasis mine. |
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A Word From Pat Hello everyone! But Monday after we got home our phones went out again. I "fought" with the phone company for a week before getting someone back to our house. They'd just been to our house a couple of weeks earlier. They promised me they'd be at my house Tuesday. They didn't come, didn't call. Wednesday, same thing. Thursday, same thing. Friday, same thing. Saturday, same thing. Finally, Saturday, after
I asked to speak with someone "higher up" than a supervisor, the guy who
is over the service techs came out and fixed the phones. He gave me his
cell phone number and told me to call him if I had any more problems. That
was nice of him, but overall, I'm really unhappy with AT&T repair service.
I highly recommend that if you don't have AT&T―don't.
Visit Pat's Place at
www.patballard.com | Write me at
patballard@bellsouth.net |
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Click on the Bookbuzzr graphic to browse an excerpt from Pat's newest book, |
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Links About The Queen & Her Books
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Weighty Matters It wouldn't
kill you to lose a few pounds―or would it?
In one, a
survey over 11 years of nearly 27,000 Japanese men and women ages 61 to
79, underweight people and those at the low end of the normal weight range
had a greater risk of death than those squarely in the normal range, while
neither overweight nor obesity was found to elevate risk of death. Read the
rest of the article here: |
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Reader Review of the
Month |
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Listen to Pat on the
June 1, 2009
Health At Every Size radio show Listen to
a Feb. 11, 2009 Conversation with Pat Ballard Read an interview with Pat at The F-word (Food. Fat. Feminism.) blog. Communicate with Pat
via her "Amazon Connect" blog on Amazon.com!
Pat's romantic suspense novel Abigail's Revenge is featured on the Beautiful
Portal website:
http://www.beautifulportal.com/news.php?item.900034.8
An article on Pat has been
posted at: |
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Calendar of Events New from Pearlsong Press—Pat's latest (and first nonfiction) book, 10 Steps to Loving Your Body (No Matter What Size You Are). See www.pearlsong.com/10steps.htm to order. All copies purchased directly from the Pearlsong Press website will be autographed by the author. Pat regularly guests on Radio Free Nashville's Health At Every Size show, which airs every Monday morning. She's usually in the studio on the fourth Monday of the month. The show is streamed live over the Internet 10-11 a.m. CST Mondays. You can also now subscribe to the podcast of the show (automatically receive the mp3 recordings of the weekly shows on your computer, iPod or mp3 player) via iTunes. Click on the "subscribe in a reader" button/link in the upper lefthand column, and select "Add to iTunes" or the podcatcher of your choice.
Listen to the live
broadcasts over the Internet at
http://www.radiofreenashville.org/. You can also listen to
the live broadcasts through your telephone via UPSNAP.COM. See the
Health At Every Size show website or the
Radio Free Nashville website
for details. Davidson County, Tennessee residents can also hear the show
live through the Secondary Audio Programming of Comcast cable's Channel
10. |
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Give someone a good
read as well as support in loving themselves. |
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Newsletter Archives
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The
Queen's Proclamation is published by Pearlsong Press. |
was
posted
on the Amazon.com website by Judith Matz, author of
The Diet Survivor's Handbook: 60 Lessons in Eating, Acceptance & Self-Care