Thankfully, they make alternative safety collars for dogs, and we found this one called the ProCollar, which inflates like those airline neck pillows and looks like a donut.
Hopefully she won't find a way to eat the donut!
Friday, January 8, 2010
From snow cone to donut
Well, it turns out that Elizabethan collars turn into chew toys as well. Binsey chewed off a good chunk of it, so we had to find another option. I like to call the E collar a "snow cone" for the following reason:
Thankfully, they make alternative safety collars for dogs, and we found this one called the ProCollar, which inflates like those airline neck pillows and looks like a donut.
Hopefully she won't find a way to eat the donut!
Thankfully, they make alternative safety collars for dogs, and we found this one called the ProCollar, which inflates like those airline neck pillows and looks like a donut.
Hopefully she won't find a way to eat the donut!
Tuesday, January 5, 2010
Puppy Fun
Here's some pictures of Binsey with her holiday fun stuff:
Grandma sent her a card, which she enjoyed playing with after she stole it out of my hands while I showed it to her.
My parents sent her a screaming monkey toy (actually, two toys, but so far she hasn't ripped apart the first one). She's a little startled by the screaming, so she sneaks up on it, rather than charge it, after we throw it.
We also got her a cheap soccer ball to chase around, but she decided it was more fun to pick it up in her mouth and tote it around.
It may be impossible to get her any toy that doesn't turn into a chew toy!
Grandma sent her a card, which she enjoyed playing with after she stole it out of my hands while I showed it to her.
My parents sent her a screaming monkey toy (actually, two toys, but so far she hasn't ripped apart the first one). She's a little startled by the screaming, so she sneaks up on it, rather than charge it, after we throw it.
We also got her a cheap soccer ball to chase around, but she decided it was more fun to pick it up in her mouth and tote it around.
It may be impossible to get her any toy that doesn't turn into a chew toy!
No litters of puppies, thank you.
On Monday we had Binsey spayed. She spent the night recovering at the vet's and came home yestrday afternoon. It all went very smoothly and she's doing very well. Now she has two weeks to heal, and after 10 days she can have her stitches taken out. I was scared about the incision because they said it'd be pretty big, but it's only got three stitches and really isn't all that gross looking. But, last night she was licking herself, and we were worried she might take a nibble at the stitches (she didn't, thankfully), so she's stuck in an "e collar" now.
It's a little big for her, and she can't navigate too well with it on, but at least we'll all be able to sleep peacefully now (she's on some good pain meds). Given how much she likes to chew, we didn't want to take any chances! She shouldn't need it after a week or so, and she really only needs it when she's going to take a nap in her crate.
After this is all done, she can finally go to the dog park and work out all that energy she's storing up!
It's a little big for her, and she can't navigate too well with it on, but at least we'll all be able to sleep peacefully now (she's on some good pain meds). Given how much she likes to chew, we didn't want to take any chances! She shouldn't need it after a week or so, and she really only needs it when she's going to take a nap in her crate.
After this is all done, she can finally go to the dog park and work out all that energy she's storing up!
Wednesday, December 30, 2009
Christmas in Phoenix
We just got back from our trip to Phoenix to visit Paul's family for Christmas. Thankfully no one tried to blow up their underpants on the flight there or on the return.
We had over a week to visit, so we had time to do some sightseeing. Here's some of the highlights from our hikes:
This is on the Peralta Trail. Coincidentally, this picture was taken by a family with a University of Arizona student and two Indiana University students. At least we have the same school color.
Here's where we turned around - Fremont Saddle. The big rock formation off in the background is called Weaver's Needle.
For Christmas Eve, we went to a friend of the family's house for a traditional Polish dinner. I didn't bring my camera, but believe me there was a good spread! There were at least 3 different types of homemade pickled herring (just like the Swedish kind), pierogis, stuffed crepes, borscht, and tons of other stuff. We started the dinner with the traditional Polish Christmas wafers, where each person gets a piece, then breaks off a small piece of each other person's wafer while wishing them Merry Christmas (or some other nice thing).
Back at the Simacek house, we exchanged gifts including these Christmas outfits
And, of course, Snuggies, which my grandmother informed me used to mean some kind of undergarment for old ladies:
We also went to Sedona and experienced the wackiness of the area by visiting some vortexes. Apparently some people believe each "vortex" has some magic energy that is either male and female or some sort of yin-yang balance of something or other. Paul seemed to have a good grasp of why these were special places - they are all really nice places to take in the view. Paul's dad had been there before and brought us to some of the highlights of the area.
Here we are on an apparent vortex near the airport
Here's another vortex, in Boynton Canton, with something called Enchantment Resort in the background. They had some drum session going on while we were hiking past it. So now we know where to go if we need a good Native American drum session followed by some vortex action.
This was my favorite rock formation of the hike - it looks like a face in the rock, kind of like the old man of the mountain of New Hampshire (RIP)
We had over a week to visit, so we had time to do some sightseeing. Here's some of the highlights from our hikes:
This is on the Peralta Trail. Coincidentally, this picture was taken by a family with a University of Arizona student and two Indiana University students. At least we have the same school color.
 |
| From Phoenix 2009 |
Here's where we turned around - Fremont Saddle. The big rock formation off in the background is called Weaver's Needle.
 |
| From Phoenix 2009 |
For Christmas Eve, we went to a friend of the family's house for a traditional Polish dinner. I didn't bring my camera, but believe me there was a good spread! There were at least 3 different types of homemade pickled herring (just like the Swedish kind), pierogis, stuffed crepes, borscht, and tons of other stuff. We started the dinner with the traditional Polish Christmas wafers, where each person gets a piece, then breaks off a small piece of each other person's wafer while wishing them Merry Christmas (or some other nice thing).
Back at the Simacek house, we exchanged gifts including these Christmas outfits
And, of course, Snuggies, which my grandmother informed me used to mean some kind of undergarment for old ladies:
We also went to Sedona and experienced the wackiness of the area by visiting some vortexes. Apparently some people believe each "vortex" has some magic energy that is either male and female or some sort of yin-yang balance of something or other. Paul seemed to have a good grasp of why these were special places - they are all really nice places to take in the view. Paul's dad had been there before and brought us to some of the highlights of the area.
Here we are on an apparent vortex near the airport
Here's another vortex, in Boynton Canton, with something called Enchantment Resort in the background. They had some drum session going on while we were hiking past it. So now we know where to go if we need a good Native American drum session followed by some vortex action.
This was my favorite rock formation of the hike - it looks like a face in the rock, kind of like the old man of the mountain of New Hampshire (RIP)
Thursday, December 10, 2009
Backseat Driver
In the garage, Binsey tells her chauffeur to hurry it up, please!
We've since bought a hard plastic kennel for Binsey to stay in for her car rides (much safer for her), but on this day she stayed on my lap in the back seat and fell asleep as usual. Something tells me she's not going to be a big fan of riding in the kennel versus on my lap!
We've since bought a hard plastic kennel for Binsey to stay in for her car rides (much safer for her), but on this day she stayed on my lap in the back seat and fell asleep as usual. Something tells me she's not going to be a big fan of riding in the kennel versus on my lap!
Finals!
Today I just had my last class of my second first semester in graduate school - or is that my last class of my last first semester in grad school? Either way, I've got winter break coming up and after this program I'll certainly have enough letters after my name!
For those who may be interested in the work I'm doing, here's the topics I'm working on for my final papers:
1. A research proposal called "From the Terrible Twos to Psychiatric Patient: How Preschool Teachers Identify Emotional and Behavioral Problems and Navigate Pathways to Treatment" That one wound up at around 20 pages and I turned it in today!
2. A 2-page single spaced final memo for Sociological Theory. I'm writing about the politics behind a question that was on the Massachusetts ballot in 2008 about decriminalization of marijuana, as explained by a Marxist theory of class conflict versus Durkheim's theory on social solidarity as it relates to law. I have no idea how I'll fit it all on 2 pages!
3. For my Health Policy class, a look at how off-label marketing of prescription drugs might be viewed from three perspectives: physician autonomy, patient empowerment and corporate responsibility.
So it looks like I'm all over the place topically! But that's fine since I've got at least 3 more semesters of classes before I have to come up with a dissertation topic.
For those who may be interested in the work I'm doing, here's the topics I'm working on for my final papers:
1. A research proposal called "From the Terrible Twos to Psychiatric Patient: How Preschool Teachers Identify Emotional and Behavioral Problems and Navigate Pathways to Treatment" That one wound up at around 20 pages and I turned it in today!
2. A 2-page single spaced final memo for Sociological Theory. I'm writing about the politics behind a question that was on the Massachusetts ballot in 2008 about decriminalization of marijuana, as explained by a Marxist theory of class conflict versus Durkheim's theory on social solidarity as it relates to law. I have no idea how I'll fit it all on 2 pages!
3. For my Health Policy class, a look at how off-label marketing of prescription drugs might be viewed from three perspectives: physician autonomy, patient empowerment and corporate responsibility.
So it looks like I'm all over the place topically! But that's fine since I've got at least 3 more semesters of classes before I have to come up with a dissertation topic.
Monday, December 7, 2009
Woodland Adventure
This weekend we took a trip out to the Beanblossom Bottom Trail a couple miles from our house. We found it by accident last week when there was nice weather and we'd gone for a countryside drive. It's a really neat spot with something like 2.5 miles of wooden walkways through marshy land. Here's Paul and Binsey on the elevated walkway
Binsey wasn't afraid of the ice - in fact, she ran all around on it and tried to dig out some frozen sticks. Good thing she only weighs 30 pounds so she didn't crack the ice and fall in!
Here we are on a lookout platform. I got a chance to wear my new rain boots for the hike since there were semi-frozen puddles in some places
Binsey wasn't afraid of the ice - in fact, she ran all around on it and tried to dig out some frozen sticks. Good thing she only weighs 30 pounds so she didn't crack the ice and fall in!
Here we are on a lookout platform. I got a chance to wear my new rain boots for the hike since there were semi-frozen puddles in some places