D is for Dogs and Dan In Real Life

For me, D was always going to be about dogs. I love dogs, all shapes and sizes, although I do prefer large dogs when given a choice. I have always had a dog for a pet since birth, except for the 10 years I lived in Montana. I hated not being able to have a pet! Coming home to an empty house sucked, and I don’t care how freaking big the goldfish is, it’s just not the same.

D is also for dachshund. We had Queenie and Alexander when I was growing up; I don’t know how old Queenie got, but Alexander was 22 years old. Yup. He was older than dirt. He always put on this show – Oh, I’m so frail and blind and deaf – but drop a piece of bacon on the floor and he was on it from three rooms away before you could bend down to retrieve it. We currently have four doxies at our house (you can see their pics in the roll call down the right side of my blog): Bruiser, Snoopy, Mrs. Weenie, and Sam. Sam was a rescue; when we first got him he was so shut down that he just sat. He didn’t wag his tail for almost a month – when he did, I called my sister and we both cried. He didn’t know how to play with toys, let alone other dogs. Now he runs around playing with anyone who has the energy to keep up with him, and he is just so happy all the time. Mrs. Weenie is a favorite wrestling partner, and Gigi – our Pomchi (Pomeranian/Chihuahua mix) – is his girlfriend.

Other dogs we had in the past were a Bluetick Coonhound named Emma that we rescued from the desert around Edwards Air Force Base in California; the world’s most awesome apricot German Shepherd named Barney; Great Danes, Harvey (blonde) and Samantha (black brindle); a red Cocker Spaniel named Cocoa that grew up with Alexander; a fabulous Boxer named Caesar; a black Lab named Ebony; a poodle mix of some sort named Surf; and a humongous Rottweiler named Trooper (but was affectionately called Poopy). When Sis married Les, he had a gorgeous Chow Chow named Bear. Unfortunately, Bear was an asshat and killed two of my sister’s cats. Eventually, Sis and Bear came to the understanding that he would not steal her sandwiches anymore, and she wouldn’t try to smack him with a rolled up newspaper. One time he went across the road and rolled in fresh farm animal poop. He was completely black and dripping with liquid poop. Les’s idiot brother let him in the house, where Bear proceeded to – yes – shake that muck all. Over. The livingroom. Including the ceiling. While my sister had pneumonia. Coughasshatcough.

As far as movies go, today D is for Dan In Real Life. This isn’t normally the type of movie I like, but I luuurve Steve Carell. Juliette Binoche and Dane Cook also star in this comedy/drama/romance. I don’t usually do romance movies, but there are a few that I enjoy. This is about a single father headed up to the family home where he grew up for a family reunion. He has dedicated his life to his children, but the family would love to see him fall in love and get married again. He hits a local bookstore and meets the perfect woman. They spend the day getting to know each other, but each has an engagement to get to and they go their separate ways. That evening, Dave’s brother Mitch shows up with his girlfriend. Guess who it is? I loved it. This is a very talented cast, and the movie is funny, touching, and heartwarming without being smarmy or sickeningly sweet. I hope you enjoy it.

Well, I guess that is it for today! I'll see you tomorrow for the letter E.

TTFN.