Next weekend I'm going down to Pittsburgh to watch my nephew graduate. He's done very well in high school and has won a scholarship to West Virginia University School of Music to study the violin. He also won the Marine Corps Semper Fi Award this year.

Little Geordie (he stands over 6'4") has a special place in my heart. When his mom and dad broke up while she was pregnant for the little tyke, she came to live with me, and I got to be his surrogate dad for a couple of years. We had great fun hunting brontosaurs (I know--supposed to be apatosaurs) and T-Rexes in the cornfields behind the house, and watched Star Wars movies by the hour. No wonder he turned out to be a genius!

It appears I'm still here for a few more moments, anyway.

I'm convinced this pup of mine is a bit psycho. In addition to burying his doggie bisquits in the dirt beneath the maple tree, under couch cushions and the Pennsylvania Dutch chest, he also buries them, along with his chew toys, in the kitty litter boxes. I suppose there is a special piquancy in a well aged bisquit, but alas, when the litter boxes are emptied, all of that gourmet treat is lost forever. Cruel human's! I wonder if Mel Gibson in the Lethal Weapon series aged his bisquits in such a delightful fashion. I'll never know what a treat I'm missing. Or will I? "Here I am Chuck, with my tail wagging, ready to give you a big, sloppy lick on the chops. Aren't I the sweetest crittur you've ever known?" Hmm!

The old dog is still going strong despite hip dysplasia and three strokes. An amazing old guy. Right now he's taking some medicine for warts, and his spirits have picked up a great deal. He's eating everything in sight, which is a good thing, and he's back to bossing the pup.

I've been working in our booth at another local renfair where I can admire the buxom lasses in their naughty bustiers. The world is full of natural wonders. If only it wasn't a little warmer. It got downright cold last Sunday.

I will be disappearing from the list of SG subscribers. Last December someone charged an unauthorized withdrawal to my checking account, and I closed that account which is the same account I used to activate my SG membership. I have no idea who did the withdrawal or what had been charged because the company who oversaw the transaction won't release that data. However, I am closing as many loopholes as I can. I've always been leery of Internet transactions as it is, and I got cured last December.

My, but isn't it fun raising a puppy! Blasted tyke knocked out the top screen on the front door while barking at a passing dog. This little beast isn't little anymore. When I took him in to be neutered last month, he weighed 66 lbs. at seven months old. He's already taller than my old lab. He's a beauty--black with reddish-brown paws, muzzle and tail.

I get the dogs these leather chew toys, but whenever I give them to the dogs, the toys disappear within hours. The other day I watched the pup with his, and soon he was on the couch digging away like he was in the backyard. Then he put his toy between the cushions for safe keeping. Later, he sneaked the older dogs toy away to repeat the process. Hilarious! Now I search the couches, and voila! Hey, pups, here's a new toy for you to chew on!

While he was outside, I gave the pup a couple of Milk Bones to chomp on. The first one he buried, and then he ate the second. I'm pretty sure he's going to be disappointed when he looks for that water soluble first bone.

Who needs TV when there's a puppy around for entertainment?

WOW! Last Saturday night while I was listening to the bands at my favorite pub, a beautiful girl come over and sat by me for the whole night. Her honey blonde hair, blue eyes, and lovely figure--I was the envy of every guy in the place! The girl, whom I've known for several years, and I talked when we could during breaks between bands, and I had a jolly good time. It was with a heavy heart I bid her goodnight. Oh, my! If only I were young again!

I took the pup to the vets to have him neutered Thursday. He was pretty mad at me when he got home and hid from me for a couple of hours. Last night he finally got over it and curled up at my feet to take a nap. Today he is his usual puppy self.

It is always a heartbreaker when one takes a pet to the vets for some painful procedure. The poor little guy doesn't know what's going on, gets upset, and then all of these people converge to poke him with needles. It's like taking one's kids in for shots or a tosillectomy. Being a responsible pet owner has its ups and downs!

I spent last Wednesday night watching the lunar eclipse. It would have been a little more enjoyable if it hadn't been around zero outside. I got some good pictures of it because for once this winter the sky was clear.

That morning started disastrously. My furnace went out during the night, and this time there was no fixing it, so I had to buy a new one. That put quite a dent in the old pocket book! However, the eclipse took my mind away from my sorrows.

Crazy dogs! Yesterday, I was cleaning and straightening closets upstairs when I heard puppy Fenrir (aka Sarge) growling and barking ferociously at something in one of the closets. What the heck, I thought. Strange animals never get into the house except maybe an occasional bat that flies in through the fireplace chimney during the fall. I went over to check out what had him so upset, and there he was in front of large mirror that was stored in one of the closets. His vicious enemy was himself! Vainly, he sniffed behind the mirror to find his new opponent. Finally, he gave it up as a lost cause and started chewing on a dust bunny. With such a valiant companion, I feel so much safer.

I took the old dog to the vets the other day, and everyone remarked on how well he looked for a lab who's 16 years old and has suffered two strokes. Jabba the Pup (Scrappy) does get around pretty good for an old fart. He trundles through the snow following the puppy and me, and manages to keep up on our walks. Once in awhile he can't negotiate a snow pile, and flumpf, down the goes. However, he manages to get back up and waddle on. An amazing spirit!

Ash balled me out for not updating, so here goes: I've been reading. I got a couple of books for Christmas, and because TV is boring, I've been reading them. Right now I'm reading Ken Follett's "The Pillars of the Earth," and it is a pretty good novel. Its main theme is how cathedrals got built during the Middle Ages, and it is told around the lives of his characters. Fun stuff!

Of course, for fun on the weekends, I go listen to rock and roll bands and drink a few beers at a local pub. Otherwise, not much else going on except shopping, playing computer games and walking the dogs.