As Always, Dancing In My Chair

So my flist just got busier. Cool.

I'm pretty quiet here, but I haven't given up on creating fanworks. They just arrive very sporadically. Everything is posted to AO3 under danceswithgary (see link in profile) if you want to catch up.

If anyone needs an invite to AO3, just drop me a DM. I have many to hand out.

And for anyone who needs a pup fix from October this year:

Top to bottom - Serena, Venus, Molly and Tessa

[click for full size]



The two dark are 8-yr-old Yorkshire terrier/poodle sisters I rescued when then were 12 weeks old, my original pair of lifesavers. The two lighter are a bonded pair I rescued a year ago and are approximately 4 years old - possibly a chihuahua mix. They keep me company during the long days and get me off the couch much more often than if I were alone.

I've been working on a post for almost a week, constantly interrupted by puppies. I say puppies, but Molly and Tessa are 7 years old and the new pair are ~ 3 years old. Writing my sga_santa has also been an adventure. Typing with one hand because the other is weighed down by a snoozing dog isn't easy. If that isn't the problem then I'm pushing through a day of fuzzy after doing too much the day before. Spoons, I need more spoons! Or less mud in the backyard.

Rather than waiting for the long post, here's a quick one with pics and video.

( Pics and vids behind cut )

More later. Ish.

I am actually getting out of the house - even out of my yard - to play this. Gary and I pack up the dogs and drive to the village so we can safely walk around to Pokestops and take advantage of lures when they appear. We don't actually fight, just enjoy the collecting aspect, as well as finding interesting places/memorial we'd never noticed before. It is so great to see so many others out and about and the dogs are loving the chance for extra sniffing. It's even worth the cold I managed to catch as I rejoined the world outside of my safety zone. I just wish it was a Pokemon I could transfer to the Professor for candy instead of the sniffling/coughing/bleary-eyed reality. ;-D

We've also been gardening - another of Gary's ploys to get me off the couch and outside. I have a video of the results so far at https://youtu.be/SDpp_Bc75xw if you'd like to see.

Molly and Tessa really enjoy the extra time they get outside with us.

When I'm not playing Pokemon Go, I am building DWGville in SimCity BuildIt, fighting off invasions in SkyForge, and battling comic book villains in DC Universe Online, all while watching various and sundry Netflix offerings. It's great pain management (need more input) but means there's not a lot of writing/artwork going on. I open and close files in fits and starts, but it's just not happening. *shrug*

I have been enjoying the 100 Days of Happy entries appearing on my flist and am considering joining in. Perhaps it'll nudge me to be creative. Maybe. We'll see.

Chronic fatigue sucks.

I have so many things I want to do. When I think about them all at once, it overwhelms me and I fail to do anything.

My solution: Break it all up into manageable chunks and tackle them as I can.

One of those chunks is to post here more often, not just when I've completed something.

I'm currently on my own - Gary is off on another motorcycle trip with a side flight to Los Angeles to visit his family. The puppies and I cuddle on the couch while I watch Netflix and I do fannish things like icons and art and reading and reccing and modding (but not writing because the words just aren't there). I also play DC Universe Online where I can build and play fun 'toons that fly like Superman and fight like Wonder Woman and use fun gadgets like Batman. I have friends that I chat with and run challenges with, so I feel a little less isolated. When Gary is here, we play together.

What I'm working on now while watching Vampire Diaries:

1. Artwork for brumier - loved her wingfic
2. Icons for weekly icontests
3. A roundup post for SGA icons and art (it's been 6 months!)

What I have on my to-do list to accomplish in small bits:

1. Update my CLex recs with new items (my to-read list is soooo long)

2. Go thru my journal and AO3 and make sure I've posted and crosslinked my art for other people
(wanted_a_pony pointed out a missing piece and I've found others)

3. Post artwork not associated to stories to AO3

4. Read and comment/kudo/rec SGA stories (so many wonderful stories to read)

5. Finish writing my many WIPs *sigh*


Exercise should be on those lists, but merely walking up/down stairs often wipes me out. What I do is make sure I get up and move around after every episode. The puppies are also good at nudging me out of my lethargy long enough to go outside with them. They are such good girls - except when Molly raids the bedroom trash can and shreds tissues everywhere.

Molly says "Lies, all lies. Now it's time to move!"

I just finished apologizing to Molly for failing to make lights while washing the dishes. That's right, I apologized to my dog because I missed the optimum time for sunlight reflecting off the glasses and flatware so she could chase it around the kitchen while Tessa watches in bafflement.

She adores lights. Her tail goes like mad and she jumps around trying to taste the flickers and sparkles. If she's outside and hears me turn on the faucet for more than a few seconds, she demands to be let in so she doesn't miss the dishwashing light show. Gary often sits outside with the dogs in the morning and Molly pounces on the reflections off his watch face. Tessa spends her time pouncing on Molly and barking at the squirrels.

Playing with a laser light is a special night time treat for Molly. She runs around like a crazy thing licking the walls and furniture, slip-sliding across the floors. Tessa prefers a blinking ball and ignores the laser. Molly understands where the light originates and will come to me if the light goes away, insisting that it reappear with her 'pay attention to me' bark.

Just think how great it would be if everyone could be so easily amused by bits of light.

*goes back to watching laptop screen*

We currently have a backhoe tearing up our driveway and after only a few barks the girls are settled on the back of the loveseat and quietly watching the action. On the other hand, the two boxers next door haven't shut up (thankfully muffled by distance when they're in their house)

Molly and Tessa even went out on leashes with Gary to watch up close for a bit and they behaved perfectly. Now, if only I could get Tessa to do the same with other dogs.

I am the worst pet mom ever.

Tessa and Molly came inside from inspecting the mess left from yesterday - Gary and friends dug up parts of the driveway, yard and front sidewalk to bury the electric, cable, and phone wires leaving the outside looking even worse than before. After I cleaned off paws, I decided I needed a little quiet time to hopefully manage some writing, so I brought out the last of their favorite chews and told them to 'down' and 'stay' in the kitchen to earn them.

I took the treats with me and left the obedient puppies in the kitchen to return to my laptop where I finished loading some vid files into Vegas Studio for editing.

I have no idea how much time passed, but it suddenly dawned on me that the girls were awfully quiet and, like young children, that meant they were probably doing something they shouldn't. I got up to check on them - even glanced up the stairs to see if I'd left my bedroom door open - and then I found them in the kitchen waiting exactly where I'd left them and looking kind of pitiful.

That's right, I completely forgot I'd put them in a 'down stay' for their treats.

They have their well-earned chews now and are contentedly gnawing away next to me, while I'm sitting here feeling exceedingly guilty about my latest lapse of memory. :-/

Sorry, no pictures this time.

I'm in a grumpy mood because my sleep schedule (such as it was) is really screwed up. Lately I've been lucky to fall asleep by 2AM then the puppies are up at 6AM. We've gotten into the bad habit of bringing them back into bed with us after they've been out to take care of business and we all snooze until 10ish, which means I wake up feeling like half the day is already gone again. It's actually silly of me because it's not as if we're late for work. *rolls eyes*

To add to the grumpiness, we have an idiot cardinal that has been bashing itself against the upstairs and downstairs windows all day long trying to drive away that rival he keeps catching hanging around his territory. We've closed the blinds to minimize the reflection, but it doesn't matter.

thump

thump

thump

*clenches jaw some more*

I suggested putting up an owl or hawk silhouette on the windows, but Gary insists it will scare away the other birds he feeds. I'm about ready to put them up anyway but, with our luck, the crazy bird would take one look and bash even harder.

"Look, that smirky red bastard has minions!"

To add to the aggravation, Tessa has turned into a YLDFH (Yappy Little Dog From Hell) when she's outside. When I'm out with her, I work on correcting her and even pick her up and take her back inside when she won't obey. Not Gary, though. He'll let her bark away (and sometimes Molly joins in) and I end up slamming out of the house and screaming, "Tessa! NO BARK!!!!" like a banshee.

Gary will then look at me and say something stupid like, "They're barking at the ducks (or squirrels or birds - pick one)," and I try to calmly explain - and usually fail - that I don't give a fuck what they're barking at, unless it's coming to fucking eat them they only get three barks.

That brings me to the rather large male turkey that wandered through our backyard yesterday, adding to our wildlife collection. Now, while I'm really not concerned that a turkey or deer will actually eat the puppies, I'm now looking at the venison, turkey, and duck snacks in our cupboard and thinking I'll steer away from buying them anything bear-shaped in the future.

God, I need more sleep.

This morning:

"It was your mother's birthday yesterday and you didn't even call her. Why don't we go over for a visit and we can take the girls with us? We can stop at the bank and the grocery store too."

"Okay."

"I'm going to take a shower and get dressed."

"Okay. Leave the bathroom door open so the puppies can whimper at you like they do to me."

"Ha. Ha."


Twenty minutes later, I'm showered and dressed and making sure the blanket in the travel crate is clean because the girls had a bath last night.

Gary comes inside carrying Molly and Tessa and they are filthy.

"What the fuck, Gary? I expected to clean their paws at the most! I wouldn't have taken my shower yet if I'd known you were going to let them roll in the mud!!!!"

He walks past me and up the stairs to the bathroom and proceeds to fill the tub while offering the world's weakest excuse.

"It's not my fault. They just ran around the back yard. It's not like I could control what happened."

"They're called leashes, Gary."

He's up there cleaning them (and then himself) and I'm down here exercising restraint and not continuing to berate him through the bathroom door because I'm damned if I'm going to shower and change again.

Idiot.

Last winter, I would have spent a day like today in bed or curled up on the couch in my bathrobe, lethargic because of extra doses of pain medication. While I still had to take the extra meds last night, the puppies did what they were meant to do and I was out of bed and dressed by 7:30 AM. Granted, I've still been a bit fuzzy around the edges and indulged in a puppy nap this morning, but the girls have kept me moving the rest of the day and that's a good thing.

Two days ago, we didn't have much snow, but it was definitely cold enough to pull out a new set of sweaters that they've finally grown into - the State sweaters are getting too short and tight.

Today, I took over 100 pictures of them playing in the snow (in another new set of sweaters), wishing I had that video camera because they were so funny. The first time we went out there was about a foot of powder (that Gary was also enjoying at the ski slope) and the second time it was well over their heads and they were almost swimmming through it. That didn't stop them from having fun. :-D


There's another reason I want that video camera - to capture the two of them in the toy/chew wars. I buy them two of everything, but that doesn't matter. They both end up fixating on one, teasing each other with the coveted toy/chew du jour. Molly has this frustrated bark that she uses when she needs to go out because I took the bell off the door - they did NOT need to go out 3 times in 30 minutes. Now, she also uses that bark when she wants to confiscate the toy while we're getting ready to go outside. *frowns at tricksy little bitch*

Tessa just looks pitiful when Molly steals the latest toy/chew from her. I mean, there she is, stuck with one of the old yucky ones.

Really, can't you do something about that mean sister of mine?

She's over there flaunting that new chew stick that I got good and gummy on one end!

Molly doesn't care. She's busy.

I know this one is exactly the same, but it's all new and everything. Not fair!

They are currently barking and growling at each other over the 'good' chew stick and I'm about to take it away and give them a timeout. Kids. *rolls eyes*