Happy 5th Birthday Franklin!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY FRANKLIN!!
Today, March 18th is our lovable dachshund, Franklin's 5th birthday! That's 31 years in people years (5 years for the first 2 years, then 7 years each year after). We nicknamed him "The Frank-olino" or the "little brown monkey" (not to be confused with Dolly, who we call "Poo-poo head" or the "Grey Monkey.").
Born in South Carolina, he was adopted by Tom five years ago. He was at the back of the cage with his littermates, terrorizing his sister. Tom knew he was the one immediately, and named him Franklin. Franklin has a strong personality. He's full of love, and loves to kiss and be held, whether Tom is sitting in a chair or laying on the floor watching TV. He also loves to sit on the arm rest in our pickup truck when we're driving anywhere.
He's a food hound, and loves his treats! Watching Squirrels as the run around in the backyard from his bed in the kitchen behind the sliding glass doors, is one of his favorite activities. He and Dolly go to doggy daycare and play with dogs their own size about three days a week. He loves his walks with Dolly and daddies, and playing tug of war with Dolly, as the pull the stuffing out of the toy of the week! We're making a special trip to Petsmart tonight for treats!

Rob Went to the Doctor (again)!

I went to the doctor yesterday, after reaching week #3 of coughing. The bronchitis is still there, and after a lung function test I learned I have a mild pulmonary obstruction... i.e. there's crap in my airways. So, armed with new medications, I've got steroids to clear 'em, Symbicort (for asthma to open airways); an antibiotic in case what clears is indeed infected, Mucinex, Nasonex for sinuses, Sudafed PE, AND I had to get Zyrtec for allergies. I think I'm keeping CVS in business when the economy is bad. Anyway, the doc wants to see me in 8-10 days, and thinks I should be able to put all the meds (except the allergy ones) away after that. We'll see.
Last night was the FIRST NIGHT in 3 weeks that I actually slept through the night without coughing. Seems the Symbicort and steroids are already working. This is very encouraging.
- The only side note is that from all the coughing yesterday, my temporary tooth filling came out, so it's back to the dentist today. Boy, March is just filled with little physical irritations. I'm SURE that April will be a healthy month (ever the optimist, I am).

Judge Judy on Bernie Madoff and Economy

We LOVE Judge Judy. Every night, we sit down and have dinner watching Judge Judy' courtroom program. We enjoy her no-nonsense approach to the law, and the use of common sense. She's tough on people who are stupid and need to be taught lessons. Of course, we can't believe how truly stupid people are, and how they could possibly opt to embarrass themselves on national television!
Anyway, in this CNN interview with Larry King, there are some interesting highlights:
* Judge Judy tells Larry King that Americans can buckle down, get through crisis
* Obama shouldn't vilify the rich, but appeal to their sense of social duty, she says
* Judge Judy on Bernie Madoff: "I think he has the ego the size of Noah's ark"
* If civil servants have to take furloughs, AIG execs can give up bonuses, she says

Green on St. Patrick's Day

Despite being 1/2 Irish (my dad's side) I've never really celebrated St. Patrick's Day, other than wearing green. That is, if someone tells me something is green, because I'm color-blind with greens, browns, greys and reds. I'm working from home today and wearing a green Superman shirt. That, and my complexion is GREEN from constantly coughing from this darned bronchitis that won't go away (Week #3).
Just so you know, Saint Patrick's Day is an annual feast day which celebrates Saint Patrick (circa AD 385–461), one of the patron saints of Ireland. He drove the snakes from Ireland - If only he was still around, he could drive them from WALL STREET, too!
Of course, nowadays, I think "trolls" are the modern day Leprechauns. After all, they love green. Trolls are people that we think are just nasty to others, and selfish (you'll always run into one somewhere). So, if you see a person wearing green outside of St. Patrick's Day, it could be a troll! That's when you wear one of these buttons. (there are of course, the rare "happy trolls.") OKAY, so Sudafed PE, Robitussin with Codeine, Mucinex, Albuterol and Nasonex are all getting to me. :) Thankfully, I've got a doctor's appt. today.
Happy St. Patrick's Day... even to the trolls and leprechauns.

Another Rainy "Dog Day"

One of our many favorite songs by the Carpenters is "Rainy Days and Mondays (always get me down)" and it's a perfect song for today (and this entire past weekend). So, what do dogs do on rainy days? Well, our dogs: Dolly and Franklin, and (our foster dog) Cooper don't like the rain at all. Instead, they like to cuddle together. Here's a picture of them cuddling up on one big dog bed today.

MOVIES: Race to Witch Mountain

The last time we went to the movies, we saw "HOTEL FOR DOGS" - which was really very enjoyable! During that time, we saw a preview for "Race to Witch Mountain" and it looked good. We saw it today because it was of course COLD, Damp, 41F and miserable, typical cold weather that we've had since Nov. 1. A good movie day. Turns out people agreed. We really enjoyed it, and recommend it.
'Witch Mountain' races to top spot at box office March 15, 2009, 1:03 PM EST
LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Disney's "Race to Witch Mountain" raced to No. 1 at the weekend box office, bypassing expectations with $25 million in ticket sales. The PG-rated sci-fi flick starring Dwayne Johnson as a cab driver with a pair of alien teenagers along for the ride topped the R-rated superhero epic "Watchmen," which earned $18.1 million in its second week. (NOPE - we didn't see WATCHMEN. Because it's 2 hrs and 40 mins. we'll rent it and watch it at home over 3 nights!).

Cooper Update/ Coughing Rob / Crappy Weather

Happy Saturday! It's weekend of THREE "C's": Cooper, Coughing and Crappy (weather).
UPDATE ON FOSTER DOG: COOPER
Cooper weighs 18 pounds now. He gained 1.5 pounds from all the baby food and pedigree soft food (and soft treats). He's now able to eat dry kibble mixed half with wet canned dog food (he has some back teeth). He now gets excited when we come home or ask if he wants to go for a walk. He shows it by jumping off his front feet several times (keeping his back feet on the ground). He also likes to cuddle up under our arms if we're laying on the floor watching television.
ROB'S CONSTANT COUGH: Tomorrow marks 2 weeks being sick for me. Flu and upper respir. infection are gone, but Bronchitis persists, and so does the damned cough. Learned that I need to sleep on my back to NOT cough at night. Thank goodness for "breathe right nose strips" so I don't snore (much).
MORE CRAPPY WEATHER: We've got a stalled front on top us all weekend, meaning more COLDER THAN NORMAL TEMPS again (and scattered showers). It's been since Nov. 1st that we've had "colder than normal temps" every day with the exception of MAYBE 10 days. All due to La Nina still in the eastern Pacific Ocean, causing Canadian air to dip over the east coast. The pattern is FINALLY expected to break next week, putting is NEAR or slightly over normal for high temps. That means highs of 53 next week, not 41 (like this weekend).
BONUS PICTURE: I took this photo of Dolly's profile this morning. She's such a beautiful girl and so loving. She's been with me all the time during my sickness these last 2 weeks.

Animal Shelter Voted Down/ Corrupt Cty Exec. Johnson

There were two items in the local news that really ticked me off this weekend. What do YOU think?
BOWIE, MD CITY COUNCIL VOTES DOWN A DOG SHELTER: Right now the county we live in has a shelter that kills strays after 5 days. The proposed Bowie, MD shelter would give dogs and cats another 2 weeks for adoption. Instead, the STUPID City Council (with a $500K surplus) says "no." I think City Councilors MUST ADOPT up to 5 strays from the county shelter and deal with it. How barbaric. They need to be voted OUT.
CORRUPT COUNTY EXECUTIVE JACK JOHNSON NEEDS TO GO - This man took a 1 month trip to Africa to "try and get trade between Africa and Prince George's County, Md." - At the TAXPAYER'S EXPENSE. Funny, how some of his extended relatives live there. Can you say CORRUPTION?? - So, the County is cutting jobs of Firemen and Policemen, but this ass gets to spend THOUSANDS of dollars on a personal trip to Africa and try to pawn it off as "good for the county." The trip was in 2008, and what's come out of it? NOTHING. VOTE HIM OUT. Put him in jail. http://www.co.pg.md.us/

Superhero Film Schedule Released

(PICTURE: The Avengers, including Thor, Iron Man, Captain America and more)
Here's this week's updated list from Marvel Studios on Feature Films in the Pipeline
Source: Superherohype.com
Iron Man 2 - May 7, 2010
Thor - June 17, 2011
The First Avenger: Captain America - July 22, 2011
The Avengers -May 4, 2012
(PHOTO: The Green Lantern)
FROM DC COMICS:
Jonah Hex--a western based on the DC comic book character--which rides into theatres 8/6/10. Josh Brolin is set for the title role, while John Malkovich will co-star.
Green Lantern, release date set for December 17, 2010.

NON-SUPERHERO, BUT LOOKING FORWARD TO IT:
Sherlock Holmes: Starring Robert Downey Jr. 12/25/09.

Cooper Gets a Check-Up with the Great Vet Dr. Bonner in Baltimore

Today I took Cooper up to Swan Animal Hospital in Baltimore, for his post-operation check up with Dr. Bonner. First, I have to say that Dr. Bonner is one of THE BEST VETS I have ever dealt with. I wish that she was closer than 45 minutes to our house, because I'd take our other dogs there. IF YOU LIVE IN BALTIMORE- I recommend Dr. Bonner at Swan Animal Hospital, Federal Hill! She was the one that took care of Cooper when the rescue found him and brought him there (I met them all there). Dr. Bonner removed most of Cooper's teeth due to severe infection; put him on heart murmur meds, and they bathed him and clipped his nails. Dr. Bonner has since checked in with me at least THREE TIMES in three weeks on Cooper's progress. I've NEVER had such GREAT CUSTOMER SERVICE from a vet. She's amazing.
Cooper's mouth has healed well, except for one hole that remains where a canine tooth is. The doc said "He's a different dog." He's happy, energetic, tail-waggin', and gained weight (and is even more cleaned up). I told her of all the progress, and she was so happy about it. Our rescue person said she's now had 3 inquiries about possible adoption of Cooper. Meanwhile, he's still our little guy.

"Man-Thing" the Marvel Comics Movie from 2004

Before we got sick 2 weeks ago, I went out on a limb and bought the Marvel Comics character movie "MANTHING" on DVD. It came out in 2004, and I barely remember hearing about it in the theatre. Of course, neither of us saw it at that time. Man-Thing is a character that was once Ted Sallis, a chemical engineer killed and thrown into a swamp. He comes back to life as living vegetation, basically a "swamp monster." There's nothing human left of him. We thought it was well-paced, interesting, and it held our attention through the whole movie!! It's got to be good if A) we don't fall asleep during it B) We don't watch it in 2 sittings C) we turn it off.
Worth watching!
THE STORY: Agents of an oil tycoon vanish while exploring a swamp marked for drilling. The local sheriff investigates and faces a Seminole legend come to life: Man-Thing, a shambling swamp-monster whose touch burns those who feel fear. The swamp locations offer a creepy setting for the story, and it was well-produced. The swamps are full of swirling mists in a green glow STARRING: Matthew Le Nevez as Sheriff Kyle Williams (he's handsome, so it makes it easier to watch) and Rachael Taylor as Teri Elizabeth Richards.
SEE THE TRAILER HERE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTUL1GWbrRw
BELOW: WHAT THE COMIC BOOK CHARACTER LOOKS LIKE:

Another Architectural "What Not to Do"

Being the architect, Tom thought it would be good to show “what not to do.” One of Tom's favorite architectural critics is not an architect at all. In fact, he is a bit of a kook to some. But once a month, he likes to poke a finger in the eye of architects. And, for the most part, he gets it right. Here is this month’s architectural eyesore: The Hespeler Library of Cambridge, Ontario.
“The original building was constructed in 1923 with funds from the Carnegie endowment; it was expanded in 1981.
In 2007, the City of Cambridge decided to expand the library yet again. The city specified that the winning design must “preserve the historic nature of the building.”
Phew, no radical changes to the original building, right? Wrong!!
Apparently, additions that “compliment the original architecture” do not win design awards. So the solution was simple: build a giant glass box around the original building. Ta da! The old building is "preserved" and the architect wins an award for Design Excellence from the Ontario Architects Association in 2008!
(PHOTO: WHAT THEY COVERED UP)
Everyone wins except the occupants. The triple glazed wall panels were apparently "value-engineered" out of the project in favor of cheaper double glazed panels that has a poorer ability to mitigate heat loss/gain during cold overcast/sunny weather respectively.” – James Kunstler
(VIEW FROM INSIDE THE GLASS FRONT OF THE BUILDING)