This is the dog who lives in the house that Jack built:
(At least, I think so. I figure, in 1947, the chances of at least one Jack working on this house’s construction are pretty high.)
This is the dog who grew very old, and lives in the house that Jack built.
This is the dog who’s due at the vet’s, and lives in the house that Jack built.
This is the vet, who’s expecting a stool, from the dog who grew very old, who lives in the house that jack built.
This is the rain, that falls on the land…
including the vet, and also the dog, who grew very old and lives in the house that Jack built.
This is the Nance who owns the dog who’s due at the vet’s who needs a stool despite the rain that falls on the house that Jack built:
(You can see why she’s blue, maybe.)
And this the blog that gets ignored because of the Nance who owns the dog who’s due at the vet’s who needs a stool despite the rain that falls on the house that Jack built.
Time to get the Ziploc. And the umbrella. Have a good weekend.
Connie said on April 3, 2009 at 9:37 am
My guy once forgot the stool sample and the dog helpfully deposited one in the vet’s waiting room.
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derwood said on April 3, 2009 at 10:04 am
We have 6 cats and we just laugh hysterically when the vet asks for a stool sample. 4 litter boxes…it would be a crap shoot.
d
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Dorothy said on April 3, 2009 at 10:07 am
We did this on the 17th of March. I knew it was approaching so I stock piled a few of the turdy devils to have on hand.
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judybusy said on April 3, 2009 at 10:22 am
Your dog is so cute I set the pic as the wallpaper to my computer! Good luck at the vets–I hope it’s not too serious.
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MichaelG said on April 3, 2009 at 10:22 am
The other day your comments section swelled up to twice its normal size. Now the whole blog is swollen and all the side bar stuff is gone. Got blog mumps?
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Catherine said on April 3, 2009 at 10:37 am
Me too, MichaelG. First it goes all 200% and left justified. Then when I refresh, it’s normal size but still L justified. Running IE 7.0.6001.
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nancy said on April 3, 2009 at 10:57 am
Dunno. Probably the pictures, but at this point I’m planning to spend the next hour reading and napping, so I’ll fix it later.
The dog’s fine. It was just his annual visit, and he’s as good as a 17-year-old dog can be. Got his shots and his anals squeezed. Mostly we talked about the Final Four — my vet, like most Michigan vets, is an MSU grad.
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brian stouder said on April 3, 2009 at 11:48 am
Well first – the blog mumps/refresh-fix thing has been going at least since yesterday – and maybe Wednesday, so today’s pics didn’t do it.
Second – a hat tip to Councilman Harper at Fort Wayne Observed, for this story, about a schlomozzle between a motorist and a bicyclist –
http://indiana.typepad.com/fwob/2009/04/motorist-bites-off-part-of-bicyclists-ear-in-scuffle.html
most striking passage from the article:
During the fight, the man bit off a portion of Guffey’s ear, police said. Guffey said the man then got up and spit his ear out at him before he drove away, a police report said.
Worth pondering, as the weekend descends upon us…
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del said on April 3, 2009 at 11:48 am
That’s our vet too. And last night my wife walked our dog Buttercup to his office for a 6:30 appointment and he said, “You walked? You’re going to have to carry her back home after we draw the blood.” My wife’s heart sank — but he was just kidding. A sense of humor, that one.
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Rana said on April 3, 2009 at 12:03 pm
We have 6 cats and we just laugh hysterically when the vet asks for a stool sample. 4 litter boxes…it would be a crap shoot.
derwood – I’m laughing both at your pun and at the truth of this. Heck, it’s bad even with one cat and one box. b had a bladder infection a while back, and the vet wanted a urine sample! Since I use clumping litter, this was not going to happen.
Later I learned that one can buy a sort of weird styrofoam litter that doesn’t absorb anything and thus facilitates the collection of cat pee – useful for vets, perhaps, but not for the rest of us.
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Catherine said on April 3, 2009 at 12:16 pm
Did anyone else watch the ER finale last night? First time I’ve watched anything in real time in years…
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Julie Robinson said on April 3, 2009 at 12:17 pm
My comments have also been huge for a few days, but I don’t mind since my eyes are so bad.
From yesterday: beb, congrats on the same wedding date! Was it also 500% humidity where you were? We were in Bloomington, IN, which in August, is comparable to Alabama. Mildew occurs overnight.
JeffTMMO: It’s not the drums that are evil, it’s the synthesizer. They are to be despised. I’d much rather hear a plain old piano than the cruddy pretense of strings and brass.
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Sue said on April 3, 2009 at 12:23 pm
When I take whichever cat goes in for the first vet visit of the year, I present them with a “representative sampling”. I figure if one’s got something, they’ve all got it. One sample, once a year. Not one with each cat.
And I’ve seen those “urine sample pellets” before. When I was trying to get a sample once, my vet’s office provided me with some. A whole cup.
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beb said on April 3, 2009 at 12:27 pm
Julie Robinson — oh, yeah. Humidity was aweful. My parents live in Indiana. We invited them up for the weekend, suggested they bring some nice clothes with them. Didn’t tell them about the wedding until my mom wondered why the 18th had been circled on our calander….
It was a non-church friends and family gathering, low key, low cost. I think it was good for everyone.
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Julie Robinson said on April 3, 2009 at 12:32 pm
I’m with you on low-cost weddings, beb. Our reception was a potluck picnic, very relaxed and lots of fun.
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derwood said on April 3, 2009 at 12:41 pm
I’ve never had a vet ask for a urine sample. When he wants one he just jabs a syringe into their belly and sucks some out. He’s really good.
We actually still take all 6(used to be 8)to Fort Wayne for their annuals. We go to East State Vet. Dr. Bruinsma works a Saturday for us once a year just so we can see him.
Cats aren’t thrilled with the 2 hour drive there and back.
daron
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paddyo' said on April 3, 2009 at 1:46 pm
Yep, Catherine, I watched and enjoyed the understated and not-very-maudlin “ER” finale, having been a viewer since the beginning.
Nice touch of them using the original opening/closing theme at beginning and end (which they jettisoned a few seasons ago, if memory serves).
I also liked last night’s mirroring of the opening of the pilot episode: Nurse (same one, I think) poking head into docs’ lounge to wake up slumbering Dr. Archie — just as she did the slumbering Dr. Greene 15 years ago.
One more nice touch: Greene’s daughter growing up to be a doc who we expect will be working in the same ER.
The cameos from old castmates last night were rather lame, but hey, it was time to say so long …
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Dorothy said on April 3, 2009 at 2:13 pm
I saw ER too. I got in the door a half hour into the show, but thanks to the trusty DVR I could rewind to 9 PM and watch it intact. I tried to play catch up all for the next 90 minutes but I still didn’t get done with it until about 11:07 or so. I thought it was very well done. I’m looking forward to watching the 1 hour retrospective sometime this weekend.
I LOVED “Balzac and the Little Chinese Seamstress.” I forget now which of you ladies praised it. I didn’t want it to end! The true sign of a good book.
The swollen comments thingy was only happening on my home computer, not here at work. I figured I bumped a key or something.
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Julie Robinson said on April 3, 2009 at 3:45 pm
Dorothy, it wasn’t me, but I’m going to read it now. Other good reads in a similar vein are Snow Flower and the Secret Fan, Reading Lolita in Tehran, and anything by Da Chen. Fabulous, all. I even bought Reading Lolita, which is almost unheard of for a librarian’s daughter.
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Sue said on April 3, 2009 at 3:51 pm
Well, “Pride and Prejudice and Zombies” has just come out, if we’re talking books. Surprisingly seamless melding, judging from the first three chapters which are available online:
http://irreference.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/03/zombies_pp7-16.pdf
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alex said on April 3, 2009 at 3:54 pm
I have swollen comments at work on my PC, regular appearance at home on my Mac. Not sure what the deal is.
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Colleen said on April 3, 2009 at 3:58 pm
Glad Mr Spriggy is doing well. He’s about the same age as one of my cats, who spends most of her time sleeping these days….
Edited because I can’t read for comprehension…
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whitebeard said on April 3, 2009 at 8:07 pm
Off topic, but worth sharing. My wife has a part time job assisting elderly people with errands and such and with her payroll deposit confirmation today in the mail was a pink slip.
No, she did not lose her job; the idiot managing the payroll was notifying my wife of the Obama tax withholding reduction and printed the notice on pink paper and then folded the paper to fit in the envelope so my wife had to unfold the paper thinking “Pink Slip, Pink Slip.”
These idiots walk among us and procreate because the Pope tells them not to use condoms and they will produce more Republican offspring who will expect corporate welfare and more bonuses for royally screwing the world economy
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Dexter said on April 4, 2009 at 12:20 am
remembering andy kaufmann
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BisS5JxeUW0
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Gasman said on April 4, 2009 at 12:55 am
nancy,
I too, am glad that Mr. Spriggy got a good report from the vet. I have a thing for old dogs. I had a chocolate lab, Koko, that nearly made 17. She was down to three legs, but she sported a boffo peg leg that I made her. No kidding. I had vets contacting me to find out how I did it. While people take months to master their prosthetic devices, Koko did it in seconds. With luck, Mr. Spriggy will manage to hang on to all of his limbs.
Jeff (tmmo),
As a serious, trained church musician, I have to strongly disagree with your “I’m OK, you’re OK” assessment of church music vis-a-vis “praise music.” What is your position on self appointed ministers? Those who have had no seminary education, no knowledge of Greek or any texts earlier than KJV? Those whose only preparation is “God told me to be a pastor.” That is about how I feel about “praise music.”
An Episcopal organist/choir director friend described it as giving our musical “first fruits.” Having self taught, mediocre garage band wannabes howling out sub-standard musical dross hardly represents our “first fruits.” It’s not the instruments that are evil, only the utter lack of seriousness and preparation of those whom would wield them.
Having said that, I would hesitate to use one of my electric guitars – I would typically default to my classical – for use in a typical church service. Not because I can’t play it equally as well, but because in my mind it denotes a level of vulgarity that I find largely inappropriate for a worship service. There might be some circumstance that would prompt me to break out my Telecaster, but I would think long and hard before doing so.
The “praise music” schtick seems like just another gimmick to try and fill the pews. If that is the only goal, then why not have “Free Beer” services? We could use beer for communion. Or better yet, Hooter’s girls as ushers. It’s crap theology, but the pews would be full.
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basset said on April 4, 2009 at 9:14 am
Hmmm, couple of topics I can relate to today… old dogs, our golden retriever lived to almost 17. here’s a picture:
http://www.rescueagolden.org/RP_WebDoc.asp?ttid=83
that’s her registered name, “Spicy” was her call name.
and wedding dates… ours was 28 years ago today, in Kalamazoo. drove to the church in a Pinto and stayed at the Holiday Inn afterward.
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alex said on April 4, 2009 at 9:15 am
Amen, hallelujah, Gasman. And if they’d allow bawdy, sophomoric people like me to make the joyful noises I find most joyful to make, those incense burners might actually serve a good purpose.
Seriously now, I saw an interesting item this morning that relates to the discussion here. There’s a group of local evangelicals trying to go liturgical. (Doesn’t sound like they’re going to ditch the “praise band,” however.) See below:
http://www.journalgazette.net/article/20090404/FEAT/304049900
EDIT: And speaking of wedding dates, I might just be able to announce one finally, thanks to the Iowa Supreme Court. Unfortunately, it will destroy Danny’s marriage when I get married, or so his argument goes, so he and his missus better go get some counseling and brace for my big day.
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brian stouder said on April 4, 2009 at 9:32 am
Happy anniversary to basset and his better half!
Alex – I liked this passage from the article you linked, about the liturgical evangelicals:
“There is that sense of timelessness we enter into when we do liturgy and pray the prayers people have prayed literally for thousands of years,” he says. “It’s the joining of our voices with all those people.”
This touches on the sustained attraction history has for me. Truman’s idea that the only thing “new” is the history you don’t know is comforting; it dulls the shrieks from today’s charlatans and busy-bodies.
(by way of saying – I have been ejoying Jon Meacham’s book about Andy Jackson – “American Lion” – immensely!)
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Jolene said on April 4, 2009 at 10:04 am
You old dog lovers–or, I should say, you lovers of old dogs–might be interested in the book on old dogs by Gene Weingarten and Michael Williamson. It has a long essay about old dogs by Gene and great B&W photos my Williamson. I think I’ve mentioned it here before, but now you can buy a copy and contribute to Nancy’s Christmas fund at the same time.
But, before we get to Christmas, there’s Easter and Passover, either of which would be a perfect occasion to serve Salmon With Pink Peppercorn Citrus Sauce. I found the picture in the Post and thought it was so pretty that I’ve been pointing it out to people, even though I haven’t actually tried the recipe. You have to admit it sounds good, and the picture is gorgeous.
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Julie Robinson said on April 4, 2009 at 10:43 am
May I add my amen to gasman also. Though I have no objection to guitars and drums; I have worshipped at many folk and jazz services that followed the liturgy and were reverent as well as relevant. I love drama and dance used in worhip, again when done with reverence and in a way that enhances the entire worship experience, ie ties in with the lessons and the season.
A pastor friend at an evangelical church told us some 10 years ago that over time, most evangelical churches tend to develop liturgical worship. Part of the maturation process.
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coozledad said on April 4, 2009 at 11:36 am
Alex: I was wondering how many newlyweds would be honeymooning in the entertainment capitol of the midwest: “Branson, MO, here we come!”
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alex said on April 4, 2009 at 11:51 am
Cooz, I hear old Anita Bryant is still plying her craft in Branson.
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brian stouder said on April 4, 2009 at 12:51 pm
How far shall we go?
While the vast majority of American citizens – Democrats and Republicans – puzzle over the horrendous slaughter of an english-language class in New York state, we get buffetted by another slaughter, this time of police officers in Pittsburgh Pennslvania, at the hands of a gun-loving owner of several assault weapons.
If it is NOT reasonable to flatly state that the shrieks of charlatans like Hannity and Limbaugh and Levin and Beck get some of the blame (such as when President Clinton famously pointed to that same source of shrill political stridency, in the aftermath of the bombing of the Federal Building in Oklahoma City),
still, can it be argued that daily, intemperate, intolerant and manichean rhetoric, in the secular (ie – unforgiven) sphere has no effect at all?
If the tenor of the commentary from Rush and Sean and Glen (et al) is utterly blameless – and indeed it may be – then certainly we cannot scoff at the ridiculous and small-minded pronouncements of Mullahs and Imams, right? Their list of anti-western grievances and fatwahs and so on is just their schtick, right? Red meat rhetoric is what their listeners expect – it’s what they turn to them for.
If there ever was or ever will be a real “war on terror”, isn’t it always really a war against humanity’s own darker impulses?
And this brings us full circle back to liturgy and the unbroken chain of human traditions. (imo – some people choose the wrong liturgists, and then ‘evangelize’ their revealed truth by spilling the blood of non-congregants)
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Jolene said on April 4, 2009 at 12:52 pm
Anita Bryant spending her golden years entertaining gay honeymooners. Now there’s a picture. Though, to be fair, she did say publicly that she regretted her anti-gay campaigning, didn’t she?
Still, this would be further evidence of the idea that God has a sense of humor.
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Jolene said on April 4, 2009 at 1:02 pm
Aaaargh! You and I must have been typing simultaneously, Brian. I hadn’t heard about the Pittsburgh shootings. No time for jokes. Very sad. Fact is, there are just too damned many guns in this country.
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MichaelG said on April 4, 2009 at 1:03 pm
Go for it, Alex. My marriage is already down the tube. You can’t hurt me.
Isn’t there some sort of age requirement at Branson? Don’t you have to be at least 60 to get in?
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on April 4, 2009 at 1:28 pm
Well, i will unilaterally commit to not continuing a debate that clearly isn’t going to go anywhere productive, other than saying that Jars of Clay, Casting Crowns, and Third Day speak theologically at least as well as George Bennard, Stuart Hine, and Fanny Crosby, and i think Steven Curtis Chapman and John Newton would have much to talk about in friendly fellowship. (And the criticism of “filling pews” as a condemnable offense comparable to “free beer” reminds me of my mainline clergy colleagues who claim to be glad their churches are shrinking because “we’re getting down to a real community of the truly faithful” who apparently all prefer Bach and Buxtehude.)
OK, so i’m a pandering, mediocratic, lowbrow, violence promoting crapmeister. Nothing i haven’t heard here before. You’d hate my preaching, too. I don’t stand behind the pulpit much, and use sermon illustrations that have happened since World War II.
More to the point, i made a white bean soup with rosemary and lavender, thinking “it’s Friday, i can always order a pizza if this tastes like swill, nicely scented.” But i can safely report that even the Lad liked the taste, which wasn’t like lavender smells at all, which is what i was worried about. So i guess the next challenge is finding chickpea flour and trying those tortillitas with shrimp Mark Bittman just had in the NYTimes.
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nancy said on April 4, 2009 at 1:33 pm
…my mainline clergy colleagues who claim to be glad their churches are shrinking because “we’re getting down to a real community of the truly faithful” …
Ah, the promise of Benedict 16. He’s making progress, anyway.
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Jolene said on April 4, 2009 at 2:09 pm
I watched that Mark Bittman video, Jeff. The tortillas looked both good and easy. Where did you find the chickpea flour?
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Gasman said on April 4, 2009 at 4:32 pm
alex,
As I recall, according to Danny your marriage would not just destroy his, but civilization as we know it. Somehow the Constitution will dissolve and we will be unable to govern ourselves anymore. What a pity. I had grown rather fond of having our democracy back since W & Cheney exited the stage. I guess in the wake of your nuptials we will descend into anarchy and be forced to give up our knives and forks and indoor toilets. Oh well, c’est la vie.
I laughed out loud at the thought of gay newlyweds flocking to see Anita Bryant in Branson. It would be good for her.
Just give me a heads up before you tie the knot so I can go claim a good nearby cave.
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Jeff (the mild-mannered one) said on April 4, 2009 at 6:11 pm
Haven’t found it yet, but Granville’s Ross Market says (and does) that they will order anything at least once if a customer wants it. I’ll look when i’m picking up my pre-worship (yes, with electric guitars) Sunday papers (local daily, Dispatch, NYT).
Ah, Branson. I once spent a week there one day (h/t Henry John Deutschendorf, Jr.).
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derwood said on April 4, 2009 at 7:59 pm
They have some good roller coasters in Branson. That’s the only reason I would go.
daron
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brian stouder said on April 6, 2009 at 8:32 am
Ah, the promise of Benedict 16. He’s making progress, anyway.
Well, this past Palm Sunday I rolled down the street to the University of St Francis, to hear Dr. David Fleischacker, Chair of their Department of Theology and Philosophy, deliver a lecture that promised to shed light on the ancient phrase, “He can no longer have God for his Father who has not the Church for his mother,” and its meaning within Catholic teaching today.
I was prepared for an orthodox ‘this is the way it is’ approach, probably delivered by an ancient white man….but instead Dr Fleischacker reminded me of no one so much as Jon Stewart; about that age, and with that same sort of engaging speaking style, and with many little asides and parenthetical remarks (I really like parenthetical remarks!). He illuminated lots of history and back-story, and gave an altogether interesting talk.
So at the end of it, Palm Sunday was an interesting and educational day – even for us non-Catholics
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