w00t for Good Wi-Fi!

I'm dog-sitting Spartan the Wonder Italian Greyhound. The guys are working 12 hour shifts again and I figured Spartan would enjoy getting to hang out at Camp Phoenix rather than being home alone for a long time. He gets here around 6am ish, and leaves around 7pm.

He is so much fun! He's like renting a puppy, lol. And I really think it's good for everyone involved. Spartan gets to spend his day with other dogs, and going outside, and just hanging out. Athena gets a chance to PLAY, since Achilles prefers sleeping in bed and Artemis is too 'diginified' to play. And when Spartan leaves here, he is completely worn out! Which, I think, means Jimmy gets a chance to relax during his time off at night rather than having to deal with an overly-wound up pup. Plus, he's so darn cute to look at that I like having him around. It's fun watching him tackle the multitudes of dog toys we have around here.

So today I've been waiting him out on the pooping issue. He's not really well house-trained. Italian Greyhounds seem to have an issue with it, and are apparently notorious for being very particular about things. (Like in the middle of our VERY cold winter, he didn't want to go outside, hated getting his little paws wet, etc.) I've just been treating him like you would a puppy. Every couple of hours we make a trip outside, and after he eats we IIgo out. All day he hadn't pooped and I knew he was going to have to... Finally everything in the house was settled enough that I could leave Lochlan inside without him freaking out, and I could wait him out.

I brought along the laptop. Lately I have been SUPER addicted to Questionable Content, a webcomic. It is so funny, the art is really good, and it always seems to strike a chord. (In one of the first strips they are drinking and playing video games, after all.... and thats something that happens around here!) Anyway... Apparently my wireless internet reaches all the way to the neighbor's deck stairs. Which means once Caayn gets the fence in over there, I can sit on the deck and be on the net at the same time! Wheee!!

I've been meaning to post for some time... I hate when you have a blog, and you are really good at updating it, and then one day, you start forgetting. Then before you know it, you are only updating once a month and the post always starts with, "I can't believe I haven't updated in forever!"

Several times I've started a post, so I'm not sure if this will be repeat news... but I called Carol a few days back and talked to her about Cozy, Athena's littermate that I'm secretly (or not so secretly) in love with. I let her know that if she was wanting to sell her, I'd love to bring her home here. However, Carol thinks that she might do well running, so they are going to try her out at the end of the month, when lure coursing and stuff starts. (Up here in the north, you can't do it year round! Too cold!!) So we'll be in touch on the subject. She did warn me that Cozy is really a naughty little whippet. I'm pretty sure a lot of that is not a lot of exercise and not being a real house dog. She had warned me about Athena too, and she is such a sweet dog here. Although from what I saw, Cozy is definitely different than Athena. She's a talker; barks when people come in, and does a lot of the "rah-rah-rah" that some whippets do. (Which I totally LOVE! I'm always trying to get Athena to talk more. She'll do it when me and Achilles start singing, or when she is playing with Spartan, but not really otherwise.)

Anyway, I am really excited about that. I was so nervous to call and ask her about the whole thing... I mean, how do you call someone up and ask if they'd sell you one of their dogs? Especially when you aren't really sure if the dog is up for sale or whatnot. I'm pretty sure Carol would sell the rest of the litter, if the right homes came along, but I don't think she is actively seeking homes out. I wish I was in a different situation, because I would love to take Athena's brother too. He is so full of energy and such a happy boy. He deserves to be in someone's home, being totally loved on and spoiled rotten. Caayn hates when I say this,k because he thinks that I might not stop at Cozy and will just want to keep adding more whippets to the family, lol.

Nope! If and when we get a third whippet, it will be one from Athena, if and when we decide if she is going to have a litter. (And even then it won't be for quite awhile. She's just over a year old and hasn't matured yet, and I don't want to even THINK of the responsibilities whippet babies will mean until we are in a situation where we can handle it. Like, in our own house.... kids a bit older than 3 and under 1.... Lol.)