In a Western Place

I was in Rochester, NY for a good portion of last week. I arrived on a Saturday morning, the day of my Sister Emily’s graduation party, then stayed for a few extra days to enjoy some summer weather and visit with family and friends. I had a really good time!

Until I tried to fly back home. Oh boy.

Almost as soon as I arrived back Matt left for his Vitamin Party summer tour. While he’s been away, I’ve made it my sole mission to tire out the dog. I took Bradley up to Sacramento on Saturday to visit with both dog and human friends. On Sunday we hiked around the Redwood Regional Forest. Then on Monday morning I took him on his first trip to the beach at a waterfront park in Albany.

The dog loves sand!

Hooray for furry friends!

And phew, the dog can sleep anywhere!

And so can the cat (but we already knew that.)

I on the other hand, well I’m exhausted.

M gave Joey a flea bath last week, a surprisingly easy feat. We really need to bathe him more often because the results were pretty astonishing. I’ve never seen such a fluffy, soft cat before. Oh so fluffy… I want to put a big bow on him and submit him to pageants. I’d also like to get him out of the bathroom so I can finish painting it (still working on the whole cat/dog cohabitation thing…)

Yesterday we stopped off in our old neighborhood, Glen Park, to take Bradley for a long walk after running a bunch of errands in the city. While on Diamond street, a man walked over to us and asked if we got our dog from the SPCA. Puzzled (many assume he’s from a breeder) we said yes after which the man asked how his paw is doing. Wait, what? How do you know about that… but before we could ask, the guy goes on to tell us that he found Bradley after he was hit by a car. I was speechless — here we were standing face to face with Bradley’s rescuer, in the middle of our old hood! The man was clearly not interested in being treated like a hero, just wanted to check up on the pup he saved from the rough streets of Hunter’s Point. Seriously, the city is so small.

Yeah, we survived the riots. The lame, media fueled riots. The riots set off by a bunch of bored, misinformed vandals. Thanks for snarling my commute home, and thanks for destroying the storefronts of good people trying to make an honest living in a dull economy. I hope you feel vindicated now.

I need to get something off my chest.

• The situation with Grant started at a BART stop in San Francisco.
• Oscar Grant was from Hayward.
• Mehserle was a BART officer, not an Oakland police officer.

How does this involve Oakland? Because that’s where Grant ultimately met his demise, at the Fruitvale BART station in Oakland. As a matter of fact, that’s my BART station. For all of you folks (er, my overly dramatic co-workers) that thought Oakland was going to burn last night, here’s a recent photo of my BART stop.

Yes, and it looked like this all week. I didn’t see a single indication of trouble. Not even a flyer.

And no, I’m not happy with the verdict. Shooting an unarmed man in the back because you’re drunk with power… well let’s hope the judge shows zero leniency during sentencing.

Sorry, rant over. Yesterday M took B for his first vet appointment in the city, so they picked me up from work. It took about an hour to make it on to the Bay Bridge. After that, it was smooth sailing. I could see 3 helicopters flying over the downtown area in the distance, but we don’t live anywhere near there. That’s right, Oakland’s a large place, it’s bigger than San Francisco. And it’s more diverse than San Francisco, too. It makes me sick that it’s become the whipping boy in this situation.

Anyway, M needed some time away from the house (after being stuck with Bradley 24-7) so we drove up to Monclair, a hoity-toity Oakland neighborhood in the foothills. We got to know this area well while we were closing on our house, so we thought it would be the perfect place to grab dinner with Bradley. And man, B was thrilled with all of the attention that he got from strangers (what a rockstar!) After walking around a bit, B sat quietly under a table outside a restaurant so M and I could eat in peace.

Thanks for keeping the people safe during all the nonsense, BART, Oakland and San Francisco police departments.

Yeah, having a front porch is pretty awesome.

OK, I’m totally in love with our new pup. For a 4 month old, Bradley’s amazingly well behaved and almost housebroken. M picked me up from BART last night with B in the car and I barely noticed he was there! We do need to work on some commands and get him used to the crate, but he’s definitely ahead of the class. One thing I noticed is that he rarely barks. Last night M made a ruckus walking through the front door and Bradley didn’t even flinch. Same with the garbage truck this morning. C’mon dog, we’d like to take advantage of your bad ass German Shepherd protective services, please! I almost forgot that around 3:00 am this morning Bradley’s chewing instinct kicked in. Poor M had to stop him from chewing the couch, the window pane and even the fireplace! Fortunately he favored then demolished one of the new toys I got him instead. I think we’re going to need a crate full of rawhide.

Joey’s another story, he’s not keen. Not at all. But until those fleas clear up he’ll be staying in the bathroom. That should give him some time to get used to the clomping monster in the living room.

I dusted off my camera and took some good shots of B last night… but I’m still shopping for a new laptop so who knows when I’ll get those up. Here’s a phone pic of Bradley and Charlie, a stuffed St. Bernard that the SPCA insisted Bradley take home with him.

M and B (and the now destroyed toy…)

Well, Joey’s has fleas. Joey’s has fleas real bad. Poor guy. Oakland’s a bit of a flea haven so they probably hopped on him during the move. He’s been quarantined to bathroom — which he loathes. We spent a majority of the day yesterday vacuuming, laundering and scrubbing. Probably overkill, but I get itchy just thinking about it. Oh, and Bradley’s ready to come home! M’s picking him up this afternoon. Let’s hope his last flea treatment is still potent.

We’re ready for you Mr. B!!!

We’ve been keeping an eye out for the right dog for several months. While I love all dog breeds (er, not the small yap-pities), I’ve had my heart set on a German Shepherd for a long time now, preferably a rescue and preferably puppy. Naturally one cannot be too picky at the SPCA; where Pit Bull mixes and Chihuahuas tend to rule the roost. However, this past Saturday we popped by the shelter for our usual rounds and were pleasantly surprised to find Bradley, a 3 month old rescue German Shepherd.

Poor Bradley found himself at the SPCA after he was struck by a car. He’s got a bruised lung, road rash, and an infected laceration on his hind paw that has spread to the bone. Thankfully he’s responding very well to antibiotics, and appears completely unfazed by his injuries. Unfortunately they can’t neuter him until he’s off the medication, and he can’t come home with us until he’s been neutered. The timing is perfect actually, since we’re still moving, settling in and all. I can’t imagine trying to housebreak a puppy in a sea of boxes.

Despite being a little groggy from his medication, Bradley took to us straightaway. He’s going to be a very large, healthy, happy dog. I cannot wait until he’s all better so we can take him home!

Phew, I cannot wait to live at a single address again! (Maybe then I will be able to find my camera, computer, clothes…)

M’s continuing to work on the kitchen while I’m working on the bathroom. As you can see, the cabinet restoration project is coming along (see the top drawer for comparison!)

Our first appliance has arrived: a dishwasher! Now we need to throw on our plumbing hats and figure out the whole installation thing. Oh and I didn’t know this… dishwashers are tested in the factory, so they may arrive soaking wet. Had there been a warning on the box, I could have refrained from making an ass of myself during a panicky call to Lowe’s.

As for the bathroom, we installed one of those curved rods for extra showering width, in addition to a water saving shower head. Over the weekend I applied the first coat of paint while testing out the squatting limits of my new knee. Wow, it’s bright.