Fifteen favorites from February

Last month, I did a post cataloging a few of my favorite posts from January.  I shared eight posts.  I’m back with another installment, and as you can see, the numbers have increased.  I didn’t mean for it to happen – but before I knew it, I had eleven or twelve posts on my list.  At that point, the nerd in me decided to aim for some alliteration… so I thought I’d share fourteen.  Of course, somehow I ended up with fifteen instead.  I could have added more, but the next number that would have allowed for such alliteration would be fifty.  Consider yourself lucky.

Anyway, in no particular order, here are fifteen favorites from February…

  1. Dad’s take: A songwriter’s muse from Love and a Six-Foot Leash – You know I can’t resist anything involving song parodies.
  2. Influence Positively Interview: Faith Maloney from Grouchy Puppy – Fantastic interview with one of the founders of Best Friends Animal Society.
  3. The House of Special Needs Dogs from No Dog About It – This one is technically from January, but I didn’t read it until February, so it still counts.
  4. Turning Fear into Understanding from Rescued Insanity – A thought-provoking piece (and thoughtful comments) about fear and judgment.
  5. A Confession on Bias from Back Alley Soapbox – In that same vein, here are some fantastic meditations on jerks, dogs, and Jon Hamm.
  6. The Ugly and the Adorable from under the blanket – A wonderfully whimsical collection of photos.  I can’t get enough.
  7. A Valentine’s Message from Cali… from The Daily Dog Blog – Speaking of photos, I just loved this one!
  8. Harry PAWter from PupLove – Words cannot explain how much I want to recreate this photo shoot.
  9. Notes from Home from Bringing Up Bella – Putting things into perspective…
  10. Tennyson Obviously Didn’t Have a Dog from Something Wagging – Drowning in dog hair?  Never fear!
  11. Forgotten Language from Tales and Tails – I’m a big Shel Silverstein fan, so this one definitely had to make the list.
  12. I Want to Be One of My Dogs from Twenty-Six to Life – I’ll take “phrases often said by members of my family” for $200, Alex, along with “if I’m reincarnated, I hope I come back as a dog in this family.”
  13. 10 Simple ways to Show Kindness in the Dog World by Rescued Insanity – Simple ways to have a much more wonderful (dog) world.
  14. Dog a Day Project – Tastes Like Chicken by Doggie Stylish – This one reminded me of Bella and her goose.
  15. Verona: Shakespeare, History, and A Lot of Dogs from Bicontinental Dachshund – These are a few of my favorite things (and I’ve always wanted to go to Italy).
As you’re probably aware by now, my linkaholism knows no bounds.  You can find many other great posts I’ve enjoyed in my usual Friday linkathons.
Did I miss any of your favorites?  Share them in the comments!
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8 posts I loved this month

I vowed to post every day in the month of January.  I’m pleasantly surprised to report that I did so (with the exception of one day for the SOPA blackout – and I’m pretty sure that one counts as an excused absence).

I don’t know if I’ll continue to post daily – it was a lot of pressure!  However, I thought today would be the perfect opportunity to take a look back at the month and share a few posts that I thought were really fantastic.

In no particular order, here are eight posts that I really enjoyed this month.  I hope you’ll swing by and read them.

  1. Homeland Security Systems from Tales & Tails – If you’re troubled by trespassers, Tales & Tails has a solution for you.
  2. A is for Adoption (yay!) from Peggy’s Pet Place – A great post about adoption (yay!) that just made me smile.
  3. 5 Ways Dogs Save the World – From the Sublime to the Ridiculous from Something Wagging This Way Comes – “So give your pooch a smooch. And thank her for protecting us from a postapocalyptic hell the likes of which have never been seen on earth.”  With a line like that, it had to make the list!
  4. When we don’t see eye to eye from Love and a Six-Foot Leash – Before you judge, read this post.  Seriously.
  5. Positive Advertising with a Dash of Newf from Rescued Insanity – This video is guaranteed to make you smile.
  6. If You Could Ask One Thing from Rescued Insanity – If you could ask your dog one question, what would it be?  (I couldn’t decide between this one and #5, so they both made the list.)
  7. Porcupines, Fawns and Turkeys – A Winter Woodland Celebration from This One Wild Life – The conclusion to a trio of posts that celebrate nature in all its glory, read this post when you need that moment of Zen.
  8. Saturday’s Dog: Celebrating the Wins by Bringing Up Bella – Need a reason to smile?  Check out these dogs that found their forever homes.
Obviously, I’m a linkaholic.  I also wanted to note that I enjoyed way more than eight posts this month, and you can find links to many of those in my regular Friday posts

What posts did you love this month?  Share them in the comments!

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And now, for the talent portion of our competition…

It’s Friday… let’s get to it!

  1. Your punny pet name for this week: Andy Warhowl.
  2. Meet the world’s smallest working dog – score one for the little guys!
  3. Enjoy these lessons in love from ’90s song lyrics.  Anyone have any lessons in pups learned from song lyrics to share?
  4. A dog in a top hat? Seems perfect for awards season.
  5. I was in Pottery Barn the other day and saw these adorable pillows.  Perhaps the new trend in home decor is “put a dog on it”?  (Someone alert Portlandia – say goodbye to “put a bird on it.”  Dogs are the new birds.)
  6. If so, I want to buy all of these prints. (I have a pup art addiction.)
  7. Dog ears come in so many shapes and sizes, but they’re all so darn cute.
  8. I love a good sleepy dog video… the stretch at the beginning of this one really pushes it over the top.
  9. Ah, that age old debate: cats or dogs?  Where do you land on this one?
Whether you’re Team Cat or Team Dog (also available: Team Both), you have to admit that this pup’s entry for the talent portion of the competition is pretty adorable:
Of course, he’s got nothing on those dogs barking the Star Wars theme in the teaser for VW’s Super Bowl ad.  Have you watched it yet? The dog dressed like an Ewok in the front row is just icing on the cake.

I wonder if these dogs would star in my upcoming film, Star Wags: A New Rope Toy.  Still casting for the roles of Obi Wag Kenobi, Arf Vader, Slobber the Hutt, Luke Skybarker, Arftoo-D2, Boba Fetch, and Lando Abyssinian.

Have a great weekend and may the pups be with you!

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Attack of the tiny tomatoes

It’s the first No Frown Friday of 2012… let’s jump right in!

  1. Your punny pet name: Meowrio Lopez.  (On a related Saved by the Bell note, can we all agree that Lark Voorhies would be the perfect name for a pet bird? No punnification needed.)
  2. Speaking of puns, these classic book covers updated with cats are fantastic.  I think Litterbox Five is my favorite.
  3. Apparently even those who profess to be anti-pun fall victim to them every now and then. I was honored to learn that one of my punny posts made Rescued Insanity’s list of eleven must-reads for 2011.
  4. This cat is way better than I am at Fruit Ninja.  I’m beginning to think all cats have secret video game skills
  5. I’m craving all of these pieces from Have you met Miss Jones.
  6. You know what you need? An awesome video. Lucky for you, this one over at No Dog About It is extra awesome.
  7. Is this the best dog-related picture of 2011? You be the judge.
  8. You know I love any excuse to break out my best nature show narrator voice (see, e.g., the Cave Dog). So I had to share this post from Something Wagging about the migratory patterns of the Fuzzy-Bellied Honey.  Don’t be ashamed to read it out loud, Discovery Channel style – I did.
  9. Enjoy some pretty and get a few photography tips courtesy of Alfie’s Blog.
  10. I adore animal odd couples.  This fawn and kitten just made my hall of fame.
Finally, I saw this video and just knew I had to share it.  My love of turtles and tortoises is well-documented.  The baby tortoise in today’s video reminds me of my own childhood turtles, George and George.  They loved tomatoes too.
(via Cute Overload)

I want to give this video a high five, in the style of these two awesome sea turtles.

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22 things that made me smile in 2011

‘Tis the time for reminiscing about 2011…

Last year, I shared some of my favorite posts from this blog.  This year, I’ve decided to stop the navel gazing (until the Pet Blogger Challenge later this month, of course) and highlight some of my favorite posts from other bloggers.  (Thanks to Mel from the No Dog About It blog for the inspiration.)

It’s a tough task, actually. There is a ton of great content out there in the pet blogging community.

The posts below all have one thing in common – they make me laugh or smile (one of those really big smiles).  There are many beautifultouching, and thought-provoking posts that touched my heart this year. However, today I felt like aiming for tears of laughter or joy rather than the other kind.  Hope you don’t mind.

It was a long year. I’m sure there are some others I adored that slipped my mind when writing this post.  (Perhaps one of my 2012 resolutions should be to do a better job of keeping track of my favorite posts. You may notice that this list skews toward the more recent entries.)  In no particular order, here are 22 posts I loved this year…

  1. My Most Embarrassing Dog Moment from My Brown Newfies – I have no words. Just go read it.
  2. The Puppiness Project – Everything’s Better with Puppies from Something Wagging This Way Comes – With a title like that, how could this post not make my list?
  3. 10 Pictures of Dogs Reading Books from Doggie Stylish- I love dogs. I love books. I love this post.
  4. Favorite Video Friday – Stella’s Shasta Adventure from No Dog About It – I don’t know how Mel finds so many great videos.  However, I still watch this one when I just need a moment of Zen.
  5. (Viewing this may cause extreme joy) More Happy Pets! Part I from The Chronicles of Cardigan – It really did cause extreme joy. Extreme.
  6. Adopting Beelzebub: A Beast of a Bird? from This One Wild Life – An adoption story that warmed the cockles of my heart.
  7. 17 Things Bella Has Stolen from Bringing up Bella – I’m kind of glad my Bella only hoards socks.
  8. Spam Saturday: Amazing Products, Thrilling Occasions, Thanks-a-Mundo! from Will My Dog Hate Me – This post is masterwork. Go put the lime in the coconut and drink it up, okay?
  9. 32 Simple Things You Do That Matter To Dogs from Peggy’s Pet Place- More warming for those cockles.
  10. Dog a Day Project – Why I Don’t Have Kids from Doggie Stylish – I’m just going to start replying to everyone who asks me when I’m going to have children by emailing them a link to this post. (Don’t get me wrong – I don’t know what the future holds. However, I tend to think people should mind their own beeswax and stop asking.)
  11. 5 Reasons Puppies are Easier Than Kids from Smart Dog – A perfect companion to the Doggie Stylish post. 
  12. She Who Cannot Be Trusted from Postpartum Paradise – A toddler, a dog, and adventures in unconventional (and unsanctioned) grooming.  See? I can appreciate posts involving kids!
  13. Senior Dogs: Appreciate, Don’t Discriminate from Grouchy Puppy – This one is actually a guest post that Sharon from Grouchy Puppy contributed to this blog. I just love the message.
  14. The Mystery of Burt’s Bees from Tales and Tails – Or, as I like to think of it, “how to collect puppy kisses in one easy step.”
  15. Dogs in International Costumes: Bone Voyage! from Will My Dog Hate Me – Just because.
  16. Drunken Master IV:  Canine Fu from Rescued Insanity – A funny tale of DWWI (Dog Walking While Intoxicated).
  17. For Woofing Out Loud from Kol’s Notes – In case you’ve ever wondered if your dog thinks you’re as funny as you think you are… the answer is apparently no.
  18. 15 Ways to Tell if You’re Dog Crazy from Something Wagging This Way Comes – Just a genius post, and, well… it’s funny ’cause it’s true. This post inspired me to start that whole dog song parody series of posts. 
  19. Pinterest Tuesday – Dogs Making Messes from Two Little Cavaliers – The cutest kind of mess is the kind that I don’t have to clean up.
  20. Chinese Takeout = Bad Dog Parenting from Life With Desmond – Speaking of messes… wondering if something is trash or treasure? Just ask the dog.
  21. Dressing Up Dogs at Holidays from Grouchy Puppy – I just love this creative take on the antler photo.
  22. From the DDY Digs Desk from Daley’s Dog Years – I’m not ashamed to admit that I’m including this post partly because of the Ryan Gosling photo.

Why 22?  I have no idea. I feel like this list could have gone on forever (for example, I wanted to include a post from BZ Training, but I just couldn’t pick a favorite photo shoot, so I’m cheating and linking to the whole blog here). Finally, I just held an intervention for myself, cut myself off, and sent myself to list-making rehab.  
What was your favorite pet blog post of 2011?
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Cats in hats & dogs in blogs…

Lots of good stuff for you today….

  1. Your punny pet names for the week… wait, I need to put on my punglasses first.  That’s better.  In honor of last night’s So You Think You Can Dance finale I give you… Mary Purrphy.  (Bonus SYTYCD-related name in need of no alterations: Cat Deeley.)
  2. Multiple cats in multiple hats?  Dr. Seuss would be proud.  (Since we’re kicking things off with some feline links today… here’s a bonus quiz about purring.)
  3. I have a feeling Dr. Seuss would have also liked these adorable doughnuts decorated to look like cats.  Okay, I don’t really have that feeling.  I just like them.  That’s enough, right?
  4. Speaking of cat-shaped food (not to be confused with actual cat food), check out this cool jewelry shared on under the blanket.  Love the whimsy.
  5. Speaking of finding lost pets (I sort of was, I promise… visit blanket ID for a great and stylish way to keep your pets safe), viva la microchip!  This dog was reunited with his family a year after fatal car crash.
  6. Are you a pet blogger in addition to being a pet blog reader?  (I think it’s safe to assume you are at least a pet blog reader, right?  After all, you are here… reading my pet blog… but I digress.)  If so, hop on over to Rescued Insanity and join the discussion – how did your blog get its name?

As you know, I like to close things out with a video on Fridays.  In all honesty, I almost didn’t today because I just watched this video from No Dog About It and there’s no way I can compete… I can’t even tell you how much I loved it.  I cheered.  No joke.  So… you should go watch that.  Really.  

In any event, I’ll still give you a video, since one can never have enough cute.  I think that this will be Bella’s reaction when she finds out she needs to have her nails clipped and get a bath this weekend:



(via Life with Dogs)

However, although Bella tries to hide when she senses a bath on the horizon, I’m just glad she hasn’t earned a black belt in bath avoidance like this guy.

In other news… two weeks until BlogPaws!  Will I see you there?

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Now casting: Bella’s made-for-TV movie

Hmmm… perhaps it would be a direct-to-DVD movie instead?  Bella doesn’t have a large ego, so I’m sure she wouldn’t expect her first flick to go straight to the big screen… anyway, you may be wondering what I’m rambling about right now.

Although I got sidetracked thinking about the format, I’m trying to decide what human celeb would play Bella in a movie.  Where did that random query come from?  The lovely Kahuna K9 (a new blog I discovered today through my blogging pals at Rescued Insanity, Kol’s Notes and Something Wagging This Way Comes) has invited bloggers to answer that question.  So, it’s time to cast Bella’s doppleganger…

After much consideration, I’ve decided to give the role to Kristen Schaal.  (Loved her in Flight of the Conchords and still love her when she pops up on The Daily Show or anywhere else.)  I think her performance as Mel on FOTC was the key to winning this role… there’s something about her slightly goofy, happy nature with an edge that just says Bella to me.  Do you agree?

Any thoughts on who should be Kristen’s understudy? (Bella’s movie just morphed into a play, I guess.)

 

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Too many awesome pet blogs, too little time…

As I mentioned yesterday, the fabulous blogs Something Wagging This Way Comes and Kol’s Notes recently gave this blog the Versatile Blogger Award.  So, I’m doing my duty and passing it along…

First and foremost, thanks again to Something Wagging and Kol’s Notes for sharing this award with me.  I highly recommend you pay them a visit – both blogs are great!  Bella and I are humbled to be in such company…

The rules: I have to tell you seven things about myself and then choose fifteen other blogs that deserve the award. (One set of rules said newly-discovered, and the other set just said versatile, so I’m making up my own rule and just choosing fifteen blogs I always enjoy… though it’s hard to narrow it down to just fifteen.  As you can see from the blogroll at right, I enjoy a lot of blogs!)

The last time I did something like this, I shared some puppy-related items about myself and some things about Bella. So, this time I decided to use my seven things to tell you a little more about me (the non-dog related stuff). Here we go:

  1. My favorite food is grilled cheese.
  2. I’m a voracious reader… I go through books at a pretty fast pace.  In fact, I just started a new book last night (the fifth book in the Southern Vampire Mysteries), and finished it this evening.  Hours need to be subtracted for sleep, work, commuting, and dinner, during which reading was not an option.  Another recent example? I finished all three Hunger Games books in 3 days.  When I get into a book, it’ll be gone in no time.  Tina Fey’s Bossypants is next in my sights.
  3. I never thought I’d want an e-reader, but I love my Kindle.
  4. I love writing song parodies (as you may have guessed from my recent post about the Pupperazzi).  Although I can’t really sing, I can’t help myself!
  5. I love outdoor concerts.  And wine.  Especially outdoor concerts that allow you to bring wine.
  6. I enjoy movies… and musicals.  Thus, I was in geek heaven yesterday when I went with a friend to see Stephen Sondheim’s Company at the movie theater.  So far this summer, I’ve already seen a production of Follies (apparently I’m in a Sondheim kind of mood lately), and will be seeing Wicked  and Mamma Mia again soon.  I’m sure there will be other performances in my future as well…
  7. I can relate pretty much anything back to Saved by the Bell and Beverly Hills, 90210.  It’s one of my… talents?

Whew… hope you made it through my rambling.  Now, to the fun part!  I’m passing this award onto the following blogs:

Don’t count… I may have cheated a little. Honestly, this was way too hard and there were so many others I wanted to mention, so if I didn’t list you above, please don’t be offended!  Perhaps I need some sort of regular feature where I heap all sorts of compliments upon all you wonderful pet bloggers out there, so that I’m not leaving anyone out.  Stay tuned, my lovely readers – the wheels are turning on this one!

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