Pepé Lu Lu

If only I had seen this a week ago,

Lulu would have had a badass Halloween costume.

Lulu's New Head Shots

Lulu has a couple of new head shots from her modeling agency. If you'd like an autographed copy please send Snausages to Buffalo, NY. Please allow 6 weeks for delivery, as her summer schedule is quite booked.

Pass the Coppertone

Lulu is in her bikini and ready for summer. We have it on good faith that she's sure to be the cover of the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue this year.

Where's Wilford Brimley when you need him?

Just found out yesterday that my sweet, baby angel of a cat, Mac, has feline diabetes (or Diabeetis if you're Wilford Brimley).
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I hear that feline Diabeetis very manageable, and that insulin is rather inexpensive, especially through Liberty Medical. Nonetheless, I'm understandably worried, and am just wondering if any of you have first hand knowledge of treating a cat with this disease?

And now, for fun, see Wilford do the Beetis dance...

Timmy Toupe

Saw a guy in a restaurant last night with a really bad toupe. It looked as natural as this:

Lulu's cousin

Greetings from Dallas, TX! I'm visiting my favorite aunt and uncle, and this is their dog, Bridget. Bridget is Lulu's cousin. Today marks one year that I've had Lulu, and Bridget sends her love from Dallas to Buffalo. Happy Birthday, Lulu!

Reagan Ronald!

You can always tell when a mom is seriously yelling at her children if the kid's middle name is included in the shout. I was an incredibly well-behaved child, but even I heard "Christina Suzanne!" shouted at me from time to time.

Well, I don't have children, but I do have six pets whom I love, and who also try my patience the way children do. This is especially true of my dog, Reagan. Reagan is a spoiled brat. He has his own couch, yet he insists on napping on my couch intended for people. He totally knows that he's not supposed to be up there, but he thinks he should be.

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Recently I caught him in the act. Whenever I catch him, I instinctively do the mom yell, "Reagan Ronald!" and he gets down. It's the only thing that works.

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Here he is.
Look at him, no sign of guilt or remorse.

PS - Yes, my dog is named after President Reagan.
I told you I'm a Republican!

Love is in the air

Not only does my cat Mac have a love interest, but now Lulu does too! Meet Rocky, Lulu's boyfriend. For their first date he took her to a nice patch of grass.

Mac & Francine, sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G

My Siamese cat, Mac, is in love. Recently I added extra blankets to my bed for the winter, one of them being made of faux fur. Well, Mac apparently thinks this blanket is the real thing, and he's quite smitten. In fact, he has gotten "romantic" with the blanket so often that I named it "Francine" and have kind of just given it to him.

Here's a picture of Mac & Francine.

See how he gazes lovingly at her?

He must have a thing for blondes.

Cat Love

My littlest cat, Miranda, hates me. She's hyper-sensitive to change, and there's just been too much change in her life this last year (from moving to getting Lulu and other stuff) for her to ever forgive me. I swear she plots assassination attempts against me. She "plays" with wine corks, but I think she's building a weapon of some kind and will use the corks as ammo when she collects enough.

Last night when I got home from my trip I couldn't find her for hours. But then when I went to bed she came to me and laid with me all night! It was as if she was saying, "I still hate you, but I missed hating you." It was a Hallmark moment.

This is a picture of the face she makes when I pick her up. See the misery that is her life from being domesticated?

A story about the time my dog locked me out of the car

One time I was traveling from Buffalo to Cleveland and stopped at Old Exit 7 in Erie, PA for gas. I was driving a Ford Explorer with my trusty dog Reagan in the back. At first everything was cool; pump operating, tank filling. I was almost done, then suddenly Reagan jumped from the hatch to the back seat to the front seat, proceeded to stomp on the power lock button, and LOCKED ME OUT OF THE CAR. Yes, my own dog locked me out of the car with my keys, purse and phone inside. Then he sat there in the driver’s seat barking, mocking me.

I had to call a locksmith and wait awhile, and the whole time Reagan sat in the driver’s seat staring at me. At one point I got so desperate I tried to get him to jump on the lock again to open the doors. But even if he knew how to do it he wouldn’t have. Because that’s the way Reagan rolls.

Here is the face he makes when he plays "fetch," which is really more like "hoard." He's daring me to try to get the ball. I never do.

Fight Night: Miranda vs. Lulu

My little dog, Lulu, and one of my two females cats (Miranda) have been getting into what look's like little boxing matches over their various turfs. They're quite humorous, actually. But before one of them gets hurt I may need to have one big fight to let them duke it out once and for all. It could be something like this...

Michael Buffer: "In this corner, in the pink trunks--weighing a solid 9 pounds-- defending her marrow bone collection, it's Miss Lulu "Woof Woof" Trachtenberg.

And sleeping in this corning, weighing a pudgy 10 pounds with no trunks, defending her right to sleep on Mom's bed, it's Miss Miranda "Tic Tac" Trachtenberg."

"The rules are, no scratching, biting, or tail pulling. Each round will last 30 seconds and the winner of each round will get a treat. And now, LET'S... GET...READY...TO RRRRUUUMBLLLLLE!"

My orange cat, Timmy would, be in the crowd with a sign reading "Cats Rule, Dogs Drool!" Reagan, my big dog, would use it as an opportunity to steal Lulu's bone collection. It would be a hoot. I just hope neither pulled a Tyson and the other lost an ear.

My Political Cats

Both of my male cats are very attached to me. They also happen to hate each other. It makes life difficult sometimes. Timmy, the orange one, was my first cat. He is my favorite pet, but I can't tell the others that. Mac, the Siamese, (who, by the way, is sunning himself in this photo and is not dead) happens to be a big cuddler. I wish they would get along, but I've about given up hope.

A theory just occurred to me... maybe Timmy is a Republican and Mac is a Democrat. That could explain the discord. As I look at their pictures here, possible tabloid captions come to mind:

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"REPUBLICANS ACCUSE DEMOCRATS

OF SLEEPING ON THE JOB"
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"DEMOCRATIC CONNECTION TO AL-CAT-A"
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OK, I'll be fair and balanced and do a negative Republican headline:
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"REPUBLICAN ACCUSES SOCKS CLINTON

OF AFFAIR WITH ALLEY CAT"

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I know, that didn't come out quite so negative, but I just can't be disloyal to my Republican peeps.

Lulu

For those of you wondering what Lulu looks like, here she is in her Halloween costume. Lulu is a rat terrier and just the sweetest dog in the entire world. She has her brother, Reagan, wrapped around her little paw.

Ode to Reagan

I have two dogs, Reagan and Lulu. Everyone knows Lulu because she's cute and sweet, and well, portable. I take her many places with me because she only weighs 9 lbs. But I have another dog, Reagan, and he is my baby. I love him. But WOW is he a challenging dog to own. But not challenging in a way like he chews furniture or isn't house trained. He's challenging in the sense that, even though I have a college degree, I swear this dog is smarter than me. If I spill some Scrabble tiles on the floor, he might very well write the sequel to War and Peace.

Here are some examples. Reagan is fiercely loyal and protective of me. He hates when people come to the front door. If he sees me on the telephone with my credit card in my hand, he starts barking. Strange? Maybe not... He has learned that if I have my credit card in my hand while on the phone, it means I am ordering a food delivery. And he hates deliverymen. He will pace and bark until my food is delivered. It's unbelieveable!

Yes, Reagan is a very smart dog and I'm so glad I have him, challenges and all. Here he is pictured on his "stinky couch" as I call it because he made it that way. He has paint on his nose from barking at someone out a freshly painted window. That's so Reagan!