Looking to volunteer?

Regular readers of my blog know that I have volunteered at one of Stray Rescue of St. Louis' animal shelters for over two years. It's been nothing but rewarding. I have met all kinds of dogs, from completely feral to climb in your lap friendly. I have learned that Levi is the most aloof pit bull I know because every single one at the shelter has been nothing but a total lover. I've seen dogs with horrible injuries, emaciated momma dogs whose puppies just weaned and I've wondered where on earth she housed all those puppies. I've seen feral dogs who after time wag their tail or let you pet them. I've experienced the hope and joy when a dog's board says "on rent-a-pet" or "went to foster" and the heartache of dogs being returned by their guardian through no fault of their own. People give the usual lame excuses-I had a baby, I moved, or my dogs' toenails make too much noise on my hardwood floors. True story. I've been kissed more times than I can count, given scores of belly rubs, and held on tightly when those nighttime bunnies come out on our walks. I've fallen in love, made new human friends, and most importantly, found an organization whose philosophy I can easily embrace: all dogs deserve a chance at finding a forever home, no matter how sick, how feral, or how dog-aggressive. It may take longer for some than others, but there's no reason to kill a dog for need of space.

So, I'm proclaiming my love for volunteering because Stray Rescue is looking for lots of new volunteers to man their new shelter! That's right-it's finally happening. Phase 1 of their new shelter is at last complete, and has 69 dog runs! These dogs need to be walked, socialized, fed, cleaned up after, and loved on. You may have heard that St. Louis city's pound is closing its doors for good soon. Stray Rescue will start by taking 20 of those dogs and giving them a chance at life. And they are not taking one cent of tax payer money to do so. Don't like dogs? They are also taking 40 cats from the city pound as well. Currently, all adoptable cats are in foster so this will be a first to have cats at one of the shelters. The facility is just amazing; it includes an education center where people can learn about the importance of spaying and neutering and general animal care, among other things.

Please consider volunteering. Seeing the smiles on the dogs faces literally warms your heart. If you feel like you might be a good foster parent, they are DESPERATE for fosters right now! So many dogs on the street suffering in the heat waiting to be rescued. One 10-year-old dog was just rescued. She's pregnant (!) and has apparently had a litter every year, has one tooth, is heartworm positive, and has brucellosis. You can find more about fostering on their Facebook foster page. They have every type of dog imaginable-puppies galore (this one might be the cutest dog I've ever seen), young, adult, old, feral, likes kids, likes cats, likes other dogs-everything! And I'm going to give a special shout-out to this guy:

Dew is one of those dogs that was returned due to no fault of his own. He is beyond sweet and is the best dog I have ever walked on a leash. EVER! He's wonderful and I love him. He needs to be an only pet, and I guess that's the only reason why this gem has been in the shelter so long.

Today is Levi's Gotcha Day and instead of talking about how great he is, I thought I would speak for all the other dogs that are still looking for their forever families and the fantastic organization that saved Levi from a life on the streets and blessed us with him. If anyone has any questions about volunteering or even fostering, I will find out the answer if I don't know it. You can commit to any of the shifts, which are generally around 7 am, 12 pm, 5 pm, and 9 pm. We go every week, but I'm sure they'd be happy to have you once a month or every other week. Oh, and as always, they need lots more money to complete the new shelter and just keep this operation up and running. Thanks for reading:)

More than you ever wanted to know about Lola, Monty, and Levi

This thread has been going around some of my favorite dog blogs, so I thought I'd join in.

The Basics

1) Name and Age

Lola: about 11-years old (could live to be 20)

Monty: 9-years old (could live to be 30)

Levi: not sure, but we think he's about 4-years old (is never allowed to die)

2) Breed

Lola: normal gray cockatiel

Monty: Green-cheek conure. Monty is named after Mr. Burns from The Simpsons.

Levi: "pit bull," but we're not sure if he's an Am Staff or APBT mix, maybe mixed with Boxer or something else

3) Nickname(s)

Lola: Lolers, Gola (Lola came to Jason in a dream and told him she doesn't like him because he calls her by the wrong name, with her real name being Gola), baby girl, lolayou'redrivingmeinsane

Monty: Monster, Montykins, Monty Burns when he's in trouble

Levi: big man, big dog, puppy dog

4) Where'd you come from?

Lola and Monty: PetCo. I know, I'm a horrible person!!! I solemnly swear to only adopt from here on out. Lola was a "present" from my ex, so I had no say in where she came from. I got sucked in by Monty's cuteness while buying supplies for Lola. He was just a baby and scooting on his back on the bottom of his cage. It was adorable.

Levi: Stray Rescue of St. Louis. His original name was "Lee" because he was found on Lee Street in north city. We didn't want to change his name too much.

Favorites

1) Toy

Lola: Lola likes wood and paper toys she can shred with her beak.

Monty: for awhile it was toys with bells. In his cage, he has a container full of balls with bells in them and plastic bottle caps and he likes to throw them around and beat the caps on surfaces.

Levi: anything he can play tug with. He's not much of a fetcher.

2) Snack

Lola: broccoli, popcorn, crackers

Monty: anything you're eating. Also, nuts, fruit, carrots, cool whip, popcorn, crackers, goldfish, etc.

Levi: cheese and peanut butter

3) Human

Lola: Do I even need to answer this one?

Monty: Mary most of the time

Levi: I begrudgingly admit that it's Jason

Funny stuff

1) Worst habit

Lola: um, everything? It's a toss up between the incessant screaming prior to egg laying or the incessant begging for head scratches which consists of continuously head-butting my face or neck

Monty: screaming for attention for sure. You can't leave the room for 10s without him going off. It's also annoying when he swoops in and takes a bite right as you bring food to your mouth. The reason he's sitting on my shoulder while I eat: see worst habit #1. He also went through a biting phase, but that stopped a long time ago.

Levi: although Levi is almost perfect, he is very stubborn on walks. And if he doesn't get to go the way he wants to go, he "punishes" you by walking at a snail's pace for the remainder of the walk. Not to anthropomorphize or anything.

2) Most embarrassing moment

Lola: I'm guessing laying her first ever egg in Jason's lap ranks up there. Jason is still traumatized.

Monty: I don't think Monty is embarrassed by anything he does. That is one confident bird.

Levi: Getting ignored by county folk while walking with my aunt's English cream golden retriever. Levi prefers the city where his beauty is appreciated. Falling off the couch when he's sleeping on his back and enjoying a good stretch.

3) Family dynamic

Monty is the boss of Lola when they are on their cages or playground, but all Lola has to do is give Monty the side-eye when she wants a particular shoulder to sit on and Monty moves.

Levi tolerates Monty's attention and kisses and is afraid of Lola.

4) Your human's favorite thing about you

Lola: Lola is very sweet and loving. I guess it's flattering to have a creature so enamored with you?

Monty: Monty is a total clown and hams it up at every opportunity. Monty never has a bad day and will do anything to make you laugh. You can practically hear him say "TA-DA!!!!" after everything he does.He LOVES meeting new people, is an excellent snuggler, and is very empathetic when you're upset. Really. And having an animal that actually tells you "I love you" isn't so bad.

Levi: Everything! If I had to choose just one, it would probably be that he's so calm and laid-back. He's such a joy to have around.

Triathlon Recap

Sorry, this is really long! I just wanted to write everything down for myself while it was still fresh in my mind!

In preparation for the big triathlon on Sunday morning, Jason and I were total squares all weekend. I was in bed by 10:30 on Friday and both of us were in bed by 9:30 on Saturday. It was kind of nice getting up early and having full, productive days, but as Jason astutely pointed out, "it's more fun being drunk." Nerves were definitely getting to both of us by Friday night, as we spent much of the time between 3:30-6:00 awake and wondering if the other one was awake too. I was also excited in anticipation of our first house hunting expedition on Saturday (that deserves a post of its own). What an eventful weekend!

It seems like each minute brought new concerns about the race. What do we do with the timing chip? Am I going to have to stuff it down my suit? Will it be hard to find each other after each leg? Was it a mistake buying an athletic bikini, even one as cute as this? If I had a heat-induced heart attack along the side of the path during the run, would anyone stop to help me???

Our wake-up call was 4:00. We wanted to make sure we had ample time to get out to the site, ask whatever questions we had, and find our way around.

Loading the car up in the dark.

I don't remember the last time I was up this early.

The sun was rising by the time we reached St. Peters.

The Rec-Plex facilities were impressive. The pool, or Natatorium, has apparently hosted U.S. Olympic diving trials. Fleet Feet sponsored the race and provided timing and support. Getting there early and looking around definitely helped my nerves. We set up Jason's bike in the transition area. When we got there, it was relatively empty:

The timing chip wasn't a chip per se; it was more like a big rectangle that goes in your bib. As it turned out, only the runner has to wear the bib and the swimmer and cyclist are marked with their number on their arm and leg. The volunteers physically write your times down as you get out of the pool and and leave and enter the bike area. Then your overall time is scored as you finish the run. Make sense? Apparently some triathlons also have little chips that you can put in an ankle strap, but this one didn't. This method was great for us because there was nothing to transfer.

Then I got ready for the swim and we just kind of hung around until it started. I thank my lucky stars that we were among the first to start because it was HOT and HUMID! There's a reason why I don't do hot weather races and I was reminded of that today. But I'm getting ahead of myself. I felt sorry for the people who were among the last starters because there was not a cloud in the sky to protect you from the relentless heat and sun. The last pool people were finishing when I finished my run and they still had the bike and run ahead of them.

When the time drew near, we lined up by number. Swimmers started every 20s and you just jumped in the pool as the person in front of you left and then the caller counted down 5-4-3-2-1 and off you go. The swim portion was 500m or 10 lengths of the pool. The pool was divided into 8 major lanes and two were subdivided, making 10 lengths. At the end of each lap, you just went under the lane divider and into the next lane.

Some pictures of the pool pre-race

Jason snapped a few of me prior to the swim and in the pool.

Putting on my sweet gogs

Off I go!

This is a good one to show how the first two lanes were split

Imitating the wide-mouth frog

I felt great and I believe I passed four people, but didn't myself get passed. I should not have been worried about the swim because there were definitely all levels of swimmers there. Some people were swimming breaststroke and some floating on their backs and paddling along. The only thing that held me up was when a slow breaststroker was passing a slow person on her back and I had to wait until I could pass them both. Other than that, I fell into a good rhythm with my strokes and breathing. I ended up finishing the swim in 9:45. I don't know if that's good or not since I have no other personal times to compare it to, but I was pretty happy. I have only swam once this summer and I think I only swam laps a handful of times last summer, so I wasn't expecting miracles or anything.

After the swim, I went out to the transition area where Jason waited on his bike. Then he was off and I had about an hour to hang around and wait for him to finish. I went into the locker room and changed into my running clothes, lathered on the sunscreen, had a little something to eat, and drank some water. I took some more pictures of the transition area, which had really filled up by this point.

If you're wondering why there aren't any pictures of Jason, I couldn't take any because I was occupied swimming or running.

As I waited for Jason in the transition area, the first cyclist returned. Then the second. Then Jason! Holy cow, he had passed like 14 people! I have to admit it was kind of hot knowing my husband was such an awesome competitor. Then it was my turn to totally let him down by completely falling apart on the run!

The weird thing about this run versus other runs I've done is that I was basically running by myself the entire time. I was passed by a bunch of ridiculously fast men, but other than that, it was just me out there. I followed the cones and the markings on the ground, but I was worried that I was going the wrong way at one point and stopped and waited for another runner to make sure I was on the right path. I probably only waited 30s or so, but this will teach me to study the map harder prior to the next event.

The course itself was awesome. Most of it was along a paved path through some sort of park and was nicely shaded. Part of it went through a neighborhood, but all in all, it was very scenic and pleasant. They had 2 (or 3?) water stations, which you hit on the way out and the way back, which was great in the insufferable humidity. But man, did I suffer. I started out the first mile at a pretty good pace of 8:30ish or so, but I literally could not push myself any harder. I was so out of breath and was worried about getting light-headed. The whole time, I tried to run faster, thinking about how great Jason did and how I didn't want to let him down. But, I did my best and even though I wasn't thrilled with my time, that's all I could do.

By the way, I wore these shorts from Athleta for the first time and they are my new favorite running shorts. The waistband is perfect and they're so lightweight, you feel naked.

So, our splits for the 500m swim/20.5 mile bike/4.4 mile run were 9:45/57:18/39:28. Our overall time was 1:46:31 and we ended up placing 6th out of 35 teams, all due to Jason's mastery of the bike. His bike time was 3rd for all the teams and would have been in the top 15 for all the individual men. Go, Jason! By comparison, my swim time was 14/35 for all teams and my run time was 13/35, so just average. I think the next time around, Jason needs a new teammate and he can win this thing! We're contemplating signing up for the one in the fall (any hot weather fast runners out there want to join our team?), but I'm still holding out for that elusive St. Louis January triathlon.

Just some other observations from the race. Like I said before, the participants were all shapes and sizes, from a 12-year-old boy to older people to all-women teams, to elite male and female athletes. We saw people on time trial bikes that are probably worth more than my car and people on hybrids. People who were obviously there to have fun and people who were there to win. The environment was extremely welcoming and the experience (other than the miserable run) was positive for both of us. Most of all, we had a bonding experience like none other. It was just so much fun to form a team together and compete in sports we both enjoy doing. It doesn't get much better than that. If anyone out there is thinking of trying a triathlon, I highly recommend this one, whether you do it on a team or want to get out there solo. The volunteers were nice and helpful, the facilities were great, the bike ride was mostly flat, as was the run path. And did I mention one of the sponsors was Great Harvest bakery, who provided cookies and fresh-baked bread at the finish? Yum.

Triathlon-Bound, revisited

Last year I wrote about how Jason and I were going to tag-team a triathlon. Well, we tried to register, but it never went through and we couldn't get a hold of the people, so we didn't end up doing it. But we are 100% registered for a mini-triathlon on Sunday and I'm really scared about it. Once again, I plan on doing the 500m swim and 5-mile run and Jason will do the bike portion. I'm not nervous about the run, except that it's going to be 95 degrees on Sunday and even though it will be early, running will be miserable. If I have to go slow or walk, I have to go slow or walk. So be it.

The nice thing about running is that you can't mess up other people by not knowing what you're doing, which is my big fear for the swim. It's in a pool, which is good, no great, but you are randomly assigned start times rather than being seeded. So, Mr. Michael Phelps-wanna-be who's on his 100th triathlon could feasibly be starting after me. And I am so afraid I will be in his way. I'm not worried about the distance (I was practically raised in a pool), just affecting other people who are actually competing to win and not just for fun. My one comfort is that Jason has done a million bike races. The bike part is the scariest, in my opinion, because if you don't know what you're doing, you don't just have the potential to mess up someone's time, but you could seriously injure someone if you cause a crash. And this is why I will probably never do any competition involving a bike. Jason even pimped his bike out with some kind of fancy wheels just for the race, so he's going all hard-core on me. I, on the other hand, will be limping along in the blazing sun, praying for the finish line to be around that next bend. That is if I don't get beaten up because I kicked someone in the face in the pool.

When I looked at the results from last year, I got even more nervous because unless I magically start running a 6-minute mile or swimming twice as fast as I do now, we (and by we, I mean I) are going to be among the last-place finishers. Which is fine, but it just makes me nervous because it seems like all these people are really experienced and fast and again, I will be in their way or mess up their time or something. I even had dreams about it last night, so I must be nervous! All I can do now is eat well, get a lot of rest, and liberally apply Jergens Natural Glow in preparation for Sunday. Hopefully we can just go out there and have fun as a couple, conquer those fears, and then come home and sleep all day:)

Monty and Levi Photo Dump

I haven't talked about the most perfect creature in the universe and the biggest asshole in the universe (you decide who is who) lately. And the other one? She's been sitting on eggs, so not much to report there. Although I don't think I mentioned that at Monty and Lola's annual vet visit, we learned Lola is now officially an American as she weighed in at a whopping 91 grams. Normally she's around 80. Monty is 78g for comparison. Wow. The vet wasn't too concerned since she's on a pelleted diet and is probably gorging her face off to keep up with the energy requirements of egg laying. Having a fat animal is something I want to avoid at all costs, but I'm not going to deny her food if she needs it for her eggs. Hopefully she'll go back to normal when she's done with all that business.

As for Monty and Levi? The summer heat sure takes it out of you.

We've been doing things like enjoying summer's bounty:

Waiting for the opportunity to wipe that beak all over your shirt:

Snuggling:

Getting camera shy:

Thinking about taking a nap:

And more snuggling:

Jason completely shocked me by getting me this new camera lens for our anniversary. His rationale was that we have a lot of big events coming up in our life (e.g. new house, new dog-hopefully) and we also like taking pictures of Stray Rescue dogs looking for homes, so we would enjoy the lens more than some kind of traditional gift. And I was very excited and surprised! He didn't know this, but this lens will also help me immensely at school, because I photograph all of my male fish for coloration analysis. Having the vibration reduction feature will be huge for me. All of these photos are pre-fancy lens, but hopefully I'll be improving my photography skills:)

Real Estate by the Numbers

When you consider the numbers, our future in real estate looks grim.

8+: Number of months the condo has been on the market

3: Number of price reductions

8.5: Overall percentage reduction in price (that's a lot when your property is not that expensive to begin with)

0: Number of showings since 4/11

2: Number of second showings total

0: Number of offers

So, what to do now? Obviously the condo market in our area is abysmal. We could either reduce the price again, drastically, and hope that it sells or we can take it off the market and give up.

Or, what about a third option? Buying a house and renting the condo? When I tell people we want to move, a lot of them have asked if we are going to rent the condo. It's not something I even entertained because I wanted to put down the traditional 20% on a new house, something we cannot do unless we sell. But there are other financing options these days and since we both have excellent credit, we have begun to entertain the idea of keeping the condo and renting it.

Since we have a good deal of equity in the condo, we have several different options available to us. We are going to hammer out some numbers in the next few days with a lender to see which option is the best for us, or if this is just a crazy idea. Obviously my biggest fear is that the condo won't be rented and we'll be stuck with two mortgages. That is terrifying, but we have enough savings to account for that possibility if it arises, but obviously not indefinitely. There are many units in our building that are rented and I'm hoping that we won't have any problems. If we hire a management company, they will take care of everything, from finding the renter to doing checks on them to dealing with the lease. They will also be more experienced at advertising and marketing to find a suitable renter.

I'm trying not to get too excited because we haven't made any final decisions. But can you imagine that it's possible we could be in a house this year? I just didn't think it was going to happen. I didn't think it was EVER going to happen. I am so ready to move forward with my life and moving would allow me to check off one big goal for the year. I only had three for the year: finish school, adopt another dog, move into a house. I'll keep you posted.

Happy Anniversary to Jason!

Today is our three-year anniversary! Wow, it goes by fast. I'm not going to lie and say that the past three years have been bliss because they haven't. The first 1.5-2 years were really, really hard for us. Obviously my dad dying shortly after our wedding was incredibly difficult as I tried to cope with the loss and keep up with my insane workload at school that semester. Meanwhile, Jason tried to find the best way to help me cope and grieve on his own because he too loved my dad. There have been other challenges as well, but I can honestly say that the last year has been the best one so far. I feel like we've really hit our groove, have learned how to communicate with each other, and have simply had fun. I have never been happier in our relationship, in spite of the stress going on outside our relationship. We've managed to keep everything separate while still supporting each other.

A year ago today, we were celebrating our anniversary in Belize by diving with whale sharks. This year, we are doing the usual Wednesday routine and will have a quiet celebration at Niche this weekend. I have never gone back and revisited our wedding day on the blog, so I think this is a good opportunity to do so.

As much as our wedding day was a celebration for us, it was also a day to celebrate my dad's relative health. So, a lot of what I write about here will relate back to my dad because having him at our wedding was the greatest gift I've ever received. When he was diagnosed with Stage IV lung cancer at the end of January, we had no idea what course his disease would take. He immediately had surgery to repair his vertebra that cancer had turned to mush, then started chemo and radiation therapy on the various bones in his body where cancer had invaded. And he was sick-so, so sick. He was too weak to walk, too sick to eat, and became a shell of his former self. We created an excel spreadsheet to keep track of his seemingly endless list of medications and visits with doctors, treatments, and therapists. Those were dark days, many of which were spent on the 7th floor at St. John's Hospital. When he was well enough to be at home, he slept downstairs in a hospital bed and had a constant flow of visitors. He was even administered total parenteral nutrition (TPN), a risky decision due to potential introduction of infection, but I believe he would have died then if he hadn't received it.

While his constant nausea and inability to eat was attributed to radiation, he finally underwent an endoscopy procedure that revealed he actually had an ulcer. All that time he suffered when a simple pill could have provided relief. With his ulcer treated, radiation providing relief from pain, and a break from chemo, he actually started to improve. By the time our wedding drew near, he could actually walk with the help of a cane and he even went to work for a few hours a day. My mom would send him with a bottle of water and snacks with instructions to to the ladies he worked with that he had to finish everything!

I'd say the week before the wedding was his best week during his entire illness. By the week of the wedding, he was starting to experience new pain in his arm (we later learned the cancer was spreading-everywhere) and was more fatigued than usual. On our wedding day, he took a long nap while the girls came over to my parents' house to have our hair and makeup done. I'll never forget how handsome and healthy he looked when he came down the stairs in his tux.

And how he walked out his own front door and down the sidewalk unassisted.

Jason and I didn't see each other before the ceremony. He and the guys (groomsmen, ushers) got ready at a hotel and took the trolley over to the church. In the meantime, the girls and my dad made our way to the church where I put on my dress (it takes an army). My mom, my sister, and many of my aunts and cousins have worn the antique veil I'm wearing. It came off as soon as we got to the reception!

When my dad saw me in my dress, he almost collapsed:( It was a scary moment. My sisters were very emotional and the mean lady at the church was yelling at them to go down the aisle. Apparently before all this happened, my dad told my mom that he didn't think he could do it, couldn't walk me all the way down the aisle. But he did and it was perfect.

I was ecstatic through the entire ceremony and many people told me afterward that I was so smiley up there. Well, our priest also kept turning off his microphone and saying silly stuff to us, so that helped take the pressure off:)

Mr. and Mrs.

Greeting my parents afterward:

Our last family photo. We have since lost my dad and gained my nephew, William.

Posing outside the church

At the reception, Monty and Lola made a pseudo-appearance.

My nephew looks so young!

My dad gave a beautiful speech.

The breathtaking Coronado Ballroom.

Jason and I danced, wishing we had chosen a shorter song, as we both hate being the center of attention.

Then my dad and I took the floor to dance to "My Girl," and for those minutes, we were the only two people in the room.

Whew, those pictures are tough to look at.

Jason and his mom also had an emotional dance to "What a Wonderful World."

Then it was time to get down and party. We felt obligated to dance since it was our own wedding:)

My oldest friends who came in from all over the country.

Then it was time to say goodbye to my dad, who was tired and needed to go home. This was the last time a lot of the people in attendance saw him. I am so happy that their memories of him are looking good and happy instead of sick and in pain.

One last emotional picture.

My family gathered around to see him off.

The party continued on with Jason's worst nightmare being the center of attention.

Bouquet toss

And then it was time to go. The night went by so fast, too fast. But we have so many wonderful memories. Thanks to my parents for giving us such a beautiful wedding. Thanks to my dad for being so strong and fighting through the pain and exhaustion. Thanks to my mom for being a pillar of strength and doing everything possible to ensure I had a perfect wedding. She took care of my dad, went with me to meet with vendors, and tied those damn bows on the programs! Most of all, thanks to my loving husband for putting up with all my crap and being everything I'm not: kind, patient, generous, and calm. I love you.

[All photo credits: Robert George Studio]