ReadLarryPowell.com

FOCUSING ON A SPECIAL 'LITTER' BORN IN THE PREVIOUS CENTURY -- NOT KIDDING.

EDITION OF FRIDAY, JANUARY 17, 2025, AND WEEKEND [PetPowellPress] The date is significant. We dedicate
this edition of our long-running feature Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap to personalities who are
wonderfully designated as "multiple births," i.e. "litters."
Our dog Porche Noel perhaps was one of those. I asked her if she wanted to help me with this and, as her brown eyes began to close, she replied, "For crying out loud -- I've got to get some sleep. Can't you ask one of these cats?"
Senior Office Cat William Powell, when asked, rolled his eyes, raised his chin and replied, "I'm not required by the Code of Office Cats to participate in anything turned down by a dog." He then
provided this pose he titled "THE PATIENT FACE OF A NAPPING CAT."
So, my sons -- both gainfully employed -- also were unavailable to discuss "multiple births" with me. Thus on their birthday, this casual Friday of Jan. 17, 2025, I will be winging it as I discuss multiple births from a personal viewpoint.
The doctors in the late days of 1970 had predicted that the upcoming birth would be one large baby. Labor began in the early morning hours of Jan. 17, 1971. Coincidentally, it was also the date of the Dallas Cowboys' first Super Bowl appearance -- the Baltimore Colts beat Dallas -- Jim O'Brien kicked a 32-yard field goal with 5 seconds left in the game.
I didn't see a split second of the game. I was in a waiting room.  Let me emphasize: I was in the waiting room and I was waiting on ONE LITTLE BABY TO BE BORN. ONE.
In the meantime, it turned out to be "Have A Litter Day" at the hospital in Texarkana, Texas. Yep, we had a multiple birth incident in the family. We named the twins Bret and Bart -- we'd already picked "Bret" so we had to come up with another name on the spot. Bret and Bart had scored big TV ratings as the Maverick brothers (James Garner/Jack Kelly), so what the heck... you know?) [Coincidentally, when then boys began playing kid soccer in Grand Prairie 5 years later,the team was "The Mavericks."]
That photo on the left is from around early 1993 -- the boys are Bart and Bret and the guy on the left
is a character actor from the early '70s domestic spy film Hairy The Pretend Hippie.]
How can you tell the boys apart? Throw 'em a baseball. Bret is a lefty. Bart is ambidextrous. I spell that right?  He can bat or write left or right depending on the needs of the moment.
Of course, a lot of people will solve the ID challenge by asking the traditional twin question: "Which one are you?"
So, on that Sunday, January 17 in 1971, Bret was born at 2:06 p.m. Bart was born at 2:08 p.m. (Bart, noting his brother's arrival habits, is fond of saying "That was the last time Bret got
anywhere before I did.")
Their mom, Carolyn, and I missed the entire Super Bowl -- but having a "small  unexpected litter of babies" definitely takes your attention away from football.
Years have passed since that day. Things change in life -- parents don't always get along -- as courthouse records reflect.
For decades now, the multiple birth boys have had some exceptional influence from my Smartspouse Martha, their trusted advisor. She's the darling confident, the understanding calm voice in family discussions. I am the harsh jerk.
Also, Martha joins me in celebrating our "animal nut" status and that attitude is influential. Bret has a beloved dog named Fisher. Bart has an entertaining young cat named Suki. Oh, yeah, there's this: Bret is an uncle of 3. Bart is a father of those 3 (the adorable and wise-cracking grandkids Hannah Rose, Emily Grace and Connor "Crash" Powell.) Bret and Bart remain the only litter in our crowd.
Now, Dear Readers, you'll note that I was unable to find photos of litters of dogs or cats in my personal files. So, I have provided these old photographs of young people to illustrate this "Multiple Birth Edition" of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap.
Do the boys take after their father? I'd have to say "No" -- they're nicer. It's The Martha Influence.
You'll note the photos of the three cowboys. The old geezer was a 3-year-old in that photo next to an oak tree. The kids were a little older when their Giddy Up Cowboy pictures were taken. And that blurred and poorly-stored photo from the previous century shows the boys on their new "trikes" -- we took that at the family Christmas last month. I'm kidding. The Litter of Two has grown out of tricycles.

In summation, the multiple birth of these humans was a surprise and a joy and, as they celebrate their teenage years -- I need to recalibrate, perhaps -- their dad says, "Happy birthday" and isn't it amazing that all three of us arrived in our 30s simultaneously here in the 21st century.
Ask around. Baby Boomers can celebrate their teenage years for decades. It's because we know how to mimic sleeping dogs and napping cats and draw mystical energy from them. I'm almost certain. Happy Birthday, boys.
[DEAR READERS, Unless Martha and I somehow have triplets by next week, we're going to return to the traditional theme of this edition -- celebrating sleeping dogs and napping cats and any other slumbering household critter. Email the photos and the stories to [email protected].]

MURIEL'S CAT OOLONG -- A BEAUTIFUL CAT IN NEED OF A DEDICATED, LOVING HOME

EDITION OF THURSDAY/FRIDAY JAN. 16-17, 2025 [PetPowellPress] Dear Readers, I posted this photo of the cat because I thought the entertaining pose might grab your attention and give the cat a break at the same time.
Today we have this mission: (1) Celebrate our longtime contributor, the cat's animal-respecting human Muriel Parker, and (2) help her cat Oolong find a loving, wonderful home. Muriel first wrote bout Oolong for the March 3, 2023, edition of readlarrypowell.com.
[LARRY ASIDE: We got the note about Oolong and a touch-your-heart photo (keep reading) from Muriel's son Steve. Please read on and help a son help a beloved cat. Here is the key e-mail connection on behalf of Oolong: Email Steve at [email protected] or call 972-201-7162.]
Steve, as gentle a writer as his mom, began, "Steve Parker here, Muriel Parker's son.  I'm writing to share the sad news that Muriel passed away on Dec. 24, 2024, following a brief illness.  Mom was a huge fan of yours and the good works you do for our animal pals. 
"Her frequent contributions to readlarrypowell.com since 2017 (perhaps even longer) brought 15 minutes of fame to several Parker pets, past and present, from both our households.  Mom's talent for penning pet tales that were both humorous and heartwarming clearly resonated with you, as I believe you posted every one of her submissions.  Seeing those stories published on your website brought great joy to us both, and for this I am grateful to you beyond words."
[LARRY NOTE: The email was signed "Sincerely Steve and Nina Parker" -- yes, loving animals is a family theme. Thank you, Steve. Your Mom's clear love of animals was an inspiration to many.]
STEVE CONTINUED HIS NOTE by explaining the mission on behalf of his Mom Muriel and the wonderful Oolong. "Unfortunately, mom's beloved Siamese cat, Oolong, is now orphaned by mom's passing.  He's been living on his own since mom was hospitalized in late October.  He gets daily visits from the good folks at Rover.com (God bless them) but he is lonely and desperate for attention. Our attempts to find him a new home, which my wife & I sadly cannot provide, have so far been unsuccessful.  We have posts on Facebook and Rescue Me! with plenty of likes, but no takers as of today. ... I simply can't bear the thought of turning him over to a shelter - we really want to find him a loving home - but we've got to find something for him soon."
THE BASICS: OOLONG'S
PERSONAL SITUATION:
Steve continues, "Oolong is a 6-year-old flame point Siamese. He can be a bit standoffish at first but is gentle and
loving once he gets to know you. He's feline FIV-positive but in good health with a beautiful, silky coat - one of the softest I've ever felt. 
"He was mom's only pet since his rescue from a shelter in February 2021, so we don't know if he gets along with other cats. We do know that he behaves aggressively toward dogs. (Our sweet pittie Serendipity, the subject of a few of mom's posts on RLP, is terrified of him).  I've attached a few photos of Oolong, including my last-ever picture of mom with him on her lap -- taken just days before she fell ill.  One can clearly see the love in her eyes. This is a photo I'll treasure always. ..."
SOME FAMILY HISTORY: Steve provided not only this photo of Muriel with Oolong, but also this glimpse into the family philosophy about loving animals and working hard to find Oolong a good home. Other families may benefit from Muriel's guiding light. Steve wrote:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

"My parents instilled in me a deep love and respect for all animals, great and small, especially cats and dogs. No Parker household has ever been without one or the other, usually both, and often in multiples... and every one of them a rescue from a shelter, or a stray that adopted us. I'm proud to say that my children, and now my grandchildren, are carrying this tradition forward.  Between my two daughters, there are 6 dogs and 3 cats, all adoptions who love their Grampa Steve!"
[LARRY SUMMATION: Thank you Muriel and Steve. Dear Readers, please help Steve AND FAMILY honor Muriel by finding THAT PERFECT HOME for Oolong The Cat.]
--- Offer suggestions for helping Steve help Oolong by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected] and make the subject line read HONORING MURIEL! ---

 

AS WINTER MOVES ALONG, ANIMALS WAIT IN SHELTERS; WE PONDER CASH & BASEBALL

EDITION OF THURSDAY, JANUARY 16, 2025 [PetPowellPress] Can we be at the middle of January already? Hate to rush things, but baseball season is coming and we need to get it out of the way before we can put the Christmas lights up
again.
Texas Rangers' pitchers and catchers report to spring training in Surprise, Ariz., on Valentine's Day -- that's Feb. 14, the ol' romantic date. More baseball in Contemplations. That dog? That's our boy Dudley the Angel giving me his pose as an umpire calling balls and strikes or about to call a runner out at the plate. You oughta hear his "STRIKE THREE" call. Sounds a lot like "GRRRRROUTTAAHERRRRE SUCKER." Moving along.... Dudley was a free dog, you know -- just wandered up in our Dallas yard after being dumped in our Dallas neighborhood. [LARRY ASIDE: To the person who dumped him in 2013, you were an idiot then and you're probably an idiot now. I hope Dudley was your last pet ever.]
CLIFFORD THE DOG
FROM GLENN HEIGHTS
We found out about this handsome dog from our longtime tipster Laura Macias, a fan to animals who works to help

small shelters get positive attention for their animals.

She cited Clifford's situation: He's waiting on a home while in the care of the folks at the Glenn Heights Animal Shelter right down I-35 and not far to the south of where it crosses I-30 at DeSoto.
Clifford is not the only critter in the Glenn Heights shelter.
But for now he's our focus.
Laura wrote, "Emergency -- Gorgeous sweet dog needing your help.
As you can see in one photo, he clearly knows how to relax.
And in the other photo, he knows how to look up and engage the camera.
The contact to ask about helping save Clifford is Laura. Call or text her at 214-949-2726 or email [email protected].
Your can see a more complete listing for Clifford's story on the FRIENDS OF GLEN HEIGHTS ANIMAL SHELTER Facebook page HERE.
[LARRY ASIDE: Laura, who knows the challenges of small shelters in the Metropsprawl, tipped us to the Friends site. This falls under the It Takes a Village Category "IN A BIG METRO SMALL SHELTER CHALLENGE IT TAKES A VILLAGE OF TOUGH PEOPLE TO SAVE 'EM ALL.]
MEANWHILE, HANDSOME PACO
WAITS IN MESQUITE
The tale of Paco came from our longtime  tipster Judi Brown, a veteran volunteer dog-bio-writer at the Mesquite Animal Services Shelter.
She's among those people who get to know the shelter's dogs and cats in hopes of being able to help them find homes.
Judi says Paco is a year-old, 65-pound, black and brown German Shepherd.
He came into the shelter on Jan. 18, "brought in by one of our officers."  [LARRY ASIDE: I think "stray" may be the synonym for that.]

Judi writes, "He spent the first 15 minutes with his nose to the ground making it difficult to take photos of him. Obviously, his sense of smell is very strong. No wonder... look at his long nose.
"When he did come to me, he would lean up against me. It was very tender. He sits for treats. He takes them gently. There were several times you could tell he wanted to jump on me, but knew not to.
"When he gets excited about a treat, he does jump up. He walked well on a leash. He didn’t have a problem with other dogs, but if you have another dog we suggest you ask the shelter for a dog test. He would need a yard to stretch his legs in but would want to spend most the time in the house with his new family. Will that be yours? A bonus is that he’s already fixed! "
Paco is #57601222 -- cite that number when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email
[email protected].
You can see more dogs and lot of cats and kittens in the Mesquite Shelter by clicking on THIS LINK.
Among the kittens? Lisa (#57573359), a month-old Domestic Shorthair Mix.
She, clearly, can be held and has an idea of how to behave and, maybe, based on this pose, "come in for a landing" once she controls her fly-like-Superman tendencies.....
LARRY BASED ON EXPERIENCE: I'll bet she's a cuddler! Eventurally. Cute kitten...If we had room...
CONTEMPLATIONS
BASEBALL, COLD CASH, AND STUFF.....
NOW, WHERE DO I WATCH THE RANGERS WHEN I'M HOME? Can't quite declare my love for the Rangers 2025 -- I'm unclear on where we'll be able to watch the team on TV by just turning it on and clicking to a station without paying more dough.
Surely they're not going to start making us pay to park in our own driveways while we watch the Rangers on some non-traditional channel. Baseball is always looking for some gimmick to make fans pay more money to watch crap teams. Pardon my crude reference to my history as a fan.
WAKING NOTE: Ever wake up pre-dawn and turn on a radio station or a TV station and start getting commercial after commercial warning about household plumbing disasters, roofing, car problems, the need you have for yet another medical test you never thought of, etc. Depressing as all git-out, ain't it. Does anybody buy happy commercial space on morning radio? Did I wake in a lousy mood today? Maybe. I'd have switched to a country station for some of those songs, but we're getting close to Valentine's Day and who needs people "sangin' about heartbreak and misery" after that Dallas Cowboys season. 
-- Officer advice or uplifting country songs by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected] and put "TUNE THAT GUITAR, MR. THUMBS" in the subject line. ---

A TUESDAY EDITION WITH THE LEGE, THE CHALLENGERS, THE ANIMALS AND THE NEEDS

EDITION OF JANUARY 14, 2025 [PetPowellPress] Here's a question for people who have been in animal rescue and home-hunting since before the Dallas Cowboys had a coach and before The Beatles were rockin' the world.
Have you angelic animal helpers ever seen a single spell in any season in Dallas/Fort Worth and surrounding area that would allow you to sit back and take a breath and assess what's been done or what needs to be done to make the animal awareness system better?
[PONDER THAT as we move through this edition en route to more musing on the topic in Contemplations. First we'll try to help people help specific animals.]
THE LEGE OPENS AND THLN
IS READY FOR THE SESSION....
One of the first emails we got this morning of January 14 was based on timing and reality and animal issues.
It came from Austin and the Texas Humane Legislation Network and Executive Director Shelby Bobosky -- a veteran of challenging the legislature to do the right thing for animals.
The timing is the Texas Legislature opened for "bidness" (using Texas accent); the reality is it's a madhouse of pressure from all sorts of advocates and issues and "the animal issues" have been outlined by the Texas Humane Legislation Network. The goal is to save and protect animals via legislation.
The note opens "Today marks the beginning of the 89th Texas Legislative Session and THLN's celebration of 50 years at the Capitol! While most bills will not begin to move until March, opening week is a crucial time to introduce THLN and its agenda to the new members of the Texas Legislature.
"Our focus this session is to advance: Our Ethical Pet Sales Bill; Improving Spay/Neuter License Plate Funding & Bringing Telemedicine to Texas to address the severe veterinarian shortage in our state'." The note also says, "We are also committed to stopping harmful legislation, such as repealing protections for dogs and cats in large-scale breeding facilities or shielding pet store owners who lease and/or sell sick, defective, and expensive puppies and kittens."
You can read more about the organization's efforts, needs and goals by going to www.thln.org and navigating to the various areas of interest. There's also a place to donate to the support the work on behalf of animals.
THE CHALLENGES ARE NOT
JUST IN TEXAS,  WE HEAR
FROM OUR OKLAHOMA PAL
Call this a weatherproofing-the-animals project.
Our contact is the enduring rescuer in far western Oklahoma, the tough Terry Lynn Fisher of Burns Flat.
Her Tuesday morning note had several facets:
(1) TERRY LYNN WROTE: "They are predicting for Sunday, the coldest weather this winter yet. It’s going to be near zero with negative windchill factors. Possibility of snow off and on for the next three weeks after Sunday. 
(2) "We are needing some straw to put in the houses. I use blankets as well, but I know when the temperatures get this bad, the straw seems to do better. Also, we try to feed a little more in the winter because it helps produce more fat to keep them warm."
(3) "We’ve been searching for dog houses again. So many people don’t have any, so if anybody has any used dog houses they’d like to donate, please let me know. I’ll figure out a way to make arrangements to get them. ..."
At one point in her requests, Terry Lynn discussed dealing with challenges in Burns Flat and wrote, "I feel like I’m back 22 years ago when I first started trying to save these animals. All of that on top of the health issues are really, really getting to me."
And she ended with this continuing mission in her life: "If anyone can help with any of these items, please let me know. We’re going to try to get a few more kennels as well, to put out at the barn to try to keep some of these animals off the streets."
To get in touch with Terry Lynn, email [email protected].
CONTEMPLATIONS
THE ANIMALS AND THE PEOPLE....
Continuing from our opening today: Animals I understand. It's the "don't care" and "don't care to learn" and "that isn't my job" people who puzzle me. Any veteran rescuers like to offer a theory? Email dallrp@ aol.com.
Ever tell the story of a dumped litter rescued from a park and had somebody exclaim, "Why I never heard of such a thing!"?  NOTE: I'm going to be on this soapbox for a little bit. Read on.
How does anybody go through life without seeing the challenges and dangers that face animals because of the stupid or mean behavior of humans?
It would be nice, in this century, to develop a way to convince people to care.
ON TUESDAY MORNING I ran across a local entry on Facebook by a veteran rescuer/animal advocate.
She posted some photographs of dogs on the Code Red list at the Fort Worth shelter and wrote:
"FWACC (Fort Worth Animal Care and Control) sends out a last call list of 33 while HSNT (Humane Society of North Texas) sends out a plea for fosters to bring dogs here from California. Don’t get me wrong: What’s happening in California is terrible but why would you bring them to a city so over-crowded with pets that they are euthanizing daily. Can we make it make sense?"
Here's a link that gets you to a site called Raising Awareness For Urgent. Shelter Dogs
https://www.facebook.com/RaisingTheBarUrgentDFWShelterDogs
Probably can navigate to some shelter cats, too.
Look quickly! After all, as we've learned in our adult years, when it comes to dogs and cats, there's a "time limit" on sheltering. Thanks to humans -- and I am one (according to some theories and not all)  but, gee whiz... my species already has enough stuff to be ashamed of.  Killing animals to make space for the next animals who are going to be killed is despicable human behavior. Save 'em all.

 

 

 

 

 

-- Offer solutions by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected]. ---

 

 

 

 

 

DOG WITH CUTE EARS; A TYPE OF CAT; A COACH FOR THE COWBOYS; METRODOME?

EDITION OF MONDAY, JAN. 13, 2025 [PetPowellPress] I may have some humbug left over from the previous
holiday season. I base that assessment on how I was quickly fed up with the snow and the cold and the terrifying predictions of roadway apocalypse for days at a time.
We'll get to the idea of doming the Metroplex in Contemplations.....
[PARDON ME A SECOND... Had to call a 'time-out.' ...I just had two dogs wake in the office and a pair of cats saunter in for EMTD -- Extra Morning Treat Disruption -- sorry, I mean to type "distribution"..... OK, resuming....]
A DOG NAMED REGGIE
CAME IN WITH .......
[LARRY ASIDE: "Came in with what? With what?" I can hear you demanding. Read on. Free of charge.]
That's part of the story of Reggie from Judi Brown, one of our Volunteer Dog-Writing Tipsters at Mesquite Animal Services.
The basics are Reggie is #57605995 at Mesquite -- he's a 5-month-old, 18-pound "fawn-colored" Shepherd/Black Mouth Cur mix. Ah, but this next part of his description by Judi may just be the part that captures a human heart and gives Reggie a Home. She writes, that he has "unique, crazy ears and a fun-loving personality."
But here is what he came in with: On Jan. 8 he was "brought in by one of our officers" and Reggie "limps on his left hind leg." Judi writes, "You can notice it when he’s walking, but if he’s running it’s hardly noticeable. He will be taken to the vet to have this checked out. This little guy is frisky, wiggly, happy, and very friendly. He seeks attention. If you’re not paying attention to him he whines. He occasionally jumps on you but gets down when told to do so."
Judi also says that Reggie takes treats "gently" and then sits patiently "in anticipation of another one."
Again, Reggie is #57605995 when you telephone the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email rescues@ cityofmesquite.com.
You can see many more Mesquite animals by clicking on the shelter's website here.
[LARRY ASIDE: We clicked on that link this morning and found this cat Frankie. Our philosophy is "All homes need a black and white cat and all black and white cats need that good home!"




We dedicate this to the great black and white cats of our past -- and the current star of the household, our boy Stevie Ray Treeboy, formerly of Oak Cliff. Black and white cats are their own breed, so to speak.]
CONTEMPLATIONS
SOME MONDAY MANEUVERS THROUGH THE CURIOSITY CALLED A 'BRAIN.'....
OK, the bulletin just arrived (about 11:30 a.m. Monday) that the Dallas Cowboys have excused another coach from further participation. Hello, Rex Ryan? Got time to coach Dallas? [LARRY ASIDE: Ok, I've got experience coaching kids in baseball and soccer and I played second and third team tackle in junior high football -- I'll take the job, Mr. Jones. Pay me half of what you gave the last guy. I'll need a driver and a no-firing clause until I win the Super Bowl. It'll read like your GM contract. I promise that if I'm selected the team will go vegetarian and I'll ban that goofy choreographed celebration in the end zone after a touchdown. We'll play football, not pretend.] Whew. Glad I got all that off my mind. I can start writing The Lesser American Novel again. ...
ABOUT MY HUMBUG MOOD AND THE WEATHER...Looking back through the years of weather I've seen and my time in public school, I will assert that there are only two real reasons for snow in our part of Texas: (1) Dress up the area for the Christmas season (2) Get kids some time out of school so they can dodge tests in Latin, Algebra, English and Biology. Yeah, I personalized that second reason. ....
CAN WE DOME THE METROPLEX? Yes. We should. You saw last week's weather challenges. It is high time to "DOME THE METROPLEX." Ever see Logan's Run, that 1976 futuristic film shot in Dallas and Fort Worth? Doming a city! If it can happen in Hollywood, it can happen in North Texas. Besides, putting the dome gates on the freeways might help control traffic. And the dome could be decorated like an umbrella. The Umbrella of Irony, when you think about how wet is gets around here the rest of the year. Have to change the river's name to The Trinity Canal. OK, I need a time-out to get control of my thought. Yep, singular. Thought. I'm sure this dome idea doesn't qualify as "thoughts."
---- Offer ideas or doubts or MetroDome entry fees by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected]. ----

ONCE UPON A TIME? THE RETURN OF THE LASHES AND OTHER NOTES ABOUT A DOG

Ever look at a loving face across the room and declare, "I oughta write a book about ... (Fill in the name HERE._)"
The opening "Once upon a time...." has already been used.

And, probably someone has borrowed from Charles Dickens and begun a chapter about house-training a puppy with, "She was the best of dogs, she was the worst of dogs."
[LARRY ASIDE: If you didn't laugh at that, it's OK. Change the "She" to "He" and try again! OK, moving along: The thrust of the sentence was lifted from Dickens'  1859 novel A Tale of Two Cities."]
Anyway, I'm sure many people have been inspired to write about dogs and cats and horses and cows and pigs and ... well, you get the drift.
That's a  10-year-old photo of my personal dog Porche Noel  and my right eye -- I've had her as a loyal companion since Christmas of 2009.
When you have a beloved dog that long, you may realize at some point that you long ago quit thinking of her as "the dog" and began to hold her in your heart as partner-in-daily-challenges.
This week I noticed that Porche had regained something she had when we first opened the door and she came into the house to claim our hearts,
I took the photos so there's a chance that you may not clearly see what's returned --- when we got her, she had white lashes on her left eye. They vanished for years and now they're back, a reminder of the little mistreated dog we took in a decade-
and-a-half ago.
She's still charmingly adorable enough though to get to her favorite spot on the couch with human help. As she places her front paws on a "carpeted step" either I or Martha must gently hoist her hefty backside up so she can "two-step"  onto the couch. Porche and I bond in these lift exercises -- two ol' dogs trying not to fall apart before we can nap.
[LARRY ASIDE: I'd like to meet the bleep who mistreated her so horribly before she was either dumped or escaped and found her way to our front porch. If I weren't such a gentleman, I'd considere whaling the Dickens out of him. But that would be wrong. His punishment is to have never known this great dog who might inspire a book some day!'
We'll close by quoting Dickens' opening to A Tale of Two Cities. He began, “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.”
I didn't read that until I was well beyond my college years.  (That's Porche not long afer she arrived at our house  all those years ago. She owned the couch then, too.)
I skipped my Junior College English Lit class the day we were supposed to examine Dickens because I had to be on the clock at my 20th century newspaper job covering either a car wreck, a shooting or a speech by a local dignitary with eyes on the presidency. At any rate, hewing to the Dickensian theme, our theory is Porche has only ever lived in two towns.

Thus, when you look at her happy wag you can think: A Tail of Two Cities. She may smile
-- she gets treats if she laughs at my jokes.
[DEAR READERS: Porche and I and our gang of featured dogs and cats urge you to snap photos of your own sleeping feline and canine and any other "kine" of friends and send the photos and their stories to [email protected]. We're proud to display them in our internationally-read weekend feature Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap. Tell the world how great your critters are!]

CELEBRATING STRAYS WHO, WHEN ADOPTED, MAKE THEIR NEW HOMES GREATER FOR THE HUMAN HEART

EDITION OF THURSDAY, JAN. 9, 2025 [PetPowellPress] Whoa, remember how relentlessly hot it was last summer.
I'm a native Texan, born two blocks inside the state line. So in the years I've been around, I have learned the difference between winter and summer for Texans. It's this: We know that winter will end in a few hours or, at most, a few days. But in July and August you might not be sure that the heat of summer is ever going to end at all!
Our question of the day? How important are stray dogs and cats? Answer with your heart. And read on... I'm using two of our former strays to illustrate this segment -- Dudley The Angel, a big ol' dog, and Porche Noel, a smaller variety. Strays. When you think about "strays," use your heart to see the companions you can have whose mere presence gives you inspiration to love a dog or a cat whose only know history is one word: "stray."
Remember, area shelters are full of dogs and cats -- many are strays, many are "dumped." After winter storms? Likely to be more that dug out of yards or darted through open doors and ran for their lives during a fireworks "attack" beyond their comprehension. Bless their hearts.
HIS NAME IS RUGER. HIS TALE?
'PICKED UP AS A STRAY'
Majestic dog with fascinating eyes, isn't he.
We learned of him from Mesquite Animal Shelter volunteer dog-biographer Debra Chisholm who has met him an worked with him.
He was, Debra wrote, "Picked up by one of ur officers as a stray on Jan. 4. ...." He is "primarily a Louisiana Catahoula Leopard Dog, weighing 60 pounds and approx one year old."
In writing about Ruger, Debra said, ""The words that come to mind in describing his behavior are inquisitive, curious, and investigative. In the yard, he had his nose continually to the ground, as well as looking out the gate and over the wall. In the room where I did his video, he heard activity in the hallway and through the windows into the lobby and he was so interested in knowing what was going on.  He also stood at the windows, looking out into the parking lot and was observing what was going on there. I have seldom seen a dog as engaged with his surroundings as Ruger!"
Beyond that, Ruger is said to walk well on a leash, probably is house-trained, and, though he doesn't know commands, Debra writes "He has a confident outgoing personality. Ruger was a bit restless during the time I spent with him. He appears to have been well taken care of. He has a beautiful coat and the most stunning blue eyes. ... He really resisted being put back into his kennel, and who can blame him? He needs assistance in leaving the shelter life behind, so please network or tag at [email protected], typing in the subject line TAG, ID 57577948. Interested but need more information? Then please call 972-216-6283 or email at [email protected]."
[LARRY ASIDE: I used several Ruger photos -- they speak for him better than I can type for him. Thanks for the work, Debra! That's from all the strays at our house.]
Judi Brown, Debra's colleague in volunteer dog-writing at Mesquite, took on the challenge of photographing this girl Harper.


Judi explains, "Harper wants to be near you. I had a difficult time taking pictures of her because she kept me going around in circles. She is a 1- to 2-year-old Plott Hound/Black Mouth Cur mix that weighs 63 pounds and arrived at the Mesquite Animal Shelter on 1/4 -- brought in by one of our officers.
"She has recently had a litter." [LARRY ASIDE: Geez, I wonder why she was picked up by an officer... Think "human failure as an animal person" might be involved?]

Judi says that Harper "appeared to be timid in her kennel, but once she got out in the yard she came to life! She was frisky and was attempting to entice me to play with her. She does fetch and retrieve balls. She sits for treats and takes them gently. She comes when you call her. She’s friendly, outgoing, active, and affectionate. She didn’t have a problem meeting other dogs. She walked OK on a leash."
Harper is #57577621 -- cite that ID when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email [email protected].
ONE MORE STRAY? Judi reports, "I got carried away taking photos of this goofy, fun-loving puppy. She was so photogenic and very entertaining. Dazzle will truly dazzle you with her personality and her cuteness. She is a 5-month-old, 23-pound, blue-eyed Carolina Dog that arrived at the Mesquite Animal Shelter as a stray on 1/4. She would be the perfect dog for a young family that is active and would play with her. You can’t help but smile being around her. She’s a regular wiggle worm. ... She sits for treats and takes them gently. She does jump on you but gets down when told to do so. ..."
To ask the shelter about Dazzle, cite her ID #57576945 when call 972-216-6283 or email [email protected].
You can see Judi's entire bio report by going to Dazzle's listing on the Mesquite Shelter website. Click on this:
https://www.cityofmesquite.com/1239/Animals-in-the-Shelter. Then navigate to the adoptables.
There are many, many more available at Mesquite. I thought I'd close with this boy Zayn. Striking face at such a young age!!!

And as long as your on that Mesquite shelter site, you can see the volunteer-written biographies of these dogs by scrolling through the list of adorable adoptables. Look for Lab mix Dixie (#57560679); Mixed Breed Minnie Mae (#57565669); Shiba Inu/Kelpie mix Gus (#57574325) and "Speckled Lab mix Murphy (357574115).
[LARRY ASIDE: Thanks to the hustling dog-writers for the great work and the cat link. You'd think that there are enough people now living in the Metro area to give a good home to every animal in every shelter by the time the Winter of '25 Thaw sets in.]
CONTEMPLATIONS
ASSORTED NOTES OF STUFF AND STRAYS
Way back in the early '70s I took a job as a reporter at a tabloid newspaper called The Fort Worth Press. I started that job in December and a month later I first heard a very special local term for cold and wet conditions: "Stock Show Weather." The 2025 Fort Worth Stock Show and Rodeo runs Jan. 17-Feb. 8, so, the current conditions are, so to a speak, just a "warm-up act" for this year's Stock Show weather. ...
SPEAKING OF TRADITIONS:  Somebody move the Cotton Bowl back to the Cotton Bowl. It will help get the Earth back on its axis. Open some new malls, too. That'll help with the American equilibrium. ....
BACK TO STRAYS: Among the hundreds of news stories and feature stories I may see each day, was this one on Thursday morning.
I've copied the headline and the photo and here is the LINK THAT CONNECTED me to the story. It immediately had me contemplating because

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

we currently live with three formerly stray dogs who have given us a lifetime-and-a-half of joy. In the 33 years Martha and I have been married, we've adopted a lot of dogs and cats and quite a few were strays -- all dignified enough to be involved in international negotiations for peace on earth. Honest! 
--- Offer genius ideas or whatever you can come up with to benefit the planet by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected]. ---

BIG DOG, LITTLE DOGS, NEGLECTED ANIMALS -- THEY ALL NEED SOME HELP FROM HUMANS

True or false: Major holidays in the middle of two weeks in a row are disruptive. They add confusion to the preceding weekend and the subsequent Monday and Tuesday and the following Thursday and Friday and the next weekend, Monday-Tuesday before the second  Wednesday holiday and the following Thursday, Friday and, maybe even that whole next weekend, too.
And -- hang on, I've lost track of my calenderical disarray.
I'm not sure there's such a word as calendarical -- Oh, it's calendrical. I'm so addled I can't find my  Dictionary of Mournfully Clever Expressions.
I don't have a scientific study to support my assertion of befuddlement but, personally, the last two weeks have been brain-bogglers to me. I'm about as focused as a hungry squirrel in a pecan-bagging factory.
OK, Senior Office Cat William Powell, giving me a stern, pink-nosed glare, snapped, "Move along, navelgazer."
SINCERE ANIMAL NOTE
FROM SINCERE ANIMALS
For purposes of illustration of the situation, this is a formerly unwanted dog. My fiercely articulate rescuespouse talked
her off the streets of Oak Cliff in 2009 as the little puppy ran trying to keep up with people who didn't want her. Since that
day, this dog Wendy has been loved, fed, protected in awful weather and cuddled and adored by humans and other animals -- dogs and cats.
I mention this as an unusual introduction to the seasonal appeal for anyone who qualifies as a numbskull -- not that there'd be any in the Metrosprawl -- to properly shield your animals from the hellish challenges of cold and miserable weather. Serious, what kind of idiots are you to think "Fido loves the snow" or "Kitty will curl up in a warm place." On the other side of your front, back or side doors, there is NO WARM, SAFE PLACE in Texas winter and no cool place in a Texas summer. It's a year-round privilege to protect and love your animals.
If you know people with a lack of sensitivity to the suffering of their animals in wintry conditions, please remind them to protect their animals by keeping them indoors, warm and well fed and watered. And if they don't, you can discretely, as we used to say in the age of phone booths, "DROP A DIME ON 'EM." It's against the law in Texas to let winter hurt or kill your animals. (That's not how the law reads, but it makes a point, right?)
You got a friend that's a peace officer or who works in the ER at a hospital? Ask 'em how kids and animals get treated in some homes in lousy weather. There are enough mistreated kids and dogs to make you go sour on humanity. Help me off this soapbox before I snap a slat and need a forklift to get to the emergency room.
'HELPING TWO LITTLES'
WAS THE APPEAL'S HEADLINE...
Our longtime pal, the legendary foster mom Patty Sprong, tipped us to this situation with a note that read, "Ugh. Urgent help needed for two Chis. Owner dying. Family leaving before storm. Foster or rescue needed!"
You can see the entire story of Petey and Piper at THIS LINK:
https://www.facebook.com/tamara.hunt.773
Petey the Chihuahua is 6 years old, weighs about 18 pounds, might need some medical shot updates but is neutered. He's "shy at first but warms up quickly." Friendly with kids, the relative of the owner reports.
Piper is 8 years old and weighs about 18 pounds. Neutered. "Loves to run and play>" Friendly with kids. "Lively and affectionate dog who thrives in an environment with lots of attention and play."
There's more on the Tamara link.
Here's a situation summary from the link: "Owner in hospital dying. Niece is town (lives out-of-state) trying to help. But she drove and is trying to leave first thing in the morning to beat the snow. Just received the email pleading for help last night. Sigh. Another rescue can take one but not both? Anyone want to foster or rescue?"
HELPING A BIG DOG
FIND A HAPPY RESULT
We saw this courtesy of our ol' pal, the veteran animal rescuer and advocate Maeleska Fletes
The great organization DFW's FurGotten Friends is looking for home and help for this mannerly dog Murphy.
The appeal reads, "Start the Year Right with Murphy!" and continues, "Murphy is a sweet, smart, and eager-to-learn 1.5–
2-year-old BIG boy who’s ready to find his forever home!
"He gets along well with other dogs but is still learning to stay calm when he sees them on a leash. Murphy already knows a few basic commands and is picking up new ones quickly—he’s a fast learner! "He’s also working hard on his leash manners during walks.
"Don’t let his size fool you—Murphy thinks he’s Chihuahua-sized and would love to be your oversized lap dog.
"We’re seeking someone with experience handling Great Danes or other large breeds who can continue his training. If this gentle giant sounds like the perfect match for you, contact us today!"
The e-mail is [email protected].
See more on the Furgotten Friends Facebook page HERE:
https://www.facebook.com/DFWFGF
CONTEMPLATIONS
ASSORTED NOTES IN 2025
When a person is disorganized after two weeks of Wednesday holidays, his desk is a pile of "needs-to-be-neatened" mail, reading material, eyeglasses, pens and documents guaranteed to make getting your car and pickup exams and licenses a snap. Hah. ...
Our dog Wendy and our dog Porche have found warm places to sleep -- between me and Martha. Senior Office Cat William Powell sleeps on top of me for about two hours a night. He arrives in the middle of the night. How do I know? I sleep on my back. And where he lands after his jump onto the bed is personally alarming, not just personally awsakening. The dogs keep snoring through the pain. ...
SERIOUS NOTE: Bless you folks in California. In our part of Texas right now we're just worried about the potential snow and and ice this week. Lots of Texans ache for you as you face the certainty of raging fire. Bless your hearts and keep you all safe and help nature douse the blazes when the dramatically tough firefighters need some Heavenly help.
--- Offer opinions or ideas by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected]. ---

ONCE UPON AN ODD MORNING, THERE WAS THIS MODERN (?) CHALLENGE....

EDITION OF TUESDAY, JAN. 7-8, 2025 [PetPowellPress] Anybody reading this remember the "good ol' days" when you could call in sick and just take a day off to consider the fate of mankind, spaceflights and whether cable TV was worth the money? Yeah, I never did that, either. However. today....Well moving along.
Time out. I have to give Porche Noel a treat. She's more of a companion than she is a counselor. Moving back to the topic.
This wasn't one of those kind of days, i.e., "Phone in and escape." 
I'm all grown up now. I can't crawl out of a window and disappear across the high school campus to avoid a test -- Back to today: Clearly I'm not physically sick, so I thought I'd change the thrust of my call to the office.
I called in "disgusted." But, when the phone was answered, there I was on the other end of the line. I went ahead with my plan and said to myself, "Give me a few hours to get some things in order. I'll get back to the mission when I'm focused today."
 Here's the deal, the catalyst, the fuse on the mental bomb of a post-middle-aged Baby Boomer is a futuristic necessity in a grownups life. Get ready to cringe with sympathy: My debit card failed to work. It was on a less-than $15 purchase at a grocery store this morning.
My beloved CARD didn't pass muster in two attempts. In error (as it turns out), I blamed the card. The card's response was silent. The machine kept rejecting it and the pin number.
 This was a $15 pruchase -- I paid with cash. After all, as a longtime newspaper journalist, I am quite possibly one of the most wealthy individuals in the known universe. 
Perhaps I exaggerate. But I know that I do have enough socked away in a credit union to buy $15 worth of small ice cream cones and a couple of other items -- I already have ice cream. I shouldn't eat it, but I like to have it around for coping with emotional crises. You know, soothe with food -- it's my Fat Man's Motto. 
And Ice cream -- it's like television. Most of it I don't like but I still like to have it around the house.
So after a long drive on expensive gasoline, I got to the ol' credit union and a reliable staffer helped me test the card. Seemed to work. 
And this veteran of dealing with panicked people from the previous century declared, "It looks like it's the store's machine."
I'd driven to the CU alone -- I'd have taken Senior Office Cat Bob but, in a public situation, he is all-tough Texas lawyer, i.e., prone to speak harshly to strangers who aren't his clients. That's him curled up and sleeping in my Sharpspouse Martha's recliner.
I'd have taken Porche the Dear Dog with me, but she, too, has a harsh way of speaking her opinion -- usually involves a clean-up with mops, a disinfectant spray, paper bags and her smiling apologies for "letting myself go." 
I'm kidding about taking the dog and the cat -- neither of them travels without their attorneys.
In summation, the world is back in order, i.e., my card is working. I don't know about the grocery store's machine.
In my trapped-in-the-past Baby Boomer 20th century mind, I still think of the debit card as a "new trend" but I found a story on line that outlines the history of chipped cards from way back. It says there were cards in the 1970s but it wasn't until 2015 that U.S. banks added chips to their cards.
HERE'S THE LINK TO THE EXPLANATION....
And, now, I think I may go have a small cone with vanilla ice cream. I don't need anything more elaborate at this stage of the 21st Century. It is so good, even on a cold, cold day. Porche always wakes for ice cream...
May you Dear Readers and all your animals have a wonderful day, week, month and the remainder of the year and all the years from now on. 
I shall now excuse myself to stare in a mirror and ignore the siren call of the ice cream. 
Be kind to animals. Cope happily with the 21st Century.

AS THE NEW CALENDAR TAKES OVER, PLENTY OF ANIMALS WAIT FOR A RESCUE DATE

EDITION OF MONDAY/TUESDAY JAN. 6-7, 2025 [PetPowellPress] How about that typing! Got 2025 right! Dodged the 2024 mishap!
A 21st century reality? I loved snow in my childhood but perhaps I've become not so fond of it in 2025. The joy of snow may fade with age and the amount of time you're required to spend driving on a Dallas/Fort Worth freeway. [NOTE TO TRAFFIC SCIENTISTS: Dallas/Fort Worth doesn't need slippery weather to score a boatload of car and truck crashes.]
I thought I'd dress up this opening with two creatures and a plug-in tree not suited for an outdoor experience during a "snow event."
That is Junior Office Cat Stevie Ray Treeboy, born in a warm spring in Oak Cliff, Texas. He does -- absolutely -- love air-conditioning.
Here we go other notes for today's edition:
WHAT TO DO THIS YEAR
IF YOU DIDN'T DO IT LAST YEAR...
I think I can summarize that answer in one sentence: Get your dogs and cats up to date on their medical care and,
especially their spay and neuter needs.
If you're within driving distance of Gun Barrel City -- and who isn't these days since all the roads are paved! -- the answer is given consistently by Friends of the Animals at Cedar Creek Lake.
They operate the world's most successful spay-neuter clinic in Gun Barrel City, Texas. But that's not all they do at the Friends Clinic.
Our reliable source, Friends Guiding Light Sydney Busch, sent a reminder that from 10 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. Saturday (already the 11th of January), the Clinic will provide "Affordable vaccinations, heartworm testing, microchipping, more! No appointment necessary. Questions? Call me at one of the numbers below."
Those Sydney numbers are 903-451-4701 or (cell#) 214-808-4701.
More info about the work of the Friends and the clinic is on the website at www.friendsoftheanimals.org and on Facebook HERE.
MEANWHILE, RESCUE-ONLY CLARK
NEEDS "IMMEDIATE RESCUE"
He's "rescue-only" for medical reasons. Read on. The story of Clark comes from our longtime tipster Judi Brown -- she's among the volunteer dog biographers who work so hard to get attention for the animals waiting for a new home in the Mesquite Animal Services Shelter.
Clark is #575431853 in Mesquite. Use that DI number when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email [email protected]
Judi writes, "Please note that Clark is Rescue ONLY due to medical issues and on the urgent list through no fault of his own. The shelter is overcrowded.
"He is a 1-year-old, 66-pound handsome German Shepherd with captivating eyes that arrived at the Mesquite Animal shelter on 12/30. He came in as a stray.
"He has been taken to a vet and diagnosed to have a dislocated hip which will require surgery. At this point he has been dewormed and given pain medication. I’m told he spends most of time laying down in his kennel. However, he walked out to the yard and spent considerable time walking around.
"He favors his left hind leg. He’s a little beggar because once he knew I had treats he stayed close

sniffing my smock pocket. I believe he probably knows the sit command. He even picked up a ball trying
to entice me to play. He took his time wandering around the yard investigating with his nose, but for the
most part stayed close to me. He’s alert, curious and seeks attention.
"The staff has described him as sweet. He appears to be happy. He is dog reactive so if you have another dog you will need to ask the shelter for a dog test. It’s most likely he will need to be the only pet in the household..."
SEE MORE MESQUITE ADOPTABLES by going to the SHELTER WEBSITE HERE.
 You can click around and find lots of dogs AND cats. See our opening item in CONTEMPLATION.

CONTEMPLATIONS
NAMES, CATS, TEMPS....
I'm fascinated with cats that look like my Junior Office Cat Stevie Ray, so when I opened the collection of Mesquite kittens on Monday morning, there sat this little black and white fellow with a pink nose. (See the opening photo today to get a look at Stevie Ray.)
The Mesquite kitten is available in the Conference Room at the shelter -- I've never known a cat who couldn't handle the intellectual load at an important meeting in a newsroom, a conference room, a bank, Congress or the White House.
Anyway, why don't I go get this cat? Because we're all booked-up at our place and, more importantly, he already has a name. Howl. Our Senior Office Cat is William Powell -- in honor of the actor. I'm not sure I could handle walking into the house and calling out "HOWL!!!!!" It would just confuse the dogs. ...
OH, WINTER..LAY OFF, WILL YA? The dogs and cats are wonderfully warm and comfy as I type this...but my fingers are so cold I'm thinking of taking a side job at a dairy just to keep my hands warm! Not really -- I don't have the capacity to work on a diary farm -- neither mental nor physical capacity. I can't balance on one of those little 3-legged stools while grabbing for the spigot! ...
OK, SO THE Dallas Cowboys closed the season with another clunker. What can ya say except that the team has been waiting for next year so long that all the "I'M WAITING FOR NEXT YEAR' shirts have faded and fall apart in the laundry.
--- OFFER GRIDIRON ADVICE by clicking 'comment' below or send an email to [email protected] and smile. ---

CATS DISCOVER HOW TO SLEEP AND ENJOY TV & COMPANIONSHIP (without spending a dime)

There is a tranquility to cats that can be guiltlessly envied by a human.
It has to do with sleeping and napping.
These two cats are periodically photographed in the catagory of "cats being cats." Thus they are spotlighted in this edition of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap.
The smaller cat is the older cat, my Senior Office Cat William Powell. The larger cat is Hastings Streetboy, rescued as a tiny, tiny kitten with marble-sized globules dangling off his eyes.
How'd I get these photos? Absolute luck. I happened to walk into the bedroom Friday afternoon and discovered that the cats had divided up our bed and gone to snoozeville.

THE WILLIAM STORY? I met William when I was actually outside, actually on a ladder, actually doing labor I'm not qualified to do. It was way back in 2018 that William and I repainted the wood trim on our home. That's how we met. I was up on a ladder balanced in loose dirt in the brick planter that stretched across the front of the house. 
This full grown cat wandered up, saw me on a ladder and sat down on the front walkway to wait for the spectacle of a fat man with no sense of balance falling toward the dirt and flowers but missing and hitting the concrete sidewalk. He was very helpful, mewing encouragingly loud each time I took a step. I didn't fall; he needed a home --- it all worked out. He may have been some kind of Licensed Cat Foreman at the time.
Years later (in 2021) I was running an errand In Duncanville and saw the tiniest of kittens trying to figure out how to cross a city street. His vision was obscured by two nearly marble-sized globules of who-knows-what dangling from where his eyes were supposed to be. He heard me walking toward him and he ran toward the other side of Hastings Street, bounced off the curb, got up and jumped (inexplicably!) to the top of the curb. Then he ran into a flowerbed and stopped. That's when I reached in and picked him up.
He became very calm as I held him and rubbed his back and tummy gently while I drove him to the Pet Medical Center of Duncanville.
Those dear folks immediately began cleaning up the weeks-old kitten and his eyes. 
 After a night or so with the vet, I took the fully doctored kitten home. Martha bottle-fed him for a month or so and helped him learn all the skills he'd need to survive as a tiny kitten in a home with humans. I think he already had the ability to purr, but Martha's got teaching skills. 
And, clearly, Martha taught him well. He knows how and when to eat, how and when to visit "the facility" and how to make friends with cats and dogs. 
So, there you have it -- Martha and I paid a lot for a bed with more push button controls than a spaceship just so cats and dogs could be comfortable at any point in a day. We didn't really know that when we handed over the credit card, but that's how it turned out. Happy cats and dogs in bed as they watch the big screen TV across the room.
And in two of those photos, taken only seconds apart, you can see that I snapped one picture as William yawned and, mere seconds later, snapped a photo of Hastings yawning. Just dumb luck.
[DEAR READERS: Send snoozing pictures of your photogenic dogs, cats and other critters to [email protected] and we'll present them to the world via Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap. We love to hear your stories of your critters and why you love them.]

DOGS, CATS, PEOPLE, FOOTBALL, BASEBALL -- ANY OTHER WORDS YOU'D LIKE TO SEE?

[EDITION OF FRIDAY, JAN. 3, 2025 [PetPowellPress] Hang on a second. I was about to start typing when Porche Noel came scratching at the office door and I let her in. Then I had to move her bed to the side of my chair. Some mornings
she's happy on the bed when it's near the open door; sometimes she wants to be where she can look up at me as I try to type. The treat payoff is better when she's close enough to pet.
This position is her "If you have a snack, this is where I am" position.
She was a free dog, you know. Dallas has always had an abundance of free dogs on the streets -- it's not because Dallas has a lot of generous people handing out second-hand free dogs to residents. I use the term "handing out" loosely. "I hope ol' Kitty can find a home," is the attitude, as is "We can always get another dog at the shelter if Spot don't come back. I told him not to go visit that girl dog while she was in heat!"
Yeah, after all these years of observation, evidence supports this declaration: "The problem with animals is people."
My Senior Office Cat William Powell heard me type "treat payoff" and suddenly he was at my right hand. He'd been napping.
More in Contemplations because William's all snacked-up and ready to advise.
A QUICK EXIT NEEDED
FOR HOUSTON DOGS....
We got the story of these dogs from our longtime Houston tipster Alexandra Kelsey. She's been touch with Teresa Bowman, the rescue coordinator at the Harris County Pets Resource Center.
AK's note explains, "The dogs have tentative interest from an adopter and a rescue, but no matter what, they have to be out of the Harris County shelter by Monday."
The story is that Sweet Pea (left) and Gracie (below) "grew up together and when their mom died, they went to Harris County, where they aren’t able to be kenneled together.  They are so happy when they get a chance to see each other and hang out for a bit.
Gracie and Sweet Pea are adorable and clearly love each other to pieces. 
"The shelter staff are crazy about this pair and hope they have a home together for the rest of their lives."
To ask about helping them, call Teresa Bowman at 281-999-3191 or email [email protected]. [LARRY ASIDE: We suspect Teresa helped Sweet Pea pen this bio for himself and sister Gracie."]
Sweet Pea's bio reads, "I'm a mellow fellow, preferring quiet moments to wild adventures. ... I've always been the independent type, but I've got a soft spot for a good cuddle. You see, my heart is full of love to give and so is Gracie’s. We may be a seniors, but that just means we’ve had more time to perfect my cuddle technique. My wish? To find a home where I can share my golden years, offering companionship and unconditional love with my sister Gracie and a new family, we have been together all of our lives. Rescue / Adopt us, and I promise we will  be the sweetest peas in your pod."
Again, to ask about Sweet Pea and Gracie, call Teresa Bowman at 281-999-3191 or email [email protected].
A CUDDLER AND A CUTIE?
QUESO BLANCO!
We got the story on this little guy from veteran Mesquite dog biographer Debra Chisholm. Here's Debra's story and

some photos.
"This adorable mixed breed pup was named Queso Blanco," she wrote, then explained. "He was found in a shopping center near a Mexican restaurant (hence the name) ... close to a busy intersection on 12/31. A citizen brought him to the shelter."
Queso is #57553725 at the shelter. To ask about him, cite that ID when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email [email protected].

"Queso weighs 16 pounds and is approximately 2 1/2 months old. He is currently rescue only due to his age. He is a high-spirited little fellow with plenty of puppy energy and behavior. He is very
friendly, sociable, affectionate, and gives kisses! He just thoroughly enjoys being around and interacting with people! He will 'talk' to you. This youngster is very playful and loves toys and balls. He will entertain himself and you with his antics.
"When I tried to give him treats, he would toss them in the air and play with them rather than eating them.
"He was vaccinated and micro-chipped upon arrival. You will notice that he has a skin issue and loss of hair. A skin scrape determined he does not have mange and is not contagious. He has been given a NexGuard to begin treating the skin issue and was given a medicated shampoo bath today." And Debra closed with "Won’t you please help this charming pup's stay at the shelter be a short one?"
There are other dogs and cats waiting in the Mesquite Shelter and you can read their bios and see their photos by clicking on the Animals-in-the-Shelter link HERE. . We even have a little follow-up in CONTEMPLATIONS....Keep on keepin' on. And, of course, Queso Blanco keep on cuddlin'!

CONTEMPLATIONS
A CAT AND SOME OTHER STUFF....
LARRY'S CAT CONTEMPLATION: When I opened the Mesquite Animal Shelter's available animals listings, I saw this
little guy Gerald (#57495820), a 4-and-a-half-month old fellow who came in on Dec. 19. He's available to light up
human lives and a good home --just adopt him and enjoy a purrfect pal. And, one of the reasons I grabbed his photo and wrote about him is personal: He looks almost exactly like a little yowling only-weeks-old kitten I pulled out of a mimosa tree about five years ago: This next photo is our sweet big cat on the arm of his couch -- yep that's

Junior Office Cat Stevie Ray Treeboy. We do not worry about a maternity suit from young Gerald. Nope, Stevie Ray hasn't had to sweat that for years. We always spay or neuter our foundlings. I'd clone Stevie Ray, of course, so my own human clone would have a cat to sit with and watch old movies on the Turner Classics cable channel. We're both big fans of Myrna Loy and William Powell, the actor who inspired the naming of our Senior Office Cat William Powell. Such a sophisticate....
As the 2025 NFL regular season is ending this weekend, we'll quote former Coach Jimmy Johnson one more time: "How 'bout them Cowboys!" Stinking lousy record this season. So, after the season, may everybody who coached or played find good, high-paying wages for the 2025 season. Not that you'll need to, of course. ....
Word around the mediaplex is that the Texas Rangers' pitchers and catchers report for spring training in Surprise, Arizona, on Feb. 14, Valentine's Day. The Rangers open regular season at home against the Boston Red Sox on March 27. Not sure when the World Series will be played -- we'll just have to follow the Texas Rangers' post-season schedule. OK, enough daydreaming for a chilly day in January.
--- Offer advice or baseball tips by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected] and put 'THROW STRIKES AND SCARE THE BATTER' in the subject line. ---

 

A COLLECTION OF ANIMAL NOTES AND OTHER STUFF AS HOLIDAY SENSATIONS EASE OFF

EDITION OF THURSDAY/FRIDAY JAN. 2-3, 2025 [PETPOWELLPRESS] The new year has come and the world is a lot smarter in 2025 than it was in 2024. Wait. Let's rethink that assertion. I have no scientific or even observational findings to support that opening sentence.
Though, yes, I am happy to be here and grateful for all the wonderful animals and especially for all the great animal-people caught up in the continuing dramas and subsequent triumphs on behalf of animals.
[QUESTION FOR NEIGHBORHOOD BULLETIN BOARD READERS: Does you neighborhood link have a bunch of notes asking for help finding lost dogs and lost cats and saying that the last time they were seen was about the time all the fireworks started on New Year's Eve? Yeah, animal rescue people consistently warn area residents holiday-after-holiday about the dangers of storing -- that's what your trying to do, right? -- your dogs and cats outside during Fireworks Season. Bless those animals and remind their humans to be smarter and to protect them.]
HIGHLIGHTING A COUPLE
OF MESQUITE'S AVAILABLES
Thanks to volunteer dog-writer Judi Brown, we have these two biographies of dogs available at the Mesquite Animal Services shelter.
Remember, to ask about these animals, cite their ID numbers when you call the shelter at (972) 216-6283 or email

This first pup with the fabulous pose? That's Trudy -- she's #ID 57528862. Biographer Judi wrote, "Trudy is a fabulous girl! She is gentle, calm, well-mannered, and extremely sweet. She is a 2-year-old smokey gray 51-pound terrier pit that arrived at the Mesquite Animal Shelter on 12/27. She was brought in by one of our officers.
"When I got her into the yard she stayed close. She didn’t even wander around very much. She occasionally jumps on you but gets down when you tell her to. She just wants to be close. She sits for treats and takes them gently. She’s highly motivated by treats so should be very easy to train although I’m not so sure she needs any more training. She’s friendly, outgoing and seeks closeness."
Judi also provided the biography for this little guy Chip. She wrote, "I can’t believe that the owners of this sweet boy have not come for him. He won’t be at the shelter long so if you’re interested, come meet or tag him ASAP! He is a 3-year-old,18-pound Doxie that arrived at the Mesquite  Animal Shelter on 12/26 as a stray.
"He is timid so a slow introduction would be advisable. With TLC and a little bit of time he warms up and then he’s your BFF. He strolled around the yard casually and then spent most of his time near me or looking out the gate because there was some activity out there. This indicates he’s curious. He’s also sweet, gentle, and cautiously friendly. ... He was a little bit hesitant, but then other dogs were barking and I think he was intimidated by them. He wants to be an inside dog where he can spend quality time with his new loving family."
When you contact the shelter about Chip, his ID is #57524592.
See more Mesquite adoptables by clicking on THIS SHELTER LINK

MEANWHILE, NOT FAR WEST
OF DOWNTOWN DALLAS.....
Scores and scores of animals are waiting for homes -- or the needle -- at the City of Dallas Animal Services Shelter at 1818 N. Westmoreland at I-30 West, about 5 swift miles from downtown Dallas.
For today's edition of readlarrypowell.com, I clicked on this link to the Big D Big Shelter -- https://bedallas90.org -- and selected photos of six dogs and six cats who are on the clock there. It's up to humans to save their lives. Sounds blunt, but it's the truth.
Her are 12 of the many, many, many animals at DAS.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Sorry about the bluriness -- still working on solving the techno problem -- the answer isn't clear......so to speak...--LRP

CONTEMPLATIONS
ASSORTED NOTES FROM NOWHERE

FYI: As I attempted to tipe this editon's openhing pasuge, I realiced my tiepen and pondrin' are not yet done wif they ur lonk wheakhend. ("done with their long weekend.") That sentence of mistyped stuff really challenged my speLhing checker. ...
This morning I can't even type "long weekend" without needing a second chance. ...
My goal is to straighten up and type right. Stole that sentiment from a 1943 hit song by Nat King Cole -- Straighten Up and Fly Right. Baby Boomers who write to punish themselves for lack-of-achievement are allowed to enjoy music created before they were created.
In conclusion (for the 2024 NFL season), "How 'bout them Cowboys."
--- Offer hope for the morrow by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected] and put 'WAKE UP LUNKHEAD. SAVE 'EM ALL' in the subject line. ----

FROM A BRIEF MOMENT ON 1/1/25

This peaceful photograph of morning in New Jersey comes from my dear friend Andy Fisher, the veteran print and broadcast journalist. We frequently identify him as "the longtime Bureau Chief at our Eastern
Seaboard Bureau overlooking Indian Lake in Denville, N.J."
So, in the early hours of New Year's Day 2025, Andy happened to be unable to sleep late. So he took an early walk with a dog he and wife Annie and their cat, Chloe, have been hosting, the adorable Pablo..
Thus, Andy snapped the picture and sent it to the Texas outpost. He explained the beautiful photo this way:
"Watching the new year break over beautiful Indian Lake!"

 

 

The thought from the Home Office in Texas? It's this: May the calm, quiet and beautiful nature of Indian Lake spread across the entire nation and planet and hold firm for 2025 and beyond.
From your ol' print newshound in North Texas -- that's me, Larry! -- this thought: "It would be nice to wake up, turn on the radio news and discover that the only 'jolt' we'd get that morning would be from a cup of darned good coffee"
Peace and joy for the rest of 2025 and its century. And a special "Thank you, my fellow newshound" to Andy and the Eastern Seaboard Bureau Gang at Indian Lake.
[Offer ideas by clicking on 'comment' below or email [email protected]. And have a happy new year, too.]

CONTEMPLATIONS, RESOLUTIONS, CRITTERS & A GOOD 2025 FOR ANIMALS & ADVOCATES

EDITION OF MONDAY/TUESDAY, DECEMBER 30/31, 2024 [PetPowellPress] This is a look back that is inspired by living with animals and knowing animal people and watching the big hearts triumph in order to save animals threatened by the descipable predicament  labeled "unwanted."
You people are miracle workers. [Hey, y'all, I've just found a litter of kittens in my back yard... I'M KIDDING, I'M KIDDING! But if you've been in rescue longer than abut 20 minutes, you've got acquaintances and strangers who've opened a conversation that that sort of a sentence. Like they have no idea how dogs and cats get pregnant.That's my latest rescue: Hastings Streetboy. He's proudly neutered. Hint. Hint. ]
Some mornings I look at a big stack of emails about animals and ask myself, "Were there this many rescue groups and good-hearted animal advocates in Dallas/Fort Worth when I first typed an edition of Readlarrypowell.com? I think that was in the early 2000s...Maybe 2004 -- I've almost lost track of the passage of time ever since I quit getting a daily newspaper in 2004.
My computersaavyfunspouse Martha designed our first version of this pro-animal website way back then. We'll probably redesign it again if we ever get time.
We celebrated our 33rd wedding anniversary on December 15. When we married, it was a merger of dogs and cats. Not long after, Martha left her position at The Formerly Big Paper Downtown and started PetPowell Pet-Sitting Service.
On the Saturday morning of her first "community business fair" she called me from her booth on the
parking lot at a Sam's in northern Duncanville and asked me, "Do you have time to come get a dog I just adopted?" Of course, I did. We already had our own pre-marriage dogs and cats, but Nickki was our first "Together Dog." [Martha always she she'd never have married me if her cat Lucy hadn't liked me.]
The parade of "unwanted" dogs and cats currently filling shelters and rescue groups in the Metrosprawl reminded me of the happy day we got Nickii. Both of us had always loved dogs and cats and, then, suddenly, because two wacky people got married, a wonderful little dog had a brand new, safe and appreciated life. She put up with other dogs and the cats for years and always knew that she had a special place in our joined-by-matrimony heart.
That's a photo of Nickki in her older fluffier era -- she was getting acquainted with Annie, one of a half-dozen puppies we rescued when we rescued her mom, the beautiful dog Calamity. That's her in the photo on our masthead above. Calamity was adopted by my little brother Garry and my sis-in-law Brenita and that loving dog adopted them right back!  That's a snapshot of the meeting when I introduced my baby brother Garry and Calamity at a many-years-ago Operation Kindness event. 
Martha and I kept Annie the puppy for her entire long life.  That photo on the lower left is Annie all grown up! Rowdy girl, at times.
She was one of many who learned to romp with other dogs and adore living with cats and also living with the
most difficult animals of all: humans.
There is a tender backstory regarding Nicki. Martha's booth for PetPowellPetsitting was near the Best Southwest Humane Society booth on the Sam's parking lot on the edge of northern Duncanville (as memory serves). In talking with the Best Southwest booth folks, Martha learned that Nicki had been difficult to place -- not because she was a bad or barky or bitey girl -- the right person just hadn't come along. So the rescue group had been moving her from shelter to shelter (co-conspirators in protecting this dog) and kept her from being euthanized. Martha declared she had just the place for Nicki and that's when I got the call that morning.
Why do I mention the story of Nicki? Because she is like so many other dogs in Dallas/Fort Worth and surrounding area. The rescuers and the shelter staffers know how wonderful the dogs and cats are, but there just aren't enough people opening their hearts and homes to learning how a previously unwanted dog or cat can be a wonderful addition to their lives.
Bless all of you hardworking animal people for being the connection between these dogs and cats and the humans who

love them.
THIS TIME OF A YEAR is generally regarded as a good time for contemplations -- perhaps those contemplations will help us build a better year -- not just a good 2025 for us, but for the people we love and dogs and cats and other critters, too. You don't have to adopt 'em all, just help 'em all avoid being labeled "unwanted."
Spread the word to good-hearted people. I'm sure we all know a few goodhearted people! Almost certain. I hereby resolve to be less negative in the new year....Honest. That's my Office Cat William Powell who's said he'll help me make a list of resolutions. In the background that's Martha on the brink of laughing at the cat's optimism. She knows me too well.
--- Offer animal protection resolutions by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected]. Make the subject line read, "Get some help, Mr. Negative and layoff the ice cream in 2025." ---

AS THE NEW YEAR APPROACHES, A WEEKEND IS DEVOTED TO SOME SLEEP 2024

Ah, Dear Readers, we've come to a weekend and, thus, aching for slumber, a post-Christmas/pre-2025 (already !!!) 
chance to read new books and an opportunity to enjoy what normal people call a "nap."


I didn't nap when I was a baby, why should I start now, right? [LARRY NOTE: This is being written by me-- I gave the dogs and cats the weekend off.] 
Also, as has been demonstrated in years of editions of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap, there are a number of surrogate sleepers in the household. I may not be able to whip insomnia, but I can depend on them to help fill the quota of naps required by the Internal Revenue Service Tax Form since The Dependents Bonus Act of 1948.
I'm kidding. But since cashing my first newsroom check in the mid-'60s, I would never have been surprised to wake and learn that slumber  had become a taxable event in the U.S. I kid the government -- while I still can, of course. Taxing aside, "Happy New Year!" and let's examine some sleepers and nappers who support our weekend endeavor to remind people of the many joyous facets of dogs and cats and any other loving/beloved critter who knows how to nap.
It is important for my office staff to stay rested -- you never know when one of them -- stern dog or rapid cat -- be required to alertly snare a wandering comma. Now and then they'll be challenged to corral a dangling participle.
As this is being typed, my darling Personal Dog Porche Noel, wrapped up in her office duties, is out-like-a-light on her bed.  [LARRY NOTE: For a while she flopped between my rug and her bed, then she got up and moved so that the angel on the back of the file cabinet could watch over her.]
Back to Dog-as-Editor information: You wouldn't think a dog would be able to use her nimble tail to edit a paragraph by quickly diagramming a sentence and barking the canine explanatory for a specific error by the off-the-beam writer: She narrows the lids on her right eye, looks up at me and gives off the six-desperate woofs code for "misplaced modifier." A human needs to be careful -- that's just two woofs from the dog bark code for "shred this and start over."
I hope my parade of English and Literature teachers know how careful I am with paragraphs, sentences, exclamations and spelling. Bless their frustrated hearts from the previous century.
Another educational note: When I started this edition, for some reason I asked, "Where did the word 'catnap' come from?" Bless those research genius robots at Google, the answer they have is the term "catnap" -- describing the cat nap tendency -- "became popular in the early 1800s." Ah, then there's this question "When was it first used in literature?" And some of you will recognize this source: "1916 in The Son of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs."
Back to Senior Office Cat William Powell -- he may be a distant cousin to some of the tigers and other jungle cats used to film the Tarzan movies through the years. As you can tell in his photographs, even when he's asleep, he has quite the visible personality. That's him with his favorite Christmas lamp, the replica of the major award in the 1983 good-natured family film A Christmas Story.
William and Porche have been senior office staffers for quite some time. They offer comfort and joy and advice.
If you've never lived with a dog or a cat, then you may not fully understand the quality of advice and heart-felt, tender guidance you can get from a beloved canine or feline companion/advisor.
You think I'm kidding? Swear on a stack of ancient carbon paper that a bark or meow can translate into "Feed me and go back to work" in a matter of seconds and you'll find yourself inspired to finish the tale about the pro football team that swapped the team bus for two tackles and a running back and won the Super Bowl. Yeah, it's science fiction.
Cats have that sci-fi tendency. Dogs lean toward romantic poetry.
Here's one by Porche Noel:

Moon of adoration so bright but
I have no trouble to sleep
I nod off in the big bed
while the housedogs count sheep.
Lord knows what
those cats are counting.
-- Porche Noel, Poet Laureate of the American Office Dog Society (Name of Society pending since 2001).

Porche is sharpening her poetic skills, I've been told by Senior Office Cat & Literary Advisor William Powell.
That photograph with the glowing lights? That's a picture of our household pride: It's artisticspouse Martha's years-old creation of a chickenwire Christmas tree. Not everybody's house has one to display and light up before Christmas and, afterward, easily pick it up and put it away as the New Year approaches. It leaves no needles on the rug! [LARRY CONFESSION: I took the photograph and  really loused up the coloring of the presentation -- no idea why there's and red-orange glow -- I type, you know, thus I'm continually out of focus visually and frequently may look up in the sky at night and see a drone or a flying baby with an intent look on his face and and a wide bit of warm winter gown that carries the phrase "HAPPY NEW YEAR 2025!" He'll throw me a cigar. Seeing all that depends on how much coffee I've had and what I've sweetened it with. Kidding about the additive.]
[DEAR READERS: Send the photos of your sleeping dogs, napping cats or slumbering "others," to [email protected] and tell us their stories. Readers will enjoy your tales of the animals you love. They have animals they love, too. We're in a community of good hearted animal fans. "God bless us everyone -- oops, quoted from the wrong holiday, but I'm not sure Dickens wrote a New Year's story. I'll check with William once he's done with his catnap.]

A CAT'S EXPLANATION ON CHRISTMAS DAY

Merry Christmas, Dear Readers:
I am the movie star-handsome William Powell, the Senior Office Cat at readlarrypowell.com.
It is my annual privilege to wish all of you dear readers and supporters of animals of all sorts a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year. 
This is a wish of joy from both the Texas base and the fantastic Eastern Seaboard Bureau in New Jersey.
It's helmed by veteran print and broadcast journalist the Editor-in-Chief Andy Fisher who is inspired and advised by Bureau CEO Annie Fisher. It also is guided and counseled by Eastern Seaboard Bureau Office Cat & Morale Officer Chloe.

[We thought Santa was going to bring us some photo-clarity computerware for Christmas, but he's still working on it with Blurry The Elf.]
That is Chloe in a photograph Andy titled "Nativity Cat." 
 Chloe is a darling cat who, even a we publish this, is helping the humans happily monitor the loving care of a guest dog named Pablo. Like most Office Cats, Chloe earns her salary and, also, her favorite meals. And she enjoys life in Denville with a view of the beautiful Indian Lake. 
MEANWHILE BACK IN TEXAS: On Christmas morning in the Texas headquarters, our tender human Martha opened her gifts while sitting in her favorite reclining chair.
One of the household dogstaffers, 50- or 60-pound Wendy Louise Wagstaff Arden, who Martha both rescued and named, volunteered for lap duty with her favorite human.
How big is Wendy? That is her a couple of nights ago when she decided she wanted a bite of whatever kind of sandwich Martha was having for dinner. Patient dog, you know. Yep, that was Wendy patiently waiting on the living-room "hassock" and for a treat -- as you might see, Wendy's a big dog when inserting herself into photographs snapped
in the parade of life.


Back to Christmas Morning: 
As Martha prepared to open her gifts, Wendy jumped into Martha's lap, smiled and stretched into her usual "prone with Momma Martha" position and went almost immediately to sleep. Happily. Very happy dog. Almost catlike with her Christmas naps.)
With the adorable dog in the role of "Dependably Snoozing Living Lap Desk," slumbering Wendy in her stillness helped Martha open the gifts. I'm not kidding. Wendy was out like light...with a bit of a smile on her face whenever she sensed Martha approved of a gift. The big lout who wrapped all her gifts was nervous as a cat in a rocking chair factory, as the old saying went when old sayings were in vogue.
At Christmas at our office, everybody works together to enhance the merriness of the situation. We're trying to make that a year-round global habit!  "Merry" is a good mission and goal in the household and in print.

Thus, with a sincere 'Merry!' to you all, I remain,

Senior Office Cat William (aka Willie/Wills/Sweet Boy, Mr. Handsome) Powell who wishes you a Happy New Year no matter how many names I answer to as I greet the parade of humanity, dogs and cats in our lives.

FOR CHRISTMAS EVE, REMEMBERING SOME YULETIDE ADVENTURES WITH A DOG AND PEOPLE, TOO

EDITION OF CHRISTMAS EVE, 2024 [PetPowellPress] At readlarrypowell.com we have a ton of Christmas Eve memories.  We've been fortunate. Let me edit that sentence. We've been blessed. All of us -- readers and writers.
Speaking of blessed, I'll shortly cite a lesson in Latin pronunciation. Yes, it's connected to Christmas.
#1 THE DOG WE GOT FOR CHRISTMAS 2009 -- Regular visitors to our website have seen frequent references to
our wonderfully sweet (now old, as am I) dog Porche Noel (that's her with ears almost as large as mine).
Her name was inspired by the fact that the starving, mistreated, dog was found on our front porch at Christmas. To get to our feral cat food buffet, this scrawny and hurting dog squeezed through the bars on the porch gate and ate all the cat food and was suddenly too wide to squeeze out again. My partner in rescue and all else, Martha, came home from a pre-Christmas errand and parked in the garage. She walked up the steps from the garage, came into the living room and asked me, "What's with the dog on the porch?"  
"What dog?" I asked. We opened the living room door, this hungry, limping, ailing dog came into the house and has now been my dog for long, long time. She's also Martha's dog. A Christmas gift to us both. 
#2 LOOK, UP IN THE SKY? There was a time when people looked up to see more than an odd drone display in the December sky. 
If you think Christmas Eve is exciting for one kid, have yourself a set of twin boys. I got to wait for Santa Claus with a set of little boy twins, Bret and Bart. My little boys are now grown-ups -- but sometimes during the holidays, when I look at their laughing 53-year-old faces, I think I can still see them sneaking glimpses at the sky -- perhaps wondering if this is the year they finally see Santa and the sleigh landing on the roof.  (I was also the big brother to two little brothers -- I know what anticipation looks like on Christmas Eve.)

#3 SPEAKING OF ANTICIPATION: My entire professional life was not spent in newspaper newsrooms. In the mid-to-late 1960s, it helped if a young reporter had a part-time job to pay for college AND a car. One of my jobs was working on the delivery truck at Montgomery Ward in Texarkana. My boss on the truck was John, a WWII veteran and father of one of my schoolmates. I got the job because the manager of the delivery department was one of my Sunday School teachers at Texarkana's Highland Park Baptist Church, Mr. Simms. 
One of our Christmas Eve deliveries early that shift was taking a big piece of trendy furniture known as a "console stereo" up two flights of pre-war-styled, nearly 90-degree angle from earth, cement stairs. Risky business, but we made it and the upstairs door of the two-story dwelling was opened by three gleeful sisters barely into their teens. 
Their mom was watching as we took the "stereo" to the designated wall. These girls were absolutely elated and giddy with nervous anticipation.  And John stuck the electric plug into the wall socket and said, "Y'all need to try this out!" 
The youngest girl -- gripping the unopened latest Beatles record -- was ready and giggly with happiness. The other two sisters knew how to "work a stereo unit" and made it ready for their sis to put the 33 1/3rd platter onto the spindle. One turned the "on dial" and the other turned the volume up and pretty quickly Momma was beaming happily as her three kids celebrated The British Stereo Invasion. 
#4 THE DOOR TO CHRISTMAS: Having seen the happiness of a stereographic Christmas, John drove us away from the two-story house in Texarkana, Texas, to our next stop: a wood-frame one-story home on the edge of a pasture in rural Arkansas about an hour east of Texarkana, Ark. Speed limit was 55 mph back then, I recall.
John expertly cut the big cardboard box off the giant refrigerator/freezer combo. It was a Christmas gift from a hard-working husband to his hard-working wife for Christmas. We saw pride in the husband's face as she almost screamed with excitement.
Then, with a too-small-for-the-job dolly, we wrestled the big appliance onto the front porch and prepared to slide it into the living room and, then, into the kitchen.
What's one of the worst expressions in "moving big merchandise?" John said it. He said, "Uh, oh!" as it became clear that the appliance was about six inches wider than the door no matter which way we turned turned the big gift.
You know how much a husband can love a wife? John and I saw it. The gift-giving guy took the door off its hinges. When that wasn't enough room, he took the door frame off the doorway. John started to volunteer to take the doors off the gift but the husband got a power saw and loudly cut  enough of the doorway open wide enough to get the refrigerator/freezer combo shoved without a dent through gaping passage and into the kitchen. John grabbed the new appliance's cord to make sure the plug would fit (it did; sometimes they didn't in those days) and the appliance would "turn on" without knocking the power off for the neighborhood. Everything worked magnificently. And there was a merry Christmas in that household -- cold drinks and stored TV dinners would become happily available. Yep, indeed a merry Christmas.  And it probably didn't take that guy a long time to replace the doorway! If he could work a power saw in Arkansas, he could probably work a hammer and nails, too.
#5 ONE MORE CHRISTMAS EVENT NOTE -- WELL MORE THAN ONE NOTE IF YOU COUNT THE MUSIC: This one is a religious and educational note.....As was the yuletide custom at our Highland Park Baptist Church in those days in Texarkana, the "youth" of the church presented a "Christmas cantata" -- a program of church-related and even some not-church related Christmas songs, though, of course, all Christmas songs, it occurs to me, are church-related. Some are more directly related than others. O Holy Night is extremely directly related and that one that goes "Up on the rooftop, reindeer pause..." is a little less directly related. 
When I was in the 9th grade one of our featured songs had a Latin connection. I was a Latin 1 student in public school. One of our choir members, Loretta (if memory serves) was in high school and was a Latin 2 student. She was also an "a" student and I was not. 
This was the era when all the Catholic kids at church and at their school had more exposure to Latin than we Baptist kids got in public school or from a pulpit hammerin' preacher. 

Our choir had a young director who, it turns out, was kind of frustrated by us now and then. 
He nearly quit his holy profession because we were having trouble singing a particular line of a song we'd been rehearsing and rehearsing. 
It wasn't just the voices that frustrated him, it was the pronunciations in a song titled Gloria in Excelsis Deo. Our northeast Texas accents nearly sent the young director over the edge. We'd robustly and nearly music-lessly sang, er, haltingly sing  "Glow reee huh in ex seal cease day hoe." Honestly, the director would wince. 
Finally he asked, "Anybody hear taking Latin in school?" Several hands went up but only one of us, Loretta, was in Latin II and headed toward any kind of academic scholarship. 
The director huddled with Loretta "on the sidelines for a seconds" and when they came back to the director's stand, he announced, "Loretta is going to explain to you poor people how to pronounce this line of the song."
 And Loretta -- she may have become a teacher for all I know --  took the podium and said to us, "Come on y'all, it's pretty easy. Ignore the Latin spelling and just sing like it's breakfast. Gloria in eggshell seas day oh! Now, all of us together Gloria in eggshell seas day oh!" 
One we understood the glory of an eggshell sea, we turned the corner between "halting performance" and "speeding on to yuletide musical glory."  We were able to sing with authority that Christmas Eve "Gloria in Excelsis Deo."
Some church lessons stick with us even if we auditioned for the role of "baby in the manger" or "Joseph" and never got past being told, "With that nose, you'll make a great camel." 
So, on Christmas Eve, don't forget "Gloria in eggshell seas day oh!" and, maybe, say some prayers for peace and understanding on this beloved planet and for its people and their difficult leaders. ... Maybe even for the mystery drone pilots. Could be hijinx-prone elves, you know. 

--- Send your Christmas Eve Adventure Stories to [email protected] and may you all have a Merry Christmas and a Happy and Peaceful New Year. ---

CATS, DOGS AND A SONG FOR THE SEASON -- ON THE EVE of THE EVE 2024

EDITION OF CHRISTMAS EVE'S EVE, MONDAY, DEC. 23, 2024 [PetPowellPress] If I were to tell you what put me in the mood to write this opening passage during the Christmas season, some of you would be old enough to understand the inspiration.
Here's my explanation: Danny & The Juniors' At The Hop.
That 1957 song ran through the 45 rpm side of my brain this morning.
Thanks to my older cousins, I was guided  to the promising Danny & The Juniors number Rock 'n' Roll Is Here To Stay. It may not be in every surviving stack of records next to the stereo, but like the theme song to Grease (or Goldfinger) it still pops up on my internal playlist now and then. Consider this opening a suggestion that ol' dogs and cool cats are good Christmas companions.
[LARRY ASIDE: That's my Junior Office Cat Stevie Ray -- he's our only cat certified to used scissors -- comes in handy during gift-wrapping season.]

And, read on, because we're going to close with a great local singer's Christmas performance today. BUT FIRST....
BEFORE WE BOP ALONG,
AN ANIMAL REMINDER
There are about eleventykazillion dogs and cats available for adoption into good homes in the 254 counties of Texas -- one of the biggest areas of potential adoptions of unwanted animals is, of course, the Metroplex.

If you're reading this, you probably already have one or more dogs and/or cats and you've probably rescued  and/ or fostered some, too. So, this passage is like "preachin' to the choir," as they'd say in the Baptist church of my childhood.
A SEASONAL APPRECIATION? [LARRY NOTE: That's my festive Personal Dog Porche Noel, found on the porch at Christmas years ago -- she's heftier now. You can see how thing she was in that photo of her first ride (probably ever!) to a vet's office right after she showed up and captured the hearts of  my funspouse Martha and her hapless houshold hubby Larry.]
All of you rescuers and foster folks and hard-working strong-hearted shelter workers who stand between animals and a bad encounter, thank you for your work. May you all be blessed during the holidays and afterward and well into next year as you deal with the tax man because, clearly, this time you really are going to win Lotto Texas.
Well, OK, now that the Dallas Cowboys are out of the playoffs, my wish is that some great dog 'n' cat person is going to win Lotto Texas and create a fund to "SAVE 'EM ALL." [LARRY ASIDE: Just an fyi. Having repeatedly failed to win even $3 for years in Lotto Texas, I have stopped playing the game. I'm refocusing on writing a novel that's turned into a movie and becomes a TV show that inspires the creation of the world's most successful amusement park. What? I'd have to pay taxes? OK, I'll focus on short stories.]
CONTEMPLATIONS
A FAVORITE SONG WITH A TEXAS VOICE
We have a favorite song titled All I Want For Christmas Is You -- but it's not the one that is the Mariah Carey song sung since 1994 by that performer.
The fabulous song we're citing has the same name, but it was released in 1989 and performed by a fabulous voice from Dallas' Oak Cliff, the great Lisa Layne.
Here's the LINK to a performance on stage by Lisa, one sincerely talented singer. (She also has performed for years as a Patsy Cline Tribute Artist.)
You can get her story and learn of her triumphs by reading this December 22 story by Elizabeth Florio for the website Garden & Gun. HERE'S THAT LINK.
And, in the meantime, CLICK HERE TO HEAR THAT GREAT LISA LAYNE VOICE SING THE 1989 SONG SHE DEBUTED when she was singing for Vince Vance & The Valiants. 
The link may open  with an advert -- give it a second and you can click outta the ad and get to hear one of the greatest voices ever to record a song. Back when I was a newspaper columnist, I met Lisa at the debut of the video of the song at a now-gone music-prone site in Dallas' then-hoppin' West End.
That recording of Lisa's great voice probably is still echoing through the area on quiet nights during the Christmas season...
Closing sentence from Larry who won't sing unless paid a tremendous amount of money:
"Mare Chris'muss,y'all (using my Northeast Texas Bowie County dialect). See you on Christmas Eve.

SOME OF US CAN LOOK AT A TREE AND SEE THE SPIRIT OF A CHRISTMAS CAT

    It would be foolish in this edition of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap to declare that a cat has never


climbed a Christmas Tree.

Merry Christmas all you felines, canines and people, too. Heck, Merry Christmas to the mysterious Drone Pilots -- whatever planet you're from.
    Back to our weekly slumber/napper report:
 We've had cats and dogs for years but never had one pull a tree over onto the living room floor! That opening photo is from early in this century when our big orange and white cat Griffin Oliver Powell demonstrated that he was comfy under the Christmas tree. Loved sleeping there.

 
 
We have had many cats who enjoyed Christmas trees. In fact, we have one now. Martha

took that picture of my Junior Office Cat Stevie Ray Treeboy and the tree she'd just decorated. (He's got tree connections. I found him in a Mimosa tree and clinging to a flimsy limb -- he was a tiny, tiny kitten.) Based on timing of Griffy's "fix," they could be distant cousins -- but that's about it. They both love to flop on the arm of a couch and snooze -- as you can see in those photos, Stevie Ray's snapped just this week and wonderful Griffin's from decades ago.

    The joy of Christmas can be handed along over the years via feline and canine antics and also tender moments with dogs, cats, other critters and people, too. Our kids and grandkids are all grown up now, but they're also fans of Christmas and critters.
One more Cat And Christmas Memory.

    On the lower right is a photo by Martha of one of our cats from decades ago. His name is Spike -- he was the toughest cat in his neighborhood near the Dallas Zoo. Veterinarian Catherine Marr had an office in that area. The little gray kitten had a broken left front leg when she rescued and repaired him. Kids had been pelting him with rocks -- he was barely a handful of kitten.
I  found out about this challenged kitten and went to see him and Catherine let me have him.
He walked with a clunk for a couple of months. Down the hall you could hear him coming Pad Pad Pad CLUNK when the cast hit the floor. The audio accent to his pace kept the other cats and dogs from running up to check him out. 
They all became friends.
And every Christmas we could look forward to this sweet little rescued kitty Spike becoming part of the tradition of our Bedford Falls display. After all, as you know, when you have a good cat or a good dog or both and a great animal-nut partner, It's A Wonderful Life.
[DEAR READERS: Send photos of your slumbering dogs, cats or whatever critter you've got to [email protected] and we'll spotlight the loving animal and the loving humans in a weekend edition of our long-running celebration of animals: Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap. Merry Christmas and Ho! Ho! Ho! -- Jolly Ol' Saint Critter Fan.]

AN END OF THE WORK-WEEK EDITION WITH NEWSY ANIMAL RESCUE TALES...

EDITION OF FRIDAY, DEC. 20, 2024 [PetPowellPress] Here we are on a sunny Friday -- the sunny but chilly Friday before winter arrives, sneaking in during the deepest hours of the night.
The Old Farmer's Almanac says winter arrives in Texas at 3:21 a.m Metroplex Time Saturday. More on household heating challenges in CONTEMPLATIONS. That is readlarrypowell.com Senior Office Cat William Powell, a contemplative feline if there ever was one!
He plays a role in our daily lives -- a positive role. He's a fab fellow who shows up at 3 a.m. with a whine that says, "Get ready to get up. It's almost time for breakfast." How do I know this is when he shows up? Because he can land like a feather on the floor but he lands like a brick on me.
MEANWHILE, HERE'S A TALE
OF AN ACCIDENTAL RESCUE
BY A VERY DETERMINED HEART
[LARRY ASIDE: If you're a veteran rescuer, you know they're almost all accidental until you spot the little beastie and your heart gears up for -- we'll give it a movie name -- RESCUE ADVENTURE! ]
Our tip on this came from our pal Karen Lee of barkleyworld.com, the non-profit that helps people help their animals. And she got it from another of our longtime tipsters
Karen wrote, "What a cutie looking for a home!!  Somehow these poor babies find their way to Gail and she cannot keep them all!  Thank you for sharing!!  Karen."
Gail Wheelan is the rescuer behind CAN Adoptions-- Companion Animal Network. Gail's note begins: "You guessed it -- found shivering under the Expedition today.  My vet could hardly believe it!  'ANOTHER ONE?' he said.
"This angel is going to be a FABULOUS dog for some very lucky people.  The vet says she is 6 mos - 12 mos. of age, healthy.  Today, she had all her bloodwork and all vaccinations.  She will get her Heart-guard and her Bravecto within the next two days."
Then Gail's appeal reads, "PLEASE PLEASE FORWARD, POST, EMAIL OR ANYTHING ELSE YOU CAN DO TO HELP FIND HER THE PERFECT HOME.  
We are bursting at the seams!"
The contact points for the Companion Animal Network are 903-967-3226; email [email protected], or visit www.ca-n.petfinder.com."
NOT ALL ANIMALS ARE WANDERING;
SOME ARE UNPLEASANTLY CONFINED
The Dallas-based SPCA of Texas has a mission of helping animals. In a state that outlaws dogfighting and cockfighting and other unpleasant/illegal animal activities, the mission periodically takes the SPCA to Kaufman County, east of Dallas.
These photos are from a Dec. 17 event in Kaufman County.
The SPCA news release was headlined "SPCA OF TEXAS ASSISTS IN WARRANT SERVICE RESULTING IN ANIMAL REMOVAL."
You can see the news release by going to spca.org and clicking on 'ABOUT US' and then, under "NEW' click on "Press releases."
This news release connects you to the story and the photographs of the site.
The opening of the release reads, "On Tuesday, Dec. 17, the SPCA of Texas assisted law enforcement as they served a warrant on a property in Kaufman County, Texas, resulting in the organization taking custody of 50 roosters, 43 hens, 34 adult dogs and 10 puppies. The animals were discovered during an unrelated investigation. The owner relinquished custody at the scene, and the SPCA of Texas is now investigating potential cases of dogfighting and cockfighting.
"The animals are currently under the care of the SPCA of Texas, where they are being evaluated, treated and cared for. As appropriate, the dogs will be evaluated for adoption or placement on a case-by-case basis."
That news release at the SPCA site HERE  also outlines the laws in Texas and the history of the SPCA, founded in 1938. Also, at spca.com, you can see how to volunteer to help animals and the organization.
[LARRY EXPLANATION: The "blur" on those SPCA photos was added by my failing technology regarding photographs. We're working on correcting it. I swear. LRP]
CONTEMPLATIONS
WINTER'S ARRIVAL IS LIKE....& OTHER NOTES
During the sizzling spell during last summer's Metromelt, the metal-fatigued fan blades in our outdoor a/c unit broke into clanging pieces. The cold air stopped and, outside, the temp was hot enough to melt the fender off a  Plymouth on a carlot. But, we have an always reliable a/c & heating repair team!
On Thursday, as the area temps dropped, the thermostat on our air-conditioner/heater unit stopped thermostatting. Is that the verb for what they do? Well, moving along, we awoke to a swell morning of being warmed by a pile of dogs and a cat or two on the bed at 5 a.m.
And we survived. Thanks to the expert work done by our reliable properly priced a/c and heating specialist. We're appropriately either warming up or chillin' during this holiday season in might-be-warm/might-not North Texas./.
And, also, I, Larry Powell (left with Willam), swear on a stack of chocolate-covered cherries (which I cannot have but adore about once snack a year) that I absolutely love photos of my adorable Senior Office Cat
William. He once helped me paint wood trim on our house in a Dallas summer -- that's how we met. He just wandered up and stayed. Kind of the same way I bought that house. [On the right, that's William giving Junior Office Cat Stevie Ray some tips on how to do his job without stepping on Larry's keyboard unless he's read what Larrt;s typing and and thinks it needs robust editing. The junior cat really can tapdance.]
And, we both wished for a White Christmas that summer -- we suspect that perhaps this is the year.
[PREDICTION!!!!? FROM WILLIAM: We'll have a White Christmas in this part of Texas just as sure as Larry is an Olympic skate dancer.]
--- Offer tips and cautions by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected] and make that subject line read "STOP SHREDDING THE RINK, CHUBBY GLIDER!" ---

TAKING A LOOK AT DOGS AND CATS AND CONTEMPLATING JEALOUSY OVER DRONES

EDITION OF WEDNESDAY/THURSDAY DEC. 18/19, 2024 [PetPowellPress] Assorted responsibilities and
considerations of drone competition have kept me away from the keyboard, but here we are, back online at midweek....
What is the prevailing mission (1) Finish shopping. (2) Find homes for all dogs and cats in shelters and rescue groups. Or (3) Ponder how long it will be before drones are spotted over Fort Worth thus inspiring the Dallas City leaders to demand that Big D get its share of UFOs/Drones? [LARRY ASIDE: I've watched Dallas and Fort Worth compete for decades -- sometimes they lose out to Arlington. But drones appear to be different than a pro football team. Maybe.] My spacedog Porche thought she heard a drone buzzing our backyard trees. She was just kidding me. Look at that darlin' pose!
MEANWHILE, HERE'S A DOG
'ON 24 HOUR NOTICE'

We get the tip on this dog from the great Karen Lee of the non-profit barkleyworld.com.
This dog, Wolfie, is not affiliated with the non-profit -- according to Karen's post, he's in the care of Everman & Forest Hill Municipal Animal Services and "IMMEDIATE RESCUE NEEDED."

Karen's post reads, "Wolfie is now the longest resident at the shelter. He is on 24hr notice."
And he's described thusly: "Wolfie is a 2yr old, male Shepherd Husky mix. Very outgoing, curious & sweet. Loves to be on the go. Excellent hiking buddy! Dog social."
To adopt or rescue this urgent fellow, call the shelter at 817-561-5495.
[LARRY ASIDE: Great ears, great eyes, lovely heart. Surely someone will love this guy Wolfie!]
MEANWHILE A CAT
DRAWS SOME ATTENTION
We spotted this appeal on behalf of a darling cat -- it was from the renowned animal advocate/rescuer Mary Spencer.
Those are the photos and here is the text:
"Misha is looking for her forever home. 6 month old female long hair grey/white loving kitten. Misha is so calm and easy going. She loves to cuddle and according to her foster, This little girl is so chill. She would be a great cat for a little girl girl she purrs all the time, she would wear clothes! Very much a people cat. Hardly a mew just chilling all the time. She rode with me in the car yesterday for 4 hours and never said a word. Please text 214-543-5255 or PM me for more information."
[LARRY ASIDE: Four hours and never said a word? Ah, a cat that can have an influence on young passengers and old guys, too. Not that your writer talks or meows or yowls.]
MEANWHILE IN MESQUITE
HERE ARE FOUR PUPS TO GO!
There are many more than four dogs waiting in the Mesquite Animal Shelter. Lots cats, too. We'll follow up on that after we post shortened versions of volunteer dog-writer Debra Chisholm's biographies of these pups. We'll also tell you where the longer, uncut versions of the bios are. Read on. We opened with a photo of Jerry at the shelter fence.
Debra reports that Jerry was picked up as a stray on the 12th and brought to the shelter. She writes, "My Dog Scanner app suggests the following in his breed mix: American Bulldog and American Staffordshire Terrier." And, she adds, "He is a big boy weighing 75 pounds and at approx 7 years of age. Jerry walks OK on a leash, but he does have a strong pull. He did his business outside so is possibly house trained. Jerry spent a good deal of his time during the photo shoot exploring every nook and cranny in the yard. He is nervous and uneasy, and hasn’t acclimated yet to the shelter environment, and who can blame him? He is very observant and was quite interested in standing on the bench and looking inside the shelter building as well as standing at the wall with his paws on the ledge and looking out into the yard and parking lot. He whined some, indicating to me that he is looking for his people to come and reclaim him." Jerry is #57448139 -- cite that ID number when you call the shelter at 9720216-6283 or email [email protected].
Same system for the rest of these Mesquite dogs and cats.
We move now to Dixie, who Debra describes as "stunningly attractive with a cute stubby tail and bright eyes." She's 11 months old and weighs 31 pounds. And, Debra writes, "is Dixie, weighing 31 pounds and at 11 months of age. My Dog Scanner app suggests the following in her breed mix: Aussie Stumpy Tail Cattle Dog and Aussie Cattle Dog. She walks very nicely on a leash. As I walked her through the lobby, she wanted to stop and greet every person she saw."
"Playful and fun-loving Dixie" ... actually seeks out loving attention. ... This is a highly adoptable dog who would be a wonderful pet with just the right home situation. ...There is so much to like about this sweet girl with her adorable face and cute stubby tail!"
Cite Dixie's ID #57446603 when you call the shelter 972-216-6283 or email at [email protected].
And that brings us to another Dec. 12 stray, Buster, a 55-pound, about-a-year-old pup. Debra says, "My Dog Scanner app suggests the following in his breed mix: American Bulldog, American Pitbull, American Staffordshire Terrier." And she says, "He is friendly and has a pleasant personality. He is affectionate and tried
to climb into my lap when I sat down on the bench outside. He is well behaved, calm, and gentle, doesn’t jump and has a moderate activity level. ... He was quite interested in exploring the yard during the photo shoot. He is playful, likes toys and is a real sweetheart! He appears to have lived his life outside as he had fleas, calluses on his elbows, and a scruffy coat." Buster is # 57447363. Call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email at [email protected].
The final Mesquite pup in this edition is Dolly who, Debra writes, is "listed as a Basenji mix that was brought to the Mesquite Animal Shelter as a stray on 12/2. She is approximately 8 months old and weighs 29 pounds. Anyone looking for a young, fun-loving, on-the-go, lively, active spunky pup will want to consider Dolly. She has lots of puppy energy and behavior. She is playful and loves toys. In the room in which I did her eval, she went back and forth to the toy box to collect yet another toy to play with entertaining herself, and whoever was watching."
Dollie is #57376476 at the shelter. Cite that ID when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email [email protected].
Remember you can see the full bios of these dogs and the listings of these cats by going to the Mesquite website HERE.


CONTEMPLATIONS
SOME MIDWEEK NOTES AND STUFF....
I'm not sure what "stuff" I'm talking about but you'll recognize "stuff" when you see it. ...
I saw a USA Today story online HERE that outlined a future without some car models. For example, the story reported that Ford is not going to make the Edge beyond 2024 --- just dandy. I'm driving one now -- it's my second favorite Ford that I've owned, the first being my F1-something with about a million miles on it. (I'll have to check that odometer -- it wasn't working for a while so I've been guessing.) But the Edge is so great, i.e., the ac blows cold and the radio plays songs from the '60s and '70s as if they were brand new and so was I. ... Also the story says Chevy is not going to make any more Camaros, a model I could never afford.. And Ferrari's phasing out some models which I couldn't even afford to daydream about. ....
Favorite car when I was first a reporter in 1965? Nobody in 2024 would probably donate to a "gofundme page" labeled, "TRYING TO FIND 1963 VW BEETLE, black with gray interior, no AC, 4 on the floor and 4 cylinders in the back of the car because the trunk was in the front. This time I'd want one with a radio. ...
The theme of my life? My much-younger funspouse Martha, wed to her 33 years and 3 days going on 4 days, says I spend too much time in the past. But she's too young to have ever ridden in a elegant '63 VW with a transistor radio dangling from the heater control and blaring something from from the Top Ten of the stacks of wax. Google these two 1963 numbers and rock like you were a teenager. Sukiyaki: By Kyu Sakamoto
and Surfin' U.S.A.: By The Beach Boys
--- Offer musical advice or drone-free thoughts of the future by clicking on 'comment' below or email [email protected] and make the subject line read "BACK TO EARTH, ORBITBOY."

ASTOUNDINGLY, THERE ARE DOGS AND CATS WAITING FOR HOMES IN THE GREATER METROSPRAWL

READLARRYPOWELL.COM EDITION OF 12-16-17 [PETPOWELLPRESS] OK, we're slow at the start this week's Monday morning because of Car-Pull-Tunnel Syndrome.
That's where you wake up after sleeping "wrong" and you think you dreamed you were pulling a pickup out of an East Texas farm road ditch all night. I've never done that -- only dreamed about it.
Also, I've never seen a drone over the Piney Woods. But I haven driven there lately.
MONDAY QUESTION FROM
VETERAN OBSERVER
 Question: Which city shelter does the best job of getting animals placed in homes. (So many shelters do work so hard to help those animals find home!) Feel free to respond politely.
I suspect actual adopters have only slight contact with shelters -- adoptions only, not working day after day to get the parade of unwanted animals out of shelters and into homes.
Why doesn't an area with so many highways have more billboards urging people to adopt animals and save lives? I can't remember the last time I saw an adoption billboard. Maybe I only drive streets where the animal inventory is walking free before being snared by the dog-catcher. (How's that for use of an ancient obsolete term: "dog-catcher.")
MEANWHILE IN MEQUITE...
THE INVENTORY IS ROBUST
AND COCO IS ADORABLE...
This dog Coco is simultaneously an Earhound and a Curlytailed Cutie.
We learned of her in a note from one of the Mesquite Animal Shelter's volunteer dog-writers, Jamie Dotson.
You want a one-work answer for "Why is this dog in a shelter?" Here's the word: "Unwanted."
Coco is, Jamie reported, "a year-and-a-half old Basenji/American Pitbull mix who weighs 56 pounds. She was an owner surrender on 12/12. ... Reason for surrender was 'unwanted'."
And Jamie writes, "Coco is stunning! She has been well cared for, fur is clean and soft and does appear to be housetrained. She does walk pretty strongly on a leash, but does take treats gently. She enjoys being petted and put her hands in my lap to get close to give kisses. All the noises in the shelter does make her uncomfortable. She didn't show any interest in the other dogs barking at her, but we do ask if you have another dog in the home to ask the shelter for a dog test."
Basically, Coco needs, according to Jamie, "her final loving family that will prove her with a secure backyard to play in....[but she will] live indoors where she can stay close to her human companions. She is a treasure!"
So someone -- "her mommy," one report read -- dumped "A Treasure" into Mesquite's shelter and the shelter is working hard to get that girl into a good and loving and permanent home.
Cite Coco's shelter ID #57446186 when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283or email [email protected].
Oh, and Jamie also provided a bio of this girl Hennessy (#54947154), a 3-year-old, already-spayed, brindle Pittie mix who weighs in at 32 adorable pounds. She was "dumped" at the shelter by her human.
[LARRY ASIDE: Before you go "ohhhh no!" about that, consider this from Hennessy's shelter biography: "She is malnourished, skin is dry, some hair loss around her neck and hard calluses on her back hips showing she was living outside on concrete." So, perhaps this dog was not exactly in a loving situation.] The bio by Jamie continues, "Despite this she still has a happy go lucky loving personality. She enjoys going on walks, being petted and loved on. When sitting in a chair she will jump in my lap for pets." Remember, cite Hennessy's ID #54947154 when you
call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email [email protected].
SEE MORE MESQUITE ANIMALS -- dogs and cats -- and read volunteer-written bios by visiting the shelter's website at THIS ADDRESS.  Deuce and Pop Tart. How about those cat names!
There are dogs and cats and lots of photographs of animals that may just inspire your heart to open your home to a shelter animal who was "surrendered" or "picked up as a stray."
And how about those two cats? How can they not be someone's TV-watching pals and handy feline comfort counselors?
MEANWHILE IN DALLAS,
NAVIGATING TO ADORABLES
THIS LINK  will take you and your scrolling mouse to a giant list of adorable animals waiting on -- hopefully -- a new home -- they're all at the City of Dallas Animal Shelter where many animals wait for either adoption or the needle. "Geezalou!" exclaimed the ol' newshound, "How in the world can nobody step up to save these dogs! Look at those faces. Those ears. Those hearts!"  These are the first dogs listed on today's version of the city's list of available adorable dogs.
[LARRY SUGGESTION: Recharge the hearts of Dallas residents who dump animals. Is that legal? Surely!]

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

CONTEMPLATIONGS
GEOGRAPHY, CHRISTMAS, ETC. ?
If you've never lived in or near the Piney Woods of Northeast Texas, you've missed meeting a lot of great people, fantastic animals and incredibly aggressive bugs. Don't worry -- there's usually a spray or ointment or a quick handslap that controls the aggressive bugs. A stern lecture, i.e., "GIT OUTTA HERE BUG!" may also work. May not. Kids, you should relax -- Santa always fits the reindeer with environmentally healthy travel collars on Christmas Eve....
Speaking of Christmas: Having driven through downtown Fort Worth (saw the big tree) does anyone get the feeling that the city isn't decorating as much this year as in the past? Nothing on the light poles except traffic lights? That sort of thing?....
How 'bout them Cowboys? Sorry. Old habit.
--- Offer any kind of advice by clicking on 'comment' below or by emailing [email protected]. Put 'HEY SMART GUY' in the subject line. ---

TOMI'S PUP ISABELLA -- A GENUINELY DARLIN' HOLIDAY COUCH COMPANION.....

Ah, it's the holiday season -- time to smile, find some joy, admire the decorations and do some decoratin';, say "no thank you" to another serving of a favorite cake or pie and, oh yes, remember this:

Celebrate and cuddle your dogs and cats and other companions who are appreciative of cuddling.

Our theory is life can be better each day when you are giving a good and loving home to an animal that needs one. [Read larry powell. com speaks from years of experience and conversations with people who adore their animal companions -- and, of course, from decades of in depth analysis of humanity by dogs and cats and, now and then, a human, too.]
While this edition of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap is being published as we move toward Christmas, we've conspired with our longtime dog tipster Tomi Ortiz to partner the joys of Thanksgiving with the joys of Christmas. And, the reality is, we couldn't have done this without the help and the joys of Tomi's dog Isabella.
"She is now 9 months old; she's going to be a big girl!" Tomi wrote.
So I looked at the pictures and immediately recognized the "theme" in that opening photograph. Yep, that is Isabella in a sort of open-eyed nap on the couch at Thanksgiving.

As I told Tomi, "That couch photo looks exactly like I felt after the Thanksgiving binge of desserts!!!! Pies, cookies, a cake... I have no will power!!!" [LARRY ASIDE: It turns out that Tomi snapped that photo as Isabella nodded off while the Thanksgiving meal was being cooked. Clearly Isabella has human tendencies, i.e., "anticipatory and post holiday meal napping."]
In a warm-hearted holiday note about the joys of the season and a good dog, Tomi wrote, "I just wanted to share a couple of pictures of Isabella who is now a little rounder than when we got her from shelter…sort of like me! Lol! 😊  Sometimes she’ll sit right next to me on the couch and nap just like a real human! I was able to take a picture without waking her which is a challenge sometimes with the ears she has…She hears everything! 😊 The opening picture is her lounging on the couch -- while I cook Thanksgiving dinner -- without a care in the world! "'

[DEAR READERS: Please share your sleeping dog and napping cat photos and stories with us by emailing the pictures and the tales to [email protected]. We'll help you celebrate these dear animals in our weekly edition of Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats Nap. And we'll have an extra serving of a holiday pie or cake and some ice cream... STOP IT, LARRY, STOP IT!!!!. [FROM WILLIAM: Thank you for reading this far. He is tough to control during the holiday cooking season. Don't anybody say "Mince Meat Pie" --- he'll zone out. I'm not kidding. Sincerely, I remain: Senior Office Cat William Powell (That's me William holding onto dignity though I am stuck in a snapshot with annoying old seasonal clown Tewklose the Elder).]

A BREAKFAST TRADITION; HELPING ANIMALS VIA THE FOSTERING PATH; UFOs and Ding-a-Lings?

EDITION OF THURSDAY/FRIDAY DECEMBER 12-13, 2024 [PetPowellPress] Dear Santa, For Christmas I'd like a good night's sleep. Keep that in mind when you stomp off our roof, jump down into our front porch cactus display and react with an unfortunate expression that startles the reindeer into clomping on the rooftop shingles like they were tap dancing on Broadway. Sincerely, Larry.
LARRY CONFESSION: OK, I'm trying to be a good boy -- this morning I committed a royal sin. I usually save the final three bites of my healthy breakfast for the pups: Dudley, Wendy & Porche. But I was in a Thursday morning
rush to get something typed before I forgot the words ---it's a constant challenge in my wandering morning mind.
Acting against breakfast tradition with the pups, I quickly spooned the final bites of a vegetarian fake sausage into my face like a starving cartoon bear. Suddenly I realized Dudley the Angel was sitting in his usual breakfast place. I could swear he had tears in his wonderful eyes. He was wearing a stunned look on his face. Something had happened that NEVER happens -- I neglected to share a meal with him.
Porche went back to sleep on her bed. Wendy left the office and went back to her slumberspot on the living room couch. Dudley did move to his usual hallway napping spot and Wendy, after visiting me for treats, went back down the hall to check on her pal Dudley. Everybody's happy. They swear.
Keep in mind, all three had already had their healthy morning breakfasts.
Dudley continued to stare at me -- as if he was auditioning for the roll of a street urchin trying to get a pence from Scrooge in a dinner theater production of A Christmas Carol.
So, I tried to reverse the emotions. I quickly nuked a vegetarian burger patty as Dudley, still wearing his sad look, stood loyally, hopefully by me in the kitchen.
When the patty was ready, I went back down the hall to the office and Dudley followed. I sat at my desk and he sat next to me, looking up.
I made sure the patty was cool, pulled an inch square piece of it free and held it down for Dudley. He looked at it. Looked up at me. And then he walked to the other side of sleeping Porche and flopped down to nap.
I got the message. Breakfast traditions are meant to be kept. Never finish the meal without first giving the dogs their happy bite of the morning!
Dudley did give up the nap charade long enough to eat most of that patty from his prone position on the floor. Porche continued to sleep (that's an "awake" photo of my personal dog. 
And I vowed to never again to forget the traditions of breakfast with Dudley the Angel. It's been years since I had a meal at home without a dog staring at me. You may know that amusingly happy feeling -- if you're blessed with the love of a dog.
MEANWHILE, FOSTERING
IS A YEAR-ROUND GIFT ...
When I clicked onto the ol' computer this AM one of the first things I saw was a post by The Great Foster Patty Sprong. She was tipping her readers/fellow animal fans to a special project of Emma's Wish Senior Dog Rescue.
The summary from Emma's Wish reads, "Honey Girl's owner can no longer care for her due to medical reasons so we need to help find her a new home or we can take her into the rescue with a foster offer.
She's almost 13 and weighs about 11 lbs. Honey Girl can be a bit snippy if startled so a home without kids is best. Although she hasn't lived with other dogs, she has been around them and does fine.
Please let us know if you can help Honey Girl! We don't want her to end up in the shelter." Here's the LINK TO EMMA'S WISH.
CONTEMPLATIONS
GEEZ, WHAT CAN WE THINK ABOUT?
OK, we'll start with something upbeat. Our pal and former colleague at The Big Paper Downtown, the writer Joyce Sáenz Harris, has great story in today's edition about the efforts made to preserve writer Larry McMurtry's book store in Archer City. THIS LINK may get you there or you may need to Google for the report.
The basics are that the prize-winning writer of so many Texas-set novels (and creator/writer of Lonesome Dove) nurtured that bookstore in Archer City for decades -- he's been gone since March 25, 2021.
And now, Joyce's story explains, McMurtry's beloved Booked Up has been sold to the Archer City Writer's Workshop. Read Joyce's story to see how and why all this works out. FYI: Archer City is 2 highway hours or so northwest of the Metrosprawl. [RELAX, NEW TEXANS, the roads are paved.]
Some of us have been reading McMurtry's work since we were danged near kids. My favorite McMurtry novels? The Last Picture Show and All My Friends Are Going To Be Strangers.
Heck, yeah, I've made a pilgrimage to Archer City to visit that store -- years ago, when McMurtry was still there. I also made a pilgrimage to Alpine, Texas, in honor of H. Allen Smith. But that's a tale for another day, teased the semi-literate writer who appreciates anyone who can write a book about a cat inheriting a big league baseball team, i.e., Rhubarb. ....
The good folks at the online calendar Holiday Insights report that December 12 is National Ding-a-Ling Day. The song of the day is the Chuck Berry's 1972 hit, My Ding A Ling. (I'm not making this up, honest! larry). So how did December 12 become National Ding-a-Ling Day? No idea. And the Holiday Insights folks write, "Despite our diligent efforts, we have yet to find the Ding-a-Ling who created this neat day.  Nor, did we find factual information about this day.
"We found no congressional records or presidential proclamation required to create a true 'National' day."
At readlarrypowelldotcom our theory is Congress has been too busy trying to uncover the truth about The Intergalactic Jersey Drones rather than set up an official Ding-a-Ling Day in honor of members of Congress. Relax, I'm kidding the elected officials. Not all of 'em, of course. I'd never kid an actual ding-a-ling.
--- Offer advice or fave McMurtry titles by clicking on 'comment' below or email [email protected] and put 'GIT LITERATE' in your subject line. ---