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THE JOY OF SLEEPING MAY INVOLVE LEARNING PARTNERSHIP....

Perhaps, Dear Readers, you'll agree that "observation" is one of the great joys of having animal friends in your home. 
 You see them doing things you never expected. Educational things. 
For example, just in time for this weekend's Let Sleeping Dogs Lie & Napping Cats, I happened to catch my dog Porche Noel doing a classroom demonstration.
That's her in a total nap position on her office bed in a morning photo during the week.
And that cat is, appropriately, Senior Office Cat William Powell, largely a nocturnal soul, trying to get some pointers on how to sleep from quite possibly the most sleep-comfortable dog on Planet Earth.

Porche can sleep anywhere. On anything. I think it is her dreaming of meals that helps her sleep through the night, an immovable pile of cuddly canine on the family bed.

In that middle photo, Porche is still on her office bed, but we've been joined by Martha's personally rescued dog Wendy. She's an older girl now and she's a grand sleeper.
We have no way of knowing what each of them is dreaming but, now and then, we see their little paws running at full gallop and, sometimes, we even hear them snorting like a thoroughbred at the end of a race. Neither of these is thoroughbred, but both are pure of heart.
That final photo? 
It's a "Photograph of Partnership." 
William Powell was already my office cat -- he'd helped me paint a house, in fact. We'd bonded. And then one day, in the front yard, I found a tiny black and white kitten clinging to a flimsy mimosa limb and yowling at the top of his lungs. 
I took him in and William began to train him. They bunked together. I'd hang out with them. We became buds.
And, now, William is the Senior Office Cat and Stevie Ray is the Junior Office Cat. 
And in this photo William is showing Stevie Ray how to stealthfully, almost invisibly, observe the goings-on in a house without appearing to be spies.
At some point soon, William will teach Stevie Ray how to "lift" a ballpoint pen out of the office supply box, grab an index card, and discretely take notes about what needs to be recorded for the sake of global history. William thinks big. He's a fan of the planet and its more peaceful people.

Cats, I believe, are optimists. 
Most of them in a dog-and-cat household still believe that some day the dog is going to relent and share a meal with them.
In our office, they'll split up the morning cat treats -- if I gently distribute the morsels and promise not to eat any of them.
Cats can be demanding of their humans. 
But, you know, it's a privilege to be a human who belongs to dogs and cats. And as their insomniac human, I cry out desperately, "You guys gotta show me how sleep 'til the sun comes up!!!! Want some treats?"
[PLEASE SEND photos of your slumbering critters ad their stories to [email protected]. We'll proudly post them in our long-running weekend feature, Let Sleeping Dogs lie & Napping Cats Nap.]

CELEBRATING THE FAIR, DOGS, CATS, PEOPLE AND YOUR HYPOTENUSE

EDITION OF FRIDAY, SEPT. 29, 2023 [PetPalPress] First day of the 2023 State Fair of Texas — when you’re there, remember to take time to admire the Fair and Fair Park. It’s a great place for thinkin’ about life and stuff. 
What’s the Fair theme this year? “Explore the Midway.” Great poster.
 Don’t forget to appreciate all the other areas, too. In fact, when you go through the Creative Arts Building, take a moment to enjoy the fact that Texas has so many artists, quilters, photographers, collectors of Texana and family memories, plus plenty of artistic cooks.

The soul of Texas is on display in that building. Yes, that’s a proper description.

And all the flavor of Texas isn’t on the midway. A lot of it is in the Creative Arts Building because because that’s where the cooking contests are judged. Pies, cakes, cookies, etc. — there are Lone Star geniuses creating recipes in kitchens all over the state and showing ‘em off in Fair Park!
HELPING A HOUSTON DOG
WHO’S BEEN SAVED ALREADY…
We got the initial news of this beautiful girl Rose from our pal, our Houston tipster Alexandra Kelsey. 
She summarizes the story this way: “Rose went from life on the Houston streets to living with her rescue’s little boy, who’s in a wheelchair.  She’s a lovely dog, and when a family with a special-needs child adopted her, it seems like a perfect match.
“But, Rose has put herself in charge of keeping the toddler organized and guarding toys. Rose has herding in her DNA, but her toddler wants to be a little more free-roaming than Rose has in mind.

“Freedom Street Rescue urgently needs to find a foster home for Rose, who is currently in Massachusetts.”

We checked with Karoline Carlson of Freedom Street Rescue about this dog described as “a great tag-along size at 38 pounds. She is great with kids and with other dogs.”

Karoline wrote, “She was adopted by a wonderful family in Massachusetts who also has a special needs son. We thought it was all a dream, but Rose has started herding and guarding her favorite toys and treats. It’s a lot to manage for this lovely family. It's like she had so little for most of her life and now she has so much and she's just wanting to make sure its hers. She had not hurt anyone or anything but she's spending a lot of time in time-out due to the kids being around all the time.”

And, Karoline is appealing to anyone anywhere who “could possibly consider helping us help Rose.” Email [email protected]
“She “is a great dog and smart like a Collie/Cattle Dog/Heeler mix. She just needs a slightly different home to thrive.”
 [THE BEGINNING — Karoline’s story of Rose. Remember, Rose’s life in rescue began this way: “Rose was found starving in the countryside outside of Houston. The woman who found her was out of work and managing her kids (one is special needs) but she took her in and did her part. Rose did great there with her dogs and even her son in a wheel chair….” 
When you read that, it sure fits with what Karoline wrote about the current challenge: “It's like she had so little for most of her life and now she has so much and she's just wanting to make sure it’s hers.”
]
MEANWHILE, IN MESQUITE,
THIS GUY NAMED COMET!
[LARRY ASIDE: For a few years now we’ve been posting photos of animals waiting for the right human in the Mesquite Animal Services Shelter. One of the poses that always gets us is when volunteer dog-writer Judi Brown or Debra Chisholm catches a dog stretching up to look on the “outside.” Sometimes they’re looking at things going on, but sometimes they’re looking for the person who dumped them at the shelter, our tipsters tell us. Here’s what Judi tells us about Comet.]
Comet is #54182915, a 1- or 2-year-old, 62-pound Siberian Husky.
The bio opens, “Tag or come meet Comet. You will see that he has an endearing personality. Comet is …a Siberian Husky with beautiful, brown eyes and a big fluffy tail.

“He arrived at the Mesquite Animal Shelter on 9/18 as a stray. He is not neutered. He is however, very friendly and welcoming. He’s very affectionate and sweet. [During her visit with him] He stayed close wanting affirmation and extra human attention. He scampered after a ball, but did not retrieve it. That’s something you could teach him. 

“He backed up when I tried to get him to sit. He didn’t know what I was asking of him, but was wanting to please. He’s well-mannered. He was curious looking over the wall, but he didn’t appear to be trying to escape.

“Huskies are known to be escape artists so Comet will need a tall, secure fence. A customer came up to the gate and he greeted him and even gave him kisses. He walked fairly well on a leash. He did his business in the yard. He wagged his tail meeting other dogs and jumped back when one was barking at him. I did not see any signs of aggression. This is one fine dog!”

If you’d like to meet and adopt “one fine dog” named Comet, use his shelter ID (#54182915] when you call the shelter at 972-216-6283 or email [email protected], Judi also said, “Comet would love to be part of your family and be an inside dog being included in your family time.”

See more Mesquite available adorables — dogs and cats — by clicking on the shelter link HERE 
That cat? No name yet. But the year-and-a-half-old Domestic Shorthair Mix girl has an extraordinarily interesting face. It’s the kind of “interesting” that people in Hollywood wish they had when the camera is on. It’s fascinating with its colors and accents. She’s #54495305 when you ask the Mesquite shelter about her. She arrived at the shelter on September 28 — yep, basically mere hours ago. And she’s in the Cat Room and available. Small girl. Big opportunity for a cat-loving human. 

CONTEMPLATIONS
DEDICATED TO TEXAS, THE FAIR AND BOOK-LEARNIN'
I love the State Fair of Texas. Lots of reasons. One year my sons won the “Most Alike Twins” in their age-group. Might have been two years, I can’t remember. I wasn’t a judge. I had to work that day. But through the years, I’ve been privileged to judge cakes, cookies, pies and pinto beans at the Fair. Never once had a bad bite of cake or a bad cookie or a bad bite of pie. Never. But I’m writing a book about that pinto bean contest sponsored by a local newspaper about 30 years ago — let’s just say the bean cooks were spirited that year. Not sure the paper ever sponsored another pinto bean contest.
PERSONAL QUESTION: Should I buy a new pair of dress shoes or get the pickup fixed — bad “O Sensor” and it failed the state inspection for the first time since it was rolled onto Texas streets and highways in 1999. “Fix the pickup,” my advisor spouse said. And Martha is fully aware of the fact that my dress shoes are a 10-year-old pair of tasseled Bass Weejuns. I don’t even know if they still sell that style. (Hang on….yes, the style is still around.) These loafers take me back to my teen years when the big challenge at Texas High in Texarkana was the dress code. If you were a boy in penny loafers without socks, you’d get sent home to get some socks. If you were a girl in penny loaders without socks, why, welcome to the classroom and you get an “A” for deportment. That’s the way I remember it.
ONE MORE SCHOOL NOTE? I miss classrooms now and then. But I’ve got a collection of old American and English lit schoolbooks from the 1960s that keep me company on nights when I feel like reading short pieces by John Steinbeck or Mark Twain or poetry by Ogden Nash. Books full of old friends. If you have a kid in school or if you’re enrolled somewhere, find something enjoyable to read and let it own your heart and soul. You’ll enjoy it years from now. I made a hundred on my senior year geometry final but not once since then have I said, “I think this is a good day to do some geometry exercises.” Not once.
—- Offer learning tips or recipes by clicking on ‘comment’ below right or by emailing [email protected] and put ‘ALGEBRA KICKED MY HYPOTENUSE’ in the subject line. —-