A SPECIAL DOG DAY AND WE HAVE OTHER REPORTS, TOO -- IT'S A MONDAY IN MAY

EDITION OF MONDAY, MAY 20, 2024 [PetPowellPress] Can it already be Monday? I was enjoying the weekend so much. I sound like a school kid, don’t I? Let’s jump right into today’s assignments — relax. Our classroom has no algebra, no chemistry and no physical fitness challenges. More in Contemplations.
THE SECOND EMAIL
WE OPENED TODAY
Yep the second email we opened Monday morning — tell you about the first one later — had to do with a “Day Worth Celebrating,” Yes, May 20 is “National Rescue Dog Day” and we got that tip in a gloriously illustrated message from East Lake Pet Orphanage, the North Texas legend for saving animals and engaging humans in the effort. (Is Centerville in North Texas? More on that in a moment.)
Back to the National Day: Research at the nationalrescuedogday.com site reveals happily that the day was “founded in 2018 by Lisa Wiehebrink, children’s book author and Executive Director of Tails That Teach."  It’s described as “an organization that helps children learn the kind and proper treatment of their pets.” [LARRY ASIDE: Can I get an ‘amen’ on that mission!]
See that photo of a dog being cuddled by a woman looks like a author? Yep, she is. The website says “Lisa’s inspiration for National Rescue Dog Day came from her beloved rescue dog Cooper (pictured) who was rescued as a puppy from a Los Angeles shelter in 2009 after being found living in a vacant lot.” [LARRY ASIDE: As you know, you don’t need to fly to LA from DFW to find homeless dog now living dog in a shelter.]
In the East Lake Pet Orphanage email, the text wonderfully reads, “Whether they rescued you or you rescued them, today is the day to celebrate. Share on social and tag East Lake in your favorite memories with your lucky pup!”
And the note also says, “Meet some of the homeless pets of East Lake Pet Orphanage that are waiting to be adopted, loved, cared for, and provided their forever home…” And, helpfully, ELPO provided this strip of  three rescued dogs and the suggestions that each would make a great dog to acquire and celebrate National Rescue Dog Day. [At readlarrypowell.com, our house celebrates it daily — check the dog food bill. Also check the cat food bill — we’re big on rescued cats, too.] Here are the three featured ELPO dogs.

The guy on the left is Romo, a 10-year-old Labrador Retriever who “still has a lot left to give,” the ELPO bio reads. It also reads, “Everyone at ELPO is rooting and cheerleading for this kind gentleman to get the home he deserves.
The puppy in the middle is “One of our Red Heeler mix puppies, Olive. She came in with 4 siblings — they originated in Centerville and were “founds stranded and alone underneath a porch….” and then “were delivered to ELPO to give them a new lease on life.” On the right, that’s Kayla, a 6-month-old Shepherd mix, a “social pup who loves affection and being petted.” She also plays well with “our other orphan puppies and is always extremely glad to see East Lake volunteers and visitors.”
ELPO is at 10101 E. Northwest Highway in Dallas. Call 214-342-3100. Online, you can see more adoptable rescued dogs (and cats, too) at https://www.eastlakepetorphanage.com/ .
CONTEMPLATIONS
HOUSTON WEATHER, DALLAS TRAFFIC,
We have some news from Houston: Our long-time Houston tipster Alexandra Kelsey was back “on the air” Monday after a really rough three days after that big storm. That was the FIRST EMAIL WE OPENED TODAY!
And, thanks to her and other Houston folks through the years, we have learned from experience that Houston — formerly the Bayou City, now officially “Space City” — has a very strong and active animal rescue community. May all of those folks be in full recovery from this awful weather event. May all the animals survive and thrive in the aftermath — thanks to loving humans who cherish them.
We’d been emailing and trying to reach AK since the storm knocked the city “off the air,” so to speak. No response until Monday because of the power situation. In a note Monday she reported that she hadn’t had power since 6:30 p.m. Thursday. [LARRY ASIDE: Think about the things affected by that. No coffee. Refrigerator fading to a memory. Air-conditioning off. Cell phone off and no way to quickly re-charge it. Those are things I’d miss.]
AK is succinct. “It has been brutal,” she says. She also explains, “My fuse box came off the wall of the house and I have several huge trees down in my backyard.”
The current hope is that the electrician will be able to quickly fix the fuse box, get the house powered again and help things get back to the pre-weather normal for our pal and her pets.
On Monday, she was briefly at her office, where the electricity was working, so she could re-charge her phone — the car couldn’t do it — and return home to deal with all the post-storm recovery challenges. It was great to see her email after hearing and seeing those horrid challenges in post-storm Houston.
LARRY WITH A TRAFFIC ASSESSMENT: I didn’t ask AK, but I’m betting this was the first time in years that traffic was moving at an orderly pace in Houston. I’ve driven in Houston and it can be scary. But I’m not sure traffic in Houston is worse than Dallas traffic. Just last week I drove in Dallas and in fair weather there were just two speeds. (1) “Wait for the traffic to clear around the road construction” or
(2) Drive like a bat out of you-know-where so you can get to your destination before the city plows up the asphalt on the interior street or before the highway department demolishes the freeway in the name of “improving the traffic flow.”
Seriously, is Dallas a worse place to drive than Houston no matter what the weather’s done? Bless those folks in Houston and keep things efficiently moving and powered up! And may all the animals and people be protected and thrive.
— Offer advice or good vibes by clicking on ‘comment’ below or by emailing [email protected] and put “HOUSTON TOUGH” in the subject line. —-