November 30, 2008

Nash and the Cows

What happens when a curious dog and a curious cow meet? We decided to find out while we were at the Knapp farm for the holiday. We brought Nash over to the herd of 18 cows now kept on the farm. Of course Nash was thrilled by the prospect of meeting new friends, but the cows were not quite as enthusiastic. Except for one brave soul.

This brown cow - the only brown cow in the herd - kept creeping closer and closer to Nash, despite the little dog's constant crying to be let loose. 

As Brownie, as we called him, inched closer and closer, the other cows followed closely behind. But no one dared to advance beyond Brownie. This cow was certainly the leader of the pack. 

Finally, dog and cow met, and their noses touched briefly. We think Brownie might have even licked Nash. The experience was inspiring. To celebrate, one of the black cows mounted another cow. But everyone agreed this was an inappropriate way to celebrate, and the advances ceased. 


Eventually Nash tried to wiggle away from Lindon's persistent grip (after all, there was an electric fence), and Nash's wriggling spooked away the herd. 

But Nash will never forget the day that he and Brownie became friends. Though their contact was brief, the memory will last forever. Cow-dog relations just got an inch closer, thanks to Nash and Brownie. 

We're back and more to come

The Fowlers are back from a mini Thanksgiving vacation. We were in Chester, IL, at a farm for the holiday, and we had a blast. Now we are back, and our house is ready for the holidays. I will post more photos soon of our time in Illinois, and I promise to tell you about Nash and his new cow friend. It was a great holiday!

November 20, 2008

Life in the bar

Last week I spent a few minutes visiting with our process server when he stopped by to drop off a summons. We traded stories about crazy clients for a few minutes before he told me that one of my bosses is "legendary" for representing a host of colorful characters. 

Legendary? Really?

"Oh yeah," our server said. "His client list is like the bar scene from Star Wars." 

So if our clients resemble the bar scene from Star Wars, who does that make me?

Not sure I want to know the answer to that question...

November 18, 2008

One more thing about the couch

Now that we have these great new couch cushions, we want to keep them looking new and clean. So we have installed a protective barrier between Nash and his central command. He still spends most of his day on the couch, but now it's covered by a protective sheet.

November 17, 2008

A new couch

My mom made her annual trek to St. Louis this past weekend to spend time with me and Lindon. It is always a wonderful treat when my mom comes, but this time she came with a specific goal: make new couch cushions. 

We inherited this couch from Lindon's cousin, and while the frame is in good shape, the cushions have not fared well. Nash uses the couch as his central command for guarding the house while we are away. This means that he sits or lays on the couch from the moment we leave to the moment we return. In its current role, the couch has endured a lot of wear and tear. Here it is in action:


I know a little about sewing, but not nearly enough to take on a task of this size. So I enlisted the assistance of my wonderful mother, who quickly came to my aid. Together we picked out fabric, settled on a style, and got to work...all while Mom was practically dying of a head cold. The end product is below. 

Thankfully my mom doesn't really read my blog, or she would die to see this photo of her on it. I think she looks cute, even though she was really, really sick at the time. Notice how the extra fabric from the cushions makes excellent tie-backs for the curtains. I love it. 


More weekend fun

As I mentioned before, last weekend we celebrated the marriage of our friends Jay and Lori. We had a great time at Jay and Lori's wedding, and the event gave us an opportunity to catch up with some friends we haven't spent time with in a while. Sadly, I didn't get a chance to go take a photo of the happy couple that got married, but here are some other photos from that night. 

 



Then on Sunday we celebrated Lindon's 30th birthday. It was fun to have a small group of people over to celebrate with us. This semester has been rough for Lindon with all of his class work, so it was nice to have one afternoon just to relax with good friends. Too bad the Steelers lost...But it was still fun!

 

Lindon's cake said "Happy 30th Birthday - Lindon is old."


Lindon's friend Charlie gave him a Steelers hard hat - very fun. It will go well with his Troy Polamalu jersey. If only we could get him some Polamalu hair!

November 7, 2008

So much, so much, so much to be thankful for

This has been an eventful week. There have been major events and not-quite-as-major events that have made me pause and reflect. Here's what has happened:

1. Tuesday was election day. In case you missed it, we elected a new president. Like most people, I voted, and for me that meant waiting in line for 2 hours 20 minutes to get into the polling place. My natural inclination when I saw the line out the door snaking around the parking lot was to grumble. I was likely going to be late for work, and I didn't see any pleasant way to pass the time. And frankly, I was a little relieved when a woman in front of me passed out because that meant we had something interesting to watch while the ambulance came and treated her. Plus, one less person in line! It was terrible of me, I know. 

But slowly I began to chat with the people standing in line with me. In from of me was was Martha, the part-time pet sitter and community college instructor. And behind me was Chuck, who, as it turns out, attends the same church as some of Lindon's seminary classmates. Small world. 

As we waited, we began to share parts of our lives with each other. Martha shared with me who she was voting for, and it wasn't the same person I was voting for. But it seemed so inconsequential. Funny that at the most important moments of the election - when we are actually making the decision - the candidates mattered the least. And while Chuck and I had some common acquaintances, that's about where my similarities with this black man ended. But despite our differences, we all shared a common conviction that voting is important and worth any wait. As Martha said (and I am sure Chuck would have agreed), "People died so that I could do this." 

At one point in our waiting we found ourselves standing next to a giant map of the USA painted on the ground of the parking lot. When Chuck asked me where I went to college, I went and stood in Western Pennsylvania to show him where Grove City College was. He stood on Mississippi to show me where his family lived. Martha stood on the state of Georgia to show us where she went to grad school. I don't know if I will ever see these people again, but I doubt I will ever think of this "historic" election without thinking of the people I got to know while we exercised our most basic and precious of civic rights.

2. Wednesday marked my one-year anniversary of working at my job. As you have read here many times, I love my job. That's a big deal for me because before November 5, 2007, I didn't have a history of fantastic jobs. But in many ways this job gives me the freedom to be me and work in the ways I best work. My bosses are gracious, fun, and easy to please. My work feels meaningful, and it allows me to use my gifts. In short, it's a great gig.

Ironically, Wednesday was not exactly a pleasant day at the office. Everyone seemed tense, due in large part to heavy workloads and in small part due to Tuesday's outcome...There were conference calls galore, phone calls by the gallon, and doors that remained shut for most of the day. It was a little lonely.

But despite the difficult day, I still love my job. Things were back to normal on Thursday, and today I left work before 3:30. It's great. There are tough days, but they are the exception, rather than the rule, which makes life easier. And I laugh a lot at work. That in itself is worth the price of admission.

3. Today is the birthday of my husband Lindon. He is 30! Sadly, Lindon had to celebrate his birthday by working tonight, but he still had a good day, complete with a balloon, "Happy Birthday" sung by one of his classes, and dinner with his wife. And a co-worker offered to work the last hour and a half of his shift so he could come home early! 

So, those are three things this week that have made me thankful. Freedom, work, and Lindon. And Lindon and I will finish out this week with a wedding celebration tomorrow for two good friends. We are so blessed!