What's her name didn't work out

It's time to admit, here on the blog, that "What's her name" is no longer with us. It's hard to admit because I'm embarrassed about adopting a cat last year and a dog this year that didn't work out for us. I'm beginning to wonder if there's something wrong with me. (If you look at me through the eyes of a rescue group you would too.) What's her name (Monica, Phoebe, Reebee) wasn't happy and wasn't cooperating. I believe she needed 1) a doggy friend 2) a fenced yard and 3) no crate.

She hated being put in the crate but I was doing it more and more because she began relieving herself in the house. I would take her outside (on a leash and walk or hang around with her for 30 or more minutes and she wouldn't relieve herself. Then, when we came back inside she'd act like she needed to go outside. So out we'd go again. We did make a very nice fenced area under our deck (which is on the second story) which is protected from sun and rain. She wouldn't relieve herself out there either. She could hold it for hours and hours on end! But then, I'd find a puddle on the bathroom rug. She did that in the middle of the night several times, even though I'd take her out right before bed. (Back in the crate at night for her.) It got old real fast. She also wouldn't play much either. I found out she could. She played tug with me twice for less than a minute each. Most of the time she acted like she had no idea what play was. The last thing that tipped the scale against her is her snarling at me while grooming her. I was careful not to hurt but she'd lift her lip and growl. I didn't have a good enough relationship with her to know if she would hurt me or not. I finally decided she just wasn't happy and in the long haul we probably wouldn't be happy either. We called her foster home (who had asked us to call if it didn't work out) and gave her back. They were happy to have her and she's been good as gold at their house. Go figure.

Since then I continue to look for a dog that fits with us, so someday you'll see another post about another dog. We're looking for that special dog that really fits with our family and is as special as Angel and Kennyon (our extra special CCI dogs).

Civil Air Patrol

It seems the posts are getting further and further apart. I guess that means life is settling into a routine. Of course, if you know Larry, life is seldom a routine for very long.

He's still working on the basement remodel but, in his usual fashion, he is looking several steps ahead. He's not one to live in the moment like I'm prone to do. As he considered options of different hobbies or careers (to supplement his auditing job now) several were being considered. This included pursuing his magician hobby, setting up a stain glass shop and perhaps marketing finished pieces and... it seems like there was a third but I don't remember it now. For some reason I just don't understand, gardening was never in the top 10 things to consider. We would have made a great team. Oh well.

During the midst of all this discussion, the idea of Civil Air Patrol (CAP) starting climbing the "list". We have a good friend who is involved and the two of them got to talking. I showed some interest too which really fueled the fire. We visited a meeting and decided to join. That was about a month ago. Larry joined first and I followed shortly behind.

Some of you may not know that Larry has a pilot's license, it's just been inactive for a good long time. He can reactive his license without too much trouble and then he can be an asset to the local squadron. In truth, we can both be assets to the squadron without being pilots.

It's a different sort of volunteer opportunity as it's actually a civilian branch of the Air Force. As such, there are strict rules and structure. This can be an advantage as the roles are clearly defined and you know what you need to do. As I see it there are two paths to follow. One is in support of the squadron itself (support roles such as leaders, admins, communications, educators, etc.) and then specialty roles for missions and exercises (pilots, observers, scanners, ground crews and the like). There are ranks to achieve (such as lieutenant, captain, major, etc.). It really is different than anything other volunteer role I've ever been in.

Why am I doing it (you might ask)? For two reasons. First, for the purpose of volunteering in a meaningful organization. This is an adult squadron (called a "Senior Squadron") but there is a Cadet Squadron in town too that Larry has visited a number of times. The two overlap from time to time. CAP is involved in three main areas: 1) Aerospace Education 2) Emergency Services and 3) Cadet Programs. The other reason I joined is so that I would be involved in something with Larry where we both know the people and the jargon and can go together to functions (whether that be meetings, missions, or trainings). This will certainly do that. We could both make second jobs out of this if we let it.