OBAMA!!!

Tonight I'm PROUD to be a Democrat and support Barack Obama!!!
I'm watching the convention from my living room here in Denver.
Was wait-listed for a ticket to hear Obama at Invesco... still and all... so proud of folks who want to make our country a better place for ALL PEOPLE!!!!
I'm a believer!!!

Pagli and Me

We took off on our first official road trip last week to Wyoming. Pagli is the official "good will ambassador" of furniture sales. He captured the hearts of customers and strangers alike!
He was the first doggie rub of Wesley, the seven month old son of a designer at Fish Creek Interiors and then he became best buddies with Christopher, the six year old son of customer and friend, Carol at Earth & Vine.

Pagli had his first visit with Dr. Judy on Monday and was a very good boy! He weighed in at 4.5 lbs. and is in perfect health! He's sleeping "almost" through the night... and is doing great on his "potty" training. Tonight we're going to our first "Puppy Recess" at the Boulder Humane Society and start obedience training on Sunday. We're getting ready for our first road trip next week to Wyoming. Wish us luck!

"Pagli"

Pagliaccio in Italian means clown...

I think I've finally hit upon the perfect name for my new buddy and I'll call him "Pagli" for short! We've had a fun weekend... a trip to Petco... meeting Angie and Brad and neighbors Darlene and Rick... His first instinct is to bark a little, but he warms up quickly... He loves running in the deep grass out back and looks more like a bunny than a puppy... His has one ear that flips and one that flops... and is just too cute for words!

Please welcome the newest member of my family!

I left on Thursday morning for Hayti, South Dakota... just beside myself with the anticipation of finally meeting Annie. I had her crate all ready... pink baby blanket, pink stuffed giraffe... and all the trimmings.. Late in the afternoon I got a call from Lisa, the breeder. She was so upset. She had taken Annie to the vet to get her health certificate... traveling papers... when they made a discovery. Lisa had noticed that Annie's tongue seemed to be hanging out of her little mouth more than normal for a puppy. She mentioned it to the vet on Thursday. After examination the vet showed Lisa that Annie has a condition call "wry" jaw. This is when one side of the jaw grows faster than the other leaving the bit out of alignment. It is hard to correct and can get worse as they grow and cause more orthodontic problems...
So I spent a stressful afternoon trying to figure out what to do. Thursday night I got on line and read about the deformity... sounded pretty severe... I left Mitchell, SD early Friday morning headed to Hayti without having made a decision. I arrived to a beautiful farm way out a dirt road... Tall trees, green grass, a nice breeze... that part of SD is beautiful right now... lakes and fields and big hay bales... I walked into Lisa's house and out tumbled the four Bichon puppies... each cuter than the other... At first I considered still taking Annie... she was so adorable and I have a soft spot for imperfection in animals... I even put the little pink collar I'd brought on her... but then she sat there with her tongue hanging out the side of her mouth... and I realized that I would be taking a huge risk with her health.... so then I needed to make another choice... It took forever... first I thought I would take the other girl, Mia... but she didn't really tug at my heart... When I had walked in the house, the puppy I had paid the least attention to was the one who was trying hardest to get me to love him... He came directly to me and wouldn't leave me alone...
Mozart was my second choice... He was definitely the "George Clooney" of the bunch... a perfect specimen... I went back and forth... looks or personality??? and of course, personality won out!
I came home with Morgan! We feel in love while covering the 700+ miles from SD to CO!! He got car sick and was just so pitiful for the first part of the trip... but he was a trooper... We'd stop for a while and he'd be waggin his tail trying hard to be happy... We have definitely bonded. He's laying at my feet right now and I can feel the magic working! He has already stood up to Lulu. He has barked and even growled a bit like a big dog to show her he's in charge... if he only knew... but I'm proud that he's not letting her push him around. This afternoon she was sleeping (with one eye open) on one sofa and he was on the other... Looks promising...
Will post a few pictures now and be sure that more will come!

In the hotel room last night... "I see a friend!"

BELLA BELLA BELLA!!!

What do ya know??? Just when I had given up on those Italians... they came through.
I got home from Vegas to find my front door papered with UPS delivery slips... it looked like my Italian Vase had finally made its way across the big pond... I heard the UPS truck today and ran out to the curb. He was making a delivery to the neighbors and didn't have my vase.... where was it?? Called to track... they had made their final attempt last week, so now the package was in UPS purgatory in Commerce City. I jumped in the car and found the huge warehouse in the meanest industrial part of Denver. Not to worry... they called to arrange for the package to be brought up front... "Mame, the package is huge!" I uncartoned it right in the office just to make sure it was OK. This time it was packaged right... bubble wrapped and wedged into a box FULL of styrofoam chunks!!! Brought it home and sat in on the mantle just where I was thinking it should go... now if the cat's don't break it, we'll be OK!

OH MY GOSH!!!

My nightly date, Craig Ferguson!!

I forgot to tell you about the hi-lite of my trip to Vegas last week!!! I was laying in bed spending quality time with my VERY FAVORITE late night personality Craig Ferguson the week before Vegas... and what do you know? He told me that he'd be in Vegas while I was there... it didn't take 24 hours for me to seal the deal... one little ticket purchase and I was sitting about 20 feet from this cutie pie! He was performing at the Hollywood Theater at MGM. I wasn't disappointed... He made me laugh for 1 solid hour... and he is just as cute as he can be.... And although it wasn't our destiny to meet... I'm sure he was intimidated by my beauty.... I did enjoy our time together! Rod Stewart and Craig... all and all, a pretty fine week, even if I didn't win at the tables!

I'll have my puppy this time next week!!!

This is Annie's latest pic!! Isn't she a cutie?
I talk to everyone who has a dog... those who own male dogs say they're the very best... and those who own female dogs, insist that girls make the best pets... well... I'm torn between Annie and her brother... I'll make the final decision on Friday when I arrive in South Dakota to adopt my puppy. This is the latest pic of Miss Annie and she's just a doll... I'm pretty sure she'll come home with me... The breeder e-mailed a 5 page "puppy care" document and a list of "puppy essentials". Now I just have to make my final shopping run and "puppy proof" the kitchen and I'll be all ready to bring my little girl home!! It's going to take some real adjusting... but I think we'll be best buddies and traveling partners in two shakes of that cute white tail! She's got a step-sister just down the block and two other Bichons in the hood... so she'll have playmates galore... and I'll finally get out and meet some more of my neighbors... The Boulder Humane Society hosts Puppy Happy Hour on Friday evenings and Puppy Recess on Wednesdays... We'll have a full social calendar, I'm sure!

I got home from Vegas on Friday evening about 7:30pm. I was beat, as usual... so I've slept in the past two mornings knowing that this is my final weekend of freedom! I hiked for about two hours at Chautauqua today... again... the last long jaunt I'll have away for a while... my time away will be limited to 2 hour intervals for the next month... Angie says you can leave them 1 hour for each month in age they are... Life as I know it is just about to change for good!
Don't know how the kitties are going to react... Will keep you posted! In the mean time, I've got tons to do to follow up from a pretty fair market...

VIVA LAS VEGAS!!!

World Market Center C Building opened with a bang last week! It's a beautiful new venue that brings the complex to over 5 million square feet of showroom space... and believe me... my feet felt like they had walked the entire 5 million by the time the show was over!!!
Opening events included lots to drink along with a fantastic concert by the one and only, Rod Stewart!
He put on a great concert... over 1.5 hours of singing and moves... Rod still has a voice and a tush!! No leopard tights... but that's OK... he sang "Maggie May"one of my all time favorites!!


Lisa, Eldon and I before the concert in the afternoon heat and sun!

Alex and I headed off to Rocky Mountain National Park yesterday. We hiked at the Glacier Gorge tailhead. We got past the beautiful waterfall when the storm clouds moved in. By the time we got back to the car, the rain was coming down in buckets!! We stayed in the park and drove along trailridge road. It's beautiful no matter what the weather is like. It was down to 54 degrees at the top! We had a late lunch in town and shopped on the main street a while before heading back down to Broomfield where it was 99 degrees and not a drop of rain! Watched a moved and chilled last night. Going to Denver today to hit some of the cool museums and maybe the US Mint if we can get in!

Vegas Here I come!

My summer of music, work and fun continues next week with my semi-annual visit to the wild town of Las Vegas for the summer furniture market. No matter what the economy brings, I have Rod Stewart to look forward to!! He's opening the new building C with a concert on Monday night! He's always been one of my very favorites and now I'll finally get to see him!

Alex and I enjoyed an evening of Shakespeare under the stars last night in Boulder. We saw the tragedy, MacBeth. The actors were all superb and even though our old english was a bit rusty, we followed the plot quite well. Lady MacBeth had a scream that would curdle your blood, the 3 witches were witchy in all ways, and the murderous action scenes left us flinching!
Last time I attended was with David and Kim a few summers ago when we saw the comedy, 12th Night.
This morning Alex is sleeping and I'm catching up on a few e-mails, but we're off to Rocky Mountain National Park today for some high altitude fun!

Fun with Alex in Colorado

Alex arrived on time yesterday and we hit the ground running. It's so good to see him and spend some time together before he gets so busy with school. I enjoy hearing about all of his patients at the nursing home and sharing music. We ate dinner at a favorite spot in Boulder, Juanita's... had the fish tacos that we great as always and then headed to Chautauqua to catch the Susan Tedeschi and Derek Trucks show. We were able to sit outside and listen for free which is one of the best deals around. There was a fantastic Boulder sunset and the evening cooled off nicely. After the show we purchased a few CDs and a signed concert poster.
Today we strolled Pearl Street Mall and have tickets for tonight's performance of MacBeth at the Shakespeare festival. It hit 100 degrees today, but hopefully it will cool off again tonight.
I'm getting ready to put some salmon on the grill and fix some of the fresh veges I picked up at the Farmer's Market yesterday morning.

Betsy and I in Santa Fe over July 4th

Betsy met me in Santa Fe over 4th of July weekend. We stayed at the El Rey and enjoyed all that the city had to offer. We had drinks on the rooftop at Coyote Cafe and watched pink lightening in the evening sky. We had dinner at the Cowgirl Hall of Fame and listened to the jingly tunes of The Santa Fe All Stars. We drank local wine at the Santa Fe Wine Festival and enjoyed Falstaff at The Santa Fe Opera. We shopped the Portola for authentic Native American Jewelry and met a lovely artist from Ahoskie, North Carolina. We shopped and found fabulous boots we couldn't afford. It was a great weekend spent with my sis.

Travels this week

Just got in from 5 days on the road.... Drove to Salt Lake via I-80 through Wyoming
We live in a great big country and it's full of beautiful vistas... Wyoming is vast... and fast... I can make the trip in about 7.5 hours... It's just a bit over 500 miles to SLC from my door.
Glad to be home.... Lulu is upstairs... Rocky is downstairs playing in the office and the washer is going. Alex arrives from North Carolina tomorrow. There will be plenty to keep us busy... music, hiking, exploring more of Colorado... and then it's off to VEGAS the following week for Furniture Market. No rest for the wicked!
Don't have new pics of Annie yet, but I'm sure she's growing and thriving.
Angie and I are running in the morning early and then off to Pilates all before I pick up Alex at the airport tomorrow afternoon. Goina be a busy couple of weeks... heck... it's a busy life!

Meet Annie!!!

Annie was born on May 28 and is growing quickly. She weighed in at her first vet visit at a whopping 2.3 lbs!!! I'll travel to South Dakota to pick her up sometime in early August and we'll start our life on the road. She'll be riding "shot gun" with me on my travels... thus her name... after another famous western gal, Annie Oakley... I'm getting more excited by the day. Angie took me on my first "doggie" spending spree last Sunday. The big purchase was a pink polka-dot set including collar, harness and leash. She'll be a princess for sure!