Why I Love my Dog

I have been sitting here, poised to write, but unsure of the topic. Meanwhile, my pooch was rolling around on "his" chair (this chair was not supposed to be commandeered by the pup...so much for those plans), happy as a clam. And, this made me laugh.

After almost a year and a half, this dog still makes me laugh on a daily basis. And, he has changed so much since I first brought him home. A lot of the changes seem to have come on lately, and it is awesome. He is so much happier now, and much more comfortable here at home. When someone comes into the house, he gets excited, rather than running and hiding. If it is someone he knows, he gets even happier and runs up to try to get that person to pet him.

And, the petting. It used to be, he wouldn't leave my side, even when people called him. Now, if someone will pet him, he is their best friend and wants nothing to do with me. He will jump from lap to lap, and cuddle like there's no tomorrow.

Some days, he runs around the living room, digs through his toy box, and then tosses his toys all over the place. If I throw a sock, he tears after it, and then hides it. A sock...I wish I could get that excited over a sock.

This may not be the most interesting thing, but Luca has been such a fun light in my life, and I had to share. I love this little guy!

Nostalgic for the '00s? Already?

VH-1 is currently running a series, "I Love the Millennium." Similar to its "I Love the [70's][80's][90's]" series, this one takes a nostalgic look at the trends that changed the early Aughts.

WHAT?? Is it really time to get nostalgic about this time? I don't get it...I thought they were pushing it with the 90's, as we're not even 10 years out of them. Don't get me wrong, I love watching them, but I don't have enough distance yet from my bad high school hair to get too weepy over my plaid shirts and baby doll dresses (yes, I wore them both. No, you may not judge).

I get that VH-1 knows they have a hit series on their hands, and they need to do things to keep it relevant and top-of-mind. I am a marketer, I get it. That is why the three 80's series worked...they had enough material, distance, and kitsch to knock it out of the ballpark.

But the year 2000? No. Too soon.
'

Sweltering in the City

It is a cool 90 degrees here (maybe 85 now that it's almost 8.30pm), and there is no place to hide from it. Which is actually ok by me; for a few days I can handle, even celebrate the heat. And, since on my recent trip the weather wasn't as warm as I would have liked, I am trying to get those good rays as much as I can.

It was so warm here today it actually reminded me of Spain. This happened earlier in the week, too...my friend and I went to the movies, and were hungry when we left. There was nothing open near the theater, so we went near his house. The area, at 10pm on a Tuesday, was packed. People still eating dinner, taking a paseo...so much like in Spain. It was a lovely warm night, too, which we don't get too often here.

I had a bit of wine left over from last night, so I thought, how nice would it be to have a tinto de verano? And, then it got me thinking, yes, I can have a tinto and some olives. As the day wore on, all I could think about was Spanish food. Because it's hot, I couldn't really imagine cooking anything...but...I could do tapas of olives, and cheese, and tomato and olive oil. So that is just what I did. I got some Spanish Drunken Goat Cheese (Cabra Emboracha?), Manchengo cheese, a baguette, and a mixer for my tinto (in Spain, we would use Fanta, but the Fanta here is much sweeter, maybe because of the corn syrup? So I got lemon flavored mineral water.).

I walked the dog then prepared my feast. Cut up the bread and tomato, spread with olive oil, salt and pepper, sliced the cheese and put the olives in my cute new dish from Spain. Then, of course, I poured my tinto, which was delicious with the mineral water. I must go find orange mineral water now! I sat and ate, savoring every bite. As I was eating, I turned on the movie Volver, so I was surrounded again by Spanish.

Se hecho de menos Sevilla, y Espana tambien.

Being Home

I've been home now for a week...catching up on sleep was tough, especially since I had a work trip thrown in there, but I am finally starting to get back into the swing of things!

There are some things I don't miss about my travels...I don't miss being shoved all the time. I don't miss not having toilet seat covers. Having to find public restrooms got a little old after a while. The smoking, well, I don't miss that either. Having no schedule or structure, that is tough for me. And I don't miss missing my Luca.

But, there is so much I do miss. I miss the fashions -- both clothing and hair (MULLETS galore!). I miss wandering around, finding hidden surprises around each corner. I miss the Spanish men paying me compliments as I walk down the street. I miss taking a paseo after dinner, strolling down the Santa Cruz of Sevilla and passing under the looming shadow of the Cathedral. I miss wandering the streets late at night (or early in the morning, if you will), and encountering random bursts of flamenco music. I miss my friends, with whom I shared a special city, and who I look forward to seeing there again in 2018. I miss observing people -- tourists, locals, workers, vagabonds -- all trying to find their way. And, I miss the randomness that happened throughout my trip -- seeing the king, being on a flight with a famous futbol player, watching some robbers sprint down the street after breaking into a store.

It is nice to be home, but do love my second home of Spain. I felt at peace there.