I was just telling a friend this, and thought I would share with you all. I got new neighbors a couple months ago- she is a nurse and he is a cop, and they live across the street two doors down. Young- early 20’s, and seem to be very nice. I took them a lemon meringue pie I bought from the church women’s club semi-annual bake sale and chatted with them as they were moving in and met her mom, who was there helping, and they seem like good people. At any rate, they had one small barky dog in the same size range as my herd, but they recently got the most adorable Pyrenees puppy.
Every time I come home from somewhere and I see her out (I always drive in that direction around the block so that my car is parked on the right side of the road facing the correct way), I roll down my window and say hi and she gets all excited, and sits there and wait for me as I park my car and walk back down to love on her.
She is absolutely adorable and the softest, sweetest thing you have ever met. I wish I could adequately describe how delightful her fur is to touch. And she has this ginormous cold wet nose. She just *extreme Oprah voice* AMAZING.
I’m currently being weighed down by two dogs and a cat watching television:
Lily is to my side, and you can’t see her. I’m starting to lose feeling in my left foot, but every time I try to move slightly Steve digs in with his claws, so I am hoping when it dies and the foot needs to be amputated the surgeon will be understanding.
raven
Snort!
Mary G
Steve is getting his revenge. That puppy is adorbs.
WaterGirl
How old is the pup? Adorable.
The only Great Pyrenee I ever knew was a wonderful dog and I wished I could have one. It’s just cruel to have them here in Illinois where it gets so hot and humid.
rikyrah
Cole,
Your household stories always make me laugh
Butthurt Jordan Trombone (fka XTPD)
Who should play Ivanka Trump in HBO’s inevitable series Infrastructure Week?
debit
John, let me come over to your house and tidy up your cables. I get an eye twitch every time I look at the TV set up.
Jim, Foolish Literalist
How old is Lily? I was thinking the other day that I started commenting here in 2009, which both seems like yesterday and a hundred years ago, and it was right around the time you found Lily. She was full grown, wasn’t she?
John Cole
@debit: I even have an organizer that I keep meaning to use for them, but sure, come on over.
John Cole
@Jim, Foolish Literalist: anywhere from 11-14 I would guess.
WaterGirl
@debit: Please swing by Central Illinois after you clean up Cole’s cables. It bugs me, but I don’t have the patience for it.
seaboogie
Great Pyrenees are wonderful dogs – gentle giants!
I had such a pup-filled week, too! 3 dog-sits this week, and while I love the pups dearly, it is also nice to be home in my own bed with a day off tomorrow.
Nice touch with the gift ‘o pie, John – you are a mensch!
There’s a big Mexican party happening at the end of my block, and the music is really great. Nice to enjoy vicariously from my otherwise quiet patio.
SiubhanDuinne
That puppy is gorgeous. What a sweetie!
Your new neighbors sound nice. And a cop and a nurse — well, let’s just say that might come in useful one of these days. ?
debbie
@WaterGirl:
One of my brothers has two of them in Ohio, and they got through the summer just fine. Lots of shedding though.
Omnes Omnibus
@debit: My eyes don’t even register stuff like that. If you want to stop in Madison on your way to WV, I might need some help too.
efgoldman
Which one gets the clicker?
debit
@John Cole: Maybe this summer!
@WaterGirl: You need the right set up. And zip ties. So many zip ties.
@Omnes Omnibus: It makes me crazy. I can let other stuff pile up, let dishes go, not dust, but a tangle of cables will make me go mad.
HumboldtBlue
This popped up on a recommendation feed.
Best thing about talented young musicians given some run, they love to shake up the rhythm.
That’s what made horn-heavy Chicago worth a listen.
ruemara
In the interest of improving everyone’s day, Odoriki & Hime Beri are graciously reclining in front of the camera.
Aleta
A PT I went to had a Pyrenees who’d lie at your feet in the waiting room. You could sink your bare feet in her fur and it felt amazing.
For awhile she also had an injured raven there she was rehabbing and had to feed. He was an interesting fellow, seemed sophisticated.
Omnes Omnibus
@debit: Ropes that are tangled kill me. I did some climbing when I was younger and rope care is really important. Sailors will be the same way.
Adria McDowell
A- that doggo is adorable, and b- we became cat people over Christmas and holy crap, kittens are worse than puppies! Our kitten gets into EVERYTHING! I’m pretty sure he licked my toothbrush a million times before I caught him doing it, he does kitty parkour of our poor dog’s back, and is quickly becoming impervious to the water bottle when he is doing something wrong. He tried to jump on the stovetop the other day WHILE I WAS COOKING ON IT! Oh, and he really loves the kiddo’s LEGOs and ponytail holders.
He’s lucky he’s soft and cute! ;-)
Omnes Omnibus
I don’t really understand short track speed skating.
Mike J
@Omnes Omnibus: Organized cables usually means impossible to change without major effort. I prefer unorganized.
neldob
Remember to wiggle your toes.
CaseyL
I hear so many bad things about WV, including John’s own criticisms, yet his little town sounds practically idyllic. So many wonderful people and their critters! Why isn’t the whole state like that?
Adria McDowell
@efgoldman: The cat, obviously.
HinTN
@Omnes Omnibus: Madison, as in WI? Meetup in June?
WaterGirl
@debit: I just don’t have the patience. I will feed you a nice dinner and make you cookies.
Omnes Omnibus
@Mike J: Ah, yes. That is my reason. Thanks.
WaterGirl
@SiubhanDuinne: Did you see the post Adam put up last night with photos of the pups I have for 10 days?
https://balloon-juice.com/2018/02/16/puppies/
Omnes, I was in bed by the time that posted last night and I think you were gone by the time I saw it this morning, but you pegged Tucker exactly right.
Omnes Omnibus
@HinTN: If I am still here, sure. What brings you to Mad-town in June?
eclare
@ruemara: Sweet!
HinTN
@Omnes Omnibus: Conference. I’m an engineer and the materials science folks are in town around 24 June.
Corner Stone
Hmmm…why does it seem I have a couple bikes that need an expert touch to put them back together?
ruemara
@Adria McDowell: Kittens are way worse than puppies. Bigtime. Don’t use the spray bottle. Do relocate him to his space – a nice climbing perch he can romp all over..
Omnes Omnibus
@WaterGirl: Dogs like that are so fun. My brother’s golden-doodle is like that. My dad and I have both managed to get black eyes from playing with him.
Corner Stone
@Omnes Omnibus: Where else?
Spanky
WaPo’s interview with a troll.
HumboldtBlue
Huh, I have a spaghetti mess of cables. Guaran-damn-tee would make some of youse angry (pretty sure if I move the small speaker I will pull out the power cord to the thing… box … with lights).
Therefore, there is this for happy.
HinTN
I was there once before in the late 90s for an electrical safety class. Took my homeboy craft supervisor and design engineer to an Afghani restaurant. They went kicking and screaming and then professed to love it, so there’s that.
Aleta
A dog story by Blair Braverman (dog sledder and author) on twitter.
Roger Moore
@debit:
I would strongly recommend the velcro cable straps rather than cable ties. They’re just as neat, but they don’t need to be cut off when you rearrange stuff.
SiubhanDuinne
@WaterGirl:
Yes, and they look as though they’re going to keep you busy. VERY.BUSY.INDEED.
Just wicked cute, they are.
Omnes Omnibus
@Corner Stone: Sadly, Milwaukee.
Aleta
@ruemara: Beautiful.
Roger Moore
@Aleta:
He was probably smarter than the dog. You know the story from Aesop’s Fables where the crow puts pebbles into a pitcher to raise the water level high enough to drink from? They’ve been observed to do exactly that when presented with that problem. They’re in the same intelligence range as dolphins and great apes.
Omnes Omnibus
@HinTN: Send up a flare as it gets closer.
WaterGirl
@ruemara: Gorgeous!
Mnemosyne
I didn’t get home from the Happiest Place On Earth until 1:30 am and then had to get up at 8 am to let the cleaning people in, so now I’m struggling to stay awake until 9 pm so I can go to sleep.
Gravenstone
@WaterGirl: A friend of mine just adopted her second GP this weekend. This one was apparently found in Texas, tied to a tree with a fucking extension cord. He’s small for his breed, so likely malnourished during earliest development, but is only 7-8 months old, so has room to rebound.
zhena gogolia
We discovered tonight that For Whom the Bell Tolls is unwatchable.
WaterGirl
@Omnes Omnibus: It is fun, but a black eye? I got a black eye once playing volleyball, and the worst part about it was all the “oh I’m so sorry he beats you” look that women gave me for the couple of weeks before it went away.
WaterGirl
@Gravenstone: They are wonderful. How awful for the one who was mistreated. Some people just suck.
HinTN
@Omnes Omnibus: Will do. Milwaukee ain’t that far either. I’ll have a young engineer in tow. He’ll be presenting our paper, and he’s not seen the Great Lakes, so the plan is to drive over one afternoon.
Jager
Mrs. J had a cold the other night, she went to bed at 8:30. Anze the Dog and I stayed up for awhile. She was coughing and hacking, so I hit the guest room. I got into bed with my Kindle and Anze was standing by the bed staring at me. I took him to our room got him on his doggy bed. 5 minutes later he was back in the guest room staring at me. I got up, got a beach towel and spread it on half the bed. He hopped up, snuggled up and drifted off in seconds. The guest room was cold and a big warm German Shepherd makes for one hell of a bed warmer. I’d rather sleep with Mrs J but the doggy boy is a decent substitute.
Omnes Omnibus
@WaterGirl: Henry (the dog) tends to head butt. Fucking cheater.
WaterGirl
@SiubhanDuinne: Three words about the adorable pups keeping me busy.
Oh. My. God.
Mnemosyne
@WaterGirl:
My poor boss ended up with a black eye the day of her mother’s funeral because one of her toddlers accidentally elbowed her in his sleep the night before. It wasn’t super conspicuous since it was fairly small (size of a toddler’s elbow) but she felt self-conscious all day.
SWMBO
@Omnes Omnibus: Why Milwaukee?
WaterGirl
@Omnes Omnibus: Not a fan of the head butt. Tucker doesn’t do that, thank god!
‘Night all. These pups have me going to bed at 9 or 10 every night.
Roger Moore
@ruemara:
This. If your cat is a climber, the best thing to do is to give it an approved place to do its climbing, not to punish it for being who it is.
WaterGirl
@Mnemosyne: I had a friend who got a cold sore for her wedding day, that sucked. Maybe the black eye served as a distraction for your boss on that horrible day.
Aleta
@Roger Moore: I have a real crow story. Too long to tell.
I read crows have very strong lasting social structures. The raven seemed mentally different than the crows I’ve seen, but then he was also out of his element.
Omnes Omnibus
@SWMBO: I want to be in a bigger city and fuck the people who want me (and people like me) out of the state. We’ve been here since the 1830s.
Mnemosyne
@Aleta:
Ravens in captivity can learn to talk if they decide it’s worth their while.
Aleta
@Mnemosyne: He was very interested in what was going on, and calm, and made (what I remember as) social noises.
Roger Moore
@Aleta:
Ravens tend to have smaller social groups than crows. Common ravens (Corvus corax) tend to live as mated pairs with their immature offspring. American crows (Corvus brachyrhynchos) are cooperative breeders, which means the young will often stay with their parents for a few years after reaching maturity and help raise their younger siblings. Cooperative breeding leads to a more complex social structure.
Gin & Tonic
@Roger Moore: I recommend velcro straps too, as opposed to zip ties, but that’s because the zip ties constrict the cable and make the electrons flow more slowly.
Omnes Omnibus
@Aleta: Our Raven is nothing like that.
Aleta
@Roger Moore: That’s interesting and seems to fit; thanks.
Aleta
@Omnes Omnibus: fuuny
MoxieM
Your neighbors have a yappy dog and they just got a Pyr?? ahahhahaha. One of the (ahem) best loved Pyr traits is their love of showing off their vocal abilities, i.e., yelling their heads off at every opportunity:
Hey! it’s a squirrel… Hey! did you see that leaf?…Hey! the Mailman!! Hey! Hey hey!!
My current rescue, Murphy the Beloved Magical Wonder Dog is about 85% Pyr, so I’ve been reading, and joining Pyr groups and all that. Boy is she a loudmouth! My previous life partner, Roxy the Newf was hardly quiet, but she had nothing on Murpho.
Also of course they are famously Dis-a Pyrs–as livestock guardian working dogs, they will take off and try to expand their territory at every chance. I hope your neighbors have theirs securely (i.e., 5 ft or higher) fenced. I am told they are fence climbers, too, but I’ve never seen it.
Finally, Murph the Smurph, mother of treats and owner of many nicknames, is sweeter than sweet to me, and my designated others–but–wow is she nasty, hateful, and an aggressive bitch toward both other dogs and people she doesn’t know or take a liking to. As in, full hackles, teeth bared, growling, and ears back. Yikes. Of course she’s also an 8 year old rescue, sho who knows what she’s encountered along the way. But Pyr fanatics tell me these are all typical Pyr traits. Hmm. Dunno?? I just warn people when we are on walks.
Omnes Omnibus
@MoxieM:
Beau, the dog of dogs, could not be left with other dogs. He was a fuck or fight guy. He looked like Restoration fop and he acted that way.
Yutsano
@Omnes Omnibus: Hold that thought. I might be in Milwaukee come late October.
NotMax
@debit
While you’re at it, could you mount the sound bar on the wall? Where it belongs?
Thanks.
The Simp in the Suit
Sorry, bub, the cat is watching YOU…
…and he’s thinking baaaaad thoughts…
Dagon
@NotMax:
And work on his cable management.
Gelfling 545
Flora believes she is a match – at 12 inches tall – for any dog. The only one she ever backed away from was a Pyrenees. I don’t think she believed it was a dog!