kapachino

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  • The First Two Days Of Dog Ownership

    I do believe that I might have come across one of the sweetest dogs of all time. There are so many good things about Cleo. She hardly makes any noise; I’ve only heard her bark once. She loves everybody and gives cute little kisses that aren’t overwhelming. She’s extremely calm, which is perfect for apartment living. She knows how to sit and shake, and she’s pretty good at “come.” This morning, as I was rushing out the door she squirted past my legs and ran to the stairs (we live on the third floor). But when I said, “Cleo, no!” she stopped, and when I said, “Cleo, come!” she came back inside! I think that’s pretty amazing for our second day together.

    Cleo

    Here are the things we’re struggling with. I think that these will get better as time goes by, but if you have any advice I will receive it gladly!

    >She does not like going up the stairs. As I said, we’re on the third floor. The first day I pretty much had to carry her up. But I decided I’m not going to keep doing that. Now I say to her, “Cleo, up!” and I push her from behind until she is forced to take a step up. Then when she gets to the top of the flight I praise her, and if she gets all the way up to the apartment I give her a treat. I think she is getting a little better.

    >She isn’t eating her food or drinking much water. I’m not sure if it’s because she’s nervous or if it’s because she’s a snob about what she eats. Hm.

    Other than that she’s adjusting pretty well. She doesn’t move around the apartment much, but just kind of curls up in her little spot by the couch. I think she just needs more time to feel at home, and to know that she doesn’t have to go back to the shelter!

    Her car ride home:

    Best buds already:

    I love her!

  • Meet Cleo

     

    Beagle/ Hound mix, female, 2 years, brown/white. The lady that found me has two dogs and can’t keep me. I get along with older kids, adults, other dogs and am very quiet and sweet. I already know some commands and would love to learn more with you! Come and take me to my forever home!

    My roommate Amanda and I adopted her today! I have been wanting a dog for an extremely long time, so this is a momentous occasion. We didn’t actually get to bring her home today, because she still has to be spayed. But we pick her up tomorrow, and then I can get much better pictures. I love her already!

  • Pita Pizza

    I’ve been trying to eat healthier for about 6 weeks now. And even though I’d like to be, I am not a cook. I just haven’t had the time to get in to that yet. But sometimes it’s really helpful to make things myself: for the variety, because it can be cheaper, and healthier too. So I’m going to give you a recipe now, but since this is the first time I’ve done this I’m going to make some caveats which will hold for all future recipes (if, indeed, there are any to follow):

    a) This won’t be fancy, but when I do give you a recipe it’s going to be quick, easy, good, and healthy. At least in my opinion.
    b) I’m not married, and usually only have to provide a meal for myself or 1-2 others. I have no idea about cooking for an entire family.
    c) The measurements may not be exact, because I estimate a lot. Sometimes I won’t even give you measurements, because I think you can figure it out for yourself, like I did.

    Pita Pizza

    Whole wheat pita bread
    Pizza sauce
    Low fat mozzarella cheese

    1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees
    2. Cover the pita in pizza sauce
    3. Add a layer of cheese
    4. Place on top shelf of oven
    5. Cook for 10 minutes or until cheese is melted

    And that’s it! Oh, and you can add meat if you want, but I prefer plain cheese. If you want to keep it healthy though, stick with lean meat.

  • Reading Statistics

    From Booking Through Thursday:

    There was a widely bruited-about statistic reported last week, stating that 1 in 4 Americans did not read a single book last year. Clearly, we don’t fall into that category, but . . . how many of our friends do? Do you have friends/family who read as much as you do? Or are you the only person you know who has a serious reading habit?

    Let’s see…almost all of my closest friends are readers. I can’t think of any that have not read a book in the last year. My roommates and I started a book club in October of 2005 and it is still going strong. When we started it was just the three of us, and now we have five regular members. Small, yes, but flexible and personal. We read a book a month and then get together at a coffee shop and discuss it.

    My boyfriend loves to read, which is a huge turn-on for me! I really think that he has read more books than me in his life, although he protests. Our normal genres are completely different, but we like to venture into each others’ every once in awhile. For example, I promised him that the next book I read (other than book club books) will be Stephen King’s IT. I am pretty open to most any kind of book, as long as it is decent, and I love discussing books with him because he has so much insight and comes at it from a totally different perspective than I do.

    As for my family, we all read except for my youngest brother Barry who is a senior in college. When the seventh Harry Potter book came out, he asked me to tell him what happened when I finished the book because he “had to know.” I, of course, asked him why he didn’t just read it for himself. His answer was, “I don’t read.” How sad! I think I’m going to try to get him onto audiobooks, and then maybe eventually he’ll move on to the harder stuff.

    My dad, as previously mentioned, is a constant reader like I am. My mom I think is usually too busy to read much, but I know she enjoys it and has done a lot of it in the past. My brother David has grown to be more and more of a reader over the years which makes me extremely happy, even though we don’t always have similar taste in books.

    That’s my reading world! I enjoy it. And the people in it. :)

  • First Day Of School

    Growing up my mom always demanded that she take my brothers and I to school on the first day instead of us riding the bus so that she could take our pictures. When we were younger this wasn’t such a big deal, but once high school rolled around I was pretty embarrassed about it. She kept telling us that we’d appreciate it, and deep down I knew she was right, but it didn’t seem worth it at the time. Of course, now I am glad that we will have those pictures to look back on, and sometime soon I hope to dig them out of her photo box. I let the tradition lapse for awhile in college, but today as I was getting ready to leave for what might possibly the last first day of school that I will ever have, I decided to bring it back. The picture isn’t quite the same since it’s in my room and not at school, but hey, I tried.

    I am taking two clinical courses this semester: OB and pediatrics. Today and all this week we have OB classes. I am excited about this semester because a) I am ready to get back to some actual clinical work after a semester of psych, and b) I love babies, and I want to find out whether I would like to work in this area full-time. I enjoyed class today, so that’s a good sign.

    Although we did watch a video in which a doctor examined many specimens of placenta, while my friend Lauren next to me tried not to gag. She doesn’t want to be an OB nurse.

    Oh, and my professor did say this: “I have a recipe for placenta stew.”