A New Year

I so happy when it be a new year.  I not really sure why except everbody around me gets so excited and puts on silly hats.  At least dat what dey do here at my house.  I thinks I like it so much cuz mommy puts funny hats and stuff on me all year long, it good to see da hoomans doing it too.

Da new year dats comin is 2011.  I realize dat gonna be da year I will turn six.  I gots lots of furriends dat is already six and I talk to dem to find out what it like to be dat age.  Mostly dey tell me dat it feels just like when dey was five so I don't knows what da big deal is.

Celebrations is funny things.  Hoomans celebrate all kinds of things like birfdays and new years and babies being borned and peoples getting married.  I thinks dey just like how it feels to be together close and tell happy stories.  Mommy says she loves everday because we makin new memories.  I twied to thinks bout dat cuz I not remember lots of stuff when I was a puppy but I do remember where I put my toys yesterday.  Is dat what she means?

One thing I knows is dat when der is a new year starting, hoomans thinks lots about remembering stuff dat happen in da past.  Sumtimes hoomans feel sad and thinks dat da new year gonna be different.  Dey makes all kinds of plans to change things, like how much money dey gonna has or how much weight dey gonna lose.  Sumtimes dey thinks bout da mistakes dey made in da past or dey wish dey might have done things different.

I thinks it not too good to thinks bout things in da past unless dey be good memories dat yoo made.  Mommy has a special frame on her desk and inside da frame are sum words dat might makes yoo thinks differently bout da future.  I asked mommy if I could share da words wif my furriends on dis blog and she said ok.  So here it is and I hopes it helps yoo, where eva yoo is.

Meaning is not something you stumble across, like the answer to a riddle or the prize in a treasure hunt.  Meaning is something you build into your life.  You build it out of your own past, out of your affections and loyalties, out of the experience of humankind as it is passed on to you, out of your own talent and understanding, out of the things you believe in, out of the things and people you love, out of the values for which you are willing to sacrifice something.  The ingredients are there.  You are the only one who can put them together into that unique pattern that will be your life.  Let it be a life that has dignity and meaning for you.  If it does, then the particular balance of success or failure is of less account.
~John W. Gardner


Make some new memories my furriends......HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Insurance

Lots of my furriends knows I likes my toys.  I seem to collect lots of em and dey just keep adding up and go to live in da basket in the living room.  Of course mommy is always twipping ova a toy of mine and she tells me all da time dat I should put dem away, but I forget to.  Truth be told I guess I don't really forget as much as want dem to be where I can gets dem quickly.  I leave toys all ova da place and sum places I even hide special toys I no want anyone to gets.

Da udder day I was cuddling wif mommy and we was watching da teevee.  I notice der be lots of commercials bout insurance.  Dey was talking bout how everbody should has insurance for der things dat be vewy special so if sumtin happens to dem da insurance company will replace dem. So, I was thinking dat maybe I better takes pictures of my toys and send dem to da insurance company so if I lose my toys dey can replace dem.

Dis be my halloween ball dat my girl Tallulah Belle gave me.  It sqweeks just right. *whispers* I kiss it when nobody lookin.

Dis is my favorite donut toy.  It doesn't sqweek but I likes to chew on it a lot.  Mommy says I looks like I is really eating a donut.

 

I gots dis toy last year and it has ridges in it.  It makes it really easy to catch it when daddy throws it in da air.

 Dis is yellow dog.  He gets real flat when I smoosh him.  He sqweeks really good too.

When I was preparing my insurance papers, mommy asked me what I was doing.  I splained to her bout da insurance stuff.  She said der is no insurance for lost pet toys.  I couldn't believe my ears!  "What do yoo mean? I asked.  She said dat insurance companies only insure things of value and dat my toys were not considered valuable.  She said dat she understood da toys are valuable to me and dat if I lose any of my toys she would replace dem for me.  She said I not need special insurance afta all.

I thinks us anipals ought to looks into dis for sure, but in da meantime, I is so vewy grateful to my mommy and daddy for always supplying me wif fun toys throughout da year.

It's Christmas time now and I knows dat I will prolly get more toys.  I knows dat sum anipals not has any toys.  Pwease, if yoo can, donate even a little bit to da Santa Paws Drive.  http://www.santapawsdrive.com/ cuz dey helps anipals who doesn't have anyfing at all, specially toys for Christmas.  Thanks Yoo!

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND HAPPY NEW YEAR FROM FRESH OTIS AND HIS FAMILY!

Someone to Watch Over Me

I loves to watch mommy and daddy when dey is doing stuff.  It doesn't matter what it is.  Sumtimes dey is cleaning da house and sumtines dey is just sittin.   I notice udder peoples too.  When I gets to go out wif mommy for a walk, we always passing by udder peoples on da stweet.  Dey always say, "Hello Otis", dats cuz lots of people knows me.  Even mommy says sumtimes, "How do yoo knows dat person Otis?".  Isn't dat funny?  I knows peoples she doesn't know.  I splain to her dat it because when my brofur takes me for a walkie, I meet peoples dat he knows.  I tell her I makes lots of furrends dat she doesn't know bout.

We has lots of doggies on our stweet and I makes furriends wif dem.  Der is Coco and Baily and Charlie and Jack.  Sumtimes I meets udder doggies dat not live on my stweet.  I neva forget a face either cuz next time I sees dem, I remember.

On my stweet when da udder doggies start to bark, we all do it.  I can hear dem all.  It not matter what time of day or night, we all bark to each udder ever day.  Da udder day Jack had sumtin to say so he bark to all da rest of us on da stweet.  It was kinda late and I was sleeping so he woke me up.  It was ok tho cuz dis way we kinda watch out for one a nudder.  If der is sumtin impawtant to say, we lets each udder know what it is.  Coco told me da udder day dat he was mad cuz his mommy not let him go out to play cuz it was too late.  Baily was complaining too cuz she not happy wif her dinner.  I dunno, it was sumtin bout her mommy changing da food.  When one doggie is sick, we bark to each udder to lets dem know bout it.  I is always feeling likes we watch ova each udder.

Mommy says dat sumtimes when she wakes up from sleeping I is watching her.  She said she likes it cuz she feels like I is watching ova her and making sure she is ok.  I thinks dat what yoo do when yoo loves sumbody.  Yoo gots to makes sure dey knows dat yoo is watching out for dem.  Dat way dey always feel safe.  I has furriends dat watch out for me too.  Sum of my furriends is on Twitter but sum of dem lives in my house, like bunny.  Bunny watches out for me all da time, specially when I is sleeping.

So here is da thing.  Pwease make sure yoo watch out for udder peoples and anipals, even if yoo don't knows dem yet. Cuz if yoo do, next time dey see yoo, dey gonna remember.

Dis Land is My Land

Lots of anipals don't know dis bout me, but I barks a lot.  I has vewy good reasons for doing so.  Like when I wants to play wif a specific toy, or when I twying to get mommy or daddy's attention, or when sumone comes to da door but most of da time, I barks because der is anudder animal in my yard.  I knows dey is der because I spend most da day looking out da window.  I can even be sleeping but sumhow I wakes up and sees sumtin moving and I start barking.  A few times it was only a leaf moving, but most da time it be anudder animal.

Mommy tells me to stop barking but I always splain to her dat it is MY yard and udder animals can't just come running through it wheneva dey feels like it.  Mommy says I spose to share da yard and dat it is not really mine.  She said dis specially impawtant when da udder animals not has a home of dey own likes two kittehs dat sleep near our house all da time.   She says "Otis!, stop barking - dose kittehs not botherin yoo."  Mommy usually has to come get me and pick me up and takes me in anudder room to stop me from barking.  While mommy holds me she keeps splaining "da rules" - I has to be nice, I has to share, I has to be a good doggy.  I love when mommy holds me, even if she is scolding me.  I knows she is twying to teach me a lesson and I twy, I really do twy to understand.

And den....I quite down.  I get all cozy in her arms.  I feel her heart beating and it makes me feel safe.  She is cuddling me and rubbing my ears.  Oh, how I loves dat.  She kisses me.  She tells me what a good boy I am. Sumtimes she even gives me a treat.  Oh dis is heaven.  I feeling much better now.

And den....I see anudder animal in da yard! Woof!  Woof!  Woof!  I goin cwazy now!  I hear mommy, "Otis! Otis! stop barking!"......

I guess I is a work in progress.

Courage

It's Halloween. Everbody has dey costume ready.  Sum costumes are better den udders.  I asked mommy if I could get a super hero costume.  I thought maybe I could be Super Poodle or sum tin like dat.  She said dat she already bought my costume and dat I was gonna go as a Maine Lobstah.  I was not happy.  Mostly da reason I wanted to go as a super hero was dat I thought I would has more courage and not be fraid when da twik or tweeters came round da house.  I can get fraid of stuff like thunderboomers and fireworks and sum times even da wind can makes me run for cover.  I thought if I had a Super Poodle costume, I would not be fraid on Halloween.  I really wanted to look like I has lots of courage.

I told mommy I was worried bout dis and she said sumtin I didn't understand at first.  She said I didn't need to has a super hero costume to not be fraid.  She said lots of people don't has super hero costumes but dat dey was super heros anyways.  At first dis not makes any sense to me at all.  I wundered how can yoo be a super hero wifout a super hero costume?  Mommy said dat lots of people has courage.  She said dat its sumtimes da kind of courage yoo can neva see. I was thinking what kind of courage it could be dat yoo don't eva see and how dat gonna protect me?

Mommy explained to me dat der is da kind of courage likes a person who is vewy sick wif cancer and has to go get a medicine called chemotherapy. She said dey has lots of courage. She said der is peoples who has sum one dey love die and dey feels so sad but dey keeps going.  Mommy said dey has lots of courage too.  She said it takes lots of courage to sum times let go of sum thing or sum one yoo love to lets dem be free even tho it hurts yoo lots.  Dat takes lots of courage mommy said.

Da more I thoughts about what mommy said da more I realized dat I could be courageous too.  I just has to be good and kind and loving ever day.  Now when I looks around I can imagine lots and lots of courageous peoples around me even wifout da super hero costume.

I guess being a Maine Lobstah isn't so bad afta all.

The Power of Love

Petie

Mommy lets me tweet.  Dis wasn't always da case.  I am five years old now and we has had compooters in da house for awhile but I never went near them.  Da only time I was even a little interested was when mommy was on da compooter for awhile and I wanted her attention.  I wood jump up in her lap while she was typing.  I didn't understand what she was doing but it seemed important and fun.  Afta while I asked her if maybe I could twy to type too.  My paws is a little big but I was sure I could do it.  She said I could type on Twitter if I wanted to, she called it tweeting.  Dis sounded really good and so I began tweeting at da beginning of da summer.  I was so supwised to find so many udder doggies, kitties, rabbits and bears tweeting too.  Oh dis was wunderful because now I was gonna has my own furriends.  I met so many wunderful "anipals" on Twitter.

One of da special anipals was Petie da cat. (@Petiethecat - dats his name on Twitter if yoo wants to go find him).  I started to be furriends wif Petie and soon I found out dat he didn't feel too good.  He was going to da vet to get better but it was worrying his mommy and daddy so much.  Some of da udder anipals thought it wood be good to spend some time on Petie's porch waiting for him to come home from da vet and to see how he was doing.  Afta while it became a regular thing dat us anipals wood go to Petie's family lake house on da weekends to be close to Petie and to make him feel better and hopefully help him heal.

Weekend afta weekend during da summer we went to Petie's lake house and watched closely for anything we could do to help Petie get well.  Some of da things we did to help Petie get well was: waterskiing, mousemallow eatin, campfire cooking, hot balloon riding, canooing, kite flying, speedboat and sailboat riding, eating all day and all night, napping, telling ghost stories, singing campfire songs, swimming and even teaching some kitties how to swim too.  We set up tents and slept in our sleeping bags real close so we could stay warm and cuddly.  We had so much fun and wood send all our happy energy and love to Petie.  Before long Petie was getting better and better!  By da end of da summer Petie was feeling like his old self again.

We sent Petie love ever weekend.  I notice now dat my new furriends and me, we all send love to each udder ever day.  Imagine dat?  Dats a lesson for all of us to learn, hoomans specially. Da Power of Love is pwetty amazing I thinks.  I bet we could change da world if we sent love ever day out to ever one we knows.  I thinks we could heal lots of stuff, don't yoo thinks?

From Down Here

Animals spends lots of times on da floor.  We get to see lots of things from down here like bugs, dust, shoes, and or course toys.  I spend lots of time on da floor. Sometimes I sleep in my doggie bed and sometimes I just falls asleep on da carpet.  I likes to play a lot so I can get tired really quickly and falls asleep on da floor.  Lots of times I get lucky tho becuz I can sleep on da bed or da sofa too.  Mommy and daddy picks me up a lot and when dey do I gets to see things up high.  Oooh, I loves to be up high.  I can see so many things up high dat I can't see from da floor.

Sometimes I wonder what it would be like if hoomans could see what da world looks like from down here.  

I see on da teevee dat some people don't has a home and dey lives on da street or in a box on da sidewalk.  I know lots of kitties who likes to get inside da box and play but I thinks da people who lives in da boxes dey not playing.  

When yoo is close to da grownd I thinks yoo looks up a lot.  I thinks yoo can feel really lonely and little when yoo is on da grownd.  

Mommy and me, we talk about dis sometimes.  She says dat not everbody has a home likes I do.  She says dat sometimes people lives in dat box becuz dey don't has a place to sleep and keeps warm.  Mommy holds me real close when we talks like dis.  It makes me feel safe.  I loves dat I has a home and hoomans dat care of me.  I wish everbody could has dat too.

Maybe dats why peoples likes animals so much.  Animals understand what it feels like to be little and close to da grownd always looking up.

I twy now to thinks about dis more.  I close my eyes and say a pwayer dat da peoples who lives in da boxes gets a good home likes me. And I hopes more hoomans will understand what it feels like from down here.

A New Beginning

From Fresh Otis to Otis The Poodle


Hello Everyone,

Don't let da name of da blog fool yoo.  I am always gonna be Fresh Otis.  I got dat name because mommy said I was always getting into things, yoo know, like trouble.  


So, mommy created a blog for me two years ago when I was three but then forgot all about it.  It was a lovely blog and I would really like to use it but it seems dat it would be too difficult to try to transfer it.  Just in case I can't get into da old one, I thought I would try to create a new one.  Let's see what dis looks like after I finish typing.  I not so sure mommy is a good blogger.  I think I might be better at it than she was. Stay tuned.  Maybe we use dis one, maybe we use da udder one.  Either way, I iz on my blogging journey and I couldn't be happier! Woof!