Harvey's Top Ten New Year's Resolutions

#1 -- NO MORE PARTY HATS! I mean, honestly -- I'm a dignified guy and just LOOK at me here!

#2 -- STEP AWAY FROM THE TRASH CAN. You'd think getting my head stuck in it a few weeks ago and suffering public humiliation on this blog would do the trick, but no ..........!!! At the Christmas Open House our friend Ramona caught me dead to rights trying to get tamale wrappings out and I was busted all over again. Maybe there's a chapter of "TA" (trashcans anonymous) I could check out!

#3 -- THE MAIL CARRIER IS YOUR FRIEND. I'm not sure what gets me going about her ... the hat, the bag ... maybe it's her boots ... but my mom says she's the one who brings us packages and catalogues and that I should BACK OFF ... so I'm going to try.

Which brings me to ...

#4 -- THE METER READER. Now that one REALLY makes me nuts and there really isn't any help for it -- so I'm hoping one of the moms will resolve to make sure I'm inside when she comes around in the future so I don't embarrass us all (again.)

#5 -- HUMPING IS AS HUMPING DOES. Our trainer, Lundi, explained that the reason old dogs like me hump young dogs like Luna's hyper friends at the dog park is that we're smarter and calmer and want THEM to calm down and behave so we hump them to dominate them and get them back in line. Great theory -- doesn't work. All it does is get me yelled at and I get enough of that from my other issues. Like ...

#6 -- QUIT MIXING UP THE WATER BOWL WITH THE TOILET BOWL. I don't know why it matters so much to the moms where we get water when we're thirsty but if they've said it once they've said it a hundred times: GET OUT OF THAT TOILET, HARVEY! So I'm going to work on it ... honest. (And they could help on this one by leaving the stupid lid down!)

#7 -- GIVE UP THE HYSTERICAL BARKING. It's not like it does anybody any good ... it just annoys the neighbors and gets my blood pressure up and doesn't make the moms come home a minute sooner from wherever it is they go when they leave me here to "guard the house." I'm gonna try on this one, but no promises.

#8 -- WHEN THEY SAY SWALLOW, SWALLOW. Spitting out the pills might feel like a momentary victory but in the long run they actually make me feel calmer and less frantic so I'm going to turn 2007 into "Better Living Through Chemistry" year and just go with the flow.

#9 -- BE MORE PATIENT WITH LUNA. She isn't a BAD dog, she's just a wild one ... and she doesn't mean to hurt me when she pulls my tail, yanks on my privates and chews on that saggy skin between my ear and my collar ... she just gets kind of full of herself and wants to play, play, play. And at the ripe old age of thirteen to her just-turned-one I'm going to have to be the more patient one. Either that or bite her back.

#10 -- COUNT MY BLESSINGS. Considering that last year at this time they were talking Dog Heaven like it was on my calendar sooner rather than later, I'm pretty darned lucky to still be hanging out at the dog park and snagging treats on a regular basis. Thirteen is positively ancient for a big old coot like me and my moms do their best to keep me active and happy and Luna is actually a great addition to our family ... Lord knows she's raised my activity level ... which more than balances out the occasionally raised blood pressure I'm sure!

So Happy New Year, everybody. Those are my resolutions ... what are yours???????

A year ago today ...

... my mom drove up to Husky Camp and picked me out from my litter of siblings and I looked like this:
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She said she picked me because I was the cutest and the best. My other mom was in Kentucky visiting my brother Brian and so she had to just see me in a cell phone picture to start with ... but what really matters is they picked me out of all the others and now here we are ... a year later ... living happily ever after.

Except for those Cole Haan loafters.

And YESTERDAY when we were at the Dog Park there were SIX OTHER DOGS there who had come from Husky Camp ... two from one family and four from another. We wished we'd had a camera with us so we could have gotten a picture ... "Husky Camp South" my mom said it looked like ... and we had a great time running and chasing.

So Happy Anniversary to me ... and to my moms for picking me out and for putting up with me. I'm a pretty darned lucky puppy!

The Morning After ...

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So here I am ... back on the couch where I belong. Turns out this Christmas stuff is hard work! The moms had a CONSTANT stream of people through here over the last few days ... everybody was really nice and in a good mood and everything and there were more crumbs than usual on the floor for us to do clean-up-crew.
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And over at church I'm not sure what those people do all day but they sure did a lot of it ... Sunday there were six services and Monday there was one and my mom says it was "the best ever." Then last night we had seven people crowded into our tiny dining room having a big old turkey dinner that looked great from what I could see outside with my nose pressed against the french door window (to no avail, I might add!)
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And then there were presents and wrapping paper EVERYWHERE and now ... as you can see ... things are winding down.
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Harvey is sacked out in the bedroom on the new cedar-smelling dog bed we're supposed to "share" ... (I haven't quite got the hang of that sharing thing yet but I'm working on it) ... and the moms are back to hanging out on the computer and talking to people on the phone. Our Grandma called from Minnesota and a few minutes ago we got to talk to Jamie in Iraq (well, my mom talked to him ... we just listened on this end!)
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She says the best present she got was a picture of him in his Santa hat handing out Christmas cards to the troops over there in Iraq ... the people at church signed over 400 of them and shipped them over to say "Merry Christmas."
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I know my mom preached about the "Peace on Earth Part of Christmas" this year and I guess that would REALLY be the best Christmas ever, wouldn't it? For there to be a "morning after" all the wars and hatred and hurting people and everybody could just take a big old nap on their couch like I'm planning to do for the rest of the day.
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So Merry 2nd Day of Christmas, everybody! And let' s not give up on the peace on earth part, deal?

MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Our stockings are hung
By the chimney with care
And we’re hoping that goodies
Will soon show up there.
While we’re waiting for Santa
Down the chimney to fall
We’re sending best wishes
To one and to all
For joy and best blessings
In the New Year to come
And a Merry, Merry Christmas
To each and every one!

from
Harvey & Luna

and

Louise and Susan

(the moms who love and spoil us)
Birdy, Baby and Walden

(the cats who put up with us)

Luna: Having a Holly, Jolly Christmas

This Christmas stuff is SOOOOOO exhausting!

Wake me when Santa comes, OK?

If they'd stuck to just decking the HALLS everything would have been fine!

This isn't my FIRST Christmas -- but last year I was a tiny puppy up at Husky Camp and so this is the first one I'm going to remember, so last night when my mom got home from work she sat down and explained to me that we were going to "Deck the Halls."

OK, I thought ... this will be interesting. (I had NO idea!)
. First they dragged a tree in from outside and stuck it up on the table and started putting lights on it. Kind of weird behavior, I thought, but around my house just when you think you've got them figured out they do something that doesn't make sense to a dog so I wasn't too worried.

Birdy, however, who is much older and wiser (she's pushing 14!) knew what was coming next and knew what to do about it: find a box and HIDE!

Walden didn't move fast enough and the next thing we knew they were decorating HIM! How humiliating!!

And Harvey was next! I don't know about you, but I figure if dogs were meant to have antlers we'd have grown them at some point ...


What were they THINKING????

So I said to Harvey, "Don't worry, buddy ... I've got your back on this!"And in the blink of an eye I snatched the offending antlers off his head ...

... and proceeded to render them harmless ... my way of saying, "Let the humiliation cease!"

So maybe I'll end up with coal in my stocking instead of doggie treats, but hey: I was raised to know a justice issue when I see one and this one was worth some civil-doggie-disobedience!

Harvey: "Ho, Ho, Ho" Is In the Eye of the Beholder

So the moms came home from Diocesan Convention last night with pictures ... one of them of this stupid reindeer they ran into at an overdecorated hotel in Riverside.

So they're all "Harvey, Harvey -- look ... a reindeer that looks like you!"

And I'm all like "Whatever!"

I don't think there's any resemblance at all ... what do you think???? (And just for the record, if anyone comes near me with a Santa hat this year I am SOOOO not wearing it!)