Everybody meet. . .Mojo! You, blogging world, chose the name. Mojo just beat out our second choice for a name, which was Suck-it-Saleem (see comments for last post).

With all of the hoopla for Mojo of late, I thought it would be nice to dedicate a post for Roxanne. I caught up with Roxanne today in the backyard and she was kind enough to answer a few of my questions. Here are the transcripts.

How have you been adjusting with a new puppy around?

Pretty well, Matt. It was difficult to transition from a home where there was abundant canine interlocution and butt sniffing. I have enjoyed having Mojo at home and look foreword to the next time he bites my ear and tries to drag me away with it.

You brought up butt sniffing. Could you tell me a bit more about that particular practice.

Butt sniffing is an age old tradition wherein one dog is able to ascertain what the other ate for breakfast that morning, or even dinner the night before, depending on the time of day.

Would it be fair to say that poop has a fair amount to do with this practice?

Yes and no. There are certain glands in that area, the perineum, if you will, that do create a certain interest to fellow dogs. But, if one is to discuss poop in this matter, it is necessary to have a firm grounding in poop theory. The first thing one should know about poop from a dog's perspective, is that each morsel of dookie is a veritable journal entry in that dog's life. What has this dog eaten? Are there any lingering gastrointestinal issues? Is the hydration significant? In anyone looking in case I would like to eat this particular specimen? One needs to take a very nonjudgmental approach to another dog's excrement. If you knew when someone was examining your butt-butter and they were thinking “Heavens! This dog lack the proper nutrition to sustain a decent session of chase-and-bite,” you would be reluctant to allow someone to sniff you butt, or eat your poo, for that matter. You have to be confidant the other dog is thinking something like “Wow, a pancake must have fallen on the floor this morning!”

Fascinating. Tell me, there seems to be a lingering animosity between dogs and cats, would you care to comment on that?

Sure. While I can't deny there has been any hereditary antipathy between our two species, there has been significant progress in repairing all of the acrimony that has kept us separated for so long, an interspecies detente, if you will. It appeared that there was going to be real progress when representatives were sent from each species to a conference which was held beneath a bridge near the Howard Johnson's in Topeka. However, talks broke down when the Honorable Ambassador Sprinkles scratched Viceroy Pepper after splashing him with water. Shortly thereafter someone found a half eaten sandwich and all hell broke loose. I have to be going now. I hear the mailman and would like inflict some kind of bodily harm on him.

Thanks for your time, Roxanne. See that the mailman gets what's coming to him.

Everyone say hello to . . . ? Well, we don't have a name yet. But fear not. We are allowing the blogging world to have some say. Please vote in the poll and give us your feedback. If you vote "other" please leave a suggestion in the comments. But about this puppy.

We always told ourselves that, after we get a home of our own, we would like to get another dog. Roxanne also has been a bit pouty since we've moved away from the other dog Sasha. So we've been visiting shelters and looking on craig'slist. We came across this guy on craig'slist and went out to see him today. I really liked him, so here he is.

His previous owner has no name for him yet. He was born on February 12th and is the biggest boy in the litter. I saw his dad and he was a big boy. Both of his parents are Pit Bulls. Looking at his paws, this guy could end up pushing 70-75 pounds, just a guess. He is very mellow and has vacillated between following Kaaryn and me around the house and approaching Roxanne in her house. I made the mistake of giving her a rawhide chewtoy, so she is not making him feel at home yet. I post more as we learn more. For now, just weigh in on the name. I'll leave the poll up for a few days.

This is just about the only face shot I could get where he didn't close his eyes.


As you can see.


He was awake here. Just closed his eyes. Look at those paws.


This is the Mr. Magoo shot.


He really likes Salem and has already bathed her once.

I'll go ahead and cover two things in this post. But I want everyone to know, since I'm doing a double cow to the masses, with many pictures, that I will not be posting anything fun or vaguely interesting in the near future. It will be all lists and things that only I find funny. So be warned.

This post will be dedicated to two things: First, Salem ate food for the first time this week. It was well documented. Second, we've been getting a lot of requests for house pictures. I will post some.

Salem likes to begin with an appetizer of dirty socks.


She has trouble focusing. This picture is just before she challenged to camera to a duel.


But she does like the solid food.


After we're done, it's cleanup time.


Now for the house. A couple of things. We're not quite moved in as of yet. The yard is a mess and I haven't had time to tackle it yet. But I look foreword to it. Believe me, the world hasn't seen something reclaimed like this since Hannibal was defeated at Tarentum. The inside of the house is as disorderly as a Libertarian convention and is therefore off limit to pictures, says the boss.

Beginning with the house from the street.


Same house, new angle.


The street on which we live.


The backyard is pretty small. I'd guess about twenty feet from house to fence. The family before us built the deck so as to be wheelchair accessible. I think they got their mortgage from a loanshark and wanted to be prepared for the worst.


This is our dining room. Tables are for suckers! That fireplace burns wood, or, in the case of the Nixon whitehouse, incriminating documents.


This is the Master bedroom on guys' night out. Athos and I had been doing some serious partying.


I hope you all enjoyed this post. Because for a while I will not be humoring the humorless. Lucky for you, I don't have any ideas yet.