A BEAUTIFUL day in the Neighborhood!

Fallbrook, CA this morning around 11:00AM...maybe mid 70's...clear skies...puffy clouds...! Fallbrook smells like a bouquet of fresh flowers to me. I just love this place.

We were at a nursery that grows all kinds of plants and flowers for shipment to other nurseries all over the country, but driving along Reche Canyon long past the nursery there lingered an amazing scent...aroma....perfume. I was absolutely mesmerized and everly close to heaven. Aaaaaaaaaaahhhhhhhh!!

Love and blessings...

Mary-Margaret

Piper

Piper

Mom and I both thank you for your support last week. We garnered 161 votes which seemed a lot until we saw the winners. Stevie & Zoe Spumoni, both cats, got 1310 and 1104 votes, respectively. This week, we're voting for Piper. If she gets in the finals this week, & next week we can place another Yorkie & theNEXT week....then maybe we have a chance to designate a donation for a YORKIE group. GO YORKIES!!

Shellackedly yours...

Mary-Margaret

Piper

Piper

Mom and I both thank you for your support last week. We garnered 161 votes which seemed a lot until we saw the winners. Stevie & Zoe Spumoni, both cats, got 1310 and 1104 votes, respectively. This week, we're voting for Piper. If she gets in the finals this week, & next week we can place another Yorkie & theNEXT week....then maybe we have a chance to designate a donation for a YORKIE group. GO YORKIES!!

Shellackedly yours...

Mary-Margaret

Martin Luther King Day or Stop the Renegade BREEDERS

Where I was born: Elkland, Missouri - Rippee Kennels aka T&J Kennels

This makes me so very sad. I bet if I didn't have an inguinal hernia when I was born the kennel would have kept ME for breeding. This report was last written about a year after I was shipped off to California, operated on, and thrown into a pet store window where I was lucky enough to meet my mom when I was only nine weeks old.

Want to see what a report on a PUPPY MILL looks like? Where my birth mother and birth father lived? I wonder if they made it out of there or if I'm now technically an orphan, figuratively speaking. Poor "Mom" and "Dad". Did I even have brothers or sisters? Hutches, piles of poop, flies...food on the floor....no water....oh, I can't go on. You must read for yourselves.

T & J Kennels which stands for Tom and Jean Rippee, my parents' jailers.

Once my mom called Mrs. Rippee and asked if my birth mother, Sissy's TooToo, was still there. They didn't even know who she was exactly. I wonder if my birth certificate is even real or if that's made up?

My heart is breaking for all the pups who come into the world like so much chattel. Sold into slavery...shackled and chained....oh, the WOE of it all.

Celebrate advocates of freedom today with the recognition of Martin Luther King's birthday, and celebrate the eventual freedom of all God's creatures from bondage and mistreatment.

"We shall over come.....!!" (sniff....!)

Underground Railroad Survivor...

Mary-Margaret O'Brien,
Free Free Free At Last!!

Mary-Margaret O'Brie

Mary-Margaret O'Brie

See what happens when humans don't allow enough room for pups to write their name? Instead of Mary-Margaret O'Brien, I'm now "Mary-Margaret O'Brie", otherwise known as "The Big Cheese".

(snicker)

Love, Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Tucker piano Dec 7'2010.wmv

Dear Grandpa....

Mom says I should write you and tell you what's happening in my life. Mostly nothing too exciting. Friday I got to go to Miss Marilyn's Puppy Day Spa (she calls it Prime Cuts) and got a bath, got my hair styled, my nails done, my teeth brushed and I got to play with my friends Abby (a Bichon Frise), Shadow (a black poodle), Zak and Chelsea (Maltese), and my very BFF Madison. Madison is feeling much better now, if you're wondering. Remember I told you she was taking steroids for a little medical condition she had? They worked pretty much and she's finally "deflating".

Last night I went out for my "before bedtime" squat and figured the night was perfect for going on safari. After about 10 minutes Mom's yelling "Get in here, young lady!" and I'm not hearing her. Nope....I can't hear her so I don't have to do what she says. She gets out her high-powered 3-C battery flashlight and scans the entire yard, slope and side yards. No Mary-Margaret. She yells some more, and I still don't hear her. She says "Fine! Stay out in the cold all night. I'm going to bed!", and she slams the screen shut but leaves the slider open.

I'm ok, I think...my personal door is still accessible. I play some more but it's no fun if there's no one looking for you. Even my good friend Pooka next door has gone inside. I give up and hop into the house, wet feet and all, and I go upstairs. "Nice of you to come in, Mary-Margaret, "oo widdle chit 'ed!" (she mumbles the last part). Huh? What's that again? Did I hear her call me a "little shit head"?? She curls her lip at me. I very nicely ask her to pick me up. She does and then she squeals, "Eeeeeyeeeeeeeeeeeewwww! Your feet are wet!". "Hah!", (I think). "One for the little shit head, zero for Mom! I win tonight!"

I love my life!!

Mary-Margaret, Squirrel and Mouse Hunter

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Mary-Margaret O'Brie

The winner gets to pick what legitimate charity they want Bissell to donate to AND...ta daaa...most important to my mom is that she might win a Bissell Pet Vacuum. I think I'd sleep better at night if she won that, too.

Please vote for me? All you have to do is sign up and then log on with your email address once a day and vote. Woo hoo!

Love,

Mary-Margaret

Happy Birthday, Grandma and Elvis!

Today is January 8th!! This is my Grandma's birthday AND Elvis Presley's. Grandma would have been 89 years old today. Elvis would have been 76. I am bowing my head in honor of the memory of both of these great humans.



My Grandma was the youngest of seven (or eight, depending on who's counting) kids. Let's see. There was Sherman, Ted, John, Emma Jane, Esther, Maurice, Robert, and Ruth (my Grandma). Robert went to live someplace else when he was pretty little because some people thought he needed special care and nobody talked about him after that. Grandma Ruth was the youngest and pretty much ignored by her older brothers and sisters, except for "Maury", but he was a boy and usually playing with other boys or helping out on the farm. When she was little she used to play all by herself like she was Tarzan and she'd swing from trees. Sometimes she'd run around their farm house in Burlington Junction, Missouri, and yell out her name to no one in particular - "I AM RUTH GARNET WARE! I AM RUTH GARNET WARE!".

She married my Grandpa when she was only 18 years old, graduated from Woodbury College in Los Angeles, and then spent the rest of her life being a good mother (one daughter and three sons) and a good wife. She and my mom never quite got the art of communication down very well, so when I was adopted by my mom I had the idea of writing to my Grandma every day about my life through my Diary which I put on the internet. I figured that way Grandma and Mom could understand each other better if they went through a third person (third pup, in this case!). And it worked out really well.

When Grandma left life as we know it on November 27, 2007, Grandpa started reading my diary. It helps him feel closer to my mom and to Grandma, too. It makes him get that warm fuzzy feeling of being part of a loving family to know what his children, his grandchildren and grand doggy are up to day by day. He and my mom picked up right where they left off sixty years earlier and they talk on the phone every night at 7:00PM, too, just to say "I love you!". That's important to say to people you care about, you know!!

About Elvis, we think if he and my Grandma ever meet in that other world, she'll have a few things to say about the way he lived his life and he'll be a better man for it.



Since today is Saturday and it's a little overcast and chilly outside I decided to sleep in. Apparently that's NOT acceptable to some people who pull back the covers and shove a camera in other people's faces!! I told her to go away and leave me alone!!

Grandma..I know you're reading this from wherever you are! I love you and miss you and I'm sending you big schloppy schlurps. Happy Birthday!!

Hugs and kisses from your Grand Doggy...

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Grandpa's Lights are Out!

Poor Grandpa. He called a little early tonight to say he had no electricity and all his lights were out. Mom's first thought was "did he remember to pay his bill?". Yes...he did. He says everyone's lights are out and the whole building is dark and there's NO electricity. Good thing he's on the 2nd floor instead of the 20th, huh?

He said he has two candles going. Again...Mom gets all worried and says she hopes that they're placed on non-combustible surfaces. Big words for a little dog. Roughly translated, I think she means she hopes he doesn't burn the building down. He assured her that the candles were placed on porcelain surfaces so we shouldn't worry.

Mom called the Southern California Edison company and the computer said they didn't know about any outages. This could be interesting. She made a report anyway. After all, it's not just my Grandpa but hundreds or thousands of people. It's a pretty big building.

Reporting from Temecula, California...

Your roving reporter on the ground...

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

PS: Update as of Friday, 1/7/2011 at 8:07AM: The Edison Company called...um...the COMPUTER called, I mean.....and it said that there had been a power outage in our area (meaning Grandpa's area) and it apologizes for any inconvenience, and to press 1 if the power is back on. We pressed 1 and the computer apologized again and then hung up on us. How rude!! Computers are now apologizing to humans? HAH!!!

Happy New Year!!

I wore my everly most FAVORITE dress today. Western style with fringe all around and even little turquoise beads and some silver stuff. It was given to me by my fiance, Hashimoto the Shih Tsu, at the Delaware Valley Yorkshire Terrier Club show in Reading, PA last year. Does he have good taste or what, I ask you??



Mom got nutsy with her camera after we left the bank where I got oodles of compliments from absolutely everyone in there. She thinks it went to my head....say WHAT? I am humble, modest, and not one to toot my own horn, if you will. I admit it...I am beautiful and stylish, but definitely NOT conceited even a tiny bit. Not me.



After we got home I went O-U-T and checked out the back yard. Sometimes it's just nice to sit on the patio and meditate about things, you know? Us pups learn about meditation in Dogology 101. My Uncle Nick used to have a really big dog almost like a St. Bernard, and he taught her to meditate before she ate. So he'd place a piece of steak or other yummy thing on her nose and she'd have to sit there until he'd tell her it was ok to eat. She must have been a very patient dog, which I am not. I can't imagine a piece of steak staying in my bowl very long, let alone staying on my nose.



I'm just listening to my neighborhood and looking at our new neighbor's patio light arrangement. It went up around Christmas time but it's only white and blue bulbs so me and Mom figured maybe it was in honor of Hanukkah, but it's still up. So who knows, huh? It it's still up in February we'll send you a picture.

To my Grandpapa whom I love everly so much and miss him and I wish I could see him soon, Thank You for being my Grandpa and for other little things you do that we appreciate like staying in touch every day. You know what I mean. (schlurp!)

Love and kisses....

Mary-Margaret O'Brien

Christmas 2010

This is what it looked like on December 22, 2010. The dry creek behind our office was almost overflowing. Chunks of the bank on the other side kept dropping into the raging torrent. A few more days of this and the parking lot on the other side will be floating downstream, cars and all.











Here's my Christmas at my cousins' house:

What a wonderful day! Family, friends, food.....and a new cousin, Bunny Lucille!



This is Clancy. He's 13 now. No, he doesn't have a pony tail. That's the back of Cailin's head. She's standing behind him, but it does sort of look like he has long hair that way, don't you think?









Electronics keep kids and other relatives occupied in the living room while I hang out in the kitchen hoping someone will let ME taste the food. That last picture is my Aunt Joelle (Uncle Jason's sister), Cailin and Clancy. Cailin got a Kindle for Christmas and she can play games on it AND read books.

I got a really neat T-shirt for Christmas. It's white and has sleeves (for cold weather) and says "I WOOF you!" on the back. I LOVE it. I also got a chocolate (the kind I can eat) pretzel. I would definitely win a pretzel eating contest. "Now you see it...now you don't!" is my mantra.

Merry Christmas to all....

Mary-Margaret

I LOVE Christmas Cards!!

This is from my very good friend, Lisa Bryant. I wanted to show her how much I appreciated her card. First thing I do with a card is "READ" it!!




Then, I taste it (the only signature I recognize is taste!) and I truly digest the meaning of the writing inside. A got a little piece of the card stuck to my tongue and you can see I was able to dislodge it successfully.





And here you see that I truly enjoyed the entire card. Yum!

Thank you, Lisa and family. Mom says "Thank you!", too. She was able to put all the little pieces in the envelope so I could "read" it again later.

Happy New Year, everyone!!

Love, Mary-Margaret

Rain, rain! Go away...! (or ET Phone Home)

Here's me, all hunkered down in my carseat. I know it's dangerous to drive in the rain and even though I have a carseat I brace myself with my hand, in case Mom has to come to a fast stop.






Even better, I skootch down in my car seat so I'm protected on all sides in case of an accident. Problem is, I can't see out all that well.








Oh, heck. Hoodie on, protective mesh all around. I'll poke my head up a little to see what's going on. Mom starts laughing at me, saying "ET...Phone Home!". Who's ET again??????

I think I'll ignore her. Not nice to sniggle at my expense, I say. I never say a word when she wakes up in the morning with her hair sticking out every which way. Nope! Not me.

I was just kidding about wanting the rain to go away. Actually, I think it's kinda kewl. All sorts of new smells to enjoy.

Love to all..


Mary-Margaret

Christmas Miracles

This started to put Mom in the Christmas spirit for the first time this year. This was sent to us by our good friend Bobbie who is a rescue lady. It's one of the nicest Christmas videos ever.

Thank you, Bobbie.

Wishing everyone peace and goodwill ...

Mary-Margaret

Seeing Santa or "Thumbthings" not right here!

Every year we go "see Santa". Some years are better than others. This year, I could tell right off that he was an imposter. See if you can spot the biggest giveaway. I am FIVE now...and I've seen a few "Santas" in my life. I'm very discriminating in my Santa tastes.




Rascal and Yogi were waiting their turn to give the imposter their Christmas lists.








Mater, the pit bull, was squirming to get away from "Santa", too. I should add that Mater was very polite and seemed to be attracted to me. I was flattered, but I told him I already had a boyfriend.









He tried to "make nice" with me while his elves were fussing with the camera and the printer, but I just turned by back to him. Everyone kept asking what I was upset about, and if I could have, I would have told them "Check out the left thumb?".



One elf asked Mom to approve my picture before they put it into the frame. Mom scrinched up her nose when she noticed that the pup wearing my dress had a green and red bow on, was black and white, and was very tiny. "That's NOT Mary-Margaret!", she said. "That's Bella!". I helps to know everyone's name. THIS is Bella. She's only eleven weeks old. We have the same designer.

I made friends with Annie and Pugsley while we waited in line.



Out in front of Petco there were so many pups and kittens in cages. I felt really guilty about my lot in life. I was one of the lucky ones. I got adopted when I was just a baby and me and my mom are totally committed to each other. Some kids aren't so lucky, and their humans can't or won't take proper care of them. They give them to a rescue place, like "LEAF" (Lake Elsinore Animal Friends) where maybe they'll be adopted. Maybe? I don't want to think about the alternative.

Me and Mom don't need anything for Christmas. Really! If you want to do something nice, go buy a bag of kibble or cat food and take it to your local shelter. Take some of those old blankets that you've been meaning to get rid of. Or towels. I put all my baby clothes in a bag and we're going to take them to LEAF. We'll call next week and see what else they can use.

Hoping you all have a happy Holiday season, and that you truly enjoy the gift of giving.

Love, Mary-Margaret

Meeting old friends...and Santa, too!

Remember my teacher, Miss Lois? Back from when I was a young puppy in school? Well, guess who I ran into at Miss Marilyn's Puppy Day Spa, hmmmmm? Yup! It's Miss Lois and her two pups, Oliver (the black one), and Kinsey (the brown one). They go to Miss Marilyn's, too.

I got to play with all my friends today AND with Oliver and Kinsey. We really got along well even though they're just a tad bigger than me. Madison was feeling a bit under the weather which makes me sad. She's taking steroids for her "condition" (I don't think I should discuss other people's or Pup's medical conditions here out of courtesy to them), but it's affecting her figure. She used to be really slim and proud of it, and now she's rounder than I am. I love her for who she is inside, though, not how she looks. We took a long time saying good-bye today. We didn't really want to leave each other, that's what good friends we are.



Here's me after being styled. I decided to look slightly down and to one side instead of directly at the camera. I learn this stuff from people in my family and I think they have something there. Yup! I like how this picture turned out. My hair ribbon is bright Christmas green to match the ribbons on my new Christmas dress (on sale at Vons for only $7.99). Mom says maybe we can go see Santa tomorrow. I hope we get one whose shins don't show and who has a beard that stays in one place. Maybe Petco? I liked their Santa from a couple of years ago when I went there with my Uncle Rudy. He was like the real thing.

About Mom...in case you were wondering...her face is still throbbing and she's popping those pain pills every four hours. She takes the antibiotics every 6 hours. The swelling is pretty localized now, but the pain won't go away. Monday is when she gets her root canal. Big whoopeee, she says.

Sorry to bore you. I know I should be writing about MY life and not my mom's but she's a pretty big part of my life AND she's the one who feeds me, drives me around, and changes channels on the TV for me. I figured I'd give her a paragraph tonight for anyone who cared.

That's it for now. Thank Dog it's Friday!!

Love,

Mary-Margaret

Mom is smiling here!

Believe it or not this is about half the size that her head was this morning. She's feeling everly so much better. This morning tears were just flowing down her cheeks and she couldn't even talk. Dr. Bishay drained the abscess and she was fine for a couple of hours and then it got even worse, so she went back and he unplugged it and it's staying unplugged until Monday when she gets her root canal.

Between pain pills, antibiotics and swishing salt water in her mouth she might just be all better pretty soon. Tonight she plans on making up for all the sleep she lost last night.

In case you forgot, this is what she looked like a few days ago. Note the symmetry? Color? Eyes going in same direction?



Love you Grandpa. Talk to you tomorrow, ok?

Your Grand-doggy and Field Agent in Temecula...

Mary-Margaret

PS - Every body has bad picture days. Here's mine (posted to make my mom feel a little better):

Dear Grandpa...

Hello! It's ME, Mary-Margaret!!

Mom asked me to write you and tell you that she can't talk. She has a really bad abscess in her #6 eye tooth and it is pretty much swollen all the way up to her eye socket and she can't smile or anything. She says not to worry because she has an appointment with her regular dentist tomorrow, and her emergency dentist took an xray and gave her a prescription for some antibiotics and now she's home and on pain pills, too. So she's quiet AND loopy. As long as she doesn't forget to feed me my supper I can live with it.

I probably shouldn't mention this now but....the dentist and both ladies in the dentist's office asked my mom "Where's Mary-Margaret?". Yeah...that's the truth. They knew me but not my mom. One lady even said if mom had just told her that she was Mary-Margaret's mom, they'd know right away who they were going to see.

So...there you have it. She says to say "sorry" about not being able to talk but that you'll understand and maybe even sympathize a little bit with her predicament. Maybe. I do. I'm being very good and loving and not bugging her.

Oh yes...and I should tell you that the garage door is being weird again, but it's got a really long guarantee so she's going to call the garage door company to come out and fix it. It "hiccups" and stops before it opens or closes, and she has to hit the button over and over before it finally does what she wants it to. Stoopid door.

She's going to go sit in her chair and try to stop hurting now. She just put a bunch of ice cubes into a wet wash cloth and she's holding it on her face. I don't think tonight is a good night to hop into her lap and ask her to share her supper, do you?

We love you, Grandpa.

Your Grand-doggy...

Mary-Margaret

Little Jordan and Rescue Ink

Every life is a miracle. God bless little Jordan! And God bless the people at Rescue Ink!

Amen

Mary-Margaret