A PAGE DEVOTED TO MY MOTHER MORE ABOUT MY SCOTTIES INFO ABOUT SCOTTISH TERRIERS(in progess) A FAVORITE HYMN OF SCOTTIES SHELTER WORKERS' CREDO A DOG'S PLEA GOD'S RAINBOW (new!!) ERIC ROBERTS FAN PAGE WINTER SONG (new!) TAKE CARE OF THE EARTH RANDOM THOUGHTS QUEEN'S PURSE (new poem, 10/08/02) REALISTIC SELF-AFFIRMATIONS JOKES

UPDATE, July 15, 2004 I find I have not added to this for quite some time, and after the acquisition of more pets. Duncan was an "only" dog for over a year, and he was quite at peace with that. We also discovered, now that he was on his own, that Bonnie had raised him quite well. You never saw a better behaved dog. Not quite as stubborn as Bonnie, at two and at three (more about this later!), he had a truly sweet disposition, loved meeting people and other dogs and even cats. We took him to Disneyworld, and even took him on the Monorail. With the crush of people and swooshing doors opening and slamming, Duncan sat at our feet and watched it all with great aplomb. He then got to stay all day in their kennel, where he met other dogs and where he was quite happy. We took him to Evansville Indiana -- where we are from -- twice to visit family and friends. . . . When we returned from Evansville, last October, we learned that our friends, Tim and Stephanie, who was a Lieutenant in the Air Force, and their 11 year old son Alex were being shipped to Alaska -- of all places to ship Mississippi born and bred people! -- and couldn't take Alex's dog, Almond, with them. We had been thinking about getting Duncan a playmate, and knew that Almond would be happier with people he knew, so we offered to take him. Tim and Stephanie were overjoyed. "It will be hard to leave him behind, after 7 years, and it helps to know he'll be with someone we know." So Almond came to live with us. He has a birth certificate stating he is a Cocker Spaniel. I suspect there was some Golden Retriever in there somewhere, as he is the tallest Cocker we've ever seen. But Almond is extremely well behaved, and he and Duncan spent the first couple of days playing and romping. Every evening about 4:30, Almond would station himself by our patio door and watch towards the street eagerly. We knew he was watching for his boy, Alex, and his man, Tim, to come get him. While "okay" with being with us, he still definitely missed them. On the third day of Almond's joining us, Duncan, Almond and I were on our morning walk when we were suddenly joined by a little feist dog who would not be dissuaded from following us. When I opened our door, he went in as if he'd always lived there! I let him stay, ran up a notice for "Found Dog" and put it in all the laundromats so his owner could claim him. He was indeed a cute dog, though we weren't sure what kind. I thought he resembled a dachshund-Chihuahua mix. We called him "Pepe" and fell in love with him. I learned the next day that our notices had been taken down, though no one called us. When I inquired at the Office, I was told that "Pepe" had belonged to a family that just had a baby and he had been put out of their home because he was no longer wanted. I guess when he saw me with two dogs, he figured (rightly so) that we would welcome one more. We have since learned that he is a Toy Manchester, and that he is worth a million to us. He is the "instigator," the "irrepressible imp" of the household. Duncan and Almond take turns playing with him, but it seems sometimes as if he never sleeps. Talk about an Energizer bunny!! So we have resigned ourselves to being a three-dog famly, although we have been the butt of many a snicker as I walk the three of them. I feel sorry for those who don't know the joy of being surrounded by loving, trusting, comical friends like Duncan, Almond and Pepe. They give me a reason to get up mornings, when they are filled with such enthusiasm: : "Oh, boy, oh, boy, oh boy, we're going for a walk! Oh joy!" Then when we return exhausted and bedraggled, they flop where they stand and immediately "crash" for a couple hours' much needed sleep -- for they have been loyally standing guard all night while I slumbered peacefully.