World Domination!

He's just a little dog, but he's got big dreams - and big plans.

World Domination Coloring Page courtesy of Cartoon Drum

Wanted: Housemate

I mean, I would think Roger and I make a pretty attractive package, as far as housemates go. Why is it so tough to find a match? Perhaps I'm too picky...

Available Nov 1 - $625/month

The Deal: Room to rent in my 2br condo. Off-street parking, dishwasher, laundry. Heat included. Two blocks from the waterfront, just a few blocks from the bottom of Church St. Room can be furnished or not.

Me: Mid 20s professional woman, no smoking/drugs, occasional drinker. 2yr old male dog (catahoula/lab mix). Clean but not a neat freak. Skier, craftster, feminist.

I might be open to a friendly dog/cat, but my dog would have to make that decision.

Drop me a line if you're interested.

gone to the birds

Check out my current crafty project in progress! I'm sewing these bird softies to make a mobile either for my bedroom or the living room. A second one is in the works as a baby shower gift for little number seven. It's a free pattern downloaded from the Spool Sewing blog, there's also a flickr group, Spool Bird Softies.



This is the first one I did, so of course it came out the best.

Then came this one, who looks like he has a stuffy nose or something, because the fabric was too thick to turn out nicely.

This one looks okay, I like the way the back came out.







More to come later this fall!

The ladies love him - and he loves us back

(Just in case you think I've been spending too much time doting on Rogerdog lately)

I would like to direct your attention to the newly-launched Feminists for Obama site, a project of the Feminist Majority. It features a run-down of the issues, and a side by side comparison of the candidates' platforms. The Feminist Majority fully supports the election of Barack Obama and Joseph Biden. They are strong supporters of women’s rights including the right to equal pay for equal work, programs to reduce violence against women, a woman’s right to choose legal and safe abortion. They believe in access to affordable birth control, work/family balance, and the end of the Iraq war.

From Eleanor Smeal, President of Feminist Majority -

“Obama/Biden are running on the strongest platform for women’s rights of any major party in U.S. history. But it’s not just platforms. Voting records show the stark difference between the Obama and McCain tickets.

Women simply cannot afford a President McCain. He would stack the Supreme Court and federal judiciary against women’s reproductive and economic rights for future generations; stubbornly pursue a policy of endless war no matter the cost in human lives and dollars; and continue Bush failed economics and political policies.”

Take a spin through the site, and share it with anyone you know who might be unsure what to do on November 4th.

My favorite little alternative heat source

Recommended Reading: Her Dog Has A Blog

From Mutt Gal's blogroll, I found Her Dog Has A Blog!

Maintained by Buzz's Food Lady, it's filled with great photographs and stories about Buzz and all his dogfriends. She offers proof that Buzz is, in fact a supermodel, and even put together a video of his silly puppy antics in celebration of his birthday! The entry that got me hooked was Don't buy a dog!, where the food lady works to explain puppy mills to Buzz:

Lady: Well, Buzzy, imagine if each of your toys was a dog. Now imagine that not only do we have 100 dogs in our house that need to be killed because we don’t have room for them or food to feed them, but also picture that there are 100 extra dogs at Billy’s house. And Milly’s house. And at every house in our city. That would be 9,000,000 dogs.

Buzz: Whoa. Do they deserve it?

Lady: No, Buzz. Those dogs are very nice dogs. Most of them are even better behaved than you.

Buzz: I’m perfect.

Lady: You chase cars. And try to take down joggers. And snap at bicyclists.

Buzz: I would like to revise my earlier statement. I’m mostly perfect.

When Roger's a little older, I'll use her conversation as a guideline to have the talk with him!

I love this method of story-telling, through pictures interspersed with the narrative, it's inspiring me to get more shots of Roger in action. She must have a remote clicker for her camera...maybe I can bribe a friend to come play photog for a day?

Beautiful dog/blog!

Roger and I just found an exciting new dog/blog friend pair!!

Roger is pup pals on Dogster with a pretty little Catahoula mix, Charlotte. (They even have the same colored spots!) In her Dogster profile, Charlotte links to her mom's blog, so I decided to check it out. It's delightful!

On She Wears Socks with Sandals, Mutt Gal posts beautiful photos of her outings and adventures with Char, along with her other dog Wilbur. They look like such a fun pack!! Roger would love to chase her around. I only wish they were closer to us than Washington state!

Localvore SCORE!!

Last night I attended the housewarming party for my friends Cliff, Becca, and Zach! They're renting a beautiful house in Grand Isle with a long sweeping front lawn and private beach access. The living room has a cathedral ceiling, and Cliff's room has its own deck.

The party was a strictly fancy-pants event - fancy wine, fancy food, fancy clothes, and fancy guests! Johan, Joshua, and Adam were up from NH, Dougie and Steph from southern VT, as well as local favorites Gwen and Billy. There was even fancy music a little later in the evening, provided by the house string quintet.

This was a particularly exciting event for me, because I hosted Becca, Cliff, and puppy Apollo in my second bedroom for the week before their lease started, and I knew how anxious they had been to move in. I happily brought a housewarming gift, as well - I re-potted one of my aloe plants for Cliff after he had admired it during his stay.

Upon arrival at the party, Cliff and Becca proudly presented me with a present of my own - a beautiful bottle of Sunshine Vodka!! The week they were with me was the first of September, so I was taking my Eat Local Challenge. We went out for drinks on their last night with me, and I opted for water due to the lack of local spirits available. Locally produced in Stowe, VT by Green Mountain Distillers, here's what their website has to say about Sunshine Vodka:

Vermont’s premiere organic spirit is quadruple distilled from 100% certified organic grain and pure Vermont spring water. Sunshine production begins with the highest quality grain supplied by our family, farmer owned co-op. All grain is Certified Organic and GMO free by Oregon Tilth. Sunshine Vodka is created using small batch fermentation and proprietary distillation processes that result in a spirit of the very highest quality. Our small staff selects the grain, distills the spirit and markets the finished product nationwide. This close integration of field to process to product gives Green Mountain Distillers an unparalleled level of integrity.

Hooray for localvorism, wonderful friends, and another fun night in my green party dress!

Come, sit, play - it's a PAWTY!!

Come one come all, join us at Waterfront Dog Park on Saturday, 18-October 1-3pm to help us celebrate Roger's 2nd birthday - and a full 6 months as my sidekick! Round up your whole pack! Just let us know you're coming so we can plan accordingly - there will be autumn-licious treats for dogs and pawrents alike. No need to run out to the shops, your presence is present enough. You don't even need to bring a dog if you don't have one!

If I may be serious for a moment, a big thank you goes to Carmen for her wonderful design work and enthusiasm for the project. If not for her, you'd probably be looking at an Excel document with fancy highlighting instead of the masterpiece currently before you.

Time to WINTERIZE!

It's starting to get pretty chilly in Vermont, which means it's time to get ready for the long, cold winter ahead. Efficiency Vermont has put together a list of top ten tips for saving energy this winter. Several of these, like plugging the leaks around my front door, are on my to-do list. I'm also planning to get a programmable thermostat! I'll use this list as a guide and post on my progress.

1. Make Your Home More Efficient. Efficiency Vermont-approved Home Performance with ENERGY STAR contractors can perform an energy audit on your home and install the recommended improvements, such as air sealing and insulation. Find a contractor and learn about financing options at www.efficiencyvermont.com/homeperformance. Low-income Vermonters can get similar services for free - learn more at www.helpforvt.org.
2. Lower the Thermostat. Each degree a thermostat is turned down (around the clock) in the winter equates to a cost savings of roughly three percent on your energy bill. Turning a thermostat back from 72º to 65º for eight hours a day can save as much as 10 percent on annual heating and cooling costs. Try lowering the thermostat when nobody is home, or just before going to bed. Programmable thermostats can help to manage your home’s temperature by consistently changing the setting whenever you want—even if you are asleep or at work. I'm pretty stingy when it comes to heat (hence my large collection of hoodies!), and Roger's a great little space heater. I also plan to install a programmable thermostat this winter.
   
3. Plug Up Air Leaks. Focus on plugging air leaks in the attic, where warm air escapes, and in the basement, where cold air enters the home. If you’re handy, use expanding foam to seal larger holes and caulk to seal small gaps. You can also save more by adding insulation in the attic. There’s more information on air sealing and insulating at www.efficiencyvermont.com/homeheating. Or find a professional to help at www.efficiencyvermont.com/homeperformance. One trick for finding leaks is to use a lit stick of incense - the drafts will disturb the smoke!
   
4. Heat Only Space You Use. Close off unneeded rooms, but ensure water pipes have adequate insulation or heat and don't freeze.
5. Let the Sun Shine In. Open the window shades on the south and west side of the house during the day to maximize the warmth of the sun, and close them at night. I've got two great south-facing windows, and I'm researching the most energy-efficient blinds to invest in.
   
6. Fix Drafty Windows and Doors. Caulk around window frames and use weather stripping and door sweeps on doors. Properly adjusted window-sash locks will ensure that windows are properly shut. Use storm windows and put up interior window plastic, available in kits at hardware stores. I need to get some weather stripping - there's a leak at the top of my front door!
   
7. Clean Up. Keep the area near registers, radiators, air returns and baseboards clear and dust-free. Vacuum or dust radiators and baseboards often and be sure they’re not blocked by furniture and carpets. Heat needs to circulate to reach all areas of the house, especially with a forced-air system. I kept this in mind when I was first arranging my furniture. I do have some cleaning to do in the spare room before the heat starts flowing though.
   
8. Close Dampers When You're Not Using The Fireplace. An open fireplace damper pulls warm air (air you’ve paid to heat) from the house, even when there is no fire. And, if possible, avoid or reduce the use of traditional masonry fireplaces, which tend to be much less efficient than other heating devices.
9. Tune Up Your Equipment. If your heating or hot water equipment has not been serviced recently, make sure it is cleaned and adjusted to operate as efficiently and safely as possible. I want to look into putting a layer of insulation around my hot water heater, but I don't know how to tell if I need it or not.
   
10. Save Electricity. Replace your standard incandescent light bulbs with ENERGY STAR compact fluorescent bulbs. For information about which bulbs work best where and how much you can save, visit http://www.newbulbintown.com/. When purchasing new appliances, be sure to select models with the ENERGY STAR. Small appliances and home office equipment use power even when they're “off”. Plug TVs, VCRs, fax machines, computers, printers, etc. into a power strip and just turn them off. I have started replacing all of the MANY bulbs in my new house with CFLs. I'm also looking into dimmable CFLs, since the bedrooms and living room fixtures need them. All of my entertainment equipment (TV, DVD player, computer) are plugged into a power strip that I flip off every morning before work.