DimSkip's Universe

Hi Elizabeth / Elka / Emma... So good of you to st...

2016-10-28T19:04:45.906-04:00

Hi Elizabeth / Elka / Emma... So good of you to stop by. I just checked out your blog and I will continue to visit periodically for your views which I always enjoy, although I use that word extremely loosely---or ironically, or something---when it comes to the Trumpmania that has gripped the nation. Maybe I'll even toss in a comment now and then, but I don't know. I've been kind of enjoying my "blogging retirement" and even of late living "off the social media grid." Ironically, I kind of have Trump to thank for that tactic and its resultant restoring of some semblance of my sanity. I wish the nation (or the media in general... liberal, conservative, whatever) could do the same and unplug... or un-Trump as it were.

I don't think I'm actually "back to blogging" though, but one never knows. To be sure, sometimes the itch comes back briefly, but then I just shrug it off. This was a very special case as I explained. I just couldn't take it anymore when even "our irascible Steve" seemed to be granting some legitimacy to Trumpists' growing paranoia re the so-called "liberal bias" of the "mainstream media." I'm sorry, but to my mind there's just no legitimacy whatsoever. The liberal bias seems to me no stronger than it's ever been. The conservative bias, though?... I wouldn't have thought it possible, but it's rocketing off the scales more and more, so far right it's off the planet. These charges of liberal bias and rigged elections, imo, are mere empty and unjustifiable fear-mongering and pre-framing of excuses designed simply to rouse the faithful rabble. And I am stupefied as to how so many continue to support this disgusting, crass, obnoxious, selfish bully as if there is something "right" or "redeeming" about him, his character, or his "plan for making America great again." Can't people see what a blowhard self-promoter he is?

SIIIIGGH. Oh, did I say SIIIIGGH? I meant "Sieg Heil!" (So sorry... thought I'd close with a semi-obligatory Godwin-ian Nazi reference. The difference between me and Trump's followers, though, is that **I'm** only joking when I make such a reference.)

Dear DimSkip, so good to see you blogging! Excell...

2016-10-22T09:43:12.898-04:00

Dear DimSkip,
so good to see you blogging!

Excellent post. I feel -- and share -- your righteous anger. Come visit my new blog if you want: https://goodmarriagecentral.wordpress.com/

Elizabeth (from Steve's Shamblog, way back when)

P.S. I post as Emma there.

Thanks, Angel! There are times I get the minor it...

2016-10-21T09:01:09.114-04:00

Thanks, Angel!

There are times I get the minor itch, but then it passes. We shall see.

I just tend to feel I don't have that much of worth to say or that anyone else would agree if I publish it. It may be a side effect of a particularly painful presidential election year, but I find myself more and more wanting to unplug (TV, radio, and internet), hunker down, and read (not The Post, but) good old-fashioned books (fiction is truer than non-), maybe listen to a little music in the lulls.

I appreciate your post and am glad you wrote. Ple...

2016-10-16T15:04:14.091-04:00

I appreciate your post and am glad you wrote. Please feel free to not wait years to post again.

Hi Gina, I knew you'd be particularly interest...

2012-03-18T20:59:41.055-04:00

Hi Gina, I knew you'd be particularly interested in this one. Yes, I do the treats thing, of course.

Slowly he IS getting better. Much of it is due to the routine repetition of requiring certain behaviors and rewarding him for them, correcting him on bad behaviors immediately. My cousin and his wife say he's much, much better in the house now at night with them.

Time and maturity will hopefully play a large part in the rest of the process. In general he's waaaaay better than when I started. Today he was mostly very good indeed at walking properly (no pulling) after a couple days of some regression on that front.

As a bird dog by breed and nature, he loves to run and fetch. things that involve specifically NOT running and having patience are hardest for him... like learning to not try to chase squirrels and not to jump up on people. He's getting better at the latter, needs work on the former, but we'll get there.

ha, cool your first blog is about dogs! if you wan...

2012-03-18T15:32:05.199-04:00

ha, cool your first blog is about dogs! if you want him to listen to you, you can use the treats to lure him, and also commend him for listening by giving him another treat. small ones, or else taking him out for exercise is a futile goal. and you can talk to dogs, they hear ya ;-). keep us posted on your progress!!

i had to prove i am not a robot by typing the words untyping youbled

Cats...nuff said. ;-)

2012-03-15T17:55:42.959-04:00

Cats...nuff said. ;-)

P.S. I probably should also add that despite lovin...

2012-03-13T20:40:34.654-04:00

P.S. I probably should also add that despite loving dogs and enjoying the experience with Jake in general I still have no immediate desire to have a pet. Too much expense and too much round-the-clock responsibility in all sorts of weather and while dealing with all sorts of circumstances. Yes, I love pets, but I love them even more when they're somebody else's responsibility (for the most part).

Even before this Jake stuff I've done enough taking care of various pets for others going on vacation that I already had a good idea of some of the downsides involved... like having to walk two dogs several times a day to do their business throughout a week of steady summer rains! Uh-uh, I can do without that, thank you.

Nope, not even a Chia Pet or a Pet Rock. :^) As ...

2012-03-13T18:35:39.758-04:00

Nope, not even a Chia Pet or a Pet Rock.

:^)

As a young child I was diagnosed with allergies, among them pet dander. I don't think it was a major thing, but we never had pets because of it. I'm pretty sure I outgrew most of those allergies (except nuts which was my major one, though at least I wasn't fatally sensitive).

Despite my non-pet history I've always loved animals, especially dogs and especially especially dogs that are well behaved.

I meant to put that info in the post as part of the background, but forgot until just as I'd logged off, so I just left it be.

Yes, I volunteered because A) as noted I love dogs, B) I thought it would be an interesting experience/challenge, sort of a puzzle and I've always enjoyed puzzles, and C) Jake needs his exercise and so do I and as long as we're exercising together, why not try to teach him some good habits/behavior? (...Like for Jake to walk at MY pace rather than trying to drag me everywhere.)

I figure reason C is a win-win-win situation for all involved. My cousin and his wife are in their 70s & 60s respectively, so they can't walk him like he should be walked. Plus Jake just shouldn't be dragging them down steps or anything like that when they take him out just to "do his business," not after a serious leg injury a year ago (for him) and double knee replacement also a year ago (for her).

All in all, it's been fun and educational. Some of the training techniques I've read about (and sometimes reread) have been very helpful, but I've also developed some of my own methods based on trial and error and how Jake seems to react. Progress has been encouraging and still seems ongoing. I won't kid myself that it's all due to my training, though. Much of it is probably also due simply to consistency of taking him out and forging a relationship with Jake, just generally getting him to trust me.

Dim Skip: I am surprised that you never had a pet ...

2012-03-13T14:21:58.401-04:00

Dim Skip: I am surprised that you never had a pet of your own. You seem to be the type that would enjoy the experience...as you seem to be doing with Jake.

I don't know if you volunteered for this gig, but it is so very nice of you to do so.

Thank you. Glad you enjoyed it. I've always ...

2011-09-13T10:15:33.455-04:00

Thank you. Glad you enjoyed it.

I've always admired sunsets, but not generally being a morning person a sunrise is an extreme rarity for me. This one was definitely a keeper, though, and I'm glad I happened to catch it.

Very beautiful. As another who "watches the ...

2011-09-13T08:55:24.758-04:00

Very beautiful. As another who "watches the skies", I truly love it.

This post brings much happiness to me. Glad you a...

2011-09-13T08:53:02.324-04:00

This post brings much happiness to me. Glad you all got together and (minus the communal illness) had a great time.

THANK YOU, Gina! I really, really do appreciate y...

2011-08-13T12:40:49.392-04:00

THANK YOU, Gina! I really, really do appreciate your saying that and I don't mean the "great shots" comment... More than you may ever know. Thank you for taking the time to say it. Be assured... you, Angel, and a handful of cyberfriends are often on my mind as well even though I be scarce at times, sometimes for extended periods.

I haven't had the blogging itch for a long time (obviously) and can't say I really do now either, but I wanted to at least get these fresh lighthouse pics up just to sort of say, "Yes, I'm still here" / "No, I haven't actually abandoned the place."

Lately I do seem to be trying (a little subconsciously, a little consciously) to distance myself from online a bit, but not for any particular reason other than maybe a general malaise, plus things to do out in the summer sunshine. Also, just as the real world can at times become a bit much, so too can cyberland. Life is endless cycles, ups and downs, summer and winter, eh... and perhaps there's not much difference between venues real or virtual so long as they're populated by people (or their avatars) and the all too human qualities connected therewith.

Please allow me to (unobligatedly, if that's a word) reciprocate in stating that I too value your presence in both the virtual world and the real one that the virtual one happens to be layered upon. Hope all is well for you on your half of the globe...

great shots as always!! don't be so scarce in ...

2011-08-13T11:20:35.194-04:00

great shots as always!! don't be so scarce in cyberspace, dear friend. either way, you're on the mind from time to time which means there's people who value and appreciate your existence :-))
toodles

Thanks, Angel... That shot is indeed another of my...

2011-08-09T17:44:44.929-04:00

Thanks, Angel... That shot is indeed another of my favorites. The light sand and concrete, the dark green water, the light and dark rocks, the green shrubbery, and of course the 2vN-ish shadow. There's a lot of natural contrast goin' on there. Plus the vertical drop perspective is further accentuated when you see the people on benches or walking from on high and almost directly above.

I had just mentioned to a friend who spent last we...

2011-08-09T16:51:41.271-04:00

I had just mentioned to a friend who spent last week in Ocean City, if she ventured up as far as Barnegat...so it has been on my mind. Glad you spent the time to visit and I am glad you got some new views. I enjoyed the one with the shadow of the lighthouse on the area we walked on. :-)

I never saw any of this as a child. I am (sadly) ...

2011-03-24T17:33:32.345-04:00

I never saw any of this as a child. I am (sadly) too old for that. But I saw it all through the eyes of my son.

Well, I like Van Morrison's version, but it...

2011-03-21T00:48:37.720-04:00

Well, I like Van Morrison's version, but it's still hard to beat Kermit.

Angel, I just watched that B&E in a pyramid vid too... Great stuff! I think I remember seeing that one as a kid.

Hey, why didn't anyone tell me I'd messed ...

2011-03-19T22:20:30.606-04:00

Hey, why didn't anyone tell me I'd messed up the title of this post? "It not easy being green"... THAT sounds more like Cookie Monster than Kermit, but then it shoudl be "It not easy being blue! Mmmmgh-Mmmmmmph-Mmmmmgh..."

Angel... Yes, definitely a very good lesson there, I'm sure. Kids are often way more perceptive than adults give them credit for.

Denise... Thanks for the link. I will definitely check that out at some point soon, but today was a day away from the computer and running the roads, so tonight I'm just gonna catch up on other miscellaneous stuff here and there. I'm sure it'll be great!

I like the Van Morrison version: http://www.youtub...

2011-03-19T21:44:14.850-04:00

I like the Van Morrison version:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XemdGu4WHuQ

Denise

The Bert and Ernie one I love because it teaches a...

2011-03-19T15:37:08.382-04:00

The Bert and Ernie one I love because it teaches adults to listen to their children. They rarely lie.

Egypt

I'm not recalling those other bits. The rubbe...

2011-03-18T18:10:46.736-04:00

I'm not recalling those other bits. The rubber duckie one is ringing a vague bell, but I don't know. I didn't check out the rest of the Time list as it was from 2009, but I linked there for the Kermit vid mainly because I liked the descriptive write-up culminating in the phrase "We need a song for the frog."

:-)

One of my favorite SS bits. Love Bert and Ernie i...

2011-03-18T15:09:14.838-04:00

One of my favorite SS bits. Love Bert and Ernie in Egypt and of course, Rubber Duckie. :-)

Well, I confess I didn't so much read the arti...

2011-03-07T19:45:27.571-05:00

Well, I confess I didn't so much read the article as skim it. It's just something that came up in my usual iGoogle feeds, so I took a glance.

Even just skimming, though, I had issues with some of the other items as well, but that #11 one just caught my eye as being very poorly worded and just plain confusing at first until I reread it. If it was pulled straight from the book source that way, then I gotta say I doubt the book is for me.