Henry's World

Happy 101st post! Enjoy! Rascal's Journal March 27, 2006 You know that feeling? When you know something is about to come true. When you can taste the answer to the problem on the tip of your tongue. That is how I felt about that Dogpalooza victory. My dreams were fulfilled. At the first Dogpalooza, hard, icy, justice had been served on a steamy platter with a side helping of... victory. I had been told I was not big enough, that I was not strong enough. But now, those days were over. I was the king on top of my own personal mountain. Yet, I caught myself writing the speech... of my retirement from the world of tug-of-war. Maybe, somewhere, distantly, I thought that was it. That was all I was ever going to achieve. I guess that is basic instinct. You do whatever it takes to stay on top of the heap. But I was not basic anything . I would never be basic. So, as the ink dried on the half- finished speech, I made up my mind. Anything to keep me competing was good. After all, ...

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope everyone is enjoying what is sure to be a whopper of a holiday. As some of you may be traveling, I wish you pleasure and joy, wherever you are, and safe travels. And now, Number 1 on my countdown. The Pug That Always Finished Second, Chapter 15 Of course I was going to name this my favorite post. In case you haven't had a chance to read it, here is some quotes from dogs(and humans) who read it for your enjoyment. Happy Thanksgiving! "My heart stopped beating when I read it... tug-of-war and races and exhilarating excitement... the classic tale of dogs tackling the impossible! Four paws up!"- Molly "I don't even get why you would read this thing... it portrays dogs as lovable creatures, when in fact, we are not. You're better off watching rain." -Rascal "Treat! Race! Fun! Pugs! Story!" -Emma "I wouldn't even lose to another pug! I expect justice for this ending!" -Leia "All the credit s...

Number 1 of the Countdown to 100 will be posted later today. What post takes the prize? You'll have to wait and find out. (I will post on Thanksgiving Break, the next time I am off from school. The post will probably be next Thursday). Thank you for a great day of posting!

In the future, this will be narrowed down to just RTOT I do in Life, so it doesn't take up too much space. Here is the second posting. Emma Episode 2 Food I love food. The way it crunches in your mouth, all the flavors. Kibble never cuts it for a gourmet dog such as myself. I require that which a dog is not allowed to have. Cake, chocolate, cookies(peanut butter is my preference), whipped cream, and a carmel apple dotted with nuts. Sandwiches as long as baseball bats swim across my imagination. Lettuce and roast beef, tomato and avocado, with a helping of bacon- yum! None of these I can have- but a girl has to have an imagination, right?

Here is the first posting of Races and the Other Thousand Things I do in Life. Enjoy! Emma Episode 1 Sleep Everyone has to sleep. I do, too. I sleep with a mixture of snoring and movement. That's right, I move to help me sleep. Don't look so surprised. I curl in my bed, crate, or really any available surface(table, lap, chicken pot pie) and take a nap. I cover my snout with my paws(a gypsy lady once told it either means you are defending yourself or you want food, it doesn't matter to me which) and tuck my tail in. This assures no stepping-on-tail action occurs. What do I dream about? The most perfect piece of cake, heating in the oven. Just a taste of my life.

There are times when all animals rise to the occasion, declaring the spoils of victory- Rascal Rascal is an accomplished tug-of-war participant. Winning his first title at just 2 years of age at Dogpalooza, Rascal went on to be the most famous tug-of-war player ever. An outstanding 9 titles in a short 3 years at 6 different events won him the award for Best Tug-of-War Dog of the Decade. And still, Rascal dominated the competition. Following his shocking retirement just 5 years into his career, he would come back to the tug-of-war ring and shattered record upon record. Now, witness his incredible career and why there is only one Rascal. Crushing Hopes and Dreams , coming soon to the blog Otterworld.

The second-to-last spot on the Countdown to 100. The second hermit crab post of the day. And coming in at Number 2 is The Route of Life . This was a chapter-based story I wrote in the 2nd grade as a tribute to my hermit crabs. I said it before and I say it again. The hermit crabs changed my life. I owe a lot to them, and I won't soon forget it. Goodbye Crabbe and Goyle and sweet dreams.

Coming in at the third position on my Countdown to 100 is the post concerning the day before Pugtacular. This is Chapter 14  of The Pug That Always Finished Second. Bucky mentions that he feels no nerves, but believes he cannot win. Would this come true? Readers would have to wait for the final chapter.

Up next, the post titled " Curious Crab ". Crabs, by nature, are very curious animals. Reading this post made me realize how much of my life crabs filled. I believe all animals, big and small, are worth every second you get to know them. That is just the way things are.

After the Countdown to 100 finishes, which will be soon, Emma will debuting Races and the Other Thousand Things I do in Life . This will hopefully become a series letting interested blog readers know how a dog like Emma lives her life. This is the first story on my blog. I drink your dreams for breakfast! The second story is Crushing Hopes and Dreams . This is Rascal's story, new to the blog. Here you see the cover photo for his story, which features heart-pounding tug-of-war action. Stay tuned for more and happy blogging!

That's right! Here is our new dog, Emma. We got her from CARE, where we got Rascal. They named her Gemma, which we shortened to Emma. She has been in our house for about 6-7 weeks and has a birthday on June 1st. We have since started a Facebook page called Rascal and Emma where you can follow their wonderful meanderings. Stay tuned for her new story, Races and the Other Thousand Things I do in Life , coming soon to my blog!

Later today, a new series will debut on my blog. Here are 4 more posts for you to enjoy. " My Mom " " The Blueberry " " Fruit Fly Attack " " The Haunted House " These are short posts, but I think they are well worth the time spent reading them. Have a good day and happy blogging to all!

For my next Countdown post, I chose to do 4 in 1. Why? Because new things are debuting soon on my blog. I won't spoil the little surprise, but I must say she is very cute. Don't worry, I'll run through the choices. They are: " Latest Update on New Puppy " " I have a dog today speech " " Dogs Are COOL! " " Puppy Mill Speech " As you can see, these are all dog-related posts. They are all great posts that I still re-read from time to time. Go ahead and check them out.

I'm back to the blog! That's right, school has started up and has been going well for the past couple of months. I finally have some time to blog today, with my day off because of Veteran's Day. Look forward to some posts today, plus some when I have 3 days off next week for Thanksgiving. But enough about me, let's go to the Countdown. Next on the Countdown is a post that can go hand-in-hand with the Tobogganing post. It is my First Snow post. Now, I never was a huge fan of snow, as I mentioned before, but it was a neat experience for the first time. My birthday is around the time when most people are enjoying snow. As a matter of fact, the week that we get out in February near my birthday is called ski week. I can just hear a fellow student asking, "So you go skiing on your birthday, huh?" And my answer, "I don't like snow." "Why not?" They always ask. I don't really have an answer for that. I guess it's just one of those ...