The Littlest Warriors

 I couldn't keep all the fun to myself:

Taylor almost looks noble.   Almost...

Doing her best buffalo impression

I can't stop laughing at this...

If only they had a "Doggy Dash"...

KC.com Covers the Warrior Dash

   KansasCity.com posted some great photos from today's race! They give a good idea of what we were up against...

   KCTV5 covered it too. They reported that "only" two people died last year; I had definitely heard three. They must have un-attributed one of the deaths later. Anywhoo, here are a couple more obstacles:

Jen Dreams of Sushi, Too

    Tonight I'm going to see "JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI" at the Tivoli, the story of 85 year-old Jiro Ono, considered by many to be the world’s greatest sushi chef. He is the proprietor of Sukiyabashi Jiro, a 10-seat, sushi-only restaurant inauspiciously located in a Tokyo subway station. I haven't been there yet, but now that I'm familiar with it, I plan to go someday! 
　じろさんの鮨が食べたことがありたいんですが。。。 すごくおいしそうな鮨ですね。日本に行きたいです。そして、じろさんの鮨がとても美しいですから、私はびじゆつを作りたいです。とても面白くて、とてもすばらしい映画ですよ。
　The film used a term,「しょくにん」which means artisan or craftsman of the highest level, to describe Jiro. He was abandoned by his family at the age of 7 and began making sushi at age 10, working to survive. Through his work he found love, and for 75 years he has worked tirelessly to improve himself and his food. It is a real testament to the Japanese spirit and demand for excellence, but he was also a quiet man, humble despite his significant accomplishments. His おまかせ menu consists of the best and freshest fish his son can find every morning at  つきじ market, and costs $300 and up for 20 pieces.
   The film is a real work of art in itself, and the comparison of fine sushi served in meticulously planned courses to perfectly orchestrated music is a great one. Every single piece looked almost too good to be true, and I suddenly found my popcorn to be less than satisfying.

   Here's the synopsis from the official website: "JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI is the story of 85 year-old Jiro Ono, considered by many to be the world’s greatest sushi chef. He is the proprietor of Sukiyabashi Jiro, a 10-seat, sushi-only restaurant inauspiciously located in a Tokyo subway station. Despite its humble appearances, it is the first restaurant of its kind to be awarded a prestigious 3 star Michelin review, and sushi lovers from around the globe make repeated pilgrimage, calling months in advance and shelling out top dollar for a coveted seat at Jiro’s sushi bar.

For most of his life, Jiro has been mastering the art of making sushi, but even at his age he sees himself still striving for perfection, working from sunrise to well beyond sunset to taste every piece of fish; meticulously train his employees; and carefully mold and finesse the impeccable presentation of each sushi creation. At the heart of this story is Jiro’s relationship with his eldest son Yoshikazu, the worthy heir to Jiro’s legacy, who is unable to live up to his full potential in his father’s shadow.

The feature film debut of director David Gelb, JIRO DREAMS OF SUSHI is a thoughtful and elegant meditation on work, family, and the art of perfection, chronicling Jiro’s life as both an unparalleled success in the culinary world, and a loving yet complicated father."

Synchronicity

   I came home from work last night and took care of the animals, which is the first thing I always do. Gypsy hadn't eaten a bite... for the second day in a row. (The dogs love this, because I give them Gypsy's leftovers.) She seemed to rally after the low around Christmastime, and was back up to 11 lbs, from 9. But her appetite has been weak again since I returned from San Francisco on March 6.
   She always acts very interested in food—even follows me around shouting at me when she's hungry, pronouncing every letter in "MEOW!"—but when I put one of about 15 different foods down, she sniffs it and walks away. It's very frustrating. She's getting lighter and lighter.
   Later I went down to the laundry room to find that she had vomited clear liquid. Not good... definitely something to watch.
   This morning I saw that she hadn't eaten anything overnight, and she had vomited in the basement again. I called Joni to tell her I'd join them later for our hike if I could, and headed right for the vet, who graciously squeezed us in.
   We saw Dr. Miller, who hadn't checked Gypsy before. I could see the concern on his face when he read her charts. She was back down to 9.4 lbs. and he recommended bloodwork to check her kidney levels, subcutaneous fluids, and an anti-nausea injection. He palpated her and noted that her kidneys were huge... which has never been the case before. It's definitely cancer. And when you add that to the renal disease, it equates to, "we can't do anything but keep her comfortable and try to give her a good quality of life a little longer".
   None of this was a surprise, of course, given the last few months of history. But it did break my heart. I only lost Atom five months ago, Gypsy has been up and down since, and Taylor is seriously ill as well. They say things come in threes. I've found my unlucky number...
   I brought Gypsy home and comforted her, then took the dogs up to the dog park to meet Joni & friends. I shared the bad news, but we didn't dwell on it—I needed to get my mind off it for a couple of hours.

   When I got home, I opened up today's paper to see this:

   Synchronicity. Unfortunately, the article didn't offer any answers or much comfort. The author just confirmed that the lost of a beloved pet, a being who is devoted to you and depends on you, is very difficult—often moreso than losing a friend or close human family member. Again, not a surprise. Despite my other three pets, the house feels empty without Atom's presence.
   At dinner last night (Joni and I piled up the kaiten-zushi plates at Sakura), we talked about this subject. She noted that you always think your pets will live until tomorrow; but eventually tomorrow becomes today, and today becomes now. We agreed that the one good side to pets' lives being so short is that if you could keep them forever, you'd lose the opportunity to rescue more of them.
   I agree with that, but somehow I know I won't adopt another kitty. I've already had the two best kitties anyone could have... I can't imagine another that would live up to the standard mine have set. Most likely I will begin to foster dogs again, someday when time has helped heal my heart.
   Until that day, I have to be thankful for every moment I have with Gypsy. It's tough because it is plain to see that she is slipping through my hands, and though she is still here, my heart is raw, anticipating the inevitable. I have to keep reminding myself that I thought I was going to lose her on my birthday, so the last three months have been bonus time, and I'm thankful for it.
   Joni just emailed and reminded me: "Beginnings and endings are what life is all about.  It's what makes life so hard.  And it's what makes life so magical." She's a wise friend.

Race for the Cute

   Following Race for the Cure, I raced home to relax on the deck with a fresh cup of coffee, my souffle from Panera, and the KC Star, with all four of my pets outside with me. (It was just after 9 am, so it was still pleasantly cool & breezy... unlike the 100+ degree temperatures later in the day!) I opened up the paper & saw more of my artwork in the ads:

   It's always cool to see my work printed & out there for the world to see... but admittedly less so when the earliest, rough version of my color logo was accidentally sent to the printer: the animals have black paint on their feet, but blue paint is being spilled. awesome. (And by "awesome," I mean "dammit!") That's the last time I send a rough file to anyone without a big ugly watermark over the art to make sure it doesn't happen again.

   Frustration aside, I was really enjoying my early Sunday breakfast outside. Until I glanced off the deck & noticed that SOMEONE had helped themselves to breakfast. The grease trap had been pulled out from under the grill. Again!

And here's the adorable culprit now, lounging in a deck chair:

And his partner in crime, sprawled out on the couch:

And just to be fair, here's Gypsy doing "maneki neko":

And Atom hanging out on the rug:

Signs of Dog-n-Jog...

I will always get totally geeked out every time I see my work out in the world. Last year when I spotted my Taylor on an illuminated billboard off of 635 I nearly wrecked the car! Here's my yard sign & an ad in Thursday's KC Star:

Trolley Run photos

Photos by Mike Ransdell, on the KC Star's website:

This is the largest fundraiser for The Children Center for the Visually Impaired. The Trolley Run is the largest timed 4-mile run in the United States. 2010 was a record year, with nearly 10,500 entered to participate! In '09 the event raised about $416,000!

This is the best photo they took of me in the race

(I'm sure it's because I was SO FAST that they just couldn't catch me... right?)