Tasha's Tails

My mommy has coined a new word for me. It is puple (pronounced pup-le). It is a combination of the words puppy and people. It describes me pretty well. I AM a puppy that thinks she is a people.

I am a very entertaining character. I like to make people happy. I know what to do though when I don't make them happy. I run for my chair. I'm safe there, nobody, I mean NOBODY, can hurt me there. I've even run there when I'm not in trouble, but just think I am because daddy is upset over some machine. I really don't understand these machines that well, but I know they can get really frustrating. Even mommy gets mad at hers every once in a while.

My mommy and daddy really, really love me. I knew that right away after they got me. I made some mistakes in the house while they were gone and even when they weren't. They bought me a big crate to be my den so I wouldn't have to patrol their big house. I still made mistakes so they had my PaPa come over during the day while they were gone to let me go outside. I finally learned to not make mistakes in the house. It only took a week. Now I only make mistakes when I get real excited.

They make me wear this contraption they call a harness when I go outside. You see, I'm a fast runner. I'm a block and a half away and daddy isn't even out of the yard. I've only escaped twice and that was a long time ago. Once I snuck out when daddy was sleepily getting the paper and not paying attention. Fortunately I ran to a neighbor and she held me until daddy came. The second time I got out of my collar (the real reason I have to wear that contraption when I go outside) while we were all relaxing in the front yard. Again I ran to a neighbor and was held until daddy got to me. I also have to wear that thing when I go in the car. Mommy and daddy have me seat belted in so I won't go flying around if something were to happen. Like I said they really love me.

My house has a front and back. There are windows for me to look out of all around. I can't go out front without the above contraption on, but I am free, free, free to go out back. I have my own door to go out back.

My parents got my door for one of my birthdays. They don't really know how old I am so they have made my birthday May 31, 1994.

Shortly after I moved in with my parents an old college roommate of my dad's came to stay with us for a while. He was and is my big chew toy. He played with me all the time. I really am in my own heaven. They all throw toys for me to get and shake, shake, shake, and then return to do it again. My mommy doesn't know how I don't hurt my neck shaking my 'prey' so hard. You can see some of them in Toy picture pages.

Once I was shaking my string bone and somehow it got away from me and flew away. I didn't find it for a long time. Mommy finally found it and gave it back to me. I never did figure out where it went.

My parents have a two story house. They like to throw my toys between the floors. I stop and listen to hear the plop upstairs before I run and retrieve it. I can run right to it. I have very good hearing. If they throw it downstairs I look down through the stair railings and see where it went before I go running down the stairs to get it.

One time I couldn't find it downstairs. I could see it, but it wasn't on the floor where I just knew it had to be. I must have been quite comical as my mom, dad, and my big chew toy were laughing very hard. My chew toy finally had to get it for me. It was on top of a very tall piece of furniture.

This year I got two toys for my birthday. One was one of those dratted squirrels and the other a fuzzy bone. I really shook that squirrel.

I really impressed my chew toy one night. My mommy asked me if I was ready to go to bed. (At that time bed was my crate, now it is chair in my parents bedroom) I thought about it for a minute and then nodded my head and turned to go down to my bed. My chew toy nearly fell out of his chair with disbelief. He had said while I was thinking that I didn't understand what mommy said, but I did. I showed him!

My mommy has ceramic ducks in out flower beds. One time after being away from home I had forgotten about them. I saw them and I was stalking them. One careful step at a time and very intently. Boy was I aggravated with myself when I realized what I was doing. You should have seen my face when I got about five feet away and the realization hit. I felt like such an goofball.

Sometimes I'm very bad. I like getting into trashcans that have tissue paper in them. I like to chew on it and spit it out. I leave soggy, wet wads on the floor. After I do it I go tell my mommy and daddy that I've been bad. Sometimes they don't understand me when I talk to them.

I also get into places my mommy doesn't know I can get to. I got one of her little bears off the dresser in the bedroom the other day and left it in the living room. Boy, was she mad at me. She told me I was a bad dog. I went and got in my chair for several hours. She doesn't tell me I'm a bad dog very often so I know I was really, really bad to do that.

We have a sprinkler system. It gets run, most of the time, in the dark. I very rarely get to see it on, but I know it is there. My first experience with it was with dancing streams of water coming out of these black things. I am trying to find out how the water gets in those black things. I try to dig one up every once in a while. So far, I've had no luck in finding out.

My first Christmas with my parents brought me several different experiences. I'm very good around the tree. I leave it alone. The first Christmas though I found one ornament I really liked. It tasted good. I liked to lick on it. It isn't at our house anymore. Mommy gave it away. I think she thought it was bad for me.

My grandparents that live far away sent my Christmas present along with mom and dad's. They all went under the tree. Mom came in the Christmas room and found all the presents pulled our from under the tree, untouched, except for mine, which I had sniffed out and opened and was playing with. I was so proud of myself. I didn't get in trouble since I left all the other presents alone and had only opened mine.

After I had been at my house for a while my back yard grew. I don't know exactly how it happened. I went to stay at my grandparents for a week and when I came back the yard was huge. I, of course, checked it out completely. I sniffed all around the posts and slats. They smelled of PaPa and great grandma. I wonder why? There were lots of new plants for me to smell. It was pretty wonderful to have all that room.

Christmas of 1999 brought me my best toy ever. It's picture is on the Red Things page. It is an interactive toy. I like to chase it and it likes to chase me. I ask to play with it daily. I get so excited when mom or dad gets it down that I can hardly contain myself and jump on them to hurry up. Then it is a talk and run and talk and go and talk and chase and talk and talk. I wonder what they are getting me for Christmas 2000.

Christmas 2000----boy did I get another BIG present. It makes lots of noise.

I sometimes have to get away FAST!!
(click on the pictures to see them bigger)

Every once in a while my cousins come over to play. We have a BIG back porch that they like to draw on with colored chalk. I like to lay on it and soak up the heat and sun. I'm a rainbow dog when I come in if the cousins have been here, other wise I'm just a HOT DOG!

I also like to lay on the cool ceramic floor. My mommy and daddy say I'm a flat dog.

On that day when all the kids come to the house dressed up as weird beings and ring our doorbell, mommy gives them candy. Daddy holds onto me. Some of them like to pet me and let me lick them. On the first one of these that I experienced mommy left the big bowl full of candy on the table behind the sofa. She didn't think I could get to it. I left the wrappers all over the floor. It took my parents awhile to figure out where they were coming from before they removed the bowl. I was smart. I had already moved most of the candy and hidden it down between the cushions in the sofa. When the wrappers continued to 'appear' on the floor, mommy went looking and, darn it, found my stash. It was pretty wonderful while it lasted.

When I was first putting together my web page I knew some of the things I wanted to include, like my door to the back yard and my front 'windows to the world'. Mommy had to take the pictures and I was in a hurry to get my first web pages up so I went outside and waited for her to get the camera and everything ready. I came right inside my door when she said she was ready and she got the picture I'm using for my door. Then she walked to the front window and I followed her. I got up on my stool and looked out, snap, she got that picture. We then went to the front door where she had my door ready and I struck my poise there, too. Snap, we were all done. My pictures in less than three minutes. Mommy of course is fast at doing things, but knowing what I wanted made it a whole lot easier.

I don't get much people food. The only thing they share is popcorn, which I love. Mommy uses and air popper and I talk to it the whole time it is popping. I tell it to hurry up. It is popped on a cabinet in the center of the kitchen that I circle like Indians circling a wagon. I stop at the end the popper is on and tell it a thing or two, before heading around the cabinet again. It helps make the time go by faster. When it is done, mommy gives me a hand full. YUM!

I got a new sister in 2003. Her name is Nicci. My parents took great pains to get another Husky that was going to be about the same size as I am. I am on the small size of the breed, only around 40 pounds. My new sister was a skinny little thing, but she was a fighter. I've had to learn how to tussle, protect my food, and put up with the precious creature. She has filled out nicely and is a great play mate. My family thinks I am healthier and I probably am. I've picked up some of her habits and she's picked up some of mine, much to my parents frustration.

I don't play with my toys much anymore. My sister likes to tear them up, so we don't get them any more. It's ok, since I have her to play with. I don't ask to play with my cars or my other toys anymore, I just go pounce on Nicci.

My sister and I like to go! Mommy got a new phone that takes pictures so she snapped this one of Nicci and me on one of our trips to see my grandparents.

We are snow dogs! There isn't much snow in Texas. The first time it snowed I didn't like it very much. I didn't like to get wet. I am, after all a very elegant dog. It snowed in 2004 and I got to enjoy the snow with my sister. I enjoy just nosing around in the snow too.

I'm growing old, I'm having trouble with my back legs. My parents take me to the doctor to help with the pain. I get a pill, too. I sill like to nip at my precocious sister. She keeps me going, you know. I'm slowing down. I know they will keep me comfortable and love on me a lot. I will stay my aloof normal self until it is almost time for me to go. My mommy will need to pet on me a lot then. I know she will.

They started brushing me a lot more. One of my grandmother's is learning to spin and is going to spin my fur and knit or crochet things for my mom and dad to wear so they will always have a little piece of me with them.

It is time for me to go. My life has been good. I know I was loved and I will be missed.