My Favorite Things For Dogs

I like to say I have three dogs, two real and one virtual. Pug is my virtual dog. Buddy and Lilly are my real dogs. They're poodles. Buddy is a mini and Lilly is a toy. These are a few of my favorite dog things.

We call this Buddy's "Happy Shirt" because it really does make him happy. What is it? Well, it's a combination of swaddling cloth and straight jacket. Buddy is terrified of thunder so this shirt works wonders. He settles down right away. It wraps around the dog's torso and closes with lots of velcro. The snug fit is comforting and the jersey knit is easy to clean. 

The small size of these balls are great for small dogs. They tough, bounce really well, and wash up easily. Both Buddy and Lilly love them.

Some people use those plastic bags you get at the grocery market but I prefer these. Less plastic and they're easy to use. Some bags are difficult to get open but not these. A white strip guides you to the opening and a quick rub between thumb and index finger opens the bag up quickly.

Pug is just as much fun as Buddy and Lilly but requires far less looking after. No poop! 

Enjoy your dog. Play with your dog every day. If you don't have a dog, volunteer at a shelter. My dogs are rescue dogs. If you live in South Florida visit my shelter of choice, Animal Aid in Boca Raton. If you can't get here please consider making a donation to them. Click on the link then look for the yellow Donate button on their website.

Animal Aid, Inc

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Books about finding our peace at the beach.

Lilly

Buddy

Find Peace Wherever You Are

Cairn at Biddeford Pool, Maine.

Generally I like little latitude beaches with white sand and warm, really warm, water. So I wasn't sure how much I'd miss my southern beach when I traveled up to Maine this past summer.

My beach is a five minute bicycle ride from my house. The beach in Maine was 14 miles and 25 minutes away by car. That's really nothing considering I used to live 100 miles and a two hour drive away from the ocean. But for a person who uses the sea as a tool for meditation, self reflection, and just a moral boost in general, it seemed like, well, it seemed like an ocean away. So it came as a surprise to me when I sat by the sea at Maine's Biddeford Pool that I found the same kind of peace I was used to walking by the water's edge in South Florida.

Looking back I've come to realize that my inner being, my soul if you will, scanned the scenery for beauty regardless of temperature or water color. Beauty is beauty. And the soul craves beauty. I think it was John O'Donohue who said that (or some version of that) and he was right. There is beauty in everything.

This morning I counseled a young woman, fraught with anxiety, to stop every 30 minutes to examine her surroundings. I told her,

"Look for the small miracles surrounding you - the ones that are often overlooked because we just don't make the time to see them." 

Then I sent her a photo of a plant stripped of all its leaves because the caterpillars had eaten them all. What others might see as an ugly plant was, to me, beautiful especially since the plant was already at work making new leaves.

Some may see slimy algae and weird seaweed.
I see  six different shades of green and a multitude of textures.
Tidal pool in the rocks at Biddeford Pool, Maine.

Today I invite you to find beauty in everything you look at. It's there. You just have to look for it and when you do, you'll find a moment of peace. From this moment will arise another moment of peace and then another, and another until you find yourself being more at peace than in conflict. And that's a wonderful way to live.

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Books about finding our peace at the beach.