raybear | I think its goodbye to a lot of things like christmas and the mediterranean.

So in addition to learning about hand-raising chickens and how septic tanks work, this past weekend I also learned this trick for dogs. The folks we saw on Saturday, who have gotten really into dog training (which was a little daunting, but also, inspirational), feed their dogs almost exclusively with kong toys. They mix up the wet/dry food and fill up the containers and freeze them. (Or you can just fill them with dry food, though they don't last as long.) The idea is that the dog then has to work for their meal, it mentally and physically stimulates them in a way that most house dogs are lacking in their everyday life. Today I went to the pet store for a few items, including training treats and picked up two new kongs. I got home and loaded them up -- I didn't really take the time to freeze them, since they were primarily dry food with just enough canned food to make them a little sticky and more tempting. Also, because the more gooey the filling, the more cleanup that could be required, and I am not looking to create more chores in my house to do. Given that Sophie is a very strange and picky eater, she responded really well to this new game, and got adept pretty quickly at figuring out how to bat the toy around, or pick it up to get better access. I gave her one and she came back for a second. And she cleaned those things out -- I picked them up when she was done and ran some water through them but visually they seemed pretty damn clean anyway.

whirledpeas, this might be a feeding technique you could explore with your Sophie (if you don't already).

I also learned the difference between bail and bond, the lack of credence in cows lying down before rain, the scientific v. reality of the safety microwaves, and a bunch of random facts about english castles. Too bad I don't have to write any back to school essays on What I Learned On My Summer Vacation, because this past weekend was a treasure trove of material.

I'm back at work, and its strange whenever I'm gone more than a weekend, going into the office suddenly feels foreign and a little scary and then I get here and its like everyone is the same and I'm treated as if only a day has passed and I wonder what I was worried about. I also had a little bit of stubbornness on the train about having to come here. I don't have that very often, that sort of resentment about my day job, which, believe me, I feel pretty grateful and lucky that I can quite easily tolerate this and even find a modicum of satisfaction about how I make use of my time here. I think its just surreal, how routine of day-to-day works, and how quickly things get defamiliarized. Now I'm just procrastinating for real. I've been here an hour and I'm waxing philosophically? This could be a long night.