Big dogs and little dogs play monkey in the middle. Ricky is monkey The old dog, in this case, would be me. For years, Winslow Park, aka the dog park, has been in our rotation of “destination” walks, but, to be perfectly honest, I’ve never looked forward to going there.  Sure, all my dog-owner friends rave about it:  Dogs everywhere!  Great for socializing!  Jake/Molly/Spanky loves frolicking in the off-leash area!  Trouble is, Ricky and I never get to the...

Ricky's new $896.96 blue bandage This morning I took Ricky to the vet to have a lump on his haunch looked at, to have a cyst removed, and for some routine bloodwork.  Two hours — and $896.96 later (!!!), I picked him up, good as new.  Ah,yes — just another day in the life of a high-maintenance beagle.  (At least he got a spiffy new bright blue soft padded bandage out of it . . . for only $33.08 🙂  ) Years ago, long before Ricky’s time, I spotted — from the window of my...

A typical search and destroy mission The pattern was established back in the winter of 2003, Ricky’s first Christmas.  Matt, then 22, and Robby, 10, were locked in one of their weird competitions:  Whose gift would Ricky like better?  Matt had stashed away three french fries from a recent visit to the Diner, which he covered with a paper napkin and placed in a small box.  He then Exhibit "A" put that box inside another box, wrapped the whole deal, stuck a bow on...

Bet you didn’t know that Ricky’s Bar & Grill in Seattle has “nice healthy options” and “the staff is always very friendly and courteous”?  (Insider Pages)  Or that Hank’s Fine Furniture, with a whole bunch of locations in the South, has been repeatedly voted “the Best of the Best place to buy furniture in Arkansas, Missouri, and Texas”?  Those two are just a couple of the places I want to visit next September.  Remember at...

Expectant Those of you who keep up with Beagle Man might recall a recent comment from Sarah, a loyal follower:  “Have you ever taken pictures of Ricky’s face,” Surprised she asked, “when he’s expressing different emotions — like happy, excited, hungry, frightened?” Hungry Unfortunately, I told her, a beagle’s expression always seems to be the same.  Unlike, say, Labs or Goldens, who have a variety of facial expressions and often look like...

I’ve been writing the Roof Rack Report for over three months now, and I’ve gotta say, the feedback has been a-mazing. Listen to this comment:  You should take part in a contest for one of the best blogs on the web.  I will recommend this site. Sweet!  That one comes from a follower called “Where to get a homecoming dress” — clearly a big fan.  And this:  I truly appreciate your piece of work.  Great post. That note was posted by “Making Use of Silk...

This is not my first rodeo.  I know what goes on in this house in December.  Everyone’s sending e-mails to everyone else, complete with links, telling “Santa” what they want for Christmas.  Yesterday I overheard Beagle Man telling Greg he’d like a Muhammad Wilkerson jersey.  How pathetic is that?!  He couldn’t come up with a single Jets offensive player decent enough to ask for!  Man, I’ll bet those #96 jerseys are just flyin’ off the...

All dogs do it.  Ricky does it.  But what I want to know is why does a dog shake his ears like that? Let’s be clear.  When Ricky comes galloping at me from a distance, ears streaming behind him Dumbo-style — that’s not what I’m talking about.  When he tries to “kill” one of his stuffed animals by locking on it with his jaws and violently thrashing his head from side to side — that’s not what I’m talking about.  When he reaches up desperately...

Did it ever occur to anyone around here that the “What Ricky Likes” contest should have been judged by, uh — Ricky? Seriously.  One of the reasons I’m so glad to finally have my own Roof Rack Report is that after hearing for over a year about what I supposedly think and what I supposedly like and why I supposedly do the things I do — now I can tell you the truth about what’s going on between these velvety ears of mine.  And for starters . . . Greg was...

A highly competitive Final Four: Crate . . . It’s time to announce the winner of the “Ricky’s Favorite Things” playoffs, and I have to admit, I’m feeling pret-ty guilty — for two reasons.  One:  Nepotism.  Yes, the winner was Matt, my oldest son — with a perfect score of 30.  I obviously should have realized that in a contest of this nature, family members would have a huge advantage, and I should have barred them from entering.  My apologies to the...