Odd Weekend

   On Saturday, I should have played soccer. But the other team said their fields were too wet. We would have played! I say it was a ripoff. Anyway, I had to occupy myself. So, my mom took me to the animal shelter. We started off with the cats, as always. 
   Our animal shelter puts the cats into different "colonies". There was a room with middle aged cats, one with elderly cats and one with kittens. Not a lot happens in the old and middle aged cats room, but in the kitten colony, the occasional oddball comes along.
    One little kitten, with her fur all spiked up, laid in a small cat tower. She was playing with a cat toy. I noticed her and picked up the toy. I tossed to the kitten's paw and she immediately hooked her paw on the toy. I pulled the string and she fell off but recovered. She walked in the litter box. I decided not to pet her for a while.
    Later, I tried picking the kitten up. She did not like it one bit. I set the kitten on another cat tower. The cat jumped to a nearby tower. The inhabitant was her sibling who did not like being jumped on. Nor tramped on. 
    Next we went to visit the dogs. Amber was one nice looking dog. But on the inside, she wasn't. Once she saw a dog, Amber barked loudly in an offensive way. She was a born leader, just like Nikita who grew old to be grumpy. 
    Another dog who caught my attention was Forrest, a beagle and basset hound mix. We liked Forrest so much that we decided to walk him. When I told a staff member we wanted to walk Forrest, there was one little problem. The slots outside were filled up. So, we had to stay inside with Forrest and wait 'til a slot opened up. 

    Forrest was a nice quiet dog- when there weren't biscuits around. Once I got a biscuit out Forrest would go crazy. He'd hop up on you, lick you, paw you, and he even licked me in the face when I was on the ground. After a few minutes of training Forrest to control himself, we went outside. Forrest sniffed a bunch for he hadn't been outside for a while.           
     Now, to all the residents in Bloomington, it would be good for you to visit the pets in the shelter and help them get a good home. You can follow them on Facebook too.

    Time for another subject, soccer. I know I said I didn't have soccer but on Sunday I did. A friend and I got moved up to an U-11 for two games. We won our first game and suprisingly, these were U-12s. Our second game was miserably lost, unknown for the cause of so many goals to 1.
     News: The Lorax is Thursday so after the performance I'll give you a review. But now, to end with a dog teaching her puppy trust, and how a cat does it. Enjoy.        

     

Lizzie Walks for the Homeless plus Soccer and Ice Cream

   On Saturday I had my first soccer game. We were going to have our first game against Columbus at home. I'm not sure whether Columbus was good or bad.

It was cold so I wore my cap

    On our first game the entire team played well. Our coach put us at positions that we stayed in the rest of game because we all played well in them. I was a midfielder. We were passing, scoring, and talking. And Columbus was being blocked, scored on, and faked out. WE won the game 8 to 2. I contributed 2 goals.
    And on our second game, we had a challenge. The team was obliviously better than the other team. Everything had switched in the second game. But we finished the half tied 1-1. We came back in the second half like the team we are scoring 3 goals. Two people passed the ball to me for goals and one, where I faked out two defenders and the goalie to score. We finished the game 4 to 3. It was a great team effort.


Mmmm, Nicks!

     And after winning both games, why not have a victory dinner? That's what I did. My family went to "Nick's", a bar/restaurant in Bloomington that supports Indiana University. I got a bacon cheeseburger and a few mozzarella sticks. The Vegetarian (Mom) actually got something with meat: Chili! It was a bit chilly outside.
      On Sunday Mom asked me if I wanted to walk for a fundraiser to help the homeless, Homeward Bound, I said okay. So we went to the 3rd street park with Lizzie. I had no idea there would be so many people! There were about 900 people in the park. Lizzie was overwhelmed. When people came up to her, she would shy away at first. But when dogs came by she would jump up and down trying to play with them. There were some college girls that took her picture. Once again, no one could believe she is 11 years old.
      Finally the walk began at 1:00. At the beginning we met up with one of mom's coworkers. She was with her grandson and husband. We spent the rest of the time together. 
    When I was getting tired I asked Mom when the walk was going to end. She said 2:00. What? 2:00! Are you kidding me?!? This was a long time. At the beginning Lizzie had been a true husky, wanting to lead the pack. But after a while she lost speed. Many dogs were panting. One even dropped to the ground to rest in the grass, he didn't know how to pace himself. My mom wanted me to let you know they had water stations for the dogs. 
   

The end

When we were finished I was grateful and immediately got water and flopped to the ground. But I got up to go somewhere fun. The Chocolate Moose! This is a Bloomington ice cream parlor. There was only one problem. The line.
    We had to wait 20 minutes to get to the front of the line. Then it took 15 minutes to get our food. But the wait was worth it. I got, an ice cream sandwich. With two huge cookies serving as bread and ice cream packed to the rim serving as everything in the middle, it... was... Awesome! Of course my mom made me share so I had to give up a few bites, but I ate it all! Oh, Lizzie got a little treat too. I think overall she enjoyed her outing.

Best ice cream sandwich ever!

    Stay tuned for more sled dog adventures.   
                        

Soccer Plus Adventures with Lizzie and Hoover

    Last Saturday I did a soccer tournament with Kentucky. I was representing Indiana along with other kids for the first time.
     We played about 5 short 4 on 4 games that were about 14 minutes. After a hour break, we then had 3 other games, each 20 minutes. We lost 2 games but tied one. One thing I can say about Kentucky, they are conditioned!

Walking on the Rail to Trails

    The next day we took Hoover for a walk. He would grumble and was a little protective when he saw other dogs. Hoover would bark at them but once a big dog came and that sure silenced Hoover. He was a nice dog and sat there like a nice little dog, while, I, Gandalf the Grey made sure Hoover didn't try something blocking him with my stave.   
   After the walk, we were going to go to the Chocolate Moose to get Hoover a dog cone but the line was too long. We went to Bruster's instead. I had the greatest sundae, a strawberry one. Hoover got a small treat but drank too much water before and threw up. Mom was embarrassed.

Hoover wants my sundae

    That wasn't the end of Hoover's adventures. Early Wednesday morning Hoover caught an unlucky rabbit. All we found was the head on Hoover's outdoor bed. It was very gruesome. My parents called it a scene from "The Godfather." I don't get what they mean. 

    Lizzie went to soccer practice on Wednesday. She was nice and a lot of people wanted to walk her. Even my friend's mom wanted to walk her. She went on a run. I want to remind you that she is 11. She is in better shape than Hoover.  I think Lizzie is a big sports fan. She watched my practice and wanted to play soccer.      

Lizzie at practice

    Did anyone watch the 2013 Super Bowl? If you did, the commercial below may seem a little familiar. I like the video because I see a lot of similarities with my dogs. Have a good weekend. Stay tuned for more news about soccer and stories with my dogs.   

Easter Fun With the Dogs

   On Easter morning I woke up early. In fact, I got up at around 7:00. I couldn't go back to sleep so Mom gave me her Android so I could play the Hobbit for 20 minutes. But eventually the fun began. I searched the house looking for eggs aided by my loyal dogs who were utterly useless in the hunt. And I too, was useless. I practically touched an egg yet never saw it. My parents started to laugh so I searched the area again until I found the egg.

Hoover the Easter Bunny

   The hunt was all fun and games until picture time came. Hoover was pretty good but Lizzie and Nikita were not. Lizzie kept on shifting and Nikita... well, she was her old, grumpy, uncooperative self. But we got the pictures. Then the dogs got their Easter egg to eat. It was Lizzie's first time. I wasn't sure every dog would like their egg. But surprisingly they all liked it.   

Lizzie is not liking it

    I had a great big breakfast. Our family went to the Runcible Spoon. Call me a critic but, I needed more food than 3 strips of long bacon, 5 slices of french toast, half a plate of toast, and half a plate of scrambled eggs. I mean, that's not gonna fill a guy up, right?
    After breakfast we took Lizzie for a walk. She was excited to get out. Right when Mom opened the door she jumped out pulling me out with her as I hit my head on a bar in the truck. It hurt. Though soon we were out on a walk. Lizzie enjoyed walking around Bryan Park a few times. Although she stopped a lot to pee. She watched a dog chase a squirrel.
   When we were walking I thought, What's a walk without a walking stick? So I picked up a stick and walked over to a tree and got a fairly small but good walking stick. But I soon broke it so I got another one which was too small. But then I found a huge stick that was perfect. It looked like Gandalf's staff. Now, I'm Gandalf the Grey.

Lizzie girl

   On another topic, my bracket is busted. I'm sorry to say IU lost to Syracuse when I had them going all the way. The only team I have is Louisville, who was going to lose to IU in my bracket. The best I can do now is tie, so, I hope either Michigan, Wichita State  or Syracuse win the championship. No offense Louisville.  
  Now to talk about school. We have another project. Thankfully this one won't take as long. I just have to write a story. Our teacher said to be done on Thursday but I think I'll be done by Tuesday. And we will have a guest speaker! He is Scott Russel Sanders, the author of the  Wilderness Plots. I am basing a story, in which mine will be a log book, off one of his short stories. I can't wait to share what I have.      
  Stay tuned for more on the Wilderness Plots.


Like Nikita, the picture wouldn't cooperate