It's Early

Why do all universities offer course registration early in the morning?  Bleary eyed I woke to my alarm this morning and immediately had to enter full-speed-ahead mode.  I signed on to the the struggling AU website, weighed down by the crush of graduate students registerring, it puttered along as if I were on a dial up connection.  I finally arrived at the page where you enter the course numbers, quickly typed them in, then watched over my coffee cup while the wheel spun, determining whether or not I would take US Foreign Policy Toward the Middle East or Analysis of US Foreign Policy in Pakistan.... Peanut observed all this more concerned over the fact she hadn't had breakfast yet, than the potential derailing of my future career in the event I didn't make it into any courses... but nonetheless mirroring my stress in this look she gave my camera -- "we are up early, and something important is delaying my breakfast...."

A Survivor

Meet Clancy, a therapy dog.  I found Clancy on Stubbydog.org a website dedicated to promoting a positive image of pit bulls.  Peanut won't mind sharing the limelight a little bit.  

Clancy spent a lot of his life fighting for survival in dog fighting rings, now he is a survivor.  The scars on his face tell the story. 

You can check out Clancy here.

On Vacation

Today I dropped Peanut off at Bella's house.  Bella, the pomeranian, has agreed to keep Peanut company while I visit friends in Boston this weekend.  When we arrived, Peanut promptly stole Bella's chew bone and finished of her breakfast.  I'm pretty sure Bella was re-thinking her decision to host.  This is the picture I received from Bella's person, Sezan.  Clearly Peanut is still making herself right at home.... I'm sure Bella is thinking "Oh sure.... stretch out, relax, stay awhile.... I'm going to pee on the rug and blame it on you."

Pit Bulls Like Girl Scout Cookie Season Too...

In one of her less than helpful moments, I caught Peanut eyeing my Girl Scout Cookies right after being scolded for casually snatching one.  I had been distracted, chatting with my roommate, and set the last bite of a cookie down on a book.  When I looked there was nothing but a wet smudge left in its place.

On a side note:  RIP Hedgehog (pictured above) a toy that we had for over a year, Hedgehog had survived multiple re-stuffings and had one of the most resilient squeakers I've ever come across.  He will be missed.

You Aren't Making This Easy

We survived midterms and it seems that we have been vaulted into finals.  Right as it's getting warm outside and the cherry blossoms are blooming Peanut and I have been inundated with decisions like "What courses should I take next semester?" and "Should I write my final paper on NSC-68 or Paul Nitze?"  As I'm caught up in the hurricane of decisions and deadlines Peanut peers from behind my computer screen.... "I thought it was over, you said after midterms we would get to relax."

A World of Post-Its

Peanut and I have just barely survived this semester's first midterm:  40+ hours, over 1,000 pages of sources, 3 packages of color coded sticky notes, 2 emotional melt downs on public transportation, an entire box of Girl Scout Cookies, and all for 12 pages of final product.  Through this process, Peanut and I can only spend so much time in one position so I move from desk to floor, and she from dog bed to carpet.  Here were were laying on our bellies reading about the rise of the Soviet Union.  When I stuck my sticky note on her paw so that I could see the page numbers I had written on it while I flipped through the book, she patiently held it for me -- We're a team, and we'll get through this together.

Midterms Are Upon Us

If you asked Peanut, she would say that midterms are the worst time of year.  They are right up there with January in Vermont when it is negative 15 degrees an ice forms on her whiskers so we rarely go outside.  Midterms mean that we spend all day just as we are pictured above.  Occasionally we will emerge from this pile of knowledge to refill my coffee cup and to step outside for a potty break.  Once outside we stand in the sun blinking back the jumble of letters which had formed words in textbooks but are now imprinted on our eyes forming shadows across our vision.  Peanut makes the most of these brief outings, chasing the squirrels in the back yard, but unfortunately I have to call her back in after just a few blissful moments and she drags her heels all the way back to my bedroom where we settle back into our nest of books.

Do I Have Something on My Face?

Pit bulls are not bred for the snow.  Peanut is no exception.  Her belly is totally naked and although she loves to race through the woods, she is reluctant to plow through the snow as she cannot see what is below it.  When we snowshoe, she sticks to the trails running ahead in the compacted path, stopping to wait for us, shivering and taking turns lifting each paw from the snowy ground, relieving it from the cold surface.  On this day, I managed to capture her "can we PLEASE go home now look" when after spending 15 minutes at the park, she refused to chase the tennis ball any more and instead followed me as I retrieved it.

Please Don't Tell That Story....

We have a mouse problem.  For the most part, Peanut has been very helpful.  As I am allergic to cats, she knows it is up to her to eradicate the mouse problem and she does her best.  To date, she has caught one rat (although he hadn't made it into the house yet -- he was in the back yard, one mouse (which escaped) and one other mouse who suffered a broken back and was consequently euthanized by a begrudging roommate.  

On one occasion however, the sticky paper laid down by the maintenance men caught one!  Peanut found it first.  I watched her fish her paw under the kitchen counter and thought "what could it be?"  But even before the thought had fully formed Peanut lept from the floor as if yanked by the tail with both mouse and sticky paper firmly adhered to her paw.  Before I could blink the sticky paper was upside down, stuck to the floor -- mouse, peanut, and all.  In case you are wondering, sticky paper is very.... well.... sticky.

Fortunately, only the mouse suffered in this debacle.  Peanut was unstuck easily, although as she slunk from the kitchen, tail between her legs I'm pretty sure some of her enthusiasm for catching mice remained stuck to the paper with the dead mouse.

I'm Not So Sure About This....

I have been feeling some maternal guilt about how much time I spend studying and how little time I spend entertaining Peanut.  Like most bad-parent-afflictions there is a remedy..... enter the "Dog-Magic" boredom fighting toy!  This little miracle is a doggie puzzle -- you hide treats under the hard-to-bite bones and Peanut must figure out a way to rescue the treat.  It took her about 5 minutes, so this will not be the cure for my guilt or her boredom but in those 5 minutes I managed to capture this WTF is this face. 

Hard at Work

It is Monday so Peanut and I are back at it.  I wonder what she thinks about the Roosevelt Corollary to the Monroe Doctrine -- A continuation of Manifest Destiny or a departure?

A Tennis Ball and a Sock

The weather in DC has taken a turn for the worse and school as picked up speed.  This perfect storm means that peanut spends long hours inside with little attention from me or my roommates.  Usually she passes her days sighing heavily while she stares at me from her bed, sometimes she tries to rest her head on my keyboard leaving a long line of zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz on the page, still other times she will actually try to fit all 53 lbs of pitbull in my lap.  Today she came came frolicking into my room with a tennis ball and a sock, laid down in front of me and gave me this "what now" look.  Sometimes I'm just sure she is saying "It's not easy being Peanut."

Help!

This is a favorite toy, given to Peanut by my mother.  We could all learn a little from Peanut -- The pure ecstasy she has found in this simple thing. 

Penguins

Another favorite toy.  This Christmas penguin has never been torn apart, never been played with too roughly, and amazingly all 16 squeakers still squeak!  I wonder what makes this one so special, and the others she will devour in seconds?

Peanut's World

I am Peanut's person.  I am a graduate student, and much to Peanut's dismay, I spend most of my time (as pictured) in my PJs on the floor of my bedroom, surrounded by textbooks, and Peanut's toys.  Often Peanut joins the chaos.  Here she is doing her best to make sure I remain on task.  Once or twice a day Peanut takes me outside so we can have staring competitions with the squirrels.  When the weather is nice we go for a run and I try not to loose her as she flys through the trees.

Meet Peanut!

Meet Peanut, my 3 year old pitbull mix, who as I type this has her head in my lap staring up at the computer screen.  She is, no doubt, reading every word to make sure that I accurately portray her.  If she is to be an "internet sensation" she wants to make sure I get it right!  Each time I look down at her face in my lap she looks up at me with anxious eyebrows raised, "Did you tell them how well behaved I am?"  "Did you tell them that I would never ever hurt even the tinniest of flys (even though I scare the begezus out of the maintenance guys)?".... "Yes Peanut, I told them."