The Last Days of Deuce-co?

Ever since Edith could pull herself up and stand with the aid of a couch, she has enjoyed pulling at our dog's blanket or generally messing with him.  He has grown increasing unhappy about his.  At first he was just growling at her.  Then he would just get up and move.  Then he started growling and showing his teeth.  But a couple of times now he has actually lunged at her.  That sounds worse than it is.  I guess most people with dogs know that they have a whole variety of aggressive/don't fuck with me moves.  Some involve teeth.  Some don't.  This was more of a teethless lunge.  But it freaked us both out. 

Who knows what the future holds
for Deuce and the Kosterpeldings

So we spoke to our vet about it, and she shared our concern, but felt like the real troubling dynamic might just be that we let Deuce on the couch in the first place. She suggested that we stop letting him on the furniture, and see if that improves the dynamic.  We actually had already kind of figured that out for ourselves, but it was nice to have a vet tell us we were going down the right path.  I guess this would be a good place to note that when they are on the same level (both on the ground) he just licks the shit out of her.  No aggression at all. 

Starting on Wednesday Deuce lost his couch/chair privileges, and surprisingly that adjustment has been really easy.  He just finds a soft spot on the ground and sleeps there.  We have also kind of quarantined this area so Edith can't mess with him.  It still remains to be seen whether this will work.

If it doesn't we can either bring in a dog behaviorist or get rid of him.  I'm guessing we'll go with the latter, since I have a feeling neither Chelsey nor I are going to be any good at dog training while we're trying to keep Edith from killing herself as she learns to walk. 

So we may be saying goodbye to our dog.  Which makes me sad.  It makes me even sadder as I write this.  Deuce is a member of our family.  He's the one that continually embarrasses us, but makes up for it later by doing something funny while no one is around.  He's the perfect combinations of sweet and dick.  I hope we get to keep him. 

Welcome Back to Work!

Today is Edith's first day of childcare.  Likewise, I return to work from a 2 week sabatical, and Chelsey returns to full time employment for the first time since Edith showed up.  This is a sad day in the Kosterpelding house.  The kind of day that makes you reevaluate your life.

For instance, what sort of cost-cutting measures would allow one or both of us to stay at home?  We don't need our badass cable or our badass cell phones. There's $200 in savings right there.  And who says you need utilities?  That's another $100.  Anyway I add this up, it's not enough.

I have tried to talk Chelsey into going off the grid.  This seems easy enough.  Sell both our cars.  Take the money.  Go to Bolivia.  Disappear.  She points out that this plan is no good, as we don't have the title for either of our cars.  She is right.  The only option is to cash out our 401k's.  There's a good-sized chunk of money in there.  We don't have to worry about the taxes because of our new "off the grid" lifestyle.  This could work. 

In the meantime, I'm reading about how when Tom Waits had his first kid, he was in the process of taking over his management, and finding out he was broke.  He was also moving to New York, and completely changing his musical style to something that his label told him would not sell.  They ended up dropping him over it.  That album turned out to be Swordfishtrombones, which restarted his career, and turned him from lounge act to what he is today.  Of course he did all of this at the prodding of his wife, Kathleen Brennan.  Thank you Chuck, for the fine book.

The answer is clear.  I need to develop some sort of artistic and start to get paid handsomely for it.  Then Chelsey is going to have to come in and make it like twice as good.  Then we move to New York.

30 Day Music Challenge - Day 27

Song That Makes You Feel Guity

When Carissa's Wierd said "saying sad things that don't make sense just makes you look like a liar," I knew exactly who they were talking to.



Chuck



Wendy! Sorry - this was the best I could do.



Kent. I've never seen this video before. So dumb!

Why You Don't Mess with the Kosterpeldings

Today Chelsey and I got our neighbor removed from her house. And we got her house condemned. We didn't mean to, but we were fairly sure she had fallen in her house. And were afraid to go in and check on her because she is a hoarder and the idea of going in her house frightens us. So instead we let her lay there for like 20 hours, and called the police first thing this morning.

They came in, scooped her up, and condemned her house. From what I understand a crime lab was involved. Lots of pictures. And policemen choking and gagging from the state of her house on the inside.

So now she's gone. And we both feel bad. But it was either that or let her lay there until she died. There was no way we were going in that house.

Hiatus

Our 30 day music rundown will be on hiatus until we can respectfully and lovingly say goodbye to our good friend Angelique, who left us on June 24th.

We love you, Angelique.  You were a beautiful person and we will miss you so much.

For Dead People

This weekend I watched a movie about a man who threw his own wake.  It had a sad poem at the end of it.  This got me thinking I should start working on sad poems to be read at wakes and funerals.  Something along the lines of "Oh Captain, My Captain" I think I am the perfect person to do this, as I never cry at funerals, and I have time to practice before someone actually kicks the bucket.  Here is my first attempt.  I wrote it about Kent.  

Give me your notes.

Farewell my faithful comrade.

It's time to close the door.
The candle of your spirit fails.
And sadness evermore.

Farewell my faithful ally.
The the knower of mine mind.
From days of yore, 'til yesterday
My heart aches from our time.

Like falling soldiers left and right
I see us in the past.
Pursuing all our summer nights
And days that went too fast.

Romance and adventure both.
Balconies full of smoke.
Long evenings that grew into dawn.
Surrounded by our folk.

Farewell my faithful comrade.
Forever may you ride.
The blurry streets of howling joy.
Within my memory's tide.

From this day forth I am alone.
A stranger to mankind.
The world feels strange and draped in cold.
With no more sun to shine.

  

Everybody's Fine

Last night Chelsey and I watched this movie.  In the first 5 minutes it was very clear to me that this would be a horribly sad movie.  It did not disappoint. 

Robert DeNiro plays the father of this family whose mother just died.  He's been largely uncommunicative with his kids his whole life, and now that she's gone he decides he better pick up where his wife left off in that department. Then the heartbreak ensues.  None of his kids feel comfortable around him.  No one tells him anything about their life.  So on and so forth.

Let me first say, this wasn't a great movie.  The story wasn't all that hot.  But it hit many of the right notes along the way.  Specifically, it did a fine job of depicting a shattered family in a way that didn't knock you over the head.  It broke my heart.  Too much of seeing my own dad  in the DeNiro character.  Trying to make up for years of disinterest.  Not being any good at it. Made me appreciate how little he would have left in his life if my mom dies before him. 

Apparently this is a wide open nerve in the psyche of Brent Koster, as all the movies that make me want to cry (Field of Dreams, Millions, Joy Luck Club) center on fucked up or scarred parent/kid relationships.  Continued proof that I am not an adult.