Photos: The Newest Member of the Family, Abigail.

Also known as Abbie, Abbster or more formally as Abigail Faith French Murphy. Her dog tag says as much.

Abbie is a nine week old Boston Rat Terrier. She is disgustingly cute, capable of winning over even the hardest of hearts. She is also, like many kids, a bit of a handful.

Here she is with Trinity on the flank working the leash. It is hard to take a bad picture of a puppy.

Here she is taking a nap under the Willow Tree.

Trinity has wanted a dog ever since she left her old home behind. I’ve always objected for a number of reasons, mainly to do with money and the issue of keeping an animal in an apartment. I didn’t want to be the neighbor whose dog howled during a long day. There is also the fact that when my last dog died, a German Shepard Coyote mix named Grumpy, I really felt that another dog in my life was not a good idea.

On the other hand, it became readily apparent to me that Trinity NEEDED a dog. It was painful to watch her sadly envious of dog owners at the pool during Dipping Dog Days. The owners were running with their pets, playing fetch, having a good time with their animals while Trinity sat on the sidelines. I must admit that I was a bit envious of them as well. They seemed to happy while we seemed to be a bit on the sad side.

There was also the practical matter of compromise. We very nearly ended up with a dog I had not seen. A pet should be a group decision yet Trinity nearly gave in to her impulses and got herself a dog that I suspect would not have worked out too well.

I could get on the train, or I could get run over by it.

With a bit of effort, I found the litter Abbie came from at an animal shelter in Stover, Missouri. We wanted a Boston Rat Terrier due to their reputation for high energy moderated by mellow periods. A four hour round trip later, we had our new pup.

To be honest, I like Abbster more than I might have thought. She has made life easier in some respects, harder in others. We have to crate train her, which is very painful for me personally. The crying and whimpering is one of the reasons why I always pushed back against getting a pup of any kind. On the other hand, I think Abbster has been good for Trinity and I. We get out for walks more, play in the park and work together to get our pup trained.

Perhaps in the future there will be more such photos.

Other Fronts

There isn’t much to report. We’re clearing many of the last of our fiscal problems. For the first time in ten months, we are actually in tolerable condition financially. Not great, but tolerable.

I’ve been blessed with incredibly good classes this semester. Sometimes I don’t measure up to them as well as I should and I need to try harder. My mistakes, when I make them, are all the more bothersome when I have good students. They are also above average performers, which is also a pleasant surprise. There doesn’t seem to be any rhyme or reason to this sort of thing since my peers have classes which aren’t doing so well this semester.

On the writing front, I’ve managed to make some small progress here and there. The big problem is that my writing slot is between two and three in the afternoon. After three my brain simply shuts down, almost as if one dipped it in sludge.

On the reading front, I finished Dario Cirello’s memoir Aegean Dream, which is deserving of a review. I also read Brad Torgersen’s latest story in Analog Science Fiction Magazine. Ray of Light was one of the better post apocalyptic pieces I’ve read in quite sometime. It is good to read decent, enjoyable science fiction again.

On the Spanish front, I presently hold an A average in the class. It is coming to me fairly easy now, though speaking it is nigh on impossible for me. I can understand it to a degree if spoken slowly enough and I can read bits of it. Hopefully I can maintain an A average for the semester.

Lastly on the fitness front, I’ve been swimming at least three days a week at 1000 to 1200 yards a session for six weeks now. My weight now hovers around 189 to 191 pounds. The swimming is so effective that I have not bothered to go to the weight room in order to pump iron.

So it goes.

Respects,
Steven Francis Murphy
Author of The Limb Knitter and Tearing Down Tuesday
North Kansas City, Missouri