Tasha and Others

Archive for September, 2009

I’ve often heard people refer to their dog as “my best friend.” However, in my case, it’s also the other way around. I am my dog’s best friend.

Being an only dog, and a  rescue, Tasha is so connected to me that’s it’s rare to see her following anyone else. Of course, she is my girl, and she loves me unconditionally. I never treat her badly. In fact, I’ve made up for the abuse she sustained as a young pup, and have spoiled her rotten.

Tasha follows me all around the house. She lies near my my desk as I work, and goes up and down the stairs when I do.

The fact that she doesn’t come when I call her (a very bad thing), doesn’t mean that she won’t come running back to me. When she runs in the opposite direction from where I call her, she usually turns back and gives me a look as if to say ‘I’m running away from you now, but not too far, and I’ll come back’.  This behavior is anything but ideal. When she goes with me to the mailbox, crossing the lazy road that circles the lake, Tasha sometimes dashes away from me. She comes back to the house in a few minutes, ready for a  treat as a reward just for coming home. She seems almost relieved to be reunited with me.

Even if I deprive Tasha of a daily walk or a trip to the dog park, she forgives me, and still appears to love me. When I take her to see her “doggie pals,” she still gravatates toward me, not letting me out of her sight. I’d say that Tasha is a one-person dog. 

This type of admiration is heartwarming. I have to admit that it makes me feel good to have her prefer me to other people and dogs. When visitors stop in to see me, Tasha jumps up on them (another bad habit), but quickly changes her mind as she turns to jump on me instead. I see it as another way in which she shows  her love.

What do I do to encourage her feelings of  commitment? Of course, I’m the one who feeds her good food and gives her toys and treats. I take her with me on outings whenever I can. ( Tasha loves to ride with me in the passenger seat of the car.) If I don’t take her with me, she jumps inside the car when I return to see if there’s anything in there for her.

At night, Tasha enthusiastically gets up on the bed and lays her head on my stomach, the rest of her body stretched out, completely content while I read. Her eyes close. I think she’s happy that the day is over and that now it’s her turn. Her position on the bed lasts until I turn off the lights and drag her over to the other side where she sometimes sleeps for the rest of the night, her head on the pillow next to me.

I am my dog’s best friend, but afterall, she’s my best friend too.

They told me at the shelter that the big black Lab’s name was Reggie. I’d only been in the area for six months, but something was still missing as I attempted to settle in to my new life. I thought about getting a dog. I had just seen Reggie’s advertisement on the local news.

At first, I thought that the shelter had misjudged me in giving me Reggie, along with this things, which consisted of a pad, a bag of toys (almost all of which were brand new tennis balls), his bowls, and a sealed letter from his previous owner.

I tried the commands that the shelter told me he knew, like “sit” and “stay” and “come” and “heel,” and he’d follow them–when he felt like it.

Reggie and I didn’t really hit it off . When I started to call the shelter, I quickly hung up as I saw the sealed envelope that came with his things from the shelter. I had completely forgotten about it. “Okay, Reggie,” I said out loud, “let’s see if your previous owner has any advice.”

It read like this:

To Whoever Gets My Dog:
If you’re reading this letter, it means that I just got back from my last car ride with my Lab after dropping him off at the shelter.

Reggie loves tennis balls–the more the merrier. He usually has two in his mouth, and he tries to get a third in there. Doesn’t matter where you throw them, he’ll get it.

Reggie knows the obvious commands, “sit,” “stay,” “come,” “heel.” “Shake” for shaking water off, and “paw” for a high-five. He also knows “ball” and “food” and “bone” and “treat.”

Give him some time. It’s only been Reggie and me for his whole six years. He just loves to be around people, especially me. Which means that this transition is going to be hard for him. And that’s why I need to share one more bit of information with you. His name is not Reggie. I felt like the new owner should have his real name. It would help you bond with him.

His real name is Tank. That is what I drive in the Army. I hope and pray that you make him part of your family and that he will adjust and come to love you the same way he loved me. Good luck with Tank. Give him a good home, and give him an extra kiss goodnight– every night–from me. Thank you. 

End of letter.

“Hey, Tank,” I said quietly. He was instantly on his feet, sitting in front of me, his head tilted, searching for the name he hadn’t heard in months.”Tank,” I whispered. His tail swished.

“It’s me now, Tank, just you and me. Your old pal gave you to me.” Tank reached up and licked my cheek, and when he left to go out of the room, he came back with three tennis balls in his mouth.

                                                                                                                                             Posted from an anonymous source

Original story by James Henerson

At this moment, Barney, my golden doodle, is lying by my desk, looking up at me with that ‘Why aren’t you taking me for a walk?’ look in his big, fur-fringed brown eyes. It’s a habitual glance, and it never fails to stir just enough guilt so that, more often than not, I stop what I’m doing and take him for a walk. Little does he know that on this occasion I’m writing about just that, a walk taken four-and-a-half years ago.

Barney, or Barnes, Barnaby, Barnacles, or occasionally Poodle Paws, (depending on how whimsical I’m feeling), was my six-month old, fifty-pound puppy when I succumbed to one of those looks and consequently hooked on his leash. With his behind wriggling and his tail waving, we set out for Whole Foods, our local supermarket, some six blocks away in Sherman Oaks, California. With frequent stops for sniffing, marking, and once for a pooh stop, we made our way down my steep, curving driveway onto Kingswood Lane. We then made a quick right turn onto Woodcliff, which is a hillside route to the west side of Los Angeles for those wanting to avoid the 405 freeway (frequently a parking lot). We made another quick right onto Saugus, which crosses Valley Vista, and on past Sutton and Greenleaf into the Whole Foods parking lot. 

I tied Barney to a shopping cart with his leash, told him to stay, and hurried into the market. In defense of Barney’s future actions, I must admit that at six-months old, the doggie equivalent of a toddler, the command ‘stay!’ was not yet in his repertoire.

Before I could head for the check-out stand, a voice came over the loudspeaker. “Will the owner of a tan shaggy dog please come to the entrance?” A stab of instant fear. Oh my God, he’s been run down in the parking lot! The checker pointed. “He went that way!” 

That way, lay Sepulveda Boulevard, a major north-south highway, always crowded with speed-limit testing traffic. Fear transformed instantly into panic. I ran to Sepulveda, dashed twenty paces in one direction, twenty in the opposite. No Barney, but a shopper who had just parked in the Whole Foods lot pointed toward Saugus, mercifully away from Sepulveda.  “I think he went that way.” 

With my heart pumping and the adrenaline flowing, I sped up Saugus until I could see the end. No Barney, but there were several streets leading off from Saugus to the left. He could have decided to take any one of them. I was immobilized. What to do? 

I made a command decision. Run home, pick up my car, and canvass the neighborhood. At warp speed, I sprinted the last four blocks, arriving at the foot of my driveway near to cardiac arrest. Exhausted, palms on my thighs, girding myself for the final ascent, I heard a galvanizing sound: woof. 

And there, sitting in front of the entrance to the house, still attached to the Whole Foods’ shopping cart, having dragged it six long blocks through four unfamiliar turns, and up a steep driveway, the expression in his eyes said something like ‘Where the heck you been? I’ve been waiting here for hours’. It was Barney, the intrepid golden doodle with the internal GPS.  Lassie, eat your heart out.

Lisa and Jack

 Not really about dogs, but for prosperity sake… 

As President of Ecommerce for Jones TV, Lisa Petersen brings her considerable talent and entrepreneurial spirit to enliven the new media website. The online store she’s developing for JonesTV features the “Juz Jonesin™” line of products, and it is just the start of shopping opportunities for users of the new media website. Lisa will also lead marketing campaigns to promote the JonesTV offerings on different channels, such as JonesPetsTV and JonesSportsTV.

Lisa is spearheading the development of Juz Jonezin, which will provide viewers of the website with t-shirts and other related items. These online products are ripe for being sold on the budding website’s ecommerce store.

JonesTV couldn’t be happier to have Lisa take the lead in launching its ecommerce ventures. Lisa has long been an accomplished businesswoman and marketer in her own right. She turned an in-home jewelry sales sideline into a million-dollar blockbuster business with over a thousand women taking part in the sales force. She’s definitely a woman who thrives on challenge and receives recognition for her efforts.

Lisa’s business style is down-to-earth and unique. She supports the people who work for her by allowing them to do the things they love and the things they do the best. Her philosophy is that this approach usually goes hand-in-hand and results in companies that run seamlessly. Lisa believes in selling wholesome, all-American products and giving buyers the most bang for their buck to keep them coming back for more. It’s been a proven formula for success in the past, and she’s sure to replicate that success in the Juz Jonezin line of products that capture the spirit of JonesTV broadcasts. Stay tuned to see what other pals “Juz” will be paired with, as the “Juz Jonesin” family of characters grows with the website.

Also in the mix is Lisa’s collaboration with PETCO, a new sponsor for JonesTV, who she is hoping to work with on an ecommerce strategy.  Lisa is eager to start a merchandising campaign with them to feature Juz Jonesin t-shirts.

Don’t be surprised if Women in Film and  Women Business Owners  take notice of Lisa Petersen’s new venture. With two successful companies under her belt, Lisa stacks up to the competition. JonesTV Ecommerce has a winner in marketing and promotion for the online shopping experience that will be part of the JonesTV family of entertainment.

I’ve tried not to give my dog people food–ever. No dog-food recipes, no table scraps, and no giving Tasha leftovers that would otherwise go into the garbage disposal. I do give her real bones, but in my mind it doesn’t count as people food.

Eating a dog bone

The other day I dropped a basket of strawberries on the kitchen floor. I thought I picked up all of them. That evening, Tasha came to me with something suspicious in her mouth. She was giving me the “I did something bad” look. At closer examination, I saw that she had a whole strawberry tucked away in the side of her cheek.

It wasn’t hard for me to pry open her mouth and see what was in there. She cooperated. I plucked out the strawberry intact, and told her again, as I have in the past, “No people food!” I think she understood. The stawberry was saved, and Tasha continued to eat only the dog food I put in front of her.

Thomas Chase Jones is turning traditional media upside down with his new company. As president of JonesTV, which includes

 JonesPets TV, Tom is embracing the social media model for TV shows through new media broadcasting—television going live on the Internet–and providing users with entertainment that makes people feel positive about themselves. With a model of “MUC,” Music, Uplifting, and Comedy that drives the content, Tom feels that JonesTV is “leading the way for people to use the Internet to enjoy the things they like the most.”

Although supported by traditional media, JonesTV is energized through social media and is fomenting a huge change in the way people are entertained. The social media of today’s new form of television offers ad-supported streaming video of TV shows and movies. While traditional broadcasting is dependent on monthly charges for cable or satellite access, new media is always on and thrives on content with few or no commercial interruptions and encourages viewers to communicate with one another. As Tom says, “Ecommerce is more connected to new media than television is to regular commerce.”

Eventually, the Internet will be the pipeline for interacting with various shows, much like the websites current.com and hulu.com, and there will be an exponential growth of Internet connectivity for new media broadcasting. Unlike traditional broadcasting, new media broadcasting invites viewers to interact with what they see and hear. JonesTV encompasses the best of online community and digital media to provide quality shows.

Different from television, JonesTV users can log onto their computer, click on a show, and watch podcasts, webisodes, and more. JonesTV is already pitching six or seven new shows for their viewers.  The content originates from the JonesTV in-house team, which consists of producers, writers, and photographers. All are extremely talented and work well together.

A creative thinker and veteran of the entertainment industry, with over 30 years in the music business, Tom Jones has great ideas for the future of broadcasting. In his vision, “everything we do as far as production will lift people’s spirits by providing entertaining content with lots of music and laughter. “ To find out more about Tom, you can go to his website, TomChaseJones.com or visit Thomas Chase on the Internet Movie Database (IMDB).