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It's our first Christmas without Penelope. She was a funny girl with a lot of complaints, many of them about me. If I left the house I was gone for years. I shouldn't work at my stupid job. I thwarted her attempt to travel to France using the steps she found under the deck.
Penelope was critical. She called Franklin the village idiot (to be fair, he intentionally misprounced her name as Penlapee, which drove her mad). Until she and Princess became best friends, Penelope didn't like the German girl who might have been adopted to replace her.
But Penelope loved Kissmas, so we'll look back at one of her pre-Kissmas posts.
Infinities of love,
Janie Junebug
It's me it's me it's me. It's Penelope. Wait till you see what I have!
Mom Mom told Santa Paws that it's cold and he brought me an early present. It's a new sweater!!!!!
It has the body of a penguin on my back and then my head sticks out of the opening so it looks like I'm a penguin. Mom Mom said I'm the most adorable penguin in the world. Human Brother called me Peneloguin. Then he said I'm CUTE! I wonder if being cute will make me fly like the reindeer on the TV.
I bet I'll fly the next time Human Brother says I'm cute. I almost flew in the backyard already because I ran fast fast fast in a big circle around the yard WHILE I WAS WEARING MY NEW SWEATER!
I'm a happy penguin. Happy happy happy.
Would you like to see a picture of me as a penguin? You know penguins are cute.
Wait a minute. You should see a penguin first because you might not have ever seen a penguin.
See? Penguins like art. I bet I'll get invited to an art museum now that I'm Peneloguin.
Okay. Here's a picture of me that Mom Mom took after I got tired and needed a rest from running in circles around the yard.
Wow. I am cute. I'm sure I'll fly soon.
I thought of something else. This isn't the way I write. I'd better write the way I usually write or you might think I'm Franklin.
Hello. It is I, Penelope.
No, Peneloguin! I don't care about writing the way I usually do. Let's have fun and fly!
Bye! See you soon! I know Santa Paws will bring more presents for me on Kissmas and I hope every present will be new clothes for me to wear because I'm CUTE!
HI HI HI I am Princeeeeesss I am Princeeeeesss Gramma came to see me me me me me because I am Princeeeeeesss.
I love Gramma so much. She went away for a long time months and months and months because it was too hot where we live. When it's too hot she goes to live in her other house. When it gets cold and it snows at the other house she comes back to where we live. She doesn't live with us but she visits me BECAUSE SHE LOVES ME SHE LOVES ME SHE LOVES ME YES SHE LOVES MEEEE PRINCEEEEEEESSSS!!!!!!!!!!!
Mommy tried to take a picture of me with Gramma. It didn't work because I'm too wiggly.
I get too excited to hold still. I'm only four years old.
Mommy made a video of me with Gramma instead. I am the star of the show. It's the Princeeeeeeeessss Show.
Thanks for visiting me and coming to see The Princeeeeeessss Show!
Bye Bye Merry Christmas! I'm a good dog! Santa will come to see me!
Rain began Saturday night and poured down yesterday until about 9 p.m. It was a gloomy Sunday, but Princess brightened my day by giving me a special gift.
Princess went out under duress Sunday morning because she hates the rain. Little did she know she was about to have great fun. Princess did what must be done and then headed for the garage. Princess and Penelope used to check out the garage together every morning with their noses down, smelling the cat or rat or possum that had visited during the night. Princess has kept up the habit on her own.
She stopped at a front corner of the garage. I watched from the back door and could tell she found something. I hoped a cat would streak out and disappear under the deck. No such luck.
She rooted around and lunged. Then she came up the steps to the deck with a very large, very dead rat in her mouth. I cracked the door open and commanded, Leave it! Put it down!
Princess obeyed a few steps from the door. I praised her, told her she was a good, brave girl because the only good rat is a dead rat, yet the thing sickened me. The worst thing about living in Jacksonville is the never ending population of rats.
She presented me with a dead rat once before. It was much smaller and looked deflated. I was able to grab it with the pooper scooper without really looking at it. Then I found a place to make it disappear. This rat was too large for that. I would have to get up close and personal with Mr. Rat.
Maureen and I went out for a late lunch/early supper. She told me to put the rat in with my kitchen trash and then put that bag inside another bag and put it in the garbage since we have trash pick up Monday morning. Maureen also offered to come over and take care of the rat herself; I insisted I would do it myself, although I thought I might lose my lunch. Fortunately, the scoop was strong enough to grab him. I shouted, Euuuuu, that's disgusting as he entered the trash bag to join some kitchen scraps and the contents of the Roombas' dust bins.
I texted Favorite Young Man about the rat. He replied, It's a tribute to you. A gift. Of course, it was. Princess was so proud of her kill. She probably wanted to wrap it in some pretty, red paper, stick a bow on top, and put it under the Christmas tree for me. 🎄
I'll be relieved when the trash is picked up and gone this morning.
Of course, every day we deal with the orange rat and his conniving cohorts in The White House. Here's Randy Rainbow's latest:
Now I have a special announcement for All
Freakin' Green Elf Shorts Fans
and anyone who might like to learn about their history and possibly win the nastiness of hosting the shorts. Rimpy Rimpington has his caption contest ready on his blog. You, too, can be a winner of the Elf Shorts, as I was a few years ago.
The nasty, disgusting shorts traveled the globe with Rimpy and are more bacteria laden than ever before. Click HERE for the link to the caption contest at Rimpy's Raise The Thunderbeamblog. May the winner survive.
I'm preparing this post on Tuesday evening. It's rained much of the day, with a high in the 70s. Tomorrow it's supposed to be partly cloudy with considerably cooler temps.
At this time of the year, I enjoy a chilly Florida, although the natives think they'll die when it dips below 60°.
And now here's the ornament of the day:
The first Christmas we had Milhous, he climbed the tree, stole the angel from the top, and bit her face off. The next Christmas, we came home to find he had knocked over the tree. It probably terrified him when it fell because, as far as I know, he never climbed the tree again. Instead he would lie under the tree as if he knew what a great gift he was.
Thanks for joining me again. I think I'm 1/3 of the way done with the tree, so plenty of ornaments still need to make an appearance.
My email is full of messages telling me everything is 40% off at this store and I can get free shipping and 20% off at that store. I don't see anyone offering $1,200% off. That's 🟧 Math.
But I'd love it if stores paid me to shop with them. Give me that 700% off, baby.
No wonder 🟠runs businesses into the ground. He doesn't understand percentages, or he knows what they mean and he's counting on the stupidity of his followers to believe the crap he says. A lot of people bought the lie about 150-year-old people receiving Social Security checks. We haven't heard anything more about that in a while, have we?
The number of ornaments on the tree grows. I've expanded the add one ornament every time I walk past the tree to sometimes standing at the tree to add three or even four ornaments. The addition of multiple ornaments doesn't occur when I'm on the way to the bathroom, however.
Princess showed an interest in the Christmas tree Sunday, but not in a good way. She started to chew on a branch. I told her no. She obeyed. If one no isn't enough to discourage her, then I've also put some jingle bells on the lower branches of the tree. So if she messes around with the Christmas tree when I'm not in the room watching her, I hope the sound of the bells will alert me to the problem.
When I leave the house, she usually lies on the living room couch to wait for the sound of my car pulling into the driveway. I receive an enthusiastic greeting at the door.
Now, let's take a look at the Ornament Of The Day:
Thanks for joining me. December has arrived. I know some of you have to deal with snow and cold. We have gray skies, but no rain yet, with highs and lows in the 60s.
Princess and I had a great weekend. We walked and talked, and she cleaned my plate after Thanksgiving dinner and when I ate leftovers. We still have lots of good food, and I don't have to run the dishwasher when Princess licks a plate clean. It can go right back in the cabinet to be used for the next meal. (I'm kidding!)
But now it's time to get busy with the Christmas decorating.
The tree is up. It has lights and a few ornaments.
To complete the picture, every time I walk past the tree I have to hang an ornament on it. The final item will be the star on the top. If I put it on now, it will probably fall from its precarious perch every time I put something else on the tree.
Here's the ornament of the day:
If you decorate your home for Christmas and enjoy it even half as much as I do, then you're in good shape.
