Friday fun

My husband and I have been under the weather this week, and I'm still feverish and aching, so I won't be blogging much more than this today, if at all. But I can't resist sharing these videos featured at Kim Komando's website, that my husband brought to my attention to cheer me up.

I don't think I could stand to watch an acrobatic performance like this in person - I'd spend too much time cringing behind my hands, too afraid to look, too worried I might see somebody slip and kill himself. But, wow. I can't believe people can actually do these things. Never mind the athletic difficulties (as daunting as those are) - how in the world do they find the nerve to try???!!!

Then there's the video of a crow that adopted a kitten, with very happy results. No, really.

And, then, how can you get a whole litter of puppies to fall asleep at once?

Enjoy!

Books note: With a Little Faith, and Faith Alone: Stories of an Amazing Dog, by Jude Stringfellow

I haven't seen the books, but I'm charmed by the dog.

Dogs of War honored

My thanks to author and well-known dog trainer William A. Wynne, for updating me on the Yorkie Doodle Dandy story, in this comment on a previous post (typos corrected here):

Thank you for your inclusion of Yorkie Doodle Dandy. YDD has quietly produced 6 memorials nationwide and two Animal Planet shows. Smoky the four pound hero is mentioned in over 50 books, and numerous newspaper and magazine articles. A documentary is underway. Most believe this story would make a great film. William A. Wynne Author, owner trainer http://www.baharystudios.com/war-dog-monument.html

The link he provides above includes a nice write-up, and a picture of a memorial featuring Smoky, aka Yorkie Doodle Dandy, sitting inside a G.I. helmet. Among other things, the write-up notes a Veteran's Day 2005 ceremony in Cleveland, Ohio, dedicating one of the memorials.

For what it's worth, I think the Yorkie Doodle Dandy story could be turned into an inspiring and uplifting movie. And I'm looking forward to the documentary.

Previous related posts: Book recommendations from 2005, and Military Dogs Large and Small, Then and Now

Lost dog made it home after 11 days on cold Iditarod Trail

There was a happy ending to a dog-lost-during-horrendous-conditions story out of this year's Iditarod sled dog race in Alaska. The dog, a 4-year-old Alaska husky who had become separated from her team and was entirely on her own, was found when she walked onto an open patch that serves as an airstrip -- where two men who had just given up searching for her were waiting for their plane's engine to warm up so they could leave, according to Craig Medred of the Anchorage Daily News.

The dog didn't seem to be much the worse for wear. Her thankful musher has renamed her Rohn, after the village where she was found.

Book note: From Baghdad, With Love, by Jay Kopelman with Melinda Roth

I haven't seen this book yet (I stumbled across promos for it while looking for something else on the Internet), but I'm a sucker for dog stories (and the dog in this one has a winning way about him in the videos and pictures at the author's website). So...


From Baghdad, With Love: A Marine, the War, and a Dog Named Lava

More info and links at The Globe Pequot Press.

Clicking on the book cover link will take you to Barnes & Noble.