Image of the Day/Week- Doberman Puppies

Since we featured a Van cat last time (white cats named for the city of Van, Turkey, where the breed originated), we thought we go with an image of a puppy dog this go-around; this is a photo of a very young doberman-pincher.

We aren't sure if one can find this particular breed of puppy at the Animal Rescue Foundation of Tulsa, Oklahoma, but the organization has plenty of dogs and cats up for adoption.

On May 15th, Top That! Pizza (8393 South Memorial location in Tulsa) will help raise funds for the animal shelter.

Anyone living in that part of the Sooner state who wants a new dog or cat can call the shelter at 918-622-5962.

SIDEBAR: Next week or some time within the very near future, we are hoping to post a series about the trip to Washington, DC, that was completed yesterday. The working title for the entries on this blog is "Next to the Burmese Embassy."www.arftulsa.orgtopthatpizza.com

Double Bonus Picture to Fill Space-Van Cat

Some people are stunned when I tell them that I once went to a zoo in Ankara, Turkey, and they had Van cats on display; the white cats which sometimes have red eyes are named for the city of Van in far-southeastern Turkey near the Iranian border.

For those residing in Columbus, Ohio, Cat Welfare of Ohio is hosting a Feline Wine and Dine at the Worthington Hills County Club on May 5. For more info, one can call (614) 268-6096.

Virtual Postcard from Washington DC_ The National Zoo

Since we just got back from Washington, DC, we thought we'd share a Virtual Postcard with you of the National Zoo, even though we did not go to the esteemed zoo; in fact, we've never been there?!

To make this fun for you (thanks for those of you who are reading this in Bulgaria, we walked past your embassy), and quick for me, we thought we'd do a DC By the Numbers entry. We think most of these numbers are at least fairly accurate.

In addition, we threw in figures from some silly things we noticed, like the number of women wearing unseasonable shoes (one was even in flip flops?!), but we did not count the joggers or dog walkers, though a part of me wishes we had.

Here we go:

310- Number of miles between Politcs and Prose, an independant bookstore in Washington, DC, on Connecticut Avenue and The Regulator, an indy book outlet in Durham, NC.

61- Number of people we saw riding bicycles, motorcycles or vespas!

32- Number of museums in Washington, DC, this includes the National Zoo, the National Cathedral and Ford's Theatre

31_ Number of women wearing unseasonable shoes. In addition to the woman in flip flops, there was another woman in sandals.

27- Ah, yes, the annoying cute young couples, one can see them everywhere in DC. One couple who smooched as we were approaching Farragut North on the Red Line really took the cake. The girl looked like a fashion model, the guy looked like a chemistry lab geek. Go figure!

13_ Number of players on the Georgetown Hoyas' men's basketball roster.

10_ Number of Starbucks in Washington, DC, alone

7_Number of Starbucks in the DC suburb of Fairfax, Va.

5-Number of Starbucks in another DC 'burb of Bethesda, Md.

3- Number of animal shelters in DC, according to the search engine we used (ok, so it was Google). We certainly hope Helga, a gorgeous, spayed female black cat who is 5 years and two months old, finds a home soon. It has been reported that many pets, like people, are now homeless in DC. Go to warl.org to find out more Helga and other cats and dogs in the city.

2- The number of hours I expect to actually sleep tonight.

Status Update_ Cat Scratch Fever

My six-year-old (soon to be seven-year-old) cat Gizmo is actually a tuxedo cat. But he is one with a naughty streak.

This morning, as I was feeding him no less, he scratched my hand and hissed. I suppose he doesn't tuna (he must be one of the very few cats in the old who would prefer something else.....moo goo gaipan?!)

So my Status Update for 1/30/11 is: "This morning, my crazy Gizmo scratched the hell out of me."

I suppose that is one of the nice things about living in Cucumber, W.Va*, it is that it brings pure delight to use the word hell on a Sunday morning. Of course, doing it publicly is perhaps not a good idea, definitely not in a small hamlet in southeastern West Virginia.

For those who wish to adopt a cat or dog in Greensboro, NC, they can reach the Guilford County Animal Shelter at 336-297-5020. And, for those in Richmond, Va., they can contact the Henrico County Animal Shelter at 804-652-3360.

And, to those in the Washington, DC metro area who want to ease my guilt for listening to Mozart via an Internet stream from WETA-FM (an NPR station that only plays classical music), they can go to http://weta.org/fm (.), but don't tell them I sent you!

Alas, we can not list every animal shelter in the country up here, but we can always make fun of West Virginia!

*- Yes, Cucumber, W.Va., does really exist. No, I don't actually live there. According to Wikipedia (don't tell them, I 'borrowed' info on them, the small mining community in McDowell County is the only Cucumber in America!

PS- Alas, my beloved Radford University Highlanders lost to Coastal Carolina yesterday, but we did found out that surprisingly enough the women's tennis team has four young ladies from Croatia, and one of them, Mia Drobnjak has a name that's very hard to spell (well, she has my sympathies actually!)