WAGGY DOG AND WIGGLY CAT

Saturday morning started off with a bang—on my head. I was getting cash from the ATM and a piece of it fell on me!

I was so startled I let out an expletive a lot louder than you might think a middle aged librarian would do. Which alarmed the older gent passing by, and if by any chance he’d been thinking of ATM robbery (which he most likely was not) he moved off quite quickly. I'm thinking of sending a slightly huffy email to the bank, suggesting that they secure their signs more, well, securely.

But almost immediately the morning improved. A nice lady was walking by with her greyhound. This is Russki.
She’s a retired racer from Texas (a dog who has run 45 miles per hour!) who is now a beloved pet and a blood donor. Her lady said she’s a universal donor (I never realized dogs have blood types) so she gives blood which is sent to vets all over the world. What a good dog!
Met two other nice dogs. Bailey here saved me from a little bit of embarrassment.
After I left their sale I drove to a couple of others, and followed some signs around a few corners, and approached a house where I saw a big yellow lab. Wow, I thought, two in one morning—and then realized it was the same sale and I'd approached from a different direction. (Not the first time I've gotten lost in the winding streets of a housing tract.) So I did a quick U-turn and was saved from showing up at the same sale twice.

But this is the dog I really want you to meet. Abby. Because she needs a new home.

Wish my pictures were better, but she was so happy and wiggly that she just could not hold still for her photo op. One of the ladies having the sale asked me if I wanted her, and I assumed she was joking, but she said no. They are moving to a place where dogs are not allowed, and I think it’s breaking her heart. I got her phone number and said I'd ask around, you never know. So seriously, if any of my Southern California readers know someone who needs an adorable terrier mix, let me know.

Almost everything I found will be heading to my office with me Monday morning. The only thing that’s staying home are these Bunnykins pieces—a pair of two-handled mugs…


…and this bank. I'll probably sell them, they’ll make wonderful gifts for Bunnykins fans.
These fun pieces will be door prizes for children’s librarians—some soft fish stuffies and a cute frog puppet (for next summer’s Make a Splash program)…

…and this fabbo cat pull toy. Have you seen these? Some of my libraries have the dog version for their after-storytime play groups, and the kids love them. They wiggle when you pull them. Even my husband was charmed.

I asked the lady how much, and she said if I could figure out how to fix it I could just have it. The front wheels were loose. So of course I said I was game to fix just about anything. I've glued it back together, and Steven says he’ll add a screw to make it really secure.

This light-up Christmas house is not going to work with me…
…but the innards are!
At last I can fix up this nightlight I found back in February.
At least this time I didn’t have to smash the piece to get the light out, like I did when I fixed up my Pooh nightlight.
Angelina Ballerina will be joining my troupe of children’s literature toys,
along with this adorable little mouse.

I'm sure he’s book related, just can't think which one!

Since this cup warmer has two heat settings, I'm hoping it will keep my tea a bit hotter than the one I've been using.
And I'll be making my tea in this fun little Bodum pot.

I was amused when the earnest young man explained to me how it works, that you put in loose tea and so on. I did not tell him I've been brewing tea since before he was a gleam etc. or say anything testy about grandmothers and sucking eggs (he very likely would never have heard the expression and think I was quite peculiar). And hey, he asked fifty cents for it. At that price he’s allowed to tell me how to make tea.

I spent $4.50 in all, which seemed pretty inexpensive until I talked to my mother Saturday afternoon. She’d been out garaging with my sister, and she only spent $1.25. Bet she didn’t get a tea lesson though!