Ringing in the New Year Sick as a Dog

But I love dogs! Why would anyone say, "sick as a dog?" When the phrase was first recorded in the 1700s perhaps dogs didn't have the place in our hearts and in society they do now. They weren't the creatures that shared our food, our beds, our sofas and filled our hearts with joy until they leave us heartbroken with their deaths. I didn't even plan on writing about dogs until I wrote the headline for this blog post. (I always write the headline first, don't you?)

Well, now that we're on the subject of dogs, we have none at the moment. Our three wonderful girls have passed over the last three years and we are bereft without them. That pang is reignited when I hear of other friends losing their pets. There was a lovely Facebook post this week by Tyler Hill of the store and design duo Mitchell Hill in Charleston about their sweet Della who likely has more frequent flier miles than any of us. Della was their ring bearer in their Santa Barbara wedding. She had ridden the New York City subway and attended the Macy's Day Parade. Della had even modeled in ads and had been driven around Texas in a convertible. That's living. 

Della

So it gives me great joy to say we did get some puppy time over the holidays while visiting my parents in Kansas. They have a three-month-old Australian Shepherd named Stella, who is just about the cutest little bear you could ever find. She's black with these piercing, intelligent eyes and rings a set of bells on the back door when she needs to go outside. She rides around in the truck with my dad while he checks his cattle during the day and is a little fireball at night zipping around the living room with her toys.

Being with her also reminds me why Dunes and I should not have a furry companion right now too. Let's face it, we have a lot of work to do in 2018. We travel to four shows a year (twice to New York and twice to High Point), we have a new office/manufacturing space that needs a lot of organization and work, we are constantly working on designing new product and collections and we don't spend much time at home. 

Which leads me my not so stellar start to 2018. Dunes and I had a quiet New Year's Eve home alone. He made us some crab legs, I roasted some squash and brussels sprouts, we had a little wine, our last Manhattans of the season (that's another post) and were in bed by 12:30. I woke up early the next morning sick. I mean sick in ways I can't describe and proceeded to be sick for another 12 hours. Then the sore throat started, the sneezing, the runny nose, everything you don't want when you need to get a lot of work done. January 2 was no better as it brought a hacking, body-shaking cough. January 3 more of the same now with horrible stomach pains that had me doing internet searches for appendicitis. I thoroughly vowed Wednesday night to go straight to Urgent Care the next morning. Then the Bomb Cyclone hit. At first there was hope when Urgent Care's site said they would open at 3, but as the wind howled and the snow piled up they changed that to, "see you Friday!" So I've slept most of 2018 or just stared comatose at the ceiling. I feel really horrible about myself, my start to the new year and the fact that if I'd worn a fit bit I would not hit 1,000 steps THIS YEAR. I'm hoping January 5 will feel better. It's about time. 

Oh, I think my sister would be very disappointed if I didn't include one of her adorable pups. This is Lucy, who was channeling Jennifer Beales from Flashdance. The resemblence is uncanny! 

Lucy posing Jennifer Beales style.