Browse Category: dog

Fort FUNston

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We met up with Jen, Kevin, and Kona at Fort Funston today. It’s a really nice beach where dogs are allowed to roam off-leash located just south of San Francisco. We strolled down to the beach and Koa did a really nice job staying close-by and responding to our calls. He was a bit hesitant going down to the beach area but seemed fine once he saw all the dogs and running space. Kona showed off her ball-catching skills while Koa chased her back and forth. He almost got tricked into running into the water but applied the brakes just in time. The hike back up was much trickier but everyone made it and got a short workout too. We’ll definitely return to this place very soon. What fun!

Here are photos from our afternoon.

A month later…

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It’s been a little over a month since I moved up to San Francisco and it’s been exactly one month since we moved into our new condo. We now have furniture, most of the boxes are unpacked, a few frames are up on the walls, and we’ve have made ourselves at home in South Beach. I also finished three weeks at my new job and got my first paycheck on Friday. Woohoo!

The Labor Day weekend was spent relaxing at home, getting the car washed, and running some errands. For the past week or so, I’ve been taking Koa to an isolated strip of grass behind the ballpark and training him to respond to my call when he’s off-leash. This morning I tested him and he came to me 9 out of 10 times. Good Dog! So, we took him to Chrissy Field for his final test today. It was a beautiful sunny day and the field was HUGE! Once we arrived, we let him go and ZOOM! He took off running across the field, leaping, turning, and having a great time. When I called him, he came running. When Jes whistled, he came running. Yay!! What fun! Our little wanker is a little less of a wanker now.

Here is a collection of photos from our first month in SF. Enjoy!

Bathtime!

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Koa’s been long overdue for a bath. I got off work early today so the first thing on my agenda was to try out the bathhouse down the street. It’s actually a pet supplies store that has a room on the side for you to wash your dog for 15 bucks. It seems pretty steep for having to wash your own dog but I actually think it’s worth it to not have to buy (and store) more doggie supplies and to not have to clean up the big wet mess afterwards.

imgp0516.jpgThey have all the professional supplies including the stainless steel bath counter, apron (for me) that goes down to the floor, convenient water spray, nice smelling shampoo, a really powerful blowdryer, and all the grooming supplies you need. Koa wasn’t very happy at first but once he realized that he couldn’t get out, he just took it with a sad look on his face. It certainly helped hooking him to the side so that I didn’t have to hold onto him with one hand like I used to. With the ability to use both hands, we were done in no time and he smells so much better now.

Here’s a photo of him just outside of the bathhouse…all clean and fluffy again.

No Brakes

imgp0470.jpgOn Tuesday after work, I threw Koa in the car, picked up Jes from work, and we drove to Chrissy Field located just next to the Golden Gate Bridge. It’s a long stretch of grass, sand, and water, which makes for a very picturesque run or windsurf. In fact, it’s so windy there that there was a bunch of people in the water windsurfing and body boarding in full wetsuit attire. Crazy fools.

Anyway, Koa seemed to really enjoy romping on the sand. We actually let him loose from the leash and he darted from one end to the other taking in the wind, sand, and smells. There were plenty of dogs out there – mostly labs who were playing in the water.

We found a strip of land that was surrounded 3/4 of the way around by water. This was the perfect place to take Koa since it would make it much easier to keep him in one place without the fear of him going too far. If you know Koa, you know that he HATES water so it was safe to say he wouldn’t try to make a run for it through the water.

At one point, we were playing a game of chase and as he was running away from me, he got too close to the shore and didn’t realize he was coming up to the water so quickly. Before he could apply the brakes, he fell into this huge drop in the shoreline (underwater), which inevitably gave him a quick dunk in the water. In just a matter of seconds he had disappeared “plunk!” into the water. The look on his face as he came up for air paddling with all his might back to shore was a sight to see. He looked shocked, confused, and frightened all at the same time. I was laughing so hard that I forgot to take a photo of his head bobbing in the water. I think he was pretty much done for the evening once he made it to shore. Not only was he dirty from the sand but now wet and salty. I guess it’s time to send him out for a bath!!

‘S Wonderful

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On Saturday morning, we dropped the dog off at the “hotel” and drove down to LA for the weekend. We made it to Cerritos by 5 pm and had dinner with Jes’ parents before heading up to Hollywood Bowl.

I bought tickets to “An Evening with Diana Krall” a couple months ago and it was finally time to see the show. Going to Hollywood Bowl is one of my favorite summer activities and I was so happy to be able to enjoy this even after we had already moved to SF. I was sitting there taking in the sounds and the people thinking it was as if I had started a book, put it down to start a new book, and then picked up the old book again. I don’t know if that makes any sense but for a moment I felt like we had never left Southern California. This was how we were supposed to spend our summer…under the stars with the warm summer weather and a bottle of wine. Diana Krall was awesome, as expected and she surprised us with her dry sense of humor throughout the show.

dsc_7959.jpgWe spent the night at Johnny’s place and got to play a little Wii in the morning. We also went for a 5-mile jog down to the end of Santa Monica Pier and back. It was pretty warm outside and there were plenty of people at the beach. Once we got back and showered, it was off to Cerritos to have a birthday lunch for my dad. His birthday is tomorrow and it was fun to see everyone together again – including the Suminos.  Here are the photos.

We flew back to SF this afternoon, arrived around 7, and rushed over to pick up the dog. He seemed OK and not too traumatized by his brief time in the “hotel”. He did, however, come home really thirsty and then passed out on his doggie bed. I hope it wasn’t too bad for him.

What a great summer weekend. It was over 90 degrees down there, which was nice but a little too hot for my taste. It’s such a contrast from the fog that we encountered as we drove across the Bay Bridge this evening and they are certainly two different stories. I suppose I’m done with my LA book and ready to continue my SF book for now. Let the adventure begin!

City Dog

koa.jpgAfter a week in SF, Koa is truly becoming a city dog. When he initially arrived last Wednesday, he seemed a little anxious out on the street and seemed a bit confused by all the people and lack of grass.  Now that a week has passed, we’ve found a good place for him to take care of his “business” each day and has become accustomed to the ballpark foot-traffic and the sights along Embarcadero.  He’s also gotten used to our little condo and has gotten back into his old routines and habits.

A guy in Palm Springs offered to take over the lease on Jes’ car, so we’ll be driving it down this weekend.  Since we’re leaving the car in LA, we’ll have to fly back up, which means Koa will have to stay behind in SF for a couple days.  Instead of bothering one of our friends with the task of watching him, we registered him with Wag Hotel, which is a kennel that has a fancy name, fancy rooms, and a fancy boutique out front.  We got him a medium-sized room and since he’s not neutered, he will have three “business walks” on the roof instead of two playgroup sessions with the other doggies.  Unfortunately, his walks will only last about 15 minutes each and the rest of the time will be spent in his cell.  It seems sorta sad but I think he should do fine considering that he sleeps about 22 hours per day.  We’ll see how it goes.  If he comes back a nervous wreck, we’ll have to find a Plan B for our next trip.