September 2016 – Me and the Doods.com

More Celebrities I’ve Sort of Met

In my last post I shared about meeting “Sully” Sullenberger, but thanks to the Doods, there have been other celebrity encounters. There was the time when Charley and I were in the Hollywood Christmas Parade, and I was doing my fabulous wave, that we met the dog whisperer, Cesar Milan. I ran into him again a few weeks later and was flattered that he seemed to remember me right away. Then he said, “You’re the one who looks like her dog,” but quickly caught himself and added that he meant it in the nicest way possible.

ELBEE OMG if he didn’t take a picture with her did she have to be so desperate that she photoshopped it? And by the way, that is the worst photoshopping I’ve ever seen!

And do you recognize the blonde behind Harvey Levin in this non-photoshopped picture?

I was walking on Third Street in Santa Monica, a real tourist mecca, when I saw they were filming People’s Court. The normally nosy me would have made a beeline over but I had just worked with the Doods and was a little tired. I crossed to the other side of the street to avoid the congestion.

THE DOODS Personally we were shocked that she didn’t run over. Harvey loves dogs, so seeing us, someone in the crew chased us down to ask if we’d be in the outside group scene. As for this photo, we were standing right in front of her and got cut out. Really? Who are the stars here?

I also met the legendary Vin Scully, the voice of the Dodgers. If Vin had groupies I would be one. I am a huge Dodgers fan and have even taken the Doods to Bark in the Park, with Nicole, the daughter who actually likes them.

THE DOODS We enjoyed the games and we hate to complain but the seats were a little small for us. We also have mixed feelings about the term “Dodger dogs.”

At the games, I only caught glimpses of Vin when we paraded on the warning track. My up close and personal was at an upscale mall in Calabasas, home of the Kardashians. Fortunately we didn’t see any of those. Vin was coming out of a store just as I was walking by with the Doods. He stopped to chat for a moment and was as nice as I’d hoped.

THE DOODS He had to stop and talk. She got so excited she almost ran us into him.

On a serious note, I just watched the Dodgers win their division as Vin broadcast his last home game after 67 years. I have never seen anyone accept accolades with more grace and humility. I was already a little teary eyed when they suddenly played a recording of Vin singing Wind Beneath My Wings, a song that reminds me of my parents who passed away when I was young. It was such a touching moment for me. Thank you Vin Scully!

An American Hero

Living in L.A. you tend to see celebrities from time to time, but it’s not every day that you meet a true hero. I want to share an encounter that seems even more meaningful in the wake of the recent anniversary of 9/11.

A few years ago at its Red Tie Affair, the Red Cross honored the UCLA People Animal Connection and Captain “Sully” Sullenberger. Charley, as well as 5 of the other furry honorees, were at our table in the grand ballroom of the Miramar Hotel in Santa Monica. Captain Sullenberger was seated nearby.

If you’ve read some of my posts, you may find this hard to believe. On my own, I might not have approached him, but with Charley’s leash firmly in hand, I walked over to introduce myself and say hello. He could not have been nicer. As a bonus, he and his family are dog people! When a woman tried to take cuts in line for a photo, he gently told her that Charley and I were there first.

What truly inspired me to write this today is that I just saw the movie Sully. I was familiar with the Miracle on the Hudson. I knew about Captain Sullenberger’s amazing accomplishments. I had heard him humbly and graciously accept his award at the gala. Sitting in the theatre, however, there were tears in my eyes as I watched the whole story unfold. The movie really put it into perspective. Thanks to my big, beautiful canine hero, I had enjoyed the privilege of meeting a real life American hero.

Gus for Mayor?

Gus has always been incredibly outgoing and confident but lately he’s gotten even more so. I have a sneaking suspicion that he may be running for mayor of Tarzana.

Instead of just greeting people who come up to us, he stops whenever anyone even glances in his direction and waits until they come over to say hello. He’s high fiving all over the place. He’s started wearing ties.

He’s licking babies. He’s pretending to smoke cigars.

He’s even been courting the media. When we were out for a walk and Gus saw the Channel 4 truck covering the Chris Brown activity in the neighborhood, he made a beeline for it.

I hate to burst his bubble but I think it’s an honorary position. He’d actually be wonderful at promoting community spirit, appearing at parades and pageants. I’m just not sure how he’d handle the speechmaking.

ELBEE Hello?? if anyone has the charisma and leadership skills for public office, it’s me. Gus is cute but he’s a little clueless. Last night I caught him talking very seriously to Riley, not a Dood but the senior member of the pack. I don’t want to seem ageist but I think he should have been getting advice from me and Charley.

CHARLEY Personally, I think that Gus may not be aiming high enough. With the way the current election is going, he might as well run for president. His likeablity rating is much higher than either of the candidates. As for all of the serious stuff, he can hire people. I do have one more bit of advice for him. The self-tanning is just not working.

If I had any doubt that Gus was up to something, my daughter sent me a photo that says it all.

He’s got my granddaughter campaigning for him!!

I Could Have Been a Contender

ELBEE Look at all of these trophies. Don’t I look fabulous with them? Hold your applause. I was set up by a certain Pack Leader. “Why” is a whole other issue.

I had my chance at glory a few years ago when she took me to agility class. I was a natural. I conquered every piece of equipment almost immediately. I ran through tunnels, flew through weave poles, jumped through tires. I started having visions of trophies and TV interviews. Then, a few weeks into class things changed.

OK, I admit that I may have ruined Elbee’s dreams of glory. At first it was going great. I just had to help him with the various stations and cheer him on. We were a team. Then I found out there were going to be two major problems.

First, I was going to have to run around the course with Elbee. As some of you know, running is against my religion. Second, I was supposed to memorize the course so I could lead him around as I was running. This was a recipe for disaster. My sense of direction is worse than my running.

THE DOODS She’s not kidding. When we walk in unfamiliar areas with her, we pee on trees so that we can find our way back.

When the time finally came, we were given ten minutes to memorize the course. I panicked. I’m more of a verbal than a visual kind of learner. Even when I did bodybuilding routines I had to write down every move.

Come to think of it, maybe that’s why I’ve never been asked to appear on Dancing with the Stars. It would take forever to teach me the routines because I wouldn’t be able to pick them up just by watching.

ELBEE Excuse me, Dancing with the Stars? I admit that sometimes I don’t recognize the “stars,” but Pack Leader had a cameo in I Love You Man. What is she thinking? And will you look at this picture. Charley should be on the show. His photo was in the table of contents of The Saturday Evening Post right below Dancing with the Stars! Coincidence? I don’t think so.

I’m sorry to say that Elbee and I became agility drop outs. Even the teacher was sorry to see us go because she got a big laugh out of watching me get lost on the course.

ELBEE For the record, P.L. became a drop out. I didn’t have a ride so I was forced to quit. The good news is that Charley and Gus backed me up and refused to ever watch an agility competition again.

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