Don't you think the numbers 2008 look way better than last year's?

It's new years, but I tried to finish with the holidays a couple days ago. I had enough. I went to bed last night before midnight, but did wake up for the New Years Dog Freaking Out Explosions, the fireworks tradition of our neighborhood to set off giant, loudtastic rockets or bombs or fireworks all night on many holidays. I'm not sure what they are. They basically sound like exploding things from war movies outside the window. I suspect neighbor Tony. He likes to buy stuff to blow up online. And it is a work day for me. In the interest of Good Customer Service, I am having a Fun Day at work. I am planning the fun right now. I think it is going to be a Dancing With The Stars Horse Drill Team Over Fences Contest. Never say I'm no fun.

Also I have this thing in my web logs that shows me what people search on to go to teamsmalldog.com. Like, let's say you are looking for a tiara to wear to a dog show. Guess where google sends you? To Team Small Dog! But I am pretty sure I have never worn a tiara to a dog show. I usually wear sporty pants or cashmere. Sometimes big belt buckles. But tiaras are not a bad idea.

Fireworks season begins!

Tonight is going to be a Super Fun Night in Santa Cruz. Because it marks the beginning of fireworks season! Fireworks season runs from mid-June thru mid July. It peaks at Fourth of July, that is the night all the neighbors buy their internet illegal fireworks, just like the Pro's Use, and set them off all day and night. Tonight it starts with the Santa Cruz Beach Boardwalk's (a website designed by me, back in the day) 100 year anniversary fireworks night. Which gets everyone all going, and revved up for fireworks season.

The reason I know about this special season, so precious to our beautiful beach neighborhood is Ruby has horrible fireworks or gunshots (both things you hear on our street sometimes) phobia. Worse than her phobia of flies or things that feel funny to her feet. Or her phobia of water bowls she has not met in a previous life. Flies is a close second. But fireworks is the worse. At the first sound of one, far away in the distance, she starts to shake and quiver and trot around the house trying to get under things. On a bad fireworks night, like when the Fireworks Fiesta starts on the street behind us and sounds like loud booming cannons for hours and hours, and would actually be cool to watch if the dog didn't have the sound problem, it gets really bad. Like she shakes violently, wedges herself under the lowest piece of furniture she can find and shakes uncontrollably til the noise stops. Usually I put the stereo on as loud as possible so it shakes the house and that's all she can hear and that helps, but I have to be home and know when to predict the fireworks, which is hard if they are unscheduled in the neighborhood. And they are Big in the neighborhood.