The Couch - 109: CIX-Reintroduction

What is it with pets and banana? Although a parrot makes a tiny bit more sense that they would love it. My middle dog can hear me peel a banana even if he is outside, it seems like. I can handle roast beef and nothing - pick up a banana and start to peel it and he is there by my side.

Took the pup on her first walk out into the big pasture. My first walk out there without young dog. We played in the creek and she ate lots of horse poop. I wish to god she was just into bananas.

Well, to be fair, I haven't a lot of horse poop around for a real comparison as to which one he would choose. But while I had a husky who would eat all the horse poop she could find on trails when I would take her out running, the breed I have now do not seem quite as interested in eating or rolling in it when they are out on the sheep farm which also has some horses. The great thing about the husky was she cleaned herself up like a cat. The bad thing about the husky was the extremely high prey drive, and while she was fine with the cats she had been raised with, I never would have trusted her with any other cats. All outside wildlife was fair game to her.
But they do like the litter box when they can get to it.

How is new pup working out for you?

My boy cat will eat anything, and make himself sick with it. Girl cat acts like she wants to eat everything - comes running whenever I open the fridge and follows me around the kitchen meowing when I'm cooking, but she won't actually touch anything that's not dry cat food, or ham, for some unknown reason.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

The new pup is brilliant and already solid on sit. She is doing a down pretty well and doesn't jump up on people much. She will sit in front of you at your feet when she wants attention. She is much slower to potty train than I expected. She has a tiny, tiny bladder and pees almost every hour.

I have found in general my female pups have a bit harder time with it - physically it seemed - particularly in the morning when let out of their crate - I had to immediately scoop them up and put them outside -whereas the male pups have always looked at me like I have gone mad and they wander around a bit before peeing -the female pups have all immediately squatted - I had a vet tell me it was a physical difference in the females from the males which made it harder (I have no idea if that is true - but it helped my frustration with it)

Thanks for that info, Stop. I have been perplexed more than frustrated because she is picking up on everything else so quickly. I have some empathy though because I have bladder the size of a pea. H has been low key about it as well. We were planning to replace the carpet with tile or that fake hardwood floor stuff anyway. H just suggested we go ahead and do that now.

She is also looking more and more like young dog every day. She looked very pit bullish when we got her but doesn't any longer. Kind of uncertain how I feel about her looking like YD, but it is not as if I have a choice about it.

So my session with t this morning went pretty well. Hope y'all don't mind if I share about it. I told her my agenda for the day, we talked about the 1st two items, and then I told her I wanted to take a break for the rest of March. And she was on board with that, we scheduled for early April. But then we still had time left so I told her a couple of recent dreams (that both involved the number 6) and after the last one which after we talked about it, we decided was a calling to go deeper into my fear of intimacy... so I put off my break... I'm going twice more this month, and taking APRIL off instead. I am adamant about taking a break, I told her I really feel the need to percolate a little, assess where I'm at right now, and figure out what my goals are for future work. She told me about a book "Goddesses in Everywoman" that I borrowed from her cuz it sounds interesting. She mentioned a few specifically Artemis and Aphrodite. When she went to get the book, she handed me a tarot deck and said to shuffle and pick 3 cards (to write a story with again) and so I did, the three cards I pulled I said out loud before she came back "No way" and sat there laughing. The cards do not lie. I pulled, in this order, Aphrodite, the 6, and Deception. Zoiks! I told her now you see how honest I am. I didn't pull 3 more and then put these back. This is only the 2nd time she's brought the cards out, it's not something we normally use. So part of my homework is to write a story using those 3 cards.

And we decided mutually about taking April off, part of what I'm going to do besides percolate is fill out the client information paperwork again as if we are starting fresh - part of the re-assessing I want to do of myself. I thought that was a good idea. I told her it's been so long since I filled out that stuff that I don't even remember what the questions were! So that was my session today.

Happy Saturday, couch!

Aphrodite and Deception go very well together.

I have always wondered what your connection with Artemis is?

My connection with Artemis is the nature thing - when I was younger I went backpacking all the time and I still love hiking and being outdoors. I am at my most centered Self when out in the woods or the desert! (Goddess of the hunt, wild animals, wilderness...)

I'll have to do some thinking about Aphrodite and deception going together. Kind of a different aspect of Aphrodite than what t and i were discussing today....

I may be thinking too literally here, but in myth Aphrodite is always disguising herself, making people fall in love, and manipulating people.

Artemis...goddess of the wilderness but also someone whose bad side you do not want to be on. So there's that powerful side of her too if that does anything for you.

Yeah... and that's probably why I fear my anger so much.... it feels fierce and scary.

oh and I can shoot a bow too, used to have one but sold it after my son was born. I only ever hunted paper targets on hay bales with it, but still....

Conundrum: I have gotten it into my head that I would really like a massage, because my body feels very out of whack these days and the hot tub at the gym only goes so far - but I'm not sure I can handle being touched that much. Is a deep tissue massage more invasive-feeling than just a relaxation massage?

I had a massage years ago and it was okay, but felt like it went on far too long. I don't even like it when someone I know tries to give me a neck or shoulder rub.

Totally understand what you are saying. I feel the same way. My friends all get pedicures. My feet are off limits and basically the rest if me too.

Interested to see what anyone else has to say.

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I thought artemis was one of the three musketeers. My classical education is sadly lacking. I think catholic school didnt want us to get our myths confused. I finally watched a camelot movie, first knight with richard gere as lancelot and james bond sean connery as king arthur. The movie was SO OLD (1995) guinevere looked fat

Aramis -not artemis. Athos, porthos and Aramis are the 3 musketeers.

Do you have access to any place offering a Turkish massage? It can get rather painful but I found it super helpful and the whole thing was done in under 10-15 mins -- the dude didn't speak at all, pounded different parts of my body quickly and efficiently and when it was done I actually didn't realize it for a bit because he just silently left the room.

For what it's worth though, my experience of it was in Budapest -- I was visiting for a day, had somehow screwed up my back to the point that I could barely walk and for some reason, the city seemed to be crawling with Turkish baths. So, I did a Turkish bath first and then went in for the massage -- it was a trifle expensive (for the amount of time spent) but definitely worth it.

Is there nothing that vinegar and/or bicarb soda can't remedy? Cleaning porcelain basins to eradicating pet pee stains on polished wooden floors. An old age wonder!

I always wanted to visit Mt. Athos in Greece, but women aren't allowed.

All i know about that stuff i learned from the men's fragrance counter at Macy's. Aramis smh!

Eta - i greatly appreciate my stopdoggepedia!

You me and SD should go on elkback!

Eta - i did think the horse's lips looked a little funny...

I am pretty sure SD is not getting on the back of an elk with the likes of the two of us. I will be munching ice and you will be talking about undergotchies.

undergotchies!!