The Daily Parker

Politics, Weather, Photography, and the Dog

Today's Daily Parker

The weather this past weekend precluded posting to TDP. We simply spent too much time not in front of a computer. Actually, Parker doesn't spend any time in front of computers that he knows of anyway, though sometimes he seems dimly aware of the ParkerCam.

Parker did, on the other hand, get a chance to stick his nose out the window of a moving car a few times. Like at this stoplight, when I suddenly felt whiskers and a cold nose on my earlobe:

(I have to say, it's a little disconcerting to have a dog nosing one's ear when the car is moving.)

I also want to post Friday's note from the dog-walking service: "He was great today. A guy even stopped us to tell me that."

Today's Daily Parker

After some trial and error, and even though he's still unclear on the concept, Parker finally got down and dirty with the tug toy yesterday:

Did I mention the "trial and error?"

He did, eventually, put all four paws into it:

He also killed one of his oldest toys last night, the lion-head tennis ball he's had since he couldn't even get down the stairs by himself. Yeah, once he started working on it, he spent less than five minutes scattering stuffing all over the floor. So now he has a tennis ball that used to have a lion head on it.

New development planned for downtown Evanston

Oh, dear. I can't wait until they start building this, just one block from my office:

Developers went public Thursday with their plan for another race to the sky, this one in downtown Evanston: A proposed condominium tower that would crack the 500-foot barrier and become the tallest building in Chicago's suburbs.
Sure to incite heated debate in a suburb already in the throes of a high-rise building boom, the plan calls for tearing down a two-story retail building on a triangular block bounded by Church Street, Orrington and Sherman Avenues, and replacing it with a sliver-thin, 49-story condominium tower sheathed in glass and metal.

Pity, because the building they're tearing down is actually quite charming. It gets "better:"

The plan also envisions tearing down a 1940s mid-rise office building at the block's south end and replacing it with a low-rise restaurant building whose footprint would be half as large. The developers still have to purchase that property.

I'm torn. I think Evanston has to grow taller, but the old buildings in its downtown are part of its charm.

Peter Sagal on the passing of a legend

I'm just now listening to the podcast of last Saturday's Wait Wait...Don't Tell Me! Host Peter Sagal had this to say about entertainer Don Ho, who died last week:

Sagal: He also did his patriotic part to populate his home state. He is survived by 10 children, 15 grandchildren, 19 great-grandchildren, and 2 great-great-grandchildren.
Adam Felber: Ho, Ho, Ho!
Sagal: I'm sorry, I was just thinking: He had all these babies...in diapers...that means dozens of nappy-bottomed Hos.

Oy.

Today's Daily Parker

OK, it's really time for new photos. I've been too lazy busy to take new ones lately, so it's time for another classic, this one from early October:

As a lagniappe (or mea culpa, depending on whether you feel French or Latin today), the dog-walking service note from yesterday said, "He's the friendliest dog in America." I can't argue.

Also, no ParkerCam today: he's at day camp.

Today's Daily Parker

People have asked me how big Parker is. Just knowing he weighs 23kg doesn't help much. So, by way of illustration, here is Parker and his crate with a helpful yard (90 cm) stick in the shot:

Also in the shot, visible just above Parker's head, is the ParkerCam. As you can see, I've returned it to its original location following Friday's disastrous experiment. No Cam tomorrow or Wednesday, sadly, as Parker will be at day camp both days.

Today's Daily Parker

Emboldened, perhaps, by his recent successes with tennis balls, yesterday afternoon Parker decided to hunt bigger game. Alas, his spatial-reasoning abilities have not yet fully developed:

We still had a great time playing catch. Being crated most of the day along with continued treatment for his embarrassing problem left him with a lot more energy than usual:

He's not quite World Cup material, but he's still only a puppy.

Also, I'm experimenting with the ParkerCam a little. Instead of just wondering what he sees, I thought I'd see for myself by reversing the camera angle. I may decide it's a bit too invasive (of my privacy, not his), but for now, a rare glimpse into Parker's life: