If R2-D2 gave birth...

It was time for a new vacuum cleaner. It wasn't just the dog hair issues, but other factors that led to the purchase of a new canister-style vacuum cleaner. I don't who designs these things, but this one really does look like the offspring of robots.

Tomokee is a star

We cast Tomokee in a video for an advertisement contest for star1013fm, a local radio station. Our video did not win, but we think Tomokee looked great wearing headphones.

Pet Parade Day

Today was the annual pet parade day in Los Altos. The parade is basically a lot people walking through downtown in the morning with their pets. Most of the pets in the parade are dogs, but there are goats, horses, and small animals in cages pulled along in wagons. We went downtown just as the parade was ending. Of course, we had to dress Tomokee in his favorite shirt. Here's our friend Lisa (wearing a matching shirt) walking Tomokee.

Here's a dog dressed as a skunk. I thought this was the coolest costume in the parade.

These beagles are not in costume -- they're just cute.

I'm not sure what this costume is -- probably just a tutu.

After the parade, we went to the Fine Art in the Park show sponsored by the Los Altos Rotary Club. I bought a pair of lovely earrings from Mendy Marks.

Tomokee is admiring the art.

Tomokee goes hiking

Tomokee loves walking anywhere with good sniffs and enough vertical things (fence posts, trees, random bushes) to trigger marking behaviour. We went to Windy Hill in Portola Valley. There's a strong vertical climb up followed by lunch, then a meandering descent. Here, our friend Bob has just taken over driving T-dog.

During the descent, there's a nice creek for Tomokee to go splashing in and many other dogs for him to meet (he was very well behaved and really liked a dog appropriately named, "Two Socks"). The downside of having Two Socks ahead of us was Tomokee wanted to continue to play and so exhibited all the gentility of a GE diesel-electric locomotive... my fingers went numb holding him back.


When we got back to Bob's house, Tomokee was getting attention from Bob and spouse Nancy. While we were chatting, he just flumped himself down in the street with his head wedged against Bob's leg and, shortly after this shot was taken, began gently snoring. What a lug... a loveable lug, at least.

Daschund Day

The first Saturday of every month is daschund day in downtown Los Altos. Local daschunds (and their owners) gather together in one of the plazas, do whatever daschunds do when they are together, then take strolls around downtown. One of their favorite places to visit is the local Five Paw Bakery. Several of them are shown here in front of the store.