Shane got home a little early from work today, so I asked him if we could go to the beach and invite Raynah. He really wanted a nap but agreed to take me anyway. Here are the videos he got of me. To see the photos, visit my facebook fan page

The good news: I got to ride in the car today.

The bad news: I got stuck with needles, wrestled to the ground, flipped on my back, and had metal clips pinch the parts of me that would have nipples if I weren't too good for them.

I had my annual vet visit today. Generally I like the vet's office pretty well, because there are a ton of things to smell, there are usually other animals to meet, and I get to ride in the car to get there. Today wasn't great though. I had to get a couple vaccinations which I didn't mind too much, but the doctor noticed an irregularity in my heartbeat, so he wanted to take an EKG to analyze. They made me lay down, which I'm not a big fan of without a bed, and a I really don't like to lay down when I'm in an unfamiliar place. I tried to be as difficult as I could. I squirmed and squirmed, but it just didn't work too well. I ended up pinned, but at least I did get the vet to scold his animal-nurse-man or whatever they're called (the guy that was helping him). He kept telling him he was doing things wrong, which was fun, I guess. In fact, I'm the only one he was nice to. He's generally kind of a jerk to people, but likes pets. Kind of like an Anti-Mike-Vick.

At least it's done for now. I don't know what the fuss is about. I'm feeling fine and came home and played with my squeaky steak and slept. And oh yeah? That four minutes of being hooked to the EKG? That's $40 my people don't have to spend on treats and toys for me now! Is anyone else's vet as exhorbant as mine about charging a lot for every little thing? Seems like every time I go in it's at least $175!

I don't want to step on the acutal performances too much, but I do want to pass along a picture or two from rehearsals today. Unfortunately, opening night last night got cancelled because of thunderstorms, which cost me one appearance. Also, in real life, the characters will have much prettier costumes.... And hats. WHERE'S MY SHAKESPEARE HAT?!?!?

I'd like to say that I was turning to face the audience, but really I just saw Shane standing there and got excited.

Here's another part where I get "handed off" to another actor and everyone dances off the stage like weirdos. The actress' name that handles me most of the time is Linda. She and I have become good friends... It's because she's nice, but it's more because she usually greets me with treats when I see her.

Check back after August 9, where hopefully I will have photos from a real performance.

My people got my show schedule for Shakespeare's "A Comedy Of Errors" which will run on the Boston Common this summer from July 31 until August 16. I, of course, will be the lead dog on opening night. An estimated 75,000 people will come out to see the show over the course of the next couple of weeks, so I should be a very famous dog by the end of the month. I'm very excited! And by that, of course, I mean my people are very excited. Here's my schedule:

Friday, July 31 8:00 PM (Opening night)
Saturday, August 1 3:30 PM
Sunday, August 9 1:00 PM

Come on out and see me. Tickets are free and all the information you need is at The Commonwealth Shakespeare Company. For those of you out of town, if there aren't any issues with media rights, I'll post a couple of short video clips on my website after my performance so you can see me too.

Now... Where's my Shakespeare hat?

Usually I just lay down and go to sleep, but as soon as Angela left me after our walk this afternoon, I decided to go exploring. And I hit the JACKPOT!!!

See for yourself!

One thing you hear a lot about with greyhounds that are retired racers is "Separation Anxiety." For those of you who aren't familiar with that, it's basically when a dog gets attached to their owners and then freak out when they are left alone. Typically, owners try to start with just leaving for a few minutes at a time and work up to being gone longer and longer so that the dog knows that the people are always coming back.

Trust me, guys, they always do... And they always wake you up. You should be enjoying your alone time.

I never really had a problem with the people leaving. At first, I would always hope that they would take me with them, but over time I've gotten to the point where I'm not too concerned when my people leave me. In fact, yesterday the people were going out to do some shopping and run some errands. They tucked me in under a blanket because either a) they thought it would be comfy for me and I'd enjoy it or b) they think I'm their little puppet and they can do whatever they want to me.

It was nice to get some alone time. You can tell I wasn't so concerned with them leaving. When they came back, nearly an hour later and walked upstairs, here's all the greeting I cared to muster.

Yeah, I'm very mobile.

Since our old leather couch got a tear in the leather, some smelly people brought us all new furniture to our house on Friday morning. At first I was excited, because there were new people in the house to play with. Then, I was sad because they were taking the couches and chairs I liked to sleep on while the people are gone. Then, I was excited because they brought brand new couches and chairs!

This weekend, the people kept telling me about how I wasn't allowed on this leather, because it was "nicer than the other couch." I kept asking to try it out and they kept telling me to go to jail. Ugh. Finally, in a rush to get to Capital Grillle on Saturday night because they were starving, they forgot to put stuff on the couch, and I made it my own. I must say, they were right. The leather is so much softer and smoother than the old couch was. I really enjoyed it. Of course, they could tell exactly where I had been when they got home because it was all warm and hair. I got like a 5 minute lecture as soon as they got home and, of course, they threw in the fact that I don't really add anything to society, and that I don't have a right to anything, much less nice furniture. They kept telling me to get a job.

I don't have thumbs, people! I don't have thumbs.

The neighbor kids were playing outside today when I went out to say "Hi" after my walk. There was a stuffed dog that I didn't realize was fake, and I tried to "meet" it but it wasn't very responsive.

Next, they put the stuffed dog on my to see if I would carry it around... Well, I did.

I like laundry day. The people make big piles of clothes. The bigger the pile, the more comfortable it is. Yesterday while they were making their piles, I laid on one, but I guess they weren't done making it, because they kept throwing clothes on it. I didn't even care.

It's like a game of "Where's Ajax"