So . . . I adopted a new dog on Friday, 2/15/2008, from the North Central L.A. City Animal Shelter. He is very cute and completely different than any other dog I've had. His name is Milo. I was thinking of changing his name when I adopted him. Some names in the running were Lumpia, Matamis, and Biscotti. But I decided that none was cool enough to warrant the dog's trauma of having to get used to a new name. He is about 3 1/2 years old and is some sort of hound--possibly a harrier, foxhound, or a beagle mixed with something larger (like a German shepherd). I'm going with harrier, since that is the most interesting of the group (and is also what the shelter finally put on his papers). He is a bit more high maintenance than I expected. He cries whenever he can't see me. I slept on the couch the first night so he could get used to being here. The second night I left the TV on for him. The third night he seemed OK and didn't cry until morning. He already knows how to play ball and the commands "come here" and "no." But he doesn't know "sit" unless I have food in my hand. He is exploring more and more of the backyard and seems to love it, since it feels like a big field. Of course, he can't be out there for very long without me there.

I do still miss Tim Tam a lot, but it sure is fun having a dog again.