Get your kicks on Route 66

Tucker and I have had an extraordinarily busy month, so I apologize for my failure to post frequently.  As usual, it will just be easier to list a few things for you. 

Here's what we've been up to this month:

-He has been to two football games and spent part of each game in the President’s Box watching me serve the VIPs.  In fact, he did so well the first time that he was actually invited back by the President’s staff for the second game. 

-He helped me give a tour for GWU's October “Dawg Day” (like Puppy Day at LD).

-He flew with me, my honors director and two other students to Arizona for the National Collegiate Honors Conference.  He did wonderfully on the plane (much better than some of the passengers) and only had two minor accidents in the airport (one of which was pretty unavoidable because our plane was delayed on the tarmac – he just really needed to use the bathroom when we landed!)  We stayed in a hotel in Phoenix for a few days, drove to Flagstaff and stayed in a hostel for a night, then drove to the Grand Canyon.  Next we drove back to Phoenix and then on to Tucson to go to the Sonora Desert Museum.  Since the museum had animals, Tucker stayed outside with my honors director, but he said Tuck did a great job behaving for him.  When we flew back, he didn’t have any accidents in the airport! 

-He has been to several student activities, including an Alpha Chi Honors Society Taco Soup night, and an Honors Halloween mystery dinner.  He was Scooby-Doo. J  I was too busy to find a real costume, and decided to tape Smarties to my pants and call my self a "smarty pants" - bad costume choice with a puppy.  He was constantly trying to eat me!   

-He also attended “Oktoberfest” which is like an indoor trick-or-treat/Halloween party for the younger kids in our community.  I would say he was easily pet by 300 kids, sometimes 5 at once, and he just took it all in stride, loving every minute of it. 

-Preview of next week’s activities – We will be speaking to a sociology class about service opportunities and Tucker is going to be the topic of the special presentation at the Alpha Chi inductions next weekend. 

Okay, so now for a few details and pictures from our trip to Arizona. 

First, Tucker was not thrilled when he discovered that I had brought him to a desert.  Every time he saw grass, he flipped out and took me to it like, "look Mom!  I found it!"  Although it took some convincing, he eventually learned that I was serious when I asked him to park on sand, rocks, and concrete.  He was very professional throughout the conference, and quickly became the unofficial mascot.  The only accident he had in the hotel was somewhat unavoidable for his small bladder.  We'd been in a session with the keynote speaker (which was AWESOME by the way) for a few hours and he'd been asleep (this was after he'd eaten dinner).  When the speaker finished, I had to try to weave through 2,000 people to get him outside.  As you might imagine, that didn't happen.  I was, however, able to get him to the tile, so it wasn't hard to clean up. 

One funny incident in the hotel came one morning when I took him out to park.  We had just stepped into the top part of the parking garage where the parking attendants are stationed when a sports car rolled in.  I think I may have mentioned before that Tucker sometimes struggles with a fear of motorcycles.  Well, you can only imagine what a sports car in a confined area made of concrete sounded like.  Tucker hit the deck - he was "flat as a fritter" (excuse the southern-ims, if you will) on the ground and the poor parking attendant almost peed in his pants.  Once Tuck saw it was a car, he got up and acted like nothing had happened, but that initial look on his face was priceless.  (Tucker did really well with motorcycles out on the streets that trip, so I think it was just that the sports car startled him.)

My other favorite moment was probably when I discovered that he had decided to "taste" a cactus.  On our last day, we drove to the Sonora Desert Museum in Tuscon.  They have native animals there, so Tucker wasn't allowed in.  He stayed with Dr. Jones (honors director) outside the park while James, Mary, and I explored the museum.  When we came out and hopped in the car a few hours later, Tucker's mouth just looked strange to me.  I pried his mouth open and found a chunk-o-cactus stuck in his bottom jaw.  I said, "Dr. Jones, did Tucker try to eat a cactus?"  He said, "No."  To which I said, "Um, actually I think he did."  I had to hold Tuck's mouth open while Dr. Jones plucked the cactus out, but Tuck didn't seem to mind. :)  Dr. Jones never could figure out where Tucker had picked it up, but then again, Tucker is good at snatching things mid-stride when you're walking. ;)

Well, now I think I'll just start inserting pictures and add stories as needed. 

On Thursday, students/faculty/staff signed the last truss to be placed on the top of the Tucker Student Center.  Clearly, Tucker and I were going to sign it. :) 

Tucker and his fan club at the signing of the truss: (left to right) Hannah Riener, Dr. Hunt (Dean of Students), Derek Breakfield (the monkey's uncle), Tucker, Me, Dr. Bonner (President of Gardner-Webb University).

Charlotte-Douglas Airport!

He's looking at Mary saying, "Please get me off this thing. I am SO BORED."  He did a great job on the plane though - much better than the woman a few rows back. ;)

He eventually realized that not even puppy eyes could save him from another hour on the plane, so he gave up and curled up.

"Take me to Narnia!"  Games with James in the hotel.

This was in the Basilica across the street from our hotel.  Tucker liked it because it had grass.  I liked it because I could annoy him by making him pose with random statues. :)

Outside the hostel in Flagstaff - Route 66 :)

"Puppy power" shot :)  Grand Canyon

Just hanging out at the Grand Canyon. 

No dogs on the Canyon trail - which once I started walking it, I was thankful for!  I didn't realize that it was literally just down the edge of the Canyon... it would have scared me to death to have had Tuck with me.  He stayed up top with Dr. Jones.

The gang at the Grand Canyon. Mary, James, Tucker, Me, Dr. Jones.

Dr. Jones "While you were looking around I took a 'Canyon Dog' picture."  Something gives me the impression that Tucker doesn't have as much of an adventurous side as Dr. Jones... ;)

"Hiking" to see the Native American Petroglyphs. 

Giant cactus.  Probably 150-200 years old.

Hanging out with Dr. Jones.

Posing in the park full of volcanic rock... and random white trees. :)

Hanging out with his new buddy, Dr. Jones, in the airport.  Note how he isn't trying to eat that cracker or the wrapper under the chair. :)

We're nerds.  Of course we posed with Einstein. 

So, we had a dinner at a children's science museum, and because we're nerds, we played with everything.  This game measured your brain waves and whichever "person" had the lowest frequency won.  Tucker beat James easily. haha