Lost! Last seen at. . . .

My dog Pink became a member of the household when she was 2. She had a few bad habits—getting lost, fearing hunting guns and eating pastry. Actually, that’s why her former owner gave her to me.

We didn’t hunt and didn’t cater, and I had a fenced yard, but she managed to wander off. My new neighbors called, “We have your dog. Is she dangerous?” Humm, “Only if you have pastry.”

My sister’s greyhound left her fenced yard and tracked my sister to the voting precinct and was later found near the law school. Another neighbor moved across town, but Buster the Cat didn’t want to move. By the time he made his fifth trek across town (4.5 miles) to return to his former haunts, his owners agreed--Buster was happier in his old neighborhood where he now lives.

Some lost pets like Sassafras the beagle receive national attention (at least, his story was carried in the Washington Post). Others are featured on utility poles. In my Duck Pond neighborhood, there’s Annebell, a white Maltese, and Jack, a happy-looking, black dog, and an assortment of cats. . . . They are still lost.

Many of our pets have tattoos or microchips, or at the very least, tags with a current address. But not always. I found a greyhound wandering a beachside community after a 2004 hurricane. The dog had tags from a North Carolina shelter. The local police and vet helped me locate the owner. Apparently, Rico was a repeat offender.

Our pets are always happy to return home. But they don’t say much about their adventures.

BTW—if you happen to see Annebell or Jack, please tell them their owners are worried.

A Tip--How to Move into an Office, or Make Room for the Singing Hamster

We all know to make our demands before we sign the contract for a new job. A private office. A window. A computer with two monitors. Those demands were met. But I should have made one additional request--empty shelves and cleared floor space.

When I was a teaching assistant in graduate school, we handed out hard copies of syllabi and made transparencies for the overhead projector. We entered the classroom with a sagging briefcase, overflowing with papers and worn books. I could identify with the ghost of Jacob Marley, Scrooge’s business associate, condemned to carrying chains wherever he went.

Nowdays, we carry a wealth of information (presentations, articles, music, photos) on our USB keys. I don’t even have a briefcase.

When I moved to my current office in 2010, I had few books, a handful of memory sticks, three coffee cups (you never know) and a singing hamster (a gift from my kids).

The former office resident, now retired, left me a career’s worth of slide carousels, an overhead projector and transparencies, file cabinets crammed with articles and manuscripts and course syllabi. Because office space is tight, and I could use some shelf space, my supervisor asked the retired professor to please move or discard his materials.

One day, he dropped by, glanced about. Obviously, horrified at the walls of slide carousels , specialized dictionaries and yellowing course outlines, he only grabbed a framed photo of his wife and has not been seen since.

Who can blame him! So my tip--before you sign the contract, request an empty office to make room for the singing hamster. . .

What are your tips for moving into a new office or taking a job?

From Cafe to Countertop, Coffee!

These plates have a price printed on them—2F, ½ F, etc. In his Movable Feast, Hemingway described Parisian cafes that used these saucer plates under drinks to indicate prices--coffee is ½ franc, whiskey is 2F.

Today, less than 2 euros gives you coffee and the right to sit on a terrace for hours. The Crystal in Juan-les-Pins is one of my favorites because the coffee and service are good but mainly because the people watching is excellent. No need to bring a book or newspaper.

On sunny days, the Place aux Aires in Grasse has back-to-back cafes, which also serve lunch on the square that is used for the open-air market.

My kids are very particular about their coffee. Not only do we explore cafes, but we also have tested many coffee machines. Nespresso has colorful pods with numerous flavors.

I have a smaller version, the Pixie, which my kids gave me for my birthday. Was it to ensure I experience wonderful coffee back in the States? Or to guarantee great coffee on their visits?

Now that the coffee issue has been resolved, about the cups? Never enough!

One hot Kiss and a $35,000 dance. . .

GAINESVILLE, Fla.--No doubt about what that sailor had in mind—one big kiss!

The sailor’s kiss is just one of numerous bronze statues by Seward Johnson scattered around town and on campus until Oct. 14, 2011. They make you do a double take--—the lady sitting on a bench in front of a bank on the corner of North Main and Second or the policeman giving out tickets by parking meters.



The massive 20-foot statue of a waltzing couple on the Plaza of the Americas—well, that is just big.

I like statues that leave room for imagination—like those by Miró, Calder or Arp. Locally, we have copper doughnuts (described as Cherrios) at the law center.

Although not quite a sculpture, a large meteorite on Turlington Plaza certainly looks like art and is routinely “dressed” for Halloween as Mr. Potato Head or covered in tinfoil.

The Solar Walk along Eight Avenue takes you past the planets and meteors, providing bits of information as well as quotes.

Whether you like explicit or implicit works, the good news is that the local community sees the importance of bringing art into our lives.

And about that $35,000 price tag on the dancing couple. . . Could someone enlighten me?

Santé!

My dad used to wonder if TGIF would have the same meaning if we didn't have to work. . . . I'd like to carry out this experiment.

But for now, it's TGIF!

Join me before 8 p.m. at the Crystal! Why before 8? Because you get a nice little plate of amuse-gueules along with your drink.

Enjoy!

Life is good. . . .for the cats

Imagine a typical Florida September day. Pushing 100 degrees and 99.9 percent humidity. Given the choice, my cats will lie on the back porch, soaking up the sun.

“Don’t you realize black fur absorbs heat,” I am tempted to say.

They give me that look when I bring them inside. But after a few minutes of a cool tile floor, they seek the warmest places—on top of my clothes in my closet, under my bed or on my duvet, which still needs to be stored.

Our cats develop specific tastes
My cats are connoisseurs. Each day I have to use a specific treat to get them to come back inside from the back screened porch. Of course, I can only live in place that provides a screened porch.

Our cats train us
A friend reported on FB that her cat had gotten stuck on a roof, and she had to use an extension ladder to get him down. Except for my fear of heights, I would have done the same. But as one reader commented, the cat probably laughed about it with all of his friends.

I made an appointment for two cats with the vet the other day. But I arrived with only one. Impossible to get Porsche in the carrier, and my friends, known as the “cat whisperers,” now live in Charlottesville.

Cats at play

They have a sense of humor.

They miss me (or do they?)
I worry they will miss me when I travel. I make sure I have their favorite pet sitter.

I know they miss me when I leave for work. They know the routine--I give them treats and talk to them. I pick up my bags, lock the door. The car pulls out, and the garage door closes.

But the other day when I returned for my coffee, the cats were already on the couch. The remote between them and the TV on. I could have sworn I had turned it off.

How do your cats manage?

Dogs and la vie en France. . . .

“It is sometimes difficult to know who commands in a family—the husband, the wife, the mother-in-law, or the cook. But the dog is never mistaken.” --Marcel Pagnol, French writer known for his stories about Marseille.

Dogs are the sine qua non of French existence (in addition to champagne and chocolate). Some have pedigree, some are mixed breed, but all are happy, welcomed and loved. They jump to attention at a moment’s notice, show unconditional love and never complain. And the French love their dogs—the men might leave their wives in the car or at home while they stop at the café for a drink, but never their dogs.

We can’t say enough good things about our dogs, but cats are pretty cool too. What types of pets do you have?