Momma had a birthday recently, too, but unlike mine she wanted to keep hers under wraps.  Therefore, she won’t be happy to read about it on my Blog, but it is my Blog, after all and I retain complete editorial control.  And as much as she doesn’t like big government or entitlement programs, trust me – she is happy with her new medical benefits.

Momma did not spend her birthday with me.  She told me she must drive up to Bemidji for business meetings on the weekend.  Frankly, that was okay with me because Dr. Becca came to stay.  Nanny Becky also came by and played with me when she could.  So all in all, it was a nice weekend – and frankly good to have a little adult supervision for a change (did I just woof that?)!

Momma wanted to be sure that she had her ducks in a row before she left this time because, as she put it, she did not need anymore bad press from me.  I’m pretty sure she was thinking about the time Becca stayed and Momma forgot to leave dog food.  But I dogress.

Momma really tried hard this time.  She made sure I had food, water and a bed, and she even gave me a little 2-calorie treat before she left.  I was proud of her – it seemed she had actually become a responsible dog owner.  It soon became apparent that she was not quite there, however, when Becca discovered that Momma had locked her out of the house.  (If I had to guess, I’d say that Momma got a little distracted towards the end because of all the outfits she was trying on for her “meetings.”)

Anyway, as usual Becky came to the rescue and the weekend proceeded swimmingly. Becky and Uncle Tom came over and played with me and brought me a cupcake in honor of Momma’s birthday.

Becca spent quality time with me, too – she did some training with me and took me for walks.  When Momma complained to Becca that I had not been minding her on walks, Becca calmly pointed out that treats work better than threats.  She also told Momma that she would go to the dog supply store before her next visit and get me a harness that fit.  (Ouch!)  Becca also took the time to create a birthday card for Momma from me.

If I do say so myself, I think I look kinda cool!

When Momma came home from Bemidji, she spent all evening on the computer.  It seems she had gotten some birthday messages on Facebook and she didn’t know how to respond. For example, was she expected – or even able to respond?  What if she said the same thank-you message to everyone, would her well-wishers think she was thoughtless and be offended?  What if she said something personal to one person – would everyone be able to read it?

The issue only intensified when she switched between devices and email and websites.  She soon forgot who she had (possibly) responded to and was now worried that she was responding twice – and if it showed up on Facebook, she would be a laughingstock.  And of course she didn’t know what showed up on Facebook because she did not know how to navigate the site.  What was the difference between a status update, a wall and a time line???

In the event you were one of the people who sent her a birthday greeting and didn’t hear back from her – or heard back more than once – please accept this as a personal heartfelt thank you from Momma.  I know she appreciated it!

Lina, Damage Control Specialist and Editor in Chief

WOOFDA!