He is fine with cardio, and has mastered the canine technique of full sprint and stop for smelling — this fatigues the leg muscles and keeps his olfactory muscles in fine form.

But there is one type of exercise he cannot stand: Resistance Training.

Resistance Training is Futile.

He can’t seem to stand on the band with his paw and simultaneously pull with the opposite one  — not having opposable thumbs makes this workout pretty opposable to Pupp.

Puppi doesn’t want to keep up with the latest fitness trends anymore, he will just continue to do old school callisthenics.   His standard regimen is to chase down that darned tennis ball, drop and repeat.  His resolution in 2013 is to do it more often — that is all, thank you very much.

He wants to remind everyone going back to the gym to be sure to stretch and cool down afterwards.

(Today’s post is dedicated to the coach of my first marathon, Scott Boliver — somewhere he is crossing the finish line with my previous running partner, Salvador Doggie.)

Today is one of those days.  When confronted with this feeling, he does the natural thing –

He compares himself to other dogs.

Now, this technique is contrary to his usual “Zen-may-care” attitude, but Puppi is being very catty today and doesn’t care about taking the high road.

To satisfy his temporal need to feel better at another dog’s expense, he asked me to set up a summit.

I caved in to his wishes.

Puppicasso meets Balloon Dog.

“Can you believe this guy?”

“Okay, I don’t feel so bad now.  Thanks Mom.”

I hope he will fare better this weekend than today, but if not, I will have a fleet of Balloon Dogs at the ready for him.

So I went into his portfolio and found some fuzzy, sleepy abstract pieces for your perusal :

Puppicasso’s Picasso Study Number One in Dog Minor.

Puppicasso’s Picasso Study Number Two in Dog Minor.

Signed,

Puppicasso

Now I don’t know if Puppi has ever fallen off of F.C., but being that Cliff is an Irish Setter — the height difference could make it a possibility.

If you think this familiarity with Cliff makes Puppi recession proof, he would slap your paw and say, “No Way!”  Last year, he was very sick and being without insurance this cost Puppicasso’s people dearly.  But he has never let a little thing like money get him down, not when the grass and sunshine are still free.  If you will, please enjoy his first 2013 outdoor photo shoot.

“Ah, Grass!”

He misses playing with F. Cliff, but Puppi knows when it is necessary to make new friends.  He’s got great timing that way.

Last year was definitely a pre-teen time for Puppicasso and me.  Many new creations, activities, and attitudes were realized — but our offline life got in the way of our blogging life.  And since the world didn’t end, he decided to resume his predictions.  So, the first part of this year will be a cleaning house and catching up on the life of Pupp.

The motto of this year will be, “Always put one paw in front of another, and go forward no matter what.”

One small paw for Pupp…

… one giant leap for Puppi-kind.

We wish you a Happy 2013!  Enjoy this Millennium’s entry into puberty — hormones will rage and change will be the constant!

Puppicasso wishes to extend a special shout out to Neil Armstrong for use of his likeness and spirit… he is missed.

Puppi was put on a really strict diet. One can of food a day – half in the morning with pills, repeat at night.

No treats.

The combination of diet and steroids has made for one very cranky Puppi.

As I tried to figure out what I had to do to satiate Puppi’s well-being, I was off to the cast and crew screening of a short film I made, Breaking Ice.  Appropriately enough, I had crew gifts made that were mood cups that changed color when cold…

Icey.

Coming back from the rink where the screening was held, I literally stumbled on the cure to his chewiness… Ice Cubes.  (I fell carrying the ice chest that contained them, and ending up using the cubes to ice my shins.)

He used them to teeth as a puppy-Pupp, and now they cooled his anger towards the diet.

Ice is usually thought of as cold and unforgiving, but using it in tiny chunks made Puppi’s life right now more warm and inviting.

Yay Ice!

He is on the road to recovery but it is slow going.

He had to give the vet a stool sample, and this is what we thought they meant…

And a stool sample on sale too!

He really is trying to keep a comic look on his illness.  I love that about the Pupp.

Today he jumped at the start of sprinklers turning on, I guess they sounded like wet farts.

Enough said.

PuppiRed

white and blue.

Then he got efficient and found all three in an unlikely source…

Color Trifecta.

Red, White and Band-Aid Blue.

He had a safe and sane holiday, protected from the fireworks. It is such a tough holiday for dogs in general, I am happy he survived through another one.

He was wise even then.  He wandered free on the day before the Firework Holiday, so he would get a good cage with a view before the crowd came in.

Puppi portraying the role of Temp Bob…

…recreating his famous 2008 escape to Lakewood.

He fooled them with his age, they thought he was four months old, but he was a worldly six months old.

He even through them off with his name, one of the Animal Care Workers remarked, “He doesn’t look like a Bob.  We are really running out of names.”

And so Temp Bob waits for his new name, and his new home….

I think he knew back then what his future name would be, and it wouldn’t be Ezra Pound Puppy.