And for my next trick

Laydeez. And. Gentlemen! p
Please allow me to present The Pond; and whilst I have your attention, kindly indulge me by allowing me to also present The Arbour. In honour of the occasion I am modelling the very latest in dog tie-out leads - so much smarter than that scruffy old frayed bit of rope my people used to make me wear; but I'm not convinced that it's my colour, why couldn't they have bought me a blue one to match my collar? 'They' say that this gaudy red will make it easier to trace the tangles & unravel the macramé I weave for them over & around the lawn. So what if the odd chair, disability aid or human leg becomes part of the art? I think it's just plain ungrateful of them not to cherish my creations: quite simply, they are lacking in a proper appreciation of canine art.
If you notice a slight smugness about my expression, it's because I am demonstrating my ability to sit - and stay - for a full ten seconds; of course I've known how to do this for absolutely ages, I mean it's not like I'm an untrained puppy or something, is it? But until today I chose not to share this knowledge with them, & honestly, the fuss they keep making of me, you'd think I'd split the atom or something, instead of just plain old sitting. Still, if it gets me an extra doggy treat or two, then who am I to argue?

Okay, that's enough of the doggy voice; all that yipping, yapping & yelping is enough to give a blipper a sore throat. The pond actually looks a lot different this evening than it did when Jack posed for me: there are now a selection of rocks & slabs all around it except for the bit where the turfs are. The carload of stone we collected from a fellow Freecycler yesterday looked more than enough when we brought it home, but there was barely enough to do what we were hoping to do: we now have four large rocks at the back, but could really do with at least another row behind them going up the slope - another Freecycler has offered us some lumps of granite, but hubby is showing a strange reluctance to take up the offer: "Do you know how heavy granite is?" apparently yesterday's pieces were actually sandstone. Oops, as a one-time wannabe scientist (with 2/3 of a BSc), I really should know the difference! The area to the right of the pond, where the liner is still untrimmed, is where we plan to have a bog garden; there's already a slight hollow there, & the pond, very co-operatively, has a slight leak in that direction; unfortunately it also has a slight leak coming under one of the turfs, which means that unless we fix it, the lawn in that area will be permanently soggy; and slippery - hardly ideal for one already so wobbly on her pins. But the pond is definitely growing on us by the hour; we spotted an irridiscent blue beetle thingy water-skiing across it today, & http://www.blipfoto.com/JustJuli will be impressed to hear that I've even seen a water flea - either that, or else it was a very tiny shrimp.

Things we've learned about Jack
He is becoming more obedient by the day
Unfortunately, his separation anxiety seems to be getting worse by the day; when we went to get the rocks yesterday he cottoned on well before we left that we were going out - he started trembling & whining, & put up a real battle against being shut in the breakfast room. We were only gone for half an hour, but when we got home it was to the same mess. And again this morning when we popped down the town for an hour, in spite of employing every possible subterfuge so that he didn't know we were going out almost until we went through the door, we left treats for him, & the radio for company, but if anything he was even worse when we got home; in fact we found him on the windowsill (it's a very high sill, so goodness knows how he got up there), perhaps he didn't think much of the radio programme & was trying to turn it off? I've had a chat with the behaviourist at the rescue place, & they say that it's still very early days; they also recommend accelerating the crate training, so that will start tomorrow. We understand & accept why does what he does, but when I go to the dentist next week he's going to be on his own for a lot longer than he has been so far, & I'll be in no fit state to help hubby deal with him when we get home - plus hubby will be wanting to fuss around me rather than clear up Jack's mess; I can't see us getting him crate-trained in one week, so we're trying to find somebody to come & dog-sit, but no luck so far.