The Story of Simbalina

below is verbiage from my proud parent announcement of September 9, 2004, posted here for posterity. ========================================================== for those of you who don't know, i am now the proud owner of a lovely, hyper, NEEDY, loving, gentle, and freshly flea-dipped, female dog named Simba. don't really know much else about her but she adores me & surely that counts for ALOT!! i found her saturday whilst loriloo & i were (unsuccessfully) searching for a farmer's market in the new hood. she was running around w/ no collar & no chaperone. 20 min. later, we saw her again; dodging cars. we squatted down & called her over & she plopped herself down on my lap. she smelled so bad & got all kinds of dirty, stinky, itchy , germy things all over my powder pink shirt. she made me carry her the rest of the way & that was pretty much the beginning of the attachment. i took her home & doggy-proofed my yard (over the course of 48 hot hours) & posted "FOUND!" notices all over the hood. ironically, i found Simba's (very unrightful) former owner who informed me of her Christian name & her history. she had been passed from house to house to house to house & was last living w/ a crack family who care nothing for her (hence her flea infestation & lack of collar - not to mention proper grooming!!). i was given free & clear title to the pup. thus far, i've lost 1/2 day of work & $200+. i still need to have her spayed, vaccinated & God knows what. the toys & treats for dogs are so stinking cute. i have NEVER had a dog (well, i had one for a very brief period when i was young) and would welcome any tips / suggestions / words of advice. dogsitters are also most welcome. : )

Dear Blog

Simbalina has it really been 2+ months since I’ve written? time surely does fly as u get older; mama was right - again! not too much exciting going on; I’ve been doing the winter hibernation thing. Doreen, steve & I went out as anticipated (per last posting). steve picked us up at my place and, after he & the Princess made the appropriate fuss over each other, we drove into center city. Steve dropped us off at Striped Bass while he parked the car. It was my first visit since steven starr took the place over and, naturally, it looks great. we had a single cocktail and then went over to Bar Lyonaisse where we shared a couple of glasses of wine before heading to the Barclay Prime for their famed $100 cheesesteak. Sadly, it was after 11 PM when we arrived and the kitchen closes at 10PM (what is this? New York?). so, after a quick cocktail, we rushed over to the Four Seasons who had assured us that their “late night fare” menu is available until 1AM. we noshed on a fabulous cheese plate, salmon plate, an award-winning cheesesteak springroll, etc. overall, a very mellow evening. the three of stayed at my house and Doreen was kind enough to take me to reStore the next morning to pick up my fabulous French doors. we had lunch at the polish restaurant (Sri Lanka) and called it a day. I finally had dinner at vetri and it was everything I expected. chris took me there for valentine’s day. I took him to the ballet (a gift to myself, really) and to a new smoked rib joint in the academy house (former marabella’s). mom took an apartment on Washington square & it truly is beautiful – such a perfect location for her / Lou. sadly, I lost my dog-sitter as mom usually relieved my Simba-walking duties 1x/week so I could have a happy hour night or stop at the grocery store without rushing home. so, I have hired a dog-walker 1 day / week to fill the void. Jennifer starts today & I’m having dinner @ mom’s new place. speaking of the Princess Simbalina Cleopatra Persephone, she got out of the house the other week and ran & ran & ran & ran. Contractor (Bob) came to work at the house & a new subcontractor came while Bob was in the basement and he left the door open (not knowing about the Princess) to get tools from his truck. the Princess got out, he chased her, she ran & ran & ran & ran…Kudos to the crossing guards, policemen, postmen, neighbors, friends, strangers and contractor(s) who helped me search for her. An incredible woman at 2nd & Lehigh (that’s right – SECOND & LEHIGH – miles away) found her, invited her in to the check cashing agency where she worked & called the number on her tag. I was so relieved to get her back; she’s such a part of my life. Immediately, Simbalina was given a new (easier to read) tag which i had failed to attach sooner. ironically, the subcontractor that let her out was bobby pfeifer – a childhood friend. such a small world! 2 degrees of separation… not much progress on the house; the (new) contractor has been busy with a big job and has been unable to do any work at my place for the past few weeks. in my mind, there’s approx. 2-3 weeks of work to be done and that’s it - provided, of course, I am the sole beneficiary of his labor.