it's Freddie Girl!

Stay Tuned!

 I picked two songs for today just because I like them, they don't really go with any theme or anything today...just because I like them.

Okay, here's what else I'm thinking. As I've told you before, I really love listening to music and our upcoming strips and columns will be dealing a lot with music. So, Mommie and I heard a rumor a couple of weeks ago that Etta James was not all that thrilled with Beyonce singing her "signature song" AT LAST, at the Inaugural Ball. I had been thinking about this before, but more after hearing that....what songs just SHOULDN'T BE COVERED? I have been making my list, but what do you think? Which songs do you think should not be allowed to be covered, even though they probably have been already, and even though they sounded pretty good, they just kind of belong to a particular artist that is mostly known for doing that particular song? Think about it and leave me a comment with the NAME OF YOUR SONG and THE ARTIST'S NAME that did it, that you DON'T think SHOULD EVER BE COVERED, or SHOULD NEVER HAVE BEEN covered. I'll see how your ideas compare with mine, and get back to you later. Now that we have a few readers, I hope you will think this is fun and participate. Thanks in advance, and we'll see you later. Love, Freddie Girl

SONGS OF THE DAY..."I'D RATHER BE WITH YOU", by Joshua Radin and "BLUE EYES" BY Timmy Curran

Christmas In Blogland!

Hi everyone, indulge me for a moment while I praise a guy named Cheru Jackson who invented alphainventions.com. It is because of this genius that many of you are seeing this post. Like I said, I have no idea how they ran across my blog, but Mommie and I really appreciate the exposure you are bringing us. We REALLY, REALLY, REALLY appreciate all of you who have clicked on our site from seeing it on ALPHAINVENTIONS.com. We are going to work sooooo hard to make our blog the best it can be, and also to update it as fast as we can. We would love to hear from ALL of you. Just click on the comment link at the bottom of each post. We will TRY to reply back to each and every one of them if you would like.  Also, if you would like to get to know us better by reading back to the first comics and posts, just click on the ARCHIVES, or you can also click where it says subscribe to our feed near the bottom of the links, and read from the bottom up. Sorry this is so informative, but Mommie recently redesigned the blog so there wasn't so much scrolling.

Oh, I almost forgot...SONGS OF THE DAY!  The first song is for alphainventions.com...."YOU TO THANK", by Ben Folds, and the second is for all our readers...something we hope you will do when you click on our blog..."STOP AND STARE", by One Republic (although we hope you will do more than stare).

Thanks again....stay tuned.....please????  Have a great day, love Freddie Girl and Mommie

Songs of the day...."YOU TO THANK", by Ben Folds and "STOP AND STARE", by One Republic

Pet Toxins

First of all let me make a correction...this was posted on AOL on 02/11/09 instead of 02/01/09. The information in this post came from Fiona Fisher, D.V.M., veterinary expert at JustAnswer.com, who practices in Ontario.

 Now, GRAPES and RAISINS can cause kidney failure in dogs and cats. It has something to do with a chemical in the fruit's skin. Raisins are worse because they contain a concentrated supply of toxins. (so no raisin bran for me!)

 BREAD DOUGH can expand quickly because of our body heat. This can result in severe abdominal pain and bloating. In some cases death can occur if enough dough is eaten. (So all those times you lovingly call me Muffin and stuff like that, just call me that, don't turn me into one!)

CHEWING GUM, this is really because of the artificial sweetener, XYLITOL. This sweetener can cause a low-blood sugar crisis in pets. In fact, just one pack of gum can kill a dog, warns Fisher.

 Eating MACADAMIA NUTS can cause tremors, weakness, unsteadiness, depression, a rapid heart rate, and a dangerous rise in body temperature that can lead to other complications. Macadamia nut toxicity is scary and dangerous, but most dogs recover within a few days, says Fisher. 

NICOTINE is highly toxic and can cause seizures, coma and death. (Mommie catches me with cigarette butts in my mouth a lot...I think this is enough to make me kick the habit. So all you people out there that throw those butts on the ground...STOP IT! Go find a garbage can to throw them in...thank you very much!)

 CHOCOLATE is a deadly treat to dogs. Caffeine-like stimulants in chocolate known as methylxanthines can produce vomiting, diarrhea, excessive thirst and urination, hyperactivity, abnormal heart rhythm, tremors, seizures and even death, cautions Fisher. (boy, that's a whole lot worse than Mommie not being able to zip up her pants!)

 ALCOHOL ingestion can lead to seizures, heart arythmia, vomiting, coma and death. So all you humans who think it is cute to give us a drink...STOP IT! I think this is enough to make me NOT want to be a BREW DOG! So be careful where you put your drink down and try not to spill it on the floor...we are fast and we don't know any better...we like to taste!

 PAIN RELIEVERS made for humans should never be given to pets. Especially IBURPROFEN and ACETAMINOPHEN...one tablet can kill a cat. So if we are in pain don't give us anything until you talk to "your Dr. Josh". Also be really careful when you are taking one yourself and don't drop it on the floor...if you do, get it before we do! 

TEA can be dangerous too, depending on the type of tea you are drinking. CAFFEINE in your tea (and I guess any other drink containing it) is toxic to both cats and dogs. Depending on how much is consumed and the size of your pet, ingesting it can lead to vomiting, diarrhea, hyperactivity, seizures, coma and even death.

 ONIONS are toxic to dogs and cats whether they are raw or cooked. When ingested, onions can cause hemolytic anemia, a condition that destroys the red blood cells in the bloodstream. Dogs with onion poisoning may become lethargic and have difficulty breathing. A large amount of onions would need to be consumed to pose a serious threat to your dog, but cats are highly sensitive to onion toxicity.

 Well, there you have it. People...memorize this list and please do your best to take care of us. When we see something, we just lose our mind and try to get stuff in our mouth as fast as we can. We are quick too! So, next time, no matter how much we beg for something on this list, we will try to understand when you say "NO, YOU CAN'T HAVE IT...IT'S FOR YOUR OWN GOOD". Just don't try to trick us by saying that when it is something safe for us to have...we love our treats!

 Thank you so much to www.aolhealth.com/healthy-living/feature/_a/pet-toxins...and to Dr. Fiona Fisher, D.V.M., veterinary expert at JustAnswer.com....and to Jennifer Fields for posting it on AOL. When Mommie and I saw this article we thought we just had to share the information in it with our readers who may not have seen it before.

 Thanks for reading everybody, and thanks to all the pet owners and pet lovers out there who do their best to take care of me and all my animal friends.

 Have a good day....love, Freddie Girl

Say No To Chocolate...I Don't Think So!

Song of the Day...LOVE SAVE THE EMPTY, by Erin McCarley

Crows Leave Footprints On Your Face!

I picked the Bob Dylan song "Forever Young" for Mommie, one because it is one of her favorite songs, and also because I know that Mommie hopes everyone will always see her as being forever young...in spite of that old crow and his "gravity robbing" friends. Mommie said she's not sure about that saying about the "older you get, the wiser you get", but you do find yourself understanding the concept of gravity much better. And what's up with those "crow's feet" anyway. We lived in this other state before, I won't tell which one it is because I don't want to offend those who live there and like it a whole lot more than we did. Mommie called it the "collagen killing" state because it was so hot and it was just relentlessly sunny all the time...except for the daily 15 minute thunderstorms. It's also a popular state for older people to move to, and Mommie said everybody just looks 65, they are really 35, because of that collagen thing again. Don't misunderstand, it's a lovely state with a lot of lovely nice people, it just didn't suit Mommie's red hair and fair skin...but I think the crows are really attracted to fair skin. Mommie and I were also noticing that when women get crows feet and wrinkles everybody just talks about how old they look, and how you should do something to get rid of them. But when men like George Clooney get crows feet around their eyes, people talk about how cute they look with that "crinkley, smiley, eye thing". Why is it that wrinkley eyes are just endearing on men? Oh well. Mommie isn't exactly thrilled about the getting older bit, but it sure does beat the only other possible option. So, Mommie just figured out she might as well just keep laughing and enjoying life, and maybe people won't notice the road map of life that has started showing up on her face. So, here's to all the wrinkley, smiley eyed women out there....may you stay FOREVER YOUNG! 

SONG OF THE DAY...."Forever Young" by BOB DYLAN

Mommie's Turn

Hey everybody, and thank you Freddie Girl for letting me tell people why we haven't been around for awhile. Well, you see the picture above? That is why I haven't gotten much done for the last couple of months. His name is Oliver and he was born August 30th last year. He is a Cockapoo, part cocker spaniel, part poodle. I had a poodle growing up and Freddie Girl was a cocker spaniel. I thought...they were both great dogs, so let's just combine the breeds. They were both girls and Oliver is a boy...I had been warned that having a boy would be a totally different experience, yet loving and rewarding. I didn't realize how much work he would be. Let's just say he was "born to be wild"!  And THAT he is....WILD, but very, very sweet at the same time.  It's been a long time since I had a puppy, and I don't recall Freddie Girl being so full of energy.  Don't get me wrong, she had her moments, but Oliver, WHEW!  He is five months old now and calming down a little, and the baby teeth are falling out.  Boy are they sharp, Chicago Cutlery would be envious. I thought about asking Dr. Josh if he could just pull them all and let me bottle feed him until the new ones came in.  He didn't quite go for that idea.  Pair that with the endless energy, and sometimes he just looks like a "BOUNCING BALL OF TEETH"!  Oliver, of course like all puppies, is really into chewing, but he gets so passionate about it, his chewing turns into bites.  But he is a HAPPY BITER, not a vicious biter.   He is so excited just to be alive he wants to SINK HIS TEETH INTO EVERYTHING!  Mostly me, I am his favorite chew toy!  We have been going to "puppy school", really to TEACH ME!  What worked for Freddie Girl doesn't necessarily work for Oliver.  They tell me Oliver is really smart and he has the makings of a PERFECT DOG....if I can survive puppyhood!  

I don't mean to sound like I am complaining, I LOVE HIM more and more every day!  I knew I needed a dog that would be sweet like Freddie Girl, but different...so I wouldn't feel like I was replacing her.  I knew that when I did get another dog, he would be the PERFECT DOG for me.  And that is what Oliver is!  I am really looking forward to him growing old with me.  When he isn't being wild, he likes to cuddle and when he looks up at me with those adoring eyes, my heart melts.....and then he bites my nose!

So....that is pretty much what I have been up to for the last couple of months, and also why the blog suddenly went missing.  I've heard this from other dog owners, and it's probably not a really good excuse, but Oliver can't stand for me to be on the computer or the phone.  He usually gets incarcerated in his crate while I have to be on one of them....but I am what most people call a "softy".  So until I become one with a cold, cold, heart and make him stay in there until I get things done....I have been coming to Starbucks every day to get the blog back up and running.  Say what you will about Starbucks, but MY STARBUCKS is the best one in the world.  I have made some really good friends with the people that work there and with my neighbors who come in for their daily caffeine fix....and I appreciate them for letting me come and spend my time with them.

Okay, like Freddie Girl told you, we're working on a system to bring something to you on a pretty regular basis.  If you are reading this, we sure would love it if you could tell some of your friends about us, and then maybe they could tell some friends, and so on and so forth.   Freddie Girl helped me pick out a couple of "songs of the day" to welcome Oliver, and the "Theme From Cheers" is for my friends that work at Starbucks.  I always wanted a place around the corner like Cheers where everybody knows my name.  And now I do....I even have my little table, next to the electrical outlet, where I can hopefully get some blogging done.  Just call me "Norm"!

Oh, and for those of you that have inquired about whether Oliver will become a part of the "it's Freddie Girl" comic strip....I don't think so.  Freddie Girl's comic strip will continue to deal with Mommie, Dr. Josh, Preston & Ogelthorpe, Sebastian, and a lot of new friends...and of course her "Music Hound" career.  Oliver deserves his own comic strip...he is already hilarious.  So someday, Oliver will be the star of his OWN comic.

Thanks for listening and reading....and now, your songs of the day!  Love, MOMMIE 

SONGS OF THE DAY....

 "Bouncing Around the Room" by PHISH ..."Crazy In Love" by SWITCHFOOT.... "Theme from Cheers" by SOUTH

Sneakin' Back In...Part 2

Hey....everybody say "Yay"!  Did you say it?  Okay, I'm sayin' Yay 'cause I'm actually doing another post like I said I would.   Mommie's will come tomorrow because I have more to say from yesterday's....and the blog is called "it's Freddie Girl" not "Mommie's Blog"!

Well, first of all I forgot to say that I hope you all had a happy holiday season, since I kind of disappeared for it.   And also, kudos to everybody that voted in the Presidential election, and for those of you that didn't....I'm sure you had a good reason not to, like maybe you weren't old enough or lots of other stuff.  I kind of left you guys saying that when it comes to politics I'm a "watcher" not a "doer", but that was just about running for office...not voting.  I, of course, had a good reason not to vote....well, I'm a dog, and they wouldn't  let me.  Now that things have changed maybe it won't be too long before I can vote too!  We can always hope, right?

Now...I just wanted to do a little "music hounding" about why I picked the song "You Get What You Give" by the New Radicals for our first song of the year.  When we listened to the words, they inspired Mommie and me to really work hard this year to chase our dreams.  The first line of the song is "Wake up kids, we've got the dreamer's disease"....which if you've got to have a disease, that's not a bad one to have, I think.

It goes on and here are some more of the lyrics to the song:

But when the night is falling

And you cannot find the light

If you feel your dream is dying 

HOLD TIGHT

You've got the music in you

Don't let go

You've got the music in you

One dance left

This world is gonna pull through

Don't give up

You've got a reason to live

Can't forget

We only get what we give

There's a couple of more phrases but I'll give you the ones that hit me more and made me think....

But when the night is falling

And you cannot find a friend

You feel your tree is breaking

Just bend

Don't let go

I feel the music in you

Fly high

What's real can't die

You only get what you give

Don't let go

One dance left

It's a cool song and it just motivated me to get started back on our blog.  We only get what we give...it wasn't getting done with us just sitting around.   And when it seems like the world is about to fall apart, just go with the flow and ride it through.  Everything will be okay.   Don't let go, I feel the music in you....music just helps Mommie and me get through the day...and we are going to share a lot of music with all of you with our "song of the day".  

We didn't know that much about the NEW RADICALS other than they sang this song we liked so we did a little research.  Well, it turns out that the group that made this great song that made Mommie and me get up and continue to "reach for the stars" is what they call a "ONE HIT WONDER"! Pretty ironic, huh?  But, I guess they did catch their dreams with this one great song, and then maybe it wasn't fun for them anymore.  So, when they call you a "one hit wonder" and talk about you like you are failure after that...you shouldn't jump to those conclusions.  You can have lots of dreams, and if you achieve one of those goals, and then find out that's not the dream that makes you happy...it's okay to move onto another.   Maybe the REAL DREAM is to just be HAPPY!

Thanks for listening...Mommie will be on call tomorrow with some explanations as to why we have been missing in action for awhile.  Have a good weekend, love, Freddie Girl

Sneakin' Back In

Yeah, sorry I haven't been around much....like I said, I'll let Mommie take the heat for that one. I'm sayin' this like there is actually somebody around to be tellin' it to. But if there IS SOMEBODY out there please tell your friends we are back and we are gonna try really hard to have something everyday. Even if it is just a new song every day...THAT we are definitely planning. I'm really into music too, so I'm planning on doing a lot of MUSIC HOUND columns for you. I've got a lot I want to fill you in on. Maybe I can turn some of you onto some new artists you don't know about. We have a lot of stories to tell you, so there will be lots more Dr. Josh, Preston & Ogelthorpe, Sebastian and a whole slew of new buddies you will meet. So hang in there with us...we want to be a FUN part of your day...EVERYDAY! Thanks a bunch, love, Freddie Girl!

SONG OF THE DAY:  "You Get What You Give" by the NEW RADICALS