While the Visa Saga is currently waiting on our house selling, I figured why not embark on the adventure of taking our 2 dogs to Spain. But first introductions are in order! Pictured above are our 2 dogs Whiskey and Pendleton. They are opposites in every way and are quite the conversation piece when we go out! I haven't quite figured out which one I am, so I'm just doing what I do with my son! I attribute all their good qualities to me and all their bad qualities to their dog father, haha.
The Lovably Neurotic Chihuahua/ Evil Genius
Above, we have the 14lb chihuahua Pendleton. He is 7 years old and is the most co-dependent dog ever. In all fairness, we picked out Pendleton when he was 3 weeks old and weened him with a bottle. On top of that, my father had just passed away, and Johnny was working on the road. To say he was the answer to all my sadness is an understatement. We were told if you wean him, he will always think you are his mother, and I loved it! We got Pendleton in Pendleton, Oregon, hence the name. Even after living in San Diego my whole life, I failed to remember that it is also the name of a very famous military base. We have to explain the origin of his name to pretty much every person in San Diego County, haha. It goes like this.
"What's your dog's name?"
"Oh, it's Pendelton."
"Oh, like the military base? Are you in the military?"
(looking at us with admiration)
"No, we got him from Pendleton, Oregon, and I forgot about the base."
(looking at us like they are confused).
"Oh."
LITERALLY, EVERY, TIME... at least in Spain they will have no idea, so I guess we don't have to change his name
The Gentle Giant/ The Unintentional Evil Genius's Side-kick
3 years later, cue our next Dog Whiskey. So we named him Whiskey because of his coloring and because one of our favorite Whiskeys is Pendleton Whiskey, so we thought that was genius (ah, the thought process before kids, haha). Side-note, another great thing to explain while you're holding your baby! You might as well say, "Hi, we're alcoholics, obviously because we named our dogs after our favorite alcohol." We thought maybe Pendleton was lonely now that we moved into our house and should get him a friend. We saw Whiskey at a local adoption event, and we had to have him! We were warned multiple times that due to the size of his paws, he was going to be big, but heck, that's not a problem.
Fast-forward 4 months, we found out that we were pregnant (I mean, I was pregnant, we were going to have a baby)! A puppy and a baby, that's not too hard. However, the problem was that our little Whiskey was not so little anymore and pretty much was the cutest terror ever! He literally ripped up all of our irrigation in the backyard. We, on two separate occasions, had phone calls from neighbors about our backyard flooding. This wasn't a puppy; he was a giant! Wrestling a taller dog than you when he stands on his hind legs, is about 120lbs, and plays with you like he thinks he is the size of the Chihuahua, not so easy when you're 9 months pregnant. Present-day Whiskey is 4 years old and has been nicknamed the horse! We get stopped all the time and asked what he is, and in our research, our best guess is an Akita, German Shepard, Huskey mix. He literally sheds so much he has his own living room!
The Twist
Well, we got Whiskey to keep Pendleton company. Still, the chihuahua pretty much tolerates Whiskey and the baby because Pendelton thinks he is our first baby, like a jealous sibling, haha. We kept thinking maybe they just need more time, after 4 years we have given up and have accepted we will always be a family at war! One perk of Pendleton's disdain, while Whiskey was a puppy, the 14lb Alpha of the house put Whiskey in check so much he thinks he is small and that Pendleton is tougher than him. Whiskey is the sweetest, gentlest dog on the planet and is scared of pretty much anything bigger than Pendleton. As you can see, it is a comedy of errors when we all go out, and very entertaining for others.
So, in summary, we have Pendleton, the dog who is kind of an ass to every animal but himself and is so co-dependent he basically needs to live inside of you. On the opposite end, we have Whiskey, the timid giant who wants to love everyone but is either scared of them or scares them due to his size! To help you fully visualize this dynamic, I have compiled some frames of reference. Not sure if this is just an American television reference, but we call them Pinky and the Brain- Pendleton is definitely the brains in this operation. If my non-Americans do not get the reference, I will post a video for your viewing pleasure!
My other favorite reference that I have obviously spent way too much time thinking about is from Looney Tunes, the I'll Call Him George Monster. Whiskey would be the big lovable giant, while Pendelton is everything he squishes, aka in this clip Daffy Duck, haha. Again if you do not know what the Call Him, George Monster is, enjoy!
I swear I originally planned on this being a quick intro, but I feel like I really have to set the stage so you understand what is to come, mwahaha. In the next posts, I will actually get into the process. I hope you will enjoy our sister series to The Visa Saga, with new lovable characters, The Dog Saga!
---New York Times reports, "if you were biting your nails in the Visa Saga, hold on to your seat for what's to come!"
(I'm not sure I can legally joke about this, so they didn't really say that...Yet!)
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04/27/2021