Speak, Franklin!

Hi everyone! My big sister Lola says that it was one month ago today, August 10th that my unfortunate incarceration ended and I joined the family. She also says I should write this post (almost) all by myself to thank  you all for your very nice and kind welcome to me and also for being so supportive through my name changes. I do thank you really a lot. You are all  so nice and friendly and I'm real happy to meet you all. I did want to say that, but I really didn't know what else to write about. My Big Sis said that I should talk about my Gotcha Day from my point of view, so I will. I pretty much always do what she tells me. More or less.

I'm going to let you write on my blog. Please don't embarrass me.

  It was a dark and stormy day when the lady came to meet me. I'd been on the inside for over three months for the crime of having a family that was moving and couldn't keep me. OK, I know that other dogs have it a lot worse than I ever did. I don't want to be a whiner, but it still wasn't a very cool experience, you know? I do have to admit that the warden and the matrons were pretty chill peeps. They looked out for us and everything and we got time in the exercise yard  every day. Also my family couldn't provide some important medical care  that I needed and I did get that while I was on the inside. I was going out of my mind, spending so much time in that little cell, though. And that's why I could have blown the whole deal.

A month ago today I was just hanging out in my cell when one of the matrons came and told me I had company. It was the first visitor I'd had and I didn't have any idea that this was like an important interview or anything. I was just excited to be out of the cell and to meet a new person because I really like people a lot. Matron brought me into this room  where this lady was waiting and I went all crack dog.  I ran around the room - stopping to say hi to the lady every so often - like I had a firecracker up my butt. And I lifted my leg and marked everything  that wasn't moving about every 5 seconds. I'm sooo embarrassed thinking about it now. After a few minutes of this the lady left and I went back to my cell and I figured that was that. But it wasn't.

An hour or so later the same matron put a leash on me and took me outside in the pouring rain. This was getting to be a pretty strange day. Now I'm a Shar Pei and I don't usually like to go out in the rain at all, but I didn't even care. That's how desperate a dog can get for a change of pace when he's incarcerated. We were out in front of the jailhouse and that same lady got out of a car, but she wasn't alone this time. There was another lady and a beautiful lady Shar Pei with her. I was so excited to meet this Shar Pei. I don't know if she was all that thrilled. I mean, it was raining a lot. We spent some time getting to know each other. Well, really I was mostly telling her how pleased I was to meet her and she was mostly trying to stay as dry as she could, but it was still a big thrill for me. After a while I got taken back inside again and I was planning on a nap and maybe dreaming of that lady Pei, but I didn't go back to my cell. Instead, one of the ladies came inside and spent some time with the warden and then she took me outside and we got into the car. The car with the beautiful Pei.  Wowser! I did not see that coming.

I finally figured out that this was something important. This could mean I was getting what I wanted most in the world - a new pack with a pawsome big sister. It seemed too good to be true, but I didn't want to make any more mistakes. I sat real nice in the back seat of the car and just looked out the window, all casual, like this happened all the time. We got to a house and went inside and I made a point of not even looking like I was thinking of lifting a leg. And I never have. Not once. I understand "house". That room in the jail just wasn't part of a house to me.  I haven't had a really bad day since. I have two Moms, a Dad a human brother and a bass player. What more could a dog want?

I love our big back yard, but I love my Big Sis more than anything.

 My wonderful big sister Lola started teaching me things right away. The very  first life lesson she taught me was never, ever try to mount your sister, even if you're not blood relatives. Hoo boy, I never made that mistake again. She also taught me how to play and also that we play when she says we do and it's not such a great idea to try to insist when she's not feeling like it. She feels like it a lot more now than when I first got there. I guess 'cause I learned how to do it right.

Big Sis introduced me to our pawsome neighbor, Sambuca

 She's still working on me and she can be pretty strict about some things, but I don't mind that. She's so much older  wiser and more experienced than I am that I don't mind at all that she's the boss of me. Actually, everyone's the boss of me, almost. That's not so bad, though. Everyone's kind and they love me so it just makes me feel safe and taken care of.

Another thing that Lola taught me is about dog beds. I didn't know that dogs could have beds or that we needed them. Turns out they're pretty great. I have more to talk about, but it's time for me to be in my bed right now. Maybe if I didn't embarrass her too much, Lola will let me do this again some time.

Night night everybuddy.