Saturday, October 13, 2007

you know what i mean

I decided to be brave and drive today instead of taking the Skytrain. We went to Granville Island for breakfast and then wandered around the market chasing BabyC as she tried various ways to escape her controlling supervisors. It's not surprising children are frustrated by how slowly we move, how many exciting things we don't stop and change direction for, and how many times we say "don't" and "no" and "stop" throughout the course of a day. I'm sure C's mother would have been delighted by her granddaughter if not by her son-in-law. But who knows, she may have found him entertaining too. It was a nice morning.

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Meanwhile Shawn supervised the installation of the security system (the one that protects our dogs... yes, our dogs). Then we drove to Whiterock to buy dog food. I need to start bringing the camera with me more often. There are so many beautiful things to see right around here.


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This morning, at 7:30am, which is when I woke up thanks to some rotten canines, I was looking online for area rugs to put on the hardwood floors (that is, when we finally get around to installing the hardwood floors) when I found what I think will be a perfect solution to our problem.

Our problem is that we have many areas that need rugs, and rugs of various shapes and sizes to fit in the strange places they are needed. For example, a rug at the bottom of a flight of stairs is a necessity with these dogs who think they can fly to prevent them from wiping out when they hit the bottom. Rugs are needed anywhere animals like to leap off furniture.

At the same time, I've regretted having to buy area rugs because I like the bare floors and I especially HATE it that our dogs occasionally get confused and pee on carpet.

Anyway, the magical solution I found is Flor Tiles, a sort of carpet, sort of tile thing that fits together like tiles but is soft like carpet. Therefore, it can cushion crazy leaping dogs while still being able to come apart to be washed or even to have sections replaced. According to the website, tiles can be pulled out of a section and washed in the sink, then returned to their former spot when dry. I LOVE that. Allegedly, these are un-stain-able and won't absorb anything. And yet they are soft like real carpet. Miraculous. Not only that, but the company is environmentally responsible. I think this is wonderful. The only problem, of course, is that they'll only ship to the U.S., so I need to call and speak to an operator in person to beg them to send things to me here. I hope they can be convinced.


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