The Hobbit Hole XXX - Then world behind and home ahead...

http://freeper.the-hobbit-hole.net/ ^

[TalonDJ]

Just leaving work for the second time now. Good luck on the run! See you soon.

[Bear_in_RoseBear]

Yeah... I haven't kept the numbers current on the daily post count, but I have a feeling it's a lot lower than it was "back when".

[g'nad]

Theboy and thegirl will be doing the same thing on Mondays come October. The swim club here offers stroke refinement for two hours each Monday for $10 a month...works for me. It's important to be a good swimmer...you never know when you might need it.

Mrsnad

[SuziQ]

WooHoo for the doggie! I'm fixing to crash, though, so I'll have to see the pictures in the morning. Hope her first night in her new home is uneventful!

[RMDupree]

Sorry for the delay.

I got her home and then had to run back out to Petco for the necessaries. :-D

Introducing......Tricksey!

Here she is with Aly - for scale.

She's passed out now.

[RMDupree]

Here she is just before she went out cold.

[Corin Stormhands]

She's great!

[osagebowman]

What a great looking dog Tricksey is!! Love that smile she has in the first picture. Congratulations to all!! LSA

[300winmag]

I've been surfing, and found this DoD site, which is a clearing house for troop support activities. America Supports You.

While it's intended for non-profits, I submitted our group as a non-non-profit. I can't see any of the discussion boards because their webmaster, who has to approve new users, doesn't seem to be too prompt about doing his thing.

Still, I browsed the groups listed. They all provide some valuable form of support, although a lot are the "socks and snacks" items. Then there were the more serious groups dealing with injuries, bereavment, financial problems, etc.

I didn't see any group that came close to our mission, except for Operation Helmet. They're trying to provide improved helmet suspension systems to the troops. As taxpayers, we've already paid for, and produced, about a million sets. The number of retrofit kits seem to be quite scarce out in the field, however. There's a particularly nasty stink involving the Marine helmets.

All of that confirmed to me how unique our program is, and how shaky it is, too. That, in turn, led me to research what it would take to become a legit 501c3 non-profit.

Using the wonders of google, I came across The Foundation Group. It seems to be a legit organization that will do all the paperwork, and representation to the IRS, for a flat $950 fee. It's a "you get your 501c3, or you don't pay a dime" deal. You have to first be incorporated as a non-profit in your state, and they can do that for another $250.

This is $1200 that could have been used to buy knives (the new batch of 100 Camillus 904s cost $1400), but it could give us a gloss of legitimacy. It could also bring unwanted attention.

Guidance in this matter is greatly appreciated. Or, most likely, it might not make a damn bit of difference.

[osagebowman]

Welcome to the Hobbit Hole, Tricksey. We know you'll like it here, these folks have treats for us, they talk to and takes us for walks, they toss the ball for us and we each have our own bed. Gypsygirl

[RMDupree]

Mornin'. ~sip~

winmag - sounds like a good idea, but I too am concerned that it would instigate a barrage of new requests we aren't prepared to handle. I'm having trouble with my Paypal account for some reason, but we're going to the bank to get that stuff straightened out this weekend. :-/

In other news, Tricksey's first night passed without incident. She appears to be fully housebroken and knows "sit" and "lay down". And for some reason, she doesn't bark. An occasional "woof" at the neighbor dog and that's it. She needs to learn her new name, but she's smart as a whip, so it won't take long.

She is quite agile. She jumped up on our bed last night from a flat-footed stance on the floor. We didn't let her stay there though, much to her dismay. She's supposed to sleep with the girls! :-D

I'm a bit concerned about food aggression though. She's fine around regular dog food and biscuits, but I had to take a chewy bone away from her yesterday because she gave Aly a "look".

I gave her the bone and she promptly went off to find a place to hide it. She started to dig a hole for it and Aly came out of the house, to which Tricksey looked up and lowered her body and flattened her ears at Aly.

She didn't growl or bare teeth, but she was defensive - so Ramius and I are going to work with her on that.

My guess is that she hasn't had goodies very often, and doesn't realize that she will always get it back and that no one is going to take it away from her. That may be shelter behavior that will fade with time but regardless, it's a behavior that needs immediate attention.

Her only other hang-up is fear of riding in cars, but that's pretty common and will fade quickly. In no time at all we'll have to spell B-E-A-C-H around her. ;-)

[RMDupree]

*waves a paw at Gypsygirl*

I like it here just fine! My new family loves me so much and I slept like a log last night. What is this "beach" they speak of?

[JenB]

Glad you got her! Sounds like she is a wonderful addition to your family.

[Overtaxed]

Morning!

~sip~

I'd like to get the morning walk in but I'm hoping the rain will show up soon. 0.2" last night:)

Looks like Tricksey's settling in nicely for the most part. Miss Kitty pretty much sleeps wherever she wants.

Time for a second cuppa.

[HairOfTheDog]

Good morning.... My thought about becoming 'official' 501(c)3 is that it would add cost and hassle to what you and we do, without giving us any real benefits. I do have some experience with nonprofits though, if you want to talk about it more or again :~)

Ruthy, Tricksy looks sweet, look forward to meeting her today :~)

[RMDupree]

Thanks, Jen. I had almost talked myself out of it, but I'm so glad it worked out.

She's really wonderful.

[RMDupree]

I'm working on my second cuppa now. The girls woke up WAY too early.

I'm up at the same time I'd be up for work. Grrrr....

[osagebowman]

Morning, sip, might as well go for your walk, rain ~ seems ~ to be a ways off. We got 0.34 inches, slow rain, so it was a nice one. Hope for a bit more but we'll take whatever.

Saw barricades at the corner, won't be long before the street gets torn up, beep, beep, beep, sigh. Wish they would finish up ONE street before moving on to tear up the next one.

[RMDupree]

I'm looking forward to seeing ya, chica!

FWIW, Tricksey is fine around other dogs. Curious, but not bossy. She shouldn't have any trouble with Gidget or Homer.

Josie, on the other hand, is not going to like this turn of events. :-/

[RMDupree]

Tricksey's first snaig.