Aw, jeese, I hate you, GameSpot, I hate you... :(

Get the forums back, please, I beg of you. I haven't met a gaming community like this one before. I need it, I crave it, give, give, give! You lazy bastards!

But, I digress, let me bring you up as to the events that occurred the week it's been down, and I was unable to post.

Fall's here! I love fall, it's my favorite season. Beautiful colors, temperate weather, a gloomy, dark sort of atmosphere, especially in the woods. This is when I take the most walks in the woods, which are a mere short drive away. I grew up in the sticks, and I can't find myself gone too long from them lest I go mad.

So I went out on a big walk with my dog, Spooky, on one of the nearby trails. It went through the trees, then through a nice, dandelion-ridden bog, an overlook, then circled back to the start. It was...Amazing. Truly, picturesque, and I will be sure to bring a camera next time. It was just her and I, all alone out there, and it felt marvelous.

Times and events like these are when you truly bond with your dog. I really feel sorry for the people out there that live in the big cities and can't experience this with their dog(s). I could never live in a city. I'd go crazy. We have a strong bond, and is well trained by yours truly, so she was able to go off leash and run beside and in front of me.

I put her orange life-jacket vest and a large bell on her to protect her from the hunters in the woods. Archery season has begun around here. In gun season, though, I'll have to just walk on Sundays, when hunting isn't allowed. I have no problem with hunters, though, I'm one myself. I just haven't been able to lately due to money and time restrictions.

Times like this bring out the true bond between beast and man. Where you can look into an animals eyes and derive a certain spiritual link that only you can discern. They understand more than you could ever imagine, it's almost as though you are one. I was amazed how smart she was, how much in tune with the situation. She blazed the trail before me, knowing exactly where to go. If she went too far, behind or in front, or wandered off, my "come" whistle (a long whistle followed by two short ones.) brung her back at a blistering speed.

There was one particular incident, that she did, that really amazed me. We stumbled into the bog part of the trail, which was a bit muddy. She ran out into the flowers, and stood, and it was one of the most beautiful scenes I swear to you I've ever seen. My stunning tan-black-and white mutt standing in a large field of white dandelions with the sun illuminating the whole valley. Damn, I needed a camera, I won't make that mistake of not bringing one again.

Anyway, she stepped into a big mud pit, which made me yell. "Spooky, you damn pain in the ass! Look what you did!" I wasn't happy, my car would be muddied from here back.

You wanna know what that dog did? She looked up at me, with that knowing, intelligent expression, then took off across the dandilion field like her head was on fire and her ass was catch'in. She tore through it from left to right, like a race car, going in a loop. Then, she stepped out in front of me, looking right at me.

Her paws, which are white, were clean, without a speck of mud.

I clapped, laughed, then said. "Spooky, I applaud you, ****ing awesome, Spook, ****ing awesome...."

Okay, now, that's Hewie-level s*** there, people. That's smart, that's scary, and she rules. It just goes to show you, the smartest, best dogs are mutts, not those cookie-cuter purebreds. Who needs a pedigree when you have something healthy and unique? There's no other dog like mine in the world, and for that I am truly grateful.

I would kill for my dog, I would murder for my dog. I would do anything for her, and I would rip apart the person that would so much as touch her. The same thing goes for my cats and small animals, I may add.  In the same sense, I also expect her to protect me, which is why I only adopt dogs of the protective sort. Having a non-protective dog is like having a husband that doesn't defend your honor, and you call that a useless waste-of-space. That, she is not, not like some Yorkie or something. :P

When we reached the lookout point, which was a large stand with stairs made out of wood, it was one of those moments of reflection. You could see the whole bog, the whole valley of dandelions, the whole forest. She looked out over it with me, and it felt fantastic. And of course, her trying to walk up and down those big wooden steps was hilarious.

I plan to do it again, but go down another path, too. I'm going to buy her a dog saddle bag so that we can carry some food and other essentials, and go all day. Hopefully, sometime next week, if things go smoothly.

But, in other news, I finally saw the dentist last Tuesday. He took an X-ray, and tried to maneuver my jaw back into place. It was excruciating, as his thumb was hitting my wisdom teeth and pressing it, hard, so that it was bleeding and swelling, and it hurt like hell, I practically cried in anguish. Still, to no avail, he recommended an orthodontist, pretty much said I was f***ed, and charged me eighty dollars that I really couldn't afford, and that was that.

So, I went to that orthodontist, and he examined it, and pretty much just gave me some muscle relaxers, said it should loosen the muscles that are keeping by jaw locked like it was, said to eat soft foods, and that I should get this splint for 600$. I pretty much shook my head at that last one, told them I could barely affort the damn checkup and pills, and just see if this works.

So, yeah, I can still only open my mouth two finger wide. I was told to only eat soft foods, and I did the first day. But, it didn't last long. Sorry, Hazzy need her food. I can't live on yogurt and soups. Especially a carnally driven person like myself, that needs meat, meat, and more meat. Nothing satisfies me like pure animal flesh. :D

Well, the coming weeks should yield whether this thing gets better or not. I know I don't have 600$, I'd rather get surgery and be disfigured for the rest of my life then pay for some stupid splint that probably won't work anyway. Hey, scars are cool and sexy. They'd match the ones on my legs. ;)

I went to Pittsburgh yesterday, which is a good hundred miles from here, but I wanted to do something to get my mind off this bull****, so I went to the annual Pet Expo. I stopped at Monroeville along the way and did some shopping at the local pet stores and Petsmart, because we don't have any around here and there are some things you can only buy there, and it's worth the monthly trip. The Expo was fun, with a petting zoo (Llamas are fun! Whee!) and free stuff, what's not to love? I saw about a billion dogs, mostly boxers and pit bulls (awesome!), and I was amazed at how well behaved they all were. No fights, no disorder.

My old man had to come with me, because I don't know my way around the 'Burgh all that well. He was surprisingly well behaved, too, which is odd for him. He usually has to start some sort of trouble with me in one way or anther. Sometimes, just sometimes, my family cooperates, and we don't want to kill one another....Sometimes. ;)

All right, see you guys later, I plan to go on a big bike ride tomorrow with my pooch. Gotta make the most of the fall season, while it's here.