Dickens’s Dogs

My mother, the writer Joan Kane Nichols, has a longstanding interest in Charles Dickens. This past Saturday she gave a talk at the Dickens Fellowship in Philadelphia where she discussed in great detail how dogs influenced his life and work. I attended and learned a lot, including that King Charles spaniels were once bred with pugs to shorten their snouts. Who knew?

For the next several weeks, she’ll be posting more info about Dickens and his dogs on her blog, Dickens: women, children, and dogs. The first post, about his faithful dog Turk (pictured above), is already up, so wander over and take a gander.

Wedding Blues

A lot of excitement for Pablo this past week. K and I were married on Sunday at the historic Powell House in Philadelphia, and before and after the happy event guests had been streaming in and out of the house. We would have loved for Pablo to be in the wedding party, but sadly dogs are not allowed inside historical landmarks–another in a long list of discriminations against our furry friends. So while we were off celebrating, Pablo stayed home with the cats. Before we left, he did agree to pose with the wedding bouquet, but he was not a happy camper.

Although our ceremony and reception were pug-free, we did sneak our favorite dog into the festivities. Take a look at our wedding invitation!

Goodbye, E!

Pablo’s big sister, E, came to visit us for a few days. E was on break from grad school classes that she takes at a interior design college in NYC. She gave me much needed interior design advice, which I promise to put into effect, and we toured Philly’s Antique Row together.

Pablo was sad to see his big sis go, as you can tell by his downcast face. E promised to visit again, especially when she found out that Bolt bus fares back to the city are between $10 and $15–a real deal. Come back soon, E, we miss you already!