Dharma

hi Janice and bob,

now that I have passed my first birthday i thought i would give you a report on me and thank you for giving me such a good start in life. as you can tell i have learned to type and use the computer, but the shift key is tough so i just use lower case.

i am told by many people that i am a very beautiful girl, and i am, i think i look a lot like my father. i have beautiful feathers and a long tail that looks like a plume. my dad threatens to trim it because i get a lot of stuff caught in it. i have enclosed a couple of photos of me, (i really should have my own website).

until it got cold i swam just about every day and i am really good at that. Lake Tahoe is only about 150 yards away from the house and there is a dog beach so it is very convenient. i love the snow, especially when it is fresh and i can burrow in it with my nose. i also like to run through it and act like a porpoise, i think that is how you spell it, you know like a sea mammal. my dad loves me a lot and is very good to me, so i make sure he gets his exercise. he seems to like flinging a tennis ball for me so we pretty much do that every day. i know to get it and bring it back to where he is, but it seems like he gets more exercise if i come back and hide in a bush or go to the top of a snow bank and let him come get it. that is a lot of fun. we also go on long hikes in the mountains behind the house. i also like snow shoeing, but sometimes get tired and let dad break the trail and step on the backs of his snow shoes, he really loves that.

my sister kate, who works for the international fund for animal welfare, ifaw, really loves me, but says i am a midget because i only weigh 54 lbs. and am on the small side for a golden. my vet however, says i am just perfect. a while ago i talked my dad out of that canned dog food and now i get my regular dry food with about four ounces of raw steak or roast beef every day. as you can see, dad is getting trained pretty well. one day my dad's girlfriend's dog and i got the whole roast off the counter, but got caught before we could get to have all we wanted.

as you can tell, life at lake tahoe is wonderful. my dad says i think the whole world revolves around me, but he is wrong. the whole world does revolve around me.

if you every get to north lake tahoe please give me a call, or email me, because i would love to see you.

please hug my mother and father and thank them for giving me such a good start.

love,

dharma