

Just wanted to take a second out and give you guys an update about what’s going on with me. I’m still getting emails and MySpace messages from you guys about Charlie and Seattle, and it just means the world to me that total strangers care so much.
I’m still in Seattle; I love it here. (Email today from friend: “You’re in Seattle!? OMG! how are you going to continue your rise as a D-list celebrity?”) I’ve made tons of friends at the RealNetworks office (and drank tons of their free sodas), and have been having a blast hanging out with my old LA pal Trish, her amazing boyfriend and their 120-pound Great Dane (Me: “Trish, your dog is at my goal weight.”)
And on the dog front: I now have a new pal. His name is Leo. He came from a wonderful rescue shelter in Yakima, Washington. I drove five hours round-trip for this dog! He’s a chihuahua/terrier mix and right now he weighs three pounds. He’s full of life, and I’ve had him for almost two weeks now and he still seems healthy as a horse, so I think I’m ready to introduce him to you all. No one can replace Charlie for me — he’ll always be in my heart, and I think about him daily — but I love Leo bunches and he’s been a wonderful companion.
I finally got up the nerve to call the pet store where I got Charlie and demand my money back. I was really scared about doing it; I was afraid they’d be totally rude, and blame me, and it would be really stressful and awful and just open up old wounds. They were actually less mean than I expected; they said Charlie was covered by a PAWS warranty, and that the money I spent on Charlie and my vet bills would be reimbursed. I still have to submit all the paperwork, and I’m not going to totally believe this until I actually have the check in my hand, but it’s a good start, because Charlie’s vet bills were thousands of dollars. I’m thinking I’ll donate most of the money to animal rescues and to help people who are struggling financially to cover their vet bills if their pets have to go through something like Charlie did. It was such a horrible experience, and I was so grateful through it all that I could at least afford the very best treatment for him. I want to be able to help families who are not so fortunate. I am open to recommendations for charities.
I’m going to stay in Seattle for the summer, maybe longer. The place I’m at now isn’t particularly pet-friendly (read: there’s a strict no-pets policy), so Leo and I are moving to a new apartment in South Lake Union in a week. The building has a huge deck on the top floor with lots of grass for dogs to run around, so Leo can go up there and make doggie buddies (once he’s had all his shots, of course). My kitties are coming up in the next month. They are going to be so excited to be on an airplane! (Heh, yeah right.) They’re gonna show up and be like, “Let me get this straight, Mom: You put us on an airplane, move us to a new city, a new apartment, a new climate, and, just for fun, there’s a fucking dog here now?” They are not going to speak to me for days, I’m sure.
Anyway, thanks again for all your concerns. The outpouring of comments, emails and MySpace messages has just meant so much to me. A reader even invited me to a birthday party in Seattle tonight! You guys rock so hard. Thank you.