Labradoodle & Goldendoodle Forum
I am on my high horse this morning again and as often happens when I am up there; I like to make sure everyone knows why I am sitting high. I am sure many of you have read the comments the CEO of a certain clothing retailer had to say about overweight teenage girls and the “not cool” crowd. Allegedly (see what I learned on Regis and Kelly), this guy does not feel these “uncool people or fat girls.” should be wearing their clothes and the largest pant’s size they carry is a size 10, according to the report I read. I am not sure who decided anything over a size 10 is fat, but this guy seems to believe it. Luckily, they still offer XL and XLL for men, just in case a big, strong athlete comes through their doors. Evidently, the CEO has not seen a female athlete before and must assume the over size 10 girls are home making desserts and trying to download their application to get on The Biggest Loser.
I am so mad about all this, I was going to write to him and tell him I was taking my business elsewhere and then I remembered I am too large to shop there anyways. Maybe I will just put my Muumuu on and stand outside one of the stores with my hundred pound dog and a sign that reads, “Your CEO is an XL ass!”
What does all this have to do with Doodles, you might ask, and I say plenty. This whole concept of perfection seems to me to be carried over in just about every aspect of life and who gets to decide who or what is perfect and who is not? I hate to always sound like an old fart, but I can remember our first couch we got when someone died in John’s family and we were able to choose something we wanted from her estate. I am not going to say there were no other takers, but I will say we didn’t have to fight off one of John’s brothers or sisters for our selection. Up until that time, our couch was a twin bed and when we first laid eyes on that lime green sofa, we just knew what item was going home with us. I decorated around it for years, was happy to have it, and hung on to it a long time before deeding it to a friend at work. Not once, did we ever say we wished it had been leather or stylish or any other color but lime green. We just were thankful to have something to sit on to watch TV.
One of my favorite shows to watch is House Hunters, but it never ceases to amaze me these young kids who walk into a house and want it to be perfect, if only it had granite countertops, an En Suite master bathroom, bigger closets, better paint colors, or hardwood floors. I doubt John and I will ever be able to unload our home on one of these kinds of buyers. What were we thinking when we walked into our current home painted every shade of purple imaginable, a loft closet, smallish bedrooms, and medieval lights? I will say the lighted coffin with a doily and plant on it in the foyer made me think twice, and had it not been for John pushing me to look again, I might have run screaming from the house never to return or at least, not without a priest.
Boy, I am glad I chose instead to look beyond the imperfections and imagine the possibilities.
My dogs are not perfect, either, and if you can find one perfect dog, person, husband, wife, friend, relative, or hero, please let me know, so I can get one, too. My not perfect husband accidentally forgot to put the leashes and prong collars back in the leash basket and instead took them to work with him the other day. My not perfect dogs do not understand, “I am going to kill your father when he gets home from work for taking your stuff with him and I think we won’t be able to go for a walk today,” so I had to improvise with what we had around the house. Luckily, I found a harness for Fudge, but the other one I had purchased optimistically in a size large for Vern would not go around his chest. I guess he couldn’t shop at that CEO's store, unless I could prove his girth size is due to lifting weights. For Vern, I found a half buried prong collar, which I did not think to try on before we left the house, and realized once we got to the park, it did not fit and was too small again to go around his XXL neck. The tightness did not seem to deter Vern, but it bothered me and I was afraid at some point it would knock him out and then I would have to drag him back to the car. I am in the process of creating a new training collar called the, and don’t try to say it all in one swift breath, HermanSprengerProngSpornVibratingHaltiheadorbodycollarWalkYourDogwihLoveInsteadof
Threats collar, and I figured when combined with a couple of shots of Nyquil administered before we leave the house, my Doodle Bull Moose and his prey driven sidekick should be walking like perfect companions in no time.
Who are you calling a Doodle Bull Moose and his prey driven sidekick?
If not, I am going to be really mad, because I thought these dogs were supposed to be perfect. Where do I go for a refund?
This need for perfection is one of the reason I think dogs end up homeless, because they often times cannot meet the unrealistic expectations of the people purchasing them. I have long since adapted my own personal motto of good enough to most aspects of my life and not because I don’t have goals and aspirations, but because striving for the unattainable perfection just makes life harder. Every time I serve my husband a home cooked meal, he gets to see my good enough culinary skills in action and if I ever write a cookbook, I am going with that title. My dogs are good enough, too. Neither is ever going to win a “Best in Show” award or even honorable mention in a “Best Listener” contest, but that is my fault, not theirs, because my good enough motto applies to dog training and dog grooming, too. With my bad attitude, no one has ever called me perfect and in fact, I seem to hear the opposite quite often from people I have given birth to and raised. This past week, I celebrated a birthday and Mother’s Day and the recent phone conversation with my oldest went something like this:
Me: I pushed you from my loins and you can’t send me a Mother’s Day card?
Daughter: I combined your Mother’s Day present and your Birthday present and you will be getting it before your birthday!
Me: Next year, I guess I will combine your birthday with Christmas and mail it all to you in April, since we are now combining celebrations!
Daughter: Mom, you are going to be pretty embarrassed about complaining when you see your great gift.
Me: It had better not be another homemade Macaroni necklace!
Daughter: Sometimes, you can be the worst mother. I gotta go, but I love you!
Me: Love you, too, but your sister is now my favorite!
See, no perfection in this family. Not even close. Not the people or the dogs.
In a roundabout way, I guess what I am trying to say is I find it disappointing when we talk about bullying in schools, and being kinder to others, that some CEO gets interviewed and in fact says that there are just some people more worthy than others, because they are more beautiful, more attractive, and thinner, and that’s just life. That’s a lot of pressure for a teenager who is trying to navigate the waters of life and find their way and self-worth. This is the next generation of child rearers and dog owners and if these kinds of messages are all they ever hear; nothing is ever going to be “good enough” for them. Maybe I am making too much of a small thing or pinning too much stuff on one guy, but that’s the good thing about being born in the U.S.A., I can voice my opinion and choose to shop at stores that support the same things I believe in and encourage others to do the same.
Comment
Charlotte, I agree and my dogs really are perfect for me, too. I wouldn't trade them for anything :) I hope Bo is not texting Vern. Vern is a very bad influence :) He was green all weekend from something he rolled in...I like to tell myself it was freshly mowed grass :)
Maryann, I see your memory is similar to mine :) Good enough is sooooooo much easier :) Thank you!!
Karen, I guess I missed my calling :) I like any sport where "skinny" is a dirty word :) Thank you!
DJ, Thank you! Yes, that donkey needs some dental work :)
F, PIP...I should adopt that same motto, but mine seems to be OIP (Over react if possible). But, really, I do count myself very lucky. I should have amended this blog to say....the closest I have ever been to perfection would be Calla and Luca :)
Linda, I will have to check that out!
Thanks, Deanna!
Carol, Thank you! Sometimes, I find myself yelling at the TV, "there are other counter tops besides granite!!" I like your "be thankful" translation.
Finding your self worth as a teenager is hard enough without having to worry about what designer clothes you fit into. They don't need a grown man telling them they're just not cool because his clothes don't fit them. As far as the dogs go, every one of mine over the years has been perfect for me. By the way, do you think Vern and Bo have been texting. For the first time since I adopted him he did the drop and roll in something very stinky the other day. I still can't get the smell out :-)
Somebody famous, I don't remember who, (so there goes perfection right away) once said no matter how smart, thin, wealthy, famous, or in Laurie's case in famous, there is always someone else who is smarter, thinner, wealthier.... you get the idea. Good enough is better than most and a lot easier.
It is better to love, laugh, be kind and giving, and enjoy life. Laurie is clearly good at that and so are doodles!
Bravo, Laurie. You hit the nail exactly on the head.
"This need for perfection is one of the reason I think dogs end up homeless, because they often times cannot meet the unrealistic expectations of the people purchasing them."
This blog also reminded me why I loved bodybuilding and still love bodybuilders. Nobody is a bigger perfectionist than a bodybuilder...the number of people with OCD in the average weight room is ten times that of the general public, lol...but the operative word there is "bigger". In bodybuilding circles, "skinny" is a dirty word.
Or as it says on my old gym bag:
The slimy green horse teeth are the best. I'm going to use them to bite the next person who even thinks that I am less than perfect. LOL. Great blog, Laurie.
This blog was...well...PERFECT!!!!
Lonnie, When my DD was working at a retail store the code for a shop lifter was "size 3". I think that this CEO is definitely a "size 3" stealing the strong self image of girls.
© 2025 Created by Adina P. Powered by
You need to be a member of DoodleKisses.com to add comments!
Join DoodleKisses.com