work ethnic

founded the summer before i started 5th grade. the summer we moved from living on main street to the farm house on beaston. the summer my brothers FINALLY let me play street hockey. the summer my youngest brother tripped me with his hockey stick causing me to fall into a parked car... the summer i started working for my mom, thinking she was the coolest person in the world for owning her very own dog grooming shop.


that was almost 10 years ago. going through endless not so successful dead end retail jobs i've fallen back into working at the same place i used to terrorize when i was a little girl. having a family business is really irritating sometimes, i can never call in sick days, my mom and i constantly disagree - but at the end of the day it serves its purpose. making me good money and keeping me occupied until i finish school. i'll graduate college this year with my associates in human services. so yes, i want to work with humans not animals. but one thing my mom and i have in common is our love for animals.

anyway before i go all sappy on you guys, i'll start with the major point of this update. i decided to cease the opportunity of owning a brand new camera to take a mini-tour around the place that started off as a little idea and ended up being the reason why my brothers and i ever had christmas.


THE LOBBY

or as we like to pretend the "sitting area" for clients. although nobody ever sits in that room - the shop used to be an old green house so it's very hot in the front room. you can see my little red car parked out front and to the left are some pictures i've been meaning to hang..

THE SHOP

or "grooming area" it's an odd little building but it works. it's full of mirrors and counters, there are two grooming tables, tons of cages (empty because it was 7 in the morning) and a huge bath tub where i wash all the pupps n purrs that come in


kitty kitty



pitbull mix puppy


i found this wedged between the door this morning when i opened up the shop, a woman wanting to reschedule her dogs appointment



the calender and the book, both are full until the end of october, my handwriting is something horrible, i'm constantly on the phone having to scribble down appointments


lunchtime reading material!


1. hydrogen peroxide, used for cleaning out dogs ears
2. a product called "quick stop" applied to a dogs nail in case you cut it too short
3. a metal comb, that hurts like hell if you accidentally hit your fingers on it
4. a dirty tooth brush used for cleaning out the hair that clogs up the clippers
5. nail filer for dogs nails
6. electric clippers
7. steel scissors
8. creepy doggy perfume
9. nail clippers
(not numbered - the weird surgical looking device next to the electric clippers is used to sharpen the scissors.)



and a washed out- got rained on - splashed on - very sleepy - exhausted looking me. note : the little dog in the background is mine, i bring him to work because he's a poodle and has separation anxiety (aka i have mothers guilt for leaving him alone at home all day.)

so that's a little idea of my life, not very exciting but it beats ringing up endless items at walgreens, or making snobby socker moms fat free low fat nothing but cucumbers on bread subs at subway. it's nice working with my mom and animals really make me happy simply because i never have to worry about my appearance, dogs like you just the same.