fame hussy.

that freaking gertrude. she knows how to get recognized. if you had told me when i was looking for a furry friend that great danes get so much attention, i might have thought twice about my purchase. when i first got gerty, we would go on walks and i would be shocked when people would make comments about her. "whoa! is that a horse?" c'mon people. yes, she's big, but she looks nothing like a horse. it's difficult to go on a quick stroll with her because, on average, a dozen people will stop us and ask to pet her. which is great. i don't discourage this. it's good to expose a dog to lots of different people to properly socialize him/her. but. there is a downside. the days of throwing on sweats and running out the door without brushing my teeth are behind me. after all, you never know who you are going to run into.

such was the case yesterday. gerty's keen nose and my fried food spidey senses led us downtown holland for our daily walk. it was gorgeous outside and many people had flocked to 8th street to get their hands on a tulip time elephant ear. as gerty and i were walking down 8th street, a guy ran out of the building and asked if could pet gerty. of course i said yes. he proceeded to tell me that he was doing a photo shoot inside the building and was wondering if gerty and i would be in the photo shoot. ummmm, okay? so in we went. our mission: walk back and forth by a wall covered with chalkboard paint that had a cityscape drawn on it. at first gerty did great. but then she thought it was a game and started jumping all over the place like a fool. so typical. it turns out the photos are going to be used in an ad campaign for a furniture retailer. the guy took my email address and said he'd send me the pictures when the ad is complete. fingers crossed i don't become an identity theft victim.

i was also stopped by a news crew last summer when i was walking gerty. president obama was in town and channel 3 wanted to know what we thought of the spectacle. i guarantee i would not have been asked to comment if i did not have a 100 lb. maniac on the other end of the leash. my answer was ridiculous because i was distracted by my fear that the dog would pop a squat and produce a 4 lb. poo right in front of the camera. luckily, she behaved. for once.

gertrude, i love you. but the attention makes me nervous.

someone should probably break the news to her that normal dogs don't sit like this.