I am a fiction writer trying to learn how to write memoir, in small manageable bites. My dog, Cricket, is small and she bites, so I thought she could help.
Cricket is a fourteen pound Cockapoo (cocker spaniel/poodle mix), born on July 13th 2007. She has a strong grasp of the english language, when she wants to. But, most important, she is my social bridge. In the real world, she drags me outside to meet my neighbors, and random strangers with dogs who smell interesting. I’m hoping she can act as my social bridge online, as well, despite the lack of obvious smell.
update: We added Butterfly to the family on November 20th 2012. She was rescued from a puppy mill at eight years old and has added years to the life of this blog.
Butterfly before her bath
update: Miss Butterfly died at age 12 and 3/4, after almost five years of wonderfulness. It took us a year to find a new dog to keep Cricket company, but I’m pretty sure Butterfly found Ellie for us. Ellie came to us in July of 2018, a five year old Havanese, recently retired from a breeder.
I recently self published my first novel, Yeshiva Girl, with Amazon. Please check it out!
You can reach me at: cricketpages@earthlink.net
rachelmankowitz 
I love your dogs! (My dog, Oscar, is a cockapoo, too.) Thanks for visiting the Jenn stories. Hope you’ll stop by again!
I think Cockapoos are planning to take over the universe. I try to get Cricket to tell me their plans, but she’s keeping mum.
That’s pretty uncooperative of her. But I agree–although my husband would probably head up the resistance. He prefers bigger, manlier dogs . . .
Thanks for visiting the Cats et al, Rachel. We wish you, Cricket, and Butterfly smooth sailing across the Wine Dark Seas.
Rachel: The Rescued Cats and I wish you, Cricket, Butterfly and you smooth sailing across the Wine Dark Seas.
Thank you!
Thanks for stopping by my new blog! I am a freelance writer who pens online informational articles about pets, gardening, parenting and health among other topics. Enjoying your posts, as well! Love your pups. 🙂
Thank you!
Thanks for liking “dog licking” and for sharing the picture of you and your beautiful canine companion. BEST TO YOU BOTH.
Thank you!
Glad you liked “lung shocking.” Thank you. I see those cigarettes for sale at a kiosk in the shopping center and wonder how they taste.I never liked tobacco. Have a great day!
There’s a commercial for them on TV, with an actor trying to make it all look cool. Well, he tried.
Hi Rachel, Thank you for stopping by my blog, reading and even liking some of it. I’ve only started my blog 17 days ago. English is not my first language, but I’ve decided to write one piece in English for the blog every day for the next 2 years. That way I should get better at it, right?
I love the way you write and the piece about your dogs last time had me in tears.
Thank you so much! A blog a day for two years? Your English will be better than most people born to the language. Good Luck!
It was the cockapoo, wasn’t it? Thanks for liking my blog, I like yours too. I’m working on a memoir.
It’s all about the Cockapoos, clearly.
Hello! I’ve nominated you for the ‘Versatile Blogger Award’ …I think you have more than earned it! To accept it, all you need to do is visit this post on my blog http://wp.me/p3EeAS-cd and follow the rules, which are easy enough. If you’re not into awards, that’s fine too! Congrats!
Thank you!
I’ve been really enjoying your blog. You manage to put your super cute dogs to good literary use without being too cutesy or sentimental.
Connie
Thank you very much!
nice looking dogs. I will defintely be following as domestic packs could learn from each other 🙂
good to see you!
Good luck with writing memoir. I recently wrote one about my deceased father and am still editing and making a few additions. It was and still is an amazing journey to revisit my wonderful memories of him. Cute dog!
Thank you! Congratulations on the memoir, too.
Rachel, I wanted to say hi and thank you for “liking” one of my posts on my brand-new blog “My Rescued Pups.” You are the first “like” for me, and it feels great!
I am really enjoying your blog. Your posts are fun and easy to read, but also compelling. I hope I can learn to write as well as you.
I am adding your blog to blogs I follow, as soon as I can figure out how. 🙂
Jan
Thank you so much!
Hi,Rachel! Thanks for liking my video Bestfriends “Then & Now” . We do have something in common… we love our dogs. It’s so nice to know we are many. 😉
Cherry Rose 🙂
It’s wonderful! Thanks for coming by!
Thank you for liking my new website my friend who done it for me said you must have found it more or less just as she put it live , spooky or what , dogs should rule the world as they are kind loving beings who only ever want to please and love us , you are the best you rescue dogs they are so gratfull for being given a chance of a normal loving home , puppy mills are abhorent places and should be shut down no ifs, buts, or maybes . I did laugh about Cricket taking you for a walk , i used to train dogs when i lived in the UK the thing about dogs is you must let them know that you are the pack leader , and don’t ask them but tell them what you want them to do , try it , it does work and use you voice and eyes , when you look at your dog with your eyes make sure you never look away first as that means the dog has won you must make sure the dog looks away first , they might be muttering under there breath at you but hey ho , lol
Cricket likes to have staring contests with me, but she never wins. She ends up looking off to the side, as if that’s what she meant to do all along. She acts tough, but she’s really a softy.
That sounds about right , dogs are only what people make them
I wonder if it works the other way too. Am I days away from being a zen Lhasa Apso? Please?!
Hi, Rachel. Thanks for reading Rich Rancher’s Ways. For some reason, several of the edits/corrections I made were not acted upon by WordPress software. I ‘think’ they are fixed now. Should make reading a little less bumpy. Take care now!
I thought your choice of Rich Rancher picture was hysterical.
Rachel, love the Cricket Pages. Following!
Thank you!
Cricket is one adorable dog! Thank you for liking my blog.
Thanks for coming by!
She’s adorable! I have a cocker spaniel but she is also a mix. And thanks for checking out my blog.
Thank you! And you’re welcome!
I love my animals! Thanks for stopping by to see my blog. It’s been a big adventure, for sure!
What will today bring? I can’t wait!
Sounds great!
Thanks for visiting! Your dogs look super happy. Why is it that dogs are in puppy mills for 8 years? There was a rescue dog that I wanted to get (but we ended up with Loki) who was also 8 and from a puppy mill and it confused me. I will have to do some research on puppy mills, I think.
Thanks for coming by! Puppy mills are a scary business. Butterfly was still swollen from her last litter when we took her home, about a month after she was rescued from the puppy mill. They got as many puppies out of her as they could. It makes my skin crawl.
Hey Rachel! I think you’re one inspirational chica, so I nominated you for The Most Inspirational Blogger Award. I know life is busy, so accept it only if you want to. Even if you don’t accept, you deserve it girlfriend! Here’s the link: http://honkifyourevegan.com/2013/08/23/i-hit-the-jackpot/
Have a great weekend! Celeste 🙂
Thank you so much!
Love Cricket..my cocker Spaniel Nelson says hi..I have a picture of him..In my blog..furry kids..nice work..I am sorta new at writing..my dad was a writer for the Wall Street journal so i definetly have good genes for writing..I am also looking to be published and maybe freelance..I’m also a crafter and was a pet sitter for 18 yrs until I got stage 4 cancer..but it gives me a chance to explore new ventures..
Stage four cancer?! I hope you’re all right now. Good luck with the writing!
Thanks..I am good..it definetly teaches you about yourself..life..what’s important and what isn’t.. 🙂
Thanks for checking out my poetry!
You’re welcome, and thanks for the return visit!
Rachel,
Thanks for the like, so encouraging for someone new to blogging. Technology can be daunting for an old dinosaur like me, but I am willing myself to learn. I’ve been writing a gardening column for our local town newsletter for years, but never ventured further. It is a brave new world! Your blog on Dogtown hit a familiar note with me with regard to shelter volunteering, they do make you jump through hoops! Two training sessions to find out I can’t walk dogs unless I can control a hundred pound runaway (who could really?)! I don’t imagine many football players volunteer! Ah, the litigious world we live in. Great writing, enjoyed my visit. Hope we can visit again!
Thank you so much for coming by. Clearly I need to start practicing my big-dog handling skills. My doggy niece is a sixty pound black lab, so maybe I should start with her, and work my way up.
Ok you have me hook, line, and sinker! You’re a dog person and I absolutely love and adore dogs! Especially my kiddo! Bailey Anne is stubborn and strong willed (unless mom has a treat! haha) 9 year old Alaskan Malamute that is my only child! I saved her from being left in a walmart parking lot along with her last little brother when they were just babies. The owners were just going to leave them there if they were not all taken by the time they were ready to go. I was not about to have that for a hot second. Her brother was taken as well. I stayed to make sure.
I absolutely love the way you incorporated Cricket and Butterfly into your writings! I think our kiddos can be such inspirations for us! I am a photographer and even though I don’t do much pet photography, I do make it a habit to do Bailey’s seasonal pictures as well as just chase her around the house with my camera when I am bored (which is very often, you can tell by the faces she give me!) I love your blog so far and look forward to more stories! I hope Cricket and Butterfly bring you many more days of happiness and love!!
Thank you! The girls get offended when I try to write about something other than them, especially Cricket. cricket will climb on me and push my notebooks away with her paw, and she packs a punch with those paws. She used to chew on my pens, but she decided they were not the right flavor.
Hi Rachel, I love your style and your humor, so I’ve nominated your blog for the One Lovely Blog Award.
Thank you so much!
So… I guess you like dogs? Haha. Great blog. Amusing and warming.
I am a dog addict. I totally admit it.
Hi Rachel!
Great blog! I’m officially a Cricket fan! Keep it up!
-Andrew
Thank you so much!
Thanks for the like on my blog. I have to say hope you get all the rewards from your rescue dog Butterfly as we have from our brilliant pooch. Cheers for the visit. MM 🍀
Thank you. Butterfly has been everything I hoped for and more than I could have imagined.
Cricket’s adorable. And, I adore dogs. Paulette
Thank you!
Hi Rachel (and Cricket and Butterfly). Thank you for liking my post and leading me to your delightful blog 🙂
Thank you for coming by!
Rachel,
Thank you for visiting and reading my blog! I’m just starting out and appreciate it more than you know. Cricket and Butterfly are precious, and you’re a woman after my own heart!! I’m trying to do my part to give these wonderful animals that people throw away, use and abuse a home and you’re right on too!!! I look forward to getting to know you!!
Thank you! I look at the girls every once in a while (every few hours?) and think, are they really mine? I feel very lucky, when I’m not grumping at them about something.
Those two pups are adorable. I can only imagine how they keep you running!
Butterfly has taught me to let go of her leash when she’s ready to gallop. Cricket has taught me to hold on for dear life so she won’t run after and kill our neighbors.
🙂
Thank you for dropping by my blog. i’m really enjoying yours 😀
Thank you for coming by!
I can’t imagine not having my babies to talk to! It tempers answering the same questions for my Mom over and over! 🙂 And they provide her with a lot of hands on love too.
Dogs are very good at delivering the Oxytocin when we need it. Though Cricket thinks she needs to break skin to do the job right.
Hi Rachel, thank you for taking the time to visit my blog.
Thank you for the return visit!
Loved your blog, it’s the first time I heard the word Cockapoo! Thanks for liking my post on Sofluffeh.com! Please tell your friends, share liberally and come back often!
Thanks for the return visit!
This is the sweetest blog! I’ve always had small dogs myself and many rescues!!
Thank you!
She’s right Rachel, and I am a total sucker for someone as doggie/animal loving as me!! Thank you for reading my blog Rachel….ur a peach!!
Thank you!
Rachel, I nominated you for a Shine On Award. http://reviewbooksandmore.com/2013/09/23/shine-on-award/
Thank you so much!
Great blog
Thank you!
I definitely enjoy reading about your Cricket and Butterfly Rachel! My babies are the most entertaining thing in my life right now…how pitiful am I?? LOL!! Cheryl
Visit my Caregiver Extraordinaire’s blog attakecarecher.wordpress.com
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Thanks for stopping by my blog! Your dogs are so cute ;). I am in the same boat as you that my dogs drag me out to be more social… I’ve met many friends and neighbors because of them!
That’s great! Thanks for visiting.
Rachel, your blog is beautifully crafted and inspirationally written. I just spent the entire morning and a good chuck of the afternoon reading ALL of your blog posts. I reached the very last post and lamented that there was no more to read! I can connect so well with most everything you’ve experienced. I really enjoyed reading your blog and can’t wait to see more! Thank you for sharing!
– Amethyst
Wow! Thank you so much. I’ll have to hurry up and post something new.
I just posted bios about my two doggies if you’re interested. Each has their own page. You’ve inspired me to share more about my dogs! It was your blog that inspired me to create the two pages!
That’s great!
Hi, Thanks for stopping by my blog recently. I see we have small dogs in common. Yours are adorable and mine is now out of the dreaded cone. Now if I can get her sleeping back on her bed, we’ll all be good!
My girls are fine with sleeping in their beds, as long as they can also sleep under the beds and on the couches and on the people beds and…
Hello, I am happy to announce that I have nominated you for the Liebster Award!
You can read about it on my blog at http://smukkecirsten.wordpress.com/
Thank you!
HI Rachel! It’s Rachel lol from My Kid Has Paws. I just wanted to stop by and say thank you for all the support you have given me in the past few months. I really appreciate you stopping by and liking my posts, it means a lot, and I hope you know that I enjoy reading yours as well. Have a great day!
You have a great day too!
Thanks for stopping by our blog, ‘Another Couple’s Blog’! Your dog is super cute! I wonder if she’s as mischievous as my girlfriends dog..? 😛
Cricket believes she is fighting for the rights of dogs everywhere. She would wear a cape and carry a megaphone if she could.
Lovely dogs.
I don’t have a Cockerpoo, I always called them Cockerdoodles lol, I’ve got 1 shepherd retriever cross and a type of stock guardian dog.
Thanks for visiting my blog.
Thanks for coming by!