About

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

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.

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I recently self published my first novel, Yeshiva Girl, with Amazon. Please check it out!

You can reach me at: cricketpages@earthlink.net

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  1. JC's avatar JC | February 8, 2015 at 1:13 am

    Thank you for following my blog and also to your dogs!

    Reply
  2. shutterbugdancer's avatar shutterbugdancer | February 8, 2015 at 5:25 am

    Thank you for liking my blog about my Fluffy and Pippa! I’m reading through some of your blogs and they are so interesting! Thank you again! 🙂

    Reply
  3. JC's avatar JC | February 8, 2015 at 12:34 pm

    Thanks for reading and liking my post, ‘A Hawk at Blowing Rock’.

    Reply
  4. JC's avatar JC | February 10, 2015 at 12:23 pm

    Thanks for liking Quotes3… have a wonderful day!

    Reply
  5. My Uni Kitchen's avatar My Uni Kitchen | February 11, 2015 at 9:32 pm

    Thanks for the likes and support lately. I hope you enjoyed my stuff. Loving your dogs as well, theyre so cute! >.<

    Reply
  6. JC's avatar JC | February 12, 2015 at 7:39 pm

    Thanks for liking my post…Parkinson’s and the Mindfulness of Stress. Very much appreciated.

    Reply
  7. Rowena's avatar roweeee | February 13, 2015 at 5:11 am

    Hi Rachel,
    Just wanted to let you know that I’ve nominated you for the Very Inspiring Blogger Award. I have been touched by your stories of helping Butterfly and Cricket overcome their trials and tribulations. For further details, click here: https://beyondtheflow.wordpress.com/2015/02/13/accepting-the-very-inspiring-bloggers-award/
    By the way, I think you would enjoy the other blogs I’ve nominated although you know at least one of them xx Rowena

    Reply
  8. JC's avatar JC | February 14, 2015 at 1:56 pm

    Thanks for the like on Quote4. It is an odd quote and seems to reveal itself more and more every time I read it… Happy Valentine’s Day

    Reply
  9. heroesnpirates's avatar heroesnpirates | February 14, 2015 at 4:37 pm

    OMG she’s so cute in the “smell” photo!

    Reply
  10. JC's avatar JC | February 16, 2015 at 1:33 am

    Thanks for the ‘like’ on The Task!

    Reply
  11. JC's avatar JC | February 19, 2015 at 12:51 am

    Thanks for liking ‘In City Dreams’…

    Reply
  12. JC's avatar JC | February 21, 2015 at 5:52 pm

    Thank you so much!

    Reply
  13. nadinestorying's avatar Nadine Tomlinson | February 24, 2015 at 1:58 pm

    Thanks for stopping by my blog. Your pets are adorable.

    Reply
  14. JC's avatar JC | February 25, 2015 at 12:12 pm

    Thanks for the ‘like’ on Words in Flight! That rhymes…

    Reply
  15. JC's avatar JC | February 27, 2015 at 11:01 pm

    Thank you for liking Quote5…

    Reply
  16. Chris Sterry commenting's avatar 61chrissterry | March 1, 2015 at 3:54 pm

    Thank you for liking my post Social Workers should consider why a family owns a dog.

    Reply
  17. noplainjanie's avatar noplainjanie | March 5, 2015 at 2:25 am

    My dog totally understands Yiddish. She has no problem going back and firth from Yiddish to English!!

    Reply
  18. Sandy's avatar slb260 | March 5, 2015 at 2:06 pm

    Thanks for reading our blog today, and liking it. I can see you are also an avid dog lover. 🙂

    Reply
  19. JC's avatar JC | March 5, 2015 at 11:10 pm

    Thank you for reading and liking my post, Parkinson’s, the Starry nIght and Creativity.

    Reply
  20. JC's avatar JC | March 11, 2015 at 3:50 am

    Thanks for liking In Terms of Two!!

    Reply
  21. kaytisweetlandrasmussen83's avatar kaytisweetlandrasmussen83 | March 13, 2015 at 4:00 am

    Thanks Rachael, I’m glad you liked BOTH Liza blogs!

    Reply
  22. JC's avatar JC | March 14, 2015 at 12:32 pm

    Thanks for the ”like’… Quote6

    Reply
  23. One Stove's avatar One Stove | March 16, 2015 at 3:39 am

    Thank you for stopping by my blog. I enjoyed reading your post about Adult Bar and Bat Mitzvah.

    Reply
  24. JC's avatar JC | March 16, 2015 at 11:15 am

    Thanks for the like on ‘Listening to Bach!’

    Reply
  25. lkwatts67's avatar lkwatts67 | March 27, 2015 at 5:32 pm

    HI Rachel,
    I believe I have now liked every post there is to read until you post again. Keep writing! I love the pictures and stories; feel I know the pups as they remind me of my own Sophie.
    Linda

    Reply
  26. Admin's avatar Rea Kit | March 28, 2015 at 10:57 pm

    Hi! Thank you so much for liking my post! Hope you’ll enjoy my blog, too! Cricket is soooo cute! 🙂

    Reply
  27. tarynbarnes's avatar tarynbarnes | March 31, 2015 at 12:08 am

    Thanks for the like as it lead me to your awesome blog! Looking forward to reading it. Aren’t rescue dogs awesome? 🙂

    Reply
  28. Chava Gal-Or's avatar Chava Gal-Or | March 31, 2015 at 1:23 pm

    Thanks for liking my blog post on Little Miss Molly.

    I have only read a few of your posts, but it is awesome to find another blogger who finds joy in their dogs and loves to reflect on all of life.

    Looking forward to stopping by again!

    Reply
  29. Blue Aventurine's avatar Blue Aventurine | March 31, 2015 at 8:34 pm

    My husband and I are considering adopting a dog. The drawback is we live in a condo and I have allergies towards animals. We are going to talk seriously on the topic next month. Both agree having a dog in our lives will add to the love we already have.

    Reply
    • rachelmankowitz's avatar rachelmankowitz | March 31, 2015 at 11:31 pm

      I live in a coop and I’d say small dogs are the rule here, but not so small that you have to be afraid of squashing them. And Cricket is part poodle and supposedly hypoallergenic, mostly because she doesn’t shed. Poodle mixes and malteses and bichons and havanese, there are lots of great dogs that are good for allergy sufferers. Good luck!

      Reply
      • Blue Aventurine's avatar Blue Aventurine | April 1, 2015 at 1:05 am

        Thank you for the comments, greatly appreciated. We are going to visit the “hypoallergenic” dogs. Our place has a lot of steps and we will have to take into consideration the hight of their legs, ha!

  30. levitation parlour's avatar dennohO | April 7, 2015 at 1:57 pm

    Hey Rachel

    Thanks for liking my second post. you adore your pet am gonna get one soon.

    Reply
  31. My Uni Kitchen's avatar My Uni Kitchen | April 7, 2015 at 5:14 pm

    Hi Rachel, I just nominated you for the one lovely blog award. Pop over to my site (https://myunikitchen.wordpress.com/) to get the details.
    Ka

    Reply
  32. Nicky Zen's avatar RAN Farm Zen Goats | April 9, 2015 at 2:53 pm

    Good Day Rachel, I wanted to thank you for your support. Each time I post you take time to visit my blog, most times you are the only LIKE I receive. Your dedication to your dogs and mother are an inspiration to me. Keep up the writing and follow your passion. I would love to read a blog about your life as a Jewish Woman.
    Warmest regards, Nicole

    Reply
  33. Marmottan's avatar Marmottan | April 12, 2015 at 2:30 pm

    Glad you liked my post on the start of a search for my ideal dog. Please do not hesitate to give me advice, you clearly have a lot more experience than I!

    Reply
  34. PerfectingAsamPedas's avatar PerfectingAsamPedas | April 15, 2015 at 9:47 am

    Hello there, thanks for stopping by my blog and the like!

    Reply
  35. bclandrum57's avatar bclandrum57 | April 18, 2015 at 2:28 am

    Thank you for sharing your stories, I have enjoyed what I have read so far and will follow your site as you share more 🙂

    Reply
  36. barkingmoonpuppy's avatar barkingmoonpuppy | April 19, 2015 at 11:28 pm

    Thanks for the like … and I love your blog! 🙂

    Reply
  37. mommykens726's avatar mommykens726 | April 24, 2015 at 1:11 am

    Thanks for the likes on my blog! I love the way you write about your sweet babies. It’s hard not to smile when reading about them.

    Reply
  38. gemneralstuff43's avatar gemneralstuff43 | May 3, 2015 at 6:25 am

    Thanks for the like! I’ve got a cockerpoo too!

    Reply
  39. harrogate50's avatar harrogate50 | May 3, 2015 at 11:30 pm

    Rachel – been meaning to thank you for liking my blog. Were you led my way by Rena? I finally got around to reading a couple of your posts and I really like your “voice” – you have a warm way of communicating that makes you feel familiar to me. I’m going to follow you, which I’ve only done a couple of times, because I need all the warmth and dog love I can get!
    Lynda (& Liberty)

    Reply
  40. Chelsea Davis's avatar Chelsea Davis | May 5, 2015 at 6:20 pm

    Hi Rachel! Thanks so much for stopping by my blog! Cute dogs 🙂

    Reply
  41. Karina Pinella's avatar kpinella | May 5, 2015 at 11:29 pm

    Thank you for liking my falafel sandwich recipe. It is delish.

    Reply
  42. themisotree's avatar themisotree | May 9, 2015 at 1:51 pm

    Thank you so much for your like! Just today we have arranged to go and meet a cockapoo boy from the rescue centre who needs a home. To be honest, we only learnt he was a cockapoo, and what a cockapoo ia a few hours ago! And almost immediately afterwards you (and Cricket) like our blog – we are in happy happy shock! Thank you so much!

    Reply
  43. Susan Helmus's avatar desire4simple | May 11, 2015 at 2:00 pm

    Thanks for liking my Icky Wicky post on my blog. Dogs are great aren’t they? They can really help us through so much in life. I can relate to your post re: having ailments that the doctors can’t diagnose. I had Lyme disease, undiagnosed and untreated for 16 years. Doctors said Fibromyalgia and Chronic Fatigue syndrome, and when I didn’t improve with their treatments they were saying I must have depression. I said “I am depressed from feeling like crapy, but depression is not causing me to feel like crap.” Anyway, it ends up it was Lyme Disease that whole time, and I finally got a diagnosis and treatment and am doing better. I hope you find something that works for you. Keep on Keepin’ on

    Reply
  44. tomwest's avatar tomwest | May 13, 2015 at 12:57 am

    beautiful dogs!

    Reply
  45. The Sock Mistress's avatar The Sock Mistress | May 13, 2015 at 10:04 pm

    I have nominated you for The Versatile Bloggers Award – http://14weeksworthofsocks.com/2015/05/12/the-versatile-bloggers-award/ – you don’t need to do anything with this if you don’t wish to, but I wanted to let others know what a great blog you have.

    Reply
  46. Ray Laskowitz's avatar Ray Laskowitz | May 18, 2015 at 3:57 am

    Thank you for stopping by Storyteller. — Ray

    Reply
  47. mommykens726's avatar mommykens726 | May 21, 2015 at 1:41 pm

    Hi Rachel, I wanted to let you now I nominated you for the Liebster Award.

    Reply
  48. Victor Szepessy's avatar bonofido | May 21, 2015 at 1:53 pm

    Hey there, I’ve nominated you for the Versatile Blogger Award. Do or do not, it’s a token of appreciation 🙂 You can check out the nomination post here: https://bonofido.wordpress.com/award/

    Reply
  49. Elodie Vidal's avatar Elodie Vidal | May 22, 2015 at 10:50 am

    Thanks for the like Rachel! What a cool doggy blog 🙂

    Reply
  50. taichiandco's avatar taichiandco | May 24, 2015 at 5:00 pm

    Thanks for visiting Tai Chi & Co. Didn’t even know you were aware of the site. In contrast, we’ve been following the adventures of Cricket, Butterfly, you and – from time to time – the rest of your family for some time. Reading your stories is like hearing from neighbours at the end of a long street.

    Reply
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