Wilco Does it Again!
Woah! I don’t know how I missed this, but Jeff Tweedy from Wilco wore his I Heart Tripods shirt AGAIN on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson. I only found this out when I realized the YouTube video of Wilco’s January performance on the show was taken down. I started looking for another version to embed, which I couldn’t find, but then came across the band’s May 10th performance on the show and lo and behold Tweedy is representin’ again!!!
Is this going to be Tweedy’s schtick every time he’s on with Craig Ferguson? I hope so! 
Thanks for all the support Jeff!
Lulu and Sarah’s First Meeting
My all time favorite Lulu moment was the first day we met. She was a spry three-year-old girl back in those days, still pretty much a pup. I was just getting to know Sonia (yeah, she’s OK, too) and was happy that my new friend had a dog, because I had recently lost my own beloved canine pal, Cherie; I was missing me some dog! So the first thing I did when I saw Lu was to immediately get her riled up, talking in that annoying voice that people use to get dogs excited and play lunging at her, to get her to chase me and play. It worked! But I think I got her a little too worked up, because she also peed all over the floor. Oops!
I will also never forget Lulu’s funny way of lying down — what I liked to call turkey style, with her legs frogged out, instead of stacked on top of each other. She was the queen of hogging up the bed or sofa whenever we’d be lounging around and relaxing, and if you tried to move her from her comfortable spot, she’d let you know it wasn’t welcome with a deep, husky growl. She’d never bite you, though; she was just letting you know that you sucked for making her move.
Lulu was a really good sister to my cat, P. Kitty, although their first meeting was a bit harry. But I don’t remember ever feeling worried that Lulu would do an Alf and eat the cat. In fact, P. Kitty was the one who always tried to start the fights with Lulu, just for kicks. Lulu would bark and paw at the floor whenever P. acted up, but she was always a gentle doggy friend to her. I’m happy there is photographic proof that they would sometimes lie next to each other. It’s sad they were never reunited after Sonia and Lu moved to NY.
I will never forget Lulu’s expressive eyes and the way she could melt your heart with her looks.
Lastly, I will never forget the way her butt would wiggle when she was happy and wagging her tail. It’s like she couldn’t just move her tail, but had to get her whole backside involved. It made her look silly, but also looked (and was) really very happy. She was a funny, funny girl, and I really miss her.
Lulu, glad you are in peace. You are loved!
–Sarah Han
Wilco Hearts Tripods!
You can see it tucked behind his jacket in the above video! Thanks Jeff for the support and thanks Libby for letting us know!
Lulu and the Costa Rican Experience
My thoughts of Lulu are many. She was a sweetheart and a smiler are most of my memories, but a specific memory is of the photo posted here.
It is a polaroid that Sonia gave me of Lulu. When I lived abroad, in Costa Rica, I had it posted along with other shots of family and friends. Ticos that I met would see the picture and ask if it was my dog. It was kind of awkward. No. she wasn’t. Then I’d go on to explain that she was kind of a crew sidekick. That she wasn’t my dog, but she made me want a dog.
It would get weirder, a bit quiet usually. Latino culture isn’t big on dogs as friends. They’re usually working animals, protectors, definitely not something you keep indoors, much less have as a pal. I decided that some things can’t be explained, and Lulu is just that kind of dog — really really amazing and special and it just doesn’t make sense to people that don’t know her.
–Mackenzie Waller
Lulu and the Scarf
My favorite Lulu memory, or at least the one that sticks out the most in my mind, is the time that Lulu fell in love with Nardo. Well, maybe it wasn’t exdactly love, but… it was definitely something… I don’t judge.
Basically, I was visiting and Lulu had graciously offered her floor for me to crash on. One night during my visit, I was at my friend Jeni’s house, watching a movie. Jeni’s dog Nardo sat on my lap the whole time, on top of the scarf I had worn that day. After the movie, I headed back to Brooklyn… when I came into Lulu’s apartment, she absolutely went straight for that scarf… she would not leave it alone!
The fervor with which she sniffed and examined it was a little bit crazy. I decided that it must be love. We ended up wrapping her up in the scarf and letting her get the full effect of Nardo’s studliness (see photo!) I don’t know if they ever met, but I know she would have made him one happy dog.
– Brendan Cooper
Lulu’s Legacy Goes On
As posted earlier, Lulu passed away last Friday. She had recently turned 15 (and was weeks away from celebrating her third ampuversary). Unfortunately, cancer had recently spread to one, and then to many, of her vertebrae. She was on a cocktail of steroids and pain medications, but got to a point where the pain was too great. She also was starting to lose strength in her one back leg and it hurt my heart to watch her struggle to stand up and then struggle again to stay standing.
We had a BBQ for Lulu Thursday night, where we grilled steak, pork chops, and sausages for her. She then got a bacon breakfast and more pork chops the next morning. You can see her enjoying some bacon in the photo above.
At 6 PM on Friday I took her to Hope Vet, where her longtime vet Eliza Lischin and my friend Amie (a vet tech) were waiting for us. Maria, my friend and Lulu’s, came with us. We then spent the next hour petting her, sharing Lulu stories, and feeding her a ridiculous amount of bacon and freeze-dried meat. It was seriously obscene how much food she ate. She got full at one point and was still taking treats and placing them next to her. After a breather she’d eat what she had saved.
When she went it was as peaceful as I could have wished. She put her head down, closed her eyes, and was gone…
She was happy, loved, and most importantly, full.
Over the next few months, Lulu’s human pals will be sharing their favorite Lulu stories. I hope you’ll come back often to read about how this amazing dog touched so many people. And if you want to share your own stories of how Lulu became a part of your life you can email them to me, lulumomma [@] gmail [dot] com.
We Lasted More than Most Marriages… And We Were Happier than Most
May 1994 – July 31, 2009
I miss you more than anything…
When to Say When…
Until we devise a way to truly communicate with our loving pets, it’s impossible to really know what they want and how they feel. We can guess, based on watching them day-by-day, but how can you really know?
Since discovering Lulu’s cancer has spread to her spine, I’ve noticed week-by-week a steady decline in energy level. Before, she would nudge me in the mornings and evenings to remind me it was time for a meal and a walk. Now, she simply sleeps. On walks, she takes care of business as soon as we walk out the door and pulls me to go back to the house. She actually seems miserable as I force her to just go a block, thinking the exercise will do her good.
I’ve stopped forcing her. Now we head out to the yard, where she does her business and we call it a day. By Sunday I knew that things were declining quickly, but it wasn’t until Monday morning that I realized that the dreaded day was upon me.
The Bitch Is Back – No, Not the Good One
We need your help!
It's interesting how easily you can fall back into a routine; how easily you can take for granted the obvious blessing you've been given. When Lulu was diagnosed with osteosarcoma back in August of '06 we were told that with the amputation and the chemo she'd have about a year to live –- osteosarcoma eventually jumps to another area of the body, usually the lungs, no matter when you catch it. They say, once you've found it, the cancer has most probably already metastasized, which is really just a big word for ticking time bomb.
Well, a year passed (we celebrated), than another year passed (we quietly celebrated, not wanting to jinx anything). Over the past 2+ years Lulu's situation went from being my number one priority and concern to being a thing of the past. While always in the back of my head, I slowly was able to refocus my energy back to work and helping others (including the feral feline population in New York). Being able to put worries to the side is a great survival mechanism.
I have a friend that says, "As soon as you stop worrying, the shit hits
the fan," and in a way I suppose that's what has happened…
Updates and New Shirts
We hope everyone had a great new year and are surviving the current financial hiccups we’re having. Here’s hoping a new White House will prove to be what we need to get back on track. I wanted to take this opportunity to thank each and everyone of you for helping I Heart Tripods raise money for both Lulu and other pets in need. 2008 was a great year for I Heart Tripods. We were able to help eight pets since we started, plus of course our main lass, Lulu. You can check out posts on tripod fund recipients here.
In shirt news, we printed a test run of heathered lavender shirts in smalls and mediums. We think they turned out great. If they sell well we’ll continue to print them and make other sizes as well. If you’re interested in a size we don’t have just email me (lulumomma [at] gmail.com) and once I get enough interest I’ll do a run.
Hope you guys like the new style!