Zack & Zoey Nor'easter Dog Blanket Coat Review

When you live in the mountains, the weather can turn on you without warning.  My adventure companion, Toby, has to be prepared for a wide range of conditions on our daily hikes.  One of the most important pieces of outdoor gear for my dog is his all-weather jacket.  Toby’s new Zack & Zoey Nor’easter Dog Blanket Coat just arrived and we gave it a test run this afternoon.  Here’s our review of the coat’s performance.

First, I must mention that I specifically looked for a dog coat that came in a high visibility orange color.  With hunting season in high gear, Toby’s safety was my top priority.  Having a dog that loves to root around in the brush for rabbits and bones made it imperative that he not be mistaken for wild game.  I am extremely happy with the color of Toby’s new coat.  He can be seen from a great distance and the reflective stripe and paw logo on his coat provide for additional safety with darkness coming on so early these days.  Score: 10/10

Next, I wanted a waterproof outer fabric that would offer a shield from the wind that blows down off the 14,000-foot peaks here in our stomping grounds.  Toby's new Zack & Zoey dog coat has a polyester shell with just the right weave and weight to keep him comfortable.  Any hiker at high elevations knows that every ounce counts.  You need to find performance gear that won't weigh you down.  The weight of Toby's new jacket is just perfect.  We didn't have any precipitation to contend with during our test today, but we'll score this based on wind-breaking capacity.  Score: 10/10

The third feature on our must-have list for a new dog coat was that it be fleece-lined.  We found that the Zack & Zoey Nor’easter Dog Blanket Coat offers just the right amount of warmth.  Being a rugged, outdoorsy kind of guy, Toby really likes the camo print lining, but you can select another lining style if your dog has different fashion tastes.  As an added bonus, this coat is reversible.  We flipped the jacket inside out during our test so you could see how it looks when reversed.  You can choose from eight different coat colors and lining prints.  Score: 10/10

Our final expectations, in terms of the dog coat’s features, centered on the ease of getting it off and on, as well as on the sizing adjustability.  The chest and belly straps on this dog coat make it quick and simple to gear up.  I’m pleased with the quality of the Velcro closures.  Some brands of dog coats have leg openings that require a dog to step into his jacket.  That would never work for us.  Those kinds of openings constrain movement and rub the wrong way on a dog’s body.  Toby and I much prefer the Zack & Zoey style of strapping.  We found the sizing to be very accurate.  I ordered an XL coat for Toby and it fits just right.  Score: 10/10

In summary, we couldn’t be happier with the Zack & Zoey Nor’easter Dog Blanket Coat.  The coat is everything we wanted and the price was extremely reasonable (much less than other dog coats).  I will definitely buy this same coat again.  Highly recommended.  Toby gives this dog coat an overall score of 10/10 bones.

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The Bright Hour: A Memoir of Living and Dying

Some books are so achingly beautiful they cry out to be read.  This is one of them.  To not read The Bright Hour would be to deny yourself one breathtaking moment after another.  This is a memoir that reveals how to savor every day—even the days, especially the days, we would not typically love.

When Nina Riggs was diagnosed with breast cancer at age 37, it was one small spot that seemed fixable.  “No one dies from one small spot,” she reassured herself.  Within a year, though, Riggs was dealing with a terminal diagnosis.  Lest you think the book turns grim at this point, let me assure you that this is not a dark accounting of impending death—far from it.

The question at the heart of The Bright Hour is this: What makes for a meaningful life when your time is limited?  It is an extraordinary individual who can see and illuminate for us the radiance and joy to be found in the seemingly mundane moments that fill our lives with meaning.  Nina Riggs’ poetic eye, and soul, gifts us over and over again with word pictures that not only dazzle, but that enrich our spirits.

What if, like Nina Riggs, we were to live the answer to that question every day?  Isn't that the key to loving our days and living with fullness of life?

The Bright Hour is the most important book I have read this year.  Having recently lost a good friend to cancer, I found this memoir to be a poignant way to reflect on how Susan also lived her life with great meaning and purpose.  It can be healing in many ways to read a book that celebrates a life force that is not diminished by death.  I highly recommend this book.

 The Bright Hour: A Memoir of Living and DyingCheck Price

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Book Review of Will's Red Coat by Tom Ryan

Will's Red Coat by Tom Ryan

What would happen today if we gave ourselves over, wholeheartedly, to a hurting soul?  What if we could let go of all expectations and simply concentrate on pure giving?  Tom Ryan, author of Will's Red Coat, lived the transformational answer to these questions when he responded to a Facebook post about a soul in desperate need.  Little did Ryan know at the time how that seemingly straightforward act of kindness would dramatically change him and forever alter the course of his life.

On the surface, this book would appear to be yet another memoir of a man and his dog.  Oh, but this is so much more than that.  There is a man, yes -- Ryan, the New York Times bestselling author of Following Atticus.  And there is a dog -- a deaf, mostly blind, senior dog that is raging against the dying light.  But this is not your typical rescue story of human saves animal, or animal saves his person.

This is a story of finding the life you have always wanted, and needed, by submitting to that which you would never have knowingly chosen.  Up front, Ryan thought he was providing a temporary last home for a dog that was expected to live only a very short time.  In essence, it was a hospice situation.  Ryan was offering Will a place, and space, to die with dignity.

Things are never this simple, though, are they?  This weak, angry dog wasn't ready to die without a fight, without experiencing the underlying beauty that is so easy to miss in life.  The heart of this book is how two souls, Tom and Will, became the beauty they were each seeking.

As an animal welfare volunteer who deals with abandoned, forgotten souls on a daily basis, I found myself deeply moved by the profound truths of this poignant story.  The truths you will discover when you read this book are these:

"It's never too late to trust again, to love or be loved again; and it's never too late to live again."  ~ Will's Wisdom

 Yes, this book will make you cry, but the tears will be joyous and healing.  They will be a celebration of the triumph of a life lived in full.  I found this book to be an incredibly beautiful tribute to what happens when you become who you were always meant to be.

 Will's Red Coat: The Story of One Old Dog Who Chose to Live Again – A Boston Globe Bestselling Memoir of Empathy and RedemptionCheck Price

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