"This whole thing has blown me away" said Kristi Day. "I get e-mail from British Columbia, Australia, Ireland, England."

Just for fun, Day started posting stories on the Internet about kimi, Her 8-pound Sheltie. The stories first went out on a mailing list about Shelties. When they became a hit, a friend of the dog's breeder offered to create and maintain a website devoted to Kimi. Day said it has been named among the 1000 most poplular web sites in the world.

If Day goes too long without posting a story about Kimi, who is now 6 months old, the dog's fans howl in protest.

"They write, 'Where's our Kimi story? We're going through withdrawl!,'" Day said.

The Website is called "Kimi's Grand Adventures", located at Http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Ranch/4707. Day has written about 34 stories, some titles include, "Kimi Goes Fishing", "Kimi the Night Hunter", "Kimi Meets a Baby".Day writes about the dog's antics, but she also tries to impart hopeful messages along the way.

"I may end up teaching her how to sit and stay," Day wrote in one story, "but she is teaching me how to see life in its simplest, but purest form. The way life was intended to be seen."

A common message in the stories is to stop and smell the roses. Day said people are living such fast-paced lives now that they don't seize each day. Dogs do, though.

"I can see her love for life," Day said. "She can take anything and turn it inot a game."

Day has been touched by the people she has reached. One comment from a blind woman stands out. "She said the reason she likes Kimi's stories so well is she can see in her mind what her dogs were like as puppies."

"Your stories are so rich and colorful," wrote a New Jersey fan. "I'm sure many hearts are warmed by them."

From Australia came this appreciative note: "The pictures I get in my mind from your stories are gorgeous, full color postcards of the joy you find in your companions. Your writing style is marvelously fluid and descriptive."

Day also writes about her 165 pound Newfoundland. He ignored Kimi the first two months she was in the house, but now he tolerantly allows the little dog to treat his thick black tail like a chew toy. He occasionally lets out a deep "Woof", but Kimi is undaunted.

"I can truly see Kimi the 'Imp' and Brigs the sweet 'stoic' through your words." wrote one fan. "Thanks for the pleasure you've given me, I look forward to more of your stories."

"Having lived with Shelties for more than thirty years, I can see every movement, sense the smile, the laughter, the thrill of the chase, and ultimate sense of accomplishment when Kimi pulls off another cute trick." wrote one man. "What a treat to live with these wonderful little characters, so full of life and mischief, and so loveable."

"It's not that she's an extraordinary dog," Day said. "She's a Sheltie puppy, but it's seeing what she does in a new way."

Day, who has owned many dogs, bought Kimi from a breeder near Galesburg. She normally takes several weeks to pick out a new dog, but she agreed to buy Kimi before she even saw her--trusting her gut feeling.

"It was love before first sight," she said. "It was just one of those things that was meant to be."

She is working with an illustrator to turn the stories into a book that she hopes will be published. In the meantime, her dog has taught her to enjoy life even more, and she hopes her stories will do the same.

"Look for the fun in life." Day siad. "It's out there in everything you do."

Reprinted by permission