Thankful/grateful

Every year Charles and I have to spend Thanksgiving with our families in different houses.  It's not a bad thing but certainly isn't your own home with nowhere to go and a nap is the nearest bedroom or place on the couch.  So we have begun our own small tradition of having "early" Thanksgiving at our house the weekend prior.  It's nothing fancy. This year we made a turkey, mashed potatoes, stuffing, green beans, and a cranberry cornmeal cake.  The leftovers are phenomenal (mostly because I have not had to cook at all this week).  It's unusual for me not to cook, but the office has been busy this week and I mostly come home to find the perfect place on the couch, turn on our small heater, and curl up in our blanket to watch Harry Potter movies.  A little lame, but during the holidays it's important to do nothing sometimes when it seems like the entire world around you is swarming to iron table cloths, hit the early-bird sales, and overall seems like they could use a good dose of Lexapro.

Let me say proudly that I cooked the entire 20 lb turkey without any melt downs.  Last year I was in tears on the floor because my 5 lb breast had barley reached 140 degrees after 3 hours in the oven.  I was like a small child, angry that the bird would not cook, sitting pitiful on the floor with Charles trying to console me.   We autopsied the bird and found my lack of defrosting to be the cause of death. I don't handle cooking mishaps well.  Mostly the knife gets faster and I want no one in the kitchen.

This year the bird was browned, buttered, and beautiful.  Even though I am not a vegetarian, the act of preparing the bird seems somewhat barbaric to me.  I loathe reaching into the dark cavity to pull out such slithery things named giblet.  They never make it to my gravy and I don't think they ever will.  Charles casually mentioned that his mother is the best gravy maker in the family and I will not fight for that title.  My gravy was in fact lumpy and odd looking as I don't think I whisked enough or had the fervor in my wrist.   Next year I must remember to buy the packet gravy!  

After we tore the skin to reach the dark meat (my favorite) the juices flowed like a river onto the floor and our kitchen helpers proudly came to the clean-up.  Not the greatest moment in our kitchen, but without dogs, I would be responsible to clean-up.

This is Odie watching Charles carve - how curious he looks and hoping it will all fall off the counter.

After juices ran over, we sat to a small table and literally were surrounded by a circle of canine.

Each dog was presented with their own bowl of Thanksgiving.

This season, we hope each dog/cat can have their own Thanksgiving whether that is a warm place to sleep for the night, a meal, or a place next to their human on the couch.  We are grateful/thankful we can buy dog food for our pack, the money we have to replace eaten trouser socks, a warm canine to snuggle with when we are overwhelmed by day-to-day stress, and of course each other.  Happy Thanksgiving from our family to yours.

Odus Immortalized

Need I say any more?

For five years now I have been trying to find a way to put Odie on canvass.  I've made artwork for most of our dog family ever since I was in high school.  Some of the dogs have taken me longer than others.  I don't know if most people can really understand how hard it is to draw dog.  The shape of their face is usually an off shape and forget their nose, especially if most of the muzzle is already black. 

The hardest part of Odie were his wrinkles.  They are so much a part of who he is that that trying to incorporate them without having them look as just lines on his face was pure torture.  For now, this is the best I can do for him.  I may consider trying to get the others on the wall but for now, the most handsome Shar-pei will have to do.

Night of 200 hot dogs

I am serving on the committee of Doggie Dash and Dawdle this year and part of my job was to buy the 200 hot dogs that are needed at the Dash Bash Carnival.  Every year, Animal Humane hosts a 5K human, 5K dog and human, and 2-mile dawdle to benefit the homeless pets of Albuquerque.  After the runners, dashers, and strollers are done with the event, we celebrate with a carnival for pets and people.  We have paw print painting, build-a-biscuit, pet photography, and bobbing for hot dogs.  The event is always a lot of fun and a great way to see so many people who love their pets almost as obsessively as I do.

I went to Costco this afternoon and purchased 200 hot dogs.  The people in the check-out line certainly looked through my basket and gave me a quizzical look.  I did not elaborate on why I only had hot dogs in my basket nor why I needed to have a mass quantity.  I felt no need to explain myself after tagging alongside people who buy anchovies in large glass jars and containers of peanuts that could keep them alive for almost a week if they ate nothing else.

The reception at home was of utter joy.  Odie danced around the kitchen as if he had surely won the lottery or had somehow died and had gone to heaven.  He cried and whined through the whole process of cutting them into smaller pieces.  Of course the other dogs were watching, but only from a distance.  When Odie is manager, the rest know not to get in his way. 

The only time he left his post was when he heard a noise in the backyard and he raced to confront whatever was outside.  Luna on the other hand would race to the counter as soon as he would disappear and proceed to lick the juice that was running off the counter.  As soon as Odie returned to post, Luna would slip back into the foreground. We continued this dance for 45 minutes.

Don't worry - they each received the equivalent of an entire hot dog.