The Bestest Friend

You've been asking what's the deal with the guy with the fuzzed out face. No, he is not wanted by the law. No, he is not an undercover spy (well, he might be, but I wouldn't actually admit to that, now would I?) He is not hiding from a crazy ex. He is the male half of my best friend couple and he has requested no internet presence. He's always around so he's always in my photos but I respect his wish by neither showing his face or calling him by name here on my blog. It's goofy and I think he's just trying to be contrary, but I love this about him. He is my Nameless Faceless Best Friend.

Last week he sent me this email:

Equipment has not yet been invented to measure the depths of my
appreciation of your friendship. Happy 16 years!
-NFBF

He makes me happy. He remembers our friendship anniversary. It is awesome to be loved.

Pat's SMOKIN' Pre-Thanksgiving Thanksgiving

Pat really likes his smoker and wants to get as much use out of it as possible so he decided that we will be doing Thanksgiving at our house this year. To make sure that he knows exactly how to smoke a turkey, he wanted to do a trial run. He invited 20 his closest friends, smoked up a few turkeys and a ham and asked the guests to supply the side dishes. It was quite a feast!

It was also quite a learning experience for Pat. He hasn't had a lot of experience planning parties or cooking for groups - with the exception of the initial smokyque. He learned that 22 people dining at once is hard to accommodate in one dining room. He learned that large amounts of meat require serving platters. He learned that carving a turkey isn't easy. Luckily, Brad and his dad were there to assist. He also learned that we have the most awesome group of friends and neighbors that anyone could ask for! Actually, he already knew this last one!

And since it was a trial run for Thanksgiving, I would like to do a trial run at giving thanks to all of my fabulous friends! I am honored to be a part of each of your lives and to have you as a part of mine. Thank you all!!


Football is on the TV - just like a real Thanksgiving!

Obligatory Day After Election Day Political Post

Yay for Obama!

Boo Hiss for the passing of Arizona Prop 102.

That's all. Thanks.

Slo-Mo

Little Hank Williams went back to the shelter on Saturday. He was an annoying little dog, but I'm sure he will make some family very happy. He has to get neutered and then he'll go up for adoption. I'm sure he'll be out of there in no time. He's got everything going for him - he's little, he's friendly to men, women and children and he's good with dogs and cats. Since there is no section on his kennel card to mark off that he licks incessantly, he never sits still, he's neurotic and he barks a lot, his kennel card will only have glowing reviews. Good luck, little Hank Williams!

To fill the foster void created by little Hank Williams, I brought home Mo.

Mo is unusual in that the shelter staff actually knows her story. Her owner is dying. He is in the hospital and his son can't take the dog because he's spending all his time with his father in the hospital. The son asked his ex-wife to take the dog for them, she agreed and Mo went to live with the ex-daughter-in-law. Mo wasn't thrilled with that plan and immediately ran away (literally immediately - within the hour of arriving at the lady's house). She ran away to some train tracks, and this is where the story becomes unclear. Either she got caught in the tracks or was hit by a train (?) but in some manner her back left leg was completely smashed and embedded with dirt and gravel. Someone found the dog and called the Humane Society - they EAMTs picked her up and they immediately amputated the leg when she arrived at the hospital. The Humane Society located the new owner who realized that she did not have an appropriate place for the recuperation of poor Mo, so she signed her over to the shelter. The original owner is just devastated by all of this. The poor guy is dying and he doesn't even have the peace of mind of knowing that his dog is taken care of. This is one of my worst nightmares (Patrick...you'd better take care of F/G if anything happens to me!!!) Now I've got a very depressed, but very beautiful Australian Shepherd named Mo.

The first day she was here, Mo didn't eat or drink. She ran away from all of us and found a little alcove to hide in. She was lethargic and depressed all day. She was very slow to warm up to us - thus earning her the nickname Slo-Mo. That and she's still learning to master motion on three legs. She showed a tiny bit of interest in Georgie, but she refused to meet Frankie. I took a picture of how the introduction went ...This went on for about 20 minutes, then I finally got bored and took them inside where they continued to ignore one another.

The second day, Mo was much more willing to be with us. We were preparing for a big party at our house, so there was lots of activity - cooking and cleaning and moving furniture. She chose to be in the kitchen during all of it. She is tolerating the dogs well enough (except when Georgie infiltrated her alcove - that led to some snarls and snaps being exchanged). Frankie is still scared of her, but he's a wuss anyway. The really good news is that Mo is now eating - which shows that her depression is abating and I don't have to hide all the sharp objects and prescription drugs.

Our big problem right now involves peeing. She only pees when she's laying down on her bed and then she just lays in it until I put on her leash and drag her away. I've not caught her in the act yet. I'm not sure if she can't pee standing up (she makes the motions when I take her outside) or what. This will require more study and possibly a vet visit. It also requires many loads of laundry and lots of Nature's Miracle. I've stopped giving her dog beds and now she only gets towels. But isn't she just beautiful??


I love her.

Updated to add: The original owner (the guy who's dying) has been kept in the loop of everything that has happened to his beloved dog. He called the Humane Society and donated the cost of Mo's surgery and post-op care. They in turn called me and asked if I could send some pictures to them. They are going to forward the pictures to the guy so that he can see that Mo is in good hands. I am so heart-broken for this man.

The Grass In My Yard Is Mostly Dead. This Is Why.

Both Frankie and Georgie originally came from the shelter so their actual birthdays are unknown. To keep things simple, I decided that November 1 would be both their birthdays, though Georgie is most likely a few months older than Frankie. Either way, both of my dogs are now 4 years old. And they still play like puppies. They do this every day, usually more than once a day.




Happy Birthday, little doggies! I'm hoping for at least 11 more of them from both of you!!!