Pets. How do people get by without them? They bring you joy that other people can’t. It’s a simple joy. Looking into a happy dogs face is something magical. If you are in a bad mood that’s the uplifting medicine that you need. If no one else is there for you, your pet always will be. Ours are part of the family and they contribute so much to our home I cannot imagine how we went without them. Samson, Hazel and Owen. One cat & two Labradors.
Samson came into our lives by accident. It was not long after we moved into our old house that we started noticing this tabby lingering around, but to skittish to be approached. I think he was probably left behind by the pervious occupants. I am not much of a cat person. Honestly, I just don’t really like them. But after about a year of having this guy living just on the peripheral, I decided to try and get to know him. Canned tuna was all it took and we became buddies. He remained solely an outdoor cat for the next two years until his accident. We still don’t know what happened to the little guy, but his leg was open to the bone. You don’t abandon your friend. I took him to the vet and the options were laid out: surgery, amputation, or death. Of course I choose surgery and he became the most expensive cat in the world. He had to wear a cast for 4 months and this was when he transitioned into an indoor cat. He didn’t like it at first and made 2 great escapes. Eventually he settled down. Unfortunately, the surgery didn’t fix the leg. It’s more of a peg leg now. The cripple cat became family. He is a goofy little guy.
Dogs. If you think about some of the better days of your life, was a dog not with you. Maybe just in the background smiling. Happy to be a part of your life. Happy to share your love. Just happy to be with you. It took me a long time to get another dog after Riley, my old yellow lab and best friend for 10 years. We went everywhere together while I was in college. He couldn’t wait to jump in the car for our next adventure. Many miles we roamed. Weeks spent only with him as my companion at times. Isolated in the Big Bend region. I’m smiling now thinking about it. Let’s not talk about fetch. That boy was addicted to chasing anything you would throw. And if you didn’t want to play, he would not take no for an answer. He would throw the ball in your lap. If no ball, he would throw a stick in your lap. And he was a walker. The excitement that came over him when he saw that leash. We would walk 7 miles at times. I was devastated when I lost him. One minute we were out back playing fetch and the next he was lying motionless on my kitchen floor. I had a breakdown. At least he had a great day and didn’t suffer. That’s what I told myself. But inside I felt a great lose.
Losing a pet is never easy. The idea of going through that again… I just didn’t want to. Bekah kept trying and trying. One day she sent me this picture of a little baby chocolate lab. At first I said no, but I kept going back to that picture. Something happened in my heart and I knew that that little puppy was the one. After a few drinks I told Bekah to contact the owners. Next thing you know we’ve added another member to the family: Hazel. There was a reason I waited as long as I did. She is one of the best things to have happened to us. Not to say everything was peachy. Hazel is a smart girl, and smart dogs are usually difficult. Training her was no trouble. It was that she liked to get into things. Boy did she ever. I feel like sometimes she intentionally pushes out buttons. Like barking… Sometimes… She sure can be a willful b****. Stubborn as a horse. If it’s on her time, forget about it. But you don’t stay mad long. Hazel loves walks, fetch, and swimming. She loves road trips. She is a lizard and squirrel stalker. When she finally got a bird. She was the happiest dog that I’ve ever seen. She thinks she is a watch dog and she is intimidating, but at heart she is just a big goofy sweetheart. She hasn’t met anyone she hasn’t liked. And she is a daddy’s girl, much to Bekah’s aggravation.
Bekah insisted on getting another dog. I said once we move into a bigger house, let’s do it. But we need the space. Well, we moved and it was time for that dog. My youngest brother’s friend had black lab puppies and she found Owen. Labs are the cutest puppies and Owen was a joy. A destructive puppy. He has eaten my sandals three times. Destroyed a couch. Chewed up the rug. Tore up 5 pillows. Gnawed a hole into the guest mattress. Pulled my plants out of their pots. Used our coffee table and guest bed frame as a chew toy. Munched on the mail, which included the artwork I won on eBay that was to be a gift to my middle brother for Christmas. Chomped up the water hose. Leave for 10 minutes and he finds something to tear apart. If given to his own devices he will also nibble on Hazel’s poop. It’s disgusting. The dog is a garbage disposal. Potty training him was hell compared to Hazel. He is our little problem child. A year old and finally he can be trusted. I think it was the time I had off during Christmas. I got to work with him. Leave him out at longer intervals. I really love the doofus. He has come a long way. He might be the sweetest dog ever. He just wants love all the time. And he adores Bekah. She got her mommy’s boy! I knew once he got past his destructive stage he would become a great dog. Lest I forget Hazel’s destruction. Look how good a dog she became.
My family has always had pets. Mostly dogs. A few cats. Recently one of the family dogs passed away. Doc. He was an old man. 12 years is a pretty long life for a lab, unfortunately. I wish they lived a life time with us. Doc was a mess of a dog in his youth. He started out as my youngest brother’s dog. For 2-3 years he lived with my brother and his roommates in Lubbock while he was going to college. He was never trained. Unless you count training a dog to bark at you constantly when it wants something training. Most people would try to not let that happen. But my brother and his roommates were a bunch of heathens in those days. Dog was fed pizza, burgers, hot sauce, whatever was in the house. He ate out of the trash. One would think he was a lost cause. When my brother graduated he never lived where he was allowed pets so Doc went home with my mother. Where he remained and became her dog. My father and her tried and managed to make him a better dog. He still got into the trash though. Heck, he got into the trash 3 days before his passing. All of his bad qualities were made up for by how sweet he was. It’s incredibly hard to put down a pet. But it’s also a blessing that they have that option when nothing else will work. Humans should be so lucky. I mean, our pets are able to pass with more dignity then our loved ones. Think about that. So when Docs time came, we took him in and said goodbye. My eyes are welling up right now thinking about his last breath. For all his flaws he was a good boy and is missed dearly. But now he is in heaven with my father & other lost family members. He has rejoined the pack of all the ones that were lost before him. Leo. Katie. Abby. Hannah. Riley. Maggie. Ellie. Dotty. Oreo. Richard. I hope they are chasing a ball together.
This blog was cathartic for me. Hope it wasn’t too much of a bore. I’ll leave with this passage that I read somewhere:
“Despite all the bad days & mean people, I still believe in good days & kind people. Plus there are always dogs.”
Jalapeño…………….
Spicy yellow squash and chicken. Some onion, jalapeño & red bell. I added a little Velveeta to cheese it up. Pretty basic. A healthy start after my 2 weeks of gluttony? What do you think?
Bunless burger. The basic. Hard to screw this one up. Great alternative to those carb filled buns.
Chicken in a pot. My lord. This turned out to be an exceptional meal that I ate twice more for lunch during the week. Originally we were going to make some buffalo grilled chicken legs but a little birdy said chicken in a pot. Slow cook that s*** with some veggies. It just falls off the bone and the flavors were so simple. I literally didn’t have to do a thing. Only drawback to this meal was occasionally finding a bone or some cartilage. That’s not enough to deter me form making it again.
Caribbean jerk pork tenderloin. I have to make this for Bekah periodically to keep her happy. I’ve blogged about this before so I don’t really have much to say. Only thing I did do differently this time is once the pork was cooked I cut it up and threw it back on the grill with the sauce to give it a little caramelization.
Korean BBQ chicken w/kimchi. The chicken was excellent. The kimchi was terrible. I will never by that brand again.
Bunless mushroom swiss burger. Of course I also added onion and jalapeño. This might be better called a breadless patty melt. More of less what this is. A delightful mess on a plate. Note how many times I have grilled this week? It is January and warm enough to grill outdoors.
Cocktail of the Week! Old Fashioned
En Fuego 