1,004

Rats!  I missed celebrating my 1,000th post on the day it happened.  So, here I am celebrating my 1,004th post! 

What a lot of drivel I've tossed up here on this screen -- along with quite a few pretty darned cute photos, if I have to say so myself! 

But, I don't have to say so myself, because a good number of you say it for me in comments.

Thank you!  Commenters and lurkers alike.  Thank you to the 40-people-on-average that my stats say check in on Darby, Pumpkin and me everyday!

I'd still be blogging this drivel if you weren't out there, but knowing you are out there makes it even more fun!

Thank you from the three of us!

Eden

"Dogs are our link to paradise. They don't know evil or jealousy or discontent. To sit with a dog on a hillside on a glorious afternoon is to be back in Eden, where doing nothing was not boring -- it was peace."  ~ Milan Kundera

Reassurance

Dogs operate on the premise that human beings are fragile and require incessant affection and reassurance. The random lick of the hand and the furry chin draped over the instep are calculated to let the shaky owner know a friend is nearby.  Mary McGrory

Allies

"We are alone, absolutely alone on this chance planet; and amid all the forms of life that surround us, not one, excepting the dog has made an alliance with us."  ~ Max Depree

Unidentified smells

The day after Thanksgiving, I spent a lot of time sitting on the sofa in the living room -- the living room! where we almost never go -- reading (and taking one short nap.)

The girls spent most of that time on the sofa with me.

But, once when I got up to get a drink, I came back to see them furiously sniffing around:

A part of me wants to know what they thought they smelled, but most of me thinks ignorance is bliss...

Not Norman Rockwell

Well, we had a decidedly NOT Norman Rockwell Thanksgiving.  But, it was a fun, festive one just the same.

The desert just east of the San Diego county line is nothing like where the Pilgrims gathered for the first Thanksgiving.   But our neighbors and 40 or so of their friends have been gathering there every Thanksgiving for 30 plus years for a long weekend of dune buggies, quads, dirt bikes, jeeps and other sand toys, and they invited us to join them this year.

In the early years, the women prepared Thanksgiving dinner under less-than-ideal conditions in the tiny kitchens of cab-over-campers, trailers and campfires.  Now, most of the motorhomes are big enough to need mortgages and their kitchens are not a whole lot smaller than mine!  The fenced property, owned by two families, now boasts a rec-room with inside seating for 50 or more and 20 or more motorhome pads complete with electricity, septic hookups, concrete pads and stationary BBQ grills.  One of the best features to my way of thinking (beside electricity -- I like not-so-roughing it!)  is a giant fire ring big enough for entire tree STUMPS!  No need for a log splitter there!

The dog-girls didn't join us this year, but if we're invited back next year I think we'll bring them along. We rewarded both of them with turkey leftovers for staying home and "guarding" the house. 

Some very southern, eastern Southern California Fall color.  Such as it is.

 

Sounds like everything west of the mountains stayed pretty cloudy most of the day. 

The farther east we drove, the clearer -- and drier and rockier! -- it got.

Controversial wind farm.  Those blades were spinning!

These photos don't capture the winding, steepness of these roads, but trust me--those runaway truck ramps are there for a reason!

The desert.

So, as I said, it wasn't a Normal Rockwell Thanksgiving, but it was fun to do something VERY different this Thanksgiving and we're thankful our good-friend neighbors invited us to join them. 

Resemblance

Am I the only one who sees a resemblance?

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Four off the floor

She looks like she's flying!

Look this way

Let's look this way:

Then this way,

and finally, this way.

(I have no idea what they were looking at, but it was fun to watch their heads swiveling in the same direction.)

Simply Ten Good Things

Simply ten eleven good things:

1.    Cousins who don't see each other often, getting to spend time together.

2.    Family that doesn't get together often enough, getting together.

3.    A good camera.

4.    My country, where there is room for many styles of life and many opinions.

5.    Enough time on a Saturday afternoon to watch a very big balloon being inflated.

6.    Smart phone technology.

7.    Autumn leaves that stay on the tree for a long time.

8.    A gift from a thoughtful friend.

9.    My dog-girls. 

10.  The sky before rain.

11.  Dinner with my girl. 

Erika -- and Leda -- need your help

See this cute little boy?

When he finishes his Championship, he will be joining the east coast branch of the Janssen/Warner  Corgi Clan.

Erika has been wanting a friend for Bonnie for awhile and when she and Christian decided the time was right, a plea for a puppy was sent to Leda. 

It turns out Leda would soon be looking for a forever home for Pumpkin's brother, Bailey.  Erika has always wanted a Blue, so the deal was sealed! 

Now, this is where you come in.  Leda said a bunch of indecipherable (to me) stuff like:  "needs one major" and "take Best of Winners to get the girls' major (if it holds), but nothing is impossible," that would have to happen in order for Bailey to finish his championship.  The sooner he finishes his championship, the sooner Erika will get her anxious little mitts on the gorgeous guy.   

So, be thinking encouraging thoughts for Leda and the Pumpkin-girl's brother, OK?

I'll keep you posted on their progress.  And, I'll update you on the coat of arms and tartan pattern I'm designing for the growing Janssen/Warner Corgi Clan!

{this moment}

{this moment}  

A Friday ritual. 

A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week.*

A simple, special, extraordinary moment. A moment I want to pause, savor and remember. Inspired by Soulemama

* OK.  So I'm cheating a little; this photo was really taken last week, but still...