Random Thoughts...Food, Firearms, and Fun

When Mac was in the Marine Corps, I became friends with Barb. We met through an online Marine Corps wives/girlfriends group. She and I became close friends, even though we were several states apart. She helped me weather a lot of challenges, and we stayed in contact, even though we both stopped frequenting the group. Years ago, to help her son, she adopted a pup named Milo. She didn't know just how much Milo would help her son, and how much Milo would change their lives. Milo helped save her son's life one weekend, and from then on, they were extremely bonded. What Barb didn't realize was that where they lived had BSL. One day, she opened the door to police officers who told her that based on how he looked, Milo needed to go. If she failed to get rid of him, they would. Instead of surrendering him, Barb moved to another township, where she could keep Milo. To her, Milo was family, and she wouldn't abandon him. Since March, Milo had been having health problems, and...

Mac and I are both registered Republican, and for once, it looks like the Pennsylvania primary will matter. I'm still undecided about who will get my vote, because I'm not really happy with any of the candidates, Democrat or Republican. Last night, Donald Trump held a rally about half an hour from our house.Mac wanted to attend, so I agreed, figuring I'd keep an open mind, and at least listen to the rhetoric. The rally started at 7. By the time Mac got home and we ate dinner, we didn't arrive near the Farm Show Complex until 6:30. By that time, people were parking along the side roads. Every possible parking lot was being used, and people were being charged $10 to park in these lots. There were hundreds of people making their way to the complex and thousands in line at the complex. I decided I wasn't up for dealing with that many people, so Mac parked in front of the complex, hopped out, and I went off to enjoy a cup of coffee while he waited in line. The line t...

I've been very busy with school, Eastern Star, the dogs, and cooking dinners for Mac's Blue Lodge. I just realized that I never posted an update after Mauser passed. Losing Mauser was so incredibly difficult. He passed at home, on Saturday, October 3. I still cry over him sometimes. We swore we'd be a two dog house after Mauser, as Mauser was a last minute addition to save his life. Within two weeks, we'd both decided the house was too quiet, and decided that Mauser would send us a dog that he thought needed us, when he thought we were ready. At the beginning of November, by chance, I saw a posting for Jackson, a 9-year-old German Shepherd mix, surrendered to Staten Island AC&C due to allergies. Mauser had been named Jackson at the Manhattan AC&C, but didn't answer to it, which is why we named him Mauser. A few begging messages, and this Jackson became ours too. I picked him up in Matamoras, PA, while Mac was in Idaho, hunting. He didn't want to an...

It seems that when one is in direct sales, one has a lot of friends in direct sales. A friend is a consultant for PawTree dog products, so I figured I'd try it. The dogs loved the PawTree beef liver treats, so I thought I'd see how they enjoyed the food. After looking at all of the choices, I selected the X-Large read Chicken & Oatmeal Recipe. It says that it is for all breed sizes, so I figured it would be good for my three large-breed kibblers. When I ordered the X-Large Real Chicken & Oatmeal Recipe, I expected to receive one bag. My order was delayed, and I never received an update to it until I reached out to my consultant. I finally received a tracking number, with a note that they were going to be out of the office for the weekend, and not much of an apology for the delay. When my package arrived, it wasn't one large bag, it was three smaller bags. It also included a form letter saying, "Our label printer wasn't working, so we couldn't print ...

Mauser joined our family at the age of 10, after being found tied to a fence at the corner of Jackson and Grand Streets in Manhattan. At New York Animal Care and Control, he developed kennel cough, and he was scheduled to be euthanized. A volunteer described him as “He is a little opinionated, like barking back when I put him back in his kennel. His upset is short lived though and soon enough, he is kissing me through the bars…Or, when I first pointed my camera at him, he protested than got used to it. He is like my old grandpa but a spunky version of him.” An urgent plea on Facebook found its way to us, and an hour before he was to be killed, we reserved him. His adoption built and strengthened friendships and bonds, before he even left the shelter. He came home from Manhattan on September 20, 2014, and immediately found his place in our pack. He lived his life with us showing his spunky side. Once he felt better, his spunkiness really manifested itself, as did his...

For the last few weeks, Mauser hasn't been doing well. He's had an intestinal bacterial infection that the vet likened to colic in babies. His arthritis has been getting worse, and on Monday, his front legs gave out, and he fell down the outside steps. He's 11, and for a few days, I wasn't sure he'd give me my wish: to give us at least one good year. But, he rallied late during the week of his adoption day (September 20), and until this last Monday afternoon, it seemed like he might give us far more than a year. Watching him is more than tough. I cry before work, I cry at night before bed, I tell him goodbye and that I love him every time I leave or go to bed. I knew when we adopted a 10-year old dog with arthritis that it would be tough at some point. I just didn't think it would be this tough. He had been eating chicken and pasta three times a day, and was still spunky enough to spit out the pasta when he only wanted chicken. So, we fed him what he...

I hope Michael Vick is worth it to the Pittsburgh Steelers, I really do. Signing him has upset a lot of fans, a lot of rescues, and has a lot of people trying to justify how he's "turned his life around," or "done his time." I've been a lifelong Steelers fan. I'm 37, and some of my earliest memories are watching games with my father and going to training camp every year, as a Daddy-Daughter day. I remember the One for the Thumb t-shirt that was huge on me, as a child, but that I proudly wore. Steelers football days were Daddy-Daughter days, and the Steelers were always something that my father and I could discuss, a tie to bind even as I was looking to find my own way. One year, on Christmas Eve, when I was maybe 8, my father slipped on ice and broke his leg. A few days later, I remember watching a Steelers game with him sitting in his recliner, me on the couch. They started showing a replay of the Immaculate Reception, and as Franco Harris somehow fou...