Save the Turkeys!

Happy Thanksgiving! A fun holiday that celebrates two of my favorite things...family and food, I do have the fundamental issue with the whole turkey as the center of the meal thing. I would like to believe that my choice for the past 5 years to consume no turkey (or any of their feathered fowl friends) is helping to save the turkey population...but I know better.

Nonetheless, I celebrate today sans a main entree, there is plenty to eat between the mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, cranberry sauce...the list goes on and on. The spirit of the holiday is alive and well, and so are the turkeys!

Have a very Happy Thanksgiving and hug the next turkey you see...you can interpret that any way you see fit!

Gifts, Giving and Thanks

It is natural at this time of the year to think about not only what we are thankful for, but also how we can give thanks. I had the good fortune to attend church this past Sunday at Shepherd of the Hills United Methodist Church in Mission Viejo - the church that my very good friend Pastor Craig (aka The Mighty One) reigns as senior pastor. As usual, his sermon did not disappoint and as usual, it got me thinking about how my family and I give.

The takeaway for me was pretty straightforward - we are all bestowed with a variety of gifts that we in turn give freely to help ourselves and others grow...it creates a very positive cycle of the 'pay it forward' nature that helps bring people closer with each other and in their own relationship with God.

This explanation frames the blog of today...what are our gifts, how do we give them and in all of that, how do we give thanks? As someone bestowed with SO many gifts (I also live a rich fantasy life), it has been fun to do so many different things to give to others while at the same time getting a lot of satisfaction myself. This isn't about giving a way a ton of money, dedicating weeks on end to travel and help in faraway places or even making huge personal sacrifices...it is about finding a way to plug in and make a difference. The beauty in my opinion is that it is such a rewarding experience, especially in places and circumstances that one would not expect.

A Newton family favorite is currently Many Mansions - it is a part of our community and has a lot of different places and ways to volunteer from providing meals to reading to grade school kids or working on keeping the housing units in good shape. Even with a pretty full teen schedule, Holly has managed to find a way to give by asking for donations to this group in lieu of birthday or Christmas gifts for her.

As I watch Holly make these decisions for herself, I realize how great MY gift of her is and for that, I give huge thanks!

It's Beginning to Sound a Lot Like Christmas

I am a big fan of Christmas - big. I am not that wild about the commercialization that goes along with it and the way that the incessant signs of obligatory gift-giving show up earlier and earlier every year. I am not unique in this stance and will spare you a soapbox diatribe on how we as a society are losing sight of the things that matter most. I will instead focus on the things that make me happy about the season, and certainly Christmas Carols sit high on that list.

I was driving out to visit my parents in Hemet yesterday, listening to the radio as one does when on the road for 2-3 hours. I had been listening to NPR but then lost the station as I got further out into the desert on the 215 freeway. I started trolling around for an interesting station when I chanced upon...Christmas Carols. It was the first time that I have heard any Christmas music this season and it made me very happy to have my old friend Bing crooning to me about his white Christmas dream. Never mind that the weather has been unseasonably warm, the leaves are STILL on the trees and we just had some raging fires a little over a week ago here in Southern California...the Christmas music has begun, so the holiday season must officially be here!

I think that I am going to have to tune to some Christmas music stations until I have had my fill...for this year anyway!

Do the Math

My friend Kathie (better known as GFKS for Girlfriend Kathie Shaw, which makes little sense but still makes me laugh after something near 15 years of that joke/nickname) sent me a listing of crazy items from newspaper clippings that demonstrate the intelligence (or at times lack of it) in our society. For some reason, this really struck me as simultaneously funny and sad. Funny for the obvious, but sad because for some people, I don't think that they realize just how goofy or ridiculous these blurbs are. And we wonder why we are positioned so low in world rankings on education and knowledge!

Here are a couple more that make me smile...

Caught in the Craze

The Twilight series of books by Stephanie Meyer is not unfamiliar to the Newton household given the fact that Holly fits perfectly into the teen girl demographic AND she has read all 4 books - in fact I might have even blogged about driving her down to the bookstore at midnight on the Friday night/Saturday morning that the book (Breaking Dawn, in case you really needed to know) was released.

I have been hearing a lot of different reviews and commentary on TV, the radio and even in the newspaper about how this series has the 13-21 year old females under some spell, but also has quite a following with the "Twilight Moms". Not having read the books, I would not consider myself a part of that group, nor am I taken with the love-tortured and angst-filled character of forever-17 year old Edward Cullen. That would be kind of cougar-like and for a variety of reasons, I am going to clearly state how not right that would be.

I provide all of this context because I must now admit that yes, I too was caught in the craze and actually went to see the movie last night. Even odder still, it was kind of fun. Here is the long and the short of it - Holly called me up at about 2:30 pm to tell me that the friend she planned to go see a late showing of Twilight with bailed on her. Holly then called Rachel - with whom she has been sharing the books back and forth - and they decided that they wanted to go. Rachel's mom was going and did I want to come too? At first I thought that it was so sweet that my little angel wanted me to share in this exciting time with her, but then I realized that she and Rachel are under a lot of restrictions with their provisional licenses and since we were going to be out until after 1 am, they both needed rides. Holly never admitted to this being the case, but a mom has got to wonder.

The reasons for the invite become unimportant however, as we did go to the movie and lived the hype. It was social central down at the local movie theater as friends from school kept calling out to Holly asking her if she had seen the movie yet. There was then some amount of squealing (not too much from my kid, whew!) and we pressed on to get our seats.

I will say that all in all, the movie was certainly entertaining so long as you are prepared to deal with a lot of angst, tortured love, pining for what one can't have and dramatic staring. Not the cinematic stunner or literary genius that true epics are considered, but a captivating story acted out by a large collection of 'pretty people' most likely chosen for how they physically depict the characters versus deep acting abilities. Nonetheless, it moved along pretty well considering it's 2-hour run time and seemed to make the many fans in the theater very happy with it's adaptation.

I may actually have to read the books now!

You Can't Take it With You

Holly made her acting debut last Friday in her drama class presentation of the scattered (albeit Pulitzer prize-winning) comedy "You Can't Take it With You", however due to some scheduling conflicts I did not witness her stunning performance until this evening. Schnoogs carries dual credits in this play - she is the Stage Manager and also shares the role of Gay Wellington with another student - a cheerleader - who had to travel with the TOHS football team last week and cheer at the playoff game tonight.

Holly's part was naturally pivotal to the entire play - at least as far as I am concerned! She delivered quite the performance and I was complimented by several students and parents alike at what a great job my daughter did at playing a drunken actress. It's true, that Schnnogs did an excellent job and garnered herself quite a few good laughs during her time on stage. Even passed out on the couch with her limbs flailing about as the other members of the cast attempted to 'hide' her, she was pretty funny.

She was so convincing that I teased her I had to make sure that she wasn't method acting!

The 3-day rule

For those who have taken to reading the majority of my blogging entries, you know that I can get rather fixated, perhaps even obsessed with things. It is how I tick, I suppose. It can be a rather endearing trait to watch, but probably a rather frustrating thing if you have to live it while I am caught up in the fury of whatever is occupying my attention at the moment.

In an effort to keep some of my OCD tendencies in check, I work hard not to yield to a fixation too quickly. Case in point - peanut M&Ms. Talk about a tasty treat! I woke up craving them on Tuesday for reasons that I could not cite to you. I had a few opportunities to get some too, but I resisted. I must have thought about eating them a dozen times on Tuesday, but I attempted to show restraint and did not buy or speak of them, but boy was I thinking of them! Wednesday was no better. Everywhere I looked it seemed as is they were peeking out, taunting me with their little yellow bag, just calling to me.

This morning when I woke up, I again started thinking about how good they sounded. It has been longer than I can remember since I have last had any M&Ms, so I couldn't tell you why I keep thinking about them...but I do. I decided while riding the train to the airport that it was time for the 3-day rule to kick in - I have been craving the crazy little peanut M&Ms for 3 days now; it is time to break down and get a bag.

Fortunately, I was at the mecca of all junk food purchasing portals...the airport. I had my choice of bag size, but stuck with the classic 'King Size' bag. Although I wanted to just rip open the bag and pour them down my throat, I ate each one individually...slowly and carefully...savoring them and trying to figure out what it was that was making me crazy for the things! I nursed the bag along for about 15 minutes and then they were gone. Just as I finished, the couple seated next to me opened up THEIR bag of candy, which just so happened to be the monster size of...yep, peanut M&Ms. I was SUPER glad that I had opted to feed my craving or I might have had a nervous breakdown sitting next to them while they chomped recklessly on their gluttonous pile of treats!

I am still thinking about the darn things...it is going to be a long 3 days to Saturday!

Dinner and a Plane Trip

One of the benefits of not working right now is that I have some free time. Having built up a lot of hotel points and flight credits thanks to the travel I used to do also means that I can fly and stay in a lot of different cities for no cost.

With all of these factors in my favor, it seems pretty reasonable to fly out to Chicago to have dinner with a friend, which is exactly what I did yesterday! My friend Lori lives in upstate New York and travels several times a year for work. We have been working to find a date and city that worked out for us to get together for dinner, and Chicago proved to be the spot.

Although it might seem a bit odd to fly all the way out to Chicago for dinner, it was totally worth it and a rather economical trip. My flight cost $5 (airport fees on my ticket) and round trip transportation from Midway airport to downtown was $4 thanks to the benefits of public transportation on the Orange Line train. Hotel charge $0, or 25,000 of the 80,000 Hilton points that I still have and breakfast is included, so that makes $9 my out-of-pocket costs.

Factor in a very nice dinner, visit and conversation with Lori at the Weber Grill (within walking distance of my hotel, no less) and it is easy to say that I couldn't afford NOT to go!

That's how the math works in my head, anyway.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

Social Justice

Sometimes we get an opportunity to really make a difference. It may not seem like a lot on its own, but when combined with the efforts of many other talented people with the right and good intentions, great stuff can be achieved.

I might have mentioned a couple of months ago that I have been invited to work with a group called Maverick Photographers (the name was in existence before the 'Maverick' term was popularized). The basic mission of this group is to make a difference in the world through photography. While I certainly fancy myself handy with the camera, I know that I don't hold a candle to the real professionals, but I can write (humor me here, this IS my blog after all), and although a picture is worth 1000 words, a few well-phrased captions or context to tell the photo journalistic story are a great enhancement.

Enter yours truly on the first official project...creating the legacy for Harvey Milk Civil Rights Academy in San Francisco. I flew into San Jose today to spend the day with my friend Maureen, who then served as my chauffeur and entertainment coordinator. Maureen is a pivotal character in this adventure, as it is her husband - Brian - who founded and heads up Maverick Photography, and it was through a conversation Mo and I were having about me following my passion for writing that connected us.

There will be more info on this project as well as its evolution in future blogs, but for now ponder the pledge that the school has created for themselves as you see pictured above. This is a different school (it is a public elementary school in the city of San Francisco)n led by different administrators who have different views and approaches when it comes to education. It is my opinion that different is good and you will quickly learn how the most important thing at HMCRA is creating a safe and exciting learning environment for kids.

Talk about making a difference!

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

Wii might be hooked

I have dabbled in the various video game consoles that have come out over the years (even dating back to the dinosaur age of video games - Atari), but have never been one to get really hooked on a particular brand or craze, as I am really just not that good at the games and don't have the patience to spend the hours in front of the TV to figure it out - I would rather do something outdoors.

I spent a bit of time this weekend playing on a Wii by Nintendo and am almost embarrassed to admit that I am seriously considering a purchase in the Newton household soon. The concept itself is not that new to me and I have dabbled with it a few times, but this time...it was different. I played the Wii Fit and Rock Band for almost 3 hours, and time just flew by!

Wii Fit is in my opinion a brilliant move to shake the negative connotations that video games have for kids (and adults!) and their physical fitness. You register your fitness level using a personalized 'Mii', which records your age and weight, then calculates your Body Mass Index and Wii age. From there, you set up fitness goals for yourself and then choose from a multitude of different activities to start achieving them. It keeps track of where you are, when was the last time you worked out and it even reminds you to hydrate every now and again. Pretty cool stuff in my book!

And then there is Rock Band. There is not really any redeeming quality or health benefit that I can cite for this game, it is just fun. Singing tends to be the easiest of the options (we were playing with a guitar and drums), so I only got one crack at that. My drumming was abysmal and playing the guitar was borderline disaster, as it it backwards for me and switching it to left seemed to confuse things even more, as the prompts are all set up on the screen for a right-hander.

Undaunted, I kept strumming away (the truthful version here is simply I am far too competitive to fail out of something, so I just kept at the guitar until I could at least make it through a few songs without getting cut). Jonathan rocked the drums and Kristen wailed out the lyrics, so we have decided that perhaps we should practice a bit more and then prepare for a good old fashioned battle of the bands. Of course, to practice means that I am going to have to make an investment. Maybe the Newton family could benefit from a Wii Fit and if the Rock Band game just happens to fall into our laps, we would play it.

Sound convincing yet?

A Crushing Season

1 and 9 is how the Conejo Crushers finished their debut season in the Newbury Park parks & rec softball league. The good news is that I don't think that they were really concerned about keeping score or making it into the playoffs, as our subjects pictured here are clearly having a good time doing what they like to do - play and have some fun.

Tonight's game was a good one with some great moments for both the team and some of the individuals - Rachel made a cool sliding-catch kind of move to field a ball deep in right field, Holly had several solid hits when at bat and also was an important part in a relay throw to keep a strong batter at first rather than letting him round the bases. There have been definite improvements in the skill level of the entire team, but most importantly they continued to show up to do what they set out to do back in September - play and have some fun (see a theme here?)

I enjoyed the process of the games and as the self-proclaimed #1 loyal fan, I am ready to attend all of the games again for the spring league season. Of course...I could always sign up as a player and spread my cheer and encouragement from the field, wouldn't Holly love that??

Evacuated

Briana turned 13 today and it would appear that her entry to the teen years has been foreshadowed with a raging fire!

The original plan for today was very different than how it turned out. A cool party at some fancy new place called 300Anaheim that boasts lights, videos, bowling and tasty foods. We bowl, we eat, we sing happy birthday, eat some Coldstone cake, open presents and call it a celebration.

Instead, the day took a different turn at about 12:30 when a fire broke out in the hills above the 57 freeway in Brea. Within 30 minutes flames were visible at my friend Karen's house (Briana's mom) and we realized that things were moving fast.

How do you orchestrate/figure out what you take and what you leave in a matter of 15 minutes? Sentimental value would be my answer. Once you assess that your kids and animals are secure, grab the photos and smaller items that mean a lot (big screen TVs should not count here, no matter how much you think that you love the thing!) and then get the heck out of dodge!

The follow-up good news is that while there was a lot of burning of brush and hillsides around Karen's house, no one was injured and no homes were lost. It is admittedly not going to go down for Briana as 'the best birthday EVER', but certainly one of the more memorable!

Hopefully we can have a do-over for the party next Saturday.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

The Democratic Process

The 2008 election was certainly unlike no other. No matter your political views or opinions, it is pretty evident that things are shifting and to some extent, really do need to change. There are a few words, such as 'change', 'hope', and of course 'maverick' that we will always regard a bit differently, especially after the last 3 months or so (longer, if you immersed yourself starting with the primaries), but let's just go with the general election for now.

At any rate, a friend recently sent me a link to a series of 35 or so pictures that in my opinion capture the essence of what we as a society have witnessed through our democratic process. People were inspired, motivated and many worked to learn as much as they could - to be informed voters. Not everything may have turned out the way that everyone would have liked, but as the dust settles and we do move forward, I have to acknowledge the fact that for all of my frustration and at times cynicism around how we behave as a society...I am proud.

We can be an inspiring bunch.

Happy Birthday

Today is David's birthday, a fact that he is not bothered by, but he doesn't enjoy a lot of fussing and celebrating either. He prefers things pretty quiet and low key. No banners, trumpets, red carpet or balloons. No clowns, jugglers, mimes or bounce houses. Just a nice, normal day with maybe a little bit of special attention to meals and treats (David is a big eater, a fact that is nicely balanced by his quick metabolism).

Today is turning out to be the kind of celebration that he prefers. We had the 'famous' sausage-mushroom-cheese pie and caramel pecan rolls for breakfast, grilled cheese with sweet potato fries for lunch, WoodRanch BBQ for dinner and cherry pie in lieu of birthday cake. As David put it, "It doesn't get much better than this."

For those of you who don't know David, I want to take a moment to help describe what an unbelievably great guy he is. For starters, he has dealt with me for 24 years (21 married and 3 engaged) and has done so with nothing but love, respect and a great sense of humor (one would have to). There is a lot more to him than just being my husband and Holly's Dad, although both are roles that he relishes. I am strangely at a loss for words in how to best describe him without extolling his virtues for pages on end, so let me share this one little story that happened last weekend that sums him up pretty well.

We were driving to Westlake when a cat darted out from between two parked cars and into the street. He slowed, swerved and missed the cat, but unfortunately the car coming from the other direction ran over the cat and did not stop...I am hoping that it is because the other driver did not realize that he had done it. I was traumatized and on the verge of tears as we parked and got out of the truck. We leashed up the dogs, he handed all 3 to me and slowly walked across the street where he gently picked up the limp cat and laid it on the grass on the sidewalk. He didn't want to have anyone else run over the cat even though it was already dead - he said that it just seemed more respectful to move the cat and hope that we could find the owner to tell them.

He's just that kind of guy.

The Eyes Have It

This was a very productive Veterans Day for the Schnoogs and I. There have been a number of errands that we have been overdue on for quite some time. First on the list - some new glasses for Holly.

Somehow, 2 years have passed since Holly's last eye exam and it has been almost 4 years since she has upgraded her glasses. I realized that it was time to pay attention to the Schnoogs last week when she drove me somewhere...she naturally has to wear her specs when driving and that was when I saw it...the tape. Yes, my child had a piece of scotch tape holding her glasses together. No wonder I hardly ever see her wear them anymore!

Before you call social services on me, let me tell you that we immediately set this date as our time to get her eyes checked, glasses fixed and replacements purchased; all of which did happen as promised. The good news is that her eyes have actually improved just a bit AND they were able to fill the lens prescription today, so my child no longer has to wear jankety, not-quite-the-right-prescription glasses.

I even threw in a bonus pair of sunglasses to keep things easy on the eyes when driving. We make quite the models, as you can see above. Of course, the lenses made me a bit queasy and I almost tripped when I walked over to check the picture that David took.

But they do make me look smart, even if they add at least five years, don't you think?

Obsessed

We love our dogs. We take them almost everywhere, walk them twice a day, watch their nutrition and regard them as family members. It is nothing to be ashamed of, nor is it a secret. I do believe however that this weekend, I might have crossed a line to register me as a bit obsessed with my friendly little pooches.

Every year for Father's Day David gets a personalized calendar with different pictures of the dogs. We started the tradition a few years ago and it has become something that he looks forward to, so I am ever vigilant about having a good selection of current photos to choose from. Individual shots, group shots, candids, action photos and at least one family pose. As a result, I occasionally bring one of my cameras along on our morning walks to capture something cute or funny that the dogs are doing.

We went to the beach on Saturday and hiking on Sunday - both beautiful, clear and sunny mornings. The scenery was great and the dogs in rare form - even Scooby was particularly animated (until she realized I had the camera pointed at her, of course). I spent a good portion of both of those walks framing and snapping photos.

When I uploaded the pictures last night, I realized that I took 58 pictures. None of me, none of Holly (she prefers to sleep in!) and a couple of David, but the large majority were simply of Scooby, Shadow and Daphne. I take a lot of pictures and I can't think of the last time that I took 58 different shots of anyone else, not even Holly - at least not in one or two outings!

Well, we know that the 2009 David's Dogs calendar will have a lot of great poses - here are a few of them for you to enjoy yourself.

Anyone want to see a picture of a cute dog?

Crossroads

This picture was taken during Unemployment Friday last week. Jonathan and I were at a loss for something new to do, so we decided to stick with a favorite - it may even be at classic status now - the Ventura walk.

This is a great trek to do because you get a little bit of everything. State beach, pier, boardwalk, downtown, campgrounds and ocean-front pathway. I noticed a sign that identified the paved portion of the path as the first bike path in California installed by Cal Trans. Our own little bit of local history and claim to fame!

This railroad crossing makes me smile because as you can see, we are all of 50 feet from a drop-off that goes straight to the ocean. Is a full-scale RR crossing really necessary? Two signs? Who is seriously thinking of driving across here? I am sure that there is some logical explanation, such as safety for pedestrians, etc., but for the time being I just see it as a very entertaining and scenic statement of the obvious.

It certainly does make for a nice photo.

Friday Night Lights

Football season is a favorite time around the Newton household - particularly the high school games. No big endorsements or contracts, just natural talent that is still learning, making for some interesting and occasionally entertaining plays.

Thousand Oaks High School is having a great season (6-1) and they have some players who seem likely scholarship bound for college. Friday was the last home game of the season and it was against cross-town rival Westlake High School...it was a game that could not be missed!

The attendance had to be something of a record. The bleachers on both sides of the field were packed and there were enough people milling about on the perimeter to make me wonder if we were in violation of some fire codes! Westlake Village got on the board early, playing very strong and making the Thousand Oaks fans a little nervous about how this game was going to turn out.

Holly was once again up in the booth, filming the game and calling the shots with the other students on site to help capture the footage. David and I sat about 6 rows below her and I only turned around 7 or 8 times to catch her eye and wave. I am sure that the people in the row behind us thought that I was a little bit obsessed!

The 2nd half of the game was all about T.O. and they ended up winning the game 28-16, putting them in the playoffs. As the alma mater played and the people who knew the words sang (do not count me in that group - I have been going to these games for 4 years and for the life of me I can't figure out WHAT the heck any of the words are!), I felt a little sad, maybe even a little teary eyed that this is it - Holly's last at-home football game of her high school career.

As the crowd jammed the aisles to exit, David and I climbed up the bleachers to visit with the video producer, who was telling everyone how to pack up (a girl after my own heart, I have no idea where she gets the gene to boss people around!), I asked Holly if she felt sad that this was the last home game. The non-nonsense reply was, "No. They are in the playoffs, it's not that big of a deal."

Apparently the sentimental gene skips a generation.

Duds

This struck me as entertaining today. You might recall my boasting of the fine candy selection for Halloween. Judging from the abundance of remaining Milk Duds, it appears that there was a dud in the trick or treating options. Twix...long gone. Take 5 (the best candy bar EVER)...not to be seen (and I only had one!) Rolos...there might be one left somewhere on the bottom. What we have remaining is a rather large pile of individual serving-size Milk Duds. Something tells me that if left unaddressed, this cauldron of undesirable candy will sit on the counter until next year.

These are not the issues that trouble our nation or even create strife in the household, but for some reason I got a good laugh out of it. I was making dinner and saw that the candy cauldron had been moved over to the counter by the sink typically reserved for ripening avocados. I thought that it would make a good blog entry so I got out the camera to snap a photo. David asked me why I was taking a picture in the kitchen, to which I answered, "These Milk Duds look kind of sad, lonely and segregated from the rest of the treats." Holly piped up with a helpful, "We need more Twix!"

Maybe I'll serve up Milk Duds for dessert tomorrow night!

Action Time

Yesterday was of course election day and while the bulk of my hours were spent with a certain celeb in Los Angeles, the importance of voting and the issues at hand did not go unnoticed. I voted last week (years of commuting to the northern part of the state had me set up as a permanent absentee voter) and was keeping close watch on things via the Blackberry once the east cost polls closed.

It was very interesting being in LA - specifically along Hollywood Boulevard on election day. There was no shortage of people on the streets, happy to make their opinions and preferences to how we should vote known. Lots of honks of agreement from passing cars and lots of dialogue on street corners...I would actually describe it as fun as the air was somewhat electric with hopes, beliefs and an earnest desire to get as many people out to vote as possible.

At about 6 pm I ducked into a store that had two huge TVs set to the coverage and watched things start to take shape. I ended up chatting with a man who said that he has been living in the United States for 5 years (he moved here from Persia) and has been a citizen for 18 months - this is obviously his first presidential election that he voted in and he got up at 6:30 am to make sure that his voice was heard. The excitement in his face was infectious and I noticed as I walked along the Boulevard that people were making eye contact, nodding and truly engaging with one another as we passed on the street - pretty cool and very unifying.

There is still a lot to do and I can't hide my disappointment on a certain Prop 8 that seems to have passed. It is action time (well, it will be in January) and I, like all of my fellow citizens am really looking forward to how the change will benefit us all.

Celebrity

November 4, 2008 is a day that many will remember as historic for a multitude of reasons, all of which the Newton family share in PLUS one bonus element of now having a bonafide celebrity in the house...at least that is what we like to think.

Shadow was summoned for her participation on an Animal Planet show called Groomer Has It. I have admittedly never seen the show, but understand (after looking at the website) that it is a lot like Top Chef or Project Runway or any of the other reality shows that are on TV, aimed at projecting talented hopefuls into the national spotlight as the absolute 'best' in their chosen field. In this case, dog grooming.

David originally answered the call from Hollywood this past Saturday for their 'senior dogs' show. At 14, Shadow clearly fits the bill. The producers liked Shadow, but thought that her thick undercoat might prove to be an unfair element for the groomer that had to work on her in the challenge. They sent David and Shadow home with promise of calling for another show should the opportunity present itself. We got a call just a few hours later asking if we could bring Shadow back to be in the segment that was being filmed on Tuesday. A quick check of my schedule confirmed that I was free (big surprise) and off to Hollywood we went!

It wasn't until Shadow and I had gone through all of the preliminary interviews, questions and vet check-up before I learned of the theme for the day. The focus was (I am trying to put it delicately here)...larger dogs. Not as in tall but more as in chubby (obese, is the way I heard one producer put it, which immediately put me on the defense!) Yep, Shadow is our very own fat actress.

Fortunately, my big-boned dog did not seem at all bothered by the topic of the show and was a very cooperative subject. We were at the studios from 11 am to 9 pm, but as you can see above, we have a very nice looking (and clean smelling) dog to show for the effort. The producers and everyone on the show took great care of the dogs, including an on-set veterinarian and a representative from the Humane Society (Shadow and I got one warning about aggression after Shadow got a little snappy with a cute little dog named Pete who got in her grill. We kept to ourselves and no additional issues were observed, whew!) All in all, it was a very successful day and we will be able to see our celebrity in her starring role sometime in late February or March - I will naturally keep you posted once we know.

Doesn't she look thinner to you?

Free Falling

I'm a sucker for the beauty of the outdoors, and there is plenty of it to go around; particularly during autumn in the mountain states.

Today was a whole lot of scenery like this, plus a 20 minute game of chase through the park with the sound of leaves crunching underfoot. (When 'chasing' a 3-year old, it is easy to pay attention to the scenery and not get too winded, two things that I appreciated about the game).

I don't know what it is about the changing leaves against the backdrop of a blue sky that makes me so wistful, but it does, so I might as well enjoy the ride.

Kind of like the free fall ride that the leaves enjoy as they drop and color the landscape.

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

Playtime

I realize that I have lost the fine art of playing and taking life at an unhurried pace. This lesson has come to me through the teachings of my 3-year old tutor, Deanna.

I have been schooled on the silliness of my hurried ways. Even breakfast is something to be savored and stretched out...why wolf down your oatmeal in 5 minutes when you can extend the fun to an easy 30 minutes between arranging dolls, sipping milk, showing off a well-groomed milk mustache, counting spoonfuls and citing the days of the week?!

It looks like my next lesson is about to begin, we are going to work on our 3-letter word flash cards and at some point in time get dressed to go to the park.

By my calculations, we ought to get there in about 3 hours, but we will have fun doing it!

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

Family Friendly?

So here I am in Denver visiting my good friend Allison and her daughter Deanna (age 3 and pictured here). We wanted to go to a kid-friendly place for dinner, so it seemed that Casa Bonita was just the place. In business since 1974, it boasts cliff divers, various shows, mariachis and an arcade PLUS an all-you-can-eat mexican plate meal. What more could we want?

The place clearly sees a lot of traffic and activity. Set up like a Vegas buffet, the wait to order, get food and be seated can queue for up to a good 30 minutes or so. A little cheesey, but hey, it's family entertainment. And then we got a view of the food.

I'll post the photos for shock/entertainment value when I am back home, but consider this scenario....plates of food passed through a tiny cut-out window, sitting under heat lamps. Fresh? Hmmm. Then we saw the fajita meat on the grill, crammed around a saute pan loaded with onions and peppers. Is that food safety certified? Not likely. Rather than run and head for the hills, we continued, blindly believing that all will be well.

I'll spare you my fine readers any further food visuals beyond the cheese enchiladas with nacho cheese sauce and know that the evening has ended with both Allison and I sipping ginger ale in hopes of quelling the stomach pains.

Let's get to the entertainment. First, there was a creepy giant gorilla (girl-illa as Deanna says it) that beat on his chest and snuck up on and scared people. Then there was the show with a sheriff and outlaw that ended with the outlaw being shot multiple times and then falling off the cliff into the water. My personal favorite of course was the damsel in distress being chased by some Tarzan-type until she was rescued by the sheriff who shot Tarzan, who then fell off the cliff and into the water.

What is this place and who dreamt up the entertainment? And how is this in any way related to a Mexican-themed restaurant??? I remain truly baffled and while Allison and I joked about the number of years of therapy required for any child who visits for dinner (we estimate 5), there is a sad truth that this place can't possibly contribute in a positive way to the youth of Denver.

The final straw - as if the overall experience wasn't enough - came in the arcade. There was some sort of 'Turkey Hunter' game right next to the little kiddie rides with exploding guts and frighteningly realistic graphics. That did it, we were out of there.

We are going to be taking the safe route...like the park...with Deanna tomorrow!

Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed