Winchester the Weathervane and other Tidbits

Hey It’s Jet Here.

Our friend, Miss Jodi, initiated this great idea to update readers on previous posts.  She created a lovely badge to go with her idea.

Last night, I almost left the garage to join the ladies for our evening constitutional… until the rumbling started.  I cowered (vocab building project VBP) and beelined right back into the house.  The ladies went on to meet Miss Mary Ann and Dixie at Max’s corner; however, even they abbreviated (VBP) their path because the multi-colored sky perplexed Miss Mary Ann, our resident meteorologist.  She and Mom counted the seconds between the lightning and the thunder and watched which way the storm was headed to determine the best course.  They eventually came upon good ‘ol Winchester, atop one of the houses looking like a weathervane!  Boy that guy has some feathers!

Tech Update:

Maybe all the storms knocked some electrical reasoning into our laundry room.  So far, shhhhhh, since Monday, our light switch/make all the equipment crazy issue, has subsided.  Mom gently flips the switch and watches the equipment like a hawk.  Oh those Mr. AT&T people… the only remaining naughty behavior is with the removal of the teensy wireless thingie, Mom’s new, SMART TV is dumb!  She’s dreading the inevitable 4^th call in 8 weeks!  Mom’s Kitchen Counselor blog should be restored in about five more days; then the fun starts because she still must have a new company fix the former issues.  Baby steps…

Tasty Tuesday:

Miss Susan from Long Life Cats and Dogs commented that to her knowledge, she has never seen honeydew in S. Africa.  New headline: HONEYDEW – MIA IN S.A.!  We asked her whether she has access to other types of melons like: watermelon, cantaloupe, canary, Persian etc… as Mom’s faithful Kitchen K9, I await her reply.  Also, we congratulate LLCD for making Le Clown’s blogroll in a heated contest… read on to follow the drama.

Striking Chimera:

Because Mom will not permit me to FB or Tweet yet, we did not know how many of you already knew about the striking feline.  You did not seem to mind the repeat and wrote in similar observations of amazement, appreciation and wonderment at her coloring.  Several of you wanted verification that the picture was not “photshopped.”  From my Scooby Do Academy approved investigative skills, the answer is no.

Another great follow-up day.

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Wordless Wednesday: Vixen Goes to Publix

Hey It’s Jet Here.

Mom spent almost two hours at the grocery store on Monday purchasing groceries for her two University of Miami classes yesterday and today.  (explains why she is slow to respond to your comments and slow to read your blog posts to me…she planned for 15 yesterday and 120 today.)  She told us that people in the produce aisles looked at her oddly because she looped the department for about 40 minutes, dividing her cart in half with baby carrot bags as the items almost overflowed the cart!

As she approached her car, the SUV next door had the back flap open and a Publix employee stood looking in.  Curious as ever, she thought she saw a K9.  Considering the temperature was about 93 with 100 % humidity, she peeked as she passed.  Here’s who peeked back.

The husband had the air on, thank goodness, even so, the K9 panted.  Mom shouted into the SUV and asked if she could pet the K9, girl or boy, how old and what the name was.  Yes, girl, 10 and Vixen.  Vixen? Like Rudolph the Reindeer’s Vixen Mom asked?  Yes. (the human didn’t want to talk much)  Mom thought Vixen looked like a Scooby Doo double with her expression, minus the coloring.  Mom told the Publix employee how surprising Vixen’s silky coat was.

By this time, Mom and her groceries felt like the Wicked Witch at the End of The Wizard of Oz… before she fully melted, she thanked the human, bid Vixen adieu, loaded her 20 or so bags and hit the AC button!

Another great, Great Dane, day.

Thanks to BlogPaws for sponsoring the Wordless Wednesday Hop.

Referrals from the Office Man Cave

Hey It’s Jet Here.

Many of you have expressed interest, admiration, curiosity about my two man caves.  Mom captured an office man cave moment last night while working on her University of Miami Fall Cooking Class Schedule.  (She cannot reveal the titles yet, however, let’s just say, the Jetster drooled a little!)  Whoops, digressed again.

Anyway, while in my man cave, Mom read aloud an email from this LinkedIn thingie from her Golden Retriever group.  One golden Mom wanted to begin training her golden in waterfowl retrieval and requested resources.

Because of my Scooby Doo Academy Business Networking class, I knew what to do.

• State the need – Expert waterfowl retrieving source.
• Brainstorm possible contacts – Mom and I needed only a moment this time to determine a perfect referral.
• Dictate referral (s) and reason for referral to requester.
• Sit back in man cave and preen (vocab builder) yourself a little knowing you helped someone.

In this case, the perfect referral directed human to Miss Linda from 2browndawgs.  Yup, the same Miss Linda who saved JJ’s life!  Because of our blogging buddies, we could make a helpful connection, whoo hoo.

Perhaps I should consider a virtual chapter of BNI! (They are international and chapter meetings begin @ 7 a.m., easy peasy for Casa Jet!)

Another great, referral, day.

Wordless Wednesday – Office Characters

Hey It’s Jet Here.

Mom’s friend, Sue, sent her another good one.  In light of the financial meltdowns… did I just dictate that? Wow, my Scooby Doo Academy economics class is really paying off!… bailouts, not so spiffy jobs reports, we wanted to ask all the humans … and furry friends where appropriate… can you relate?

Another great office environment day.

Thanks to blogpaws for hosting the Wordless Wednesday Hop.  (Check out their new badge!)

Tasty Tuesday – Tail-gating

Hey It’s Jet Here.

Thanks to Sugar and Kol for initiating Tasty Tuesdays, today is our tenth  participating post!

The NBA Championship begins tonight between our Miami Heat and the Oklahoma City Thunder.  Here at Casa Jet, we will tail-gate… RIGHT MOM?  In case Mom needed some K9 inspiration, I shared the following link from Rodale for 5 healthy treats.  HINT, HINT!   What?  These require a dehydrator? Hmpf… this will not do… at least for tonight…

What Mom? … Mom asked me, one of her Kitchen K9s,  to share a human recipe capturing the Miami Heat theme as well as the backyard mangos which have started to drop. Then she requested a K9 recipe capturing the Miami Heat theme, however, with different fruit, since mangos are not the best for K9s. Scooby Doo Academy trained Investigator Jetty on the job!

Pineapple-Mango Chili Popsicles

Makes 6 popsicles

• 1/2 cup water
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1 cup mango, chopped
• 1 cup pineapple, chopped
• 1/2 teaspoon chili powder
• 1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper

Directions:

• Start off by making simple syrup – bring water to a boil, add sugar and stir until completely dissolved.  Set aside to cool.
• Add mango and pineapple to a blender or food processor and puree.  Mix in simple syrup, chili powder and cayenne pepper.
• Pass the mixture through a strainer, and discard all solids.
• Pour into Popsicle molds, and wait patiently while the freezer works its magic.  (Mom, The Kitchen Counselor, says you can make a granita if you do not have molds!)

Smoothie Dog Treat

• 1 cup melon (no seeds) – (Jet: must be cantaloupe for Heat colors, unless you find a deep reddish color watermelon!)
• 1 cup strawberries
• 1 banana

Directions

• Puree the fruit together in a blender to make a smoothie.
• Once you have made the smoothie, you can either serve it straight away, (freeze in ice cube trays – our idea!) or freeze in containers to make a special fruit Popsicle. .
• Don’t forget that you can stir in applesauce instead of pureeing apples for your smoothie.

Another, Let’s Go Heat, Let’s Feed Jetty, day!

My First Ever Haiku

Hey It’s Jet Here.

My friend, Rumpy, posted a poetry challenge last week.  JJ’s medical issues distracted me from concentrating on my poetic abilities.  In light of yesterday’s post,  Mom thought expressing myself in haiku might help my nerves.

• Boomers, streaky lights,
• Make me scratch walls and shiver.
• Tell them to scram NOW!

Did I do ok?  Do you think my Language Arts teacher at Scooby Doo Academy would approve?

Another great, poetic day.

P.S.  Thanks to all of you who have asked how JJ is feeling.  We feel so fortunate to have such positive energy and caring coming our way. Mom’s taking her to Dr. Shaffer on Saturday morning for a check.  Mom has to remind JJ not to jump, wrestle, play and wag her tail so hard it should fall off. Between us, I think Little Miss “Who had serious surgery, me?” had the fastest recovery on the planet… thank heavens!

Mother’s Day – I’m Thinking Ahead Pt. 1

Hey It’s Jet Here.

I, Scooby Doo Academy trained, Jet the Gentleman, Boy of the House, etc… have thought long and hard… well if you count since early this morning as long and hard, about what to do for my human Mom on Sunday.  Here’s my thought process so far:

• Idea: Give her a card from me, JJ, Fluffy and Puffy.
  • Issues:
    • We can’t hold a writing implement, need help to make a paw print, and cannot type on a keyboard.
    • No transportation to purchase one.
• Idea: Let Mom sleep late on Sunday morning.
  • Issues:
    • I’ve got collie in me and we feel the need to herd at the crack of dawn.
    • It’s taken me 2+ years to train Mom to get up with me.
    • Our bladders and bellies need attending to.
• Idea: As Mom’s Kitchen K9s, we can prepare a meal for her.
  • Issues:
    • We cannot help but QC (quality control) ourselves silly until the plate is empty.
    • Not allowed to use/touch anything hot.
    • No opposable thumbs.
    • Cannot retrieve our Tasty Tuesday Recipes (thanks to Kol and Sugar) from Mom’s Software.
• Idea: Give her a spa day.
  • Issues:
    • I’m not sure I can get wet with my boo-boos.
    • JJ has … you know… girl issues right now.
    • Oh wait… Mom’s supposed to give US  a Spa Day.

Obviously, I need to call a 4-legged walkers only meeting in the house today to discuss more options…

Another great brainstorming day.

Stop Drop & Roll

Hey It’s Jet Here.

Bet you’re thinking fire drills, right?  Nope.  In my K9 world, when you see me stop, drop and roll, it means I’m itchy.  Yup.  Tropical Itchy Season has returned in full force.  To demonstrate my manly man toughness, my mind over matter Scooby Doo Academy training, I’ve coped stoically for the last 6 weeks or so.  However, I can no longer mask my itchies.

Mom and I have the most sensitive skin amongst our family members, both 2 and 4 legged.  Right around the beginning of mango bloom season, (mid/late February), the top part of my tail and my rump area begin to sustain itchies.  We use this Vet’s Best Spray to help.

A few days/weeks, depending on the year, after that Spring Ahead time change thingie you humans do with the clock, the No-See-Ums start to come out and bother us during our walks.  Mom changes her walking pants from Capri length to cover-the-ankles length.  We both begin to get bites; Mom on her lower legs and arms and me, usually on my back half.

Now, whenever I go outside, I Stop, Drop & Roll before I can focus on anything else.  Mom first thinks I’m sucking up for belly rubs until she remembers that this technique scratches all the itchy parts I cannot reach myself.  She usually does rub my belly, an added bonus! (I look like this.)

Mosquito season goes into high alert in a few weeks, when our 6-8 month rainy season begins.  Oh boy, do Mom and I get bitten.  Mom tells me that’s because she and I are so sweet!  Yes, we try all of the natural pest options, without much luck.

So, if you see me doing the Stop Drop and Roll,

• first – pet my belly…
• then step aside when I get up because I will do my famous shake…
• then feel free to massage my back (and include a little scratching technique.)

I will reward you with my also famous Jetty kisses.

Another great, but itchy day.

Tasty Tuesday: Magic Eggs

Hey It’s Jet Here.

Thanks to Sugar and Kol for initiating Tasty Tuesdays, today is our first participating post!

Mom boiled 18 eggs for her Kitchen Counselor demonstration at the Farmers Market this weekend and she only used 4 yellow parts.  If my Scooby Doo Academy math course taught me anything, it taught me how to count food items!  She returned with 12 yellows claiming she shared two with other passing K9s.

Here’s what’s left.

JJ and I suggested we practice a family magic trick.

Place yellows (ok Mom one each) in our bowls.

Ok, you can ask us to sit and wait like we do for breakfast and dinner.

Poof!  It’s MAGIC… yellows disappear!

JJ making sure.

Uh, something is sticky in my throat, need water!

Another great magical day.

Nooks and Crannies

Hey It’s Jet Here.

Last night, our evening constitutional was late and abbreviated.  Mom returned from her UMiami vegan gluten free baking class about an hour before our customary “before bed empty the tank” walk.  She wanted to exit right; however, I thought an exit left suited us better.

We followed the exit left small square route, which passes by my two favorite banyan trees I’ve mentioned before.  I usually investigate the first one, which last night became the second one with the exit left approach.

In the floodlight from the gated house, my tree felt more intriguing than usual. (Mom took pictures this morning so you could see better.) Even though Mom preferred not to dawdle, she noted my curiosity and asked me if I wanted to “jump it?”

My favorite nook did not call to me at first; something pulled me on the opposite side.  Two spots required intense inquiry on the sidewalk side.  I put my nose so far into a cranny that Mom said, “Jetty, be careful, something may surprise you and grab your nose!”  Silly Mom, grab my nose!

Just for emphasis, I used my right front paw as a mini excavator; just like you humans use your right hand to clear out debris from a cranny.  Continuing on to my favorite spot, I briefly jumped up, not discovering anything new.  Two more passes to the four spots of the evening occurred before Mom and JJ insisted we must move along.  They both encourage my love of detecting and investigation.

I shall write about my findings in my Scooby Doo Academy Nature journal.

Another great nook and cranny day.

P.S. Happy Birthday to my special Nana.