Happy Halloween!

Bone China**

"A good marriage is that in which each appoints the other

guardian of his solitude"

-- Rainer Maria Rilke

As of today, it's worked for 36 years in our house.  :-)

**According to the Internet, the gift for a thirty-sixth wedding anniversary is bone china.

Fun Saturday #1

The past few weeks have been really busy around here, plus I've caught a cold, so any extra energy I might have had otherwise (and it wasn't much!) was used mainly to accomplish basic tasks.  Which is why you really haven't heard much from me.

But today I thought you might enjoy hearing about the Mutt Strut.  Dug and I signed up to do it again this year (well, obviously, I signed us up!), because not only is it for a wonderful organization, but last year's event was so much fun for both of us.

Saturday morning, October 11, turned out to be one of those days where it had rained hard all night, and was still raining as well as pretty cool in the morning.  Ick.  But I decided we would still go, because a) we had said we would, b) the people running it and the vendors would be showing up, and c) homeless animals don't have the luxury of deciding to stay inside when it's cold and rainy.  As it turned out, by the time we actually started "strutting" (led by some of the Mummers), it was only drizzling, and by the time the walk was done, the rain had stopped altogether.  So we and the other hardy souls who showed up all survived just fine, thank you.

One of the things I love about this event is that there is a Halloween costume contest, and some people are amazingly creative!  Most of the dogs have no problems with their costumes, and it's hilarious to see them all dressed up.  Dug hasn't worn a costume - yet - because I seldom have my act together enough to do so, but maybe someday ...

Anyway, here are some of the highlights from this year.

I especially was impressed with the three-legged pup above whose owner made him a peg leg pirate!  It was an adorable costume, and the pup seemed more than happy to be dressed up and walking along.  And the pup dressed as the Pope made me laugh so hard I cried.  

The event takes place at the Navy Yard, which has so many great buildings - I really wish I could go inside - and interesting sights ...

One of my favorite attractions was the Puppy Kissing Booth, where I got to kiss this little girl, Lucy (and boy do I wish I could have adopted her -  bull terriers are one of my fave kinds of doggies!).

She was supposed to be in costume as a Woolly Mammoth but the head part kept falling off - you can see she was not too upset about it ...

Of course, my favorite part of the day was just being with this guy.

Best. Doodle. Dog. Ever.

Last year, we were lucky to *just* make it to our modest fundraising goal.  This year, we very nearly doubled it, so even more animals can be helped.  This made everyone in our house very happy.

A little bit of rain was not going to make weather wimps out of us!

Coming Soon ...

Hi everyone - I'm still here and doing OK, but have been too busy lately.  We are having company this weekend (my niece and her husband from Baltimore), so we are looking forward to lots of laughs.  I'll be back either Sunday (depending on my energy level) or next week, to regale you with tales from my recent activities.  One of them includes a morning of fun with Dug the Doodle Dog:

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Quick Post

Hello there!  I have a regular blog post to write for you soon, but I wanted to let you know about something going on that promises to be fun, and you need to act fast to join!

Kim is hosting a lovely, non-stressful, inexpensive swap on her blog.  I always enjoy swaps, though I don't sign up for as many as I used to.  This is partly due to finances, and also because a lot of times, there is a handmade element that seems daunting to me, being that I am a relatively slow knitter with not a lot of knitting time, particularly during the holidays.  But this swap sounds like my cup of tea!

Sign ups go through noon tomorrow, Monday, October 13, so go there NOW.

Enjoy the rest of your weekend!

Saturday Randomnosity

I'm pretty sure that is not really a word.  But it is now at least in my personal lexicon.  I don't know that it will ever reach the popularity of my favorite personally-made-up word, "Elstwise," but there you go.

Anyway, my brain is to scattered to focus on a focused post so you get this one.

I have just started two pairs of socks.  One pair is for myself, and is Halloween themed.  The other is a pair for The Tim, allegedly for our anniversary on October 28.  Or his birthday on November 18.  Or for Christmas ...

Added to just generally feeling like crap, I am now getting a cold.  Great.

Tomorrow, I'm going to go to Rosie's for a few hours, to see how I do.  I'm not doing a whole shift, but I want to see if I can handle at least a little time.

Apparently I am the only person not worried about getting Ebola.

The Phillies sucked this year, the Pirates lost in the wild-card game, so now I want the Baltimore Orioles to win the playoffs and go to the World Series.

Though I have now lived in Philadelphia for many, many years, I will likely never pronounce the word "street" as "shtreet."

Also, in Philadelphia, there is a Street Road.  That always amuses me.  I do not, however, think there is a Road Street.

Unlike the rest of those around me every day, I am looking forward to the cool weather of fall.

Not everyone has to love animals like I do, but I am suspicious of people who don't like animals at all.

Also, people with no sense of humor concern me.

It's a cool, rainy day here.  Perfect for staying in and watching the Notre Dame football game on TV.

Next Saturday, Dug and I will be participating in the Mutt Strut!  We had so much fun last year, and this year we have even gone past our [admittedly humble] fundraising goal! Having said that, you are more than welcome to still donate here.

I am also looking forward to next weekend because it is a long weekend for us - we get the day off for Columbus Day.  Yes, I know it celebrates someone now considered a monster, etc., but it's A DAY OFF PEOPLE, LEAVE IT ALONE!!

And on that happy yet threatening note, my blathering for the day is finished.

Have a wonderful weekend!  :-)