Black and White and Dead All Over

I understand that magpies eat roadkill. But around here, it's usually prairie dogs. When I see magpies pecking at the remains of a skunk, I keep thinking that either they're really desperate (really hungry) or they have absolutely no sense of smell.

For the uninitiated, magpies look kind of like crows wearing tuxedos.

When I lived back east and came out west on vacation, I saw a black and white bird flying against a deep blue sky. I remember thinking, "Oh, how exotic! How beautiful!" Then at the first opportunity (a National Park bookstore) I looked in a bird guidebook and found out it was a magpie and part of the crow family and considered filthy.

They're extremely common here, so I don't think of them as exotic anymore, but they are still beautiful. Except maybe when they're picking at the carcass of a skunk. And for some reason this time of year we always have an abundance of dead skunks ("in the middle of the road, stinking to high heaven" to quote that old song).

The Lizard

Well, that didn't take long.

We came home from our dinner at the Chinese restaurant (best Hot and Sour Soup in the world!) to find a motionless lizard on the living room floor and Satchmo sitting nearby, looking very pleased with himself. Having fallen for the lizard's game of playing dead before, we were skeptical. But this time it was true; the lizard was dead.

Ron scooped him up, using a paper towel, and put him in a box and we took a closer look. There was a small spot of blood on his body, possibly a cat-inflicted wound (we didn't take that close a look).

Ron was about to toss the body out in the grass, near where he had seen the lizard before it ever came inside. But first I said, "Wait, let me take a picture!"

So here is the picture of the lizard

Yes, he was missing the end of his tail when he first came in the house.

We'll see what Satchmo hunts next. Anyone want to place any bets?

Of Mice and Lizards

A couple of weeks ago, Satchmo caught and killed a mouse. He didn't eat it, but generously left the small furry carcass near the bedroom door, which was closed, so we would find it when we came out in the morning. Ron picked it up, using a few thicknesses of paper towel, and disposed of it in the garbage.

For a few days, Satchmo was on full alert, either prowling around for mice, or staking out a couple of places and sitting there, staring intently and not moving at all. One place is the laundry room; we think the mouse got in through the hose from the clothes dryer.

Yesterday when I got up, I saw a "blob" of indeterminate shape and color on the rug in the hallway, just outside the guest room. I hadn't put in my contact lenses yet, which is why the shape and color were so blurry. Once I had my contacts in, I took a closer look.

It wasn't a mouse; it was a lizard, about 5 inches long and of medium girth. Ron came and took a look, too. It hadn't moved at all, and we thought Satchmo the Sentinel had struck again.

But it was playing dead; when Ron reached out to grab it, again, with paper towel in hand, the lizard moved like a flash. I couldn't believe how fast it ran! It was like the roadrunner (from the cartoon) on amphetamines.

The lizard stayed out of sight for the rest of yesterday. Today it made a couple of appearances. The first was in the guest room (which is where it ran yesterday), but it disappeared again before we could catch it. The second appearance was in the living room; again, it played dead and when Ron tried to catch it, it ran away. But this time, Satchmo saw it and even pawed it a few times. So Satchmo is on alert again, but not full alert, not with the same intensity as he was with the mouse. I guess lizards aren't as natural a prey as mice are.

And if you're wondering how the lizard got in, he came in through the garage. Sometimes we leave the garage door open a couple of inches at the bottom. When you run swamp coolers, there always has to be an open window or an open door to relieve the pressure of the air that blows in.

He looks similar to the photo below, which is of a lizard called the plateau lizard.

Life With Dogs

They say having a dog is like having a toddler. Even my blogging sister said that in her blog after I'd started writing this post in my head, including that first sentence. Great minds think alike!

Having three dogs is like ... well, you do the math.

When we first got Champ, we were amazed that he didn't have any bad habits. Then, gradually, one bad habit began showing itself. He liked to stick his nose in the kitchen trash can. We discouraged him, but all the smells coming from there were too enticing for him to ignore. If there was anything at all in there when we left the house or went to bed, we put the trash can up on the kitchen counter.

But Champ is a tall dog, with very long legs. One time we came home to the trash can on its side on the kitchen floor and trash scattered all around. Certain plastic bags and other containers that had held food were empty.

Another day when we were home, I saw him with his front paws on top of the kitchen counter. There was no food there; he was just looking.

Things came to a head on Sunday. I made scrambled eggs and turkey sausages for a late breakfast and after we finished eating, Ron and I went to the grocery store. I put the trash can on the kitchen counter, of course, but I didn't wash the skillets from breakfast or even put them in the sink. Not even thinking about it, I left them on the stove.

When we returned from the store about 45 minutes later, we smelled a burning smell as soon as we came inside. One of the stove burners had been turned on. I didn't leave it on, because it wasn't one of the burners I'd used. It was a burner that is the semi-permanent home to the heavy cast iron skillet, and I'd used non-stick pans for the eggs and sausages. We figured that in trying to get to the pans to lick them clean, Champ's paws had accidentally turned on the burner. We're lucky he didn't start a fire! New rule: clean all pans as soon as you're done eating. At the very least, put them in the sink and then wash as soon as you can.

Oh, yes. He'd also knocked the trash can off the counter and trash was scattered all over the floor, including the coffee filter with coffee grounds. Sigh. The plastic bag that had held very stale bread was empty. 

We found a new, secure place to put the trash can. Inside the pantry closet. I didn't think it would fit, because the bottom of the lowest shelf is only 24 inches from the floor, but it turns out the trash can is 22 inches tall, so it's a perfect fit!

I don't know if we're one step ahead of him or one step behind, but he hasn't figured out how to turn the knob and open the door to the closet, so he hasn't been able to get to the trash can.

Deja Vu All Over Again

This is the afghan my Great Aunt Mary made for me when I was a teenager. She had made a similar one for my mother, using up leftover bits of yarn, and I liked it so much, she made one for me. She surprised me with it when I went with my parents to New York for a brief visit.

Fast forward many years.

Our first cat Panther loved that afghan. She loved to curl up on it and sleep or sit on it and watch the world go by. We used to put it on the floor next to the sliding glass door so she could watch the birds in the backyard.

When we took her to the vet for the final time, to be euthanized, she was so weak we didn't bother with the cat carrier. I wrapped her in the afghan and held her in my arms while Ron drove the short distance to the vet.

Our kindhearted vet offered to have Panther and the afghan cremated together, but we told him we wanted to save the afghan for future cats. When we got home, we placed the afghan on what became the memorial shelf. It was where we gathered photos of Panther, placed the tin containing her ashes when we got them, and placed the tins containing ashes of other pets as the years passed.

Then a few months ago, we decided to bring the afghan back into the land of the living. We washed it and folded it into a good size and then placed it on the dining room table (one of the places the cats like to be when we're not eating (or even when we are, come to think of it)). It didn't take long for Satchmo to discover it. He curled up and went to sleep, looking happy and peaceful.

It was so great to see another cat sleeping on that afghan, especially a black cat. It was almost like having Panther back. Our other cat Princess discovered the joys of sleeping on the afghan, too. On one or two occasions, I saw the two of them sleeping side by side on the afghan, but usually if one cat is on it and the other one wants it, a catfight ensues.

After one too many catfights (more than just fur was flying), we moved the afghan from the table to the couch where it remains today, usually occupied by a large black cat.

Life is good. I think Aunt Mary would be happy to know that her afghan is still used and loved after all these years.

Grilling

For quick weeknight meals, we love our Foreman Grill (thanks, Barbara).

Salmon steaks in six minutes! Boneless chicken breasts in nine minutes! T-Bone steaks in nine minutes! It's fantastic.

But on the weekends, we like to do batch cooking so we won't have to cook for a few days. On the weekends, we use the Weber Grill.

Charcoal! Mesquite charcoal! Such fantastic flavor!

As you can tell, it's well-used. We've had it for years and it's never failed us yet.

Yesterday we grilled/barbecued two cut-up chickens and they just fit on the grill.

I sprinkled them generously with Mrs. Dash's "Table Blend" and Ron the Grillmaster grilled them, sometimes over direct heat and sometimes over indirect heat, turing them and moving them as needed, but always with the cover on (except for the turning and moving).

When they were almost done, he brushed on barbecue sauce, a combination of two different kinds.

Then he grilled them a bit longer, until they were crispy and very slightly charred in a few places. And they were delicious! They had that perfect mesquite flavor enhanced by the barbecue sauce.

And we won't have to cook for days!

Champ's Story

Champ's integration into the family went much faster and smoother than we ever anticipated. He and Brutus sleep right next to each other sometimes and Wolfie has stopped growling every time Champ comes near him. We're giving all three dogs lots of love and affection and treats.

And Champ has made himself right at home.

Yes, that's a Queen size bed.

His original owners gave him up when they moved. The first couple to foster him had a problem. Right after they got him, the husband had to go out of town for a week for work. When he got back, the dog (then known as Cheup) had bonded with the wife so much, he saw the husband as a threat and was overprotective of her, giving the husband a nip. That didn't go over so well and they returned Cheup to the shelter. The next people to foster him raise chickens and they discovered he liked to chase chickens. Well, what dog wouldn't? As Ron said, if he were a dog, he'd want to chase chickens, too. But fortunately for us, those people didn't see it that way and they returned him to the shelter. So we got him, and we think he's fantastic. He's bonding with both of us equally and we don't have chickens.

He's very smart and what he doesn't already know, he learns quickly. He came to us already knowing the commands "Sit" and "Shake." The other night, I saw he had a plastic jar lid in his mouth that he'd gotten out of the trash can and I told him, "Drop it" and he immedately dropped it. So either he already knew the command or he knew he shouldn't be getting into the trash can.

And of course he's quickly learning Guard Dog Duties from the other dogs. When they're all inside and they hear a noise outside, Champ is sometimes the first one to reach the sliding glass door, ready to go out and investigate. And of course he's learned tapping on the door to come in or go out.

He's very sweet and loves giving and getting affection. He's also very calm and laid back.

We've come to the conclusion that he's half Newfoundland and half Black Lab; Ron Googled pictures of dogs of that mix and they look exactly like Champ. Also Newfs and Labs tend to have very calm demeanors.

Satchmo is taking it all in stride.

Princess still spends a lot of time on top of the cabinets over the refrigerator so she can keep an eye on things.