What happens while you are canning plum sauce

He was happily chewing on his squeaky ball as I started work in the kitchen, having been demonically possessed with the idea of making several jars of Asian-style plum sauce right now. Plum sauce has to cook down for quite some time. I was mesmerized by the stirring, not to mention the plum tomatoes  drying in the oven that needed occasional sampling. Obsessed by plums.

Meanwhile, the general air of concentration wafting through the house must have influenced Miro, who quietly went to work on his own artistic project.

That photo shows only part of the room. The overall impression was of an exploded pillow. After I picked up the mess, vacuumed the living room, washed the cooking utensils, cleaned up the kitchen, and made a cup of tea, I heard the happy "ping" of the lid of one of the canning jars cooling into a tight seal. The sound provoked thunderous barking and much rushing around the house, followed by another ping and more barking and rushing around. (That was the dog, not me.) Fortunately, there were only four jars.

I've just noticed that the number of this blog's followers has reached 100! Thank you! I've been so busy that I missed my usual Friday./Saturday posting. Logging in to find 100 today is a wonderful gift.

The body count of Mr. Destructo

This pink elephant survived four or five years of Darwin and Keeper with only one set of sutures (use unflavored dental floss, very sturdy). Miro tore it open and extracted the grunter, which I took from him before he could eat the plastic. Then he set to work on the innards.

This penguin, still looking cute despite foot laceration,

is no longer a pretty sight.

Partial body count.

The artist loves his work.

Did I buy enough toys?

Since I'm starting a new generation of Airedales, it seemed time to buy new toys. Not all the old ones will be thrown out--there are Kongs, treat puzzles, a pink elephant, fleece toys that are still in good shape. But a puppy arriving at the end of the month will need his own toys. A fresh start with chewies for teething, baby Kong for treats, and squeakies.



Confession: I might keep the bad scary cat for myself. Don't you think it makes a nice bed decoration?

Since I was out buying toys, I had to get a new one for Alanis. It's a flat fuzzy toy with two squeakers. I picked out the ringneck pheasant.

First she retrieved it.


Then she killed it.




Then she settled down to tear its little feathers off and "eat" it.




The breeder from whom I'm getting a little boy said he'd pick out the one that's the least "birdy" because it's not a good idea to bring home a dog with a high prey drive who is intent on fetching chickens, dead or alive. Flat Pheasant will have to suffice.