You've Been Warned

Mwahahahahaha.........

Have a great & safe Howl-o-Ween!
Chester ;0=)

Watch Dog Wednesday

Autumn Walkabout

Rock star

A quick stop to catch my breath

and cool my tongue

Considerin' my options

A buzzard patiently waits for me to serve

his next free groundhog meal

Strikin' out on my own

Stalker

Show-off

Headin' home

Waterin' hole

This guy showed up as I was

downloading these pictures

I just about went through the window

tryin' to get a closer look.

Thanks for walkin' along with me.

I hope you have a wonderful week.

Chester ;0=)

Takin' Care of Business

I've been gettin' some real nice awards here for awhile and I've been stickin' 'em back in a folder. Now seems like a good time to dig 'em out and acknowledge the nice folks who thoughtfully passed them on to me.

First of all I got this very special Humane Award from Andrea at All God's Creatures. http://andrealuvsallgodscreatures.blogspot.com/2009/10/miracles-at-dog-therapy.html. She probably meant it was for Mom 'cuz she obviously has a whole lot of humane in her to put up with my shenanigans. Today is a great day to run over and read the wonderful post about how her and her dogs' therapy work had an amazing impact on a man who hadn't talked in 3 years.

Next up is from Susan of http://oz-girl.blogspot.com/2009/10/wordless-wednesday.html. It is the Queen of all Things Award. I personally have wanted to crown Mom on more than one occasion so I will be more than glad to let her have this one too. Thanks for thinkin' of us Susan and hugs to your Oz Land pack.

Ok- 2 down and 2 to go.
This next one is a little more involved. It is the Over the Top Award from Andrea again on her other blog: http://arise2write.blogspot.com/2009/10/miracles.html. Now you're talkin' my language 'cuz I don't like to do anything half-you know what. It's all or nuthin' with me. This award asks a bunch of questions and you are only allowed a one word answer. Just for fun I filled it out:
1. Where is your cell phone? Confiscated
2. Your hair? Chocolate
3. Your mother? Daisy
4. Your father?  Ben
5. Your favorite food? Everything
6. Your dream last night? Groundhogs
7. Your favorite drink? Water
8. Your dream/goal? Packleader
9. What room are you in? Office
10. Your hobby? Blogging
11. Your fear? None
12. Where do you want to be in six years? Swimmin'
13. Where were you last night? Bed
14. Something you aren't? Calm
15. Muffins? Please
16. Wish list item? No animal abuse (sorry, couldn't stop at one word)
17. Where did you grow up? Pennsylvania
18. Last thing you did? Ate
19. What are you wearing? Nothing
20. Your TV? Useless
21. Your pets? Duh!
22. Friends? Wonderful
23. Your life? Long
24. Your mood? Joyous
25. Missing someone? Truffles
26. Vehicle? Hogkiller
27. Something you're not wearing? Shoes
28. Your favorite store? Petsmart
29. Your favorite color? Gray
30. When was the last time you laughed? When I saw Mom gettin' outta the shower (again, couldn't stop at one word)
31. Last time you cried? Nailclipping
32. Your best friend? Man
33. One place that I go to over and over? The woods
34. One person who emails me regularly? Nerd Bob
35. Favorite place to eat? Home

And last but not least this Good Friends award comes from my little buddy Coco whom I've only known a short time but I feel I bonded with instantly. Check out her unique perspective on life at http://luvbeingachihuahua.blogspot.com/2009/10/thankful-thursday-new-friends.html

Thanks to one and all for passin' these along-they are very much appreciated. And as with most awards they are meant to be passed on, but I refuse to narrow it down to just a few of my bloggin' buddies. Feel free to grab one or all of them if you like. You and your comments are very special to me and I would not want to let anyone out in the cold.

Well, now that I've clapped the dust off my paws and taken care of that piece of business, it's time to decorate the porch for Halloween.

And speakin' of cold, be careful that Jack Frost doesn't nip at your pumpkin.

Have a glowin' weekend.

Chester ;0=)

Fire Wieldin' Wednesday

Monsters in the House

I've been tryin' to toss out my blog treats on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays for awhile now. It keeps me busy just doin' that. This special edition Tuesday treat cannot wait until Friday for as we all know and try our best to comply with, tomorrow is Wordless Wednesday and we try and keep our yaps shut.

The monsters I am talkin' about are not the scary kind. In fact these are delicious monsters I am referrin' to. They are monster cookies and almost always show up at this time of year. They are a wonderful blend of all things good. Trust me. The only bad part for me is that they do have chocolate chips in them which we all know dogs are not allowed to have. But when you have a gullible Dad like I do, he will succumb to my droolin' lips and pinch off a piece that does not have chocolate in it and give me a bite.

It's all I can do to not snag one before it goes into the oven.

I watch them very closely as they begin to form into cool monster cliques.

My mind is in a dreamlike state because of the overwhelmin' scent of peanut butter and sugar

and I have visions of me eatin' them all while Mom's back is turned. 

Mom packs 'em up and before long you won't see a single one hangin' around.

I thought I'd share the recipe just in case you'd like to create your own monster congregation.

Monster Cookies

***See note at the end about monster quantities

12 eggs

4 cups brown sugar

4 cups white sugar

1 tsp. vanilla

1 tbsp. King syrup

8 tsp. baking soda

1 pound butter

3 pounds peanut butter

18 cups oatmeal

2 bags chocolate chips

2 cups raisins

M&M candies to decorate (optional)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Mix in dishpan in order given. Drop by large tablespoon or ice cream scoop and flatten. Bake 12 minutes. Do not overbake. Allow to cool for several minutes on pan before removing. 

NOTE: this recipe does not call for flour.

*Recipe can be cut in half, and you will still have a lot of monsters. They do freeze very well.

Now I'm tellin' ya, these are some monsters I'm pretty sure you won't mind havin' around. Enjoy!

Chester  ;0=)

Confessions of a Cooped Up Canine

Saturday was a downright miserable day to be outside. We woke up to a drizzly cold rain and it did not stop.  I confess, I was bored and found numerous places to crash.

My best impression of a couch potato.

As uncomfortable as this may look to you, I find it's quite cozy

 at the bottom of the stairs and I can be found there often.

In my boredom I thought about ducks and how they don't mind bein' cold and wet. I went back to the livin' room and watched the skies.

Surely there would be ducks around on a day such as this.
My wisdom and patience paid off. One flew by and I snagged it.

Dad did brave the "ick" long enough to take me for a short afternoon run. Other than that and this duck my Saturday was rather uneventful.

Much to my consternation, Sunday started out pretty much the same way, although by day's end the weather began to cooperate. The sun came out and it became nice enough for me to stretch my legs.

And stretch them I did.

Is that a groundhog I see?

Nope. False alarm.

Parental Unit shadows - (PU's for short.)

Corn fields ready for harvest make a pretty autumn picture.

As the sunshine ceased, so did the weekend.

I confess, rain or shine, I did not want it to stop.

As they say:

Another day ~ another dog biscuit.

Chester ;0=)

Big Payoff

Here I go again, spoutin' off about Friday and how great it is that it finally got here. Usually I go into detail about not havin' to work and gettin' to be my own boss for a couple of days. Of course, there's no wrong to be found in that. But there's also the reward that comes along for havin' showed up done a good job all week long.

$$$ PAYDAY $$$

I don't know how the finances are handled in your pack - but in mine, Mom dishes out the dough at the end of the week. Sometimes I get to ride along and she will go to what she calls the "drive thru" and usually a nice 2 legger will be there to say how handsome I am and ask Mom if I can have a biscuit. That magic drawer doesn't open near as fast as I'd like it to. Drool forms on my lips and drips onto the partially open window as I wait for Mom to reach in and give 'em to me.

Other times Mom will pull out a special piece of plastic and drive up to the Magic Wall outside the bank. The plastic goes into a slot and a couple buttons later, WHOOOOMP - out flows the payoff!!! This got my brain wonderin' why us hard workin' dawgs don't have our own ATM bankin' system.

So with that thought in mind I set out to do what should have been done for us hard workin' dawgs a long, long time ago. With much pleasure I am pleased to announce the Grand Openin' of the

K9 Credit Union

This ATM doesn't spit out that bland tastin' green paper so you won't have to wait in line behind a bunch of 2 leggers. This is a dog-friendly ATM. Sign up now so you too can enjoy the pleasures of this member owned credit union.

Have a great weekend, one and all! I hope it pays off in a big, tasty way!!!

Chester  ;0=)

Woodstove Wednesday

Got Chocolate?

In looking for Columbus Day information for my blog today, I was excited to stumble upon a fact that I personally was unaware of, but think you might be interested in knowin' to:

At some time between the year 1502 and 1504, veteran explorer Christopher Columbus brought the first cocoa beans back to Europe after his fourth visit to the 'New World'. At first, however, the cocoa beans were neglected. Despite the bitterness of the drink produced, Columbus claimed the resulting concoction was a "divine drink which builds up resistance and fights fatigue. A cup of this precious drink permits a man to walk for a whole day without food".

Who knew?

Thanks Christopher - if it weren't for your gift of chocolate to Europe-which is where many of my ancestors are from - I would be known only as a "brown lab" which is not nearly as sweet sounding as "chocolate lab".

To celebrate, why not go grab a chocolate candy bar or have a nice cup of hot cocoa? After all, Mr. Columbus claimed it builds up resistance and fights fatigue, and being Monday who couldn't use a little of that? Sure wish I could have some right now, but being a dog I'm not allowed. As my way of celebratin', I think I'll just sleep this Monday away.

Happy Columbus Day!

Chester ;0=)

All Aboard

It was all I could do this past Wednesday to stay wordless. I was so excited to have been given the chance to engineer what has got to be one of the coolest trains to ever cross the country. The Sole Train is one big party for chewin' dawgs. Each boxcar carries it's own special line of gourmet selections.

Born bites  made to delight

Imported hard shell clogs

Flip flops in every flavor

Cowboy kickers to sink your teeth into

Last call! This chew chew train is about to leave the station! Woooo-wooooo!

Some dawgs have already boarded the Precious Cargo Party Car and are ready to get going. On board left to right we have: Ringo, Nerd Bob, Sierra Rose, Truffles, Khyra, Macy, Norwood, Coco, Godiva, Buddy, Bosley, Georgie Sheide, George Crow and Rocky. On the ground left to right is: Rory B. Frock and the Dughallmoor Beagles.

Don't worry if you didn't get here in time because we will be headin' to towns all across the country, and we have an empty car

just like this one ready to pick you up.

 For you dawgs who have less adventurous palates than us chewers, there will be a plentiful supply of all your favorite treats,
and plenty of stuffies to go around.

Of course every train has to have a caboose and Nigel Buggers, Chief Conductor of Trouble, has graciously agreed to bring up the rear.

So if you haven't joined us yet, hurry up, finish those odds and ends, and let's get this weekend on track. Whooooo-whoooo!

Chester ;0=)

Wooooh-woooooooh!!! Wednesday

To everything there is a season...

...and a time for every matter or purpose under heaven:
A time to get and a time to lose, a time to keep and a time to cast away.
Ecclesiastes 3:1,6

Since I started runnin' this blog not only have I found some really cool friends to hang out with but I've also received quite a few packages in the mail. Gifts that I never expected to acquire when I set out to speak my mind. It seems like there is always a box showin' up at the doorstep with my name on it.

It pains me to admit it, but I am spoiled. As much grief as I give Mom, I can't complain about the awesome care I get from either of my 2 leggers. I get real good kibble with a splash of yogurt on top, and tasty biscuits for snacks. I've got a nice pile of toys that are mine and only mine. Not only that but I've got a nice big blanket covered bed I sleep in at night, not one but two dog beds and an outdoor kennel with a great view of the surroundings to hang out in the day. This is way more than some 2 leggers have and it got me to thinkin' about Christmas comin' up and a special project that Mom and I like to participate in every year. Like I said, I've had my time to "get and keep" and now this is my way to "lose and cast away". You may already know about this charity but let me explain it to the folks who may not.
It's called Operation Christmas Child and it's run by Samaritan's Purse International Relief. What they ask is for folks to take a shoebox and fill it with gifts for a child that may not even get a single Christmas gift. It's really very easy and for a child who has a whole lotta nuthin', you can bring real joy into their lives. Over 7.9 million shoeboxes were distributed to children throughout the world just last year. School supplies like pencils and paper, solar calculators, picture books are easy items to pack. Hard candy and small toys like balls, dolls, harmonicas, jump ropes and Slinkys are wonderful toys the kids love. We've even heard that shoes are a luxury item to a lot of these children and that sneakers or flip-flops pack very easily into a shoebox. These kids are even happy to get hygiene items like toothbrushes and toothpaste, washcloths and soap, and combs. This year we're gonna include a picture of me and a small note to the child who receives our box. Mom and I are packin' a box for 1 boy and 1 girl. We're still workin' on them but here you can see I am doin' an inspection to see what more we can add. (Mom and I try to outdo each other and see who can pack their box the fullest)
 

 
 
It's not too late if you're interested, there is plenty of time until the boxes are distributed.  The national collection week is November 16th -23rd. Here is the website for all the information you need to pack and send a box to a needy child: http://www.samaritanspurse.org/index.php/OCC/index/

I know there are many, many, many good charities out there to help 2 leggers and 4 leggers and each of you may have your own favorite. I just thought I'd like to share one of mine and Mom's that we enjoy givin' to.

I know it gives my big ol' brown heart a very warm fuzzy feelin' to know that somebody out there who doesn't have it as good as me, is gonna have a great present to open and hopefully will make them feel as loved as I do.

Have a great week! I hope it is seasoned in a big way with whatever gives you a warm fuzzy feelin'.

Chester ;0=)