Giving thanks after...

I've got to admit, I would have preferred to be at my sister's dining table in California for Thanksgiving, basking in her fabulous cooking and the warmth of family and friends. Maybe next year? But a couple of friends and I did have a wonderful dinner at a fancy hotel, El Monte Sagrado, in town. The buffet was incredible, three kinds of meat, an array of roasted veggies, and loads of desserts including my favorite pumpkin pie. The service and ambiance were just right, except the piano playing could have been toned down a bit. When you get over 50 background noise really needs to be softer so you can hear each other!

The really hard part was having to go to work afterwards. Ugh. I was so stuffed and so sleepy. Thursday is usually my day off but I had offered to work half a day so the other receptionist could enjoy the holiday too. Yes, I am at least grateful I have a job, well actually three of them, all part-time (typical Taos!). But I also have every other Saturday off and there are so many wonderful things going on here in town. A big holiday arts and crafts fair to get me in the mood, then an open house at a horse sanctuary (and I am SO grateful for people who start places like that), another walk with my little doggie before it snows, then maybe a hot buttered rum at my favorite place, the Adobe Bar of the Taos Inn. They always have 3 hours of free live music there; it's always crowded and nicely decorated, the vortex of my entertainment world. I'm burning daylight, got to go!

Today

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

Stray Arts

One new thing: Our Stray Hearts Animal Shelter will be opening an art gallery in town called Stray Arts! Very exciting, and I will be volunteering there once a week. All the proceeds will go the Shelter. We're looking for artists to donate works as well as people who have art works sitting around their home that they don't want any more.

Just Stuff

Time to go to bed, another glass of vino blanco, stress at work. Take it personally when guests don't like the inn I work at. Lady was nice but guy (a Nazi whiner) wanted a tv, geez can't he read a book? Maybe too rustic for him, send him to generic motel where they will seal him in their sterile whiteness, ha. I love Mabel's, it has character and history and interesting people, always has. So what if there are a few adobe bugs here and there, won't harm ya. One more stray dog we can't seem to catch and it's getting so cold, it was 2 degrees the other night. What is this, Antartica? Thankfully the sun shines here every day. No gray skies. Only in my head. I'm getting older, it's scary. My spirit is ageless, I feel great.

"And sometime when I wasn't looking, I got a different life...."

Mr. Moose RIP

Those fun and crazy loose dogs from the neighbors across the field killed Mr. Moose. Relax, not a real moose, just a huge stuffed toy one I had found in a field near my house a year ago. I had him propped up in a chair on my patio. There are no fenced-in yards here in my condo complex, so these guys just wandered up one day, probably were bored, and tore poor old Mr. Moose to pieces. I came home to find his snowy white guts all over my neighbor's yard, actually thought it was snow at first!

Dog Gate

Now for the dogs. We've had so many stray dogs living in the bushes behind one of the places where I work. It's so sad. Then one of them had a litter and that prompted coyotes skulking around and all the dogs barking all night. Not good for the inn business, especially when there is a "Silent Retreat" going on! Tell that to the dogs. Finally had to call animal control, and with their live traps were able to catch all but one of the core group of dogs, including the 5 just-born pups. These were all transported to the Shelter and they will hopefully find homes. The last remaining dog, a very pretty brown female, is very wary of the traps. We've tried to entice her with chicken, bones, etc but no go. Want to rescue her before the Big Cold Winter comes in. An animal rescue group has said they will help us tomorrow, so keeping my fingers crossed. I will keep my wild Irish temper in check here, for now....I just wish I could take all those jerks who mistreat, abuse or neglect animals and.......

On a more encouraging note, some of us Shelter volunteers have been going to pre-schools and grade schools and talking to the kids about pet care. The kids are adorable and have asked some pretty intelligent questions.

Cats to Colorado

It's been raining cats and dogs these days. I volunteer for our local animal shelter, Stray Hearts, and drove a van load full of howling cats (in cages) up to Castle Rock just south of Denver. Had Cadbury along for company. I thought he'd be excited with all those crazy cats but I think all that feline energy was too much for him. He hardly turned around to look at them! We had a surplus of kitties at our shelter, so the Buddy Center kindly agreed to take them since they have more of a population base for adoptions up there. And what a beautiful state-of-the art shelter they have. One big gray cat got out of his cage, after much muscular banging and meowing, but he proved to be very friendly, even with Cad, so I left him out till we got there. I feel so good for these cats, they'll have a better chance there, but I was exhausted by the time I got back to Taos that night. Nine hours of being in a noisy old van, and the drive back, after getting thru rush hour in Colorado Springs, all in the dark.