Surprise!

Sawyer's 16th birthday was in July and we took her to Jekyll Island in celebration.  She knew we would have a birthday present for her.  She just didn't know it would be this:

 

We arrived Friday and surprised her with the new used car Saturday.  We planned to spend the week on the island.

Leading up to the "unveiling" there was an elaborate ruse developed to get the car to the island Friday without her knowing about it.  Essentially, here's what Sawyer was told:  I was called to a "last minute business meeting" in Brunswick - the closest city to the island.  A "colleague" was to pick me up in Macon and I would ride to Brunswick with him.  After the meeting, he would drop me off at the hotel and I would be there when Tim, Sawyer and the Brindle Kids arrived. 

What really happened was that I left early Friday morning in the MINI and drove to the island.  I hid it on the other side of the hotel parking lot.  Just in case she saw it, she was told that there was a huge MINI event being held at the island's new convention center.

Early Saturday morning, I left the room to "check on the status of our hotel bill."  I was really moving the car to the beach and putting the bow on top of it.  Then I went back to the room to get Tim, Sawyer, and the Brindle Kids for our morning walk on the beach. 

I kept talking up the MINI convention, so it was no surprise when, in the edge of the surf, Sawyer found a tiny, tiny blue MINI.  I told her that the MINI people were giving away lots of MINI SWAG and this must have been dropped and it washed up on the shore.  A little farther up the beach, Sawyer found a slightly larger blue MINI model in the surf.  (Tim was walking ahead of us with Truly.  He was the designated "dropper.")  Wow, those MINI people must have really given away a lot of SWAG.  A little farther and she found a plastic ziploc bag floating in the waves.  It had a MINI shirt in in.  It was her size!  A little farther and there was a black MINI box, also sealed in a ziploc bag, floating in the water.  Inside was a MINI key chain with a MINI key attached.  O.K.  Now we have got to find the MINI people and let them know someone lost their key.  We walked up the beach to the hotel.  Right at the end of the path was the car.  It was a wonderful day!

Since before we arrived on the island, we knew Tropical Storm Beryl was coming up the eastern coast toward us.  Based on what we were hearing on the news, we would be in for a lot of rain through Sunday, but we thought we'd wait it out.

It rained so hard Saturday night that we woke up to thoroughly soaked carpet Sunday morning.  The revised weather forecast called for rain through Wednesday.  Despite our plans to "weather the storm," and given the following:

1. Sawyer couldn't drive her new car in the storm,
2. the female Brindle Kid hates to potty on a leash and despises potty-ing on a leash in the rain,
3. and wet carpet doesn't smell good,

we made the pretty quick decision to check out and drive back home.

We arrived back home mid-day to the rest of our vacation week and plenty of time to try out the new MINI, now named "Marilyn."

A.B.D. and V.E.T.

In December of 2011, we were excited that Tim was finishing the last of the coursework for his doctoral degree - meaning his status would be A.B.D., All But Dissertation.  He only had one more day of class left.  That last class was to be held on a Saturday.  Sawyer and I planned a congratulatory dinner for him.  We made a huge sign, with stars and glitter and balloons, for the front yard so he'd see it when he drove up. 

All he asked of us before he left the house that morning was that we please take the Brindle Kids to have their nails clipped and ground.  I promised him, as a special A.B.D. prize, that we would take care of it.  Since Sawyer had a friend spending the weekend at our house and since they were in the middle of making cupcakes, I loaded the Kids into the Tahoe and left for PetSmart.  When I got there, I opened the hatch and Maggie jumped out first, then Truly.  I noticed that Truly stumbled a bit as he jumped down, but he made an immediate recovery, so I didn't think any more of it.

We went into the store and back to the grooming area.  A woman who was waiting to pick up her dog looked and me and said, "Do your dogs fight?"  I've said before how surprised I am that people think the Brindle Kids are pit bulls because of their brindle color and I figured she thought so, too.  So I smiled and said, "No, they don't fight.  They're greyhounds."  She said, "I know they're greyhounds.  I was asking because of the blood."  She pointed to the white tiled floor under our feet. 

There was a lot of blood and it was coming from a two inch gash on Truly's right hind leg/knee.  The groomer volunteered to take Maggie and trim her nails while I took Truly to the in-house vet.  The groomer brought her right back to me because of the whining.  (Truly must have caught his knee on the trailer hitch or the license plate when he jumped out of the truck.  There was no blood on either, by the way.) 

The vet recommended 10 - 15 stitches.  She said since the injury was on his knee, it would need to be sutured in order to promote healing.  I guess I was in a complete state of shock because I agreed, even though I know stitches on the knee of a dog with paper-thin skin would be about as effective as sewing together two wet Kleenexes.  I did have enough of my wits about me to find the special anesthesia protocol for greyhounds on my cell phone and insist that the she read the information while she stood there in front of me.  She was very kind and accommodating, but it must have seemed that I had little faith in her veterinary abilities. 

After reading the info, she took Truly off for the "surgery."  I called Tim, who by this time, was just finishing his class.  He came to PetSmart in time to help me with Truly and Maggie.  He put Truly into the truck.  Don't think this was a quick process.  From discovery of the blood to exiting the building totaled about seven hours.

By the time we returned home, it was dark.  Tim couldn't see his festive sign.  Truly was still groggy from the anesthesia.  I wasn't groggy.  Paying the bill totally jolted me into the world of fiscal reality.

No mind, though.  Tim is A.B.D. and Truly's leg has healed completely.  He did, by the end of the night, remove the wrapping, bandage and each of the stitches with his teeth.  He did all of this while I ran to the kitchen to find a pair of scissors to cut off the IV bandage on his front leg.

The Brindle Kids' house:  always exciting.

 

Wordless Wednesday

Jekyll Island

It's always nice to find a place to get away.  The best case scenario is:

1. On or near the ocean.
2. Pet friendly.
3. Not too far of a drive.

Tim found the solution that meets all needs, Oceanside Inn and Suites at Jekyll Island.  We can have a suite right on the ocean, the Brindle Kids are welcome and the island is about 3 - 4 hours from home. 

It's perfection.

The bay

The marsh

The ocean

We took these photos when we visited the island last November.  We had heard about the annual Thanksgiving brunch at the historic Jekyll Island Club.

We didn't know it at the time, but we were lucky to get reservations.  Apparently, people come from all over to have a Thanksgiving meal at the Club.  Here's why:

THANKSGIVING BRUNCH AT THE JEKYLL ISLAND CLUB GRAND DINING ROOM
Salads and Appetizers
Ambrosia Salad
Honey Ham Salad with Figs and Sultanas
Mixed Salad Greens with Assorted Toppings
Chef attended Caesar Salad Station
Broccoli and Beer Cheese Soup with Tempura Fried Broccoli Florets
Assorted Artisan Breads with Flavored Butters
Tropical Fruit Tree with Assorted Melons and Berries
Fresh Baked Danishes and Pastries
Marbles of American and European Cheeses
Chef’s Mélange of Pates
Marbles of Smoked and Cured Meats
Assorted House Smoked Seafood and Gravlax
Chilled Shrimp Cocktail with King Crab Legs and Claws

Breakfast Station
Omelets to Order - Bacon, Ham, Sausage, Onions, Peppers, Tomatoes, Mushrooms,
Shrimp, Artichoke Hearts, Black Olives, Salsa and Cheese
Crisp Bacon and Sausage
Belgium Waffles with Raspberry Sauce, Chocolate Sauce, Maple Syrup and Whipped Cream
Stuffed French Toast with Vanilla Cream Cheese served with Assorted Toppings:
Spiced Peaches, Rum-Baked Bananas, Brandied Cherries and Maple Syrup

Entrées
Sage Butter Basted Turkey with Cranberry Relish and Giblet Gravy
Slow Roasted Prime Rib with Natural Jus and Horseradish Cream
Orange-Molasses Rotisserie Duck with Toasted Almond and Teriyaki Orzo
Lemon-Lime Mixed Grill of Grouper, Shrimp and Scallops with Herb Caper Butter served over
Jasmine Rice
Young Vegetable Sauté and Green Bean Casserole
Buttermilk Mashed Potatoes and Baked Sweet Potatoes

Desserts - Pastry Chef’s Specialty Selections and Ice Cream Sundae Bar

As good as the food sounds, it tasted even better.  We were stuffed when we left.  A beautiful meal in a beautiful place with beautiful people = beautiful memories.



After lunch, we took a stroll around the grounds of the Club, then headed back across the island to the hotel.  As we got closer to our room, I heard what sounded like the wind picking up.  I thought we might be in for a storm.  I didn't feel the wind, but I heard it - long, lonely moaning coming from the ocean and across the dunes.  The closer we got to the room, the louder the sounds. 

It wasn't the wind.  There was no storm coming.  It was the Brindle Kids rooing forlornly for our return.  I've heard them roo before but this time their sustained and synchornized effort, while impressive, was really kind of embarrassing.  If I could hear them from the parking lot, there's no doubt the guests in the rooms adjoining ours could surely hear them.  Crazy dogs.  I sure hoped the Oceanside people would let us come back.  :)

Ink

In solidarity with Truly and Maggie, I've been thinking about getting some ink.  This was on Pinterest.  Wondering if Big Daddy Don can add some brindle stripes to the design?

Shame On Me

I've been away from the Brindle Kids blog for over 2 years now.  During that time, I've continued to enjoy my favorite greyhound blogs and I've even found some new favorites.  (I'll add the new favs to "My Blog List" as soon as I remember how.)

A number of factors provide justification for my absence from blogging, i.e. - family, laundry, school, laundry, work, laundry, don't have a proper camera, laundry (laundry never sleeps, you know), don't have a proper computer, etc., etc.

It occurred to me today that, excuses aside, I should be ashamed for two reasons:
1.     For not doing a better job of documenting what's been happening with the Brindle Kids and
2.     For enjoying and benefitting from the labor of other more steadfast bloggers while expending no such similar labor of my own.

So, this evening, I find myself sufficiently motivated to dive back in to the world of electronic archiving.  I am committing to doing a better job of posting timely Brindle Kids information.  I'm also going to try to post news of the Brindle Kids' activities during the time I've been absent from the keyboard.  It just seems like the right thing to do.


Truly and Maggie in the dugout at the ball park today. It was the only shady spot.