Everything Including the Kitchen Sink

I have two words for you. Harvest Gold. No, wait, I have five words for you: Forty year-old Harvest Gold. Sink, that is. I know. Bad as that is, it could have been Avocado. But Harvest Gold I’ve lived with for 25 years now and enough is enough.

After saving my shekels forever, buying all the stuff needed, the phone call was made and Kirk Sidner of Estero Plumbing arrived with his tools to buzz-saw through the ceramic trim and lift the old sink out and plunk in a new one. I found some tile trim at Matt Clark’s tile (a place where, when I enter, I think I have died and gone to heaven – gorgeous stuff) and the trim matched closely enough to look like a deliberate design choice.

And so the deed was done just in time to get out the mop: Molly McGillicuddy Malone, the new greyhound, brought with her more than just a smile and a wagging tail. Like the new kid in preschool, she likely came with some gut-bug variant and before you can say, Good Dog, everyone was down with diarrhea – trot city. And time to start the boiled rice, hamburger and Imodium diet. Within a couple of days all but Finn and Zuri were heading back to digestive health. Finn required some assistance with being pilled with Fagyl, while Zuri is bringing up the rear, running a fever and now on doses of antibiotic.

Both Finn and Zuri are always problem patients. Finn because you’ve got one shot at getting medicine into him and if it tastes funny, he’s done with you. You get the stink-eye and his jaws stay firmly clamped shut. And Zuri because Sloughi’s are notorious stoics – likely a survival tactic in a harsh environment. Their foot could be falling off before you’d hear a peep out of them. So you learn to watch them very carefully and in Zuri’s case, yesterday morning when she walked in to say good morning. tail tucked, ears drooping, back hunched, walking stiffly, I knew something was wrong and called Dr. Truax. So, it’s on to some liquid antibiotic which, happily, she doesn’t seem to mind. And now we wait. 24 hours should turn the corner with her.

Poor doggies. Well, Molly likely was the Typhoid Mary of this incident, but dogs often acquire and pass around any number of mutant bugs so if you’re a dog owner, you know the drill well.

Speaking of Dogs

If you have a dog or even if you don’t, come on out to El Chorro Off Leash Dog Park Sunday, 10 – 2 pm. for our 10th Anniversary celebration. There’ll be hot dogs, cake, lots of dogs and about 11 a.m. we’ll be having the dedication ceremony for the new expansion to the large dog area

The expansion was made possible by a generous grant from the late Harold Miossi’s Charitable Trust (The Miossi’s were long time dairy farmers in SLO County; their ranch starts at the base of Highway 101 and Santa Rosa Ave., and Harold was involved for years in the community.)

I’m on the Board of SLO-4-PUPs, the group that started El Chorro Dog Park, the first off-leash dog park in the County. When the dog park first opened ten years ago, a handful of the board members were faced with a whole lot of wood-chip-hurling and mulch spreading and so we were out there often in work parties with other volunteers, working day after day. Early on, I remember being out there hurling mulch when this nice older gentleman showed up with his dog Fred. Without waiting to be asked, he picked up a pitchfork and joined us as we tossed chips for hours.

From that point, I would often see him early in the morning, and as we chatted, I slowly discovered what a remarkable gentleman he was; Berkeley Graduate, County Probate Referee, County Grand Juror, he was also involved in all sorts of environmental and community organizations.

Many years later, I heard Harold had passed on and last year our Board was notified that Harold had loved that park and that grants from his Charitable Trust were available for park improvements. So we applied for a grant and now we have an expanded area, a new doggy pool spa area and lots more room to roam. All thanks to Harold.

So, stop by and take a gander this Sunday. Say Thank You to Harold’s Spirit, who I know is out there hurling mulch or walking up the canyon trail with his dog, Fred. Then have a hot dog. Pet a real dog and come wander around in the most beautiful dog park in the county.

We’ll even have our new SLO-4-PUPs / El Chorro Dog Park embroidered logo baseball hats available in waaay cool grey-green or grey-blue colors, all for a $20 donation.