My favorite game

We all have favorite games from our childhood. Some of them include tag (and all of its innumerable variations), hide-n-seek (and its evil counterpart, hide-n-don't-seek), ghost in the graveyard, etc. With age, our games become a little less physical and a little more sophisticated: RISK, Monopoly, Tabboo, etc. Recently, I have come up with my own game. It is lovingly called, "Chase Pete!". This is a simple, yet very enjoyable game. All you need is one Pete and one Brody...laundry basket is optional. The object of the game is to catch Pete off guard. This is easy to do because he is off guard when he is eating and he eats all of the time! First off, you must get Pete into the main part of the house. Then you quickly shut all doors to eliminate "base" (under Kathryn's bed, it's my game and I make the rules.) Then the game really begins. Pete, realizing that the game has now begun hurriedly busts of the stairs. Usually he jumps from downstairs to upstairs in one leap, bypassing all stairs. (He is a serious player.) Brody and I follow. When we get up the stairs, Pete, realizing that Kathryn's door has been closed, rapidly searches for another exit. He soon learns that all 5 doors have been closed. At this point he either lays down on his back and hisses in defeat, or he charges Brody and whaps her in the face on his way down the stairs to continue the game. Brody and I then take chase, hence, "Chase Pete". We go to the basement, to the kitchen, under the table, upstairs again...one hop, back to the kitchen, under the arm chair, behind the couch, over the couch, etc. It is an exciting game for all. Pete really enjoys it because it allows him some great exercise. He is able to achieve his target heart rate and to maintain it for a good 10-15 minutes. Brody and I like it because we always win. It is such a great game because it encompasses many of our above listed childhood games all in one. It's TABBOO to talk about this game around Kathryn, it's definitely a RISK to play because at any moment the above mentioned Kathryn could come home and chew me out! It's hide-n-seek because Pete likes it that way and it's TAG! when Brody whaps him on the butt with her big paw. So the next time you are in town and want to try "Chase Pete" just let me know and I will be sure to have an extra can or two of Fancy Feast on hand!

ps The laundry basket is sometimes used to trap Pete. This earns sweet bonus points!!! Five baskets in a row and you win an ice cold DP!!!

Oh, those were yours?

Yeah, so the other day I went to the kitchen when I got home from work to put my lunch together. The night before I had conveniently placed some Doritos in a baggy for easy access the next day. However, when I went looking for them, they were not to be found. I called Brody and she was not licking her chops, so she was not the culprit (she has been known to down full loaves of bread, 6-inch BBQ sandwiches, and unopened bags of DOVE dark chocolates in a matter of seconds). I looked a little more, but then resigned to fill myself another baggy of Doritos. Needless to say, lunch that day was grand. The only thing missing was an ice cold DP! Later that evening, or the next evening, I do not remember, I was once again assembling my Doritos baggy for my next day's lunch. Mar walked in and asked what I was doing and I told her, "making my lunch". She said, "You take a lunch to school??!!" Why the astonishment I do not know, but I apparently surprised her with my ability to put together a little lunch for myself. Then she asked if I always took Doritos for lunch. I said, "Yes, but yesterday I almost missed out. Somebody took my Doritos that I had set aside on the counter." Her reply, "Oh, those were yours?" My little wifey had stolen my Doritos.

The missing shades

In early July my wife and I traveled to Atlanta to visit her parents for a little over a week...to relax a little. When we arrived we were greeted with paint brushes, large stacks of ceramic tiles, and an extensive list of "while you are here you can..." But that is a whole other blog in and of itself. Amidst the calamity of installing a tile floor and painting, we were invited to a wedding and a reception of some good friends of theirs. Ken said that we could only go with them if we had completed items 1-44 of the "while you are here" list. Anyhow, we busted our butts and met the mark, famished and dehydrated because we were not allowed to take breaks. Ken then sprayed us off with the hose (our shower) and we prepared to go. On our way out the door, Ken stopped dead in his tracks. He did not have his sunglasses!!! Where could they be??? We looked for a few minutes and they were nowhere to be found. Alas, Mar and I hopped in the Yugo that we were "allowed" to borrow if we promised not to abuse it, while Ken and Queen Luella sported their '05 T-Bird. Along the way we had to stop and pick up the grandparents of the bride to be. Dude had to be over a hundred years old, which was good because he and Ken had something in common. But, even more important were the shades that Grandpa was wearing. They were exactly like Ken's. Wait. They were Ken's!!! The old man had jacked Ken's shades. We aren't talking about the sweet green/black kind that fit over eyeglasses that are commonly worn by the more mature generations. These shades are one of a kind. They remind me of the shades that Ray Charles used to sport, but they were larger, thicker and blacker!!! If my memory serves me correctly, they are even prescription, with the bi-focal line and all!!! We were not sure how that he acquired them, but my and Margaret's best guess is that he is one of those super ninja types that sneaks around at night and steals cool stuff. Regardless of how the old man had acquired the shades, Ken now had a mission of his own, to get his shades back. It took Grandpa about 20 minutes to get from inside the house to outside the garage door. Just as the old man was exiting the garage Ken stuck is size 14 in front of Grandpa's next step and gave him a little shove in the back. (To this day Ken denies any such actions. He says that Grandpa was starting to stumble so he reached out to grab him by the shoulder and inadvertently pushed him to the ground.) During this "scuffle" the shades fell from Grandpa's face and bounced into the grass. Margaret and I rushed to help Grandpa up because Ken was to busy polishing his newly acquired shades. After another 30 minutes of manipulating Grandpa and Grandma into the back seat of the Yugo we were on our way. Grandma's wheelchair would not fit into the the hatch so we strapped it up top. Grandpa had a few bruises, my knees were pressed against the dash of the Yugo and Ken was smiling ear to ear with his recently recovered shades. Colorin, colorado, este cuento se ha acabado.