Catnip and Surfing Pugs

I have never known a cat that likes catnip until Maui. We brought Maui a little sausage-shaped catnip toy and he went totally nuts.



Note that the package states "Tough withstands mauling."



I found the catnip at our local grocery store in Portland. It's made in Oregon, and it must be some potent catnip because the toy was definitely mauled.



I didn't dare get too close to Maui's prey.



While this was going on, Pug was in another room checking out the latest issue of Reader's Digest. (This was about two weeks ago; not sure if it's still on the stands.)



We were both amazed to read about the surfing pug on Oahu!

You Have Won 2nd Prize In A Beauty Contest

While we were in California, we found out that Books Inc. was having a dog photo contest. So of course we entered Pug! I found out earlier today that Pug got second place as well as a $15 dollar gift certificate. Thanks Books Inc. and all our family and friends who voted for Pug! He'll always be first place to me.



Pug will probably get a book about pugs with the prize certificate. But even if he hadn't won anything, Pug is content just to smell the roses... or lavender, in this case.

Crêpes and a Pet Friendly Bookstore

Sorry for the lack of blog posts this last week. I was all set to go-- we were recently in California and I have lots of good pictures of Pug-- and then I got food poisoning. Possibly from spinach, but we'll never know... I'm feeling much better now, though still eating bland foods, and nothing anywhere near as good as this wonderful crêpe suzette I had at Douce France in Palo Alto:



I do love crêpes, and it had been a long time since I'd had the lovely, plain suzette with just lemon juice and powdered sugar. Pug was envious.



After our breakfast, we wandered over to Books Inc. and realized, wonder of wonders, miracle of miracles, that they allow pets in their store!



Pug and I were thrilled.



Pug checked out the children's books, travel, and fiction.



He was a big hit with the staff, who are all dog and pug lovers!



Now that we're back home, we're definitely going to have to find a bookstore in Portland that is pet friendly too!

From The Kitchen: Farfalle with Pesto, Tomatoes and Arugula

For dinner, I made a nice, summery salad from 200 Super Salads.





It was very easy to make: farfalle, chopped tomatoes, arugula, and homemade pesto. (Basically, a bunch of basil leaves, plus 3 TB toasted pine nuts, and a little pecorino cheese blended in a food processor, with a little olive oil added.)



It was quite tasty and good for supper on a hot day.



Pug was very interested in dinner, and was given a little piece of the farfalle to eat. I don't think he cared for the pesto.

Golden Raspberries

We have a lot of berry bushes in our backyard, and those berries are getting ripe! We have marionberries, raspberries, blackberries, and blueberries (I think)...



The golden raspberries have been ready for the pickin' for the last couple of weeks, and we've been eating them. And we're not the only ones who've been eating them... My guinea pigs love them.



Pug tasted his first golden raspberry.



Pug's verdict:



Heavenly.



For breakfast, I made granola-yogurt-berry parfaits, with our golden raspberries on top!



I put mine in a clear glass because the layers are so pretty.



It's such a yummy, simple breakfast, and we'll definitely be having it again!

Beware of Pug

On my recent trip to Arizona, I found a sign that said "Beware of Attack Bug." I bought it, got out my Wite-Out and voilà:



I love how it turned out. From far away, you can't tell it used to say 'bug'.



Of course, Pug has never attacked anything except his dinner, and the bits of food he finds on the kitchen floor sometimes...