Out of stock

I got several comments on the "How much is the doggie in the window" post encouraging me to go back and spring ol' Ray Romano from the clink.

Out of curiosity I just called the animal shelter to see if he was still available...

He was adopted LAST NIGHT!

I don't know if I should be happy he was adopted by someone, or sad that someone wasn't me.

I'm thinking...maybe Ray Romano was like the outfit in a window you fall in love with and run in to buy, but wish you had never bought once you get it home. (Ok, I'm telling myself this to cheer up.)

To stick with the shopping metaphor: I sadly scrolled through the shelter's catalog of available dogs thinking none of them would compare to Ray when I saw this...

This little 4-month-old girl's name is Tomato! She has three sisters and one brother. Apparently, they are a border collie/heeler mix.

I don't know anything about a heeler, but darn it if she isn't freaking cute!

Back to the store!

How much is that doggie in the window

I want a dog more than anything.

I've been desperately wanting one for years but couldn't have one in D.C., because it was against my apartment building's rules. And, even if I could have had a dog I wouldn't have. I just couldn't justify having one in my studio apartment or with the lifestyle I had.

But when I decided to leave D.C., the vision of my new Western life very clearly included a dog. Even more specifically, a dog poking out of the window of the Jeep Wrangler I've always wanted, ears flapping, tongue dangling, as we bounced through the mountains on our way to some wilderness adventure.

So...that hasn't happened yet.

I've been really wanting to change that, despite my current landlord's policy against pets, which doesn't seem to matter since two of the four apartments have one.

Since I have been talking about this forever, my boyfriend Todd and I went to the animal shelter to just...look around. If you had any inkling of how badly I want a dog you would wonder if I was a masochist for doing this. Why would anyone go to an animal shelter and torture themselves staring at penned up puppies if they weren't going to walk out of there with one??

I did it anyway.

I'd been looking around online at dogs available for adoption and didn't really see anything I loved. I realized this may be a longer process than I initially thought. I might have to "shop around," so to speak. Maybe I would find my dream dog in Laramie or Ft. Collins, Colo.,...

What harm could a little trip to the animal shelter do?

Silly Kim.

In a cold, barren cell sat Ray Romano: a 6-month-old black lab puppy who was darling. Aside from his name, which I would promptly change, he was just the right kind of lab - no snouty nose; long and lean, not stubby...and he loved me. He cuddled up against my hands through the cage. He howled when I walked away. He reminded me of my family's old dog Rajah when he was a puppy...

OMG. I started crying (and am getting misty-eyed now!). I wanted Ray Romano. I wanted to walk out with little Ray right then. But I couldn't. Todd and I have decided to try living together (more on this later) and we're in the midst of figuring out where that will be. Until that's settled it didn't seem to make sense to get Ray Romano then.

I had to leave. I couldn't take it!

Window shopping for puppies is soooo not a good idea.

Race for the Cure

My boyfriend and I, and several hundred others, participated this morning in the Wyoming Race for the Cure.

I love this race. I love everything it stands for. Runners can be very supportive people. They're competitive, of course, but at the finish line you'll usually see many cheering other racers on.

There's just something even more encouraging about Race for the Cure though. That person crossing the finish line may be running in honor of a lost loved one, or maybe they're a survivor showing the world and themselves that after beating cancer they can do anything.

I get kind of emotional just typing about it.

Since I really believe in this race, and I've lost several relatives not to breast cancer, but to cancer in general, I try very hard not to miss it. I ran the national race in D.C., each year I was there but one, and I missed Wyoming's race last year because, ironically, I was in D.C., for a wedding.

Not this year.

From one capitol to another...


Some dedicated runners...


Todd and I after finishing. He kicked butt! And I must say I'm rather proud of my time as well...


For Dad, Grandma, Dustin, Aunt JoAnn, Teresa and others...

They eat?

Tonight was Ft. Collins Friday - an outing I tried to start last year. The intention is to take one Friday each month to go to Ft. Collins, Colo., and have a nice dinner at a fun ethnic or non-chain restaurant.

Sadly, we only did it once last year, so it kind of became an annual event versus a monthly one.

But I'm changing that!

We started the new era of Ft. Collins Fridays off strong with dinner at Nyala, an Ethiopian restaurant. I'd eaten Ethiopian a few times in D.C., but the experience was a first for the rest of the group. I am pleased to say everyone was super into the idea of trying it, and everyone - EVERYONE - loved it!

This shouldn't be a surprise given what others had to say about the place. I'd heard from several reliable sources it was very good and really traditional. In fact, some of the dishes weren't available because, according to our server, the owner makes them and she was in Ethiopia as we sat there visiting family and gathering more ingredients.

That could have been a tall tale, but I chose to believe it.

Our reservation wasn't until a little later, so we tried Cafe Vino for a drink beforehand. I've been wanting to try this place for a long time, but I had no idea how freaking amazing it would be! We look like a bunch of lushes, but it really wasn't that bad. Everyone ordered a white wine flight. For $11 or $12 you got three half glasses of wine. It was awesome! Molly, Don and Annie enjoying their flights...


April, me, Todd and Brandon sipping ours...


Another photo of an ENORMOUS Brandon hand. He really had that glass singing, which, I guess, when you have hands that huge shouldn't be too hard...

So, the food at Cafe Vino looks amazing. Thin, crusty pizzas; cheese plates; tapas - all very Napa-esq. I'm eyeing the next table's pizza...Y.U.M. This will likely be the next Ft. Collins Friday, FYI...


Inside Nyala...

We opted for a couple bottles of wine - one a honey wine that was good, but waaay to sweet for me, and this one, which is from Adis Ababa, the capitol of Ethiopia. It was quite tasty...

Cheers to the 2nd Ft. Collins Friday!

Everyone reaching to try the first platter of food to come out. You use your hands and the injera bread they give you. I had a hard time with injera the first time I tried it in D.C. Carrie beat me to trying Ethiopian and wasn't a fan. Her description? Injera is like the lining of a cow's stomach. Imagine having that in your head the first time?! I didn't share this with anyone before they tried it last night. The taste of injera is hard to describe, but I think Don hit the nail on the head - it tastes like, "an undone sourdough-tasting pancake." That's about right!

We ordered one of each of the combos: one lamb combo, chicken, veggie, and beef. Each combo comes with three little "piles" and two sides. It sits on another injera pancake...


When I sent out the evite about Ethiopian all the expected jokes came out: "They eat?" "We'll be sharing a grain of U.N. rice," and so forth and so on. Not one of us, however, left that place hungry. Ethiopian food, likely because of the injera, is extremely filling! You can tell from the cleared platters it was well liked too...

You can't take this group anywhere... April waiting for the bathroom and pretending to be a "starving Ethiopian" reaching for food...


Further evidence that its not advisable to be seen in public with us: Molly and Todd unable to resist the urge to use the table baskets as costumes...

A real testiment to the deliciousness of the food? Brandon, who is using injera as a mask and who we clearly can't take anywhere - and who I was sure would be the hardest one to please with Ethiopian food - said, and I quote, "It just makes me want to be a missionary in Ethiopia to eat their food!"

That's quite the stamp of approval!

Back

I'm back!

July was a killer on my schedule! - and my ability to keep my little blog updated.

After trips to Vail, Dubois, Wyo., Lamar, Colo., and Vegas, and several days of cowgirling it up at Frontier Days I am ready for a quiet August.

However, if you know me that just means a little more time doing stuff closer to home - not a kabash on doing stuff in general.

So, I'm back and will be much more consistent in my updating.

Ahhh...August!