Spring is in the Air…
Mongo and Dad have already begun to notice the heralds of Spring, and it’s not even March yet.
Black and White Bonanza
Mongo is a talented dog, and his problem solving abilities are quite impressive, at least when it comes to solving problems related to getting more food. This morning, as Dad and Mr. M walked past a neighbor’s driveway, Mongo locked up in a point.
Normally, this posture is reserved for birds, squirrels, cats, etc. However, when Dad looked to see what had caught Mongo’s attention, nothing jumped out at Dad, literally or figuratively. Dad scanned the area for a moment. Then he realized what had caught Mongo’s eye.
Sailor Boy – Pilot Bread
This modern day version of hardtack, albeit with some leavening and shortening, is produced today by Interbake Foods of Richmond, Virginia. Alaskan law requires all light aircraft to carry “survival gear”, including food. So, the blue-and-white Sailor Boy Pilot Bread boxes are ubiquitous at Alaskan airstrips, in cabins, and virtually every village.¹
98% of the Pilot Bread is sold in Alaska. However, Drewbie found some in a local market in Northwest Washington State. He decided to surprise Dad by bringing some home.
Back in the day, Uncle Marc and Dad had feasted on hardtack from K-rations whenever Grandpa came back from maneuvers. Canned eggs and ham, hardtack, and waxy chocolate were among their favorite eats.
Dad and Drewbie each enjoyed one palm-sized Pilot Bread cracker as soon as Drewbie brought them home. Dad reminisced about the good old days, and about opening dinner with a genuine p51 can opener, and drinking hot chocolate from a canteen cup. However, after one cracker each, they both decided they had had enough. They each grabbed a glass of water to wash down the rather dry delicacy. The box of Pilot Bread box sat on the counter for several days, undisturbed until…
Third Time is a Charm
Another one buddy”, Dad asked ask he scooped up another pile for this morning’s walk. Dad knew something was amiss with Mongo. Mongo is typically a digestive machine. Two cups of kibble every morning and night yield one bag of dog poop every morning and night. But here was Dad in the cold light of a winter’s dawn making multiple scoops.
For some reason Mongo was off schedule. The evidence was that Dad was on his third baggie of the morning. His first thought when Mongo hunched up the second time was that Mongo had one more piece to poop out, a Clingon if you will. That has not been the case. Instead of one more little turd, Mongo had made an entire second load. And when he finished the second load, he had started a third.
Dad pondered the situation and asked aloud, “I wonder what he ate?”
The Other White Meat
Mongo will eat almost anything. Things he will eat include tomatoes, apples, pears, lettuce, socks, hats, and rocks. The last three have proved costly to remove. During one vet trip for intestinal distress, the vet looked at the x-ray and said, “Well, there’s a few pebbles and some loose change in there, but that should all pass. ” So it did not come as a surprise that Mongo liked cauliflower. In fact, he’s not the only dog in the family to like cruciform vegetables. Back in the day, one golden retriever, Hudson, waited until Dad had planted all the broccoli and cauliflower starts in the garden. Then as soon as Dad went inside, Hudson pulled up all the starts and ran joyously around the backyard munching on them. Dad caught a glimpse of Hudson reveling in broccoli through the window and sprinted out the back door to find more than half the plants gone. A fence was eventually had to be installed around the garden to keep Hudson from pillaging the vegetables, when Dad became frustrated that all the almost-ready broccoli florets were disappearing!
However, none of the girl dogs in the family seemed to enjoy leafy greens. One golden girl, Dixie, did enjoy sneaking strawberries from the planter next to the back door, but that was about it.
So while Dad was using cauliflower as a substitute for cream in an alfredo sauce, it came as no shock that Mongo enjoyed a few cauliflower twigs that Dad tossed to him. The shock came when Mongo missed a piece of vegetable that Dad tossed at him, and it landed near Spork. Spork is legendary in the family for being finicky. She’s been know to turn her nose up at dog food if it has too much filler in it!
Who’s Been Sitting in the Dishwasher?
“Drewbie!” Dad’s voice echoed through the house. “Drewbie!”
The response floated up the stairs to the kitchen in an exasperated tone. “What?”
Dad called back down the stairs, “The dishwasher door is broken. It looks like someone sat on it.”
Mongo’s gallery
Mongolope 
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