Thank you for finding That Old House amidst the chaos of the Internet. We are delighted that you are here.

Thursday, June 11, 2009

Dion Does A Tablescape!

I've been a non-blogger this week, enjoying my last few days with my daughter Alida before she went back to California. We had a wonderful time out at the beach house:
. . . and back here in New Jersey at That Old House.

This morning I drove Alida to LaGuardia Airport in New York for her flight back to California. Mixed feelings -- I'm glad she is so happy there, but I miss her and wish she weren't quite so far away.

Okay, pity party over.

Now for my distinctly odd contribution to Tablescape Thursday, contributed by our dog, Dion DiPoochy.

Set the scene:
Dutiful Mom buzzes out this morning to pick up some bagels for Dear Daughter to bring back to the primitive natives of Pasadena, who don't know what a "real" bagel is.

Dear Daughter packs most of the bagels into her checked luggage, but Dutiful Mom tucks a nice fresh salt bagel back into the big brown paper bagel bakery bag, and leaves it on the kitchen counter; it will be her lunch when she returns from the airport run.

Off to the airport. Mercifully light traffic, quick goodbyes, and back in 2-1/2 hours. . . time for lunch.

A quick glance at the kitchen counter reveals no brown paper bag and no bagel. No bagel?

No one -- no one human -- has been in the house; Howard is at work, Anne is on Guam. Hmmm.... perhaps our ghosts have decided they are indeed hungry and have taken matters into their own hands. (Ghost story here.)

What is going on here? Mr. Dion DiPoochy was in charge of the house in my absence.
He looks innocent enough.


But this dog has a checkered past. In his younger days, he ate everything from glass Christmas ornaments, to Barbie heads, to half a Birthday Cake, to an entire bag of pink "peep" rabbits, to a long length of thick string that was -- shall we say -- ultimately disposed of in a most interesting way.

What would a mere bagel be to a gourmand of this caliber?

Here, without further ado, is Dion's Tablescape. . . .


Note the restrained use of Kosher salt, the creative use of scattered dog hair:

The artful crumpling of the Kraft paper:

Note also what is missing: the bagel.

We all know where that is.
But it's too dark in there to get a good picture.

So, how did Dion get the bag off the kitchen counter?

We suspect he can levitate, but he probably climbed up on the back of the love seat and onto the ledge of the counter, stepped over the board (see below) that we put up to discourage escapades such as this, and picked up the bag -- returning to the love seat for his feast.
Dion, I'm afraid it's the crate again for you when we are not home!

For real Tablescapes, done by actual people with opposable thumbs, please click here and visit Susan, our hostess at Between Naps On The Porch.

I apologize for the silliness of this post, but it actually cheered me up on a day that I am a little bit sad, although trying not to be.


Dogs are fun, and so are daughters. Alida and I talked ourselves hoarse while she was home:(I tried to crop out my cleavage but it would have chopped off Alida's chin.)


And now I look forward to picking Anne up at Kennedy Airport on Monday, upon her return from Guam.

Happy Thursday! -- Cass

28 comments:

  1. Cute story, and I think the tablescape was very appropriate for the situation. lol So glad you had a great time with your daughter. Hugs, Marty

    ReplyDelete
  2. Can't believe it, how cute! Glad you had such a wonderful visit with your daughter.

    ReplyDelete
  3. There is no way that the beautiful faced pup did such a thing! Funny story!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Loved seeing you and your beautiful eyes...they drew my attention away from the cleavage!! :)
    And your daughter is so pretty. What a funny story; you are so clever, Cass...poor Dion....must climb for her treats!! ;0

    suzanne

    ReplyDelete
  5. O Cass...this is an absolutely delightful post. i loved it.
    What a cute dog..and I don't blame the cute thing...I like bagels, too. :)
    And, there ain't nuthin' wrong with showing cleavage...Wish I had some to SHOW !! and, what I do have, has wrinkles !! :(

    ReplyDelete
  6. Now your post made me laugh. I have a photo of my daughters dog caught in the act of stealing an entire meatloaf off of my counter.
    Joyce

    ReplyDelete
  7. Cass girl - - - when I see "That Old House" in my followed blogs list, my heart jumps for joy and I can hardly wait to click and read.

    You have NOT disappointed in this post. I LOVE the tablescape - - - it is soooo REAL. I have scapes JUST LIKE THAT that are made entirely by the two human inhabitants of this house.

    BUT - - - we can HOPE that Dion threw a few crumbs to the starving basement dwellers, just for the peace and security of the upstairs folks!!!

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hi Cass,
    That dog has such an innocent face, how could he do such a thing. Must be the ghost doggie! What a nice pic of you and your daughter, you both look so pretty! Have a great Friday and watch out for those ghost doggies! hugs, Cindy

    ReplyDelete
  9. LOL!! Dion and Gizmo would be good company for each other.

    Giz somehow managed to get up on the table at Jay's birthday and ate 1/2 of the tenderloin before anybody realized what he was doing.

    It took a while to live that one down...

    Glad you were able to spend time with your daughter!

    Lisa

    ReplyDelete
  10. hahaha... oh my goodness, that is SO something my dogs would do! I have 2 Cavaliers (Dallas and Dolly) and Dallas looks exactly like your Dion!

    ReplyDelete
  11. Well that made me laugh! We once had a huskey that tried to bury a pound of butter (for later, perhaps?) in the seat of a new Crewell work covered sofa. It was nearly the end of him. Then we had a Bassett Hound that managed to get a paw up and over the top of a pan of lasagna (we'd thought him to short to worry about) that he then flipped, bathing every inch of an all-white kitchen in enough tomato sauce that you'd mistake the room for an abattoir!

    Elegant tablescape!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Great post. My Mom's dog loves anything bread related. He has pulled many of these escapades.

    Your dog is so amazingly cute. How could you ever crate him????

    Our Chloe gets out of being crated a lot because of the sad eyes she casts our way. Kimmy, not so much.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Certainly one of the best tablescapes yet.
    My dog would doesn't touch (okay steal is the right word) anything except pork. That she would steal right from your plate if you weren't looking.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Oh, Cass! How funny. That little precious Dion - the bagel snatcher and eater. He did a wonderful tablescape. He didn't need any silverware or napkins - he doesn't have any thumbs! He is so pretty!
    Sounds like you had a wonderful visit with your pretty daughter! It's good to see your pretty face too! What gorgeous blue eyes you have! Oh, I just laughed when you said cleavage! You're too funny!
    Be a sweetie,
    Shelia :)

    ReplyDelete
  15. Dion told me you should have left the schmear out on the counter, too. ;)

    Love your "real" tablescape.

    Will we ever see the sun again, do you think?

    ReplyDelete
  16. Oh - I think it was a ghost -- really, how could you even suspect a face like that? That tablescape is one that my "boys" would love to duplicate!

    ReplyDelete
  17. Another absolutely hilarious post!! Yes, let's have free rein with these tablescapes~this is just the best!! That Dion has the most innocent eyes and he certainly does not look big enough to eat a whole bagel!!

    We had a dog once that took the food right out of our hands. Notice I said "had" a dog...

    My heart felt a little tug when you let out your feelings. We just love our daughters even if they sometimes drive us nuts... and I know you had such a wonderful time with the girls at home. Chin up! We are supposed to have other interests~like tablescapes!! LOL!!!

    Oh, forgot to say I love the cleavage. Integral part of Tablescape Thursday! ;-)

    xoxo
    Jane

    ReplyDelete
  18. What a kind, thoughtful little fellow! He knew you were busy and decided to help with the tablescape. Much nicer than my cat's attempt to "help". He ate some of the fake flowers on my table and then proceeded to throw them up on my tablecloth. Can't have real flowers because of him and now apparently the fakes are also out.
    good thing we love the little darlings, huh?

    ReplyDelete
  19. One of the best tablescapes I've ever witnessed...Ha! How preciouse is Your dog! Glad you could spend all that time with your daughter this week, cheer up my friend...xoxo~Kathy @ Sweet Up-North Mornings...

    ReplyDelete
  20. Love the tablescape - very appropriatge for "casual dining". :-D Cute post!

    ReplyDelete
  21. Well, now I know who to look for when I am over on the North Fork...Look for me too, I am the one with perfectly coiffed hair, dressed to the nines...NOT!!!

    So now, does doggy prefer a schmear or a sandwich? :)

    ReplyDelete
  22. Thanks for stopping by my friend, just to hear your feeling better made my day, xoxo~Kathy @
    Sweet Up-North Mornings...

    ReplyDelete
  23. Oooooh Cass I love this FURscapes you did today...too funny my friend...aren't they just the crazy things and the way they can figure out how to do into stuff...I had a Yorkie that loved to drag toilet paper all through my house as soon as I left her alone...never did it while I was home...so every time I left I had to put the roll up high ha ha!! May you have a great weekend my friend...Oh where did you put your tea cup lamp or did Annie end up with it ha ha!! I know how my girls are when they come to visit me...Hugs and smiles Gl♥ria

    ReplyDelete
  24. Hi Cass :)

    I'm sorry you're so sad, but your post WAS funny LOL Dion cracks me up.

    Oh and show that cleavage! Us chesty gals need not be ashamed ;)

    xoxo,
    rue

    ReplyDelete
  25. Cass..your daughter is a real beauty!I loved the Ghost tale and I DO believe in Ghosts!
    I'm your 100th follower!!! YEAH!

    ReplyDelete
  26. Sorry to hear you are not having a great day but that post is ever so funny for all of us that live with pets. Am really enjoying the tablescape posts, so much to learn and everyone is so entertaining. Thanks for sharing.

    ReplyDelete
  27. It's a charming story and very creative tablescape too! Makes me feel as though the crazy things that go on in this house with dogs, hens and humans are maybe not too 'out there' after all!! Sorry you're feeling a little sad but I hope it won't be too long before you can see your daughter once again. with warm wishes to you, Vxx

    ReplyDelete
  28. How fun was this?: ) I loved reading it, totally relate TO it...you are so silly! And i LOVE that!
    You and your daughter are BEAUTIFUL! Cleavage and all! : )

    Kipper says to say that no doggie as adorable as YOURS could ever do anything really naughty. KIp says it was a neighborood cat. Very sneaky those cats.


    Love,
    Sue

    ReplyDelete

Thank you for visiting That Old House; it's always exciting to find new comments -- they are treasured! Because of increasing spam, I have reluctantly eliminated "Anonymous" commenting. Legitimate anonymous commenters, please forgive me! You might try using "Open ID" instead. Blogger's spam software worked for a good long time, but, sadly, no longer.