Out Of Tune Talents

Maggie's pawsability thought for the day:

"Use what talents you possess: the woods would be very silent if no birds sang there except those that sang best."

Henry Van Dyke

  Maggie and I love the Stanford Cardinal football team. They have done what they do best this season-WIN. The most unlikely is going to the Rose Bowl. We love the Cardinal bird too for it's brilliant red coloring. In honor of our home team we found a Cardinal ornament for our tree. Maggie did after all cheer on the team throughout the season. It's what she does best-super duper cheerleader. 

Her other talent besides companion and friend is posing for photos. On a dime Maggie will pose for me and hold the pose. Such a sweetie. Just this morning as I took the Cardinal ornament photo she sat in her cozy bed and appropriately posed. It is our unspoken language of singing without a tuning bar. Maggie will try her best every time. It doesn't matter if she gets it perfect or right. Into the ring goes her whole heart of loving effort. Maggie's out of tune talents sound best to me and to herself. WOOF WOOF

Raining Gale Storm Roses

Maggie's pawsability thought for the day:

"A rose must remain with the sun and the rain or its lovely promise won't come true."

Ray Evans

  Maggie and I spent a wild weekend of gale storm wind and rain. One of the biggest storms of late. We hunkered down. It started with the big football game on Friday night. Stanford football played UCLA football for the Pac-12 Championship. Stanford came out victorious through the raindrops to win a spot in the Rose Bowl on New Years Day. It rained roses for Stanford. 

Stanford

On Saturday Wisconsin played Nebraska in their Pac-10 Championship game. Wisconsin came up smelling roses. The Rose Bowl will host our home team Stanford against Wisconsin. Meanwhile, Saturday it rained again. Maggie and I took our morning walk with raincoats on. The powerful wind picked up right before we finished our walk. We spent time in the warm, coziness of our home complete with the glow from the Christmas tree lights. Some folks might play board games, but Maggie spent her time chewing things over. 

On Sunday the storm was at its worst. It was so windy we had to take our new bird feeder down for fear it might go whipping around and do some damage. The winds were so powerful visions of Dorothy in Kansas being swept away to Oz came to mind. Maggie and I were sure our bird friends were holding on tight somewhere in the protection of their nest. We couldn't take our morning walk it was so stormy. For any drivers out there it was white knuckle driving. Fortunately, later in the day the sun came out as if nothing had happened. Even though streets were lined with tree debris, the sky was pure blue without a cloud. In our area, rain means green grass. It's akin to how the corn grows in Iowa-you can see it grow! Sure enough, the grass had sprouted enough for the cattle to come back and graze. The sunshine before the sunset was a beautiful ending of our stormy, gale force rainy and rosey weekend. We hung the bird feeder back up. A minute later our little Junco bird was back cracking the seeds. The promise of celebration was before us all.

Stanford: Keep Knocking At The Gate WOOF! WOOF!

Maggie's pawsability thought for the day:

"Perseverance is a great element of success. If you only knock long enough and loud enough at the gate, you are sure to wake up somebody."

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

GO STANFORD

  Today is a big day. At 5:00 pm PST Maggie's Stanford football team plays UCLA football for the Pac-12 Championship. The game is held here at the Stanford Stadium. Maggie has been a big supporter of the team all season. She's donned her Stanford scarf, shouted out WOOF, WOOF's to cheer her home team on. Our typical sunny weather is overshadowed by dark and rainy weather this morning. But, one never knows in California, the weather could clear up later today. If not, then our team will be sloshing through the raindrops to forge ahead and get that Pac-12 Championship win. Maggie's sibling will be at the game. She'll send us live updates from the field. If our Stanford team wins, then it is on to the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2013! Maggie likes flowers. She's all about smelling roses of success. One thing we do know is Maggie's home team has fought long and hard knocking at the gate of success. We are really proud of them and all that they have achieved. Stanford football players have shown humility and team spirit. Maggie and I are a team. We know, like the Stanford football team knows, that there is no "I" in teamwork. Keep knocking Stanford football! 

WOOF! WOOF! GO STANFORD!

Meanwhile, Maggie will try and relax until game time.... no easy feat. 

UPDATE! After raining all day and at the game, it finally rained roses in Palo Alto! Perseverance paid off. The door was open. Pac-12 Champions! Stanford is going to the Rose Bowl on January 1, 2013!