We interrupt your day to bring you this message... DOG. In what I can only describe as Dog Therapy (I'm pretty sure I've hashtagged it a few times), my heart is not bereft of happy dog smiles, belly rubs, ear scratches and the longing stares as you're trying to eat pizza. Here's to Dogs, and the joy they bring.

You'll pardon the shortness of this post, and the short break I'll be taking from blogging (just a couple of weeks, fear not), but we said farewell to our darling Indy, aka, Indiana Jones, aka, "We named the DOG Indiana." She bravely battled chronic lymphocytic leukemia for almost a year. She was first diagnosed last October, and through many ups and downs, she fought bravely, always with a wagging tail and an eagerness for ear scratches, belly rubs and to be loved, loved, loved. She was truly the best of us.

We've of course over-documented this Year of Indy through social media, and you're welcome to revisit her good days on Instagram. And I even had her "Tweeting" - I wasn't sure if I would keep the account once she passed on, but it became a weirdly wonderful way to share moments from her perspective, so I welcome you to visit Indy's Twitter. 

Please take this time to hold a loved one close. Express how much they mean to you. Take the time to be with them. The greatest lesson we learned from this whole experience is that time is the only precious commodity in the world. It can't be saved or stockpiled, it's constantly being spent, so spend it wisely on meaningful moments and loved ones.
 
 Jaunty Fine Print: Photo by Denise Sakaki

The Birdy is BACK! Or more to the point, the Birdy didn't really fly the coop, she stayed on terra firma and had a quiet few days off to tend to the homefront. I did not, in fact, make it to Hell-on-Earth-Nevada for the aforementioned trip, but I kept with the vacation days off and spent the much-needed break savoring some quality time with the Mister and our dear pup, Indy, who was diagnosed with chronic lymphocytic leukemia last October.

Thanksgiving musings from the Magpie comes to one simple thing: be grateful for the present. You've probably already seen Tweets or Facebook posts regarding our dear, beloved dog, Indy, who is thankfully still with us, but has leukemia. It's been an emotional time, but the most significant thing to come out of it is a renewed sense of desire to live presently, with joy, with enthusiasm, and to not hold back on love.