Wuing You with Words ...

Every Halloween brings another annual fundraiser for the Amanda Foundation , our local dog & cat rescue. This was our third year working the main gig but our first time doing the group dog-walk, the pre-event to garner attention for the fundraiser. I even got my official Amanda shirt, which was akin to a superhero uniform. The moment I put it on, I felt empowered, like I had more authority to tell dogs what's what. Every volunteer was assigned a pup to walk. I got Turner, a friendly and excitable dog. His costume was technically "king." It even came with a crown, which had zero chance of staying on, given how active he was. At first, this was what happened when a kid saw Turner ... "Superman!" the kid squeals. "No no no," I say. "He's king." Repeat. Fifteen minutes later ... "Superman!"the kid squeals. "Yup," I sigh. "Superman." Michelle's dog, Chikis, was the opposite of Turner....

For Halloween this year, we volunteered at the annual Amanda Foundation fundraiser. It's the animal rescue that we walk dogs for. We first did it back in 2014, when the theme was zombies. 2015 we missed because of our road trip. The 2016 theme was James Bond ... um, Bone. I tried to go for the James Bond look in the movie Spectre,  where Daniel Craig sports a black turtleneck. Minus his muscles, charm, and good looks, of course. Michelle greeting Ginger, a volunteer's dog who won the costume contest. Pit bulls are the best. This one likes to shakes hands.  As before, our job was to staff one of the silent auction tables, which offered items including VIP tickets to the TV show The Voice (plus a signed Miley Cyrus shirt!) and local favorites like the Magic Castle. The business was brisk, and all the items on our table got bids. Posing with the dapper James Bone To make the evening extra memorable, the sky even rained a bit. Yup. This is Southern ...

Halloween is my favorite holiday. This past Sunday we volunteered for The Night of the Living Dog , a Halloween zombie party benefiting the Amanda Foundation (the rescue shelter we walk dogs for). Music played, cocktails flowed, and dogs preened for the costume contest. Fun, though I hurt my back again from lifting stuff. Me as a zombie soldier, gnawing the skull of one of my victims. I did my own makeup, which some thought was too blue. Wouldn't zombies be oxygen-deprived from all that death? The event's makeup artist redid my makeup to make it whiter with dark eye circles. The volunteers' jobs were to set up the party, staff the tables for the silent auctions, and clean up. Ours had several signed scripts from TV shows like Dexter and CSI. Here's my partner, a dodgeball zombie with her arm lopped off. She put in a bid for a restaurant but was outbid by several others. Bummer for us, but better for the Foundation. Me next to Oscar. The crowd was too o...