Yes, I do still have thoughts. Some days there are so many in the air around me I can barely contain them, other days, neh, not so much going on. I find myself wondering what teeth would say to us if we listened. Strange thought huh? I have one tooth right now that is saying, “If you so much as touch me or move me or chew on me, I’m going to hurt you for hours. The kind of hurt that only huge amounts of great drugs or a dentist can put an end to. You got it?”

One of my fillings or crowns semi-broke yesterday evening. It’s not in the all-out-head-banging mode, just the teensy little grouchy edge that says it’s waiting for me to screw up. So along about 5 a.m. tomorrow, I’ll be crawling out, walking the dog, and heading for Las Vegas. Kee-rist! I just went through this a month ago with another bottom molar on the other side. I guess if I stay away from almonds, that might keep me away from the dentist for a while.

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Two of my boys and three of my grandkids came out for Thanksgiving, it was a great time. My sis cooked and organized a meal for roughly 12 adults and a few kids. I had turkey with some gravy and the bean salad, it was incredibly wonderful…and as an afterthought before I left, I had a fairly small slice of pumpkin pie with a small skiff of whip cream. Not the best low carb choice but it is what it is (see last post on low carb-shmo carb voodoo). I probably had 100 carbs that day. Riot had a bad time for a big part of the day, it had to do with Momparental, and unfortunately no one could ease him out of it but her and things never seem to work that way. Every year she says she’s coming to our family holiday meals, every year passes without her showing. I guess Riot really thought she would come this year…nuff said on that subject.

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My girl Scout got her ‘snarl up and bite’ on the other night. Jim and Mary, the neighbors across the street from me have four dogs, these people are rescuers, and they rescued Molly a few years ago from the street by our houses when the brain-deads used to live here before I moved in. The brain-deads had a fence across the back and Molly and Monster (a pit) were kept back there until one day they both got out, the brain-deads put Monster back in the back but left Molly out on the street and stopped feeding her or giving her any water. After a few days Jim and Mary took Molly in and kept her.

I believe Molly is American Bulldog but she may have some mix, she is female dominant aggressive just like Scout is. Anytime I take Scout off property, she’s fashionable dressed with a SHOCK collar. I’ve seen her action before and you can’t get her attention or slow her down when she wants to kill something. Since we walk the desert, I carry a leash but never put it on her unless I see people walking their dogs coming our way. She’s pretty well behaved unless one of her own kind shows up so the collar is a last resort.

Molly and Scout have a relationship, it isn’t pretty. About two months ago I let Scout off property to walk to the mail box with me, Molly and the three cheerleaders were in their fenced yard but they’re always on the lookout for anything moving up or down the street or any sound that might mean someone’s coming. Yipppeee! Drool, slobber, bark, run, bark, race up and down the fence, bark, run, bark.

Scout, upon occasion charges at our fence when they are out in the their yard, waiting like silent stalkers for me to open the front door, they go crazy. Scout goes crazy but can be controlled because she isn’t a jumper and won’t get outside unless the gate is open. One day she went to the mail with me, they were out in their favorite corner – the house isn’t right across from us, that’s vacant land. And she had had enough I guess…enough of their barking without getting a chance to bite them. She cut through the sage and desert brush and went straight to their fence. Her and Molly fought and ran up and down the front of their property, separated by the fence.

Jim came out and was able to slow Molly and the cheerleaders down, I got Scout’s collar and we went back home. Molly’s whole face was bloody (she’s white with a few brown dapples and it really shows). Scout had some blood around her muzzle but not a lot. It’s not because they were biting each other, it was because they had their teeth and lips married to the fence as they ran up and down. They must’ve made six or seven runs down and back up the 130 feet of fence before we got them slowed down. That was the last time Scout was/ever will be allowed off property without the shock collar.

So…Molly will take a run at their side fence when she wants out and run right up and over it. It’s field run and only about 5 feet high. If she was a jumper, she’d clear it in a heartbeat. She’s come out on the street after us three times previously. We’re usually almost to the desert by the time she hits the pavement and she seems to lose her nerve, she follows but about 100 yards or so back and as long as I keep Scout’s focus ahead on the desert, I just call Jim and tell him Molly’s out.

But not this time.

Molly hit the fence three times and Scout got down the road around 50 feet and cut back through the sage to the fence. I knew by the way Scout was trotting down the street she was looking for trouble, it’s a certain ‘attitude’ trot. I caught her with a zap just as she cleared the bushes heading for their fence. She came back to me and as I was stating quite forcefully (it usually works), “LET’S GO!!” We made it about 20 yards away from their property when I heard Molly hit the fence the last time. She was out on the street.

I grabbed my phone and started searching for Jim’s number as I was saying sternly, “Molly GO HOME!”

Scout turned around and headed back towards me. Molly slowed down and had that uncertain look like “OH SHIT! What am I doing out here?” Nothing would’ve stopped Scout at that point, she went hell-on-wheels straight for Molly and the fight was on.

It was horrible. I’m a real sissy, I hate fights and major confrontations but if the chips are ever really down, do count on me to cover your back. I got skilz.

They went down the street about 20 feet, never breaking apart, and then ended up right at the corner of the fence that Molly came over. I was screaming, “HELP ME! HELP! ANYONE, HELP ME!”

I got the attention of a guy that works for the Pahrump Sheriff’s Office that lives one street over, him and his wife came speeding over in their truck. But that was after it was all over.

I got Jim’s attention which was my goal. He came out and got out of their gate and over to the bushes to grab Molly. Scout had a giant full bite right into the side of Molly’s face, starting just below her eye. And Scout wasn’t letting go. She just hung on. Molly quit trying to fight at this point which was a good thing because it gave Jim the chance to get her collar and hang on. I got Scout’s collar but she wasn’t letting go. Jim took a kick at her – just to break her attention lock – but she hung on. He tried pulling Molly back and she cried with pain. I must’ve finally got through to Scout with the last zap of about 4 in a row. She let go.

We went to the street and I got the leash on her and took her home. My hiking/friend Amy that lives one house over from my sis heard the noise. The ex-truck driving duo were home, in their house, but they didn’t hear shit.

We didn’t hike that day. I was extremely upset; just because I hated the whole thing and I take a lot of precautions to make sure Scout doesn’t get in harm’s way and doesn’t harm others if at all possible. When we go to the desert, we always walk on the opposite of the street from their place, even if they aren’t home and their dogs are in the house, I won’t let her go to their fence and do her dog-whatevers.

Scout’s one ear had a small tear out near the end of the tip and she has a small lump back underneath the same ear on her neck that could be a bite/puncture but I’ll keep checking it to make sure it goes away or she’ll go to the vet. Molly got the worst of their encounter but I feel I really got the worst of it. I don’t handle those things well and I’ve always known that if they ever tangoed, I’d never get them apart by myself. Besides, I was primed for that hike.

I’ve talked to Jim and Mary since, Molly is OK but he said she did take some bites. The subject came up that Molly needs to be controlled, either a higher fence, or something before she comes bailing out and gets hit by a car or tackles another dog and doesn’t come out of it as well, or gets some little kid that is walking dogs with his mom and gets in the way. No idea what they plan on doing. They are really good neighbors and good people so I trust to their judgment.

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BTW – I started this on Wednesday. Made it to the dentist yesterday morning. The molar will require a root canal. I have it penciled in with them for late in January. Dr. Rose said to just stay away from it as much as possible and see if it settles down a little…it’s crowned, no cracks, no holes…WTF?

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The poker bloggers are coming to Vegas – a lot of them are already there – for the annual insanity poker tournament and Friday night mixed games, gambling and drinking from the time they get there til the time they leave, some are hiking Red Rock, some are running the Zappos.com Rock & Roll Marathon when they run the strip at night.

I missed the last two years and I’m leaning quite seriously towards going to the Aria tomorrow and playing the tournament. The biggest problem (other than chaining my dog in the neighbor’s yard…joking) is the weather went ugly and it’s dark and gloomy right now with high winds. If it’s snowing at Mt. Potosi tomorrow I am not going. I would be driving back after dark and that pass on ice is not my idea of a good time. It would be fun to play live poker again and hang out with all the bloggers that started this whole thing and all the new ones too.

Check back, I’ll letcha know what happened.