Dog Parks, Determined People & Packets of Soup

Allow me a moment to be one of those bloggers who doesn't post for weeks and then comes online to talk about how oh so busy and hectic her life has been. Sure, an excuse is an excuse is an excuse, but I have really good ones -- honest!

You've read about the effort I'm involved in to bet a dog park built in our town. I've been working on the project in one way or another since May of 2008. After months of proposals and appearances in front of City Council, TPTB finally approved a parcel of land for a dog park. Our dedicated group made the commitment to raise all of the necessary funds. That's what I've been doing since May of 2009 -- fundraising. Thanks to a series of events and an outpouring of fantastic support from the community, our group has raised over $22,000.00!

Yep, 22 grand in a relatively small town during lousy economic times in a period of five short months.

WOOF!

We've bagged groceries for tips at the supermarket, held a Gold Party where people sold their old gold pieces for cash and the jeweler split her commission with the dog park; benefited from a dog wash put on by a local vet hospital; put on a few Yappy Hours; a Yard Sale; a big Beach Party; a Barktail Hour; and, this past weekend, Barktoberfest with a Pet Masquerade Parade.\

Nine fundraising events in five months requires a lot of work.

We're mega-excited because we have earned more than enough money for the necessary fencing and are on our way to raising funds for the other things we need.

This is why new blog posts have been few and far between.

But I'm back with a doozy of a story.

Last week, I dashed into the supermarket to pick up something to make for dinner. When zipping past the sushi section, I spotted a colorful box that said, "Quality Soup Packets." I like me a good quality soup, so I stopped to read more. The individual packets said:

Cock-Flavored Soup.

It was all I could do to hold back the laughter that threatened to erupt from my throat.

Oh sure, I know I was in the Asian section and cock is a perfectly acceptable synonym for rooster. The packet even had a brightly colored rooster image.

That logic had no impact on my off-color sense of humor. I don't care what culture originated the product, in this country, cock-flavored soup is an entendre begging to be doubled... or trebled.

It gets better. I rushed home and immediately called my friends Jen and Joe. I knew their senses of humor would appreciate this situation as much as I. Jen put me on speaker phone and I'm positive that I heard Joe actually choke on his laughter. They demanded that I buy some packets and send them up to Jersey so Joe can give them as holiday gifts to his brother, brother in law and friend.

I did so yesterday. Guess what price they charge for cock-flavored soup?

69 cents.

I can't make up this stuff! It's priceless.