Deno and The Apple Juice

So I finally took a break from working on projects and to lie down on the couch. I placed the warm apple juice I was sipping on the floor. (It is very cold in Iowa right now.) A few moments later, I heard a funny sound. There was Deno, my corgi, lapping up my apple juice!

Fortunately, he isn't overly possessive of what he is eating—or in this case—drinking. So I was able to just take it away from him. He looked at me through his big brown eyes as if to say that he just could not imagine why I had removed his flavorful treat! Then he snuggled up and immediately forgot all about it! I love that dog!

I went and got a clean mug and some new apple juice to warm up. And I think celebrating the joy of a sweet-natured family dog is perfectly anticipated in "Gonna Buy Me a Dog" by The Monkees! So check it out!

A Guilty Dog...

We love this little guy, but he can get himself into trouble.

Tonight we were all watching an old show on DVD and suddenly noticed Deno was no longer in his new favorite spot under the Christmas tree. We ran upstairs toward some rustling noise only to find him under a bed...with a box of crackers. Deno had ripped the sides off the box and torn into the bag but had not eaten all of the crackers. I think he was savoring them.

Deno is pretty smart and knew he wasn't supposed to eat those crackers. He wouldn't even come out from under the bed even after I cleaned up the mess.

So the picture above is of a very innocent Deno after his foray into cracker eating because I did not think to take a picture of the guilty Deno!

Oddly enough, Deno does not know that tomorrow is the last day of 2013, but people do! So to get ready for New Year's Eve, check out "Auld Lang Syne" from Jazzy Christmas to You III. It's unlike any version you've heard before. It has a very "odd" meter!

Corgis and Hound Dogs

Today I happened to see a show that had Corgis on it!  I felt homesick for little Deno.

This is Deno smiling two days after we brought him home from the Humane Society.  Okay, obviously Deno's not quite so little; he was fully grown and seven years old.  But we've only had him for a year and a half so he still seems like a puppy to us!

In honor of loving a dog who loves you back, today's song is "Hound Dog" sung by Elvis Presley.  This early rock and roll song was not jazz but certainly influenced by it.  The song is a classic!

Sleep and The Wee Small Hours of the Morning

My dog, Deno, is pictured above sleeping.  He loves sleeping.  There are days I wish I could sleep like a dog!

I never realized how precious sleep was until I started law school.  Sleep is a valuable commodity!  Thankfully, I have figured out better ways to study and the amount of time I'm awake during the early hours of the morning is greatly reduced.

I immediately thought of "In the Wee Small Hours of the Morning" sung by Frank Sinatra.  Except instead of missing a significant other during those hours, I'm missing sleep—literally!

My Dog has IBS

Deno loves to lie down with his head against the couch...we think it would be uncomfortable.

Deno is the family (well, my brother's) dog we adopted a year ago from the Humane Society.  I've written about how sick he was when we adopted him.  Well, we had no idea he was sick again!

He sometimes tosses his lunch, but we thought he just drinks too fast or doesn't chew his food enough since he tends to inhale it in his haste to eat!  We wondered if there was mold in his water fountain so we washed it but couldn't keep it mold-free.  So we threw it away and switched to using his low tech bowl.  No change.  We then thought his food was too old so we got a new bag but no change.  We fed him rice and unseasoned hamburger.  Hardly any improvement.  So we took him to the vet today.

Dr. Connie at Dyersville Veterinary Clinic recognized that he has Irritable Bowel Syndrome or IBS.  I didn't know dogs could have it but he does.  I've had a few friends who have IBS and I know it causes great pain.  Poor little Deno has been in pain.  He wasn't being grumpy to be grumpy, he's just had one whopper of a stomach ache!  Now Deno will have food and supplements that will help him be a perkier, happier pup!

So from one Deno to another Dino, here's Dean Martin singing "I'd Cry Like a Baby."  If only our Deno could sing...now that he is going to be feeling better!

Corgi Love: Deno

I love dogs.  End of story.  And I especially love Pembroke Welsh Corgis, those funny little dogs with the big attitudes and short legs.

Dogs love unconditionally, it seems.  Give them a good brushing, a few treats and they love you forever.  But there's more to it than that.

A Corgi has a mind of its own--if they think fetch is a dumb game, it's a good bet you'll be the one fetching.  They love food and figure out ways to get it from you--they're sneaky that way.  But they also are fiercely loyal to their people.

It took Deno a month or so to adjust to us, but he was loyal from the beginning.  He loved all of us and we loved him.  Sure, he had a few accidents on the rug (I think they were temper tantrums when he didn't feel we were paying enough attention to him) but accidents are fixable.

He's never chewed on anything--except the corners of books!  Talk about a weird thing to chew on.

In short, we just love our six-year-old puppy, Deno.  He's a handful sometimes, but what family member isn't at some point in life?

Here's a song from another of my favorite Dinos, Dean Martin.  It's "Sway," which I've highlighted before, but it's such a great song!  I have a live recording of me singing this with my jazz combo that will be on an upcoming jazz album.

Puppy Chow...and Puppies!

Is there anyone who can resist the combination of chocolate, peanut butter, Crispix, and powdered sugar?  I don't think I've met anyone yet who could...

Puppy chow is always a nice treat.  And when it's snowy, like it is now, it just makes me feel so...wintery!

And, of course, I not only love puppy chow, I love real puppies!  I do have a favorite breed: the Pembroke Welsh Corgi.  Yes, those funny little fox-headed, long-bodied, tail-less sweethearts!

I've talked about Dylan and Deno, the two Chaston corgis.  Dylan was with us for almost 12 years and Deno is a new addition to the family we got in May 2012!

Deno on Christmas Day--he loves rawhide!

So today's song isn't jazz...but it is a fun little tune.  Here's "Gonna Buy Me a Dog" by The Monkees!

2012: Year of the Deno

Deno

2012 is definitely the "Year of the Deno."  We adopted him from the Humane Society and have loved every minute with him!

In 2011, our first corgi, Dylan, passed away.  We had him for 12 years.  He was also a rescue.

Dylan (19??-2011)

We loved Dylan and all his quirks.  He was a character.  We didn't want to replace him--how can anyone "replace" a pet who is a member of the family--but eventually we did feel there was another dog out there for the Chastons!

So it was quite a surprise when in May of this year, I was at the Y105 station and Jane McCall from the Humane Society announced on air that a six-year-old male corgi named Deno was available for adoption!  We took him home that day.

He is a very loving guy and just wants to be with his family!  And we love being with him!

Last Christmas, all we wanted for Christmas was to have another corgi with us.  But not just any corgi--THE corgi.  Even though we didn't have him for 2011, now we do.  So here's "You're All I Want for Christmas."

Deno sheds A LOT and he is a sucker for brushing--as long as he can sit in your lap!

Deno even gets into the spirit with his own BYU shirt!

Christmas Eve Nativity

Every year my family reenacts the Nativity on Christmas Eve as we read from Luke 2.

Two years ago, my mom made all of us Nativity costumes.  Before that, we always used sheets and pillowcases to make our costumes.  So it was quite a treat to have real costumes.

Every year Amy is the narrator--with the costumes, she now also doubles at the angel.  In my younger days, she was also the donkey that Mary rode on, but after I turned seven, I was a bit too heavy for her to carry me on her back!

Keith William always plays Joseph.  I always play Mary, and Erik is always everyone else--innkeeper, wise man, shepherd, etc.

Usually dad films while mom takes pictures, but now that they have costumes, they sometimes join in, mom as a shepherdess and dad as a wise man.

When Erik was nine or ten he built a manger that we use every year.  We put it on the front porch, empty, and then put a doll in it on Christmas morning.  We bring it inside to use in the reenactment on Christmas Eve.

Sometimes pop culture makes its way into the play.  One year, Darth Vader (aka Erik wearing a Darth Vader mask) was, appropriately, the innkeeper.  And when Erik just didn't think that frankincense and myrhh were as good as the gold, he brought gifts that made sense to him--some of his toys that he loved!

This year with the addition of Deno, our summer rescue Pembroke Corgi added to the family, I'm going to finish Deno's sheep costume.  Dylan, Deno's predecessor, wore the unfinished costume, but past away October 2011.  It was a sad Christmas without a dog last year!  But we're excited to share Christmas with Deno!

One of my favorite religious Christmas songs is "I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day."

Corgis and Rowan Atkinson in the Olympics!

Just because I'm a musician doesn't mean I don't like sports...and when it comes to the Olympics...I'm a fanatic!

So, I'm in the middle of watching the Olympic Opening Ceremony on NBC.

I loved the Queen and her corgis. My little corgi, Deno, looks just like hers...if not a little thinner.

Deno watching the Olympics with us!

My absolute favorite "music moment" of the opening ceremonies was Rowan Atkinson "playing" the pedal point of the Chariots of Fire theme with the London Symphony Orchestra. I wish I could find it online (it's not on NBC's website). I did DVR it though, so I've already re-watched it a couple times! Seriously, though, I've never laughed so hard in my life. And the dream sequence is hilarious because who hasn't dreamed of qualifying for Olympic participation?'

Normally, I would have been put off by the parody of Chariots of Fire. I love the message of the movie and it is my older brother's absolute favorite theme song. It has a lot of meaning in our family. But Rowan Atkinson was so absolutely, knock-down funny and the parody was done with (I think) respect for the message...so I loved it!

Seriously, you have to see it for a memorable Olympic 2012 experience!