I know.I live in the Bay Area. I can drive to a boutique charcuterie less than an hour away and load up on duck confit; we usually get legs because I like dark meat and they're so useable.
We ate up the last of our duck confit the other day. It freezes well, but it will not last forever if your winter diet includes cassoulet.
Oh, wait! I'm thinking winter salad, too. With shreds of duck leg. Oh, I have to try that soon.
But I need the confit. Which means a drive to Napa, to The Fatted Calf. Which probably also means a lunch at Ubuntu. Which sounds very Christmassy, come to think of it, even if it's not Christmassy at all. Just festive and wintry.
So what's stopping me?
The dog.
She is slowly becoming accustomed to staying alone, but we haven't tested her for the length of time it would take to do the Napa trip.
I say, what the hell. Leave her.
I gotta get some confit.
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23 comments:
We go to Napa from Marin with our Tebitan Terriers often and stay at the Napa River Inn, a pet friendly hotel near Oxbow Market--Fatted Calf's location.
If I wasn't working this week, I'd offer to puppysit for you. Like David says, I'd take her with you. You could crate her in the car while you are shopping if you're worried about her getting into stuff and this time of year, there's not too much worry about heat in the car.
it will be a learing experience for her and will do her some good. OR, don't you have puppy daycare in your area?
make it? *shrugs*... just a suggestion...
Ah you poor thing. Out here, we have to raise our own confit.
And: that's what kennels are for! You know, the little dog jails. Seems cruel but it works as they like going into their caves and chilling as a species.
CC,
Making confit isn't hard. I've got some I made in the freezer right now.
I think Bartlet will be fine for a bit :-)
Oh I like David's idea. You could get one of those orange vests for her. When asked what kind of service dog she is. Just say she is a sanity dog. Our dog helps me stay sane.;)
Ha! I'm waiting to hear the rest of this experiment. Jealous of all that confit since I have no time to make the trip. Hope all goes swell.
Dang, yer all fancy, that's awesome! I go up to FC's store from time to time and have something in mind. Then 70 dollars later am leaving with unexpected goodies. Oh well.
xo, Biggles
David: What a great suggestion. My head is buzzing with ideas. Thanks!
Zoomie: Work? (Maynard G. Krebs voice.)
Thanks for the offer. She's still too puppyish. She would eat your Cora alive with her thrashing antics. But, yeah, we could probably bring her. It would work.
Mouse: Ah, puppy daycare. What a luxury. I should acquaint myself with it!
Kelly: Yes. I was waiting for someone to say this. I want to, too. :D
El: She loves her crate! We just tested her for an hour alone, and she slept through it. Yay.
Kevin: I do want to try. But all that duck fat! (There could be worse problems in life, I know.)
Zia: She is maturing, right on schedule. The behaviorist at the local Humane Society recommended leaving her for FIVE SECOND periods! I don't have the patience!
Greg: I think they actually have a medical category for sanity dogs these days. (Unfortunately Bartlett is in the insane period of her puppyhood.)
Kudzu: I think we're babying her, to tell the truth.
And guess what -- we found duck confit from Soul Food, sold by the Prather boys at the Thursday market this morning. Local!
Biggles: With Fatted Calf, there is no excuse for staying within your budget. "Darn! I just found out I really, really need this bresaola or I'll be very, very sad." Like that.
Puppy daycare is really a great experience for a pup anyway, because it socializes her and teaches her to be confident and friendly around other strange dogs and strange situations. They come home exhausted from playing, and usually nap for a solid 5 hours while you unwind.
Ditto what the others have said. Make it. My freezer is never without at least 2 quarts of duck fat. You can reuse it many times, slowly phasing it out as it gets too salty, adding in fresh fat. Then you get to sautée shit in it. Or just spread it on crusty bread. Or someone you love.
Spitey: When you put it that way...! It's like they'll do the work for me. I should really look into it. xx
Peter: I'd still have to go somewhere for the duck fat. I could probably ask the guys at the farmers market if they'd bring some. That would be fun; thanks for the encouragement.
Buy a tie-dye scarf and tell every body she is a guide dog for the Marin. Take her everywhere!
I have the perfect solution for you - get another puppy!
one keeps the other company, and two puppies barely destroy more stuff than one.
he, he, he....
Kudzu: Whoops, I meant it was Soul Food CHICKEN confit. Haven't tried that before.
Chilebrown: Darn girl's getting heavy! She was at the vet today, and she weighs more than eight pounds. I guess we'll make her walk.
Bewitch: Believe it or not, our vet suggested the very same thing this morning. Christmas!
I tell you, I am never bored and seldom blue with your blog to read (and Zoomie's too). Then, there's clicking on the blogs of all those who comment and reading about food and fun sans calories. I adore reading about your adventures in raising the puppy and the suggestions are priceless. I feel that I'm helping raise the puppy as well without the wear and tear on my stuff.
My god do you ever make me miss the Central Coast. I must have done something very, very bad in a past life to deserve living in NC.
Not to put a damper on the second puppy idea but I did find that having two dogs was more than twice as much effort as having just one... They did love having a "pack" to hang out with but the dog hair increases exponentially as does the mischief they can get into. What one didn't think of, the other did. :-)
Nancy: It takes a village. I consider every single suggestion for puppy training that people have offered. Thank you all!
Happy to provide you with these foodie links; great people, aren't they?
Sweet Bird: Holy ship! I thought you were in DC, not NC! That's a little harder. Please come back soon; we'll have a bowl of something at the Fishwife. :)
Zoomie: We were a two-dog household in the recent past. One dog was crazy and the other was nice. It worked out (especially since one of them was a non-shedder). We'll see...
Cookie, puppy daycare is very, very inner-city wankery, but it would be handy if you needed a puppy looked after. One I know of has a camera-internet link so you can see what your puppy is up to during the day.
Mouse: In Marin County, it would probably be all yoga and spontaneous midnight cookie baking and hot tubs and hugs. Sign me up!
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