Shortly after the New Year, I received a most exciting invitation: to be a judge at Mango Minster. I was honored to be selected to be part of such a wonderful event as Mango Minster. So, before I begin, let me thank Mango and his gracious scribe, the lovely and talented Mango Momma, for allowing me to participate in Mango Minster 2011.

I was chosen to judge the Good Old Boys/Gals category. Since there's no better Good Ol' Dog than a Mastiff, this was a perfect fit. And I found many wonderful contestants. There were dogs who are in service to others, dogs with farm animals, rabbits, and cats, and one Good Ol' Gal who is disliked by donkeys, although I fail to see why. Some dogs have Good Ol' Boy/Girl names, and some have genuine Good Ol' Dog accessories. As one might expect, all of you are called a Good Old Bor/Girl by your most perceptive humans. All were very helpful, including one who helped a tomato perfect its sit/stay. And, to a dog, all were able to nap wherever the mood struck them. So, judging this category was significantly more difficult than I could have anticipated.

Without further ado, I would like to introduce the winners in the Good Old Boy/Girl Category of Mango Minster 2011

Honorable Mention:

Charlie and Emma, whose most excellent skillset included fabulous sleeping skills, and having both a rabbit and a horse. Beyond the keeping of such animals, Charlie and Emma are a Good Old Boy AND a Good Old Girl in one entry! Excellent work, you two.

Honorable Mention also goes to El'bow. The English Mastiff is the epitome of Good Old Boy, and El'bow is a perfect Mastiff, even tolerating well (and appearing to love) his Bad Boy brother, Hauwii. I am delighted to acknowledge El'bow's entry, and happy to proclaim him a Good Old Boy Extraordinaire.

Third Place goes to Guinness, a Wolfhound from Novia Scotia. Not only does Guinness have his own personal farm animals, he shares a name with a most excellent beer, and he has a blind adopted sister, who he has helped to adapt to their world and he takes excellent care of her. Guinness, you are a Good Old Boy worthy of high praise, indeed.

Our Second Place Award goes to Sarge. Merely scanning Sarge's pictures confirms that he is the classic Good Ol' Boy who has a genuine Redneck truck, goes huntin', fishin', and campin', and sleeps wherever the need arises. Sarge is such a Good Ol' Boy that Jed and Abby (our esteemed Guardian of Judicial Ethics) from Merry Land have offered Sarge honorary Southern residency.
And now, the moment you've been waiting for:

First Place Good Ol' Boy in Mango Minster 2011:

Rudy. Rudy is a Labradude, which guarantees that he's a good ol' boy from the start. However, instead of being all hopping around, excited, high life Good Old Dog, Rudy is in training to be a Seeing Eye Dog, volunteering to spend his life being a calm, helpful Good Old Boy forever. Rudy, my boy, my hat is off to you for planning such a noble life.

I am truly sorry that I have been unable to acknowledge all of the fine contestants by name here in the Good Ol' Dog category at Mango Minster 2011. Just because I didn't post any comments on any of your blogs does not mean I didn't visit each and every one of you many times; I simply didn't want to appear partial to any of you. I have enjoyed getting to know all of you, and am proud to consider you a fellow Good Old Dog (even if you're still a youngster).

And now, I yield the floor to the next judge...

Mango Minster Update

Shortly after the New Year, I received a most exciting invitation: to be a judge at Mango Minster. I was honored to be selected to be part of such a wonderful event as Mango Minster. So, before I begin, let me thank Mango and his gracious scribe, the lovely and talented Mango Momma, for allowing me to participate in Mango Minster 2011.

I was chosen to judge the Good Old Boys/Gals category. Since there's no better Good Ol' Dog than a Mastiff, this was a perfect fit. And I found many wonderful contestants. There were dogs who are in service to others, dogs with farm animals, rabbits, and cats, and one Good Ol' Gal who is disliked by donkeys, although I fail to see why. Some dogs have Good Ol' Boy/Girl names, and some have genuine Good Ol' Dog accessories. As one might expect, all of you are called a Good Old Boy/Girl by your most perceptive humans. All were very helpful, including one who helped a tomato perfect its sit/stay. And, to a dog, all were able to nap wherever the mood struck them. So, judging this category was significantly more difficult than I could have anticipated.
What, you thought I was going to tell you my decisions? my category opens Tuesday; stay tuned for updates...

Judge Thor Viewing Entries

Thor is honored to be a judge for Mango Minster, in the category of Good Old Boys/Girls.

To recap, the official Mango Minster rules state these guidelines for all entrants in this category:

1. Is your nickname "Bubba"?
2. Is your favorite activity lounging about watching football or the home shopping network on the picture box?
3. Are your beds place strategically so as not to strain yourself actually walking should you feel a nap coming on?
4. Do you fart and/or snore with great abandon?
5. Do you drink beer and eat beef jerky?
6. Are you an easy going, whatever, kind of guy or gal?
7. Do your humans ever tell you, "You're just a good old boy (or girl)"? Duh.


Wow! This is a lot for Thor to review! He has decided to give each entrant a rating of 1 (not so much), 2 (pretty good), or 3 (wowsa!) points in each category. As you can see, Thor has also left room for bonus notes, which will confuse, er, I mean, clarify the issue.

Moooommmm! Why did you give me a Paper Mate pen? Don't I deserve a Mont Blanc fountain pen at the very least?

Who knew Thor was left pawed?

Durn, this is hard work.

Entrants, do let Thor demonstrate Qualification No. 3 for you. And please feel free to leave clarifying comments, or at least say hello!
Happy Thorsday, everyone.

Thor's Visit

Some of you may have been following Mango Minster, and know that the judges have been sequestered at Mango's Estate in Master Chew Sits. Thor was rather lonely without his boys, and decided to bring Mango home for the Patriots game. After all, he reasoned, what New England dog wouldn't want to root for the Patriots?

Mango has no small humans of his own, so for a while Mark only got to hug Thor.

But after a while, Mango decided that since this small human had not harmed his friend, and, indeed, Thor seemed to actually like the little guy, that he'd join in the hug-fest.

Sadly, the Patriots lost. So, next week Thor and Mango and Mark probably have to cheer for the team led by a dude named for a famous clock in London to beat the weasels who knocked their beloved Patriots out of the running for the World Series or Super Bowl or whatever this is.

See? I know my sports. Happy Monday, everyone!

(With thanks to Mango Momma for the photo assist.)

Thor at Mango's Estate

Mango Minster is in full swing over at Mango's Estate, where all of the judges have gathered to work on important Mango Minster things.

Thor is teaching Mango some very important skills.

Stop by to see what else is going on at Mango Minster, and don't forget to enter! There have been only a few Bad Dog and Kitteh entries, so, Fudge and Zebbycat, you don't have much competition! Here is a link to the rules! See you there!