Feral Dogs

This post isn't about the cute Sochi puppies Gus Kenworthy wants to rescue. It's about the packs of Chihuahuas terrorizing an Arizona neighborhood.

We celebrate Kūčios together.

Mariampolis, Lithuania, December 24, 1936. I posted this photo earlier here, but it's the one that comes to mind for me on Christmas Eve. We'll be sharing the Kūčios meal later tonight.

Expressive

Suburban Chicago, December 1969. A friend of my Mom's acquired this Pug, "Auksė" ("Goldy") after her Chihuahua, Murzė, died. Auksė was a nice doggie.

"Tell everybody that a dog isn’t a toy. It’s a woman’s best friend, for life."

Dog carriers are devices that treat dogs like parcels.

Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin, August 2013. A Chihuahua visits the café.

A Milestone Birthday

In 1963, the former Displaced Persons living in our small, suburban enclave gathered to celebrate the milestone birthday of one of the group's patriarchs.

Suburban Chicago, Summer 1963. The guest of honor toasts his friends.

*     *     *     *     *

Suburban Chicago, Summer 1963. Guests help open a gallon-sized gifts. That's the lovely Lily on the left. My Mom's best friend Donna, behind the men, is cleaning up the gift wrap. On the far right is Donna's husband, Vytenis.

*    *     *     *     *

Suburban Chicago, Summer 1963. Everyone looks confused by a gift. Could it be something my Parents bought? Don't miss the plastic-covered chair in the background.

*     *     *     *     *

Suburban Chicago, Summer 1963. The women enjoy the gift-opening. That's my Mom on the right.

*     *     *     *     *

 Suburban Chicago, Summer 1963. The guest of honor and his wife relax on that chair.

*     *     *     *     *

Suburban Chicago, Summer 1963. The hostess prepares to serve dessert. Will her one-person Chihuahua, Murzė, let her get out of the chair?

Cheer up everybody; Kūčios is almost here.

Kūčios, or Christmas Eve, is a magical time of traditions and love. Santa Claus delivers gifts to Lithuanian children on the evening of Kūčios because Lithuanian boys and girls are extra special.

Mariampolis, Lithuania, December 24, 1936. Kūčios evening. My Mom, with braids, holds a doll outfitted in folkdress. That doll likely was her Christmas gift that year. Seated from left to right are my maternal Grandfather Jake, my Mom's maternal Grandfather Silvestras, my Mom's maternal Aunt Dora, my Mom's maternal Grandmother Zigmunta, and my Maternal Grandmother Jadzė.

Zigmunta is holding "Pupsikas," her little fawn Chihuahua dog. 

Picnic Culture: Introduction

Lithuanians who settled in the United States often socialized at picnics. Most organizations hosted annual picnics that were elaborate affairs. The Lithuanian daily newspaper, for example, hosted a picnic to which people drove from around the city of Chicago.

In our community, the families that sponsored a Lithuanian-Saturday school organized a picnic early every summer along the shores of the Fox River, in Illinois, near Geneva.

Everyone got dressed up and brought a dish to pass. The children ate a separate table, of course.

Geneva area, Illinois, June 1961. The adults organize the youngsters around the children's table. My Mom is on the far left.

Geneva area, Illinois, June 1961. My Mom, right, and a friend relax after the meal.

Geneva area, Illinois, June 1961. My paternal Grandmother, Tatjana, second from left, watches me as I sit on an admirer's lap.

Geneva area, Illinois, June 1961. My paternal Grandmother, Tatjana, talks to a family friend, who holds her Chihuahua, "Murzė." I was afraid of that dog.

Dora and Zigmunta, Later

I introduced my Mom's maternal Aunt, Dora, and my Mom's maternal Grandmother, Zigmunta, in an early post.

After the Soviets occupied Lithuania in 1944, Dora and Zigmunta continued to live in Jadzė's and Jake's house.

Zigmunta and Dora loved little dogs. Dora wrote the dog's name, "Pupsikas" (pronounced "Poop-sick-us") on the back of this photo. "Pupsikas" is a Lithuanian diminutive for "Pupa," a word that means "little bean." It's an affectionate term.

My Mom, for example, has called me "Pupulė" for much of my life.

We've raised two dogs,  Pupa and Poppy, who had similar names. I once told a friend that my dog's name means "little bean" in Lithuanian. He responded, "In English, it just means 'shit'."

Kaunas, Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic, August 10, 1957. Dora sits with her Mother, Zigmunta, and the Chihuahua / Miniature Pinscher dog, Pupsikas.