George and Hazel always order the sweet and sour cabbage soup

When naming your animals, you always have to consider how a new name will fit with all of the other pet’s names. So, when naming our new puppy, we had to think about what would go well with “Hazel.” I like naming animals with proper “people” names, but my idea of naming him “Doug” was quickly dismissed. So, in keeping with the feel of “Hazel” we came up with George.

George and Hazel sounds like the couple that would come into Hershel’s, a New York-style diner I used to work at years ago–and order sweet and sour cabbage soup. It wasn’t EVER hot enough for Hazel. It was cold according to Hazel and there wasn’t anything anyone could say that could change her mind. Flames could be leaping from the bowl and setting the curtains on fire and she would still send it back.

This was to George’s great displeasure. He would say, “Hazel, that waitress (me) can’t make that soup any hotter without burning herself. Is that what you want?” (Always with the guilty and worst case scenario.)

Hazel would just wave away his complaints with her gloved hand and send it back. I would make it hotter than any human could stand and she would dip her little finger in it, proclaim it “hot enough” and let it sit there for 1/2 an hour to cool off.

Oh, that really got to George. (But never enough to leave me an extra tip.)

George and Hazel–they are perfect for each other.