As an avid user of take-out menus, delivery and the occasional fancy sit-down restaurant, Thanksgiving is a time of year when I feel most, well, inadequate. My mom always puts together a very classy, tasty Thanksgiving meal — from the delicious turkey to the polished silverware. And with my sister attending the French Culinary Institute in New York City, I don’t feel involved in the holiday operations until it comes time to eat. Because I happen to love my dogs and am very good at cleaning, I have somehow acquired the tasks of dog walker, dog washer and dishwasher. I’m okay with this — because I have done the math!

The average Thanksgiving dinner, including wine, appetizers and desserts (I like to sample each pie), contains about 3,500 calories, roughly. It also happens that manning all the holiday chores that no one wants to take on burns the most calories!

Because the dogs have to be washed before guests arrive, I consider this my “pre-workout,” when I get my metabolism prepared for continuous servings of turkey, stuffing and green bean casserole. Bathing a dog for 15 minutes burns about 56 calories. Luckily, I have two dogs, amounting to 112 calories.

Walking the dogs is a must. They get very excited when guests arrive, so a hardy walk before dinner is necessary to tire them out, and one after dinner rewards them for being good. Walking two dogs for 40 minutes burns about 200 calories. Doing this twice doubles my score to  400 calories burned.

Finally, the dishes. Eleven guests, a three-course meal, wine glasses, coffee mugs and silverware equates to a lot of washing. Thirty minutes of dishwashing burns about 74 calories.

For those of you in charge of chatting up Grandpa, I suggest standing while you listen to his stories. Standing and socializing for one hour burns about 120 calories. Taking out the trash only burns five calories, so I wouldn’t jump the gun on that one.

So, my Thanksgiving workout burns 706 calories. Although I haven’t considered the calories my mom and sister will burn while preparing an entire Thanksgiving dinner, I am quite confident I will be ahead in the calorie-burning game — and well on my way to fitting into that Christmas cocktail dress!

– Courtney Centeno, account executive

Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours from the staff of Global Traveler!

I have always been proud to be from Philadelphia. Of course, there is that famous quote (a mock epitaph) by W. C. Fields, “I would rather be living in Philadelphia.” The reality is Philadelphia is a city ranked fifth by population, diverse and rich in culture; chock-full of history, museums, the first zoo; tops in education and the medical field and having wonderful restaurants. The city is easy to get around and one can drive in and around without a hassle; this cannot be said of the other four cities above Philadelphia. And as my uncle used to say, “What do you think of the Phillies?”

But for the first time I am embarrassed to be associated with Philadelphia. It all stems from the Philadelphia Eagles signing Michael Vick. Oh, I know: poor little Michael has paid his debt to society; he is a changed man. Real Sports with Bryant Gumble put a positive spin on Vick — his work with the SPCA convincing young kids not to become involved in dog fighting will do more good than the bad he has done.

That, my friends, is a load of dog crap! Read all the articles and listen to all the reports on what they do to these animals. These are animals who have been bred for centuries to be “man’s best friend,” to come to us no matter how we treat them. Now you have people like Vick who shatter a hind leg of a dog to make it weaker for a fight or tape its muzzle shut so that it cannot defend itself.

This is what Vick did with dogs in the ring. He and his hoodlums had “fun” with other dogs, including soaking one with water and electrocuting her, hanging them, shooting them and at least one account of slamming a dog with all his force to the floor. Forcibly drowning a pit bull is not an easy task; they are strong and full of muscle, but for Vick’s group this was child’s play. Let’s not forget the starving of dogs to make them more vicious for fighting. He kidnapped family dogs, trained, starved and beat them in preparation for the ring.

I have friends who think that Philadelphia made a good trade, economical — a smart move. All it did for me is lower my head and make me feel ashamed.

–Fran Gallagher, Publisher and CEO

Tuesday was the first day of actual flights for a new airline, Pet Airways.  Pet Airways started weekly flights for pets to five destinations across the country.

Pet Airways is offering flights to and from Chicago Midway Airport (MDW), Baltimore-Washington International (BWI), Republic Airport (FRG) (serving New York City), Rocky Mountain Airport (near Denver) and Hawthorne Municipal Airport (HHR) (near Los Angeles).  Dogs and cats can fly in the cabin as long as they are in carriers; however, owners will have to fly separately, as the only people on board will be the crew and some pet attendants.  There is no limit on the pet size, and one-way fares start at $149.  The initial offering of flights has sold out, and there is a short waiting list for some cities.

I am sure studies were done, but I could not find out the reasoning behind selecting these specific airports.  I guess New York, Chicago and Los Angeles were chosen because of their population.  I wonder if Denver was chosen as a sort of midway point between Chicago and Los Angeles.

I also wonder if this is a huge deal for pet owners.  Some airlines already allow small pets in small carriers to travel in the cabin as long as they fit under the seat.  Pets are also allowed to ride in the cargo hold areas.

As I said, I am sure market research was done (at least I would hope so), but I am extremely interested to see how Pet Airways does in the upcoming months.  Is the timing right?  Are there enough choices of destinations?  Are people willing to pay the price?  Is there enough continual demand?

As a pet owner, would you like your pet to fly in the cabin with you on a different flight?  Is this a much more desirable option than simply having your pet fly in the cargo area?

I’ll be keeping my eyes on Pet Airways.  I’ll report back here in a few months.

Check out GT’s eFlyer report on pet travel.

–John Wroblewski, distribution specialist

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A couple weeks ago, Laurie and I had a wonderful evening in Rosemont, IL (a neighbor of Chicago to the near west).  The evening started with a great meal, continued with a lively show and ended with a canine caper.

We started the evening with a meal at Rosewood, one of the premier O’Hare-area steakhouses.  Laurie had filet, I had mahi mahi, and we added a few side dishes.  The food was awesome but proved to be so plentiful, we needed to take a doggy bag (which really would become a true doggy bag, but more on that later).

After dinner, we went to see 1964 The Tribute at the Rosemont Theatre.  This tribute band has been recreating the experience of early Beatles‘ shows since 1982.  The band strives for authenticity and does a great job.  The subtle mannerisms were uncanny.  Mark Benson (as John Lennon) did an exceptional job leading the show and the band.  Benson imitated Lennon’s quick wit throughout.

As we were driving home, we planned on having some snacks, wine and Coca-Cola by a small fire in the backyard.  It was a nice night and that would be a perfect end to the evening.  Unfortunately (and fortunately), plans got derailed.

As we were close to home, Laurie spotted a small dog bounding down the busy street.  I know Laurie well enough to know our backyard plans would be delayed. I spun the car around as quickly as possible and Laurie jumped out, trying to befriend the pooch.  She caught up to the dog at a gas station.  As I pulled into the station, Laurie called for the leftovers.  The schnauzer seemed to enjoy the food as much as we had hours earlier. I read Butch’s tag and Laurie called his owner.  We bought a few packs of beef jerky at the station and (with a blanket from my car) had ourselves a little picnic right there in the gas station — at one of the busiest intersections on the north side of Chicago.  That had to be quite a sight. The owner quickly showed up, and Butch was safely on his way home.  I have to say Butch seemed happier with us.

I was perfectly happy with a perfectly enjoyable evening before we saw the dog.  After Butch, I was somehow even happier.

–John Wroblewski, distribution specialist

A couple of weeks ago, I blogged about fostering a dog in the city. A friend of mine, in the East Village, recently registered herself as a foster parent for dogs rescued from kill shelters. It took some time before we actually got a dog, as they seemed to be getting adopted quickly, thanks to networks such as PetFinder.

But last week, he finally arrived. When we picked him up from the shelter, he didn’t have a name. Looking down at the small, black- and brown-striped pit bull with floppy ears and beady eyes, I chose the name Harvey Goodboy. Harvey was adorable. He could coax a smile out of anyone passing by on the street with his curious eyes and wagging tail.

Pit bulls have an overwhelming amount of energy and strength, as they are known for being bred illegally for dog fighting. Because of this problem, pit bulls are very common in New York dog shelters. If they haven’t been trained to fight, they are usually the sweetest animals. Harvey was one of the sweet ones. Still a puppy, he had to be trained not to play aggressively but was a fast learner. Aside from going for a long walk or playing with his toys, Harvey’s favorite activity was sprawling across my lap while I watched TV.

In the spring, dog owners rule the sidewalk. It is nearly impossible to pass a block without seeing a dog on a leash, whether it is a small terrier with his spring vest on, or an enormous cane corso ready to plow you out of his path.

Luckily, New York is full of parks and “dogruns” that allow dogs to play off-leash in a gated area. I used to be skeptical about owning a dog in the city, but with dog walkers, parks and dogruns, a well-cared-for city dog can get plenty of exercise, attention and be properly socialized with other dogs. And, of course, city dogs are always flaunting the latest fashion of the season!

Harvey was eased into the Tompkins Square Park dogrun on a leash. To our surprise, he spent the entire time sitting on my friend’s lap, watching the other dogs!

It’s hard to believe that a dog like Harvey was minutes away from being put to sleep. But the greatest news of all — Harvey Goodboy was adopted into a new family yesterday!

-Courtney Centeno, account executive