29 Saturday Oct 2011
Posted in daily life, dogs, holidays
recently the beau and I went back to swift reservoir, on a decidedly different kind of day. the sun was bright, but not hot, and the air was crystal clear. the dogs had a good time, as did we.
05 Sunday Jun 2011
Posted in dogs, observations
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I have learned that robins leave the nest before they learn to fly. for this reason, the fledglings have a rather low survival rate, about 10-20%. had I known this sooner, I would have not gotten attached. perhaps I would have made the mother robin build her nest elsewhere than on the bend of the downspout right under the eave, at the corner of the added den just to the right of the back door. you can see my point, im sure.
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but I did not know. so we watched the mother build her nest, lay her egg(s), hatch and feed her baby. we watched as the baby grew stronger. I did not get a shot of the fledgling as he sat on the side of the nest one day last week. I had just fed the dogs as he watched from his perch above me, all calm and quiet. I put the dishes up, and returned to the yard to do pick-up duties. I had just passed under the nest with my bucket when I heard the frantic screeching and fluttering. I turned to see the fledgling in the mouth of my lab, the parent robins on the patio table trying to distract the dog.
I cried out ‘noooo’ like some silly scene in a movie, and chasing roy off I scooped up the bird in my bare hands. he was all bloody, but still alive and fighting. I put him back in his nest, and brought the dogs in. I was shaken, and grieved. I washed the blood from my hands, and watched the nest.
the parents never returned.
the beau removed the nest, and the little carcass.
now that I know they leave the nest days before they fly, I know that he never would have made it in my yard. my dogs will eat birds if they can catch them. I don’t feel so bad about it. and I have forgiven roy. poor dog, he really didn’t understand why I was mad at him.
I think of that scripture in romans 8:22 ‘For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now.’
29 Friday Oct 2010
Posted in daily life, dogs
today began with frost on the ground. I was delighted to see it, after feeling like summer heat will never end. after showers, feeding the dogs breakfast, and having coffee, we set out for down town to do some reconnaissance on a couple of buildings we hope to explore. evidently there are some seventy buildings downtown that are abandoned and empty. we saw many more than either of us ever knew were there. it was inspiring! tomorrow we will go explore one of them, and I will have the photos posted on sub urban expeditions.
then we went home, picked up the dogs, and went to zink park.
ahhh, lots of pictures, and tired dogs.
07 Saturday Feb 2009
roy fits in pretty well. he likes the cats, but doesnt bother them much. he loves cinnamon, and follows her around pestering her and trying to play. he really likes a lot of attention, and wants to be in the middle of everything we’re doing.
he only has one major issue. he likes to tear things up. he has plenty of toys to play with, and he doesnt seem to get bored. i had barricaded him and cinnamon in the den during the day while we were at work, and cinnamon still got out and urinated on the floor after the postman had been there. roy did ok. so when we went to a movie one saturday, i made a better barricade, and cinnamon still got out, and roy emptied the contents of my little lunch bag that i keep a few things in that i like to have with me at work, that i dont want in my purse. he chewed up one of two pill bottles, but didnt ingest any. then a few nights later he tore up a couple of select books from the book shelf. both were old medical books, one was from the 1800s. the pages werent that bad, but the covers were shredded, and there are a few red stains on the carpet. the beau was not pleased. roy has also showed an interest in my shoes. so on days they cant be outside, they are both in crates, and roy is in his crate at night. perhaps we can come up with a better plan, but this will have to do for now.
the other day at work there was an escapee from the nearby mental health facility in handcuffs on the ground, surrounded by police and EMSA workers. seems he climbed into a small truck as it was going down the street toward the main road. that would not happen to me, because i drive to fast to allow access, and i keep my doors locked. no one was hurt, and he was returned to the facility. i dont know anymore about it than that.
there was a truck driver here in town whose load, some big metal thing, got snagged on a cable line. he got out of his truck, climbed up and attempted to unhook it from his load. as he did, the cable touched a close power line,and he was electrocuted. sad he didnt just call for help. now he is beyond it.
we have had in one week a range in temperatures from 16º on monday to over 75º on friday. but the wind blows on and on.
today we are going to see ‘coralline’ in 3D. it will be my second ever 3D movie. i went to see ‘my bloody valentine’ in 3D with some coworkers last month. it was fun.
that about sums up the last few weeks around here.
11 Sunday Jan 2009
last week roy came to live with us.
it was saturday, and the beau was out front doing a few things around the house, and getting ready to wash out the cats litter boxes, when a big chocolate lab came up to say hello. he had a collar, and sweet golden brown eyes. and he was very interested in everything the beau was doing. the beef jerky in the open garage as well, which the beau gave him a piece of. they started getting along right off.
he hung around for two days, staying in our yard. he liked cinnamon, who he could see through the glass front door. the cats actually didnt freak out over his presence on the porch. i was trying to get over a respiratory problem, and came home from work early on monday, to be greeted by the big brown dog, still here. my neighbor across the street put him in her back yard to keep him from getting hit by a car or something, and put an ad in the paper for found dog. no one came to claim him.
so we took possession of him, and took him to the vet for shots, and got him a new collar and a crate. and named him roy.
he is a very well mannered dog, although he has a lot of energy. he likes to please, and already is crate trained, house broken (except he tried to mark the cat room), and walks well on a lead. he already sits, lays down, and stays – sort of. he learned to shake in one day. and cinnamon is showing him how to play tug. they eat together, and sleep together, although for now he sleeps in his crate. he loves the kitties, and they are tolerant of him. actually, thor is in love with him. thor always loves our dogs.
so i finally got that companion i wanted for cinnamon.
24 Saturday Nov 2007
its saturday, and my second four day weekend in a row. i have a few more days vacation around Christmas, and then the year begins all over again. i like saturdays. the world opens up to me on saturday.
yesterday i washed the canine and feline kanji off the windows while the beau organized the computer room. he isnt done yet, but he made much progress. this room hadnt been really organized since we moved in, because we were focused on the rest of the house first.
nosomi is in the hallway singing to her plastic milk carton ring. she loves to carry it around and caterwaul. its ridiculously funny. the feline hierarchy has turned out as i predicted. thor loves her, and they play together all the time. gizmo doesnt like her, but he doesnt like any of the other cats too much. maggie sometimes likes her and attempts to play, and sometimes is her little psycho self and runs up at her, hisses, and runs off. nosi is likely to let out a most unearthly banshee screech at such times. usually late at night. cinnamon just keeps track of every one, and then wants to play with us.
i went out once yesterday to price an iron arch i had seen in a shop near here. it looks like a good item to make the head board i need so i can turn the bed diagonal in the bedroom. they are asking $249 for it. i am still considering it. its a black wrought iron, simple, and about the right size. i didnt measure it, although i probably should have. it looks right. a regular head board for a king sized bed will be too wide. the problem is how to attach it so it will be a back for the pillows, since the bed wont be flush up against the wall. hmmm …
the weather has finally gotten cold, and the sky this morning is overcast. much to my liking. its not that i dont like the sun. i just get tired of it. cloudy days offer a whole other feeling to the world. i welcome the cold as well. now i can get out my boots, my sweaters, and the long stockings that i love.
today i must tackle the remaining few boxes in the front room. with them cleared out, i can finally finish putting up mirrors and pictures, and get my workout room ordered to my liking. the beau probably thinks i have lost interest in my treadmill. but i havent. that, like everything else, has to have a routine for it. i am looking forward to getting this last thing done. pictures to come, of course.
i am pleased to say that i have maintained my 15lb loss of weight, and am about to shed more. i have a goal to reach 130lbs. i like that weight. one of my coworkers believes once you reach a certain age certain things have to happen. i do not subscribe to that thinking. i believe all things are possible to him who believes.
well, im off to my tasks.
30 Tuesday Oct 2007
this quiet green reflects how i feel at last. there are still a few things to put away, or hang, or find a place for. there is mail to sort, warrantees to file, magazines to read or put somewhere. and there is still some sweeping to do in the front room. but for the most part, its home now. and i love it. i look around me every day, and thank God for this beauteous place. its beginning to sink in that its really mine.
sammy is at the vets today, having had her teeth cleaned. the doc also took a bone marrow sample to send off for review, as she has become quite anemic. i find myself bracing, knowing every day with her is a gift these days. the results should be back in a couple of days, they tell me. as always, as long as she tells me she wants to live, i will continue to do what i must to help her to be at her best. i still use my faith as my primary, nay, really my only source of help. but if she gets tired, when she is ready, i will let her go. i wont keep her here just to soothe my feelings.
on a lighter note, nosomi is fitting in fine. there are still some kinks to be worked out in the order of cats, but mostly everything is settled. gizmo tried his paw at putting her in her place a week ago, feeling a bit jealous he was. he stalked her three times before they lit into each other. she promptly kicked his butt. a bit humbled, he has given her as much respect as he is capable of since.
cinnamon is doing fine as an only dog. she keeps tabs on the cats, and has the run of most of the house during the day. now its the cats who have their own room, and are kept in it while we are at work. seems to be working out well.
today, tomorrow, and wednesday i have off, so i am getting little details taken care of around the house. and the beau has many items to list, so his evenings will be spent on line for the next few days.
i have missed my time here, and while im home i quite plan to make up lost time! pictures to be forthcoming.
17 Wednesday Oct 2007
we got moverd in to the new house in one weekend. what a job that was! im about half unpacked, and things are going well. this weekend i will tell you all about it.
sad news. bougar passed away three days after we moved in. she was an old dog, and her liver finally gave out. she died peacefully in the living room, about 530am last wednesday, with lee and me with her. she had a good life with us, and lived a long time. she was a happy dog, even when her hips were hurting her. we will see her again, but for now she waits for us at the rainbow bridge, with sing and spook and goldie. probably chasing sing.
26 Wednesday Sep 2007
my household is made up of misfits. that term conjures up mental images of the outcast and the maladjusted, the one who is always at odds with society. but in my house it isnt quite that way. rather, we are missfitted, but only in society’s accepted concept of fitting. in God’s eyes we are not so badly fitted at all.
in the old animated movie ‘rudolf the red nosed reindeer’ there is a place called the island of misfit toys. these toys are made all skrewy, and dont perform quite the way the others do. the most notible for me was always the doll with no name, who seemd on the outside to have nothing wrong with her. and yet nobody wanted her. so she was found on the island of misfit toys.
well in my household it isnt quite so forlorne. we are simply a motley crew of fits that miss.
you already know a bit about our most recent member, nosomi, formerly known as ms nibbles. she has a cleft palate, and might be a little – slow- but thats to be determined. having a mother who ingested people drugs – likely anti-psychotics – while kittens were in the oven, would make anyone a bit misfitting. her funny face is the most charming thing about her. well, that and her attitude. she already acts right at home, finding that the other cats and dogs here wont chase her off and pick on her.
then there is thor. also about five, and a big rugged boy with a sissy little ‘mee?’ voice. he loves the old kitties, and catered to spook when he was with us. now he is sammys bodyguard, and runs in any time gizmo acts like he wants to pick on sammy. he has a temper, but it is a flash in the pan, and he holds no grudges.
maggie is the psycho princess. six or seven year old adorable fluffball that can be so affectionate one minute, and flying off the next as if she has been threatened and insulted all in one move, and then looks back at you like ‘hmmpf! well!’ this often happens if she is on my lap, and i am so crude as to adjust my legs a bit. moments later she will be right back.
gizmo is the prima donna prince. saucey, sassy, and full of himself, he really thiks the world is here for his entertainment and convenience. in the morning he is there in the bathroom waiting for the water in the sink to be turned on for his drink. the he must be petted, and if he is not, he will tap you with his paw until you respond. the sink is his throne. he disdains every other cat. he would rather be run over by a running dog and complain about it than move out of the way. it is beneath him to move for dogs.
sammy is the reigning queen. even though she may not be strong enough to enforce her rule, only gizmo ever challenges it. and then thor is there to defend his dolly. the dogs think she smells like metamucil, and maggie is afraid of her.
cinnamon, a rescue dog of unknown age (maybe 5-6) is a goofy who knows what kind of dog. she seems to be part redbone hound, and maybe lab or shepherd. she is wild and crazy, loves to please but is so full of energy she could be the poster child for ADHD research. she is a smart dog. just lacking in common sense sometimes.
bougar is not so smart, but big on happy and loyal. she adores daddy, and i dont exist when he is in the room. ill be glad when her legs are strong again. she hates tomatoes.
a funny turtle, who after how many years now? still hisses at us on first approach. he loves slugs and worms, and various fruits and vegetables. funny old turtle. hates his winter glass box. even turtles get bored.
all that remains are two ringneck snakes, and three mice. i guess theyre pretty nominal, but the mice dont seem to want to be tamed. ok. fine.
the beau is my prime pet. ahaha! he is not the social type. but that suits me fine. he doent bring home weird guys from work. he is hyper sensitive to the security of the neighborhood, and better at squashing potential problems then the local police … who never show up until the problem is long gone anyway. we like to spar sometimes. he thinks its fun, and i learn self defense. i have thrown him a couple of times. i dont do things conventionally.
well that brings me to me. convention has never suited me. i dont dance to my own drummer … i do my own drumming. then i dance. dance, because i dont march. maybe thats why God called me the way He did. someone has to be able to get into those really weird places, and be able to talk to people of the more strange sort. i can. but God has had to really open my heart to receive from Him first. this was the hardest thing for me. overcoming the ‘feelings’ of ‘dont deserve it’ first. even then i wasnt conventional. most people feel they dont deserve something because of what they have done, or what they are. me? my biggest hang up has been confidence that i could receive. i could believe. but could i receive? or would i f*ck it up? well im finding that God can help me receive, even when i thinki i might mess it up and miss. God is so much bigger than me. and He wants me to be blessed more than i want to be blessed. people dont get that part about God. but i find it easy to understand, not being of the ‘normal Christian’ sort. God is King, and Lord, no doubt about it. but He is not hard to talk to.
anyway, the point is, no one in this house is fitting according to social norms. but im finding that to be an asset after all.
22 Saturday Sep 2007
yesterday on my lunch break i went to the mortgage company, ironically named ‘first mortgage’ and signed all the papers, and handed the mortgage broker a check for the appraisal. later in the day i called the car insurance guy for a quote on home owners insurance. the closing is the 5th of october. i guess all that remains is to give my landlord notice. since we have a month deposit, we can give him his rightful 30 days, and use that time to move in. not that it will take that long. the beau wants to move in one trip. that shouldnt be a problem. next on the agenda is to pick out a refrigerator, washer/dryer combo, and a shower door for the bath tub. id like to get a large rug for the bedroom too. then get some curtains, and we’re set. i am planning on using the front room for dancing and workouts. i do not need two living rooms.
next item up is nosomi. i think i can bring her home today! the biopsy showed no cancer (i knew it would), and no fungus (i figured that too). seems to be a bacterial infection, with inflammation. the clindamycin should take care of that. and faith. i will get pictures of her today.
bougar continues to improve. she seems to have cracked a few teeth chewing her nylabones, and wont eat her dry food anymore. so she is getting the canned food sammy had left over, as sammy now prefers the dry version of her diet. so its all getting used.
