Ahh...I feel better

I'm back from my trip south. Sunday Louanne and I went to a nearby Arena to work. Monday we went to Scott and Jenny's and I had a great lesson with Scott. Tuesday was ridiculously windy so we drove back to Louanne's where it was only somewhat ridiculously windy and we worked dogs there. Wednesday morning we worked dogs again, and then in the afternoon we went over to Randy Dye's to visit, and you guessed it, work dogs again. I feel SO MUCH BETTER.




Sheep, dogs, sheep and dogs...life is good.

More wildlife

Bruce doesn't bark much. He's an Australian Shepherd AND he doesn't bark much. Who'd have thought that was possible?

This morning I put him out (because I've been sappy all week and I forced him to stay in last night on the pretense that it was cold, but really it was just because I missed having a dog sleep by my bed) for a pee and soon heard him barking - really barking. So of course I took a peak outside the window and this is what I saw - well we saw because by then Travis was peaking too.

At the time she was over by the dog runs (the incredibly unused dog runs), nibbling on shrubs - completely oblivious to Brucie bouncing up and down like his tailess back end was on fire.

Eventually Brucie gave up on being an entirely ineffectual guard dog and she got on with doing what moose do best - eating and walking. At some point she wound up in the front yard and I took this picture of her.

See how it's almost dark? It's Saturday morning, it's almost dark, and I'm up - there's something wrong with that.

Barking crazy dogs didn't bother her one bit, but the flash on my puny camera sure did. She spun around on a dime and took off through the yard. Sorry Ms. Moosie - didn't mean to upset you - really, because you never want to upset a moose.

This is her upset, its kind of one of those "you had to be there" kind of shots because trust me, she's upset. (Also I lightened up the picture because it was a terrible shot, but I couldn't exactly explain to the moose that if she could just hold that position I could get a better picture). She took off to the back yard, thought about running at the fence towards Bruce who was back at it again, changed her mind and left. Oooh, the power of a little camera flash.

So, it's currently 9:15 and that's our excitement for the day so far. Kind of adds a little extra kick to the coffee.

Unrelated but worth mentioning. I'm heading out of Dodge for a few days. The boys and I are heading south for a visit with Louanne and Jenny and lessons with Scott Glen. My heart be still - 4 days of work with dogs and lessons with "The Man", plus some "girl time". It doesn't get much better than that. It definitely beats sitting up here staring at snow drifts.

I know you'll miss my daily ramblings, but rest assured there's got to be blog material in this trip and I'll share when I get back.

Life Goes On

And today... we hunt. (cue Mutual of Omaha's "Wild Kingdom" theme)

Our quarry? The very rare and incredibly elusive Spruce Grouse, or more aptly named Fools Hen. I was lucky enough to spot one today while surveying the wilds outside my lodge (looking out the kitchen window while washing dishes).

There she is, all elusive, clever and sneaky - let's learn about the special skills she has.

My assistant on todays Safari? The indispensable Buster

Let's go get Big Bird!

Skill #1: Hunker Down

I am cleverly disguised as a rock, a non snow covered rock.

Skill #2: Walk Away...Slowly

Hey, let's just ALL walk away OK?

Skill#3: Sit in a bush

I realize that I am only four feet from you, and at eye level - BUT I am brown and mottled like this leafless bush - therefore I am invisible.

And so ends today's nature show. No chickens were harmed in the making of this highly educational documentary - sorry Buster.

Hey, I was looking forward to take out for dinner, as in "you take her out, I'll have her for dinner".

Goodbye Friend

August 1995 - January 2009

You were a good dog.

What Monkey Boy's really all about.

Mateo is the cool headed old guy that has always been here. He's the dog that everyone wants. He's the one that "has it together".

We've been hiding his deep, dark secret.

Mention the word "leftovers.

This is what you get.


But really, if you're in the room and you feel his "vibe"... this is what it should look like.

MMMMM...LEFTOVERS....

Yep, this is what it looks like to "have it all together".

Snowfall

Not quite the snowfall you were expecting?

A genuine snowfall!

The best part about snowfalls? You only get them when things warm up.

A special blog for my friends to the south

Please. Show me some sympathy. Do not say "hey, do you want to work dogs this afternoon?" to each other while I'm within earshot. It hurts.

Why?

Because I'm bitter with jealousy. That's why.

Look at these photos and you'll probably understand.

The picture looks benign enough. There are sheep in a field, so why am I whining? Look at those sheep. They're all lined up and confused about which way to go. They don't know what to do, because right now they're on their happy little sheep path. This is what happens if you go off the path today...

You wish you were about a foot taller. You wish your owner hadn't called you off the driveway. You wish you weren't an obedient dog. You wish you called the shots.


But you are an obedient dog, and you don't call the shots so you gamely throw yourself through the deep snow, over and over again until your cruel, heartless owner is satisfied that she has evidence of HER plight.

Poor, tortured creatures.

So, dear friends to the south, take pity on those of us to the north. Maybe down play your ability to work your dogs in January. Maybe don't even mention the possibility that it might be "shorts" weather this weekend. Sniff. Whine.

OK - I'm done with the pity party now, but holy dinah - we've got A LOT of snow!

It's not that I've left the country

it's that I really have nothing to say - in case you're wondering why I went from blogging regularly to blogging not so much.

The weather has been either miserably cold or just plain miserable. The dogs and sheep have not seen each other in ages. We've been doing the usual "snowshoe" thing, but cameras, crazy cold and snow aren't a great combination.

So...other than learning PATIENCE while we wait for the weather to change, there isn't much to blog about...but I guess I did...just blog about it.

Almost forgot

In case you're wondering why he looks this way...

MMMMM, nothing tastes like duckweed.

We have a small pond not too far from the house. If we're out in the yard and not entirely focused on Bruce - like maybe focused on the garden, or the yard, or world events or something - this is what greets us and reminds us not to forget to focus on Bruce.

Just because

I was digging through my files tonight looking for other stuff and came across these pics.

Ahh summer and classic Bruce...



Just 6 months more till I can take more of these....Happy New Year!