September Update

When I said I needed a break from blogging, I had no idea it would last for such a long time. More about that at the end of this post.

Here's my September update:

Samson Says: OK, so I went to the groomers and now I have to pose the clean version of me! I will put up with it, again....

Me: Thank you my sweet boy, you were such a good dog at the groomers. 

Samson: I know, I just wish they didn't put that smell-good stuff all over me. I don't even smell like the big, strong dog that I am.

But I'll give you my Sammie smile anyway. Then please take this flowery bandanna off of me. Makes me look like a girl!

This year, the GranFondo cyclists who signed up for the 100 mile race came through a part of the canyon. This was early in the race and the turnaround was set at the end of our road. Joyce and Bob participated in traffic control, Rita and Cindy directed the cyclists to the turnaround, and I, who didn't volunteer this year, rang a cowbell, cheered them on and took some pictures. 

It was a beautiful morning as we waited. Here are the first cyclists to arrive at the turnaround.

And here is the crowd. Good thing they didn't run into each other as they turned. 

Here is my friend, Kathy, who came to the turnaround in the middle of the 100-milers. She yelled at me, and I yelled back, while frantically waving the cowbell around and trying to take pictures of her - all at the same time. So glad I got something as that kind of multi-tasking gets a bit more difficult with age. 

After it was over, I took a few pictures of the rock formations on top of the hills across the road.

They are the view from my living room window.

And I'm very fond of them.

One day, I opened the glove compartment in the Jeep and found this pile of insulation with a mouse, blinking surprised at my intrusion, sitting on top of it. This one disappeared, but I also had mice in my bathroom cabinet drawers. Same thing there, I opened a drawer that I don't often open and there were two of them. Phew! My neighbor, Bob, set the traps and we got rid of them. This got me on a cleaning frenzy. Everything is clean now and most of the junk that accumulates over the years is gone. Glenn came and fixed an entrance they had gnawed on the outside of the house. Hopefully, that will keep them out for a while.

It's that time of the year again. The rabbit brush weed makes up for being a nuisance for the rest of year. Our part of the canyon is covered in yellow blooms right now. It makes me happy because I know our long hot summer is over. It's supposed to be 32 degrees F tomorrow morning. Can't wait!

Can you see him? The cows came by the other day and the Guernsey bull took a nap under my tree. 

Samson and Faith are both doing well. They are now ten and five years old. Next week, Samson goes to the vet for a wellness visit. Which means he's been healthy and not seen by the vet for a year! This must be a record for him, he's doing so well, and is such a happy, sweet and kind dog. 

I'm doing well also. I've had a few medical issues, but nothing serious other than my diabetes, which is driving me nuts. 

I'm not blogging because I have things I really, really need to get done here at home. I thought it would go faster. It's taking forever or so it seems. It will probably get better now as the weather cools down. My house is less than 1100 square feet, but I feel such a need to downsize. Which I can't do as long as I have the dogs. So I'm continuing to work on downsizing my possessions instead. 

I smile when I think about the young woman who arrived in New York City in 1962 with two suitcases. Off-white they were, one large, one small.

I will update again in October. I am working on a very fun and important project that I hope I can tell you about then.

And I hope to be back to blogging again after the holidays, in the New Year. 

Canyon Pictures And An Update

I put these pictures together for a project. It was a familiar way for me to select pictures and post them somewhere.  A few of these will be chosen for a web site. 

Then, since I haven't posted for so long, I decided to post them. Together with a status report.

I'm not doing as well as I would like. Today is the first day of a 'getting back to normal' program I need to do for myself and my health. My ability to walk normally, even. After having bad problems with my legs not working right, and the osteoarthritis in my right hip going from bad to worse, I came down with yet another case of bronchitis. Seems to be an annual event now. 

Two sets of big brown eyes have looked at me longingly now for a couple of weeks and, this morning, I was finally well enough to take them for a short walk. After throwing balls to Faith with the ball thrower and the new orange balls, the ones that bounce, and, says Faith, are so much more fun to catch than regular old tennis balls. 

I have volunteered for two different things, one is the web site, which I will work on with my friend Jeanne. The other is helping another friend, Kathy, who is a dietitian at our new hospital and diabetes educator, get a diabetes support group started in town. Probably at our new hospital. I have been a bit worried about being able to do this, but feeling better I am determined to make it work. Both projects will be so much fun and will keep my mind going. 

Since I have problems with my legs and standing, I will not participate as a volunteer for our Gran Fondo bicycle race that will take place in mid-September. I love that race, it's so much fun to help out, giving out water and snacks at the rest stop. Dosing out electrolytes became my specialty. I will miss it. 

The new Walmart superstore has opened in town. Glenn is taking me on Wednesday. That should be fun. 

The dogs are fine and waiting for their breakfast right now. They are not bugging me yet, but it won't be long, so I will leave you now with the rest of the pictures. Hope you will enjoy them. The one of the mail  boxes is my favorite. 

From My Rock Collection And I Need A Break

I will need a break for a while. I lost my voice, it came back but really hoarse. And I don't feel well, not really sick, but not well. I have talked to the nurse at my doctor's office and she's checking with him. 

It was 100 degrees on my patio yesterday and that doesn't help. Good we have air conditioning in one room. 

I edited some pictures of my outdoor rock collection and have posted them below. Enjoy! And I will see you soon.

Rust ~ Post No. 27

From the Hogwash* collection.

*Hogwash is a ghost town created by my friend Karen and her husband Bruce. It's located on their property in town. 

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Thanks for your feedback on my Picnic post, both on my diabetes complaint and on Walmart. Also for reminding me about their hiring of both the elderly and people with intellectual disabilities. My sister had Down syndrome so I have always supported organizations that were involved with that. And, of course, hiring older people as well, is a good thing. Maybe I will even see a robot in there!!!

The Dogs Of My Life ~ Post No. 1 of 12 ~ Troika

For some time now, I have thought about writing about the dogs that have shared my life. Honoring them, telling their stories. There have been 12 of them, some pure breeds, some mutts, most were rescued and only one was bought from a breeder. I will post about one dog a month for the coming year.

I first posted this on March 24, 2014.

Troika

When I was eleven and twelve, we spent long summer weeks on a farm in the province of Smaland in south east Sweden. The farm came with a large manor house that the owners turned into a small family inn. The guests, we were perhaps four families, ate meals together at a very long table made of blond wood. On this table appeared lots of good and healthy country food: Eggs, fruits, home baked breads, Swedish pancakes with fresh berries, and much more.

There was a lake nearby where we swam and fished. To get there, you walked through a meadow where a large working horse, named Bisman, grazed contentedly. I remember him being a friendly horse, who liked to be petted. 

There were many cows, calves, chickens, geese, and barn cats on the farm. And a bull we were told to stay away from as he was considered quite dangerous. 

And then there were the dogs. The farmer hunted and had two hunting dogs.  One was a Stovare, a Swedish breed, the other a black English Cockerspaniel, named Troika. I spent so much time with that little dog the last summer we were there, our bond became strong as our love for each other grew over the summer weeks. I was heartbroken when our vacation was over and I had to leave her behind. 

My dad often went on business trips to his company's headquarters in Copenhagen. In the fall of that year, my mother went with him. When they arrived back home, there was a big commotion. A dog came flying in the door! A black dog! She rushed up to me and licked my face and it was Troika. My parents had been touched by my devotion to this dog and, since Troika was not the best of hunting dogs, some deal was made. On their way home, my parents stopped by the farm and brought her back with them. 

She was young, less than two years old and she was the sweetest dog. She soon became the neighborhood dog, spoiled rotten by everyone. Her tendency to gain weight didn't bother her. On summer afternoons, as soon as the ladies in our street started dinner, there was Troika at their door, asking for a treat. In those days, we left our front doors open in the summer; there were few cars, dogs roamed free, and children played hopscotch, marbles, and jump rope in our suburban street.

Troika's puppies, my mom and the neighbor's kids.

Somewhere in there, Troika had three adorable puppies. My mother found good homes for all of them. 

Troika enjoying a large sausage.

I took good care of my Troika. She required a lot of brushing and cleaning of ears. We went for long walks together to fight the ever losing battle of her waistline. 

She went with us on the boat in the summers and, as we approached land, she would stand in the bow ready to jump. She loved to swim and when she felt we were close enough to land, she would jump into the water and swim the rest of the way. She had a rich and wonderful life with us kids, we were always doing things, playing, running, biking, skiing, boating and she was always there with us. 

More sausage! What were we thinking?

Troika was my dog, she loved me the best and I her. After I went to England, she missed me. I was so busy having adventures that I probably didn't miss her much. When I came home, Troika was old, but still, she was so happy to see me, she ran her fat little butt around the outside of our house several times before she calmed down. 

I was home when she died of kidney failure. She was around thirteen years old. Troika was my first dog, my first love, and you never forget your first love. Tears as I write this, after all these years......

Troika ~ My first dog, my first love.

Picnic On The Mountain

When Jeanne, Mary and I were going for one of our lunch outings, Jeanne suggested a picnic in Tehachapi Mountain Park. 

Located at about 5,700 feet and only eight miles southwest of town, Tehachapi Mountain Park provides a great escape from the summer heat below. You drive up the same winding road as when you go to the monastery, a place I have written about often. I didn't take my camera, so I went back to the pictures I took on my birthday in 2013, when Errol and I had a picnic in the park. 

By chance, we ended up at the same picnic table where Errol and I had lunch back then. It's nice place and I didn't mind. Instead of being sad about that, I have been so upset about my diabetes that I shared my feelings with my friends. Then I felt bad I did. Oh, well, such is life. It ain't perfect, for sure. The picnic table sits on the only available flat part of the mountainside, surrounded by steep uphill and downhill slopes, filled with amazing trees, tilting this way and that, some holding on for dear life.

The trees were beautiful, the breeze was cool, no bears appeared, although there were warnings about bear sightings. In 2013, when I was 73, I wrote this: 'And the place smelled heavenly of pine needles and all the wonderful smells of the forest.' This time, I couldn't smell a thing. If you make it to my age, you will lose a thing or two, so I'm only taking note of a change here. No big deal.

After we finished eating, we sat there for a while, talking and enjoying the cool breeze, so much cooler than below where the real heat arrived this week. 

Something else has arrived in town as well. After many years, many hot debates, letters to the editor of our local newspaper, pros and cons among people in town, after many EIRs, a final approval, and it's here: A Walmart Superstore will open in the beginning of August. 

We passed it on our way home. Since I wasn't driving, I was able to get a picture of the side of the building. It looks huge. I have never liked Walmart, but a brand new store sounds like a good thing, so does one-stop shopping, and the prices, my goodness, I checked them out online and was amazed. When you live on a fixed income, prices matter.

I had a lovely time -- a picnic lunch with good friends is a very good thing, indeed.