Monday 30 December 2013

Still missing her




Cowgirl
30 December 2008




                                                               

Sunday 22 December 2013

a singleton


 A 'singleton' is a term I've heard used for one surviving puppy in a litter and that is what Ponygirl was.   Being born in a Mexican animal shelter was not the most desirable of circumstances to begin with,  but it did afford her a fighting chance.  What happened to the rest of the pups...dunno, but this is her and her mum way back then.  When I look at this picture I fill in all the blanks that 4 and a half years later allows me to do.  Looking all sweetness and light as wee puppy but  stewing inside that pea-sized brain was a force to be reckoned with as I was about to find out.   She got all the Mexican mutt survival traits essential to street living -- and she uses them even though she lives in the relative lap of luxury (work with me here people).   

Let me explain.   Even though she has never, ever been hit by a broom she will bolt out of a coma-like sleep the moment I pick one up anywhere within what she considers her personal space.    This I figure,  is because brooms are a regular and accepted method of 'dog removal' in front of 3rd world businesses and homes everywhere.    I can only assume it is an genetic trait passed on from one generation to the next,  of street dogs.

Next is her 'lurking and skulking' behavior whenever we sit down to a meal.   This also sadly  being typical of street dogs everywhere ...tail between the legs, a kind of crouching and inching forward and the most mournful, sad look that says 'feed me' ever so politely .  I have to  gently snap her out of this automatic behaviour by reminding her that she has already eaten and should just go to her bed.  'Oh yeah' is  the look I get as she complies.   

Another of her genetically hard-wired,  street dog breed traits is the one where she can find food anywhere.  This has cost us many pesos in the past before she learned to distinguish edible from inedible.   This dog can locate a peanut, a breadcrumb, a rancid piece of anything, a buried bone or another dog's dinner on a porch in a NY minute , BUT she draws the line at PEAS...she will not under any circumstances  EAT.A. PEA.  I have done experiments where I will toss out a small morsel of something into the lower bush and just watch as she picks up the scent and then amazingly....finds it and eats it.  If that ain't street sense then I don't know what is.

I suppose I could go on and on but really the point is that when you first see that puppy (and fall in love)  you really have no idea what kind of DNA soup is brewing inside.  Eventually,  you both come around to a sort of truce about how it's going to be.  The rules are sorted and one day the quirks all fit together nicely and there you have it...you belong to each other and hopefully it will be a very long road traveled together.

                                               she-devil dog
                                                       
                                                      







Thursday 12 December 2013

'E'-famous



Okay, friends, family and neighbours  we are so excited to be featured here on Chrystal Atkins Mobile Home Living blog.   This site  gave much inspiration and encouragement to us to take on this re-muddle.  Here it is...

            http://mobilehomeliving.org/sheet-metal-single-wide-remodel/

Take a peek and see what you think.   There seems to be more of us TrailerChic folks out there than even we imagined going into this endeavor.  It's been fun so far...frustrating a lot of the time...challenging to say the least...but always worth it when the end result provides so much more comfort and beauty to our humble abode.  

A big thank you goes out to everyone who has been so supportive and helpful to us and also graciously listened to our sagas surrounding each undertaking.   I must warn you though we are far from being done.  Cheers!




 
  



Tuesday 10 December 2013

Ima Robot "Lovers in Captivity"

Well there really is no accounting for taste, musical or otherwise...me like this for some reason so here goes...




Friday 29 November 2013

Peripheral Vision


    
      

        So as I was lying at the bottom of the stairs off the back deck yesterday afternoon, I was thinking I would probably freeze to death out here.  Everything around here has a thin sheeting of ice on it which is easy to not notice, hence the slip&fall down the steps.   After a moment of assessment (nothing broken, just banged up)  I realized that yelling for help was doing  me no good...so I stopped.     I crawled back up and onto the deck.  As I lay there with the dog jumping about and frantically licking my face just outside the glass doors, Major T. was understandably engrossed in a 'Breaking Bad' episode while a  real life drama (me flailing) was going on just a few feet away. Peripheral vision is a gift bestowed upon many of us but not all of us.

      Today I am just starting to see some good looking bruises and I suspect they will get even better with time.  From now on when I leave the house I will file an flight plan so at least there will be something to work with when conducting the eventual search. 

      Yeah, it was just an accident.   No one to blame although I was pretty mad at my self and my inattentiveness.     A simple,  slip&fall down, go boom, nothing broken, no real harm done.  Just made me realize once again that ultimately we are in this alone and we are going to go out alone.  There really isn't anyone else that can save us.   




 

  

Sunday 10 November 2013

forest fire





      Larch trees in the fall.


 

                                               

Tuesday 5 November 2013

the minimalist's dilemma




 I've had this painting of my mum & dad for a number of years.  It's always been shrouded and hidden away in a garage, closet,  storage facility or shed.  
I've moved it from city to city and even to another country.
A minimalist's dilemma, for sure.
I was never very fond of it.

That is,  until recently.
Not sure why,  but when I uncovered it this past summer (in the shed) I kind of fell for it.
Not sure what changed -- duh, me?
It's a simple likeness of two simply lovely people --before the rest of their lives. 
A precious and fleeting moment captured and framed and kept safe and sound for this very moment.  




Mum & Dad

Sunday 20 October 2013

tangible stuff


move, run, dig, push, pull, roll logs, haul boulders, plant trees

do all of those things
and show love
(show love)

be alive, be very alive
isn't that the point?






 

 



cheers!




 

Saturday 7 September 2013

Modest MO-bile Kitchen Face-lift

                          










                                 
Well major progress has been made on the kitchen re-muddle, as you can see.  It's hard to tell at a glance just how much work goes into even a simple re-do like this one but let me tell you...a lot!   The goal was a modest MO-bile face-lift bringing this 70's era beast into a  modern, industrial, functional and clean era.   Although there are several more smallish details to attend to and one not-so-small flooring issue to deal with, we are well on our way to checking this project off the list.   NO  we did not replace any appliances as they are all just fine and in great working order but down the road I am seeing some chic 'black' things making their way into the space.  YES  I said 'black' not stainless as I am,  if nothing else,  cheeky  when it comes to design preferences.   Obviously, there is enough 'stainless' in this kitchen already and any more would be just too 'Dexter-ish', if you get my drift. 

Friday 16 August 2013

NO XQZS



Okay so maybe I have been a little busy but I know that is not a valid reason for not posting anything in so long.
I have had visitors.
Loads of visitors and have loved each and every one of them.
Bless their hearts.
They kept me busy with all the running around and then there was (is) the HEAT.  It has been so bloody hot here in the GREAT WHITE NORTH  that it has been hard to get worked up about anything except getting my fat ass into the river which btw was the recipient of a minor (35,000 liters) jet fuel spill a couple of weeks ago!
This resulted in a knock on the door at 1:30 am one morning and there stood 2 fully geared up firefighters informing us that we would need to turn off all the power to our house (except freezer & fridge  : ) and....
leave...as in EVACUATE...due to a the aforementioned jet fuel spill into our formerly pristine (you could drink it) river!


Oh...OH...oh...and another thing...the MO-bile kitchen re-muddling is in full schwing as of the last week.
So total and ultimate kitchen chaos is reigning supreme as we speak.
Kitchen crap is strewn everywhere and we are trying to keep up with the carpenter and his demands to "prime, paint, sand and move stuff out of my way!".....hey, aren't we paying him?   So why is he ordering us around?
I just do not know the answer to that.
   
I know these sound like xqzs but really they're not...
really....not.






 
   

Monday 15 July 2013

Stepping Lightly




Prancing Pony on new floor.


We are all loving our new, indestructible (so they say) flooring.
Yes, I can see the white hairs from my constantly shedding dog, but with my new cordless vacuum it is so easy to zip on through the Mo-bile and
for minutes-on-end  we are fur-free.






Wednesday 3 July 2013

small miracles



most of the time we hardly give it any notice but every once in awhile it just stuns...there above us only sky.   i think John Lennon said that or something similar.  so there you go.   a beautiful display played out for your viewing pleasure.   pretty spectacular but hardly unusual and only special when we dare to look up at a particular moment and deign to notice.   now that is a fun word -- 'deign'.  i am not sure i have ever used that before but i like it.  reminds me of 'uxorious' --  another fun word that is just not appreciated as much as i think it should.  okay, i know this sounds like rambling and it is and yes, i am under the influence of home brew (a nice dry chilean sauvignon blanc) but its been a sweet hot, summer day in rural british columbia and its good to be alive.   i am just seizing this day.











cheers.

Saturday 22 June 2013

--BLANK--


This is the PonyG's first snail encounter.  She was gobsmacked (I love that word).  Could barely get out the door.   Once outside she could not make eye contact with it for fear of provoking an attack.  
Thankfully, no fatalities occurred during this photo shoot.
 





Yes this is just a feeble attempt at a blog post due to a muddled mind as of late.  I suspect I will be reprimanded hotly by my total lack of regard for 
blogging in general.
But, sometimes you just have to put it out there to get things rolling again.