One Last Time

It's been quite a few weeks filled with many intense experiences, the most important one being the loss of a dear friend just a few days ago. It is so difficult to express all the emotions surrounding losing the 'WildMan' as he was affectionately known for so many years, but I'll give it a try. Bill was a very kind man. He was a man of principles with lots of tolerance for those without so many. He was a fine example to his children of what a good person is ( and they took that to heart). He really lived his life...the one he wasn't supposed to have...the one that was supposed to only last a year or so (according to the doctors way back then). He was a very loved husband. He left behind a lot of people who loved him very much as well. He is already sorely missed. We are glad we got to say goodbye to him and to see him smile one last time. I am glad that he even called me by my nickname, 'Bambina' one last time. I am glad to have held his hand one last time. I am glad that he made me laugh one last time. I am glad to have known him.

'Cow' yote?

It's time for some 'puppy-talk'. PonyGirl has been on the road for about 3 and half months now and her initial shyness has pretty much completely disappeared. She has encountered so many strange people, situations & other dogs that I have to believe it has all been for the good. She accepts all our new homesteads quite easily and gets comfortable quickly wherever we set up camp. That includes being in the middle of the Arizona dessert with no one around, to being in the center of Orange County, California ( world's largest city?) and everything in between. She has run free over the dunes in Oregon and on many, many country roads just for the love of running. She loves the beach, the woods, and chasing rabbits. She has been in all kinds of weather and isn't frightened of thunder (!). Her politeness training is going well...she is learning a lot and teaching me a lot. She is much more of a challenge than Cowgirl ever was. I try my best not to compare them, but sometimes I do. It just slips out. She has a very strong will and so do I and sometimes they clash. I realize that she is still just a puppy so I give her lots of slack, but I so want her to be a well-behaved girl. She is doing exceptionally well and we get compliments from people all the time. I do keep in mind that her origins are basically unknown except for her pit bull mum. Which brings me to my most recent surprise supposition. I was about to take a hike on a trail through a New Mexico State Park when I stopped to read the notices on the trailhead board. There were all the usual warnings and rules, etc and then there were the descriptions of animals of the area. There it was...a picture of a long-legged, skinny, yellow-eyed coyote and it hit me...could she be half coyote???? There are coyotes all over Baja and we knew her pa was a scoundrel of some sort. With that idea in my mind, her 'wildness' , which she only displays to me, has started to make sense. Now, I see my 'wild thing' my 'cow-yote' and I yip-yip-yip at the sky. PonyGirl really likes it when I do that and proceeds to gnaw me mercilessly until I surrender.

Don`t Cry for me, Papaya

Okay, okay it has been some time since my last post, but with good reason....traveling and on the move. But, today I sit in Demming, New Mexico at their Visitors Center with a little time to think about things but especially to think about my sweet, little friend that I so love and who loves me ( so she tells me). It is not every day that such thoughtfulness is encountered in one so young and such un-self-conciousness in expressing her emotions. My little friend is indeed an exceptional young lady who exhibits such grace and good humour that she is a joy to be around. I feel that this is just the tip of the iceberg of her potential. It`s good to be so lucky in life and have such good friends to share it with. Same as it ever was...same as it ever was...

I Just Want Vegetables

When your life is on one of those really smooth patches and you're just gliding through the trees, it pays to take a step back and really savor the moment. Well, the past week spent at 'the Farm' was just so delightful for all of us that it deserves a comment or two. The Squash Soup made with homegrown butternuts and all sorts of good vegetables and seasoning made by the K-grrl was to die for. The brand-new, better-than-original motorhovel door fashioned by the 'SteelKing' is beyond belief. The value of letting our puppy learn how to be a 'real farm dog' and get filthy, dig trenches, and just exhaust herself everyday was better than any 'dog trainer' we could have hired. The 'happy day' massage with my new favorite vietnamese immigrant was indeed a happy ending to my aching head. But most of all was the time given so freely and so generously to our every whim (ie. "let's go sheet shopping", "we need a dog bed", "oooh, Trader HoHo's coffee"). I think to be loved in such a way is something of an honour and I want it known how humbled I feel. Apparently, you can pick your family as well as your friends...Yay.

In the Company of Loved Ones

NO DOGS IN BED

As these photos clearly show...the 'puppy' is winning. There is just something so irresistible about cuddling in bed with a dog. Oh, come on, its true and as hard as we try to enforce the 'no dog in the bed' rule, they simply wear us down. The problem with PonyGirl is that she is still growing and has the longest legs of any dog around...ever. Even she has problems with where to put those legs when sleeping. Consequently, she is getting most of the bed. So, things may have to change in the near future. I know that will be a struggle but she does choose, on her own, to sleep elsewhere about every other night (blessed bliss). I am hoping that means she is just as uncomfortable with multiple sleeping partners as the rest of us. Bon nuit mes amis.

Firmly Entrenched

As these photos clearly show...the 'puppy' is winning. There is just something so great about sleeping with a dog. We

Dying Was NOT an Option

March 1, 1995 - December 30, 2008 I thought that it would be easy to let this day pass without any words. I thought that maybe I had said everything that I needed to say and to say more would just be belabouring the point. But, then I thought that love, in any shape or form, for any being, is something to be proud of. I am glad that I can, and do, feel with such intensity. It borders on obsession at times and that is a part of me that I finally realize, is a part of me and needs no apologies. Diving into love puts my world into place. It makes things right. It clears the fog. It makes me. Dog Bless you.

Planet of the Apes?

This is indeed a strange land. It is hard to understand how this place on the very populated west coast of the US of A, and the next-door neighbor to California, and just a few hours from Seattle, for God's sake, does not have the internet. I confess, it has been a bit of an adjustment for me and yes, I have whined and complained some about it but in reality I have come to appreciate its absence. It has freed up so much time for other things. Trite, I know and I am embarrassed and pleased with this realization. I get to play a lot more and not feel rushed. The evenings are long and luxurious. Life seems a bit more 'hands-on' and far less 'virtual'. I won't lie and say that having a connection tonight hasn't made me giddy, but I will say that I am not feeling so 'obligated' to this machine as perhaps I was just a few weeks ago. Funny, how quickly you adjust to whatever your situation makes out to be normal. This wet, coastal forest was just covered with all kinds of mushrooms these last few weeks. As you can tell if you have read my blog, I adore mushrooms and just couldn't resist showing off the biggest one I have ever, and probably will ever, find. Before we got that baby sauteed, one of our resident deer had it for lunch, right off the table. Apparently, someone got distracted by a beach.

Comfort Dog

Some pictures do indeed say it all. See Spot Sleep. See Spot Wake Up !