2011

Today is New Year's Eve.  It is bright outside.  Les and the girls and I went up to the property this morning -- as we always do.  It was fun to hear Les's chuckle as we stopped before turning onto Main Street.  No cars... no activity.

We took a walk on one of my favorite trails.  Les built this trail earlier this year.  Now the deer and other woodland creatures use the trail, too.  The snow was still pretty deep and it was that crusty snow that was hard to walk in.  I love walking in new snow.  It's just like powder and is soft and cool.  I'm not complaining about crusty snow -- it's just that it's harder to walk in.

By the end of the trail I was so out of breath.  My asthma has been flaring up again this winter.  But I keep my medicine in the car and before too long I was able to breathe again.  Asthma feels so claustrophobic.

But the day is so beautiful.  It was already 50 degrees by 9:00 this morning.  Odd.  The snow is melting.  The road crews can finally clean up the roads from the storms last week.  There was so much ice and snow on the roads I was afraid my little Subaru would bottom out.

And speaking of Subarus... our friend Jim just bought a 2012 Outback.  We rave about ours so much he thought he'd get one for himself.  I'm sure he's going to love it.  Les went with him up to Colorado Springs this week to help him find one that he wanted.  Les probably had even more fun than Jim.  But then again I guess it's always fun to spend someone else's money.  LOL!

Tonight we're meeting most of our "gang" at Happy House.  The place is really named the Wonderful House.  It's a Chinese restaurant and is probably one of the best places in town.  Good food - good prices - nice staff.  And I'm always happy there so I call it the Happy House.

Then after dinner, we're going over to Jim & Joelle's to bring in the New Year.  Tonight just happens to be the 30th anniversary of our first date.  I've always enjoyed New Year's Eve just for that reason.  I love Les so much...

Goofy Lucy

You know how everyone always tells you how smart their dog is?  I'm usually one of those people, too.  Schultz was amazing.  I could convey my thoughts to him in just a look or a few words.  And he could convey his thoughts to me in his body language or his eyes.  We knew... we had a connection.

Mindy is amazingly smart.  She will sit and watch TV.  She loves animal movies.  She's a little aloof -- doesn't cuddle much.  But her eyes are clear and bright and she can be taught anything.  Whether or not she'll do it is another story because she's very independent, but she will learn.

Then there's Lucy.

She was adopted just 4 months ago and we figured she was around 2 years old -- at the most.  She loves to play.  But I think she was one of those sad creatures that was left out in the yard on a chain prior to her Byington life.  That happens a lot here in Trinidad.

She'll stand on her back legs and just kind of paw the air in front of her.  I can just imagine the chain holding her there.  And then there's the sitting and staring.  Lucy is really good at that.  She will just sit and stare at you.  We wonder what's going on in that head sometimes.

She's a big cuddler.  She'll sleep in my lap in my chair.  She loves to be petted.  That's often what some of the staring is all about.  She could sit there and be petted all day long.  And I really love the 50 pounds of furry warmth in my lap on a cold winter's night.

She's just not the sharpest tool in the shed.  Goofy -- but very lovable.  She has learned many things since being in the house.  Sit, "Out of the Kitchen", Off, Wait, Stay, Shake... things like that.  (Not to mention that peeing and pooping in the house is absolutely unacceptable.)  But some of the things that Mindy is so easily taught, like "Touch", Lucy just give you that blank stare.  And then there was the other day when we met our new neighbors and they invited us into their house.  Lucy jumped up on their coffee table!  What the....!

But what's not to love?

Let it Snow

Monday morning brought with it the start of a big snow storm.  We went up to the property to get a hike in before we got snowed in.  It was just starting to snow and it was just gorgeous.

On the way down from the mountain we decided to stop by Safeway to get a few things -- knowing we wouldn't be going outside for at least a day or two.  It seemed like everyone else in Trinidad had the same thoughts as Safeway was really crowded.

We put a few things in our cart and I said to Les, "As much as I loathe Walmart, what we need is so much less expensive there."  So we trekked on over to Walmart.  There are only 2 places to buy groceries in this little town... Safeway and Walmart.  I absolutely refuse to buy meat at Walmart.  Ever since the Beef Stroganoff incident when I bought some beef at Walmart and made my usually delicious Stroganoff.  The meat had a plastic-y texture and didn't even taste like beef.  I have no idea what we were eating, but we couldn't go past a couple of bites when we had to throw the whole thing away.

So we picked up some soups and bread and snacks for Les.  Then we left and on our way home, we were following a white Toyota pickup.  He turned onto Santa Fe Trail in front of us and I saw how his truck was skidding while going around the corner.  I said to Les, "Wow, he's going way too fast."

The roads were icy and snowy.  It was really cold and the snow was starting to come down harder and harder.  We lost sight of the Toyota as he sped away.  Then when we went over a little hill, sure enough.  He had a head-on collision with a woman in an Escalade.  Both cars were totalled.  The man in the Toyota was bleeding from his forehead, but he couldn't get out of his truck.  The woman in the Escalade was standing out there in just a sweater.  No hat, no gloves, no coat.

We stopped to lend a hand.  Les directed traffic around them while I made the woman take my gloves and put them on.  I insisted that she get her coat out of her car, but most of the doors were jammed from the impact.  She was shaking so badly she could hardly get the gloves on.

It turns out that the man in the Toyota is the man who drove when we took a trolley tour around town this last summer.  A very nice man, but we left our trolley ride suspecting that there was more than a little embellishment to his stories.

We stayed with them until the police and fire department came.  Then we left.  It turned out that both of them were just fine.  Both of their airbags went off so it could have been much worse.

The next day I got a call from their insurance agent thanking us for stopping to help.  (Another sign of small town hospitality.)  We stayed in until Wednesday while we waited for the snow to stop and the roads to be cleared.

I love this place!

Drama

So remember when I was bragging about how sure-footed our new Subaru Outback is?

The weekend before last it snowed all weekend long.  We took the dogs up the dirt road to our property every day, though.  They needed to run and we needed the exercise.  Monday morning as it was still snowing, we drove up as usual.  The road had been freshly plowed but still had a thick layer of snow and ice on it.  Sure enough -- the road turned and we didn't.

As we were getting closer and closer to the edge I thought for sure that berm of plowed snow would stop us.  No way.  Then I thought for sure the rocks underneath from building the road would stop us.  They did -- kind of.  But as we ground to a halt, the excitement was only part of the way through when we started sliding sideways off the roadway and down the steep hillside.

I knew that the trees would stop us sooner or later.  But before they had a chance a big rock caught our left front wheel and stopped our sloppy decent.  I thought for sure we were going to roll over.  The dogs were yipping in fright -- my coffee splashed all over me -- Les was saying something unintelligible to me -- and the reason it was unintelligible was that a whole host of various and sundry words were going through my head.  Not sure if any escaped my lips, but I know they were there.

Les somehow dragged himself out of the car.  He told me to climb out of his door which would have been absolutely impossible as the car was at least at an 80 degree angle.  So he sloshed though knee high snow around the back of the car as I opened up my door and tumbled out.  For some reason I didn't have my gloves on so I was literally climbing through the snow with bare hands trying to get to Les's outstretched hand.  I finally made it and he pulled and pushed and got me back up on the roadway.

Then we let the girls out of the car.  They were standing on the side window in the back of the car.  Can you imagine?

A call for help brought our friend Mike to our rescue with a warm, upright car and a hot cup of coffee.  Then a call to AAA brought a tiny tow truck an hour and a-half later.  It really did seem like a very small tow truck.  The operator put hooks on the front and back of our brand new car and dragged it up the hill and back onto solid ground.

What an adventure!

Snow

It's been snowing this week.  And snowing... and snowing.  I don't mind at all.   We're safe and snug in our little house.  We still go up to the mountain every day -- at least once a day.  Friday and Saturday it snowed all day.  We had blue skies this morning, but they quickly turned gray and it is snowing again today.  We are under a winter storm advisory until 5:00 tomorrow afternoon.  Then we should have blue skies again.

The Subaru makes the drive up the 2.5 miles and 1,000 foot elevation climb on the dirt road and through the snow with no drama what-so-ever.  I'm really glad we made the switch from our gas-guzzling Jeep.

Les is watching football today.  I've been working on a client.  And Andrew is playing on his X-Box.  Andy's friend, Ben, finally came through with a move forward for Andy.  He'll be leaving us on the 13th to move to Seattle.  There is a music production school there that Andy intends to attend.  In the meantime, he'll find a job.  Since he now has some construction experience, hopefully he won't have a hard time finding meaningful employment.

I'm glad we were able to help him out.  I've always heard that kids come back to the nest once or twice after they leave.  DJ, of course, never did as he's in the Army.  But he's expecting to get out in about a year.  After that... who knows?

But for now... the girls and I are just enjoying the snow.

 

Pine Nuts

Way back about a gazillion years ago when I was young and cute I lived in Northern New Mexico.  I remember one fall driving north to pick pinon nuts.  I don't remember where we went, but I know it was quite a drive and it was north.

I remember parking the car along a road and going out to the trees.  And under the trees I picked up buckets of pine nuts that had fallen.  Then when I got home, I recall going through the nuts to pull out the "non-nut" items such as rabbit or deer fawn poop.  (Now don't laugh... they're all similar in size, shape and color!)  Then I roasted them and had a wonderful time cracking the hard shells with my teeth and eating those wonderful pinon nuts.  MMMmmmm... brings back some good memories.

Considering the fact that we have 35 acres of pinon trees, I thought of how wonderful it would be to gather the pine nuts and roast them again.  So the girls and I went up to the property on Saturday.  I grabbed my walking stick and started scouting around for some trees that could render their fruit to me.  After browsing around I quickly found some pinon nuts strewn under the tree as well as some pine cones that had fallen, but that hadn't opened yet.  So I grabbed a plastic cup in which to hold my harvest and went about looking for more.


After about an hour of stooping and scrounging I had to laugh at my lack of accomplishment.  My fingers were covered in pitch.  My back hurt from bending and crouching.  The girls were impatient as they thought we were going for a hike but I never even left the top of the property.  And all I had to show for my efforts barely covered the bottom of the cup.

It's a good thing that Safeway carries pine nuts.

Oh, and another thing, remember those "non-nut" items?  Poetic justice probably had a hand in the fact that a person who didn't treat me very nicely got one of those little nuggets in his bowl of pine nuts.  Completely unintentional -- but I still grin when I think of him spitting and sputtering.

SCRT

Les is still in California for at least another week.  To keep me amused, and also for my upcoming birthday, my dear friends Jim and Joelle invited me to a play here in town -- their treat.

It's nice that this little town is big on theater.  They have SCRT -- Southern Colorado Repertory Theater.  There are professional actors who put on some of the plays.  And tonight's play was done by various people from town.

My friend Steve Ortega was in tonight's play... as was my friend Lori Nava.  I knew a few other people on tonight's stage.  After living here in this little town for only 1-1/2 years I'm still amazed at how many people I know and how many people I can truly call, "my friend."  In California, most were simply acquaintances.  To find a true friend was really rare.

Before the play we had dinner.  Our friends Ken and Angela as well as Carol Ortega all sat at the same table.  At another table were even more friends.  I love it here.

The play was about Trinidad and its stories.  The first act was about 45 minutes and told of some of the people who have made Trinidad the place it is today.  While I know there is wonderful history of this place, truth be told -- the play was a little dull.  So at intermission Joelle expressed her desire to leave.  I wasn't opposed to the idea, but we wanted to see a little of the 2nd act.

We stood in the balcony and watched the stage below.  The actors were busy telling their tales.  After a few minutes I was horrified to hear my alarm go off on my phone.  Loudly!  Oh My God!!!  I turned the sound off before the play, but I completely forgot about the alarm to remind me to bring the plants in.  I turned and fled the balcony while the producer gave me the stink eye.

Oh well... just another day in the life of a complete moron.

Dreams

Last night I had a dream.  It was about a guy we know who is a carpenter and a general "go-to" guy for any building or repairs that need to be done.  In my dream, I was shocked and surprised to see that he was starting the foundation to our new home! 

But as I watched as he was pouring concrete I saw that he was doing it wrong.  I asked him if he remembered that the slab was supposed to be insulated.  He said no.. and I asked him if he had seen the plans.  He said, "No."

Later that day (yeah, the building went up really quickly in my dream) I saw the house as the frame was half-way up.  But he had put it in the wrong place.  And the southern orientation was all wrong.  It's supposed to be a passive solar house and he got it all wrong.  I asked him if he looked at the plans?  Nope.

I have absolutely no idea what this dream meant -- if anything.  I only know that I am so anxious about getting my home done.  We have another year and a half to go.  A long time... but so much better than the 3 years I resigned my time-table to in early 2010.  And I also know that I'm going to have to really keep an eye on the people building the house.  I know I'm a bit of a control freak, but this will be my last home and I want it done right.

The girls and I went up to the property again this morning.  It was snowing.  The dogs just love the snow.  They run at full speed and then dive face first into a pile of snow.  They chase each other through the trees running as fast as they can go.  They have so much fun with each other.  What good girls!

More Weather

Last Tuesday our temperature went up to 79 degrees.  By Wednesday morning, it was snowing.  We got maybe 8" of snow that day.  Because the day before was so much warmer, only 3-4" inches "stuck."  But it was nice to see the snow again.

Last Wednesday the temps didn't get out of the 30's.  But every day since the days have been getting warmer and warmer.  Night time temps have still gone down to the 20's and 30's -- but today at 2:00 in the afternoon, my thermometer reads 81.4 degrees. 

And we're expecting snow again tomorrow.  I love this place!

Yesterday was Halloween.  As usual, Trinidad closed its downtown streets so that the kids can have a fun and safe place to trick-or-treat.  All of the merchants hand out candy.  My friend, Carol, owns the Eagle Totem Gallery on Main Street.  She and my friend, Joelle, passed out candy.  Carol dressed up as an owl and Joelle was a clown in a clown dress made out of men's ties.  They looked so cute!

Lucy has really been coming along really well.  She is coming out of her "pre-Byington" shell and her personality is beginning to shine.  I took her with me yesterday when I walked downtown to see all of the trick-or-treaters.  She was an angel.  People and dogs alike came up to her to say hello.  She had no problem with any of them... except the guy in a giant, blow-up sumo wrestler costume.  She didn't quite know what to think of that big, round person.

And today she did something really funny.  I think back to Schultz and the times I would give him a rawhide bone.  He'd take the rawhide bone out to the yard and he'd bury it.  Then, he'd wait until I got the carpets cleaned and he'd go out and dig it up.  By then, it was nice and soft and dirty and he'd plop down in my office or in the middle of the living room and he'd eat it.

I just gave each of the girls a rawhide bone this morning.  Mindy ate most of hers, and she buried a little bit of it outside.  But Lucy...  I was on the phone with a client and was wondering what she was doing under my desk.  Later I saw her rawhide bone -- "buried" under the wires and cables for all of my equipment.  How funny is that??

Fall Is Coming!

On Wednesday I got up around 7:30.  Threw on my clothes and took the dogs outside.  WOW!  It was cold!  When I came back in I saw 27 degrees on the thermometer.  Later that day -- on toward the afternoon it was nearly 70 degrees.

I had forgotten what fall was all about in all the years I spent in California.

On Hwy 12 

 Here, the leaves are turning golden and orange.  Last week Les & I took a Sunday afternoon and drove west of Trinidad a little bit.  We took Highway 12, the Highway of Legends.  Last year my friend Joelle told me about a valley where the elk go to rut.  She said that she turned a corner where the valley opened up and it was filled shoulder-to-shoulder with elk.  Since I didn't see any in Estes Park, I wanted to see them here.

The drive was beautiful as always.  The leaves are turning.  The higher mountains have snow.  And even though it was a gorgeous, relaxing drive... still no elk.  We saw wild turkeys, several deer and a big black bear... but no elk.  I think I'll go back in a couple of days and maybe they'll be there.  It's only a few minutes west of here and the rut should be happening any time now!

Les is leaving for California bright and early tomorrow morning.  He'll be gone for about a month.  Andy is still here for now.  He feels as though his job will last until December.  Then he'll be laid off and will be looking for work again.  He's wondering where he'll wind up.  He needs to room with someone reliable -- the last house he shared with several people didn't work out very well.  People would steal from him... money, his winter jacket, things like that.  Then he gave one of his roommates money for the gas bill (which was in Andy's name) and they didn't pay the bill.  Now he has to come up with that money all over again.

So he's thought of Seattle.  There's a good music school there where he can learn recording and producing.  Or he might just go back to California.  I'm not very crazy about that idea since most of his friends in Newbury Park were not good for him.  I don't want him going back into that situation again.  But he needs to follow his dream.  And since he's almost 21 now, there's not much I can say.

21 -- how did that happen so quickly?

Curious Deer

Changing Weather

Fall on the Highway of Legends

We had such a hot and dry summer.  But suddenly the weather is giving us a glimpse of things to come.  Today it is very windy and cool.  Snow has can be seen on the higher mountains.  Night-time temps are in the 30's.

I LOVE IT!

Our bear hasn't been seen in a couple of weeks.  The last time I saw him was in the middle of the afternoon -- just watching the happenings on West First Street in the early afternoon.  There were cars and kids and dogs and just way too much commotion for a shy animal like this... so he turned and went back to his little hideaway in the back yard across the street.

Unusual clouds

We have new neighbors.  The contractor who had rented the other side of our little house had finished his part of the construction job on Mt. Carmel.  He went back up to the Springs to start another project.  The house sat vacant for nearly a month -- which is the longest we've ever gone without a tenant.  I had our realtors on the lookout for a tenant, but I also advertised on Craigslist.  But the thing that set our rental apart was the fact that I am a dog lover.  Most people say no pets.  But why narrow the field when I just love the critters anyway?

Ask and you shall receive!  I got a call from a frantic woman who had a rental all lined up.  They were to move on 10/1 and I talked to her on 9/28.  The rental they had all lined up and ready to move into was out in the country because they had 3 dogs.  But she worked from home and the house had no internet access.  So they had to back out of that deal at the last minute.

3 dogs -- yikes!  So with a quiver in my voice I said OK.  But just in case it didn't work out I wanted a short lease.  That was agreeable to her... so long as they had a place to hang their hats during the holidays.


Stephanie and Dave moved in with Stephanie's 13 year old daughter and their 3 dogs.  They have Myla -- a lab mix.  Sam -- a boisterous 100 pound golden retriever.  And Gus -- a long haired chihuahua whom Les refers to as, "Little Hitler."  With the daughter on poop patrol and with some stern corrections to Myla about barking -- it seems to be working out.  Right now Mindy and Lucy are ganging up on Sam in the front yard.  They're having a ball!

Colorado Cruising - Part 3

Les standing next to a "Stanley Steamer," in the lobby of the Stanley Hotel.

Who doesn't know the movie, "The Shining?"  Jack Nicholson and Shelley Duvall were so great in that movie.  And it was written by my favorite author... Stephen King.  I just love the imagination that goes into his books.

The true story is that Stephen King stayed at the Stanley Hotel in room 217.  After dinners, he would wander the halls and imagine what it would be like for people to be stranded in a haunted hotel.  It was from these halls that "The Shining" took root.  But that's pretty much where the relation to Stanley Kubrick's masterpiece and this great, old hotel ends.

However... what a beautiful and historic place.  I asked for a room on the 4th floor and we were registered into room 406.  Those who know me know that I believe in ghosts, fairies and aliens -- among other mysteries.  Yeah, I know... but how can I not believe in magic in this world?  (Or in other worlds??)  The 4th floor is reputed to have the most "activity,"  although room 217 is pretty busy, too.

Room 217

While outside getting our bags to bring up to the room, I could have sworn I heard, "Mommy," spoken close to my ear.  I looked around and didn't see anything, so I'll just chalk it up to a weird thing that happened.  And while retiring to our room later that evening, I heard bumps and creaks, but I'm sure that was just an old hotel talking.  We fell asleep while watching, "The Shining," of all things.

It was such a beautiful place.  Earlier in the evening Les and I sat on the long, white porch and drank a glass of wine.  We talked about the history of the place.  It's over 100 years old and has hosted presidents, movie stars and plain-old folks like us.

Modern comfort is more to Les's liking - but I just love to run my hand across a window sill or a banister that has seen some history.  The woodwork in the lobby was spectacular.  The glass in the windows had the same feel as our cozy little house -- with the bubbles and the imperfections of old glass.

The Stanley -- what a beautiful place! 

I was looking forward to seeing the elk in Estes Park, but there were none while we were there.  It's been a strange year in the weather.  The animals are doing what they can to survive.  The park ranger at Rocky Mountain National Park said that the elk were going to be a couple weeks late this year.  So we didn't see any.  But maybe with some luck I might see some up on our little mountain top.  I see their poop... I know they're around somewhere!

Les and Mary at the Stanley Hotel

Hallway of the Stanley just outside of our room.

Colorado Cruising - Part 2

After waking in Snowmass Village we decided to go check out the Maroon Bells.  My beautiful sister, Gail, told me that we just need to see the Maroon Bells.  They don't allow private cars up there this time of year, but they have a shuttle bus that runs every 20 minutes.  We hopped on board and rode the few miles up the canyon.  When the bus stopped and let everyone off, we hiked down to the lake.

Absolutely majestic!  Words can't describe.  You feel as though it's a preview of heaven. And to think that this valley used to be owned by a very wealthy man, who gave it away so that others can also stand in awe at the edge of this lake.  Thank you, kind sir.

After reluctantly leaving the Maroon Bells, we got back to our little Subaru and headed north.  We had no particular destination planned.  Les wanted to see the tunnels on I70.  So once we got to the Interstate, we turned east.

After driving a bit on the Interstate, we talked about where we wanted to go next.  It was only Saturday.  We didn't have to be home until Monday.  Les was a tiny bit anxious because he doesn't usually "just drive."  We talked about going to Vail.  I reluctantly agreed, but I really wasn't crazy about the idea.  But as we drove we saw a sign that said "Steamboat Springs."  Hey, let's go there!

We (thankfully) left I70 for the quaintness of a 2 lane country road.  Heading north again, we drove for a couple of hours on a nice, smooth, country road.  We reached Steamboat Springs toward the later part of the afternoon.  Checked into a Holiday Inn and then went out to explore the town.

It's a really cute little town.  Quite a ski town in the winter, but summer wasn't crowded.  There are many nice little shops downtown.  I didn't buy anything.  Les bought a red jacket.   We had fun with a new game, though.  Remember the "slug bug" game?  Whenever you see a VW you call out, "Slug Bug Red!"  (Or whatever color it happens to be.)  We played that, only with Subarus.  I'm telling you, every third car was a Subaru.  I've heard more than once that it's the Colorado State Car!

And I'm so happy with our Subaru, too.  33 miles per gallon average on this trip.  And that was on winding mountain roads.  Up to 11,000 feet and back down.  I'm amazed.

Night 3 to follow... we stayed at the Stanley!   Woooooooo.

Colorado Cruising




The river between Salida and Canon City


Several months ago Les and I were talking about how we had to get away... just the two of us.  We picked a date -- any date -- and that date was last weekend.

We don't get away very often.  I work so much.  I'm not complaining too badly because I wouldn't want it any other way, but being self-employed has its downside, too.  No vacation time.  No sick time.  And if you do happen to take a day or two off, your work doesn't get done while you're away.



Be that as it may, I took Friday and Monday off for a long weekend getaway.   We decided to just explore part of this beautiful state of Colorado.  And we had a magical time.

Friday morning we left our little home bright and early.  We drove up to Pueblo and then turned left -- heading west into the next valley.  We saw the lovely little town of Salida with its old buildings and quaint downtown.  It reminded me of Trinidad, but many of the buildings seemed better loved.  I really liked Salida.

Then we turned north to head to Aspen.  We've never been to Aspen, but I've always wanted to see it.  We took the Independence Pass which was awesome. 

Sometimes people pass the word, "Awesome," around with such a casual attitude.  In the case of Independence Pass, I was truly in awe.  Pictures just don't do it justice.  We climbed the twisting windy road up and above the timber-line.  The valley behind us was getting further and further away.  The rivers and the trees!  It was absolutely majestic! 





After going over the pass the road dropped us right into Aspen.  I'm sure it's a great place... if it weren't for all the people, stores and cars.  I couldn't wait to leave.  But we had driven for many hours already that day so we stopped in Snowmass Village -- a quieter neighbor of Aspen.  We stayed in a very nice hotel and Les and I took advantage of the Happy Hour going on in the restaurant.   He sipped a beer and I my wine.  We talked, enjoyed the sunshine, and listened to the little brook tripping down through the grass below.  The clean, cool, fresh Colorado air just felt so good. 

After a couple of drinks we enjoyed dinner at the restaurant, then retired to our room.  We fell asleep early and dreamed.  I just love to travel with my husband.  It's so fun just to talk to him and not worry about work, cleaning the house, or anything.  And this trip was going to be the kind of trip we've never taken before.  Just get in the car and drive.  Whatever road you want to turn onto... just make the turn.  Nowhere we have to be.  No one we have to see. 

I'll write more about the trip in another post.

The Abbey and Canon City



Toward the top of Independence Pass







Salida, CO

Salida, CO

Taking Turns

We often turn to Mindy and ask her how it feels to be the good dog once in a while.  She just looks at us and jiggles that little nub of a tail of hers.

Lucy has generally been really good in the month we've been her family.  As long as you don't let her get too far away from you she responds immediately if you call her.  She's learned to sit, heel, wait, "out of the kitchen" and is coming along with stay.  She still sometimes has accidents in the house.  And if she's one step further away from you her hearing gets very selective.  She loves car rides, though, so a couple of times I've tricked her by opening the hatch on the car and telling her she's going to miss the ride.  She comes running.

Today we took the girls out for a walk.  We walked to the bank, and then through downtown to the river.  They were on their retractable leashes and as we stood by the riverbank, Mindy somehow got her leash tangled in a thorn tree.  I unclipped the leash to untangle it and she went romping down the path and through the bushes.  We untangled the leash and called her.  She came immediately and was so proud of herself.

Now, Mindy... definitely a dog with personality.  I don't know why, but she'll find the grossest, most disgusting things and she wants that smell all over her.  One day, while out herding her back into our yard, she found a flat cat.  This cat had been dead quite a long while, but she was compelled to roll around on it.  I haven't a clue why.  When we're out on our hikes we often come across fox scat -- she'll roll in it.

Today... (sigh) she found a massive pile of fresh bear poop.  When we called her she came running up to us covered with a brown, clumpy goo.  And she stank.  No, she didn't just stink.  She reeked.  Les was speechless as he clipped the leash to her collar.  Lucy and I walked the 1/2 mile or so home with Les and Mindy about 30 yards or so in front of us.  I wasn't interested in coming any closer.  I love Les, but there are limits.

Les & Mindy took a detour on the way home by way of the car wash.  They have a dog wash room at the car wash.  She had an immediate bath.  I took Lucy home and drove over to the dog wash just as Les was doing the final rinse.  Oh, that smell.

The things we do for our pets, huh?

Even More Bears

Last night as I was just going to bed around 10:00, I sat on the edge of the bed getting myself together when both dogs started going crazy at the window.  I threw open the blinds and once again, Yogi was standing there next to our trash can.  I yelled at him and he threw it in reverse and quickly vanished.

A few minutes later he was spotted 2 doors down munching on someone else's discards.  I feel so badly for this bear because he's just doing what bears do.  And this boy is so big he's obviously been around awhile.

Les was out at our friend, Jeff's last night, but I called him and we decided that as he was pulling into the driveway, I'd make sure the coast was clear on the walkway to the house.  It's not that we're afraid of Yogi, but we just don't want to surprise him or make him feel cornered.  As long as he knows we're here and we know he's there, I guess it will be an edgy, but symbiotic relationship.

But I'm going to keep my 9mm on my nightstand just in case.

Other than that we've had a bunch of earthquakes lately.  They're just west of town and are very shallow so we feel the intensity a lot more than with California quakes.  Everyone is wondering if it's because of the oil and gas production and/or the coal mines. 

Who knows?

More Bears

Yesterday was a day for bears.

A very young bear by the highway

While driving in town yesterday afternoon, we ran across this little guy wandering along the walk-way nearby.  He was as cute as can be.  We pulled up next to him and I said, "Hi Honey!"  He looked at me and then turned and ambled off in the opposite direction.  He looked awfully small and young... I'm not sure where his mama was.

But then last night both of the dogs went bonkers at about 3:00.  Our bedroom floor is about 18" below ground level.  And we have 2 low windows on the west side of the bedroom.  When the dogs went crazy I flew out of bed and threw up the blinds.  Standing not more than 5' away from me was a huge bear!  And I mean huge!  Les estimated him at 450-500 pounds!

As the dogs, Les and I were standing behind the impenetrable barrier of a screen on the window (yikes!) the bear looked at us and started to walk away.  I grabbed my robe and ran to the mud room which is right next to the walkway the bear was strolling on.  He then turned around and slowly made his way into our backyard.

Les watched him from another window and lost sight of him in the darkness of the back yard.

After a few minutes Andy came to tell us that the bear was now across the street.  He had knocked someone else's trash over and was busy munching away.  But this time, he was under the street light.  He was so big!  I went out to the porch and clapped my hands.  He looked up at me and then turned and left.

I'm not sure what we're going to do about this... if anything.  We may call the Dept of Wildlife guy whose job it is to make decisions about this kind of thing.

Andy saw this bear on his way to work 

I could see tags on the bear's ears which means he's been trapped and relocated once already.  Often, if they have to trap him again then it's curtains for the bear.  I really don't want to see that happen.  But then again, it's 10:00 at night and I just got in from taking Lucy out to pee.  The thought of running into that big boy made me a little nervous.

We'll see if he makes an encore tonight....

Sleeping

I have always loved sleeping with all of the windows wide open.  I just love the cool night air.  And I generally don't have too much of a problem sleeping -- since going to the chiropractor to get my neck fixed.  Also, my wonderful Brother In Law, Larry, told me about Melatonin.  We take 3mg every night and it really takes the edge off and helps me feel like I want to sleep.  Thanks for that tip, Larry!

But lately my headaches have started to think about returning.  Sigh...

But even more than that, last Tuesday night was trash night.  That's the night where you go through the house emptying all of the trash.  Then you lug the garbage can out to the street for the early Wednesday morning pickup.  Simple enough....

In the wee hours of Wednesday morning every single dog in the neighborhood was barking.  While my deaf ear is a curse in some circumstances, it's a blessing in others.  I simply roll over and I can't hear most things.  But this night the barking was so intense that it traveled through my pillow and into my good ear and it went on all night.  Our dogs were also on alert and started this little popping noise they make that is a pre-cursor to a full blown bark-fest.  Then it was on.  They joined the noisy chorus.

We knew a bear was outside.  We heard the trash can being knocked over.  We sighed as we thought of the mess that was taking place.

We didn't sleep at all that night.

The next morning as I took the girls outside -- sure enough, there was a mess at the end of the driveway.  The trash collector, bless his heart, had picked up most of the mess.  But there were still wrappers and empty yogurt cups strewn all over -- not to mention the shredded paper from my office.  It looked like it had snowed.

Our neighbor told us that she saw a huge bear rummaging through our garbage.  She said the bear was so big he couldn't even fit into the can.  She yelled at him and he lumbered up our driveway and through our back yard.  Fortunately, he didn't find my heirloom tomatoes to his liking and left them all for me.

Oddly enough, there is probably a bigger bear problem here in town than there will be up on our mountain.  We don't intend to keep trash outside up there.  There are bear-proof trash containers at the bottom of our canyon and our trash will be kept there.  I hope to have chickens and a garden up there, so there might be a little threat from wild critters, but for the most part I don't think we'll have any problems.

But back to sleeping... Wednesday night Les came home from our friend Jeff's house with some sort of stomach bug.  He was up and down all night, but felt much better last night.  Then sleeping last night --- like a baby!

Lucy

"You got some 'splainin' to do!"

Lucy, so far, has been a joy to have around.  She is so mellow.  She could just sit and stare at you and have you pet her all day.

I don't know much about her "pre-Byington" life, but I do know that she was rescued from the freeway.  It seems that some wonderful woman saw her in the median on Interstate 25 just north of here.  It was by the rest stop, so I don't know if someone dumped her there or if she got lost there.  But a very kind and good woman stopped and called her and she jumped right into her car.

The woman brought her to our vet and asked if he could keep her.  He told her to take her to the shelter here in town.  She had been at the shelter over 2 weeks when I came along and fell in love with her.  When I took her into our vet to get her rabies and rattlesnake vaccine, he recognized her from before and told me what he knew of her story.  He also said that she was really sick and having trouble breathing.  But he took care of that once she was checked into the shelter.

I can only imagine what her life was like before.  But it's just guessing.  She's a little shy and she has peed in the house a few times so I'm guessing that she was an outside dog before.  She probably didn't have much indoor loving by her people.  She didn't know sit or come or any other commands, but she's learning all of that now.  She sometimes gets up on the coffee table and is learning that is unacceptable for a 50 pound dog... or any dog for that matter!  She gets up on our bed and while I want to tell her to get off, she just cutes me up there.  So I let that one go.

She has accepted all of us as her pack now.  She stays close, for the most part.  We're having a little trouble keeping her inside the fence in the front yard.  Of course, Mindy would get out of the fence too, but that was when we first got her and she has since learned that she needs to stay in the yard.  I'm sure Lucy will learn that, too.

When we go up to the property, they both play and play.  Les told me that last Thursday we had a downpour  (I missed it -- was with a client in New Mexico all day) and the dogs just played and romped in the mud.  They'd dive face first into mud puddles.  They'd run at a full run and scoop up water from the puddles.

Mindy and Lucy, Made for each other.

Having a great time!

Mindy likes to sleep on her back in the hall.

Such a pretty girl!

Dogs

I love dogs.  Even though I'm allergic, I just love dogs.

The loss of Schultz was devastating.  My buddy, my companion, my shadow.  But with every life there's a death.  With every death... life goes on.

I've been quite lonely here at the house.  Les and Mindy go up to the property to work every day.  He cuts up fallen trees or pulls up scrub oak.  He builds an outhouse or improves drainage on the property.  He goes in the morning and returns late afternoon.  And I am in my office so much.

I used to love it when Schultz would come in and put his chin on my knee.  He'd look up at me with those beautiful brown eyes.  He could look right into my soul.  And I missed that so much that I started looking at www.Petfinder.com for dogs.  I wanted another German Shepherd to take Schultz's place.

That very evening Les came home to tell me that he stopped by our friend, Jack's home.  There was a stray German Shepherd.  Jack didn't know who she belonged to.  Before the words were even out of his mouth I was running down the hall and grabbing my keys.  Les was objecting the whole time but all of that fell on deaf ears.  We drove over to the canyon.  Jack was gone.  There was no sign of the dog.  But I whistled and here she came.

We brought her home.  Mindy was thrilled to have a play mate.  The next day I was so happy to have a furry friend here while Les and Mindy went up to the property.  But trouble started as soon as they got home.  The new dog showed quite a bit of aggression toward Mindy.  This would not do.  Sadly, I took her to the shelter.  As she is a pure breed, there should be no problem finding a home for her.

And that left another dog-shaped hole in my heart.

Les was adamant that he didn't want another dog yet.  And as much as I want to respect his feelings, I'm the one here all by myself all the time.  I told him that I'd even settle for a smaller dog if that's what he wanted.  After some "discussion" I went into my office and cool off a little.  Shortly thereafter, Les comes in and asks me what I'm doing.  "Working," I replied.  "I thought you were going to the shelter," he questioned.  "You will always do what you want no matter what I say anyway."  (He knows me all too well.)

With that I ran down the hall and grabbed my keys again.  And with Les in reluctant agreement, we trekked over to the shelter.  One look at the adoptable dogs and Les was putty in their paws.  We looked at all of their little faces and the choice came down to two.  The shelter staff took one out for us and we fell in love right then and there.

She had kennel cough so we didn't want to bring her home until she was better.  But every day last week I'd go to the shelter and brush her and love her.  I finally brought her home last Thursday.  She's a Red Heeler -- an Australian Cattle Dog.  It looks to me like she's a pure bred, but I don't know.  I do know that she's 2-3 years old.  And she's sweet as can be.  She and Mindy are a perfect match.  They're the same size and breed.    She's a good mellow match to Mindy's puppy exuberance.

We named her Lucy.  She's a red-head.  And Thursday would have been Lucille Ball's 100th birthday.  We thought it fitting.
Welcome Home Lucy!!!!