Dogs

Brady, the Bearded Collie



Desi, the Irish Setter



Emerald, the Red & White Irish Setter



Lexi, the Bouvier des Flandres

Broncos - Bears :-(

Please remind me not to ill-wish anyone or any team again - it seems to rebound on the team that I am rooting for. The Broncos fans at Invesco Field had a ball makings digs at Jay Cutler, while both Al Michaels and Chris Collingsworth (and several other folks interviewed) stated that they felt the new head coach had made a mistake in trading Jay Cutler to the Bears. The Broncos lost, 27 to 17, last night. The starting quarterback was Kyle Orton, who had been last years starting quarterback for the Bears. Kyle was actually doing pretty well - until a Bears defender crashed into his throwing hand as he tossed a pass. He left the field with his right index finger dripping blood (and, of course, that's the last finger on the ball as it's thrown, and gives the ball it's spin) and looking a bit bit floppy. The finger was dislocated and also required stitches. The Broncos' second-string quarterback was out with an ankle injury, so the 3rd-string QB (a rookie, just out of college) finished the second quarter and then played for the rest of the game.
The defense did well for a great part of the game - Cutler avoided throwing in Champ Bailey's vicinity; D J Williams made some tremendous tackles; and Elvis Dumervil is quickly becoming my favorite defensive player this year. During practice Friday, we lost wide receiver Gaffney to a broken thumb, and during last night's game we lost Chris Kuper (offensive line) to a broken ankle. So, even if I want an opposing player to be torn limb from limb, I guess I had better not make that statement - it seems to come back on the team I support.

I'm getting ready to go out and meet Joel, so we can walk Rosie and Remy together this morning. I'll add some photos to the blog when I return - and, hopefully, they'll be more interesting to the majority of my readers than my Broncos' lament, above. I have to admit that I am wearing jeans, not shorts, today, as it was 44 degrees outside with 100% humidity when I went walking earlier. I also managed to finally get the window back into place (during halftime), so that if I got cold last night, I could close the window. It stayed open and the kits and I cuddled. I really will have to go to the library... I'm out of books to read, even though I've got 4 on order. - And, Kathryn, the PO paid up, and I'll re-purchase and send Fire and Ice to you by tomorrow afternoon! (They admit they lost it!)

Today's Fancies

Black bears statue on the Pearl Street Mall in Boulder



A bronco at the Crooked Creek Ranch Rodeo



Lake McDonald in Glacier National Park, Montana



Harvesting on the prairie near Delia, Alberta, Canada

Vacation Day

Today is overcast and cool - it's 56 degrees outside with 93% humidity. I still wore my shorts and a T-shirt to walk and shop this morning - and received a lot of incredulous looks from people in sweats and jackets.... I was comfortable. But one could see that there was a lot more snow on the mountain peaks and slopes to the west. When I returned home, I opened the patio door for the kits to go out and play, then I became aware of this quiet "chit - chit - chittering" behind me. Gimpy was sitting on the back of my reading chair, looking at me at eye-level - I was out of peanuts, so he got a handful of raw sunflower seeds in peanut butter. ... Summer Bird, the winner of the Belmont, won yesterday's Travers Stakes (the "Midsummer Derby") at Saratoga by three-and-a-half lengths. And a study has been made at Del Mar racetrack, which shows that the poly-track in use there, does, indeed, cause more hind-leg injuries and breakdowns. Del Mar is planning to change it's racing surface.

Yesterday was a vacation day for me. I spent the majority of the day and evening on the atevi world, which was created ten books ago by C J Cherryh. Conspirator was an excellent addition to the series, and, as soon as I had finished reading it, I was ready to start the next, tentatively titled Deceiver. Other than breaks to love my kits, and a walk to and from a restaurant for lunch, I was totally involved with the atevi. Of course, having read this latest novel, I now want to read the entire series again, from start to finish. I finished reading Silks by Dick and Felix Francis on Friday, and that made me want to read all of my favorite Dick Francis books, again, too. ... Tonight I'll be watching the Broncos and the Bears game - hoping that the Broncos will squash the Bear quarterback, Jay Cutler. Cutler was the Bronco QB last year, and whined and demanded a trade when there was a head-coach change. Being mean, and, I suppose, vengeful, I want the defense to hammer Cutler for as long as he plays tonight. ... Monday morning I'll be walking the Rs early, with Joel. Joel has to take the kids in for evaluation at the Humane Society on Wednesday morning - so he'll walk them under my instruction on Monday morning; and then I'll walk them for 90 minutes Wednesday before they go in for their evaluation. Hopefully, this will help things all around...... Have a good Sunday, my friends!

Wind River Reservation, Wyoming

Horses on the Wind River Reservation



The Sacajawea Cemetery on the Wind River Reservation



Dragon's eye ridges? - Rock formation on Wind River Reservation



The Wind River Canyon viewed from the Boysen State Park Campground

Vivid Dreams

It's a beautiful morning - and I've been lazily reading the news and watching Cheyenne on TV. The patio door is open, and Banichi and Lovey are sunning themselves, while watching Gimpy eat breakfast. There really isn't all that much going on here - Margaret Coel, one of my favorite local authors, just published a new Wind River mystery, The Silent Spirit (the review may be read at: http://www.dailycamera.com/entertainment/ci_13224188 ). Margaret is going to be answering questions and signing books in Boulder and Longmont for two nights only, and they are both scheduled while I'm taking care of Sophie and Walt at a house in between Boulder and Longmont. ... Ferris, the stolen and returned Dachshund puppy, has been adopted out to a new home "somewhere in Boulder County." ... I've had three extremely vivid dreams the last three nights; one had someone rushing into my bedroom and stating that Mom (who died in 2001) needed my help immediately, and I awoke sitting on the edge of my bed, with my shoes on. Another was about seeing a play, and becoming a part of the play, where one of my favorite actors was starring; and the third was about one of my favorite newscasters. They were all so real that I've had a difficult time shutting them out of my mind. ... And it just doesn't seem possible that September is almost here. Boulder has had an very cool and wet summer (for a place that is supposed to be "semi-arid"), and it has definitely affected my "feel" of the year.

Farms

Lower Broughton Farm in Shropshire



Bram Crag Farm with High Rigg in background



Stone farm house and welcoming Border Collie

I'm Being Watched

I was sitting sideways at my desk last night, fooling around with my computer while a game I was watching was delayed by weather, when I got the distinct feeling that I was being stared at. I glanced over my shoulder and saw that Banichi was asleep on my pillow; Lovey was on top of the cat tree; I slowly turned a bit more, toward the TV, and saw there were two squirrels sitting on top of the TV, one on each corner. Both Gimpy and the other squirrel were staring at me with great concentration - and it slowly dawned on me that I had no peanuts placed on the floor by the patio door for them. They sat and watched me put out nuts for them, then, once I was again sitting, they ran down to the nuts and started stuffing themselves. - I'm going to have to go to the AKC website and look at breeds again: I met a dog yesterday, that looked like a Cairn terrier, but was twice that size. I had finished walking the Rs and was returning to the bus stop, when a couple walked by with the dog on a lead. The dog immediately stopped and came toward me, ignoring its owners. The owners kept going, so the dog had to, also, but it kept stopping and looking back at me. Finally the owners released the lead, and the dog ran to me for a good scratch and rub, then it licked my hand, and ran back to its owners. This stopped the owners, who wanted to know why there dog was attracted to me. I just shrugged and asked, "Animal magnetism?" I've had this effect on animals since I was a small child... and I'm used to it, but I have gotten tired of trying to explain it. - The Rs and I had a good three mile walk yesterday - we meandered through the trail system from their house to the grocery store at Iris and 28th, walked around the parking lot, meeting and greeting other dogs and people, and then returned home by another circuitous route. We stopped four times for water, and Rosie literally threw herself into the water at each stop, flopping on her belly and drinking ahead of her paws; Remy drank only at the last stop, but did play in the water at the third one.

The kits have been marvelous companions, and Lovey is just as mouthy as ever (she's talking to me right now, sitting between me and the monitor). ... The stolen Dachshund puppy was returned to the Boulder Valley Humane Society - a woman brought it back, stating that another woman had given it to her outside a grocery store in Longmont, claiming that she (the giver) was allergic to dogs, and hadn't known it. ... This morning's newspaper says there are 40 to 50 CU freshmen with H1N1. ... Hurricane Danny is expected to brush the coast along Virginia's Eastern Shore today. Once again I am hoping for very little beach erosion. ... I am about to start reading C J Cherryh's newest atevi novel, featuring Bren Cameron, Banichi, and Jago. So I'll be stuck in another world for several hours. ... And, finally, local police and the FBI caught "The Shaggy Bandit", a man who has robbed 14 banks in Colorado and 3 neighboring states in the past 2 months. The robber walked into a Tier Bank, here in Boulder yesterday, and looked around (as if casing the joint); as soon as he left, an alert teller called the police, a vehicle that matched the description of the bandit's was seen close to the bank, and the man and his accomplice were arrested in the parking lot of the Red Lobster in Longmont.
Wooo-hooooo! Tomorrow's the weekend!!

Photos for Today

Female moose and female duck in Alaska



Canada geese on Assateague Island



Band of Brothers - 3 of 6 male kits from the Natalis Spring Cattery



Rebel is ready to go!

An "I Want To Ride!" Morning

I was under a blanket this morning - it was 48 degrees outside (I still haven't put my window back up), and both kits were snuggled up tightly, giving lots of warmth. There was a nice cool breeze sweeping in from the mountains, and it was the kind of early morning that makes me want to saddle up a horse and head for the horizon on a ride of exploration. The DA was impressed at how well-behaved Rosie and Remy were when Joel visited her office with them; but Joel still has to take them out to the Humane Society for a temperament evaluation. The last couple of weeks, when walking the Rs, I have been taking them through neighborhoods in hopes of meeting other dogs and people. We usually meet one to four new dogs each day, as well as meeting four to ten new people. Certain dogs still continue to make Rosie bark upon their approach - we had a blast meeting Buck, the Great Dane-Boxer cross - none of the dogs barked nor were they upset with each other in any way. But we were walking towards a lady walking two Australian shepherds yesterday, and Rosie just had to bark. She only barked twice and she sat as soon as I told her to do so - but it's something we have to work on. And yesterday I saw the lady and her puppy that made all the fuss and kicked Remy and caused the Rs problems... all I can say is that her puppy is larger than Remy.

There are at least 10 suspected swine flu cases in the freshmen class at CU already. ... Dr. Warren Hern, and all his employees at the Boulder Abortion Clinic, have received death threats against them and their families. ... A two-year-old female moose wandered up Main Street in Erie (a Denver suburb) yesterday morning. DoW tranquilized her and used a front-loader to scoop her up and carry her to the truck that was used to move her to the Western slope. ... Four local sub shops have been seized by the state; supposedly all four are franchises, but no taxes have been paid by them in the past 5 years. ... And local police are looking for 3 people who wandered into the Boulder Valley Humane Society just before closing yesterday; they asked to look at the dogs , and the attendant said they could, but they wouldn't be allowed to visit one-on-one because it was so late. The three folks went into the dog area, and were noticed walking out, very quickly, about 5 minutes later. When their vehicle screeched its tires pulling out of the lot, the attendant went looking inside the dog area and found that a 3 month old Dachshund puppy, a rust male named Ferris, had been stolen. I think it's disgusting that someone would steal anything, even a living animal from the Humane Society!!

My Nocks Nieces

Ebony, at left, and Tobi , on right

Extremes

The Painted Desert



Garden of Eden, Maui, Hawaii

Cats, Dogs & Kennedys

I took the test my therapist asked me to take yesterday - I never turned on the computer, and it didn't bother me, so I am not addicted to PCs and the internet. How nice! I consider my machine here to be a tool - and I do not feel the need to check it constantly for messages and breaking news. - It's gorgeous morning, it's cool (55) outside, and the sun is shining. Lovey is ensconced upon my bosom, and Banichi has just poked his head in from the backyard. A squirrel is giving someone or something a piece of it's mind on the back fence - and I miss the sound of birdsong from my (missing) feeders. The red kids were a little put out with me yesterday, because they didn't get to run loose in Kathy and Jim's backyard at the end of our walk. It was irrigation day, and there wasn't a square yard of grass that wasn't being watered; since I didn't feel like getting drenched by the sprinklers, I just added another 20-minute loop to our morning walk. Rosie and Remy looked mournfully at me for the remainder of that walk, even when they were meeting Buck, a new to the neighborhood Boxer-Great Dane cross. I still feel kind of guilty when I remember their stares; at least they can run at K & J's this morning....

I do feel a sense of loss with the death of Teddy Kennedy last night. It might be nostalgia, it might be old family memories (the first time I can remember seeing my Dad cry was when JFK was assassinated), and, it might be due to some of the reporting on TV about "the end of an era." All I know is I cried when JFK was killed, I cried when Bobby was killed, I cried when Martin was killed, I was stunned when John, Jr.s plane crashed, and I cried last night when I heard of Teddy's death. I guess, that for me, it is the end of an era - no more big name Kennedys in the Senate or in high places in the US government. ... I read a great deal yesterday, did some laundry, and cleaned a bit. The kits were ecstatic that I was at home, had time to play with them and cuddle when they wanted, and that I wasn't in front of the monitor or at the keyboard. Classes have resumed at CU, and the management at the local Safeway once again did not allow for the amount of students that would be shopping - there are few cashiers, lots of long lines, and a lot of empty shelves. The nightshift stockers have been putting in 2 extra hours each shift, and still can't keep up with the demands of the students and management. ... I have finished all of my library books, and have read 3 of the 4 new books I purchased. I suppose it's time for me to return to the library and see if I can discover any new books, or old books, to read.

Phil Harding

Phil on a break between takes for The Time Team

Phil demonstrating the art of flint knapping

The usual Phil beside one of his trenches

Archaeology and Migraines

I awoke with a rip-roaring migraine this morning - Lovey's normal vocalizations left me quivering like a jelly even though I put the pillow over my head. I got up, finally, and upon standing, discovered how nauseated I was.... Skipping the rest of the details, I notified the Rs Mom that I wouldn't be there to walk the kids this morning, and I went back to bed. I did, however, crack the patio door open, and the kits ate breakfast and went out as I settled back in bed. When I awoke the second time, both kits were curled up with me in bed. I still have a minor headache, but it is not an agonizing one like this morning. That's the reason this blog is being posted so late in the day. Currently, the patio door is, again, open, and the kits are napping just inside the door, having had a little pan-roasted turkey breast with me for brunch. It's in the mid-80s, and while it's not really hot, our humidity is increasing - it's up over 60%, which is scandalous in Colorado!

And I need to apologize to one of my favorite archaeologists - I left a letter off the end of Phil Harding's name in a previous blog. I really do enjoy The Time Team - and I was surprised to find that they are in their 16th broadcast season this year for Channel 4 of Great Britain. I have always enjoyed spokesman Tony Robinson - whether he's doing a Time Team presentation or portraying Baldrick in Black Adder with Rowan Atkinson. Tony always brings a spirit of zest with him - even when he has a tremendous cold. But Phil is my favorite - a Wiltshire man, born in 1951, and an excellent flint knapper - just because he does get down in his trenches and wallows in the dirt like a great big kid having a good time. He was introduced to digging when he was 8 years old, and the farm owner (where his Mum did the books) suggested he might be interested in the dig, which was on his property near Stonehenge. Phil decided then and there that he wanted to be an archaeologist - but he was working full time in a puppet factory when he finally got the call to work full time on a site. He plays the guitar and banjo and loves the blues - and he even got "caught up in today's capitalism" and owns shares in his local brewery. He works full time for Wessex Archaeology, does his work on The Time Team digs, and still gives flint knapping demonstrations whenever he can fit them into his schedule. My hat is off to a man who knew what he wanted, is doing it every day, and still has fun at work!!

Waters...

Waterfalls on the Blue Nile at Bahar Dar



View of the Weng Chung River near Tai Po, Hong Kong



Montego Bay, Jamaica



Chris sunning beside Boulder Creek Lake - I sure hope he applied sun screen lavishly!

Out of It - And Glad!

I admit I'm odd, and that I get a little more odd each and every day. It's nice to be different and not be at the beck and call of every new technology-linked gadget. My computer? Yes, I'd be lost without it at this late date - but I could always just spend more time at the library, looking up the answers to the odd questions that pop into my mind - Do cows sneeze? (What a mess it would be!) - Anyway, I was going through the check-out lane at the grocery store yesterday evening, and these two young college freshmen were having a loud discussion about "Kate and Jon"; they were so wrapped up in their talk, that I had to urge them forward, so they could pay the cashier. As they were picking up their bags, I asked the cashier (who knows me) who, exactly, were Kate and Jon - as soon as she said "reality series", I told her she didn't have to go any further. The freshmen were still standing at the end of the counter and loudly made the comment that I "just" wasn't "with it." Today's so-called reality TV shows are no more real than the soap operas in the afternoons, or Buck Rogers in the 21st Century - if being addicted to every regular's exact words is being "with it", I'm very glad that I am not! - And the night crew manager at the store asked me, this morning, if I could house-sit for his dog for the next 3 weeks (beginning Wednesday) while he is in China. I had to turn him down.

The kits and I spent yesterday playing and cuddling and snuggling and snacking. I got caught up on a lot of little things, so I can start doing genealogy research with a clear conscience. ... The mountain lion has been sighted every morning at dawn in the 19th Street/Riverside/Topaz residential area for the past week. A lot of folks are keeping their their critters inside after dark. ... Boo has not been spayed and is at the height of her heat cycle. She is making her mother crazy - first she presents her bottom, and when Suki does nothing about it, Boo goes and mounts Suki, making Suki snap, snarl, and be generally witchy. Boo will not leave Suki alone. ... Last night was the second pre-season game for the Broncos. Last week I grew a migraine during the first half and went to bed. Last night, I became terribly bored, and turned the game off at halftime. The Broncos only have two players that I like remaining on their team - Champ Bailey and Eddie Royal. I know that this is a re-building season, I know that there's a new head coach, I know that the team is learning a whole new offense, and I know that almost everyone on the defense is a new-comer to the team. The only problem is that the team as a whole is blaaand. ... The AP voted the Gators to number one in the college pre-season. Let's hope that doesn't put a hex on the team - it would be nice if they could be un-defeated! ... No more football for a while, I promise! ... The beaches from Virginia Beach, Virginia up to Massachusetts have been closed to swimmers thanks to the passage of Hurricane Bill. There are dangerous rip tides running due to the heavy weather off the coast. I just hope that there isn't a lot of beach erosion along the Eastern Shore!!

Just A Little More...

... nectar.



... privacy, please!



... sugar, please?



... whiskers and tail room!



... nap time?

Friday Photos

Merikissan Kerma, better known as Lilla



Cheddar Gorge in England



Fake skeleton showing where the 9,000 year-old bones were found in the limestone caves



Ibana (front) and Union (rear) playing in Syros

Stuff and The Time Team

I had an wonderful, lazy day yesterday. After I blogged, I went back to bed. I slept until 12:45 in the afternoon, when a man called, insisted that I was Joe, and gave me his new phone number. I've never heard of the man before - neither Joe, nor the one who left the number. Then I wandered over to the grocery store and purchased celery, red grapes, peanut butter, and (surprise!) cat food. I returned home and read, ate a sandwich, and played with the kits as they ran in and out of the house. We all enjoyed a most relaxing day. During the up-coming week, I might skip blogging a few days, so don't be worried if there is no post.

My oven has finally been repaired and last night I made a blueberry pound cake. It's very good, even though I say so, myself. ... The bear that broke into the house in Aspen and helped itself to candy returned to the "scene of the crime" the following night and was killed by DoW. Apparently this was the fifth or sixth house that the bear ransacked over the past two weeks. ... Boulder County has its first confirmed case of West Nile virus. ... Animal Planet is returning the series "Jockeys" - this set of 14 half-hour shows will show the jocks competing for a ride in the Kentucky Derby (won by Mine That Bird). Jockeys include Mike Smith, Aaron Gryder, Corey Nakatami, Chantal Sutherland, and Garret Gomez. ... I fell in love with a grey Arab mare yesterday - she was offered for adoption thru a local rescue center -at a cost of $295.00. She's ridable, trained for both English and Western, and is just adorable. Three years ago she had to be carried onto the trailer that rescued her, due to starvation. If only, if only.......

And this past Wednesday night, I was thrilled to see The Time Team on PBS. I have been watching their shows on the International History channel since 2001 - and I was particularly impressed with a show they presented on the fossilized skeleton of a man found in the Cheddar Gorge caves which was over 9,000 years old, and they managed to trace and match his DNA with a school teacher there in Cheddar today. My favorite of the crew is archaeologist Phil Harbin - he has long hair, a florid face, and usually is covered with mud. Most of the time he wears jeans or overalls, or, as in the Jamestown segment, cut-offs and a felt hat with a feather in the browband. He is most definitely not a stuffy professor type - and he plays a mean guitar, too! It's due to their show that I still have such an interest in history. I hope that you were able to enjoy them - or can catch them on a re-run!!!

Thursday's Picks

An example of a lighted crosswalk



A place to relax in Jamaica



Bujagali Falls on the Nile River in Uganda



View of the ship replicas at Jamestown, Virginia

Books and Crosswalks

Boulder's new Barnes & Noble bookstore opened its doors over the weekend. It is open and full of light, there is plenty of room to move between the shelves, and I spent too much money in there when I wandered inside yesterday. I went looking for one particular book... I came home without that book, but I purchased four others, as well as next year's calendar. I saw a new Wilbur Smith novel, and I hoped it was another in the Egypt series, but Assegai is about one of the Courtneys and a Ballantyne in Africa (not to mention a short interlude with Teddy Roosevelt on safari). It was extremely pleasant yesterday, and is supposed to be so again today - with highs in the mid- to upper 70s. And the sunrise for the past two mornings has been awesome - just a few tattered clouds that turned yellow, orange, and then rosy red as Sol raised his head. The kits seem to be very pleased that I am spending a lot of time at home with them - Banichi is cuddling in my lap or in bed with me much of the time, while Lovey arrives and demands speech and loving, scratching hands. - And the Virginia DOT has announced that the new bridge to Chincoteague will be finished in January 2010; we were debating where the bridge should be placed when I met Jeffrey in 1995....

I don't know how many other states have implemented "zebra" cross walk laws - but the crosswalks here in Boulder are deadly. I call then "zebra " crosswalks, because that is what they are called in England - any pedestrian or bicyclist has the right of way at these crosssings; usually there are no lights anywhere near the crosswalk, and drivers simply must be alert at all times. We have several of those crosswalks (I, personally, use 4 on a daily basis) in Boulder, as well as the lighted crosswalks, where one pushes a button, and yellow caution lights flash for approaching traffic to see, and supposedly, stop. I was taught that a flashing yellow light meant "proceed with caution" when one was driving; and apparently that is a problem with these flashing crosswalks - I think the designers should have used red flashing lights instead of yellow. Why do I raise this issue now? Yesterday I used a lighted crosswalk to cross Pearl Street between Target and the Whole Foods Market and the new Barnes & Noble. As I stepped off the bus, five feet from the crosswalk, there was an accident in/on the crosswalk. A woman pressed the button, and then started to cross the street, apparently without pausing to look and see if any vehicles were approaching. A Subaru wagon struck her less than 5 feet from the curb. Within two minutes an ambulance and fire truck had arrived; but it took more than 25 minutes to stabilize the woman, get her into a cervical collar and onto a back board, and depart for the hospital. Boulder has had multiple accidents at these crosswalks, especially the lighted ones, as people on foot or bike don't take the time to look to see if a vehicle is stopping or not. The law says one must stop, and I do when I'm driving. But people must also use common sense - and look both ways before they step out into a traffic path. As there was no column about a death today or yesterday, I'm assuming the woman survived her accident.... but that was due only to luck - not to common sense!

Scenes in Egypt

The Great Temple of Amun in Karnak (modern Luxor) from the north



The Temple of Hatshepsut (the female Pharaoh) in Deir el-Bahari, near Luxor



Photo of Pharaoh Seti I's mummy in the Cairo Museum - he died in 1151 BC at the age of 70.



The Great Step Pyramid at Saqquara - photo taken April 2009

Bears and Horses

Lovey discumbobulated me yesterday by sitting on the keyboard and causing all the task bars and address bars to disappear from the computer screen. I finally have them back, having played with controls for 6 hours... The kits cuddled with me all night long; and it was wonderful to have both of them sleep with me. I was able to finally catch up with my Facebook requests, after running behind for 3 weeks. - And, since I'm reading the fourth book in Wilbur Smith's series on ancient Egypt, The Quest, please forgive the Egyptian photos and references.... I'm going to have to check out some books on the dynasties, reigns, etc.... Wilbur Smith has me fascinated in yet another historical topic!

Over on the western slope, a woman was sitting in her home office working; her two dogs were with her, and her husband was in another part of the house. The dogs began to growl, and the woman went out to look, and bumped into a 400-pound black bear - the bear had broken the lock on the French door and let itself in. The lady tried to get to the front door and open it for the bear to leave, but the bear was between her and the door. She was scratched on the chest and back, but not seriously. The bear was after a bowl of candy that was sitting out on the kitchen table. The bear managed to escape, but this is his seventh break-in, and DoW is looking for him to put him down since he has no fear of humans. ... Mine That Bird had successful out-patient surgery yesterday at the Ruffian Equine Clinic. He was relieved of an entrapped epiglottis, which was causing breathing problems. Last year's Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner, Big Brown, has been put back under saddle at the stud farm - he began his first exercise with a rider on board since his retirement, jogging a mile and a half. And Sea the Stars, a European bred colt, won his fifth Grade I race yesterday, winning the Juddmonte International under Mick Kinane; the race was 10 furlongs plus 88 yards, and "Stars" set a new record for the course.

Egypt Dreaming

Somewhere along the Nile...

Stuttering Addendum

That stutter of "Tuesday" was deliberate. Today is the first day of classes for middle and high school today... when I was in elementary school, I had to take speech therapy classes for 3 years due to a stutter, a lisp, and the inability to pronounce the sound of an 'r'. Now I stammer because the words won't come out fast enough, or I can't think of the correct word; my lisp has turned into an extremely sibilant ssss, usually whistling; and I can roll my rrrr's without problem, but now I can't come out with the French pronounciation of 'r'. My dentist had wanted to "clip" my tongue as a child, so it wouldn't push against my front teeth ... I'm glad Mom and Dad said NO to that!

Anyway, I had a nice walk with the red kids this morning - and, as I stepped down from the bus, a DoW worker was updating the last mountain lion sighting date to yesterday morning there at 19th and Riverside. I walked east on Riverside, and before coming to my left turn onto the Lane, I saw two red fox in the bushes. Once I turned, there were two squirrels sitting in the road, eating china berries; and about 150 feet away were an 8- and a 10-point buck. I hit the jackpot on wildlife this morning!

T-t-t-tuesday

Since returning home yesterday, I have gone through the front door 4 times. Three of those times, Lovey ran from inside the apartment out into the hall and then proceeded to chat with me at the top of her lung capacity. Then, last night, I was sitting here at the computer with the patio door open and I heard a familiar wail (Lovey), but it seemed to be coming from quite a distance away. It was not that far, but it seems Lovey had discovered how to go around the building, enter the lobby and hall through the front doors, and there she was... sitting before the front door, howling for me at the top of her lungs. - Talk about embarrassing situations caused by children! - And a few minutes ago, I realized that Lovey was sitting on top of the cat tree and seemed to be fascinated with staring at me - I glanced over my shoulder and spotted Gimpy, the squirrel, sitting on my pillow, watching me type and glancing at Lovey. I immediately put some peanuts down for Gimpy and he happily went over to the patio door and stuffed himself.

While they were not felt here in Boulder, there was an earthquake Sunday night and last night here in Colorado. Sunday night's was 3.9 on the Richter scale, and occurred in the southeast corner of the state, near Kiowa out on the plains; last night's quake was 3.7 and occurred on the western slope, about a 125 miles west of Fort Collins. There have been no reports of damage, but seismologists say that we might have a few more quakes that may be spread out all over the state, as one of our larger faults settles a bit. ... Jim ran the Pike's peak double, but was not pleased with his times - on Saturday, for the Ascent run, he ran the 26.2 miles in 4 hours and 41 minutes; he took 5 hours and 4 minutes on Sunday. - Heck, if I can run at all when I'm 65, I'll be happy! ... Lovey and Banichi seem to be ecstatic that I spent yesterday afternoon and all of last night with them. I have been loved to death this morning by both kits; hopefully, our love affair will continue for the next two weeks! Take care... and I'll post photos later - have to go walk the red kids now!

Mish-Mash

A young Pepe le Peu?



Reuben, an Appaloosa and Irish Draught cross



A 2008 Danbar Arabians chestnut filly shows classic form



Sophia of Van Dalen Shar Peis - my kits love to sleep on the male Shar Pei two doors down...