Jumble

Yesterday, Tim Tebow was appearing to celebrate the return of a quadriplegic soldier to his home in Tampa, Florida.  In Denver, the town suddenly became "Peyton's Place."  Peyton Manning flew into Centennial Airport yesterday afternoon, along with John Elway and Coach John Fox. They went straight to Dove Valley, the Broncos' training camp.  The media stayed out in force at the gates of Dove Valley, but didn't get a good look at the quarterback - he left in the dark, inside an SUV with darkened windows.  The media tried to ask Tebow questions about it in Florida, and he declined to comment, saying that his focus yesterday was not on football.  Fans in town are pretty evenly divided - Peyton would be a great acquisition for the Broncos, and Tebow could learn a great deal from him; others think if Peyton is hired, Tebow will leave, and are upset about it.  Me?  It's football.  It's a business.  I like both men.  I'll accept whatever the fates deal....
  We are already up into the upper 40s, and we're expecting highs in the upper-60s and low-70s through this coming Thursday.  It's wonderful weather, and my kits certainly are feeling Spring Fever.  For that matter, so are the squirrels - it's mating time, and they are chasing one another like maniacs.  At least the skunk mating season is almost over - they prefer orgies, and all of them spray, so one can pretty much smell the area to avoid.... (And, contrary to reports, newborn skunks are very capable of spraying their wonderfully repugnant scent at birth.)  I know the birds are starting to get cozy, and yesterday afternoon I spent some enjoyable time just sitting in the yard and listening to the bird calls.  I heard sparrows, chickadees, nuthatches, crows and ravens, magpies, and robins.  I know if I go hiking in the foothills, I will see and hear tons of meadowlarks....  Spring is coming.
  I walked Rosie and Remy yesterday afternoon, and saw Bernie, while we were sauntering. Bernie told me that she felt like she was being watched while she cleaned out the irrigation ditch - so she slowly looked around and saw the black fox watching her from across the street.  We're happy the foxes are returning, but since they've been seen, the little cottontail rabbit that spent most of the winter in Bernie's garden has disappeared...  Rosie and Remy visited the vet yesterday morning, and we found that Remy has lost 40% of his musculature in his lower back and hind legs.  I'm afraid he won't be with us next spring.  The vet suggested hydro-therapy for Remy, but he hates water, he hates swimming.  Rosie had hydro-therapy 4 years ago, and even though she loves the water and loves to swim, she hated the only place that offers swimming in the Boulder area.  The person who worked with the dogs did not seem to even like them, regarding them as "things" - so we are looking into alternative therapies, as the chiropractic and acupuncture treatments have stopped helping Remy feel better.  His owner is getting upset, as she just had news that one of Rosie's littermates just died and another has untreatable cancer.  I will cry when Remy leaves us, but he has had a long and active life.  Hopefully, he will be able to keep us company, without pain, for several more months.