An old paper bark tree
A neat lower trunk...
Another interesting bole...
Tuesday, October 4, 2011
Adopt a Dog at Half-Cost!
This month is Adopt a Dog month at the Humane Society of Boulder Valley. There are currently 47 doggies available for adoption at the Society, and 39 are 6 months old or older, qualifying for the half-cost discount. When you adopt any creature from the Humane Society, they are already spayed or neutered, they are up-to-date on their necessary vaccinations, they are micro-chipped, and you get a free vet visit as follow-up for a new owner. Unfortunately, there are also 98 cats and kittens who still need loving homes, too. A lot of these pets have been surrendered due to the economy. If you can afford a pet, and have the love and time for one, please adopt one, or sponsor one at your local Humane Society!
We've had temperatures in the 80s for the past week, and some gusty winds in the evening, but no rain. The wind is supposed to be picking up again this evening and it's predicted to blow into Friday. This morning the weather folks said that we'd have highs in the 70s for the next 2 days, and then in the 60s for Friday and the weekend. We'll see. - Five years ago in October, when I got my bus pass photo ID, I was wearing a turtleneck and a coat. In yesterday's photo, I have a T-shirt on. I arrived to get my ID at 12:05, as the place is only open from 12 until 2, and only on Mondays. There are 6 chairs in the office for folks waiting their turn, plus the person who is getting their ID.... I was tenth in line outside the door when I arrived. I finally got my new ID at 1:10, and headed back to Sammie and Tuppurr. - Tuppurr slept in bed with me Saturday night, and Sammie slept on the floor beside my bed. Sunday night, Tuppurr spent the first half of the night with me, and Sammie slept in the doorway of the room. Last night, Tuppurr stayed in the kitty play room, and Sammie slept downstairs. Does familiarity breed contempt? I don't know (maybe my snoring was too much to handle). But I'm happy that Barbara and Bill will be back this afternoon for their "kids."
My kits have been all over me this morning. I got up, watched the sun rise as I walked Sammie, had a quick bite for breakfast (after feeding Sammie and Tuppurr), and then walked Rosie and Remy. Remy's hip is still sore. He is just not walking normally. So we only walked for 40 minutes and only covered half our usual distance. Then I came home to the kits. Lovey swarmed all over me, as has Nedi. Nedi has nursed on my right arm, as usual. I've sat on the sofa, looking at mail and giving love and attention to Mocha. I've got to head back to Sammie and Tuppurr's soon - but I'll be back here before suppertime and will be able to sleep with my kits. Tomorrow afternoon I move in with Tessa, Lilly, Lyra and Dhisana (not to mention the koi and the three bee hives),,, But, tonight - home with my kits for NCIS. Yea!!!
We've had temperatures in the 80s for the past week, and some gusty winds in the evening, but no rain. The wind is supposed to be picking up again this evening and it's predicted to blow into Friday. This morning the weather folks said that we'd have highs in the 70s for the next 2 days, and then in the 60s for Friday and the weekend. We'll see. - Five years ago in October, when I got my bus pass photo ID, I was wearing a turtleneck and a coat. In yesterday's photo, I have a T-shirt on. I arrived to get my ID at 12:05, as the place is only open from 12 until 2, and only on Mondays. There are 6 chairs in the office for folks waiting their turn, plus the person who is getting their ID.... I was tenth in line outside the door when I arrived. I finally got my new ID at 1:10, and headed back to Sammie and Tuppurr. - Tuppurr slept in bed with me Saturday night, and Sammie slept on the floor beside my bed. Sunday night, Tuppurr spent the first half of the night with me, and Sammie slept in the doorway of the room. Last night, Tuppurr stayed in the kitty play room, and Sammie slept downstairs. Does familiarity breed contempt? I don't know (maybe my snoring was too much to handle). But I'm happy that Barbara and Bill will be back this afternoon for their "kids."
My kits have been all over me this morning. I got up, watched the sun rise as I walked Sammie, had a quick bite for breakfast (after feeding Sammie and Tuppurr), and then walked Rosie and Remy. Remy's hip is still sore. He is just not walking normally. So we only walked for 40 minutes and only covered half our usual distance. Then I came home to the kits. Lovey swarmed all over me, as has Nedi. Nedi has nursed on my right arm, as usual. I've sat on the sofa, looking at mail and giving love and attention to Mocha. I've got to head back to Sammie and Tuppurr's soon - but I'll be back here before suppertime and will be able to sleep with my kits. Tomorrow afternoon I move in with Tessa, Lilly, Lyra and Dhisana (not to mention the koi and the three bee hives),,, But, tonight - home with my kits for NCIS. Yea!!!
Monday, October 3, 2011
Wonderland Lake and Tuppurr
View of Wonderland Lake from atop Mount Sanitas (looking northeast)
Wonderland Lake from the south
Tuppurr
(As always, you can view the photos in their original size by left-clicking on them.)
(As always, you can view the photos in their original size by left-clicking on them.)
Cats, Dogs and Horses
I've laughed at Sammie quite a bit since I moved in with him. He's not a very gregarious dog - he doesn't want hugging and love and pats all the time. When he thinks I'm not looking, he sneaks up and licks my toes or my legs or my hands - but if I react, he runs. He's very happy to sleep next to the chair I'm sitting in, or next to my bed, and if I'm in the kitchen, he stays in a corner and observes. He loves his yellow ball, but will not chase after it for me (he does for his owners). At least we have nice walks around Wonderland Lake and the neighborhood - he does like to get out and investigate everything. Tuppurr has slept on my legs the past two nights, but he'd really rather spend his nights out hunting. He made that quite clear when I was holding him last night as Sammie went out for his last potty break - he wrapped his legs around my arm and bit my hand very hard, while scratching with his feet. I sat him down on the counter top and still didn't let him out. He was peeved with me until after midnight.
Lovey, Nedi, and (sigh) Mocha are all fine and dandy this morning. They've had their breakfasts, I've cleaned their potties, and the kits are all out in the sunshine on the patio. I'm gnoshing on a sesame seed bagel for my very late breakfast. I was going to walk the red kids on the way home this morning, but received an e-mail saying that today was Nancy and Joel's anniversary, and that they were taking the kids with them for the day. I have to renew my discount bus pass ID between noon and 2 p.m. today, too. One would think that in a city the size of Boulder, one would have more than a two-hour window on Mondays (excluding holidays), to get an ID... But that's the way it is. And our bus system is subsidized by sales tax income. Everyone knows that the economy is awful. RTD is talking about cutting the Boulder bus services in half....
It was an interesting, and sad, weekend for horse racing around the world. .... Banned, the three-year-old colt who had sesamoid surgery last week, was put down because all of his weight-bearing feet foundered. .... US Champion racing mare Fleet Indian was put down after colic surgery was unsuccessful. She was an un-bred broodmare (10 years old) this year. .... Weemissfrankie, an undefeated two year-old filly, has qualified for the Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies. She is a beautiful chestnut. .... Goldikova, who is planning on winning the fourth Breeders Cup Mile on Turf in a row, was beaten by a head in the Prix de la Floret yesterday. The six-year-old mare was beaten by 3-year-old Dream Ahead, a colt. .... And folks at Longchamps were also surprised by the 27-to-1 longshot who won the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Danedream, a German-bred filly, won Europe's most prestigious race by 5 lengths, setting a new record time for the race - 2 minutes, 24.49 seconds - for the mile and a half on turf. There is some speculation that she might be supplemented to run in the Breeders Cup.
Lovey, Nedi, and (sigh) Mocha are all fine and dandy this morning. They've had their breakfasts, I've cleaned their potties, and the kits are all out in the sunshine on the patio. I'm gnoshing on a sesame seed bagel for my very late breakfast. I was going to walk the red kids on the way home this morning, but received an e-mail saying that today was Nancy and Joel's anniversary, and that they were taking the kids with them for the day. I have to renew my discount bus pass ID between noon and 2 p.m. today, too. One would think that in a city the size of Boulder, one would have more than a two-hour window on Mondays (excluding holidays), to get an ID... But that's the way it is. And our bus system is subsidized by sales tax income. Everyone knows that the economy is awful. RTD is talking about cutting the Boulder bus services in half....
It was an interesting, and sad, weekend for horse racing around the world. .... Banned, the three-year-old colt who had sesamoid surgery last week, was put down because all of his weight-bearing feet foundered. .... US Champion racing mare Fleet Indian was put down after colic surgery was unsuccessful. She was an un-bred broodmare (10 years old) this year. .... Weemissfrankie, an undefeated two year-old filly, has qualified for the Breeders Cup Juvenile Fillies. She is a beautiful chestnut. .... Goldikova, who is planning on winning the fourth Breeders Cup Mile on Turf in a row, was beaten by a head in the Prix de la Floret yesterday. The six-year-old mare was beaten by 3-year-old Dream Ahead, a colt. .... And folks at Longchamps were also surprised by the 27-to-1 longshot who won the Prix de l'Arc de Triomphe. Danedream, a German-bred filly, won Europe's most prestigious race by 5 lengths, setting a new record time for the race - 2 minutes, 24.49 seconds - for the mile and a half on turf. There is some speculation that she might be supplemented to run in the Breeders Cup.
Sunday, October 2, 2011
Horrible Football Weekend for Me
I'm starting to think I should give up watching football again. Almost every team I was rooting for, both collegiate and professional, lost this weekend. The exceptions were the Saints and the Redskins, both pro teams. **Sigh** And I had to turn my schedule upside down to meet Coffeepot between 1 and 2 this afternoon at my place. He was supposed to take Mocha home today. That was the message I left for him. He showed up saying that his message was that I wanted him to stay in my apartment while I was on vacation, and when was I leaving? He is now supposed to take Mocha away next Sunday (his next day off) between noon and 1 p.m. I was firm, but clear - I wouldn't be responsible for Mocha after next Sunday. Period. She is a very sweet girl, but with my small space, and the fact that Lovey and Nedi don't like her, plus the fact she's been with me for 4 months now - well, it adds up to her needing to leave.
Short blog, but I'm off to read The Blue Hackle by Lillian Stewart Carl. The first two chapters have been terrific!
Short blog, but I'm off to read The Blue Hackle by Lillian Stewart Carl. The first two chapters have been terrific!
Saturday, October 1, 2011
Wild Weekend in Boulder
Today is my eleventh wedding anniversary. This is Family Weekend at CU; and there's a home football game today against Washington State. There are already several cars and trucks full of fans who were tail-gating at 7:30 this morning in our parking lot. Lovey slipped out, saw the tents going up, and decided she was safer on my chest. (I'm blogging using only my right hand, as Lovey is cradled with my left.) Nedi is running in and out, but I'm sure that once the folks outside get a little noisier, he'll be content to stay in, too. Mocha is stretched out in my small hallway. - I did have one strange thing happen this morning: I finished the book I was reading at midnight, turned the light out, and fell asleep. I awoke at 2 a.m., because the wicker chair directly under the open window had been moved; both kits were peering out, Lovey from the cat tree, and Nedi at the corner of the sliding glass door. I didn't have my glasses on, but I thought I saw a pale hand on the back of the chair. I talked to the kits for a few minutes, convinced myself that a raccoon (maybe Frankie?) had knocked against the chair and moved it, and went back to sleep. The kits rejoined me in bed about 10 minutes later. But, when I got up this morning, my chair was sitting out in the grass in the back yard, about 3 feet from the patio edge. I may be silly, but I know that a raccoon did not move the chair noiselessly, that far, and turn it around so it was facing my window. I reported it to the apartment manager and maintenance man this morning.
If you live in a rural area, or in an area that wildlife travels though, please be extra careful while driving for the next few weeks. A 15-year-old black sow bear, weighing about 250 pounds, was struck and killed crossing the highway north of Boulder yesterday. This is the time of year when critters are feeding heavily for the winter, as well as it being mating time for deer, elk, bears, squirrels, etc. These are wild creatures; they get confused when suddenly faced by a vehicle that moves much faster than they can comprehend; they panic, and can either stand stone still, or dart away in any direction (including at the vehicle). They are wild critters. They are unpredictable. Supposedly, we are smarter than they are - please drive defensively. The wild creatures don't know that their lives are in your hands when you're behind the wheel of a moving vehicle.
If you live in a rural area, or in an area that wildlife travels though, please be extra careful while driving for the next few weeks. A 15-year-old black sow bear, weighing about 250 pounds, was struck and killed crossing the highway north of Boulder yesterday. This is the time of year when critters are feeding heavily for the winter, as well as it being mating time for deer, elk, bears, squirrels, etc. These are wild creatures; they get confused when suddenly faced by a vehicle that moves much faster than they can comprehend; they panic, and can either stand stone still, or dart away in any direction (including at the vehicle). They are wild critters. They are unpredictable. Supposedly, we are smarter than they are - please drive defensively. The wild creatures don't know that their lives are in your hands when you're behind the wheel of a moving vehicle.
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