Ice Spirits

Winter has finally arrived in western North Carolina. With 9 days above 60 degrees in December, and 7 in January (temps hit 70 degrees both months as well), we'd been sailing through Winter 2012-13 with mittens gathering dust in the basket. But Old Man Winter apparently woke up and "Whoa! It's almost spring, I'd better get to work!" 

Last week I spent some time roaming around Flat Creek in Montreat, captivated by the dance of sunlight on ice. This delightful creek flows through the Montreat campground which is closed during the winter, much to the delight of hikers, dog walkers, and women with cameras. Several trails lead off the campground up into the mountains, and if one were so inclined, one could easily park at the gate and walk for days. 

I saw no one else on this day, however, as I picked my way under and around large trees toppled by the ferocity of recent winter winds. The air was still, the temps warming into the day, and the creek rushing. The sunlight bouncing off the ice was dazzling. It was a perfect day for exploring.

Camera in hand, I attempted to capture the winter beauty in spite of the bright conditions. At first the ice just looked like, well, ice. But as I became more fully present and looked closer, I saw more. Was that a broad shouldered ice fellow slipping away through the rhododendron branches?

Alongside the bank, a group of giggling ice spirits clustered together...I could swear I heard them giggle.

Farther downstream, a wise old elephant kept watch alongside a waterfall.

And ice spirits dangled their toes toward the rushing water beneath. 

This day was a wonderful reminder of the joys of taking time to slow down.

As I write this, it is still cold outside, snow in the forecast. But Lucy and I are keeping warm. The desk has been relocated to a spot by the stove for the winter, which makes for cozy early mornings. The corner stove puts off a surprising amount of heat, and I tend to leave it on until we're just a degree or two away from spontaneous combustion. By this time of year, I am looking forward to spring, sunshine, and flowers. But this weekend I find myself also savoring the last of winter. Maybe a pot of chili today!

There is a time for everything, 

and a season for every activity under heaven...

He has made everything beautiful in its time.

Ecclesiastes 3

I Feel Like A Superhero!

Those of you born after say, 1980, and those more technologically gifted than myself will likely find this incredibly amusing, but I have just CREATED MY VERY FIRST BLOGGER SLIDESHOW!!!!!! It only took about two years to tackle, and a larger part of this day than I am willing to admit, but I did it! Or, well...I think I did. Maybe I better not start dancing on the table until after I hit "Publish" and check it out.

Lucy went crazy with a new catnip toy yesterday, and I had fun recording her antics. Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. :-)

"Will You Be Mine?"

"Or better yet, give us a treat?"

Happy Valentines Day everyone, from 

Lucky, Katie, Lady, and Lucy!

The Joy Of A Gravel Road

Katie would rather walk down the gravel road outside the back door than go for a hike in the mountains. Not sure what that's all about. When I ask "Who wants to go for a walk?" and we head out the back door, Lady and Lucky run up the ramp into the back of the truck. Katie stands in the driveway staring longingly up the driveway. I have to pat the ramp and coax... "C'mon Miss Katie, let's go! Come on!"

Truth be told, all the dogs love walking down our road. It seems pretty boring to me, I'd rather go somewhere. But it no doubt gives them a chance to check out who or what has been trespassing on "their" road.

Just to the left of the above photo, across the little creek ravine, there's a house where two scary dogs live. They are allowed to run loose, and they sometimes make it over to our side of the road. The house went up for sale a few weeks ago, which was the highlight of my year so far. I am praying for a quick sale! And new neighbors who either don't own dogs, have friendly dogs, or who keep them confined to their property.

I often wonder what they smell on these walks. Wouldn't it be fun to have a dog's nose for 24 hours? Seems like I read somewhere that dogs can tell not only what critter or dog has passed by, but the sex, health, and mood of the passerby - all from the scent left behind. I am so glad Lucky still has his sense of smell. He's had cataracts for years, although it's hard to tell how much they impair his vision. However over the past year he's become quite deaf. I have to tap him to get his attention, and hand movements are necessary to communicate with him. He doesn't seem disturbed by this at all, and it hasn't impacted his desire to go for walks or truck rides, something for which I am quite grateful. When Jessie began losing her hearing and sight, she also lost her desire to leave the house, except for the briefest of outings.

At the top of the hill, where we turn around, there's another dog. And Katie does not trust this dog for one second, despite the fact that it has not moved during the nine months we have lived here. 

You never know, today might be the day when it decides to take some sort of action. 

Can't be too careful. Once Katie has sniffed the area thoroughly and decided things are safe for another day, we head on our way. Back down the gravel road, to home.

Snowy Sunday

Forty years later, I still remember like it was yesterday. Sleepy and hopeful, scarcely daring to breathe as I would raise on my knees to peek out the blinds, only to see...no snow. Time, and time, and time again this moment of delirious hope was shattered by the crushing disappointment of yet another false alarm. The dark pavement and green grass would stare back at me, boring and ordinary, saying "Hurry up. Get ready for school." For years, I harbored the deepest of resentments against Atlanta meteorologists. I also fervently believed (and still do) that some sort of invisible bubble exists over the city, protecting it from every winter weather system crossing the area. Is it any wonder I ended up in Duluth Minnesota for grad school?

Western North Carolina is a happy medium. You don't have to deal with -20 degree mornings, yet there's enough cold weather to justify hot cocoa and mittens. This morning when I let the dogs out, I was surprised by a white landscape swirling with tiny snowflakes. The snow thrilled me and the dogs both. They came racing back into the house, frisky and excited and shaking the snow from their coats. After morning treats for dogs and cat, I started some coffee brewing and walked around opening all the curtains so I could watch the snow.

We've  yet to have a decent snow this  year. And last year there was no winter at all. So this morning's little snowfall was a welcome sight. It's been bitterly cold this week, Friday's wind chill around 10 degrees all day. We've all been staying warm as best we can...

The other interesting thing about living in this part of the country is that you can take photos of snow, icy streams, and daffodils all in the same weekend!

Stay warm ya'll!

Life With An Omnivore

I ask, does this look like food to you?

No? Very good, that is the correct answer! Because it's NOT food. It's a pipe cleaner. This distinction is lost on our little scoundrel Katie, who insists on testing anything found on the floor for edibility. Thus I return to this blog in much the same way I left it, worrying about Katie having consumed something not meant to be consumed.

This particular object was a homemade kitty toy, a pipe cleaner used for some long forgotten craft project, twisted into a little curl that would skitter across the smooth tile floor in the most wonderful way, batted this way and that by little black and white paws. The thing has been around for years - mostly living in the toy basket, but coming out from time to time for a spin around the kitchen. Now, I am aware that some dogs will eat anything they can find on the floor. But I have never had one of those dogs. At least not until Katie.

Fortunately I acted quickly when I heard the odd metallic "crunch." Check out the end of this thing! The rest of the evening was spent imagining various scenarios in which the segment she swallowed got caught in the lining of her stomach or punctured an intestine.

But apparently we have once again managed to avoid disaster. She seems fine, and all cat toys both homemade and otherwise have been confiscated (sorry Lucy). And just to reassure any who might be reading this post and thinking "Why that poor dog must never get any treats. She must be eating strange objects out of desperation..," Katie gets plenty of treats. Santa even brought all the dogs choo hooves, which they'll get to chew at least a few times before I get too worried about broken teeth.

And as far as two of the three dogs are concerned, one of the best treats ever?...

Apples!! 

Katie and Lucky love apples. 

Lady finds apple slices quite hideous. But she can't help herself when the other two get so excited, tails wagging, toenails clicking on the floor in the dance of anticipation, so she will line up for her fair share. It's a riot to watch, although I must try very hard not to laugh. Lucky and Katie eagerly gobble their slices, sometimes getting scolded for chomping my fingers in their haste. Lady then steps forward, unable to resist, and gingerly takes the offered slice between her teeth, lips pulled back to minimize the likelihood of their coming into contact with the apple. Anyone who has ever known a German Shepherd can likely imagine the look on her face at this point. When forced to eat something out of peer pressure, the German Shepherd adopts a facial expression that manages to be both offended and determined at the same time.

Lady chews a little, all teeth, lips still pulled back to a safe distance, and after several exaggerated chewing efforts, spits the mushy slice onto the floor. Katie spies her opportunity and moves in, at which point Lady quickly but reluctantly picks it back up again. Finally, after several repetitions of this cycle, with both Katie and Lucky observing the process hopefully, she manages to choke the thing down.

I usually end up feeling sorry for her, and slip her a milk bone 

while the other two are enjoying their apple slices.

Good dogs!

The "Indestructible" Nylabone

I might as well start out here with a confession. I am an overprotective, "Nervous Nellie" dog mom. My dogs don't run loose (they might get hit by a car), they don't eat raw eggs (they might get salmonella), and we don't hike near steep cliffs (they might fall off). You get the picture. This caution extends to bones and toys too. While all the other dogs out there happily chomp on rawhide knots, cow hooves, and steak bones, Lady, Lucky, and Katie must be content with crunchy rawhide - the type that crumbles and can be easily chewed. Not quite the same, I know. But at least I don't have to worry about a chunk of rawhide getting stuck in their throats or intestines.

But one day recently, I decided to purchase a pack of those indestructible hard plastic (or nylon, I guess?) Nylabones for Katie. She loves to chew, and had discovered Jessie's 10 year old Nylabone at the bottom of the toy basket. Jessie found the concept of a plastic bone ridiculous, and after giving it a sniff and tentative lick, never went near it again. But that rejected Nylabone had remained there in the toy basket all these years. When Katie discovered it and seemed to enjoy gnawing on it, I decided to spring for some new ones. And not just the boring plain type, but the beef flavored variety!

It took less than a minute. One loud chomp, and by the time I registered what that sound was and got to her, the end of the Nylabone was gone, and Katie was working on sawing off the next hunk. Eeeek!! I grabbed it away from her, and frantically began reading the back of the package. PRODUCT IS INEDIBLE. The instructions go on to assure you that if a dog consumes a piece about the size of a grain of rice, it will often pass through the intestinal tract without incident. Anything larger - "consult your veterinarian." Oh, GREAT. As you can see from the photo above, the hunk that was chomped off was considerably larger than a grain of rice.

Katie, Katie, Katie...Nylabones are indestructible, don't you know? You gnaw on them because they're too hard to bite through. Ugh. Thus began a vigil, with various doggie emergency room scenarios playing out in my mind. I passed the time by reading every word on the back of the package, searching for some hint that these bones aren't always indestructible. And then I saw that Nylabones have weight limits! See?...

What, you can't see the weight limits? Well, that's because they're hidden behind the white bone in the package! Apparently you're supposed to rip the package open in the store in order to determine if a certain size Nylabone is safe for your dog. How about now, can you see it now?

No? Well, let me enlarge the photo even further...

There it is, plain as day - "for dogs up to 35 lbs." Hidden behind the bone inside the package, and in a microscopic yellow font that I had not noticed even when I took the bones out. Katie weighs 50 pounds! Grrrrrrrrrr..! Boy was I mad. Even Lady, who watches over Katie always, and tries to keep her safe, could not save her from this. We just had to wait and see.

All I can say is that it's a good thing Miss Katie apparently has an indestructible gut, because I would have wanted to sue the company had anything happened to her. As it is, I think they owe me for worry, lack of sleep, and 3 days of dissecting poop in a futile search for the missing piece of bone. Take heed any of you who let your dogs chew on these bones - Nylabones are NOT indestructible!

"So, can I have the rest? That plastic is delicious!"