Category Archives: Animals – especially dogs
Dogs of Our Lives
This weekend Shannon and Mike went to North Carolina to look for a place to live—they’re moving the end of December, and how we’ll miss them! Therefore, Clif and I took care of Shannon and Mike’s dogs, Holly and Somara, while they were away.
Each day, into the woods we went so the dogs could sniff and run and play. How lucky for us to have such beautiful trails so close by. And, I must admit, even though it is freakishly warm for December in Maine—in the fifties, no less—I was grateful to have bare trails for our doggy romps.
Shannon and Mike aren’t the only ones we’ll miss. We’ll miss those dogs, too.
The Craft Fair in Mount Vernon: A Very Good Day
As someone who likes to look at the bright side of things, I’ll start this week with the good. (Tomorrow I’ll write about my ongoing oven woes.) The craft fair, in Mount Vernon, was a success. Lots of people came, and we sold enough cards and calendars to make it very worthwhile for us. Our card of snowy Liam was the hit of the show, and we could have sold double of what we brought.
Many people thought he was a bear, and I had to explain, with a smile, that Liam was a dog, albeit one who loves the snow. I also added that I would never get that close to a bear.
We got lots of positive comments and some very helpful suggestions. Just recently, we have added quotations to some of our pictures, and one woman said, “I love quotes on cards.” Other animal cards, starring family dogs and cats, were also a big hit.
While we will always make cards that feature pictures without words, we have decided to branch out and make cards that have quotations on them. We will also make some that simply have “Happy Birthday” or “Happy Anniversary” on them. We are learning as we go.
Anyway, we were extremely pleased with the results of the Mt. Vernon Craft Fair, and we will be looking for other venues to sell our cards.
Dogs in the Yard
Last Saturday, Clif and I took care of the granddogs while Mike and Shannon visited with relatives. The day was dry and warm, perfect for yard work, perfect for dogs to frolic in the yard.
Holly and Somara are both young dogs, and how fun it was to watch them race and chase each other. Liam, who at nearly eleven is, ahem, a senior dog, mostly just watched. However, once in a while Liam would rouse himself to join in on the fun. All too often, when I should have been raking, I would just stand and watch the dogs as they played.
I wasn’t able to take pictures of the dogs as they raced—too fast for my little camera—but I was able to get a few shots between frolics.
Dogs, leaves, a fire in the fire pit at night, S’mores. November, too, has its delights.
A Day at Local Breweries for Himself and a Day at the Beach for Me
Yet again, Clif celebrated his retirement, and this event was orchestrated by our son-in-law Mike, who arranged a Maine Brew Bus tour of several local breweries in the Portland area.
While Clif and Mike had a jolly afternoon sampling beer, Shannon, the dogs, and I had our own jolly afternoon on Crescent Beach in Cape Elizabeth. (Shannon and I are, ahem, decidedly unenthusiastic when it comes to beer, which means that an afternoon on the beach appeals to us far more than an afternoon drinking beer.)
Like Popham Beach, Crescent Beach State Park is relatively undeveloped. No condos or shops crowd the beach, and it is a lovely slip of sand, water, waves, and rocks. There is an inn by the beach, but it is back far enough to give the seaside plenty of breathing space. Crescent Beach doesn’t have the grand sweep of Popham Beach, but it is nevertheless one of my favorites.
From October 1 to March 31, dogs are allowed on the beach, and the five us had a splendid, sparkling time of crashing waves, gleaming rocks, warm sun, and blue sky.
After the beach and breweries, we gathered at Shannon and Mike’s for pizza and homemade apple crisp. It was a finest kind of day.
Fed-Up Friday: Let It Snow
All right. Even for someone like me, who loves summer, this high heat and humidity has gone on a little too long. I am ready for cooler weather.
In fact, this is starting to look pretty good.
The picture, of course, was taken last winter when Liam looked a little frosty. And while I don’t really want it to snow—not yet—I have been thinking ahead to Christmas and to cards, which I love to send.
This will be our Christmas card for 2015, and I have found it very soothing to look at it during this extreme heat and humidity.
The card is a good reminder that the seasons change in Maine, that it won’t always be this hot, and that instead of melting down at around 2:00 every afternoon, soon enough I’ll be putting wood on the fire.
An August Walk Up the Narrows: Or, the Various Aspects of Anne
Yesterday, Clif, the dog, and I went for a Sunday walk up the Narrows Pond Road. It was one of those beautiful August days that was so perfect—so warm, dry, and sunny—that I wished I could hold onto that day and just keep it for use whenever the weather is bad, which it often is in Maine. But alas, good weather, like good times, cannot be held.
Up the road, on the right, there is a small meadow that is full of August wild flowers—black-eyed Susans, purple loosestrife, golden rod, and Queen Anne’s lace. I knew the light would be good, and I brought my camera along. When I go for walks and take pictures, quite often I am alone with the dog, and I have to put the retractable leash between my legs while I take pictures. I must say, it is much easier to take pictures when Clif has the dog.
I came to the little meadow, abloom with flowers. Clif and Liam continued walking while I took pictures.
The other day, I was taken by Susan. On this walk, I was taken by Anne. I didn’t plan this, and I was reminded of Gabriel Orozco’s “The poetic happens when you don’t have expectations.” I’m not sure if my fascination with Queen Anne’s lace was poetic, but I certainly didn’t have any specific expectations on this walk. There was only a general sense that I wanted to take pictures of the wild flowers. But on this day, Queen Anne’s lace took center stage.
On another walk, it might be something else.
It seems to me that one of the best gifts we can give us ourselves is the freedom to notice. And from this noticing, who knows what will happen?
I’ll end with a quotation from the great essayist Verlyn Klinkenborg, who was writing about the eighteenth-century naturalist Gilbert White. “He recorded what he noticed and in the pattern of noticing lies the art.”
We can’t all be be great artists, but maybe by noticing we can bring a little art into our lives.
Wordless Wednesday: Kadidle and Bubsy (aka Holly and Liam)
A Walk Around Winthrop: August 2, 2015
Our daughter Shannon and her husband Mike have gone camping for a few days, and, as a result, we are dogsitting their dog Holly. (Their other dog, Somara, is a more easy-going dog, and they took her with them.) Much of the day was spent in our fenced-in backyard, but Holly is a young, energetic dog, and we decided to take her and Liam for a walk around town. We started at the library, where I had Clif sit on the bench with the dogs close-by.
We walked around the corner to Maranacook Lake and the public beach. Maranacook Lake is fairly large. It spans two towns, has a twenty-two mile perimeter, and comprises 1,844 acres. I am happy to report the water quality is above average.
We came across a plant that I have never seen before, and one that the bees certainly seem to like. If anyone is familiar with this plant, do let me know what it is.
After walking by the beach, we turned up a side street, where we admired a sculpture made from a tree trunk.
And a lovely yellow door of an old house.
Then it was back on Main Street and around the corner to the library, where our car was parked. Not a long walk, but an interesting one with many things to look at.
Sunday with My Daughter, Monday with the Dogs and the Flowers
On Sunday, while Mike, Dee, and Clif were at the movies, Shannon joined me for a day that was utterly delightful. Nowadays, it is rare for me to have time alone with either daughter, and when I do, I enjoy it so much.
In the afternoon, we played six rousing games of Fantasy Forest, a much beloved board game from Shannon’s youth. (We had hoped to play cribbage, but, alas, my board was nowhere to be found. I will have to get another one.) Although the three movie amigos laughed at us when they heard how we spent our afternoon, we assured them that even though the game was geared for children, there was, in fact, a fair amount of strategy that could be employed. I don’t think they believed us. But Shannon and I had good silly fun, and that’s all that really matters.
After the game, Shannon helped me make stuffed bread, and while it was resting, we went to the patio for drinks and appetizers. I had a Maine mule, which tasted ever so good on a hot, muggy afternoon.
We spent quite a bit of time on the patio, and we ate our supper there, too. When the bugs drove us in, we had homemade strawberry ice cream and watched some of the Fellowship of the Ring. (Yes, we are fantasy geeks.)
Shannon, Mike, and their two dogs stayed overnight, and the next day, Shannon went to the movies, too. Then, it was just me and the dogs. After cleaning up from brunch, I headed outside, where I relaxed on the patio, and the dogs alternated between scouting the yard and lolling on the patio.
Naturally, I found time not only to smell the flowers but to take pictures of them as well.
This dwarf balloon flower—Platycodon grandiflorus ‘Fairy Snow’ —just came into bloom.
Oh, July!
Notes From the Hinterland 