Scratcher of heads, rubber of bellies
Pity the starfish that does not take advantage of the cover of high tide to go to the bathroom when no one is watching. This poor fellow clinging to a large boulder was left high-and-dry by the receding tide and could do naught but cross its legs and hold it in. Waiting for the inevitable return of the sea but tortured always by the sound of splashing water.
From my visit to Tokyo in the spring of 2005, taken on the way from the office to the hotel. I had never seen cars on display this many floors up before, you can probably tell I’ve spent very little time in big cities.
Maybe you can explain it to me, little one, as I don’t understand it at all.
I took the top picture of Ellie by the dragon statue at Irvington School this January after an unusually heavy snow, the bottom picture this morning in a more typical gentle rain shower. I’m deeply thankful for the year we’ve spent together and that she has been in good health (for her age). Longer walks have returned with cooler weather and new medicines, even if not quite as long as before. She walks more slowly and stiffly, gets out-of-breath much faster too, but still charms everyone she meets. You are my heart and my joy, pup, my heart and my joy.
I have this romantic notion that at least one hair from each of our pets will follow me all the days of my life, so that on my deathbed I will have a piece of them with me. A romantic notion but not a realistic one. In day-to-day life, however, I’m quite confident I do carry each of our current pets with me, and Trixie is doing her duty to make sure of it as she sleeps on my clean T-shirt. In the picture below, Trixie doesn’t usually sleep in my desk chair but she loves the feel of these hoodies.
Sam in early 2008 enjoying his freedom in the house at large after we adopted him and kept him in isolation with Emma for a couple of weeks. He’s had diarrhea the past month and we got the first clue as to why from a fecal sample, he doesn’t have nearly as much healthy bacteria as he should despite taking probiotics the past month. He’s going to start some antibiotics soon if he doesn’t improve, as he may have some bad bacteria that’s keeping the good bacteria from thriving. If there’s a silver lining to getting laid off a month ago, in addition to being able to take Ellie on long walks each morning, it’s that I’ve been here to take Sam to the vet and get his medicines and give him second chances at eating when he’s not feeling well. He actually put on a little weight this month, not what you’d expect from someone with his condition, so the good news is he’s getting the nutrients from his food. After what we went through with Emma, that’s a big relief.
But I’ll be a lot happier when we know what is going on.
Spending the afternoon with the hoary marmot colony at the end of the Summerland Trail remains one of my favorite hiking experiences.
While hiking the Summerland Trail in Mount Rainier National Park, I came across this rocket being built by the animals of the forest. Looking good!
