Blog

A Kind of Heaven

A close-up of the face of our dog Ellie as she stares into the camera

To look into Ellie’s big brown eyes is to look into a better world, a world where we walk humbly, treat each other with kindness, love openly, forgive quickly, and eat everything in sight that isn’t a vegetable.

It’s Nothing Personal, But I Hate You

A bridge over a gorge in the Columbia River Gorge

When you’re scared of heights, when hiking a new trail in places like the Columbia River Gorge, you never know when you might reach a spot that will force you to turn around. I always cross this bridge to look at the waterfall on the other side, but it’s a white-knuckled crossing every time. There are little slots in the bridge that let the rain through, important in an area that gets as much rain as the Gorge, but it also lets you see the water rushing underneath. The first time I forced myself to take pictures from the bridge itself I was so nervous I forgot to focus or set the exposure, but this latest visit I not only took photos but videos as well. My heart was pounding and I gripped the railing tightly, but I took them. Properly focused and exposed, even.

This Replicant Is Good, I’ll Grant You That

Our cat Sam sleeps stretched out on the cat tree

So good in fact that if the sleeping positions weren’t all wrong I’d have never known it wasn’t the real Samwise. Sam likes to curl up when he sleeps, not all stretched out like this impostor. I’m not worried for Sam’s safety, in fact I think he’s behind the whole thing, letting his proxy deal with all of Trixie’s affections. I’ve been trying to lure the real Sam out of hiding by keeping my lap open but his replicant is as eager to fill that spot as Sam himself.