Update

Well I know when I get an email asking if I'm OK that I've really neglected the blog!  Sorry for the lack of posts. My job with John Morgan Seminars is my #1 priority thru mid-April-ish, so everything else takes a back seat. It has been made more challenging having been sick. I'm fully recovered, but am still playing catch up. I am planning to move the mountain of recycling out of my kitchen today and do some other housekeeping-type things. So I thought I'd post a few pix of Bingo & Tabby from before the snow. And then I'll do another post on Monday with some snowy pix. So without further ado . . .

 Bingo doing the paw-raise-stop-'n'-sniff. Tabby by her side.

*sniff*

Tabby walks along a fallen branch.

Geese down on the lake.

 Back inside:

Bingo gets to lick out the crock pot. Mum is going to see this and swear never to eat anything I cook in there again!  Haha That's what the dishwasher sanitize thing is for.

We had a night of thunder, so I brought Bingo's bed into my room so she could sleep with me. I took her bed and put it outside my room and was going to take it back to the LR, but:

Bingo all cozy on her bed. 

But she doesn't like the flash!

Zzzzzz . . . .

 She likes it there, so there it stays. The majority of my day is spent in my office.

Bingo gets to eat the rest of my lunch.  Keanu. 

 And then I go get my post-lunch, afternoon cup of tea and when I come back:

Tabby Bobcat. Usurper of my chair. 

Tabby, do you mind? 

Leaping out. 

 Whenever Bingo wants something, she comes to me & sits:

Whatcha want, sweetie? 

 OH.

Tabby, Usurper of dog bed. 

 Our last pre-snow walk:

Bingo surveys the cows across the road. 

Hullo.

There's a little beagle-ish dog across the road sometimes on a line. Bingo doesn't miss a thing!

Sniffing the air.

Such a dignified profile!

Hullo.

We'll be back on Monday with some snowy pix. Have a GREAT weekend!  :-) H.

This Morning's Sunrise :-)

HAPPY New Year!

Well. It's been quite the Christmas-New Year Season!  I spent it in my jammies between the bed & my recliner. This was my view:

I hadn't really used it until I got sick. It's kinda Tabby Bobcat's domain, tho. So as soon as I got settled, he hopped up. 

When I get up, I do a ninja-maneuver of him off my lap so that he stays on the blanket and I put him back down on the recliner:

This is not his disapproval or a protest. He's just yawning--but he looks ferocious, doesn't he?!

Brother Atlasta popped by & fixed my bedroom door so that Tabby couldn't body slam his way in. The bedroom is a pet-free zone, but he's not deterred from getting in there!

Bingo LOVES Atlasta!  Ooooh, belly rubs!

Zzzzz . . . .

When I was sick, it was really hard to take her for her walks. I was winded just getting out of bed, and I couldn't catch my breath. Chiro-sis came over & walked her for me; a special treat because she took her down the street to the lake, which we've not done in a while. Neighbor-friend Rita also took her for a bit, so she got to play with Dana & Roy and have a sleep-over. 

On Day 5, Ruth adjusted me & gave me some colloidal silver. Within half an hour I could walk without getting winded. She gave me a Vitamin C cocktail to sip on. That was the turning point of getting better. I had a fever for about a week, but I didn't get winded after that. So we're back to taking long walks in the woods:

Bingo sniffing something out. Note cute paw action:

She does this very cute thing; she LOVES to run. She knows how long the leash is, so she'll run-run-run and stop and wait for me to catch up. Then she'll run-run-run again. Sometimes she'll wait for me to get ahead of her and then she can run in doubley. 

Down here in the woods is where she does her business. One of the advantages to this is no bags. So this is the spot. I take treats with me so that as soon as she goes, she gets a treat. It didn't take long for her to make the connection: Potty = treat.  Except that I use these little Zuke's training treats, which are kinda small. In the house, she'll eat them off the floor. But in the woods if she doesn't catch them, they blend. So then I was putting them in my hand and she would gobble them up. Except then I'm left with a dog-spitty hand. Eeewwww. So now I have a small plate in my pocket & I put a few treats on there:

I was trying to get a pic of Tabby & Bingo going down the walk together, but I wasn't fast enough:

Pic from yesterday afternoon:

Yes, afternoon sun is the worst for photos. Yes, Bingo looks like a black blob. Ha!

And that has been our week. Bingo is her normal, cheerful self. And Tabby is his normal, cat-self. I'm on the mend and all is well.  :-)  

Divinity of Dogs

"They may be the purest example of divine love in an earthly soul many of us ever experience. If we take their lead, open our hearts, and embrace their love, we may just find our own journey a lot more enlightening."

The Divinity of Dogs is a collection of dog stories from people of all walks of life. I felt such a camaraderie with all the people featured in this book; fellow dog lovers, many of whom never intended to even have a dog. But you don't have to be a dog lover to appreciate the stories in this book. It is so much more than a collection of dog stories. It is the celebration of the human spirit, as well. The author expresses so well what I know many of us dog lovers feel:

Like many people, I've always been able to count on a dog. I've never truly felt the same way about people. I know I'm not alone, and I don't look at this as a bad thing. I think it's okay. We all have trials in life. It's what we learn from them that matters. I've learned never to underestimate the ability of a dog to provide comfort where a person can't. 

What's striking about these stories is how many of the dogs featured were rescues; rescued from abuse and neglect. What's more striking, is that each story illustrates that it wasn't just the dog that was rescued; it was the human who was rescued, as well. How their lives were changed forever from knowing a particular dog.

I wrote to Jennifer Skiff before I finished reading it:

I'm halfway thru & of course have been boo-hooing thru it. Your writing has such a clarity & flow to it and your story is heart-breaking & heart warming all at the same time. Healing happens when we tell our stories but also for the people reading them. Your book is a book of healing and hope, not just for dog lovers, but for anyone who has suffered abuse. It's divinely inspired. 

It is one of those books that will have you appreciating your own 4-legged loved ones that much more. I had so many sweet memories of my others dogs come flooding back as I read each of these powerful stories. If you love dogs, you will find yourself reaching for the tissues. Don't let that deter you because you will also laugh and celebrate and have your faith in humanity restored by reading these stories. I can't say enough good things about this book. It is sure to become a classic!

You can follow Jennifer Skiff on Twitter or like her on FaceBook

 

And now a few pix of Tabby Bobcat & Bingo:

Tabby Bobcat.