Su and the Corndogs

James is in town and nearly every morning he gets Su a corndog. She loves corndogs. We make Su "work" for her food, sometimes telling her what we want, sometimes letting her offer behaviors.  Now someone taught this dog to bark on cue (not me) and it was a very hard thing for her to learn. Not a dog inclined to bark, often all you  would hear after many efforts on her part was a low woof or grrrwoo. So we decided, hey, she's a snow dog type, how about a howl? Su often woo-woos at the boys when they come in after being gone a while so surely, she can learn to woo-woo on cue (a howl, of sorts). Uh huh. Well first problem was getting Su to understand what was expected. She tried everything. Sneezes, bows, high fives, lie down, lie down all the way (flat on side), sit, bark, and all again... finally very perturbed Su yawned and made a soft sound at the end of it. It  was almost a woo as so she got a treat.

That's when it got funny. Poor Su knew she'd done something that got her a bit of corndog but naturally enough she was not sure what. She tried all her tricks, then tried yawning. Nope. Yawned again with a slight yodel behind it, Yes! I got out the clicker - something I should have done to begin with - and we kept trying. Su still is not quite clear on what sound to make and continues to try yawns but she is doing better. This morning when James came in she really got going, sneeze/snorting at him and finally woo-wooing for her corn dog.

Wish I had pics of her working this out. It was too funny. Also so interesting to watch as she tried yawns and noises to see what worked.

Java Chillers! oh yummm

Love Sonic’s java chillers. Not great for the budget or waistline but my oh my, good in the mouth. Su-dog thinks so too!

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Home, Sweet Home

Or that is the idea anyway. So, a long flight with two layovers, screaming children kicking the back of the seat, no sleep the night before and no nap on the plane, I get home to a soggy bedroom carpet. Oh the joys of home ownership!

Granted, my son had done his best and we' had talked about it on the phone. The plan to get new floor covering for living room/hall etc will just have to expand to include the bedroom. Rats. Nothing like getting up in the night to use the bathroom and stepping on cold wet carpet! LOL. Used the shopvac and pulled it back but still there was enough dampness to get my attention. The dog didn't much like it either. She'd been sleeping on the sofa but with me home she had to sleep on the floor by my bed. Poor Su. True love is giving up the comfy sofa to be near mom on a slightly wet carpet.

I left home in mid May, so it has been a while not counting the short weekend back at the end of May. It is good to be home though I do worry about mom there in SC. We had a nice visit. Did not do a lot but stay at the house, eat, sleep, watch tv. I understand that works well for mom but must confess I found it rather slow.

One weekend we went up to the mountains. I had planned on a short vacation with an old college friend. We wanted to do the raft and rail thing in the NC mountains (Nantahala river, Bryson City, Nantahala Outdoor Center providing raft and guides) and figured mom might like part of that as well. Big sis and her husband came along, so they and mom simply did the train ride. I went with my friend and two more on the train one way with them then the four of us came back down via raft. What fun! It's an easy river, suited for families and people like us just out to have a good time. We started planning our next vacation together that afternoon as we enjoyed our time together so much.

Now it's time for me to get back to jail ministry, the Christian Women's Job Corps, and a bit of geocaching! And perhaps a bit of sub work to pay for the extras. Like carpet.

Slough of Despond

Well, I have avoided posting due to being in such a depressed state of mind. Oh I thought about it but had nothing positive to say! Things happen that cause sadness, that can't be undone, that one must simply come to terms with in time. I fight the battle of beating myself up - blame, guilt, feelings of worthlessness. Age old battle but occasionally things occur that ramp it up to a level I can barely deal with so.... back to Zoloft.

Coming home often brings me down but this time another incident was added to the mix. So here I am, just hanging in there, knowing that while there will always be a sadness that it will lessen with that great healer time.

Summer here in the countryside of South Carolina passes slowly. Mom shows signs of age and that makes me sad as well.

East Coast, again...

Well here I am again in South Carolina. Flew in to Charleston's airport and have been staying in Sommerville this weekend past. Today will be on my way upcountry to visit my mother for a while. My head is beginning to spin! One coast to another is not my usual thing, LOL, but it sure was fun. Such a difference in weather too. Love that southern CA coolness, yet now I am in the coastal SC region I must admit that heat feels pretty fine too. My friend here thinks I am nuts. Give me a few days and perhaps I will agree with her.

California!

We made it! Drove over 800 miles yesterday so got in today around noon. My daughter's new landlord was here to meet us and do the walk-thru. She is such a nice person! Actually it is a couple but he was working. My daughter has met both already. I was pleased to meet at least one of them. She brought some household items so we would have all we need while waiting for the mover's to arrive with said daughter's possessions, and also some food stuffs! So thoughtful! The condo is lovely. I think this will be a great place to live.

Now, California. Well, the last time I came here by car I was a young child so there's no memories of it at all. The last time I visited was by plane so only saw the coastal area, San Francisco and Long Beach. I must say, coming in from the east it is not too impressive, unless you are impressed by really huge sand dunes, and small mountains that consist of boulders. Then farm fields and what looked like scrubby arid lands a bit worse than some of West Texas. Finally we reached Vista and met the traffic. Oh my. I just do not know if I could ever do this! Or at least, not willingly for long! Zoom zoom indeed. Thankgoodness I did not have to drive.

The kid's at work, the cat is in hiding, and I'm holding down the fort. Drinking coffee and talking to folks back home and others that is, enjoying the pleasant weather and not being in a car.

Check out these sand dunes. People were riding bikes out there. Probably fourwheelers too but we only saw bikes.

and rocks! Oh my goodness, rocks.. mountains made of ROCKS!

Then it got uglier before we finally reached the city of our destination, as I said. No pics of that, I was nearly asleep. And no pics of this lovely apartment as it is not mine. So that's all for now!

Arizona

We made it quite a ways today, further than we thought when we started out this morning in San Angelo. It was still fairly early (not quite six) when we went through Tucson. So here we are at Gila Bend, Arizona. Long stretches of desert and hills in the background. Rather pretty in its own way.

We've made good use of google's number to call for businesses like hotels. Am so glad my son told me about that! We just call up and ask for the hotel of our choice in whatever city and get connected. Much nicer to know where you are going to stay and if they take cats than to wait til you drive up to figure it out.

The gps is getting a workout finding caches, but it doesn't do bad at finding gas stations either. Which is a lot of help when the distances can be so long between towns along I-8.

The cat we are taking to California is a quiet rider. In fact I have to keep feeling under the seat to assure myself she is still with us. Once in a while we can hear her purr!

Here's a couple of photos we grabbed along the way while driving..

New Mexico. .. much prettier seeing the real thing than in this picture..

Tucson had really gussied up their overpasses and bridges.. missed all but this one shot:

and the last cache of the day gave up this picture: