New park, beautiful day!

After an early lunch with OC, DH and I decided (actually, I talked him into it) to scope out the entrance to a new walking spot. The dog whisperer had told me about this place so we were not surprised to see his car parked at one of the gates.

Well, first we had to go home to get the puppies! They were ready for the hike (just like they are now worn out and sleeping in sunny spots in the back yard) and rushed the car. Upon arrival we quickly figured out how to navigate the weird entrance - designed to keep vehicles out, but allow people and dogs in. Then we headed to the creek.

The Whisperer had explained by telephone (I didn't want to wander around and scare him - or miss him - so I called him.) that his dogs had gone after a deer and he was in pursuit by the creek.

The trails here aren't well traveled.* We tried to follow deer trails that crisscrossed the meadow. Cactus and brambles greeted us at the woody area near the creek. We carefully picked our way through (I came out scratched and bleeding in spite of my caution). I will have to check the dogs again to make sure they are clear of burrs and thorns.

The detritus of  hunters and target shooters and others was everywhere to be seen near the gate and throughout the meadow. Bird hunters are allowed here. Apparently no one picks up their empty shotgun shells anymore.**

We whistled for our friends and called out their names. Suddenly, there was Hugo. We wandered closer to the creek and found the Whisperer, but the other two dogs were still wandering elsewhere. The Whisperer's frustration was evident.

I walked the dogs up and down the rocky creek bank. They jumped in and out of the water, shook themselves off, and begged for cookies. Then they ran off and joined DH and I had to find a way up from the creek.

I ended up well to the east in a wooded area. I flushed a cottontail. Knowing I was probably getting lost, I called to DH. "Keep calling me so I can find you"

He was less than 40 feet from me, but the brush was just thick enough to keep me from seeing him***

The men and our dogs and Hugo were just at the edge of the meadow when I reached them. There was still no sign of the missing Stanley and Ruby. The Whisperer decided to head to the car and change into cooler clothes before heading back to look for the missing dogs.

We said our goodbyes and drove along the north edge of the park, stopping and calling without luck.****

PHOTOS:

Paddy doesn't look very excited, but she is.

Look closely at the center of this photo. The leaves of the bluebonnet promise a blanket in this park. I cannot wait.

DH takes the lead. The dogs are still on their lead. I am reluctant to let them run until we are deeper in the park.

We found sweet Hugo or he found us.

Yum...nasty green creek water!

Paddy splashes.

Scruffy splashes too.

He doesn't seem to enjoy the water as much as she does, but he tries.

I think she said "cookie"!

The guys walk well ahead of us.

 

We found tiny bird bones along the creek. They are in the silt filled hollows.

Another view of the tiny bones.

 

While lost-ish I snapped this additional view of the wildflower foliage springing up. More bluebonnet leaves at the center of the shadow.

NOTES:

* The ground was mushy from the recent rain.

** We may have to adopt this park. I suppose we could pick up trash while the dogs run.

*** DH always wears some variety of tan or olive or brown or camo. It doesn't take much for him to disappear into the tans and browns of the winter landscape here.

****I will check with the Whisperer later. His puppies do this from time to time. I trust he will find them.

Dogs and deer and shovels - no walk

I didn't walk this morning as we had early showers. I had planned to walk this evening, but an hour or so ago I noticed one bright lightning bolt and rushed to get the dogs as the thunder crashed around us.

Paddy is terrified of thunder. Scruff just wants to be inside (out of the rain). So I hustled them in.* Scruffy went to his crate - that is his habit. Paddy came into the living room to sit and relax before going into her crate. It is pouring outside - a surprise storm as we were only to have light showers, if that. If this rain will pass through I will take the dogs down the street for a few minutes...it will be late, but it will be something.

I drove to another town with a friend. Deer were everywhere.

We first saw four deer and three guinea hens come out of the woods and into the road. By the time we left the area we counted at least 20 deer, usually in groups of four or five.  It was mid-morning and they wandered through the neighborhoods grazing in the yards. I took a few pictures of them and a lovely gnarly old oak tree.

What a nightmare it must be to try and garden with this large population of deer.**

As if in a park, I walked into this yard to get a shot of the deer. Only after I got the photos did I think, "These folks probably don't want people running around their yard either."

These guys were fearless.

No, I did not walk up this close. I am using my pitiful telephoto lens.

They started to ignore me (continued grazing) so I clapped my hands (nothing) and then shouted at them to get their faces.

This old oak was so interesting.

Here is a closer look at the gnarled trunk.

Notes:

* The last time I rushed outside to bring a frightened dog in out of the rain I tripped over my own feet, fell face first into a minnow bucket (missing the concrete steps by inches) and broke my nose - necessitating a trip to the ER and a night spent in the hospital for 3 stitches. This night went a little smoother.

** I still think they are beautiful. I am just not going to move to this town and I will keep big dogs in my yard for now.

*** I found a few gifts and stuff at estate sales (my friend made me do it). One treasure was a sharp shooter shovel. This is my favorite kind of shovel. I have a couple of stories about adventures with sharp shooters...well, those stories will have to wait for another day.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TiQHIXjhwsc

Freezing rain and fried eggs

We woke early to check the weather. A storm would hit us, or not. The weather reports weren't clear.

About an hour after the coffee was made came the freezing rain (I wanted to say ice storm because that sounds more dramatic, but it was just rain that froze on contact with anything cold enough.). We watched the radar on the weather channel as we listened to the moisture falling - changing the morning in a matter of minutes.

The words scrolling across the TV screen reported work was delayed two hours again so we could afford to wait until daylight to take the puppies outside for breakfast. I cooked them eggs (a little extra protein cannot hurt).

The sidewalks were damp, but clear of ice. The road looked fine. [But reports of wrecks indicate bridges and overpasses are unsafe.]

I had to de-glove to pick up a fried egg. DH overfilled the dog dishes - "It's cold. They need a little extra food today." So one egg slipped off the kibble and had to be retrieved. On the way through the gate I felt it slick with a film of ice you could not see. The ice had fully encased our vehicles (the only spot with icicles I noticed - until the walk).

Weird little icicles on DH's car - we only got enough rain/sleet to make the bridges dangerous and require us to scrape the windshields (something I always forget until I get out to the car).

After giving giving them time to eat, I took the babies down the street for another short winter walk.

My view pretty much never changes...*

We noticed the difference between this walk and the others almost immediately. There was almost no wind. The birds were singing. Neighbors were out in their yards. Neighbors we have never seen before called "hello" and waived to us. We ran a little.

Continuing past our "it is too cold and windy, we must turn around" spot we wondered, would we, could we, make it to the park?

Yes, yes we could!

Happy dogs - they knew the park was still here.

The sun was attempting to escape the clouds.

I love this tree - spooky as it is in winter.

Sunlight reflected off the icy edges of the creek (near the park bridge).

We were surprised to see that sometime during these last couple of ice storms someone crashed into the bridge on the street just outside the park. This stretch of road is on a turn from one direction and down a hill/around a curve from the other. And this is proof of why they warn us about icy/slick bridges and overpasses. It doesn't look like they crashed completely through (or over) the railing/barrier. [And a good thing - from these photos you cannot see the 15 foot drop from the sidewalk to the creek bed.]

It doesn't look like much...

...until you get close and see the damage.

A jogger went running by:

Jogger - uphill is tough.

We saw a few other things as we walked along. First, we noticed that garbage containers are perfect hosts for tiny icicles:

One of the new containers. A neighbor had left this near the sidewalk.

An "old style" can turned on its side near an empty house.

The trash can in the park.

I love icicles. I found some on the bushes and grabbed a few photos of the rain frozen in drips - not traditionally shaped icicles. It didn't rain long enough for those.

This is my "keep the kids from running out into the street" hedge. It is made up of red tip photinias and variegated pittosporum bushes. I have chopped the devil out of it, but it continues to grow. It has served us well (even as it sits atop the buried phone line - but that is another story).

We saw and heard mockingbirds and so many other birds in the park. It was almost a wall of birdsong.** Then, as we turned for home, the dogs stopped and stared towards the line of pecans at the entrance to the park. I listed and heard the tap-tap-tap of a woodpecker. I can never tell if the bird I see is a downy or hairy one.***  Still I love woodpeckers and tried to find this bird today. But I coughed and we did not hear him again.

We saw a nightmare of dandelions in a neighbor's yard.

A "riot" of dandelions? A chaos of dandelions?

One dandelion (to make a wish!)

We notice our artist friend, Jane, had put a friendly looking rocker on her porch.

Yes, you have seen this porch before. The cat man once lived here.

We saw a flow of water from the house with the red door. I walked towards the back yard to see if I could tell where all the water was coming from and found a phone number on the "For Rent" sign resting next to the fence. I called and left a message. We knew the house was empty as we watched the "flashlight thieves" load up and drive away with their U-Haul truck (and our yellow flashlight).****

It is hard to tell from this photo, but the water was running into the street.

One of the best results of the walk was discovering that one of our neighbors is okay (we think). Recently we had noticed that no newspapers were being thrown at the home of a former co-worker of DH. She is one of those people we would see from time to time - at the polling place during elections or sitting on her porch on days she waited for a ride.***** We have not seen her recently.

While there was still no newspaper thrown today, I spied herself hurrying down the sidewalk and stepping into a car. "Great" I told myself. "She's fine. I'll check when they drive by to make sure it is her." ****** In the next instant the car u-turned and so I will have to take it on faith that all is well for now.*******


Happy dogs and a happy walker returned home warmed by the walk and by the sun this day:

Scruffy, distracted by something moving in the park.

Paddy listens for the woodpecker.

NOTES: 

* I love this insulated jacket DH and MC found at a gun show. They always bring me a present: a carved wooden bowl, a sewing machine, an olive drab jacket, or a gold edged rose pin. It is always nice to be thought of (except for the rose pin. That was pretty awful.).

** http://www.allaboutbirds.org/Page.aspx?pid=1189 (Cornell's site)
     http://txtbba.tamu.edu/ (an interesting site from Texas A&M)

*** http://birding.about.com/od/identifyingbirds/a/downyorhairy.htm (There are a number of sites to help you tell the difference. But you have to SEE the bird and I did not see him today.)

**** The woman called me back and thanked me for telling her about the water. She might not have discovered this for days. [Yes, I am THAT neighbor - the busy body.]

***** Another former co-worker would pick her up for Sunday church and such.

****** I was a block away and my eyes aren't as good as they could be. I only saw a silver-haired older woman of the correct size and stature. I could not see her face.

*******If we could remember her name (stop, don't say it) we could call her on the phone. If we walked at a decent hour we could just knock on the door. As it is we must wait until we think of it during the day and we can stop by - perhaps when we graduate.

Ice delay...and the sun came out!

Poor, poor puppies!

The weather has been so ugly (low temperature and wicked wind) that we simply fear for their safety. There was a work delay for a few hours today and so we waited to let them out to eat and take a short little walk.

They loved being out and scooted down the street with a little bounce in their steps...until they happened upon a frozen puddle. They were not amused as paws went in all directions as the pups scrambled for safe ground.

I try not to "short leash" them when we walk. I believe animals need to explore. But on the way back up the street I shorted them a bit, to keep my guys away from the icy spots.

The sun peeked out a little and we could feel the warmth. It promised a little more warmth than the weather reports told us to expect.

Walker's shadow...hopefully not 6 more weeks of winter. We have had enough.

The ice was everywhere. It coated some plants and merely dusted others. I saw a number of plants already blooming. I guess the weather has shocked them as much as it has surprised everyone.

The dogs and I continue to walk less than a mile in the mornings - just a little stretch of the legs.

Ice on the oxalis

Ice glitters on the yarrow.

Sleet on the iris leaves.

Water froze on this inverted bucket (and the dogs' water was iced over).

Some of the bulbs are already blooming. They didn't expect the bad weather.

Frozen precip. weighing down the Texas snowdrops (or whatever these are - they came with the house)

More plants shocked by the weather.

Ice coated the leaves of the nandina.

Leaves of the aspidistra glisten.

We are told freezing rain and sleet will begin again tonight and continue through the morning commute. We may warm up by the end of the week. We are all ready. We are ready for warm and we are ready for longer walks.

Winter storms - short walks

We brought two wet, muddy, and cold dogs into the house early this afternoon. We had seen the lightning and heard the thunder (we were perilously close to one bolt as we took photos after lunch) and hurried home to take care of the puppies. Poor Paddy hates thunder. If she can find a way out of the yard during a storm she will take it. But today there was no escape (I spent some serious time and effort closing the last escape hole a few weeks ago) and so Paddy was waiting in her house while Scruffy waited at the gate. We were surprised by the storm thinking that it had already blown through. This front hit hard this morning (temperatures dropping from 70 to 39 in an instant) and just kept giving us crazy weather.

The pups came inside and sat patiently as we toweled them dry. Well, Scruffy was almost patient. He did shake a bit and I am sure I will be cleaning up mud for a while. [I am still finding drips from a long ago tie dye experience with the neighborhood kiddos...there are always a few stray drops in unexpected places.]

Still, the dogs are not used to spending so much time in the house. This only means that we will be braving the treacherous weather as we walk the puppies and then hustle them in again, pre-frostbite. I don't know that they will have the full run of the yard until much later in the week.

I took them out a few minutes ago - pre-60 Minutes/pre-Oscars. Our windshields were iced over, but the sidewalks were not obstructed - yet. Frozen rain and granules of sleet coat the grass and leaves in the yard. I tried to guide the animals away from the ice. They may have fur insulated paws, but we had a walk to take and I wanted to make sure they had a chance to stretch without hurting themselves.

Few cars were on the road. Clearly people took the weather warnings seriously and stayed off the roads. We saw one bird, a grackle, which flew away as soon as it saw us. We saw a teenaged girl walking towards us, dressed in jeans and a hoodie. I asked if she was cold and she said that it "did not feel that cold" to her. We kept walking and I lifted a thought to the universe that she and all the other creatures out in the cold take shelter soon.*

We headed down the hill. I knew we wouldn't walk too far. And we were turned around by barking dogs about a half mile from the house. These dogs are always alert and one sometimes escapes to bark us away. I decided not to risk any excitement. The last thing I needed was to wrestle my two away from a strange puppy in the wet street.

Some kind of precipitation was falling as we walked. I don't know what to call it - light flurries?

We are all back inside now, thawing. I can hear the clicking of sleet on the window behind me. The weather reporter just announced it is 80 degrees in Brownsville and 8 in Amarillo. It is 25 here and destined to hit 20 with single digit windchills in the a.m. It will not get above freezing until Tuesday afternoon...but only after more freezing precipitation.

Did I mention that I did not go to the grocery store this weekend? Well, I didn't.**

We have enough provisions for a few days, but nothing exciting/fresh (except for milk and eggs). I supposed we could live on oatmeal or spaghetti or scrambled eggs, or tuna salad for a few days. And I suspect there may be a bread mix in the cupboard. We will be fine...or I will send DH hiking off to the store for provisions. We did that one year, but our grocery store has moved and I suspect the man would not be amused. He has already announced he is not running in the morning. A hike to the store is probably out as well.

But I will be walking the dogs in the cold cold morning. I am so looking forward to it...

NOTES:

*I am convinced that teenagers are simply crazy. I have my reasons. Today provided more evidence.

** I know, what kind of former Girl Scout am I? I may not be completely prepared, but I am prepared enough for the couple of cold days ahead. [I could still start a fire with one match!]

Wet feet, wet dog - walkers and watchers and runners.

It was 70 degrees and raining when I woke today (at 5:15, I might add). DH was gearing up for a half marathon.

It was clear that I would not be walking the dogs. But I promised DH and LD that I would head to the springs and climb up to the dam (across which they would run) if it stopped raining. I decided that I would take only one dog as two would be impossible to manage. Of course I would make the trip ONLY if it stopped raining.

And it did.

I fed the dogs and discovered that, while it had cleared a bit, the temperature had dropped to 45 and a stiff breeze had started blowing in from the northwest.

Now, I have watched races for the past 30 some-odd years. I do not run. [I have tried it and I do not like it. I get a stitch in my side and all I can think is how much I want to stop running.] But I live in a family of runners and so I still watch races from time to time.* I have learned to dress for the weather, take water, and make sure the camera is ready. It was hard today. The weather kept changing and I forgot the camera battery was almost dead.

I figured it would take us about 20 minutes to walk to the top of the dam. DH takes about 2 hours and a smidgen to run a half. LD takes a little longer. So I figured that leaving the house at 7 would give me time to get into the park and climb up to the dam a few minutes before the old fellow and LD crossed (cheering them through the end of the first half of the half).

The springs' gate was locked (of course it was) so we turned around and checked to see if there was any spot where we could park and walk closer to the race route. It looked like the road beyond was blocked, but I was able to cross the road, past the police cruiser with lights flashing,  and drive to a small park on the other side of the dam. Scruffy** and I wandered around to see how close we could get to the dam road.

I was bundled up in parka and bright hat. I found lined gloves and a blanket in the car. I took my "look" to new extremes of ridiculous, but I was warm...until my feet got wet. Scruffy looked fabulous.

The "turn-around" at mile 7 with the dam behind.

Scruffy and I got to mile 7 the easy way - we drove.

We walked through the wet grass and noticed that the wildflowers have started coming up. The leaves of the bluebonnet were out, promising a blanket of blue in the next month or so. Radio trucks were setting up along the road. Crowds of people with tents, lawn chairs and such began lining the route.

Soon enough, runners started across the dam. The fast ones approached the turn-around in ones and twos. Then the runners started coming in groups as well...soldiers and civilians, young and old...some serious, many listening to music...two carried flags...a couple smiled and waved at the crazy lady with the black dog.

Runner carrying the American flag.

Then there he was and DH talked to us as he ran past - "OC is on the other side of the dam." ***

Gotta love this guy - wouldn't stand out in the rain for just anyone.

LD waives. Her friend J is to the left.  DH is two runners to the right (running the other direction having completed the turn-around).

Then I heard LD's voice. I looked and she was waiving.

Our job was done. We headed back to the car, glad to get out of the weather. The rain began again when we were a few blocks from home. The temperature had continued to drop. It was 39 degrees and time to get out of these wet shoes.


NOTES:

*While youngest child was in high school I spent most weekends during cross-country season driving to meets, photographing amazing/dedicated young runners, developing film, and taking selected shots to the local newspaper (trying to get each senior and most runners in the papers at least once a season). At the end of the year we prepared a book for each runner. During each meet I would photograph sometimes 6 races, trying to catch the start and then "running" across the course to grab a shot in the middle somewhere. I was in much better shape then - and a lot younger.

** Scruffy is better behaved than Paddy.

*** Our oldest child chose not to run today, but was the "shuttle" for the family runners. She was able to set up on the north side of the dam while Scruffy and I were on the south side.

And on his way back past us DH suggested that Scruff and I "Go home and get warm." We took his advice.