POST # 113
There once was a hound dog named Austin
Who thought about living in Boston
But when he looked around Vedder
He knew he couldn't do better
'cause it was a place to get lost in.
It is a grey, rainy morning which makes my decision to stay inside with Austin an easy one. Perhaps a walk to the river later might be in order, rain or no rain. His majesty is currently settled in on the carpet, having his first nap of the day after his morning survey of the yard. Now that he has secured the territory, he feels that he has earned a rest. It won't be too long before he will be standing at the back door waiting to go out again, knowing that when he returns via the front door, there will be a treat waiting. He's got this routine down to a science so who am I to try and change it?
The trees are beginning to bud.
The journey continues.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
THOUGHTFUL: showing consideration for others; occupied with or given to thought; contemplative; meditative. WANDERER: moving from place to place without a fixed plan; or having no permanent residence; nomadic.
Friday, March 28, 2014
Friday, March 21, 2014
SPRING
POST # 112
Yesterday just before 10am, (9:57am) to be more precise, the Spring Equinox arrived here on the west coast. This time last year I was hanging out with a bunch of cats in Victoria and now I have Austin the dog to keep an eye on. Like I mentioned last week, he is certainly one laid back canine, and so it's been a very relaxed house/pet sit indeed.
Yesterday was a typical spring day with the weather throwing a bit of everything our way including lots of wind, rain, hail and sunshine. The property I am on is in the shadow of a hill just to the south, and the sun has been ever so slowly managing to get higher in the sky each day and spread some of its light and warmth on us.
One thing I've noticed in the past week is the increased amount of blue jays flying around in addition to a multitude of other birds including some of the fattest robins that I have ever seen. The robins have good pickin's around here on the lawn, pulling out worm after worm and it's always a mystery to me how they manage to find just the right place to put their beak into the ground and pull out their prize. If I was a robin, it would make perfect sense I'm sure.
On my ride into town across the Vedder river yesterday, I noticed that it is running a lot clearer and there seems to be more people fishing along the banks as each day passes. I am content to spend time down there with Austin, and just hang out and watch the water flow by and as the weather continues to warm up, I expect to be there even more.
I was tempted to write about other issues going on in our world at the moment, however as I have come to learn over time, the more pressing the issue, the less interest there seems to be in discussing it. So I'll end this short post, and go outside and enjoy some of that spring weather with my buddy Austin, down by the riverside. Precious moments.
Happy Trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Yesterday just before 10am, (9:57am) to be more precise, the Spring Equinox arrived here on the west coast. This time last year I was hanging out with a bunch of cats in Victoria and now I have Austin the dog to keep an eye on. Like I mentioned last week, he is certainly one laid back canine, and so it's been a very relaxed house/pet sit indeed.
Yesterday was a typical spring day with the weather throwing a bit of everything our way including lots of wind, rain, hail and sunshine. The property I am on is in the shadow of a hill just to the south, and the sun has been ever so slowly managing to get higher in the sky each day and spread some of its light and warmth on us.
One thing I've noticed in the past week is the increased amount of blue jays flying around in addition to a multitude of other birds including some of the fattest robins that I have ever seen. The robins have good pickin's around here on the lawn, pulling out worm after worm and it's always a mystery to me how they manage to find just the right place to put their beak into the ground and pull out their prize. If I was a robin, it would make perfect sense I'm sure.
On my ride into town across the Vedder river yesterday, I noticed that it is running a lot clearer and there seems to be more people fishing along the banks as each day passes. I am content to spend time down there with Austin, and just hang out and watch the water flow by and as the weather continues to warm up, I expect to be there even more.
I was tempted to write about other issues going on in our world at the moment, however as I have come to learn over time, the more pressing the issue, the less interest there seems to be in discussing it. So I'll end this short post, and go outside and enjoy some of that spring weather with my buddy Austin, down by the riverside. Precious moments.
Happy Trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Friday, March 14, 2014
ONE CHILLED OUT BONEHEAD
POST # 111
WOW, where has the week gone? Here I go writing another blog and I've had the great pleasure of spending another week with my new best friend, Austin. As the title says, he is one laid back, or chilled out bonehead. We're the perfect combination.
Austin and I have now had time to settle into a very comfortable routine and we both seem to be happy about that. We spend plenty of time together, except when he goes off for his solo wanderings along the river, but aside from that, or when I ride to town, we are together, and I like that, and by all appearances, he does too.
A typical day begins with a sleep in, but after I get up, he's still in his bed. In fact he's the first dog I've ever cared for, that doesn't bound into action as soon as it knows that the human is awake. Austin gets up when he's good and ready, and sometimes that can be much later than me. This is the first indication of just how chilled out he really is. Eventually though, we are both outside checking out the new day ahead. We like to spend time down by the river which is immediately out front of the house. There are plenty of things for Austin to sniff at, while I relax on a log and watch the Vedder river flow rapidly by. One day earlier in the week, I could hear him barking up a storm, down by the river. It was not something he normally does, so I decided to go back there and see if he was ok. He was, but something had aroused his senses, and he was totally focused on tracking down whatever it was he was searching for. Once I knew that he was alright, I was happy to leave him be, and head back to the house. Eventually he always shows up at the front door, and with a single "woof" he signals to me that he's ready to come back in, and with any luck, get a doggy treat for his effort.
Austin and I seem to find time each afternoon, to have a nap together on the living room floor. He seems to enjoy the company of a human beside him and it's a pretty relaxed way to spend a half hour or so.
Eventually, another day comes to an end. Time to go outside once more so that he can do his business, and then we retire to the bedroom. And so it goes.
The sun is now showing itself between the clouds, and so I had better get outside and take a wander to the river with my chilled out bonehead friend, Austin.
Happy Trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
WOW, where has the week gone? Here I go writing another blog and I've had the great pleasure of spending another week with my new best friend, Austin. As the title says, he is one laid back, or chilled out bonehead. We're the perfect combination.
Austin and I have now had time to settle into a very comfortable routine and we both seem to be happy about that. We spend plenty of time together, except when he goes off for his solo wanderings along the river, but aside from that, or when I ride to town, we are together, and I like that, and by all appearances, he does too.
A typical day begins with a sleep in, but after I get up, he's still in his bed. In fact he's the first dog I've ever cared for, that doesn't bound into action as soon as it knows that the human is awake. Austin gets up when he's good and ready, and sometimes that can be much later than me. This is the first indication of just how chilled out he really is. Eventually though, we are both outside checking out the new day ahead. We like to spend time down by the river which is immediately out front of the house. There are plenty of things for Austin to sniff at, while I relax on a log and watch the Vedder river flow rapidly by. One day earlier in the week, I could hear him barking up a storm, down by the river. It was not something he normally does, so I decided to go back there and see if he was ok. He was, but something had aroused his senses, and he was totally focused on tracking down whatever it was he was searching for. Once I knew that he was alright, I was happy to leave him be, and head back to the house. Eventually he always shows up at the front door, and with a single "woof" he signals to me that he's ready to come back in, and with any luck, get a doggy treat for his effort.
Austin and I seem to find time each afternoon, to have a nap together on the living room floor. He seems to enjoy the company of a human beside him and it's a pretty relaxed way to spend a half hour or so.
Eventually, another day comes to an end. Time to go outside once more so that he can do his business, and then we retire to the bedroom. And so it goes.
The sun is now showing itself between the clouds, and so I had better get outside and take a wander to the river with my chilled out bonehead friend, Austin.
Happy Trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
Friday, March 7, 2014
FIFTY NINE AND TWO AND AUSTIN
POST # 110
This is the one post during the year in which I don't have the extra days off after the preceding post, due to the short length of February, so a mere one week later here I am back at the computer to write a little bit more.
Since last week a couple of numbers have come to pass, those being the ones in the title of today's blog. I turned 59 earlier in the week and the next day was exactly 2 years since I went tumbling down the hill in Grand Forks BC. I'm quite sure that there are people out there who bemoan the fact that they have become one year older, however that has never been the case with me. And since my accident two years ago, I appreciate even more the fact that I actually am older, because as far as I'm concerned, all the days since then have been bonus days for me. In some ways, having that fall was one of the best things that could have happened to me for two reasons that I can think of. It allowed me to see how I reacted in a situation where the life and death stakes were very high indeed, but more than that, it has given me an extra appreciation for savouring every moment since that time.
So even though I have technically started my 60th year on this rock spinning around the sun in a small corner of the universe, I am the only family member left who still has an age that starts with the number 5, as all my sisters are now in their 60's. I would like to think that I will be as fortunate as them to get to my 60's, but life is a bit of a crap shoot at the best of times, even without adding in all the other factors that are appearing now on the scene at a rapid rate of knots. The list is long and getting longer, and it's all the more reason to appreciate each moment as it appears.
Spending time with my new dog friend Austin, is one of the ways to appreciate some of those moments. I've been settled here in Chilliwack now for about a week and Austin and I have had plenty of time together. He's a great dog, and so easy to care for, that it's been a house sitter's dream to be here. The location is rural, and quiet which I may have already mentioned in last week's blog, and I am quite content to be here. We've had plenty of snow followed by plenty of rain but that's o.k. because it's not like I'm out camping in it. This morning as I write, the sky has started to clear and a patch of blue sky is showing, as well as a few rays of sun. Perhaps this will be a good day to go for a wander down by the river which is immediately out front of the house. It's Austin's playground and it's good to take the opportunity to spend time with him down there. I was somewhat reluctant to do that earlier this week, because there was still too much snow on the ground, which is no big deal, except for the fact that it covered all kinds of rocks and sticks that are potential tripping hazards, and a trip and fall, or a sprained ankle is something I most certainly can do without at the moment.
Before that blue sky and sun disappear, I think I better finish this up and get outside and appreciate a few of those moments while the weather holds. It's much better to be out there without the radiation laced rainfall coming down. After all, only four days from now marks the third anniversary of the the triple nuclear meltdown in Fukushima, but as is the case with any important information these days, it is edited out as if it never happened by items much more important, like Justin Beeber and Miley Cyrus. Bread and circuses to keep the people content.
Austin's giving me the look so it's time to go for a river walk.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
This is the one post during the year in which I don't have the extra days off after the preceding post, due to the short length of February, so a mere one week later here I am back at the computer to write a little bit more.
Since last week a couple of numbers have come to pass, those being the ones in the title of today's blog. I turned 59 earlier in the week and the next day was exactly 2 years since I went tumbling down the hill in Grand Forks BC. I'm quite sure that there are people out there who bemoan the fact that they have become one year older, however that has never been the case with me. And since my accident two years ago, I appreciate even more the fact that I actually am older, because as far as I'm concerned, all the days since then have been bonus days for me. In some ways, having that fall was one of the best things that could have happened to me for two reasons that I can think of. It allowed me to see how I reacted in a situation where the life and death stakes were very high indeed, but more than that, it has given me an extra appreciation for savouring every moment since that time.
So even though I have technically started my 60th year on this rock spinning around the sun in a small corner of the universe, I am the only family member left who still has an age that starts with the number 5, as all my sisters are now in their 60's. I would like to think that I will be as fortunate as them to get to my 60's, but life is a bit of a crap shoot at the best of times, even without adding in all the other factors that are appearing now on the scene at a rapid rate of knots. The list is long and getting longer, and it's all the more reason to appreciate each moment as it appears.
Spending time with my new dog friend Austin, is one of the ways to appreciate some of those moments. I've been settled here in Chilliwack now for about a week and Austin and I have had plenty of time together. He's a great dog, and so easy to care for, that it's been a house sitter's dream to be here. The location is rural, and quiet which I may have already mentioned in last week's blog, and I am quite content to be here. We've had plenty of snow followed by plenty of rain but that's o.k. because it's not like I'm out camping in it. This morning as I write, the sky has started to clear and a patch of blue sky is showing, as well as a few rays of sun. Perhaps this will be a good day to go for a wander down by the river which is immediately out front of the house. It's Austin's playground and it's good to take the opportunity to spend time with him down there. I was somewhat reluctant to do that earlier this week, because there was still too much snow on the ground, which is no big deal, except for the fact that it covered all kinds of rocks and sticks that are potential tripping hazards, and a trip and fall, or a sprained ankle is something I most certainly can do without at the moment.
Before that blue sky and sun disappear, I think I better finish this up and get outside and appreciate a few of those moments while the weather holds. It's much better to be out there without the radiation laced rainfall coming down. After all, only four days from now marks the third anniversary of the the triple nuclear meltdown in Fukushima, but as is the case with any important information these days, it is edited out as if it never happened by items much more important, like Justin Beeber and Miley Cyrus. Bread and circuses to keep the people content.
Austin's giving me the look so it's time to go for a river walk.
Happy trails,
Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer
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