IN AND OUT BONEHEAD

 POST # 584

A few years ago, I came across a cartoon which depicted a human and a cat, standing in front of a door.  The cat wanted to go outside. In the lower right hand corner of the cartoon, there was a timer, with the numbers 0.00 on it.  The human opens the door, the cat goes out, and the timer begins.  The next frame of the cartoon shows the human letting the cat back in.  The timer measured just how long the cat had been outside.  It now read, 0.01.  The cat had spent exactly one second outside before it wanted to come back inside.  Anyone who has ever owned a cat, has probably experienced something along these lines.

This past week, I have come to the conclusion that Toby must be part cat.  I've lost track of the amount of times that he has stood at the door, waiting for this human to let him outside.  He gives me that look, and no matter what I may be doing, I head over to the door and let him out.  He's got me well trained at this point.  Sometimes, he's outside for a while, roaming around the yard, but at other times he's more like that cat in the cartoon.  I let him out, and once he's out there, he turns around, I re-open the door, and he comes back in.  It takes somewhat longer than one second, but not much more.

Toby is smart.  It didn't take him long to work out, that after he comes back in, he may get a treat.  He thinks that he's smarter than the house sitter, and perhaps he is.  But that is all going to change now, because I came across this book today.

Yes Toby, just when you finally thought that you had me wrapped around your paws, I've now got the inside info about your breed.  You don't stand a chance now. There is even a chapter on treats, so I've got the upper hand for sure.

A couple of years ago, I was taking care of a dog named Puka.  He had the habit of sitting on the couch, and staring out the front window.  Any movement at all outside, and Puka was barking up a storm. I'd go over to him, give him a treat, and he would be quiet for a while, but pretty soon the barking would begin again.  He had worked out, that if he barked, he would now get another treat.  Once I had figured that out, the treat frequency slowed down, and so did the barking.  Puka had another habit of grabbing anything that might be left unattended on a table or counter top.  The next thing you know, I would be chasing him around the backyard, with my reading glasses in his mouth.  Thankfully, Toby's too short to jump up on a table to grab things, which makes my job much easier.

Both Puka, and Toby have taught me some great lessons, and I am grateful to both of them.  I've still got the better part of two weeks to spend here with Toby, and no doubt, he will have a few more lessons to teach me during that time.

Toby is once again standing at the door, and I know what that means.  It's time to finish this post, head to the door, and let him out once again.  My training continues.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

SNOW, SNOW, and more SNOW

 POST # 583

With my faithful assistant, Toby, it was time once again to get out and shovel more snow.  During this past week, we have been out there most days, trying to keep ahead of it.  The driveway is my main concern, and even though there is a quad with a blade on the front available to do the job, I decided that I needed the exercise, so I grabbed the shovel and got stuck into it.  

While I shovelled, my mind went back in time to my youth.  I used to go to different neighbour's homes, and shovel away, with the reward usually being a twenty-five cent coin for my efforts.  In addition to that, there was always plenty of snow shovelling to do prior to playing a game of ice hockey at the neighbourhood rinks, which were all outdoors back then.  The work here, is a breeze by comparison.

In addition to the driveway, there are a couple of paths on the property to keep clear, and Toby was right there to supervise the operation, and make sure that it was done to his exacting standards. 

After our work was complete, it was time to enjoy a bit of relaxation on the couch.  Toby, being so exhausted from his supervisory work, drifted off to sleep, in order to regain his energy in anticipation of our next snow shovelling excursion.

And finally, as the day drew to a close, the snow began to fall once more.  I have never seen snow flakes look quite like this, so I felt the need to capture them as they were falling.

I'm pretty sure that it isn't the last time that I'll see snow falling during my stay here, but for the moment, it has stopped, and the temperature has warmed up from minus 25 C, to a balmy plus 3 C  since last week.  It now feels like summertime in comparison to when I arrived.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

PS.  January 21st is memories of mom day, as this was her birthday.  She's always close to my heart, and especially so today.

WANDERING TO LAKE COUNTRY

 POST # 582

It would have been exciting to arrive by helicopter at my current house sit gig, but that wasn't the case.  Instead, for the first time ever, I boarded an E-Bus for my journey eastward to where I now sit, typing these words.

In spite of the cold weather, it was a sunny day to take a bus journey, and I captured this photo of Mount Baker as I travelled towards my destination.

The bus departed at 2:15 pm, arriving about an hour later than expected at my destination of Kelowna airport.  At that point, I waited for the arrival of my house sit client, and it was about another half hour journey to my current location.

I had a very good visit with the owners, Rick and Claire, as Toby the bonehead looked on.  As expected, he was somewhat wary of the new visitor to the house, but after a few ear scratches, he began to warm up to this stranger.  

That all happened on Friday.  Yesterday the owners headed off on their vacation, so now it's just Toby and me to keep one another company.  He's now my buddy.  That didn't take long.

Toby is a mini Aussie shepherd with plenty of energy.  No doubt he will keep me amused during my stay at this manificent location overlooking Woods Lake,  in Lake Country, just a short drive north of the city of Kelowna.

*grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

* In light of a recent close call with death this past week, I am even more grateful than ever to be continuing on this journey called life.

GOODBYE 2023 and HELLO 2024

 POST # 581

Judging by the expression on Dora-dog's face, it appears that she isn't too impressed with the 123123 number sticker sitting on her head.  It detracts from her cuteness.  How on earth did it get there in the first place?  Blame this human for putting it on her.  This photo was taken on the final day of last year, and seeing as Mary and I both had a similar sticker on each of us, I figured that it wouldn't be right to leave out Dora-dog.

This took place last Sunday, on the final day of 2023, and as I write these words, we've already used up the first week of the year, 2024.  

But getting back to last Sunday, there was a New Year's eve function at the local community centre, here in Shelter Bay, and we decided to attend.  Dora-dog stayed at home (without the sticker on her head), and we drove to the venue for a 6 pm get together.  The party was meant to last until 9 pm, however by about 8:30 pm, the vast majority of the attendees, had already made their exit.  That's what happens when you have a senior population.  No one ever makes it to the stroke of midnight to see in the new year.   Prior to leaving though, we had someone take our photo.

With that task completed, it was time to say goodnight to the few neighbours who were still there, and head back home.  Dora-dog is always happy when she sees us come in the door.  

So here we are, in the year of 2024.  What to expect for the year is anyone's guess, and we can only take it a day at a time, just like every other year.  I have a feeling that it is going to be an eventful year, in more ways than one.  Time will tell.

For now though, I am most grateful to be in the company of Mary and Dora-dog for a few more days, before heading back across the border for my next house sitting assignment in the interior of British Columbia.  It's a brand new location for me with a new dog to care for.  More on that in next week's blog post.

Until then, I will remain...

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer