FROM ELLY TO IZZY

 POST # 717

A few days ago, I had to tell Elly the bad news, that I would be leaving soon.  She didn't seem to quite understand why that was the case.  After all, we had been having such a wonderful time together, and now it was coming to an end. 

But as soon as her owner arrived back home the next morning, she bounced out of the bed to greet him at the door.  So everything now was back to normal for Elly, and life would continue to be good.

Not long after our goodbye, I would be heading back to the prairies of Alberta to begin my next housesit

After an extremely bumpy ride across the Rocky mountains due to the severe Chinook winds, we approached Calgary in anticipation of our landing at the airport. Having a window seat, I was busy looking down to see if I could identify any landmarks, and sure enough, before too long we were flying over Glenmore reservoir, which was extremely close to were I grew up all those years ago.

A few minutes later, we were on our final approach to land, and soon after that I was driving south towards Okotoks with Izzy's owner.  Eventually we arrived at their property, and had an enjoyable visit prior to calling it a night.

 Her owners left  very early this morning, and now it's just the two of us.  She has spent the majority of this first day, staring out the window, no doubt waiting for them to return.  But for now, she's stuck with the house sitter, and hopefully it won't take too long before she settles in with this new human. The weather is wonderful, so I'll see if I can talk her into going for a walk soon, so we can continue to get to know one another.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

ANOTHER DAY WITH ELLY

 POST # 716

When we head off to bed each evening, Elly settles over on her side of the bed.  Somehow during the night, she manages to nudge ever closer to my side, so that by the time I wake up, I am almost falling off  the edge of my side.  How she manages to do this remains a mystery, but this is how our day starts.

And so another day begins with Elly. The first item on the agenda once we are up, is to head outside so she can do her business in the small back yard.  The weather is cooling off now, so the shorter time that we are out there, the better.  The next item on Elly's agenda is breakfast, and I make sure to get that organised right away. After all of that is out of the way, I can then have some time to myself, and Elly can relax, and stare out the front window to see if any of her dog buddies walk on by.  She certainly lets them know she sees them if they do stroll by.  In spite of her small size, she has an extremely loud bark.

Eventually it's time for our daily walk, and lately it's been a challenge, as we try to work it around the rainfall.  So far we've been lucky, and have managed to stay dry for the most part.  As soon as she sees me start to put on my boots, she knows that the walk is imminent, and she patiently waits at the door in preparation for our journey.

There is an endless amount of things to sniff along the way, and occasionally we run into some of her four legged friends as well.

After we return home, it's time for her afternoon nap, and sometimes she likes to settle upon my lap in order to enjoy her snooze.

And so goes another day, hanging out with Elly.  Her owner arrives home early next week, and I'm sure she'll be excited to see him when he walks in the door.  In the meantime, I'll try and enjoy her company as much as I can.  She has been a joy to hang out with, and I'm glad that I had the opportunity to spend some time with her.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

ELLY

 POST # 715

Say hi to Elly.  She wins the award for the smallest dog that I have had the pleasure to spend time with, during all of the years that I have been pet sitting.

I arrived at my current location just four days ago, and it's taken until today for Elly to finally relax and be comfortable with the new human occupying her house.  After the owner left, Elly sat on a chair and stared out the front window at the parking spot for many hours.  I guess that she was hoping/expecting her owner to return home from wherever he had gone to.  Time continued to pass, and still no sign of him.  When it was time for bed, I think she may have been starting to think that he wasn't coming home, at least for that day.

Since that first day, our relationship has gotten stronger, and in fact, just today she was running around playing with me, and having a ball.  Perhaps we've finally turned the corner now, and she has accepted that I will be the human taking care of her for a while longer.

We are located in a gated community in Abbotsford, and I like it because it is only a short walk to the local grocery store.  That's a good thing, seeing as walking is my only form of transport during my stay here.

So far the weather has been spectacular for this time of the year, and when I go out for a walk I can do it wearing only a T-shirt.  T-shirt weather in October.  What's not to like about that?

We have settled into a daily routine.  I expect that as each day passes, our relationship will grow even stronger.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

IT'S NOW OFFICIAL and NEW TRAIN NO TRAIN

 POST # 714

As you can see by the sign, it's now official.  The ice cream shop is closed until March 2027. A couple of days ago, we had our first opportunity to walk by, since my arrival on Sunday evening.  I knew that the shop was closed, but Dora-dog didn't know.

Needless to say, she was somewhat confused when we arrived there.  "Where are they, and why can't I get my dog treat?"

We stood around for quite some time, until I think she finally realised that there wasn't going to be a dog biscuit coming her way anytime soon.  I let her take as long as she wanted, and at some point, she turned away from the window, and we were once again on our way.  When we walked by today, she worked out quite quickly that nothing had changed, and so our stop was brief in comparison to the earlier day.  Dora-dog is a quick learner, and I guess she decided that continuing the walk was much more enjoyable than just hanging around.  I'm curious to see how the rest of the week progresses.  Who knows, we may even get to the point where we walk right on by without stopping, but we'll see.

If only she knew how to read, then she would have understood that standing around wasn't going to make any difference.  

And now to the other part of today's title.  On my previous journey back to Canada, Amtrak had a new train to travel on, which is a first since I have been using their service for the past several years.  So when I arrived at Pacific Central Station in Vancouver this past Sunday, I was expecting to be getting on board that same train to head to Washington.

I arrived at my usual time, and I was quite surprised to see the place so deserted. I placed my bags at the front of the line, and began my wait.  Eventually the rumour started to circulate that the train wasn't going to be arriving because of some problem, that I never did find out the answer to.  The rumour turned out to be true, and so we went from new train to no train just like that.  Some buses were arranged to arrive at the station, and after some delay we were finally on our way.

Eventually I made it to Mount Vernon station, and after some communication difficulties, due to no wifi connection, Mary and Dora-dog arrived at the station and we were on our way.

With any luck, the train will be back in service this coming Sunday, at which time I will be heading back to Canada once again, to begin a new housesit out in Abbotsford. BC.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

ONE + ONE = ZERO

 POST # 713

I mentioned the title of today's blog post to Ollie, and as you can see, he seems rather unimpressed with the math.  Now I don't expect him to be a mathematical genius, but it doesn't take a genius to work out that the math is all wrong.

When I was in school, math was one of the subjects that I did well in, so the title certainly seems to contradict that fact.  So let's get to the bottom of this enigma by breaking down each number in the title.

The first one is for one year.

The second one is for one day.

And the zero is for no alcohol.

On October 6th, 2025, which is exactly one year and one day ago, I made the decision to consume zero  beverages containing alcohol.  I was curious to see how much I would miss it.  And to be honest, it only took less than a week, before I didn't even think about having a drink.  It was way easier than I had expected, which both surprised and delighted me at the same time.

On that day last year, I happened to be thinking of my dear mom, as that was the anniversary of the day she died back in 2007.  It was a significant date for me, and so it seemed like a good date to start my non-drinking project.  And so far, so good.  I wonder what mom would think of my decision?  She did enjoy her daily rum and coke, so she may have wondered why I had chosen this path.  Of course, I'll never know the answer to that question.

So now you know the answer to the strange math in today's title.  I tried on numerous occasions today, to explain this to Ollie, but he showed absolutely no interest in listening to my reasoning.  His major concern for today, just like every other day, is to get as much napping accomplished as he can in a day, in order to save up his energy for his daily meals.  Listening to me, is a total waste of his time.

And writing any more on this topic, is probably not a good use of my time either, as it is a spectacularly beautiful autumn day outside, so it's time to head out for a walk, and enjoy the day while I still can.

When I return, if Ollie is awake, I may try just one more time to explain the math to him, but if his eyelids begin to close, as I suspect they will, I'll drop the subject, and let him go back to sleep.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

THEY'RE STILL OPEN

 POST # 712

After her early morning squirrel watch, and a rambunctious game of chasing the bone, and chasing the ball, it was time for Dora-dog to relax for a while, in anticipation of a walk to town.

Since my previous visit, the weather is cooler, school is back in, and the tourist traffic is down, with only the occasional Canadian (me) roaming across the border.  Keeping all of this in mind, we headed out on our adventure.  I was curious to know what Dora-dog's reaction would be when we got to her favourite ice cream shop, only to find it closed for the season.  At least that is what I was expecting to find when we got there.  I was planning on taking a photo of Dora-dog standing in front of a  "closed for the season" sign, and was wondering just how long she would stand there waiting for her treat.

Imagine my surprise when we arrived to find that they're still open, with our friend Erin there to greet us. 

Dora-dog had expected it to be open, and get her treat, and that's exactly what happened earlier today.  So we were all very happy with the outcome, and soon it was time to continue our journey back home.  

The ice cream shop will be open for the remainder of this week, and then be closed for the season. We'll have to make sure that we get to town each day, so that she can enjoy her daily reward.  

It was her first long walk since her operation, and she seemed to handle it quite well, although I imagine she will be limping somewhat, later on today. I'm dealing with a sore Achilles tendon at the moment, so we may both be limping around this evening.  But the walk was worth it, and we expect to be back out there again tomorrow.

I leave at the end of the week, so we plan to get to the ice cream shop every day, as long as our legs will take us there.  I am planning to return on October 11th, so maybe then I'll have the opportunity to watch Dora-dog's reaction when we walk past the ice cream shop and find it closed for the season.  Perhaps at that time, I can get the photo of her, that I was expecting to take earlier today.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

OH THANK HEAVEN

 POST # 711

Oh thank heaven, for 711.  I couldn't resist saying that, for today's blog post.  And no, I'm not talking about the convenience store as you may have guessed by now.  But I am thankful for the fact that I've posted 711 times since this project began way back on October 21st, 2011.

https://wherespaulnow.blogspot.com/2011/10/thoughtful-wanderer-begins.html

Throughout these years, I have many things to be thankful for, and as each day passes, I continue to feel that way about life.  Every day is a gift, and I do try to remind myself of that fact on a regular basis.

At my current location, one of the things that I am thankful for is the amount of fresh tomatoes that have been available during my stay here. This is just one of many harvests that has taken place over the past couple of weeks.

And of course, it goes without saying that my two furball friends, Sam and Arlo are two more reasons to be thankful.

Sam

Arlo

In addition to the tomatoes and the furballs, the weather has been absolutely  fantastic, so that just adds to my list of things to be thankful for.

Soon this sit will be coming to an end, and it will be time to say so long to Sam and Arlo, but who knows, perhaps somewhere down the road, I'll have the opportunity to once again spend time with them.

And then I will have to say once again, "Oh thank heaven".  But it will be more than 711 by then.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

RELAXING TIME TOGETHER

 POST # 710

So this is how each day begins here with Sam and Arlo.  As soon as they know that I am awake (and even sometimes before I am awake), they hop up on the bed, and settle in for a while.  Sam always takes the prime spot, and Arlo is happy to just be a part of the crowd.  How much time we spend there depends on how lazy I am, and how hungry they are for breakfast.  

I think that Sam would be happy to stay there as long as I do, as he never seems to be in any rush to get up and head downstairs.

On the other hand, Arlo, perhaps because of his young age, is more eager to get up and go, and he does various things to attract my attention, like he did yesterday by jumping up on the headboard of the bed.  It's his way of trying to say, let's get going, so that I can have my breakfast.

Eventually, we all head downstairs, and another day begins.  After they have breakfast, it's time to go outside and enjoy the sunshine in the backyard for a while.  The weather has been just fine since my arrival, and I am grateful for that.  But the cooler weather is just around the corner, and soon I'll have to put on another layer of clothing to stay warm.

In the meantime, the three of us will continue to enjoy our very relaxing time together.  Relaxing, what else can you really do with a couple of furballs like these two characters?

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

SAM'S THIRD HOUSEMATE

 POST # 709

                                                                             ARLO

It was way back in July of 2023 when I first met Sam.  At that time, he had a furball friend by the name of Tess.  Unfortunately, Tess went to furball heaven sometime after that visit.

And then along came Teddy, the escape artist.  Thankfully he remained here while I was house sitting, but the day after I left, so did he.  I guess that he must have been upset with my departure, or perhaps, Sam wasn't happy with his company.  Whatever the case, Sam now has a new house mate, who goes by the name of Arlo.

This is my first opportunity to have them both together, so it will be interesting to watch their interactions over the next three weeks.

                                                                             SAM

Sam appears to be taking it all in stride.  He's the boss after all.  

It should be a very relaxed time, and I am looking forward to spending it with the both of them.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

DORA-DOG'S RECENT LIFE JOURNEY

 POST # 708

I took the above photo of Dora-dog just this past Tuesday.  She sure looks happy, just as she did in a similar photo taken quite a few years ago, which can be seen on the right hand side of the blog (7th photo down the page).

And since last Tuesday, that is about the happiest that she has looked since that time.  But why is that?  Well in order to answer that question, we have to go back in time to last month. The vet noticed a small lump (lipoma-A lipoma in a dog is a common, non-cancerous (benign) fatty tumor that grows just underneath the skin) on the inside of Dora-dog's right front leg, and she suggested that we keep an eye on it.  Since that time it had grown, which resulted in a very pronounced limp, and so recently a decision was made to remove it, which of course meant surgery.

So this past Wednesday, we took her to the vet, dropped her off, and returned home without her.  It was strange being home, without Dora-dog.  In fact, in all of the time since Mary has had her, and I have been visiting, this was the first time that we were at home, and not had her around.  

Later that day, the vet phoned to tell us that the surgery had been successful, and that we could come and pick her up.  When we arrived she was happy to see us, but she was still getting over the surgery, so she was a bit groggy, not her normal excited self.

So she's now back home, and she is probably trying to work out why so much of her fur is missing.  She looks somewhat stunned by the new hair cut.

I suppose that she could look on the bright side of things, and pretend she now has some new "fur boots" to show off to her four legged friends.

But they really did remove quite a bit of her fur ( more than I would have expected) but I'm not a vet so what do I know when it comes to having a procedure such as she has just had?

It's going to take a long time for that fur to grow back, but it's really a minor issue.  The main thing is that the surgery was successful, and for that we are all very thankful indeed.

Of course, Dora-dog now has to wear a cone, to prevent her from licking the affected area, and she won't be able to go for any walks for the next two weeks.  TWO WEEKS.  

She gets all excited each day when she sees me putting on my shoes by the front door, because that is the signal that we will soon be walking out the door and heading out for our daily journey to town and back.  And then she can't work out why I am walking out the door and leaving her behind. I'm guessing that she feels sad, and I certainly know that I do.  But it is what it is, and we have to be thankful that she is now recovering, and eventually she should be back to her normal exuberant self.  We will both be very happy when that day finally arrives, and we can once again enjoy our daily stroll.  And maybe then, we will appreciate how lucky we are to be able to do that simple activity.  Like often happens, we take things for granted until they are not there. Thanks Dora-dog, for teaching this lesson to me yet again.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

PS: Here is a post from August 28/2019, when Dora-dog had her first encounter with a cone.

https://wherespaulnow.blogspot.com/search?q=post+372

MY JOURNEY CONTINUES

 POST # 707

Yesterday, I had to say goodbye to Maggie.  As you can see, she wasn't very happy to hear the news. On the plus side, her owner would be home later in the day, and when that happened, she would once again be a bundle of joy.

And today, I have to say goodbye to Ollie once again.  I think that he's used to it by now, and after I walk out the door, he'll more than likely just find a comfortable place to curl up and go to sleep for the rest of the day. It's what he does best.

Mind you, he did have a shocked look on his face when I told him the news a little while ago.  He can't quite work out why I am leaving so soon, seeing as I only arrived here last night.

But my journey continues.  This afternoon, I will once again be heading to Washington to spend some precious time with Mary and Dora-dog.  Hopefully all will go as planned and I won't have any issues going through Customs, but I guess I'll know the answer to that question a few hours from now.

So once again, it's time to pack up my things, and head to the train station, in anticipation of my upcoming journey.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

MAGGIE

 POST # 706

Less than a five minute walk from Purl's home, is the home of Maggie. Purl and Maggie are best of friends, so I would like to think that it was Purl who suggested that I spend time with Maggie, but in actual fact it was Maggie's next door neighbours, my friends Pam and Don, who referred me to both of them.

So after I finished up with Purl it was time to settle in with Maggie, and I have to admit that we were buddies right from the get go.  Maggie is less than a year old, so she wins the award for the youngest four legged critter that I have ever had the pleasure to care for.  

We make sure to get out twice a day for a walk, but Maggie seems to be more interested in sniffing everything along the way, than actually getting some exercise walking.  But that's okay, as I am more than happy to let her decide how the walk should take place.  And if sniffing the ground is her priority, then so be it.  Like most dogs, she probably can't work out why the human is so disinterested in all of the various fragrances along the way.  

Aside from our daily walks, there is plenty of time (and plenty of dog toys) to play with when we are inside, and Maggie makes sure to try each and every one of them with the house sitter.  I've had plenty of experience with this, and I think Maggie appreciates that fact.

Of course, after all this walking and playing with toys, it's time for an afternoon nap, which of course we both feel that we have earned.

So we have settled into a good daily routine, and I expect that it will continue for the remainder of my time here, which is now a little less than one more week.

If I ever have the pleasure to spend time with Maggie in the future, I sure hope that the message on the sign on her front door isn't what she will be thinking then.

Somehow, I don't think that that will be the case.  In a very short time, we've become friends, and I think that makes us both very happy.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

SAY HELLO TO PURL

 POST # 705

Say hello to Purl, who lives here in Ladysmith. Yes, that's how you spell her name.  I thought that it was spelled Pearl, but I found out from her owner that it is spelled Purl, as in the saying, "knit one, purl two."  Knitting is something that her owner likes to do, and so Purl inherited her new name.  What she was called prior to being adopted, I don't know.

Anyhow, I arrived here at the beginning of this week, after my return to Canada, from Mexico, with an overnight in Vancouver. By the time I finally got to sleep in Vancouver, after my journey, I had been up for a total of just over 44 hours, which is certainly something I don't recommend.  I hope that I never have to do that again.

But now I am enjoying a very relaxing week with Purl.  She took a little while to get used to the new human on the scene, but I'm pleased to report that we have now become friends, and are enjoying each other's company.

Here she is showing off her big ears.

We make sure to get a couple of good walks in each and every day, even though the hot weather is somewhat of a challenge.  Purl doesn't seem to mind, as there are plenty of wonderful smells along the way to keep her distracted from the temperature.

Of course, after a long walk, it's time to settle down for a nap, and Purl has plenty of locations around the house to do exactly that.  I guess she has earned it.

I'll be hanging out here with Purl for a few more days, and then I will be wandering down the street to the neighbour's home, to take care of another four-legged critter named Maggie.  We've already been introduced, so I think it will go well, once I am settled in there.  

And just to finish off today's rather short post, I'll add a link to a previous post which has photos of my  friend, Blanca, who lives in Cadboro Bay.  Blanca and Purl could be sisters, or cousins or something, as they certainly do look very similar, and they both have the same laid back attitude.

https://wherespaulnow.blogspot.com/2023/06/another-day-in-paradise.html

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

OFF TO MEXICO

 POST # 704

The last time that I was in Mexico was way back in 1985.  I suppose that I was overdue for a return visit.  So after asking my friends Ted and Doreen who live there, whether or not they would like to have a visitor, I booked a ticket, and last Friday, July 24th, I was on my way. I was flying down on Flair airlines, and my only previous trip with them, was three years ago, and I have to say that I wasn't too impressed with the return journey from Calgary, which had numerous delays.  Thankfully on this trip, we left right on time, so things were off to a good start.

I happened to be seated in seat 26A, which was on the left hand side of the aircraft, and as I gazed out the window, there was Shelter Bay down below, where I had just departed from the previous evening, after once again saying goodbye to Mary and Dora-dog.

Our journey southward continued, and along the way there were numerous forest fires, in all three of the western states. The one above was rather large, but later on there was a fire so much bigger that the entire view was covered in smoke.  Due to the amount of time that had passed since our departure, I made the assumption that it was somewhere in California, but this was only a guess on my part.

As we began our descent into Mexico City, I was amazed at just how large it was.  We finally landed and after a very easy journey through customs, I headed out into the arrival area in anticipation of seeing my friend Ted, standing there to greet me.  But he was nowhere to be seen.  

Now what?  Did his bus have an accident on the way here, or was it something else?  I wanted to contact him, but I had no luck connecting to the airport wifi system, so the only thing left to do was just wait, and see if he was going to show up.  The thought of spending my entire visit to Mexico hanging around the airport didn't sound too appealing.  I waited, and waited, and waited some more, and then after a couple of hours, he appeared.  Boy, was I glad to see him.  

We had to hang around the airport for a while longer to wait for the bus to head to our first destination of Queretaro.  By this point in time I had already been awake for almost twenty four hours, and in spite of the excitement of seeing Ted, I was certainly feeling sleep deprived.

Eventually we arrived, and settled in to the accommodation that Ted had arranged for us prior to my arrival.

The next day we went out to explore some of the city, and we found this sign.  We look like a couple of dodos, albiet old dodos

One of the streets in town has Ted's birthday (September 16) on the sign.  No wonder he likes Mexico so much. It also happens to be Mexico's Independence Day.

,

Yesterday, we continued our journey, and arrived at our final destination of Guanajuato, which is where Ted and Doreen call home these days.  

This morning we had breakfast on their deck, which as you can see, has a pretty magnificent view, looking eastward over the town.

After breakfast it was time to put on our shoes and head out on a journey around town, which begins with a very long and rather steep descent of hundreds of steps. We spent a couple of hours or more wandering around and looking at all of the sights, which I really enjoyed, and I am very grateful to have some locals to guide me along the way, and point out any significant historical locations.

Instead of returning home climbing up these same steps, we took this cable car, which saved us a lot of time and sweat.  Soon we were back home, and I finally had my opportunity to write today's blogpost.

It will be my one and only post from Mexico, because I will be back in Canada in early August to take care of a new dog named Purl in Ladysmith.

In the meantime, I will continue to enjoy my time with my friends, and I will try and make the most of it while I am here.

If anything significant happens during my remaining days, I'll update the blog accordingly.

grateful for every breath,

Paul

The Thoughtful Wanderer

Some additional photos this week.

A group of young seminary students who wanted to meet us.

A typical street in Guanajuato.

Hanging out in the local park.

Full moon July 29th.

A beautiful  Bougainvillea tree.         

                                             A  magnificent looking cumulonimbus cloud.

                                                                Ted finds a new friend.

                                    Climbing up the stairs back to Ted and Doreen's home.

(  A total of 312 stairs)

Another spectacular cloud.

El Pipila

A preying mantis.

Okay, okay, just ONE more photo to round things out, again. Ted took this one, as I was entering the bus depot in Guanajuato, in preparation for my journey to Mexico City airport.