Two Big Dogs is One Big Dog Too Many

For quite some time now I have been thinking that, once in a place I own myself, a second dog might be a good idea.  I have even entertained the thought that having a second one now might be kind of cool – Jasmine would have loads more play time and some companionship when I am at work or out doing other stuff.

A girlfriend of mine went away this weekend and I “dog-sat” for her last night, overnight and for today – she and her husband will be picking her dog up this evening when they get back from their weekend away.

Over the course of the last 12+ hours, I have decided that it’s probably a Very Good Thing that I am not allowed to have 2 dogs while I live where I am currently. My place is WAY too small for two big dogs and, though they are great friends and play well together, they also seem to be able to incite each other into mischief.

I tried taking them out for a walk last night after I collected them – the location was Seal Bay, where I normally walk Jasmine (or take her when I go for my long bike rides) and that didn’t go well at all.  Jasmine (Jasmine??!) got into an altercation with someone else’s dog, and that has lead me to consider that a) I don’t have enough control over both of them when I’m out by myself and b) that maybe Jasmine and I need more obedience training.  Jasmine’s never been an aggressive dog – quite the opposite, actually – and earlier in the day, someone had commented to me that she was actually a timid dog.

Hm.

This morning, they had me awake at the crack of dawn (and in summer, that’s WAY TOO DAMN EARLY!) and so I am tired… I had planned to take the girls for a walk up at Seal Bay again today – but, because I have concerns about my ability to control both of them at the same time, that is now off the table.  The new plan is to go hang out at my friend’s back-yard for a couple of hours - where the girls can run around to their hearts’ content, and I don’t have to worry about trying to control any situations that may come up. I’ll take a book with me and grab a big coffee or maybe even a naughty lunch on my way.

With love across the waters,

The Kid in Me

After a really lazy start to my day (I stayed in my robe and read on the sofa until almost noon) I decided that another bike ride was in order.  Knowing that my bike was about due for a quick “tune up” (which consisted of mysterious things being done to the brakes and, I think, the tires) I called Black’s Cycle and asked what the protocol for this tune up would be.

I *love* these guys!

I was told that the tune up would take about ten minutes and that I could bring it in any time.  When I asked how today was looking I was told today would be a great day for bringing the bike in because they were a little slow on the builds and repairs.

This in mind, I decided to have the bike tuned before I hit the trails.  I loaded Jasmine into the car and then put the bike rack and bike onto the car.  THEN I went back into the house and got my credit card - not needed for the tune up, but I figured that just in case I saw something I needed (like a pair of riding gloves or maybe a knap-sack with a bladder insert?) I could purchase it and take it out right away.

So, finished at Black’s (with my new gloves AND knap sack with bladder insert in hand) I headed back up to Seal Bay Park.  Just as I hit the turn off to Larch Road – where I typically park the car – the skies started to open and rain started to pour down.

Oh well!  If I relapse, I relapse, right?

Today’s ride was loads of fun – the rain had loaded the branches down and the puddles up.  Initially I started with trying to dodge these things, and then I decided that it was WAY more fun to just blast through it all. I rode the same route I did yesterday and this time I decided that I would try to ride directly over the gimungoous root. My plan was to speed up.  While in theory this may have worked for someone with more experience and better control, it just made my wipe-out more entertaining.

Yup – 41 years old, and have now, officially, had my very first bike accident.

I’m just glad that there wasn’t anyone around to see how spectacularly uncoordinated I really am.  I had to do some strange wiggling around in order to get into a position that would actually allow me to get up off of the ground (Ok, actually it was mud) and into a standing position, but nothing was really hurt.  I have a couple of places that will be sporting some lovely bruising in a few more hours, but all in all, it was a successful ride.

By the time I was finished, Jasmine and I were totally soaking wet.  I have also, now, at 41 years old, decided that there actually IS an acceptable situation in which track pants can be stripped off in a public location.  I loaded Jasmine into the car and decided that if I got into the car as I was, my seat would get soaked AND dirty. Thank God for the bike-shorts under my track pants, because I stripped those babies (the track pants, not the bike shorts) off and got into my car as was!

Home, showered, dried off, and hot cup of coffee now in me, I am thinking that I may need to get a cape.  There’s something about riding my bicycle that makes me think I should be wearing a cape. Probably the fact that it makes me feel like a little kid.  Plus, really, it would just be cool to actually have a cape. 

Maybe I’ll see if my friend Linden can sew me one.

With love across the waters,

Getting Better… slowly

I started my vacation on June 5^th, got sick on June 13^th, back to work on June 20^th today is now June 23^rd.  I’m still fighting off the remnants of the cold – mostly the cough and shortness of breath – but for the most part I’m closer to feeling like normal again.

I am still tired way too quickly.  Life doesn’t really allow for the tiredness though.  There is still a high-energy dog to walk (twice) daily, as well as all of the regular stuff that needs doing – laundry, housekeeping duties and work, to mention a few.

Today, though still coughing fairly heavily, I took Jasmine for a longer walk than I have been able to manage for the last couple of weeks. It was really nothing special – only about 5 KM, and most definitely at a slower pace. I was feeling fairly OK afterwards - yes, there was loads of coughing (no deer in sight – I imagine I scared them all away!) but needing to get Jasmine out for her second walk of the day, I decided that, darn-it-all; I really wanted to ride my bike again.

It was awesome.  Yes, I was STILL coughing almost constantly, but it was still wonderful to be able to get on a bicycle and just R I D E. 

I took her up to Seal Bay Park and rode along the mountain bike trails – this was my first time trying to ride here – and it was great fun!  I am starting to see how people become addicted to mountain bike riding on trails.

We did the 7+ KM loop that I had been walking before deer nesting season closed the trails to off-leash dogs.  I opted to actually ride in the opposite direction I normally walk it in so that I could avoid having to try to ride up a rooty-rocky-twisty-bendy-uphill trail.  Instead, I got to ride DOWN it and OH MY GOODNESS it was so much fun!

We had some rain today – and I do mean RAIN – a couple of brilliant summer down-pours – and so there were even puddles on the trails – which I blasted through and ended up wearing a lot of mud from.

Home and changed into clean and dry clothing, I am really hopeful this cough will be gone soon! I am thinking that, while the daylight hours allow, I will try for a long walk and a bike ride as many days as is going to be possible.  All of it can be up at Seal Bay Park, as far as I’m concerned – it’s gorgeous up there!

With love across the waters,

A Fantastic Day

Today has been one, hands down.  The sun has been shining brightly all day – not a cloud in the skies and spring is making her presence known in full force with trees and flowers budding.  As my Grannie always said in the spring, the sap is rising!

Today started out with a chiropractor appointment – a needed one – and a good adjustment for everything that needed adjusting.  Neck, back and knees are feeling good and working properly. 

Next up was a long walk with my new friend Jennifer.  Since Seal Bay Park is currently a “leash-on” zone due to it now being deer nesting season (April 1 to June 30) I have had to some up with a new walk zone where Jasmine can run around off leash.  My dear friend Linden walks her dogs at the BC Hydro lines along the Puntledge River and suggested this may be a good alternative for us. While further away from home, and needing a little more time to get there, it’s going to be a suitable alternative until Jasmine and I can resume our walks up at Seal Bay.  This past week I’ve made it up there a couple of times and have taken some new friends with me for company and good conversation.

Jenn and I completed just over 7 KM this morning and, once done, we headed off to our respective day’s plans.

The rest of my day was spent alternating between running around and doing stuff at home. My task list included picking up some plants and stuff for the back yard, going over to the region’s composting centre to get my hands on an Earth Machine composter, getting some grocery shopping done, picking up some gel shots for tomorrow’s long (12+ KM) walk and also popping into an electronics shop in Courtenay to see if I could get my hands on an open-region DVD / Blue Ray player.  I also thought it would be prudent to get the converter / adapter thingy for my BBQ so that I could plug in a 20 Gallon propane tank, but I didn’t manage to remember that when I was at Home Depot – and one stop per shop was all I really wanted to complete today.

Three trips out and back saw almost everything on my list purchased and then the rest of my afternoon was spent, happily, puttering around in my back yard starting to get things ready for spring / summer.

At the recent Feng Shui workshop I attended, Terri (from Fine Art of Intention Feng Shui) told us about the zones in the yard relating to time periods in our lives.  Front yard being past, centre being present and back yard being future… well, considering my back yard has been a disaster zone (until today) I thought it would be very prudent for me to get off my behind and do something about it!

So what did I do?

On the way home from the walk, I stopped in at Home Depot, where I picked up two sculpted shrub-trees in pots for my back patio – they give some symbolic support to the overhang space that is in the master bedroom.  I’ll have to get some nicer planters for them, but for now, they have taken residence on the concrete slab.

Next up, after the second trip out (to the Composting Education Centre and Art Knapp’s) the Earth Machine composter was assembled and installed, and a small trellis was put into the ground in front of it (I will put a clematis in the soil there as it will be a great “mask” for the composter.)  I also dug out the teensy flower bed in the back corner and planted two peonies and two hostas – and then, in light of Miss Jasmine’s incredible ability to run loopity-loops around the back yard, I installed a bamboo screen in front of that bed to deter her from using it as a launch-pad and destruction of the new plants.

Here's a not-terribly recent "before" picture:

I also spent some time clearing out the other garden bed – though I really have no idea what to do with it… Here are a few of the "so far" after shots - obviously more work is still required... 

then again, the future is always a work in progress, right?

The third trip out today was to get groceries for me.

It’s about 6:30 PM now and I’m happily enjoying a cup of tea (decaffeinated) and thinking that, once I take Jasmine out for her evening constitutional, I may try and tackle the home office challenge.

With love across the waters,

Anger and Exercise

To be fair, it wasn’t just anger, it was anger and disappointment… but none the less, my work-day didn’t end on a positive note, not really.  

There’s something inherently soothing about sweating out anger.  Had I boxing gloves and a bag to punch, I may have tried doing some of that instead – it’s excellent for frustration AND works up an intense sweat in seconds flat.

So I sped (yes, drove way too fast – and am lucky and grateful not to have received a speeding ticket anywhere) home, got changed, loaded Jasmine into the car and headed up to Seal Bay Park to power-walk out some of my frustrations at the end of my work-day.

A few minutes into the walk, music moving me along, I could feel my shoulders start to let go of what I was carrying. My breathing got into swing quickly and I was making good time - and considering I had less than an hour of useful daylight left, it’s just as well!  Half way through I could feel it leaving – the frustration and anger I was holding onto. Grateful, I let it go as much as I could.

I even included some running in this evening's walk and my knee still feels OK!

By the time I got home, I didn’t care any more.  The thing that upset me has been pounded into the soil of the paths that I marched along today.  Feeling much better than I did when I left work, I drove home - happy and well exercised dog in tow. Before I made either one of us some dinner, I had a long hot shower and washed the final bits of negativity off of myself.  

Symbolic? Hell yes.  Sometimes that symbolic shower makes all the difference to what’s going on.

And a final note on something positive that came out of this afternoon’s anger and disappointment? I didn’t reach for cake or chocolate or ice cream to make me feel better… tonight I reached for my hiking shoes.  And they walked me through it.

With love across the waters,

A Day for Catching Up

Today looks to be a wonderful catch-up day for me - the skies are a little overcast (meaning that I will likely want to spend the afternoon indoors) and *most* of my housework was done on Thursday during my day off. 

So what plans do I have for today? A long walk with Miss Jasmine for one - I'll head up to Seal Bay Park as soon as I complete this post.  I'm planning for an hour and a half (at least) tromping the trails up there with my iPod plugged into my ears.  Did I mention I got it back this past week? a quick stop at the grocery store on my way home and then I do have a little laundry to finish and should wash some floors as well.

The afternoon plan is to spend a little time researching dwarf trees and / or shrubbery to plant in the back yard, and also to catch up on some blog posting that I have fallen behind on this week.

Plans, of course, often go astray, and so if I don't finish any one particular thing (say, oh, I don't know, maybe I don't get around to washing the floors?) I won't be especially heartbroken. At this point in my life, Sunday is all about catching up on little things and relaxing.

With love across the waters,