The Value Of A Woman:

 The value of a woman: The saying goes "give a woman a house and she will give you a home." I have found this true in my case anyway. When we moved to the mountains of Colorado the house was pretty bare but my wife, in no time, turned it into a comfortable home. Our house was just a building, but my resourceful wife turned it into a home full of love and memories. She has done that wherever we have lived.

Women multiply and enhance whatever is given to them. I have found this completely true, at least in my case. This nonsense spouted in today's world about all the different sexes/genders and men can be women and so forth in my opinion does nothing but demean women. There is another saying that behind every successful man stands a woman. Also, true words in my opinion. 

There might be a rare exception to the successful man part, but there are men and there are women. And then there are fools who think there are numerous sexes, thinking they can change creation.  There is another saying that if you repeat a lie long enough people will ultimately consider it true. And another saying that you can fool some of the people some of the time, but you can't fool all of the people all of the time. Pity the fool's as they walk among us. 

Repurposed Blinds:

We had wooden bifold slatted doors, but they kept falling down so we took them out. We wanted the laundry room hidden and out of sight and we remembered that we had taken these shades down from the sliding doors we recently had replaced with French doors. 

Homesteading in the mountains of Colorado you have to be self-reliant and learn how to repurpose. It is a hard habit to replace and since we had not thrown the blinds away, so we put them across the laundry room opening. I think, they look nice and better than just having the laundry room open. 

Remember:

 

Memorial Day.

Frogs:

 There is an old metaphor That says if you put a frog in a pot with hot water that it will jump out but if you put a frog in a pot of cold water and then slowly increase the temperature it will stay in the pot until it dies.   

That metaphor may or may not work I have never tested it but it makes sense and as I look around I can see it applied in numerous areas' yet today. Particularly in the decline in morals in society today. The decline actually started years ago and is just not being more apparent. I write this so those who are disturbed with the things going on now, if you but think back it started long ago. 

People didn't say anything then and now it seems so out of control that people are afraid to say anything now fearing they will be labeled or cancelled. Now is the time that we must stand up and speak out or soon we will be denied the opportunity.

Stress:

 Today people seen to be stressed out from numerous sources.  Stuck in heavy traffic, the cost of rent, gas, rude people, inflation, war and threats of war, the list goes on and on. I see people racing through life and seeking peace and happiness. Doctors tell people they need less stress in their life and prescribe Rx to help them achieve it. It seems everyone has stress of one kind or another. Maybe an answer is not the stress but how it is handled. 

Did you know that a piano mother board has 40,000 pounds of stress on it from the tension of all the strings? Yet out of all this stress comes some of the most beautiful music known to mankind. Maybe relieving the stress isn't as important as how we manage the stress. Finding a quiet place where you can go and have a talk with God is a way to transfer the stress you experience to Him providing that you leave it with Him and don't carry it away yourself.

Maybe then you can be at a place where you can help others who are also stressed out. In my many years I have never turned a stressful situation over to God that he couldn't handle. As I look back on those stressful times, I'm still amazed at not only the solution but the outcome. Things I found impossible were not impossible for God.

Talk to God about your situation, tie a knot in the end of your rope and hang on.

Tine For a Laugh:

 

Politics:

 I don't want to post political issues on this blog site but I just asked Alexa what the current rating approval of congress is. She said that their approval rating is 10%. Alexa reported that 86% of people disapproved of congress.   Our Echo Dot has been wonderful source of entertainment for us. The $30.00 we spent for the Echo Dot has been one of the best investments we have made.

The AI aspect that has been added or updated is super. Alexa went on for over 5 minutes citing statistics and facts about congress. She had many funny things to say about the issue. We like Alexa for playing music and questions on gardening and cooking. This question was especially entertaining.

Hummingbirds:

 When we lived in S. Colorado, we had a particular hummingbird that we called Henretta, and she was always the first to arrive each year. We knew it was Henretta because she had been chased into a window and I carried her around for a long time waiting for her to recover. When she did recover, she ended up with a palsy which made her stand out from the other hummingbirds.  She was the first to arrive and the last to leave. 

This year she arrived just as we received 30" of heavy wet snow. She would feed and then perch on a shelf under the eve's where she could enjoy the sun and was protected from the elements. Homesteading remotely like we did we were able to better connect with the birds and animals. 

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Henretta lived a very long life for a hummingbird and one day I noticed she didn't look very good and she perched on her normal place at the feeder. I stood there with her as she took her last breath. I talked to her as she died and then gently took her down and buried her in a place that was special. Even something as small as a tiny hummingbird can hold a very special place in your heart.

Feast Or Famine:

 We live in an area that is a temperate rain forest - rated such due to the amount of rainfall we receive each year. This year has been unusual so far. We have had minimal rain and in fact have been in a drought zone for several weeks. That ended yesterday as we received 6" of rain in the last 24 hours. That much rain on dry ground tends to create issues as it washes out places as it finds its way down the hill. We are forecast to receive more in the next several days. 

I have a pile of limbs to burn and have my permit but up until yesterday we were in a red zone and could not have outdoor burning. Now it is too wet to burn, and my permit is only good for two weeks. Also the grass and weeds are now growing so fast we can almost see them shoot up. Not complaining as it is so green outside that I spend too much time admiring the freshly rinsed trees and bushes. My garden is also growing in leaps and bounds.   

Interesting Tradition:

 We received notice that our bank has a customer appreciation day.  We were not able to go last year but this year we did attend. We didn't know what it entailed but since we had some banking to do anyway, we went to see what it was all about. The tradition is that they hand out tomato plants. We ended up coming home with 6 plants to go with the 6 we already have. It is a different tradition but typical of small town in the south's way of life. 

Love being back in the south where people are real, friendly, polite and down-to-earth folks that our country was built on. It was the same way when we first moved to S. Colorado but then we got an influx of people moving in from Texas and California and attitudes changed. People came for the simple neighborly life and unfortunately brought their attitudes and demands along with them. I sincerely hope that does not repeat itself here.   

Mistakes In Life:

 Mistakes - we all make them as we go through life. I have made more than my share. Some I manage to regret and some I just laugh off. As an example: My ex-mother-in-law had knit me a beautiful cardigan sweater like the photo above. I really liked that sweater and one day I wore it to play golf. As sometimes happens in Florida I was caught in a small gentle rainstorm. We were used to getting a little wet occasionally when we played golf, but we usually kept playing as long as it wasn't a downpour or lightning was involved. 

We usually dried out as the game progressed. As we played one of our group mentioned that I was pulling my sleeves up frequently and I suddenly realized my cardigan was stretching out. It was down to my knees, and the arms were about a foot longer than my hands. I should have been more aware and taken it off to protect it. I really miss that sweater, and it was never restored to where I could wear it again. That was a big mistake which I really regret.

Other examples where I laughed it off are less serious and both related to a department store next to where I worked. The store had a bargain basement where I used to go to occasionally. A buyer had to be acutely aware of what they were buying as some of the clothes had defects. One day I bought some seriously marked down 'hang ten' shirts. I had worn them several times when a friend asked why the little feet symbol was inside out. I had not noticed they were sewed on backwards. Big laugh. 

Or the time I bought a very nice pair of dress slacks. I was with my co-workers at a restaurant paying my bill when someone ask why I had to dig so deep into my pocket to get my change. I realized that one side pocket actually ended at my knee. I had to lean sideways to get to the bottom of my pocket. It never occurred to me that my keys and change was rubbing against my knee when I walked. We all had a good laugh at that. I stopped shopping at the store next to our office building as I just wasn't smart enough to find these flaws.  

Dan and Bruce's Great Fishing Adventure:

I was working in Jacksonville, Fla. and stopped at a small fishing shack along a creek. I was looking for directions to a witness I had been looking for. It was early morning and as the man was giving me directions a boat pulled up and had us come over to look at the fish he had caught. He had half a dozen largemouth bass in his live well and all were 4-5 pounds or more. I ask him what he was using for bait and he said dry ice. 

 He used a small tobacco sack, and he run his line through it with a little weight on it and tied a treble hook on it and said he put a piece of dry ice in the sack and just threw it out and let it sit on the bottom. He said the bubbles drove the fish crazy and they would pick it up to move it. When he felt it move he would set the hook. He told me it seemed to work best at night. 

Those sure were a good-looking bunch of bass and his technique sounded just crazy enough to possibly work. Besides I had just read an article in an outdoor magazine about using Alka Seltzer in a similar way. 

I gave my fishing buddy Dan a call and told him about it and he said he had some little bags at work, and he would grab a couple. I told him I would buy some dry ice. He would hook up his aluminum flat bottom boat and pick me up just before dark. We launched after dark and drifted down the creek tossing the unusual rig into every good-looking spot we saw. 

When I would chip the dry ice small chunks would fly off and hit the bottom of his boat and make a zinging sound as they skipped around the boat. We fished for about 5 hours with nothing resembling a bite but cooled the water temperature with 5 pounds of dry ice considerably.  Sometime around 2 AM, after several hours of silence I said, "I think we have been fooled like a fishing type of snipe hunt", and Dan agreed so we headed back to the launch ramp before the shack owner came in. 

Now it is funny but back then it wasn't that funny as we both had to go to work with only a couple hours of sleep. That trip was about as funny as the time we ran up on an underwater stump and stuck the boat right in middle. All we could do is go in circles around that stump trying to get free, - in a snake infested creek. But that is another story for another time. 

Two of My Favorite Pic's From Facebook:

 

Springtime Flowers:

 

We know it is truly spring when the iris are in full bloom. Small patch of iris and there are more buds yet to open. 

Peace And Quiet:

 The renowned Samual Clemments (Mark Twain) had a habit of going fishing with his pole but no hook on the end of his line. That was the only way he could get any uninterrupted time to himself. It is a long-standing tradition that when you are fishing that it is impolite to disturb the fisherman. Sitting along a riverbank with a fishing pole is not only calming but restful.  The famous Mark Twain did not put a hook on his fishing line to not catch any fish and not to be disturbed. 

Sometimes just being out in the fresh air and sitting along a riverbank or a lake or stream without the matter of catching fish is just pure relaxing. 

It's a Puzzle:

 

Some things just do not make sense to me. One such incident happened recently.  I ordered some tarter cleaner for the dog's teeth, and I got an acknowledgement promptly from the manufacturer which I found out came from China. I was able to track my order as it left the factory, went to a distribution center, where it was put on a transport and arrived in California. Then I was able to track it across the U.S., and we received it promptly and in good condition.  

At the same time, I ordered a hose from the local Walmart store to replace our leaky one. It took a few days to get my order acknowledged and a tracking number. The tracking indicated we should receive the hose tomorrow and now it says maybe by Friday. 

It is all here in the U.S., and it has been at the same location for several days. So, my puzzle is how can I order two items - one from the U.S., and one from China and the one from China comes halfway around the world in half the time and the one in the U.S., comes from within our country and the vast difference between the two. The one from Walmart takes twice as long and we still do not have it. 

Remote Homesteading:

As I have posted before, we moved to N. Carolina from 9,800' elevation in S. Colorado. We received (according to HUD) 264" of snow each year, fortunately not all at the same time. Our winters were sometimes 6-7 months long. Our nearest neighbor was one mile down the road. We lived there for over 26 years full time and heated our cabin with a woodstove. We burned anywhere between 9-12 cords of firewood each winter. 

That being said we worked hard all year long and while it was stuck in the back of our mind that someday we might have to move somewhere else, that was less strenuous. It always remained hidden in the back of our minds none the less. We had seen others move to our community and not be able to handle the weather conditions or the strain of that type of life. Few made it as long as we did. 

Two and a half years ago we came to the conclusion that we couldn't continue with that type of lifestyle any longer. It was necessitated by medical reasons. Prior knee injuries made it so mobility was more and more severe coupled with other unrelated issues. It was hard to leave our homestead that we had put so much labor into, but it was also evident that medical treatment was over a one-hour drive away and we were not getting any younger. 

One had to be self-sufficient to live our chosen lifestyle and there were not adequate services around to take over the responsibility of things we were used to doing ourselves. So now we need to sit by, and watch others do what we are used to doing ourselves.  It was hard to leave our mountain homestead, but I think it is even harder to have others do what we were used to doing ourselves. 

Klaus - 11 Yrs Old:

 Klauss is 11 years old and still gets around well but his back legs tend to tire sometimes, and this was one of those times. Usually when he gets tired, he just sits down but this time he was exploring in the back yard and sat down in a depression and was up against the fence. When that happens, he needs help getting back up. If he had been headed in the other direction, he could have gotten himself up. It is his right rear leg that sometimes gives him trouble like in this case.

Thankful Times - Sad Times:

 This photo was taken after the Spring wildfire of 2018. We were thankful that our property and us survived the horrible wildfire, but it was sad to the snow full of ash. When the sun hit the grey infused snow it would get so hard that you could walk across it without leaving a footprint. The wind would blow the ash off trees that were dead and turn the snow grey. 

We were thankful that no human lives were lost and ours was one a very few homes survived. A total of 124 structures in our community were not so fortunate. Friends and acquaintances moved and left the ashes of their dream behind and those of us remaining had to deal with the mud slides, ashes on everything and a subtle loneliness coupled with many dead trees and the hazard they presented.  

Spring In The Smokey Mountains:

 Dogwoods are in bloom along with the redbud trees. 

Ants:

 I ran across this on Facebook and thought it was very interesting.  I have known of humans that were not this smart. 

What an amazing discovery! Scientists have discovered that ants, after collecting the grains and seeds that they need for winter break those seeds down into halves before storing in their nests because breaking them in half keeps them from germinating even through rain and the most perfect germinating conditions. But scientists were stunned when they discovered that coriander seeds stored in the ant nest were broken down into 4 pieces instead of 2 pieces. After lab research, scientists discovered that a coriander seed will still germinate after being divided into two, but it won’t germinate after it’s divided into four parts. So how do these tiny creatures know all this? Humans know very little, there's a lot to learn from other creatures.

Water Pipe Fixed:

 Water pipe fixed and ready for use in 24 hours. It was not much of a job once I got the box out.  CPVC pipe is pretty easy to work with. Once you have the new pipe, glue and something to measure and cut it with it is just a matter of putting some glue on the joint and put it together with a couple twists to make sure the glue is evenly distributed. It is much easier than sweating copper pipe. 24 hours and it should be solidly glued together and ready for use.

I even bought a section of insulation that should protect it from freezing again unless the temperature gets really cold. Job done!

Broken Water Pipe:

 The photo is hard to understand without some explanation. During the last cold spell, we had this pipe that was our outdoor spigot freeze up. The pipe cracked and when I turned the water on it shot out. I have the repair parts but I am waiting for the CPCV glue to put it back together the right way. 

I don't know who installed this pipe, but the faucet wobbled back and forth, and I was afraid when someone would turn it to hard it would break off at the pipe. The spigot was not attached to anything and was just floating free at the end of the pipe. It was boxed in, but when I took the box out (as seen by the photo - where it is cut out from the deck- it was just a hollow box with zero insulation. 

Not only was it void of any insulation but there were numerous couplings where it had been repaired several times in the past. The small white pipe down below the deck is where the water feed comes out for the outside fixture. I can't believe that someone thought just putting the pipe in a wooden box and not securing the spigot would keep the pipe from freezing or breaking. 

In addition to that there was a drain valve below the box that when you would open the water from inside the basement it would spray all over you when you closed the outside valve. If you could actually reach it to open it. I will extend the drain lower where it is more reachable and put a diverter on it where the water will be directed away from the person who is draining the system and not on them. 

I shouldn't be surprised at the poorly installed plumbing as when we first moved here the pipes froze and when I checked the outdoor shut off valve it was just lying on the ground when normally they are buried below the freeze line. Someone had just piled rocks on top of it to protect it. I made a box of closed cell 2" foam insulation to enclose it and ran a brood lamp to it with a temperature control, and it has not frozen again. 

We are discovering defects one by one and making necessary repairs as needed.  

Fickle Seasons:

 

This may be the shortest time between spring and summer seasons I have ever seen. Yesterday it was the first day of spring and today it is summer. Yesterday was a very pleasant day with temperatures in the low 70's and today it is 84 degrees and getting hotter as I write this. The next two weeks appear to be the same. Thursday, we had the wood stove going for warmth, Friday, was the first day of spring, and today it is full summer. 

Fickle Weather:

 

When Carol ordered the Forsythia bushes the weather was in the 80's during the day and 50's at night.  The local store was out of them, so they had to be mailed to us. When they arrived, we dug the holes and soaked them over night as directed. Now they are under the buckets as it has been going down into the mid to low 20's at night and the 30's during the day. We did not want the fickle weather to kill them before they had a chance to live. 

It is not only this weather in the Carolina's that has turned bad, but I ordered my seeds from Wisconsin, and they have been having record wind and snow, so they have not shipped yet. It may be a while before I see them and I have everything ready to go here. 

The trees were starting to flower, and the grass was green and then this sudden cold weather. It sure can mess up plans for gardening. 

Forsythia Bushes:

 Carol bought two forsythia bushes to go with the other three along the end of the house. We have two holes dug to the right size and the bushes are now soaking in water to put into the holes tomorrow. The hardest part is getting up and down on a hill for me. I forgot the well-established saying that when you get older be sure you can get up before you get down on the ground. 

The three bushes we have are in the red clay native to this area so I expect these will do just as well but digging in red clay mixed with rock is pretty tough to do. The holes are dug and tomorrow we will put them in the ground.  We had to be careful digging as the water feed comes in on that side of the house. Fortunately, we missed it and didn't dig deep enough to hit it. Between weed roots and rocks that was hard digging. 

Never Underestimate A Wildfire or God:

 The above photo was taken by me right after the 2018, Spring wildfire that was started by a careless person just a few miles from us. It was June 2018; we were evacuated for 15 days. It was the third worst wildfire in Colorado history at that time. It has now moved down to 6th worst as there have been worst ones since. There were 140 structures destroyed and 123 of them were in our community alone. The photo was property across the road from us. 

Our home was one of the few that was spared mostly because we had God looking out for it. One of my friend who was a cartographer came by the motel where we were staying to show me a view of our home that she was able to access from a nearby cell tower she had access to. It was our house and it had a fire break bulldozed around our 11 acres. That gave me hope since we had spent a great deal of time doing wildfire mitigation. 

We had cleared and disposed brush and small trees for 50 feet around our house and structures. We cut tree limbs of the trees that were in that area up to 18' high as opposed to the 12' recommended. We had raked the pine needles and leaves out from the house, garage and woodshed. The wildfire burned down both sides of our house, garage and within one foot of our woodshed. That is where it stopped and went no further.

It burned all around our 11 acres, but we did not have any real damage except where embers carried on the air and burned small area's that were no larger that 10 square feet and there were only a handful of those. Everything around us burned to the ground and the U.S. weather service measured the temperature a quarter mile from us at 4,200 degrees. It melted glass and metal in a neighbor's house. It spawned a fire tornado that ripped trees off halfway up the trunk. 

There was no evidence of a water drop, or firefighters working on our home or buildings. We had people praying for us around the world as Carol was involved in missionaries from many countries and all across the USA, including ourselves praying for our home and property. When we were finally allowed to go back, I looked for that fire break and there was none or any evidence of any. It was burned on both sides, across the road (75') and behind our property. That is why I can say with certainty that our property was saved by God. With the intense heat and the flames and heat there is no explanation other than the one above. 

Being Ready:

 

Having lived for 26+ years, remotely in the mountains of S. Colorado we learned how to be self-reliant.  Mostly the hard way. We had a garden and I tried growing different vegetables and soon found out that some vegetables were not to be grown at high elevation (9,800').  The growing season is short and while some vegetables grew well, others did not. We had cauliflower about the size of a golf ball. Carrots and underground veggies were very stunted. 

Lettuce, spinach and rhubarb grew best and occasionally vegetables started inside before the snow melted. Hot houses would collapse under the winter snow which averaged around 264" per year. I tried in ground hot house but after the first heavy snow I had to dig it out.  that proved more work than useful. Beets grew well but we had more beet greens than beets.

Wild strawberries grew well but the delicious berry was about the size of a pea. Raspberries grew well and we enjoyed suitable crops. It took a lot of work and disappointment to be able to produce good vegetables at that elevation, and I did not even mention the difficulty of keeping the critters away. To be self-reliant it is important to be very determined and patient. 

It is helpful also if you know how to fish and are good at it. Where we lived there was a lot of competition in catching fish. I found most of my fishing success came from streams and rivers. There were a couple lakes also that produced good results. 

Being able to build things, repair things and use what you have on hand is quite helpful. We took a small engine repair course plus the advanced course before we moved to the mountains which came in very handy more than a few times. Gas engines break down and if you can't fix it yourself it could be a long wait to get it fixed by anyone else. That was especially useful when it came to our chainsaws.

I did not mention hunting because we lived in harmony with the many wild animals and to me it would be like shooting my neighbor which I simply could not do. Being self-sufficient is labor intensive and must be done with serious dedication. All this comes to mind because I just started my garden for this year. Happy Homesteading!

Pre Occupied:

With all that is going on in the world nowadays I have been preoccupied with the current events and have neglected keeping up with this blog.  I don't want to anger or upset any of our readers because we get people who read this blog site from many different countries. Therefore, I will not post any blogs, politics, opinions or the current events. The purpose of this blog is being self-sufficient and our life in the mountains - both the Rocky Mountains and the Smokey Mountains. Being more self-sufficient may be more needed now than before.

In the midst of all that is going on I have been planning my garden as seeds can be planted between March 15 and the first week of April. I have started six cauliflower plants under a grow light in the basement. I also have plans for beets, wax beans, lettuce, spinach, cherry tomatoes, and rhubarb. 

I am going to try my hand with rhubarb once again, as last year I planted three rhubarb plants, and something ate all three and killed the root. This year I plan to grow the plant in a container where it will not be available for the critter who ate them last year. Once it is established, I can transplant it and enclose it with hardware fence so they can't get to it again.  

I am going to try my hand at wax beans as we went to buy a can at the grocery store and one can was over $4.00, which is a ridiculous amount in my opinion. If I can grow them, I will save us quite a bit of money as one of the favorite salads that Carol makes calls for wax beans. 

The Value Of Dog/s: Part three

 

This is the third and final part of the value of dogs: 

Strong sense of hearing and smell: Dog's can smell over 100,000 to one million times better that humans and they can hear far beyond the capability of humans. Hence they can detect things far outside human capacities. For example, when we lived in the mountains of S. Colorado, at 9,800' feet elevation our dogs would alert us to threats from wildlife outside before we would see or hear them. 

When their superior hearing and smell senses are combined with their protective nature for their family it is a protection system that is second to none other. This leads into the next topic that is intelligence.

Intelligence: We tend to favor the German Shepherd Dog breed who are noted for their intelligence. When we have neighbors' friends, workmen or family come to visit our dogs instinctively know friend or foe. When they are friend, they will check them out and go lay down after greetings. When they don't trust the person, they will stay in the room with the people often laying at our feet or in near proximity to us. 

We pay close attention to our fur family for nuances we may not recognize ourselves. They are usually spot on when it comes to evaluating people and it would be totally negligent to not pay attention to them and their instinct. I can't emphasize their intelligence enough. 

Trainability: Dogs are easily trained but only if trained in a proper manner. There are many methods available but over the years and 13 dogs we have developed a method that I have used over the years. Dogs want to please us and we use that trait to train them. Sometimes a  non-threating word administered in love is better than a physical rebuke. I have taught one of our dogs to look right and left before crossing a street or alley. 

I have taught our dogs to tell time by looking at a wall clock. Some dogs can learn up to 250 words or symbols. We talk to our dogs all the time and they have a rather large understanding.  Our neighbors in Colorado referred to our German Shepherd Ben as Dr. Ben. We are very much in tune with our dogs. 

Happiness and Sense of Adventure: Dogs are generally happy and love to play and go on adventures with their family. they love hikes, camping, car trips, boating trips and adventures. When dogs are happy it is easy to see as they not only smile but their entire body reflects their happiness'. In turn they make us happy too. 

The Value Of Dog/s Part 2:

 

Dogs have so many traits and abilities that many of us humans wish for or try to achieve but fall short in. Part two addresses three more of these traits.

Unconditional Forgiveness:  Dogs seem to have the ability to forgive without judgement, or conditions and just want to be our friend again and let the offense go without holding a grudge. They tend to live in the present and not yesterday or tomorrow. They simply just move on from the infraction whatever it may be and not dwell on the past. That ties in with  the first of their values as pointed out in loyalty in the first part of this topic.

Protective Instincts:  Dogs have an ingrained protective instinct that they will protect those who they love. Sometimes some that they don't know as well depending on the risk factor. I don't want to get ahead of myself on this subject, but they are intelligent and can assess dangers ahead of most humans. They will put themselves in harm's way to protect their family or those they love. Sometimes to the point of their own death. It has been said and I believe it that only two people will die for you: Jesus or your dog. 

Intelligence:  Many underestimate the intelligence of dogs. Dogs can learn up to 250 words or symbols. I have always taught our dogs with both words and hand signals. When they get older, they tend (like us humans) to lose some or all of their hearing. That is when the hand signals come in very handy. It all tends to be what you want them to learn. We talk to our dogs all the time and it pays off. 

I have taught one of our dogs his right from his left and to tell basic time. in a very rudimentary way. I would point to a time on the clock to tell him when I would be back and he would be looking for me as Carol would watch to see what he would do. He would be waiting at the door. Not all breeds are of high intelligence but most would surprise people if they would be paying attention. 

Dogs are the consummate friend of their family.  

Klaus:

 Yesterday Klaus had his teeth cleaned and ended up having 10 pulled. He also had a growth near his rectum, and it was removed as well, along with stiches. It was heartbreaking to hear him whine in pain and we stayed up with him last night. He is getting pain meds but they don't seem to handle all his pain.

He is 11 years old and it has been hard on him at that age. It is like having a tooth ache and hemorrhoids all at the same time. Neither of us or Lucy and Rex got over a couple hours sleep last night but his comfort and welfare is more important to us than sleep. Klaus could certainly use prayers now as he struggles with the residual anesthesia and pain.

Not having those bad teeth removed could cause infection go get into his blood system and that could kill him. We want to give him every bit of life possible and while it is tough on him now, but he will at least be healthy in his old age. Soft food and pain pills for a couple of weeks and he should be his normal self once again.

The Value Of Dogs:

 

Unconditional Love: Dogs love without conditions, demands or judgement. They love us just as we are. They love us without expecting anything in return. They like to be with us all the time even when we go into the bathroom. They demonstrate their love by constantly pleasing us which some people fail to recognize. If God so loved us, so we should love one another. 1 John 4:11. Could it be that we see in dogs what we try to do in our lives but often fail to accomplish. 

Loyalty: In a world that is and often uncertain when it comes to loyalty, dogs offer a level of loyalty in a form of true faithfulness that is second to none other. Their loyalty should inspire us to stand by those whom we love by observing our dog's example. A friend loves at all times, and a brother is born for adversity. Proverbs 17:17. Dog's remain loyal regardless of our circumstances whether good or bad. They do not make judgements when it comes to being loyal and their loyalty transcends circumstances. They often are loyal when no one else comes to our side. We have much to learn from our dogs.  

Compassion and Empathy: Dogs are able to tell when we are stressed or anxious and they come to us not to fix our problem but to just be there to give us comfort and reassurance by a gentle paw, leaning against us, laying their head in our lap or just a nuzzle. They let us know that we are not alone and by their presence offer support. We would do well to cultivate as similar method of empathy and compassion toward other. Just being there for others is a way to support them and not trying to solve their problems unless they ask.

Look for further blogs on this topic in the future. 

Alamosa, Colorado

Alamosa, CO was a little over an hours drive from our mountain home...where we did shopping, visited doctors, etc. This is a great article and can give you an idea of why we loved it there so much!

https://familydestinationsguide.com/peaceful-town-colorado-rent/

Manufacturing:

It used to be that items manufactured in China were lacking quality but I have noted over past several years that is no longer the case. Items I have purchased that were made in China have been good quality. While our governments posture back and forth and they try to work out relationships with each other the quality of items I buy as a consumer seem to be pretty good quality.

While our government and the government of China consider each other enemies the people of both countries are probably very much the same. We care about those we love and work with to give ourselves a better life. Carol has a good friend in China and they seem to get along just fine and I don't see much difference other than the control their government has over them.

As I watch the Olympics the participants from all countries seem to be getting along with each other and enjoying themselves and most of all having fun with each other. Therefore it seems to me if we put the governments aside people have more in common than not. Unfortunately we can't put governments aside so they will have to continue to push and pull in the power struggle as there is no real common ground - only compromise and peaceful co-existence. 

Back to my original thought - I think products that we buy from China have improved greatly and I have found out purchases to be of good quality nowadays. Made in China no longer has the stigma that it once had.

 

New Doors:

 

The top photo depicts our old sliding glass door that has been with the house for 45 years. The new doors that are manufactured nowadays are so much more energy efficient and the bottom photo shows our newly installed door. The sliding glass doors were wearing out (at least the handles and locks) and they were heavy and we really had to struggle to open and close them. The new doors are much easier to open and close. The repairman will finish the outside trim and installation today. 

It also makes it harder for people to see inside, plus we will not have to put up with annoying drafts coming in anymore. 

Window Crashes In Our Past Home:

Two mountain chickadees in two days - wow.. We usually only get two a year. I think it may be the same bird who just craves attention. This little guy managed to fly off too. I brought him inside to keep him warm by the wood stove and then took him back out to the railing and he just kept looking inside like in the photo which told me he wanted to come back inside where it was warm. He looked me over real good when I was stroking his head and holding him by the wood stove so he could warm up. I think I now have a friend for life as he flew off just moments ago... We have some birds that will fly right up to me - as close as a foot away. I assume that it is ones I have helped over the years but I can't be certain.

 

Cowbirds:

 My past posts about Henrietta and also the posts about Chickadee's and nuthatches reveal the good qualities of birds. As with any species there are also birds of lessor qualities like the cowbird. Consider that the cowbird during nesting time will look for a nest, wait until the host leaves for a few minutes and then will lay its egg in the nest and let the host bird hatch it. The cowbird will take out one of the host birds eggs to replace it with her own.

The unsuspecting host then raises the chick along with its own. Sometimes the cowbird chick because it is larger will force the host birds chick out of the nest to make more room for itself.

Now consider human nature as it exists today see if any comparisons can be made between the cowbird characteristics and human characteristics.

Superfund Cleanup:

 

It was 16 years ago when a friend of mine and myself decided to drive over to a ghost town where a creek ran through it and do a little prospecting for gold. When we got there we found the creek was being cleaned up by the EPA as a superfund site. We walked up and down the creek for a long way and there was -0- signs of life in the creek. 

Another time Carol and I went to check out another ghost town (Bonanza) and there was this nice little creek that ran through part of the ghost town. I stopped to check out the creek and I could actually see the heavy metals in the creek covering the rocks. Actually there were quite a few creeks around including one very near us that was polluted. The fact is there were so many I personally found that were polluted.

These creeks had no signs of life in them, even when rocks were turned over, no visible life was in evidence, birds would not go near them, no insects, and the same shiny layer that coats everything. Colorado had in the past many mines where heavy metals were used as well as arsenic and mercury. Where  EPA were cleaning up these creeks they were doing a good job but the progress takes years not weeks or months. 

From what I have witnessed  there are more creeks than availability to restore them. When we see these creeks it is a sad thing to witness and very costly and time consuming to clean up. We need to do a better job of taking care of our resources. 

 

Daisy:

When we first moved to southern Colorado at 9,800' elevation our land was a jumble of brush, downed trees and limbs.  One day I was out cleaning up the brush and a mule deer doe with twins was a few yards away from me and I started to talk to her telling her how beautiful her twins were and how pretty she was. 

She stayed with me for several hours and that started a human/wild animal relationship that rewarded me over the years. We ended up naming her Daisy and she taught me more about mule deer in the many years we were together than I would have ever expected. 

 

After one of those two fawns grew up he came around and would actually eat out of my hand and allow me to pick ice balls off his head. He adopted me into the deer family and there are many stories I have shared and can continue to share. He was a good companion over the years and in fact would bring other deer around to meet and greet with me. Even more stories there with his friends. 

One of the does in Daisy's family had a fawn who had somehow broken its leg. The fawn's mother would drive it out of the family of deer. I watched Daisy strongly chastise the fawn's mother and Daisy took the little fawn herself to raise. She cared for that fawn and protected it until its leg healed and became its mother. 

Daisy or one of her offspring made friends with one of our dogs - Sarah, a black German Shepherd - and they would sniff each other through the fence and run along the fence together. Sarah died of heart failure and I had established a memorial area where I had cap stones with her name and a photo of her sealed in clear epoxy. It was a memorial garden for our past dogs and there were several headstones in it. 

For a few years after Sarah passed away I would be going down the tractor trail to the memorial area and often find Sarah's friend  standing over her marker looking down at her headstone photo. Not the others but her headstone only. This happened many times to just be a coincidence or happen chance. 

Sarah's friend did that for several years and I would stop on my tractor and talk to Sarah's friend for several minutes and she would look at me and then down at Sarah's marker. I call that true friendship.

Major Storm Coming:

 

Please be careful and check with your neighbors who may need help. Ice storms can  be dangerous so be careful and use good practices to stay safe. Trees and tree limbs can break off and fall without notice and footing can he slippery. 

Prima Facia:

My opinion only: I don't understand what is going on with all the investigations both with congress and the DOJ. They seem to be investigating all the alleged law breakers but nothing seems to be happening. The recent case where a group of protestors charge into a church where people are worshiping and disrupt the service seems to go against our constitution and law.  They were protesting ICE agents in a church. 

 It was all caught on camera and seems pretty clear to me. It has been the same with other incidents that have been documented by video and audio. After we hear about the incident the authorities, whether they are DOJ or congress,  announce they will  'investigate' and then the incident just drops from sight. It just falls into an empty pit and we hear no more. 

There is a term in law that is as old as our laws are that is called, prima facie,  - the evidence is sufficient to prove the case..  In short it simply means that the thing speaks for itself - the facts are in plain sight. Here we have incidents that are documented both visually and verbally and now they "investigate", and then we won't hear anything further. It has been a year now and all I have seen are many investigations. 

Misappropriations, mortgage fraud, outright  of money, breaking into vehicles, vandalization of vehicles, assaulting law enforcement officers, spouting sedition and a host of other illegal activity. 

It seems to me that the church incident clearly speaks for itself. I wonder what is to investigate that isn't already clear. Why not arrest and charge those acting criminally right now. Or will this just die on the investigation vine too.  I don't think the bad people are much scared of investigations or it doesn't seem so. It is not a deterrent and they just laugh at the process and go on with further criminal activities. 

There won't be a more perfect case than the church one; they can arrest those responsible and still continue to investigate. This "investigate" is just making our upside down country even more so. We need accountability but more than that real action. 

Klaus

 

Klaus is our oldest dog. We just celebrated his 11th birthday in November. Of course we really don't know how old he is but that's the best guess. He is doing well...takes a Galliprant each day for back pain and that stuff has worked wonders for him. He usually is laying on one of the multiple dog beds we have in different places in the house or on the leather sofa. This morning though he got up on the loveseat for the first time! This is where Rex sleeps each night. Klaus has never shown any interest in jumping up there until today and we sure were surprised.

He is our "best boy". Not a single mean bone in his body although best we can tell he is a cross between a chow chow and akita. He missed his Mom April for quite some time after she passed on but seems to have recovered.

This sudden move to jump on the love seat was also intended as a message to Rex who has been with us just over 6 months. They both get along fine and Klaus is such a laid back boy and just gets along with everyone including Rex. He sent Rex a message that he is the senior fur family member and I watched Rex just look at him and walk over and lay down in the kitchen. He (Rex) clearly got the message. Having more than one fur family member is just so entertaining if you know what to look for. 

Rex has taken over the love seat and Klaus did not even look at Rex when he got on the love seat; just got up there, got comfortable and then got down in about 10 minutes. He sent Rex a very clear message which was received. The pecking order is still well established as Rex recognizes Klaus as the senior family member and respects him and gives him room.