Black Dog Sunday

I've had a few chances to photograph our black dog recently at sunset. During one walk, I photographed the Duo just before the sunset.


Shyla asked me to include the next one because, for once, she appears to be taller than R!

Just after the sun disappears, the light is perfect for photographing a black dog. That's when I took the next one. The setting sun is still glimmering in the trees behind R.

R is such a high intensity character. In this photo, he is staring at the meadow, trying to see if any rogue rabbits or other animals have dared come out. His intensity is his hallmark - one person called him a "10,000 Volt Dog". That is, until he can snuggle with Shyla or a human - then he's the most mellow dog you could ever meet!

Mother Nature's Peace

One thing that never ceases to amaze me is how Mother Nature keeps on rolling even when humans are wreaking havoc on Earth.

This photo was from last spring at K's Rock in the desert under a bright moon. I took time lapse photos for about an hour to see how the stars moved in the sky. 

Despite events elsewhere on Earth, I'm sure that the gorgeous rock is sitting under the night sky right now with the stars beaming down upon it.

I hope that you're having a peaceful starry Saturday.

See Beautiful

Today is See Beautiful Day. My long-time readers know that I think that the glow of sunrise on my Shyla is one of the most beautiful things in the world. No moose charged us today so we were up at our lookout point for sunrise. Shyla still vigilantly watched out for anyone coming near us.

Then we played a little in the sunrise light, and Shyla tossed snow crystals in the air as she waved - another very simple thing that is beautiful!

Her flying leap toward me made me laugh out loud!

That was a glorious morning outing. We didn't see any moose but I saw fresh moose tracks meandering through our agility course next to our house. I wish I had a photo of the moose on the agility course! Some of you suggested that we could stay in our yard to play when moose are around. The problem is that we have no fences so moose can wander right up to our house. We'll have to try to be even more alert about where the moose are hanging out.

After our morning time outdoors, we came back home, where sun puddles dotted our floor. The Duo enjoyed them together.

That's one of the most beautiful sights in the world to me.

A Hard-Charging Moose

We had a rough start to the day. Just as we left our home clearing, a mother moose charged us. She seemingly came out of nowhere and ran directly at me. My first move was to try to get behind a tree but then I realized that there was no time for that. Her hooves were churning through the snow as she came at me. When she was about 20 yards away, I raised my hands over my head, took an aggressive step toward her, and screamed as loud as I could. At that moment, she veered away and went to stand about 25 yards away from me and Shyla.

The moose then stared at us without moving. I waited, hoping that she'd leave, but she just stared. So, I started walking away, with Shyla in a "heel". The moose moved parallel to us, keeping an unchanging distance from us. After we walked about 30 yards, I changed direction, and the moose finally gave us some space. We walked away as the moose headed back into the forest.

I feel lucky to be okay tonight. My reaction to her charge was purely instinctive. However, as I think through through my options, being aggressive was my only option because the moose was so close to us in such a short time. I'm very glad that Shyla chose to hide behind me throughout the encounter. For obvious reasons, I have no photos of the encounter, although I did capture a view of the calf, a male, later in the day from a very long distance.

You can see his antler pedicles in the next photo. They are bulges above his eyes.

 I wondered where his mom had gone. Usually, a mother moose and her calf stay very close together.

That calf has really grown up since my first glimpse of him in June.

I usually welcome any and all wildlife in the forest but I'm truly afraid of moose. I would prefer if they'd move along so we didn't have to constantly scan the forest shadows for a lurking moose. I know that's not a fair attitude because the forest is their home. In reality, I am hoping that I'll get better at knowing where the moose might be, and the moose will get more relaxed about people.

After that start to our morning, I think that Shyla and I were both on edge. We just played for a while far away from where the moose and calf were but I didn't forget that we were going to have to run the "moose gauntlet" again to get home.

Shyla let loose as she played in the snow...

After some time in the forest, we made it home fine, and now I'm trying to relax next to a fire. However, I have to admit that this spine pain is relentless, and my fighting spirit is wearing down. I'll write more about that seemingly endless saga sometime in the future. In the meantime, please forgive me I am not as active in Blogville as usual.

Winter Wednesday

Today winter really began.

And the Duo was ecstacic.

364 Days ago, last winter began. On that day, Tiny the Black Bear walked westward toward his den. Notice the -11°F temperature in the upper right of the photo.

A short time later, he was even more covered in frost.

Those were the last photos of him until May of this year. He must have snuggled into a den almost immediately after he passed my trail cameras.

I wonder if Tiny is walking to his den now. I've noticed that some bears time their walk toward their dens almost to the day, every single year.

The Beauty and the Garbage

I love the place where we live. Its beauty stuns me still almost daily. This photo was of the mountains as the first sun rays touched them today.

The forests provide solitude and quiet.

The mountains are omnipresent. They tower over our world and make me smile almost daily.

But some people just don't get it. They buy their Starbucks and Whole Foods meal down in the city. They drive up here and rumble back through a 4WD forest road in their vehicle. Perhaps they notice the beauty or perhaps they are here for some other purpose, like target shooting. Then, they mindlessly leave the evidence of their privileged life behind on the forest floor.

I won't ever understand their lack of sensitivity to our environment.

So, after picking up the garbage left by "Evan" and others like him, I go gaze at the mountains to keep my happiness intact.

I cannot imagine seeing a magical sight like the sun setting over the mountains and then tossing garbage on the ground.

A Sunrise Adventure

Shyla and I were out at sunrise this morning, and it was the best part of my day.

I've been getting used to a smaller and lighter camera, a "micro four thirds" camera. I bought it because of my latest spine problems. It is much lighter than my DSLR, and I hope it will save my spine some wear and tear.

It has been tough to learn what all the little buttons and dials do on my new camera. In contrast, I can operate my DSLR in the dark while almost asleep (e.g., taking star photos). Because I'm clumsy with the new camera, I've been hesitant to use it for photos of Shyla at sunrise. I need to work very fast to get good photos in those first few minutes after the sun rises. Using a camera that I know well, like my DSLR, is a huge advantage.

The first time I tried to use the new camera at sunrise, I hit an unknown button that locked up every control on the camera. I said some choice words as I tried to undo whatever I'd done. I got almost no photos that morning although I eventually figured out which button I'd hit to "lock" the controls.

This morning, I tried the new camera again at sunrise. I got my first photo without hitting any unknown buttons.

Then, I hit a button that made everything in my viewfinder turn weird bluish color. It only took about a minute to fix that mistake, and then I made another photo.

I thought that things were rolling smoothly at that point but I was wrong. Before I took another photo, the autofocus stopped working. I checked the controls to see if I'd accidentally hit one, and nothing seemed out of place. I was ready to give up when I decided to turn off the camera, take off the lens, and then put the lens on again. It worked!!!

But Shyla was mortified at the language I'd used during that snafu. She covered her face in embarrassment.

After that, my camera operation went smoothly but we'd missed some of the best light of the sunrise. Ah well. Live and learn.

I set Shyla up for one more photo before we got moving. However, she was obsessed with something off to my side and behind me. I wasn't too concerned, especially because her eyes looked so beautiful from that angle. So I kept snapping away with my camera without checking out what she was staring at.

When she lifted her head and gazed so intently in that direction, I decided I'd better take a good look behind me.

When I looked, I was in disbelief. A buck was grazing about 20 yards behind me. I absolutely cannot believe that Shyla didn't move from her spot. After I saw him, I reminded Shyla to "stay", and I walked toward him to encourage him to move along. He bounded away, and Shyla still didn't move from her down-stay on the boulder.

To say that I was proud of Shyla at that moment would be an understatement. Since I have taken positive training to a new level, focusing on playing and strengthening my relationship with Shyla, she tends to make the "right" choices without me saying anything. The fact that she "stayed" with an exciting buck so nearby while I was obliviously taking photos of her is a great example!

Way to go, sweet girl!

Ferocious Faces on Sunday

When Shyla and I arrived home from our sunrise outing today, the Duo was ready to play! We'd had a tremendously fun time outside at sunrise so I was surprised that Shyla wasn't tired. Here was Shyla's look as she and I played.

As soon as Shyla came through the door after our outing, the Labraduo started making mock growling and snarling noises, along with ferocious faces.

At the beginning, Shyla was the master of the terrifying faces.

And then R made a few himself.

And, then, as fast as the game had started, the Duo snoozed together.

It warms my heart to see our Labraduo play together so happily. I'm glad that they have such a strong and happy bond.

Darkness and Light

We saw the sunrise this morning. After a series of gray days, it was a wonderful sight.

I make seeing the sunrise a goal because it helps me keep everything in perspective. I remember that pain almost always passes, and life is too precious to fritter away worrying.

Dogs know this naturally. We humans have to learn it.

Shyla's and my morning outings have become very cold. This morning was 18°F!

Cold adaptation hasn't been too hard this year because the temperatures have gradually fallen over the past week. Some years, it feels as if the world zooms from autumn to winter all in one day.

Another thing that I love about seeing sunrise is the interplay between darkness and light in the forest as the sun's light first reaches it. The depths of the forest remain inky black after some rays of sunlight have brightened the edges of the forest. This interplay reminds me of life and the battle between light and darkness that we all wage.

After playing in the snowy world this morning, Shyla was happy to have breakfast and a snooze, together with her octopus.

I, too, am incredibly tired. It feels as if my spine pain has sapped every iota of my energy. On the good news end of the spectrum, I've had a couple of days this week when the spine pain was slightly less intense than it has been over the past month. That gives me hope and reminds of how sweet life will be when this pain is gone.

Life in the Forest - Including a Moose

It has been an odd week. Suddenly, before the snow fell, this structure appeared on one of my riding routes that is rarely traveled.

When I looked inside, I found this. I guess it was a Hare Krishna temple.

For some reason, the builders of the "temple" put it just inside a private property boundary. Someone had dismantled it or it had collapsed on its own within a few days.

Or perhaps this guy took it down...

We have at least 5 different moose in our neck of the woods now. It's crazy how fast they've colonized our area. One year ago, glimpsing a single moose was amazing! Now they seem to be everywhere!


Happy Friday.

I hope that you all get some rest this weekend. I know that I need it!
And maybe Shyla needs it too!

Winter Play

Today was that yearly shocking day when winter truly hits. We dithered away some time playing inside because I'm a wimp at heart and didn't feel like going out in the snow. Instead, I first took some photos of Shyla with a quilt made by a wonderful friend of ours back when K died.

After our indoor procrastination, we headed out into the snow. In fact, as always, I ended up enjoying being outside with Shyla. She plays with such abandon that her happiness is contagious.

I have found some ways to add play into our training without it hurting my spine anymore than it already hurts. It's made a world of difference in Shyla's confidence. All it takes is a few minutes of training interspersed with super fun playing to make Shyla much more relaxed about the world. I think that Shyla is teaching me how important playing is for all of us!

Then, while we were feeling happy, I took a photo of Shyla in what I've come to think of as "her hat". It was mine but Shyla looks much better in it than I do! And, she doesn't mind wearing hats anymore. When I add up all the small fears that have vanished, it's astonishing to realize how much Shyla has changed since I met her.

Happy Winter! I suspect we'll get a little more autumn weather before our "final" snow falls that will remain on the ground until April but today was the first taste of what the next few months will be like!

Wordless Wednesday - The Many Faces of Shyla