On Tuesday, for the first time in four years, I put on my snowshoes and went for a "walk" in the woods with Retired Mountain Man.  There was some question whether either one of us could do it without falling down at some point, but we decided to meet the challenge.  I wasn't sure I could even remember how to strap them on.  

The snow conditions are what I would call "just okay".  There's at least a foot of very hard frozen snow in most places and in some it's more like 18"-20".  It means that one stays on top of the snow, but even with the cleats/claws on the bottom of the shoes, sometimes it's icy enough to slip and slide.  

It was also a very noisy walk.  

With these conditions no wildlife would stay within 200 yards of us.   The best snow for this kind of walk is when there's some soft snow on top of the frozen stuff.  It means you have almost a silent walk through the woods and sometimes you get to see deer or elk and other wildlife up close because they don't hear you.  

CRUNCH     CRUNCH    CRUNCH!  We sounded like a herd of elephants, but it was a way to get out there in January. 

We followed our trail through the woods and it was quite obvious that the deer and elk, and possibly a moose, had the same idea.  There were tracks everywhere.They had packed down a trail all the way around from our house, through the woods to our neighbor's house. 

It was like walking on frozen concrete with a bunch of holes bored through it.  

As for the falling down part, we both managed to stay upright although there were some close calls.  Usually, it's the dog stepping on the back of one of your shoes that causes you to be off balance, but that was not the problem.  There's nothing like stepping on top of one of your own shoes.  It will stop you right in your tracks. 

During our walk, Willie saw a deer and took off after him.  After waiting some time for him to come back we became concerned that he was lost or that something had happened to him.  Since it was almost dark Jon decided that he needed to go look for him so he put his snowshoes back on and took a flashlight and a walkie-talkie with him.  

I really didn't think that searching for him was going to work.  If Willie was that close and wanted to respond to our call, he would hear us.  He was off on a chase and ignoring us. 

In the meantime I phoned a couple of our neighbors to let them know that we were looking for Willie and that paid off.  About ten minutes later our next-door neighbor, Ann, called to tell us that her daughter, Suzanne, saw Willie at our other neighbor's house as she was driving up to the county road.  There are always lots of deer in that location and evidently it had become a big attraction for Willie.

Too much tempation for a puppy and a new problem for mom and dad solve.

When I stepped outside I could hear someone else calling my dog and it was Suzanne.  In about two minutes Willie showed up on our porch.  

In the meantime, Retired Mountain Man was still far out into the woods, on his snowshoes, in the dark, looking for the dog.  He had actually dropped down off the bench, which was quite a distance from our house. 

 Unbelievable.  Now I was more worried about him than the dog.  

Yes, he fell down and yes, he had a really fun time trying to get back up with the shoes on.  He's more agile than I am so he managed to do it on his own.  I would still be out there...

Mr. Willie came into the house and immediately went to his "place" with what I would call a "hangdog" look on his face. He had definitely worn himself out running, but he also knew that it was something that he wasn't supposed to do.  He was sent from there to his crate for a major time-out.

This has really turned into a very long Willie Report.  

I had intended to post this Wednesday, but ran out of time since Willie had an appointment with the vet and also a training session scheduled.  

When we check in at the vet, the first thing they want is the dog's weight, but trying to get Willie to step on the scale while there's a new person there for him to see was just too much to ask.  It was his usual behavior of over-excitement, jumping and rolling over, with his tail wagging in overtime mode.  He knocked my bag of treats out of my hand and they spilled all over the scale and the floor.  Oh boy!  It was puppy chaos!  

We finally did get a weight - 37 pounds.  Holy cow!  Maybe he's going to be the size of a cow?   What is happening?  

The vet, Dr. Talitha Neher, was one of Jon's students in 8th grade physical science. I told her that we had gone from a border collie who was the laziest one on the planet to the exact opposite with Willie.  Her reply was that it couldn't be worse than trying to control a classroom full of eighth grade students.  (She wasn't in the lobby when we came in)

 She and her assistant were really good with Willie and after a couple of minutes managed to calm him down into a sit so that they could give him his last vaccinations for this year.  Their trick is spreading peanut butter on the concrete floor. The dog licks it up and calms down. 

Then we moved on to Willie's final training session - at least for the next couple of months. 

We worked on "leave it" and "in your place" along with "sit, down and stay" commands.   The goals for the next couple of months are to reinforce everything and continue with socializing.

We left the clinic and made a stop in the parking lot near Petco.  This time we got out of the car and spent some time just watching people and cars go by. 

This morning Willie still thinks he's a lap dog and he spent some time on my lap. All 37 pounds of him.  When I am in my recliner there is not enough room for him, so he stretches out and rests his head on my end table.   

I don't know about you, but I am longing for the days when our yards are not covered in snow and the driveways not covered in ice.  

I am positive that the next time I drive to town, they will have primroses for sale.  Maybe tulips?  Daffodils? 

This morning we have marvelous sunshine.  Willie and I will go to the post office to see "the people" and work on more training.   

To pass the time I am re-watching a movie, Places in the Heart, starring Sally Fields.  When I saw it was on the TV schedule, I recorded it and I don't know if it's available via streaming,  but it's worth watching again.   Small town, Great Depression, Texas, a woman and mother left on her own.  I love little Possum.  

52 days until spring. 

 

 This morning we have a few snowflakes falling, but it doesn't look too serious at the moment.  We're back to the gloomy skies after a most beautfiful sunny day yesterday.  Since we can't see the mountains this morning I'm posting a couple of January photos from 2013. 

Retired Mountain Man, Willie and I drove into Sandpoint to pick up a grocery order in-between the two football games.  When we left it seemed pretty certain that Rams were going to win although it ended up being another close one.  

If you're a football fan, it was a fascinating and fun weekend with the most exciting game Sunday night.  What a heartbreaker for Buffalo, but boy they sure made it fun to watch.

There's not much on my schedule today.  A little bit of many things:  puppy training, guitar playing, maybe a little piano practice and just to get out of the house, picking up the mail at the post office.  

Speaking of the post office, I received an email this morning from the USPS telling me that my free Covid test kits would arrive on Friday.  That was a pleasant surprise.  Jon and I hope we do not need to use them but it will be nice to have them. 

Have you been playing Wordle?  

I have been playing the game almost from day one and it's fun.  It's a game that doesn't take long to play and it gives me a little challenge every day.  I love that there are no ads.  It's only the game.  That's it.  No annoying videos.  

We have one week left and January will be in the rearview mirror.  I'm hoping we've seen the worst of winter for 2022 and also that we're almost finished with Covid and we can feel free to see friends again.   

Old Friends and Bookends

Happy Birthday to JP!  This is his special day and we hope it's a wonderful one. 

A great dad!

A wonderful son...

....and brother!

 There are lots of stories to tell about JP but the one I'll talk about today is "the tree killer".   

His first college degree was in forestry and the family loves to tease him about the fact that when he was younger, between the ages of 16 and 21, he managed to somehow crash either his Toyota Landcruiser or our pickup into every tree species in Northern Idaho:  cedar, red fir, white fir, birch, cottonwood, aspen.... you name it.  He crashed into one of them - somewhere between home and the bottom of West Spring Creek Road, although there were a couple slide-offs in other places.  

No wonder he ended up going back to college and getting a degree in computer programming. 

Save the trees!

 This week is appointment week as I have one each day, Monday-Wednesday.   Two doctor's appointments (yearly checkups) and one training appointment for Willie.  That's a lot of trips to Sandpoint for someone who usually drives there once a week. 

Fortunately, our county road and driveway conditions are improving.  Cudos to the county road maintenance crew because West Spring Creek Road, especially "the hill" is plowed and sanded and all of the snow berms are pushed back.  

Our driveway was 100% ice but now there are spots of gravel showing up, plus the skiff of snow we had last night really helps give some traction.  

As I drive to town I've been thinking a lot about spring.  Should I buy some seed-starting mix?  I wonder if any of the stores will have primroses for sale?  Should I take my begonias out of storage?

While I was in town Willie had a new experience with the FedEx delivery truck.  Apparently FedEx was not delivering anything to us, but for some reason decided to drive into our yard.  Jon had just let Willie outside and he stayed on the porch while the van drove in(good boy, Willie), but when the van didn't stop and continued around our circle driveway, that was too much movement for Willie to resist.  Off he went after the FedEx van.  

That driver headed down our driveway, stopped and then backed up into our neighbor's driveway.  By that time Jon had walked to the end of our driveway circle and when Willie saw him and heard Jon's calling him, he headed back home.  

We really don't want him learning to chase any vehicles so it looks like we have something more to work on. 

After I was returned from my trip we loaded up our weekly load of garbage to head to the dumpster site at Clark Fork and decided to take Willie with us.  Usually, he travels in his crate, but this time he was just on his leash and the in the back seat.  Another new experience for the puppy. 

It must have been exhausting because after we got home Willie was "out like a light" in his favorite sleeping place, the furnace vent.  

We have never had a dog lay on the floor vent to nap or get warm, but Willie does all the time.  It would seem like it would get too hot for him, but he spends hours there.  

So, another Janaury day goes by.  There was nothing too exciting about it.  It was all pretty normal.  After two years of Covid-19, this much "normal" seems great to me.

Yes, I know Covid is not over, but there are a lot of positives and new normals.

 Vaccines 

Boosters 

Covid tests  (even at-home tests.  Have you ordered yours?  It's free and easy to order.)    

Masks, even N95's are available -remember when we were sewing them for the hospitals?

Disposable gloves - you couldn't find them anywhere in 2020. 

Monoclonal antibodies treatments

Scientists around the world are working on new treatments and vaccines every day.  

Even though every country has a different approach to keeping Covid at bay, everyone is doing what they think is best and no one is giving up

Telephone doctor appointments ( one of the new benefits, which is really convenient.  

Curbside grocery pickup  (also pharmacy and other shopping)  I love curbside pickup as it saves me LOTS of time.

For someone who has to eat gluten-free, this was funny.  I'm very happy to have 2020 and 2021 in the rearview mirror. 

Life is definitely different now and I don't know if it will ever return to what it was before, but right now that's okay with me.  

Back in January 2020 we didn't know anything about Covid-19 including how it spread.  We're still learning, but we sure do know a lot more about it now.  Thank you scientists.

I'm still concerned about the stress on our healthcare community and want them to know how much I appreciate what they have done and continue to do.   The same goes for everyone connected to our schools.  There were so many problems and they have kept going through it all.                        

We are inching our way forward.  

60 days until spring.

-----I wrote most of this post Tuesday evening.  I want to add cudos to Dr. Crane and his nurse, Susan, who went above and beyond yesterday to try to find a breathing device for Jon to help him get over his bronchitis.  Susan called this morning to say that there wasn't one to be found in Sandpoint so Dr. Crane contacted the hosptial cardiology department and they have one for him.  All I have to do is pick it up today.  Thank you to Bonner General Health as well.----

 It's January.  

Yes, the days are a bit longer and sunset is a little bit later in the day, but welcome to the winter blah days.  Take your pick.  Snowy, rainy, foggy, cold, windy?   This year it's an ice rink out there on the driveway and difficult to walk in the paths due to heavy, wet snow.   

On Wednesday Jon decided to try on his snowshoes.  Willie's first encounter with the snowshoes went okay.  His first instinct is that they are definitely something to be herded. 

Usually, the biggest issue with our dogs and snowshoes is that they quickly learn to follow you in the trail because it makes it easier for them to walk through the snow, BUT they have a tendancy to step on the back of your shoe as you take a step.  The end result being that you become off balance and end up on your tush in the deep snow.  

There's a lot of floundering around while you try to get back on your feet.  At my age I have a lot of trouble just getting up off the ground when there's no snow. 

There's usually some semblance of a snow angel after you get back up but it's one that was having a hard time learning to fly.  Retired Mountain Man managed to stay on his feet. 

The plan was to head for the fence to exchange the card in the game camera.

There was about a half inch crust on top of the snow, but everything underneath was powder so the conditions were not great for the shoes.

This morning it's really foggy but at one point I did see a glimmer of sunshine coming through the fog and it's beginning to look like we might have a sunny day.  That would be most welcome.  Maybe by noon.

Yesterday morning the first email I read was from the county sheriff's office reporting that all the roads in the county (700 miles of them) were very icy and hazardous and advised people to stay off the roads unless it was absolutely necessary.  The schools were closed for the day.  

The rain and ice appeared to be very widespread as we learned via texts with our sons in both Kalispell and Missoula.  JP sent a message that he had helped a woman get her car out of the ditch in Kalispell and David, in Missoula, had taken one step out his front door and immediately slipped on the ice and fell, injuring both his knee and ankle.  I'm hoping it's only a sprain and doesn't need an x-ray.

I heeded all the warnings and canceled my appointments and my curbside grocery pickup.  Everything can wait for a better driving and walking day.

It was a day for catching up reading a new book, playing some music and watching DVD's and TV shows.  I recorded the first episode of the new season of All Creatures Great and Small and discovered a new series, Around the World in 80 Days.  Both were fun to watch.

We watched a documentary called Everything and Nothing about the universe.  I learned answers to questions I had never thought about before, but the most stunning part was that scientists now have a map of the universe and it's mindboggling how large it is.  

Now that we have the James Webb telescope on it's way, we will be able to see even more of what's out there in our universe.  Below is a photo of one galaxy taken by the Hubble Telescope.

The Hubble Deep Field, an extremely long exposure of a relatively empty part of the sky, provided evidence that there are about 125 billion (1.25×10¹¹) galaxies in the observable universe.

There are approximately 100 billion stars in every galaxy.  

It certainly puts things in perspective.  We are a tiny grain of sand in relationship to the universe, but we sure do think we are everything. 

On a lighter note, we watched The Dig, about the 1939 excavation of a burial mound in Suffolk, England, just prior to WWII.  A very interesting story especially since the excavation was done by a self-taught archeologist, which didn't sit well with the powers that be in those days. I love movies where the average Joe wins out.

As I write this I am still waiting for the heavy fog to lift.  Maybe by noon we will see blue sky here.  At the moment, the steps to the porch are covered with about six feet of snow, but the forecast high today is 41, which makes me hopeful for spring.    

There will be pansies. 

 

 

We're all shoveling out today.  Some of it was done yesterday, but it was pretty wet, soggy snow that weighed a ton in every shovel-full.   

The size of the snowbanks are beginning to look impressive.  

Our Christmas tree has been moved to a pile of snow on the deck.  We plan to hang some food for the birds but just haven't gotten around to that yet.

Snow, snow, and more snow.

The plum tree.

The snow is well over the top of my snowblower and it was like I was walking through sand on the beach on Thursday afternoon.  The snowblower could not pick up all of the snow, which left plenty in the trails and paths to become part of our soggy mess the next day.

The heavy snow has come off the house roof but not the barn, although it is trying to slide off the barn today.  At least for the time being it has stopped raining, the sun is shining and our high today is supposed to be 32.  Tomorrow it will be a bit warmer so maybe we can actually clear some of this off.  

Our neighbor, Garrett, was here yesterday to plow the driveway.  What a mess it was. 

 I walked to my car through 8 inches of soggy slush, which was so bad it was difficult to walk in.  I managed to get the car cleaned off and was very happy to have the driveway plowed since even the Forester with X-mode was having trouble pushing through the slush.  

This morning there's a crust on the snow and Willie thinks he's king of the hill.  He can walk on top of it, but not everywhere, which is a good thing.  It will keep him from going off too far from the house. 

Willie report:

Willie has a basket for his toys, but Jon has started to put some of them on top of his crate.  Willie takes them off the crate and sometimes when he's finished with the toy, he puts it back on top of the crate.  I swear I have not told him to put his toys away.  He's a funny little dog. 

He had a difficult time when the kids and grandkids were here for a couple of days.  It's too many people in one small space and too much excitement for him.  We all kept trying to get him to settle down, but for the most part, our efforts didn't work.  He had to spend quite a bit of time in his crate because it was just too cold to be outside very long.   Thankfully, we have two more puppy training sessions on the calendar as he still has a lot of manners to learn.  

Our New Year's weekend was filled with lots of games, good food and for the first time since NYE 2019, we all sang The House of the Rising Sun at midnight.  We also sang one of our favorites, If I Were A Rich Man, from Fiddler on the Roof. 

There were some new games to play, Merchants and Marauders, Coup, The Oregon Trail Card Game (hardly anyone survivied), and we taught Collin to play poker.  Since he was new to the game, of course he won all the money.  

 Our white elephant exchange was a lot of fun.  Jon's old red hat was one of the gifts.  There was a lot of bartering for it with Julie winning out in the end.  Jon is not sure why anyone would want this hat.

NYE 2019, after our kids all pulled out of the driveway heading back home, we discovered the life-sized stuffed goose on one of our tree stumps in the driveway.  

This year, it was a flamingo.  With lights.  They actually ran two extension cords through the snow about 100 feet to light it up.

The goose and the flamingo together "under" our tree.

Since we've taken down the tree, the flamingo has been moved to our front porch. 

 I still have my outdoor Christmas lights up on both the porch and the barn.  I like to see them for the next couple of months.  It seems a lot more cheery out there with them on when it gets dark so early. 

I will admit to already looking at the seed catalogs and trying to decide which seeds to buy for spring planting.  

Jon is ambitious and has brought our snowshoes up from their basement storage.  He says if there's a good crust on the snow it will be good snowshoeing.  I hope he's right. 

It's time to go do some more shoveling.