The Joy of Frolicking

I am convinced that the word, "frolic," was inspired by someone who spent time in the company of goats! Our trio of rascals are born frolickers who will put a smile in your heart the minute you are in sight of them! Bumper ,the kingpin, Pickles the rotund one (he has an eating disorder that dates back to food deprivation when he was a wee one), and Theo, the imp of the group, are the most joyful animals imaginable. They follow us around like dogs, and used to lounge on the poolside furniture with us before landscaping was planted and they were banished from the area (you can guess how tempting this marvelous green buffet was for these three). They love to receive back and belly rubs, and will demand water from the hose by "pawing" at my leg with their persistent little hooves. When they descend down a slope, they twist their squatty torsos, throw their heads back and jump with all four feet off the ground. Pure glee! You are sure you can see them laughing. Wait, no, it's us with goofy grins and chuckles that erupt from the gut! Beyond the frolic, a lot of head banging goes on (I don't think they ever watched football), but it is an important daily behavior that establishes the boss of the moment. It's pretty hilarious to see them wind up, and up, into a full rear, and then BAM!, the collision of their obviously durable noggins! You absolutely cannot be unhappy around goats. They would make ideal therapy animals if you could teach them to pee and poop in the proper places. Our guys are 13 and 14 years old now, with bad joints and hip dysplasia, but they never fail to greet me with a nuzzle to nose "kiss" every morning. Truly, I wish everyone could experience the pure merriment of knowing goats.




Wow! I have never seen a mushroom like this one before! It looks reptilian to me, very exotic. Actually, there was a cluster of them, plump and rich with color in a patch of green on the side of the road. A couple of days later, they were shriveling up, losing their striking appearance. I discovered there are 569 species of California fungi, so identifying it may take awhile!

For Now...

I am having quite a time figuring out how to put multiple images on the blog and wrap the text around. The shot to the left is a technique that Susan taught me recently. You shoot in high contrast, wanting your subject to be very well lit and the background shadowed. Then you adjust the light, changing the shutter speed (taking away light) to obtain the black background. I find the images so striking and artistic. This is not a tribute to me, but to the camera and the forest full of enticing subjects that present themselves!

The image to the right is one of the beautiful paths we meander, enjoying the sights and sounds. It is an enormous luxury and a blessing to begin and end each day immersed in nature's loveliness.

It must be noted, however, that when summer heat waves arrive, and they are getting worse every season, you will hear some serious bitching and moaning from me. When the temperature creeps past the 100 degree mark, the oppressive result is an assault to the earth and all its creatures. It is a time when tree limbs are brittle with the want of water, and leaves, leached of color, are crisp and crunchy underfoot. Bugs abound, searching for sweaty skin to pierce, leaving us with itchy red bumps. Ugh, ugh, and more ugh. For anyone who does not believe in global warming, I say, "whad, are ya kiddin?"

No need to borrow misery, so for now, I banish the thoughts of summer angst! There is too much to enjoy in the moment!

Coyote Power

Coyotes are a part of our daily life here in De Luz, a fact that thrills me because I never tire of observing their beauty and their behavior. And, it thrills Cayenne because she never tires of hunting them down and chasing them. That is, until she realizes she is not actually chasing them and, oops, they are after her! How the heck did that happen?! Her war wounds are no less than 20 coyote bites in the past five years, and always in the rear end! I have doctored up her injuries at home, except for the time her tail was practically bitten in half. Our country coyotes are not interested in doing battle with Cayenne, who tends to relentlessly provoke them. They simply want her to understand there are boundaries and rules to be followed, for heaven's sake. The rules are simple: Stay out of my face and away from pups and dens, and we'll consider you a cool canine. Cayenne is very smart, really she is, but she doesn't get this. But, we have made great headway. Although she ran breathlessly out of the hills during our walk a couple of months ago with two nasty bites, that hadn't happened in at least a year and a half. She used to take off and be gone for an hour in hot pursuit of her territorial competitor. Now, she often runs back and forth barking and whining, and then continues trekking. I witnessed an amazing interaction between a coyote and Cayenne last year. I was headed down the trail back home, looked up ahead of me, and thought, "Hmm, whose dog is that with Cayenne?" I stopped and quietly watched for only seconds until they saw me. A coyote, standing about two feet from Cayenne, took off. They were standing side by side, not in any kind of face off. I was over the moon when I saw this because I thought they had finally put their muzzles together and come up with a truce. But, no, that wasn't it. It was just a unique coming together of two species of canines in a special moment when curiosity overpowered rivalry. On another occasion, the little guy featured in the photo was one that broke from his pack and followed us down the road a bit. I kept stopping and taking photos, and he finally tired of the game.
BOOK ALERT: I recently read Daily Coyote, by Shreve Stockton and it is now among the cherished jewels on my bookshelf. It is about her personal journey from living as an urbanite to creating a nest for herself in a very, very small town called Ten Sleep, Wyoming, where she lives a bare bones, no frills lifestyle. She is a fiercely independent woman and found herself suddenly faced with a huge commitment and a structured lifestyle when she was handed a ten day old coyote pup, Charlie. The story, which continues on her website, is quite incredible and her photography is stunning.

A New Day

Warren, his younger brother,
Rodger, and their parents
Today, as I was walking, with Cayenne running ahead, I was steeped in thought about President Elect Barack Obama. January 20th has been etched in my mind as a set aside day since the night many of us rejoiced as we watched the screen light up with Obama's image and heard the words, "Our next President of the United States, Barack Obama." My heart still somersaults when I think of that moment. And, for weeks afterward, Warren, my brother and sister-in-law, and I would incredulously reflect, "We have a BLACK president!" Oh, Hallelujah and Amen!!! I won't belabor the obvious points about what a commanding and grand leader he is, and will continue to be, but naturally, his outstanding capabilities were at the core of the fire that ignited American voters. He is a fresh, invigorating voice and this begins a new day for America, even with the ominous issues that face our nation and the world. As I look at the beautiful photograph of the Tuskegee Airmen, gifted to us by Warren's brother, I wonder what they might think about this pivotal transition in American politics. Warren's uncle was an an aircraft mechanic for the first Black military airmen during WWII, making him a participant in a significant milestone for racial equality in this country. It was a long, hard struggle against racism and bigotry, which finally resulted in the recognition and validation that was so well deserved. Warren, my parents, and I, were honored to meet met several of these humble, gracious men at a March Air force showing several years ago. It was so moving to see the heroism of the Tuskegee Airmen indelibly documented for all Americans to behold.

I wish Warren's parents, and many of his aunts and uncles, were alive to witness how far we have come since they raised their children who were sometimes chased out of neighborhoods on their bicycles because "they didn't belong there." And, goodness knows, there are stories to tell even in today's times that make me quake with anger, but for now, I want to revel in magnificence of having a Black man sitting in the highest office in the United States of America. I can hear our feisty Aunt Sammie saying, "You say a Black man is going to be President...well, now, isn't that somethin'...umm, umm, umm," and following up with, "You know, when I was little girl...."

Oops, the Unexpected!

Well, I was all prepared to write about my zen like nature walk this morning....BUT, when we arrived back at the ranch, Warren quickly flagged me down to show me a leak in our 4 inch plumbing to our arena well. Although a huge bummer, we were both so grateful we have this new, beautiful system that allows us to isolate that particular line to the well, still enabling us to have water to our home and up to our gravity feed water tanks. I finished up feeding llamas and playing with the goats, went inside and not a single drop of water was delivered from the faucet. Oh $#&*!!! I ran outside to tell Warren who was on his favorite boy toy, Skip, the tractor and lo and behold, he had discovered our OTHER well had sprung a huge leak, draining all water from our tanks. So, now, until our well guys get here tomorrow (hopefully), we use pool water to flush the toilets and wash our hands. Dishes will consist of paper plates and we will carefully choose what we eat that won't require too much kitchen fanfare. Thankfully, we have generous neighbors who gladly let us use their showers! Now, this is an enormous inconvenience and will be expensive to boot, but I cannot get my panties in too much of wad knowing that it is all resolvable. See, that's the Zen thing. Plus, there are so many people struggling to get shelter, to stay warm, to keep their homes, waiting to come home from the war, living in fear of terrorists' bombs, losing people they love, hoping and praying for a miraculous cure, and sadly, the list goes on. So, we are camping in our cozy home for a few days. I think we can handle it.

Cayenne's Tale and Fun in the Fog

Cayenne

Thought you should see Cayenne since she is the one of the stars of this show. Every person who has a canine companion knows this pose, the one that says, "Look at me, see how good I can sit and stay?", all the while never taking her eyes off the treat in your hand! I found this wiggly, grinning girl in May, 2003, four months after losing our precious dog, Maggie to cancer. When I saw Cayenne running down the road in front of our ranch, I naturally stopped to talk to her. Opened my car door, and in she hopped. For me, I fell in love instantly, but Cayenne had some serious abandonment and attachment issues. I kid you not. Life was not easy with her in the beginning, not to mention she had a blown out knee and had to have a $2,000 surgery only weeks into our commitment to her! It's a long story, not to be told in a single post, but I will share a little bit. I did find her previous owners, thanks to the microchip embedded under her skin. They had Cayenne (Cocoa) since she was six weeks old and took her back to the shelter at age two because she chewed up everything in sight. She is HIGH energy and didn't get to run her legs off in their care - she was stuck in a backyard all day. She came from Hemet and somehow ended up in our area, many miles away, after someone else had evidently "adopted" her. I think they dumped her after they saw the bum knee and realized how needy she was. She has been such a light in my life and I hesitate to call her a dog because I am convinced she is only masquerading as a canine. But, then, that insults the entire canine community and heaven knows, I often think they have far more sense than humans in terms of daily priorities and social skills.

Web of Water

The upload of these images does not do them justice because much
the fine detail is lost. The awesome thing about taking a camera on walks is that you tune into the intricacies of nature that are sometimes overlooked when your mind's eye sees globally. My best friend is a photographer and she recently taught me how to do close up work with my 35-80mm lens, along with changing the color of light. I have had such a rush of enthusiasm as I find treasures to shoot in every step I take. Suddenly my walks are no longer an hour, but two hours and Cayenne thinks something has gone seriously awry with my energy level. She clearly does not enjoy the lingering over a weeds or twigs.



Magical Droplets

The Beauty of Imperfection

Our arena fencing has now turned into a photo op, as opposed to a functional arena for galloping horses! It was burned in the fire that came roaring through our property three years ago. Although we lost our water tanks and plumbing, we were fortunate to have our homes and other structures remain intact. And, more importantly, all of our animals were kept safe from harm.

I said NEVER....

E-gads! I said I would never do a blog site because it seems so darn narcissistic when the blog is primarily about the writer! It's kind of like when I cursed those "idiots" that drive their car across a flooded road, thinking I have so much more sense than that. Except on the night that I did just that and drown my sweet little Acura Integra in the creek, and dragged my poor husband out on a cold, rainy night to rescue me instead of calling Triple A. Oops, I digress, but wanted to put my "no, never" in the proper perspective! I don't know why I decided to do a blog, but I was thinking I could write mostly about my hiking adventures with Cayenne and post some pretty images that otherwise sit in the designated "My Picture" files. Oh, yes, and whenever I finish reading a good book, I usually want to broadcast my enthusiasm and suggest it to those I think would love it. Oh, and also, I am kind of opinionated about politics and social issues and this allows me to spout all I want, maybe only to empty air, but who cares?!! And, then, there are days when I want to wallow in the profundities of life and I just know there is an audience of family and friends who really, really want to know. :-) Here is the reality: I will probably be hot to do this blog thing for a few weeks and then it will just fade away...we'll see.