SATURDAY SPRING WALK 2019

Posted on March 23, 2019 by BigFootClub

For the past couple of weekends, Banner has been relatively downshifted. Usually pre-Friday, Friday and Saturday are cause for a spike in enthusiasm. So when she lies down by the sofa without enthusiasm, I begin wondering what is wrong. Is she becoming ill? Is the arthritis becoming more limiting for her? Did she injure herself? Did she find something to eat that she shouldn’t have? Is she getting older!??

Sometimes all it takes to put her back into a higher energy state is to open the door. Or the refrigerator door. Reaching for a leash will do the trick too.

So yesterday I took her to work with me for the afternoon. And this morning, while Greg went into work very early, we stayed home and cooked breakfast. Food never cools fast enough for a Newfoundland! Her interest level is up, but her wild-and-crazy is still in the closet. However, this morning she sidled up to me on the sofa and pulled a maneuver that Banker would have done, or Jade. She did it will full coyness, sure that she could get what she wanted if she presented herself in that soft and bold way that I haven’t seen for a long time. I had a cup of coffee in hand as she put one paw on my lap, clearly with the intention of crawling up fully. I read her intention fast enough as she timed her moves with precision. There was enough time that I could have said “No”, but who wants to refuse such a polite request to share affection?

The weather wasn’t in our favor for a walk this morning, but luck was holding out. As soon as Greg got back, we took her out for a short road trip to the Webb City Farmers’ Market. We intended to shop, then take her for a short walk. As soon as we arrived, her excitement level had peaked. She was actually shivering, much too excited to walk through a crowd, so she had to wait outside. After making sure that I had her attention, I told her that we were going inside to get some things and that I would be back out very shortly. I pointed my index finger up in the “1 minute” gesture that I use to teach them to wait. With that I crossed fingers and went inside.

The Webb City Farmer’s Market is a very nice destination or side trip on Friday or Saturday mornings. This early in the year, there are flexible panels covering the exterior. It was early enough in the season that the shops were segregated to the front section, but there were some nice shopping options. One trailer was set up outside with organic chicken, so I got some leg quarters. Inside there were fresh greens for salads, a few early vegetable options, including some mammoth carrots, and there was a booth where a lady from Hawaii was selling some produce, including some fresh turmeric. She said that she brought the starts with her from Hawaii, and that she also usually had fresh ginger. She had a recipe for Golden Tea that we forgot to pick up, so now we’re searching the recipes online.

After collecting our items, we took Banner out on the path along the Farmers’ Market. She was vibrating with excitement. With every effort to contain herself and walk beside us came a spike of enthusiasm which led her to speed ahead, almost like she was passing through a space-time continuum. And as much as she smiled and looked up at me, two steps later she was complaining in a moan/plea about how humans are s-o-o-o-o slow! Or she was letting out that forced sigh of exasperation, like a deer snorting except with exasperation or chastisement instead of fear and alarm. Most of those were in the form of quick commentary rather than the long drawn out version that conveys a bit of drama.

We continued along the path, crossing a small ditch at one point and turning toward a pond with an aerator that looked like a fountain. Two small children were out with Mom carrying child-size umbrellas. Banner was getting a bit damp from the sprinkling, but we were still fortunate that the main storm had not yet arrived. As we turned around, I passed the leash to Greg. We want to encourage her to be an equal-opportunity walker.

He walked back with her faster but she still made some complaint. I watched her gait from behind, which lets me keep tabs on the arthritic progress on her knees. She is stiff in one leg, and occasionally drags a toenail.

Then we left for home, with Greg taking a “scenic route” along smaller roads. The road curved back and forth, followed a tiny creek that fed a large creek, then curved onward around brushy Ozark landscape, with trees and brush loaded with buds or small leaves.

To our neighbors in the northern hemisphere, welcome to Spring!

(Sorry Arthur!)

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WHAT’S IN YOUR CABINET?

Posted on February 26, 2019 by BigFootClub

We’re in the process of getting our cabin/tiny house ready for sale.  It’s been an enjoyable extended vacation, but our house is close to being finished, and we are ready to move into a home that is built to fit our lifestyle.

I’ve been cleaning and touching up and reorganizing, so the cabin will be presentable, given enough notice for a quick floor-cleaning.  I washed the roll-up linen blinds, and inadvertently damaged one, as when I stopped the dryer to add an anti-static sheet (to help keep dust off), I forgot to reset the temperature to a lower setting.  So the backing stuck together and came apart on one.  It will be a template for a local sewing company to remake, probably without the benefit of the light coat of foam which acts as insulation.

This morning, I got up and made the usual cup of coffee, but I noticed something in the drawer that would not ordinarily catch my attention, a plastic mouse trap.  Now there is an opportunity for embarrassment that may cost us a lost sales opportunity!  I would no doubt fumble for words as I tried to explain that this mouse trap wasn’t a mouse trap but a training tool, to teach an overly inquisitive Newfoundland to keep her nose off the countertops.  Can’t you hear the hypothetical person thinking, “Yeah, right”?

This led me to wonder what other things that I don’t see, a habit of having lived with Newfs for many, many years, that someone else may interpret differently.

What “unique” items, normalized to a Newf owner, are laying around your environment?

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MAPLE LEAF WEATHER

Posted on October 14, 2018 by BigFootClub

Banner and I made a trip to town this afternoon.  I needed to arrange an interface through a wall so the dryer hose could go through, so the first stop was at Lowe’s, my home away from home this year.  Bulkhead fittings aren’t available locally, so I was looking for something to improvise.  2” PVC Schedule 40 pipe would make a good sleeve, but without a flange, keeping it in place would not be possible.  The flared ends of a 2” to 3” adapter looked good for the inside and outside surface where the hose would rub, and a J-block could be used on the outside.  The inside is tbd.

Next we made our way toward the park.  Yes, Carthage also has a “Central Park”, and it’s Banner’s favorite place to walk.

A few weeks ago, we stopped late in the afternoon on a Food Truck Friday, I think the last one of the season.  There was a band playing at the gazebo for the second time on one of our walks this summer.  The music was good, so we found a place to park and walked across, looking for a seating opportunity.  Banner was calm amid the noise and all of the human excitement, partly because it was warm for a Newf.  So we moved past the band to the other side of the park, where Greg and I spotted a vacant picnic table and Banner would have some air flow.  The different crowds that appear for events at the park have different responses to Banner.  Many people at this one were very enthusiastic about petting her.  After three waves of swarming kids, a few steps at a time, we reached the table.  I enjoy seeing such a warm reception to her by the kids, and it made her happy too.  The evening was relatively cool but with the dew settling, the relative humidity was uncomfortable for her, so we ate quickly then circled around the park to go back home.  A guy passed dressed in a silver jumpsuit with silver platform shoes and Kiss make-up.  Banner wasn’t interested in anything but finding some air conditioning.

Today the weather was cool, following a week of rain.  But there was another event in-progress at the park.  I saw a guy carrying a large plastic dog crate and asked him what was going on.  It was my turn to be caught off-guard by an answer:  a chicken pageant.  I enjoy chickens, and I think they are lovely, but my head spun for a moment while trying to grasp the idea of a pageant for chickens.  I’ve not thought of a dog show as a pageant, but I suppose it’s fair.  I gathered my wits after half a second or so, smiled and said, “So no dogs then?”  (imagining the potential for calamity)  He replied, “No, that’s next weekend.”  My goodness!  The Maple Leaf Festival is upon us!!

A few nights before, returning from another walk in town, golden leaves had circled their way down to the windshield as we crossed the bridge near the railroad tracks.  This is an enchanting part of the invitation to enjoy fall weather.  Next come the Maple leaves.  I had picked up a few fluorescent pink ones in the park.  Color should be good in another week or two, and the moisture is in the air that accentuates the leaf color.  Rain kept the construction people away all week, but the cool moisture brings a certain welcome to the change in season.

Soon it will be Halloween, then Thanksgiving, then . . .  And somewhere in the middle, there will be snow!  And, of course, a very happy Newfoundland.

By the way, this year she will be going as a Portuguese Water Dog.  The wrong leg was shaved a couple of weeks ago when her TPLO plate was removed.  At least this time she looks symmetrical?

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B COOL

Posted on September 4, 2018 by BigFootClub

Banner has been delighted to take us for walks recently.  Well, she always is, but the weather is a little cooler recently, so her spirits are up a little more.

The newest thing is that I’ve been asking her where she would like to go when we reach an intersection, and she has been learning to lead.  Giving her that role when she was younger was not a good option – she didn’t need any reinforcement about that idea.  But as she has begun to mature and become more interactive, it is fun to let her explore.  So, along with this, she must be more aware about crossing streets, looking both ways – first.  Her normal mode is Go!  But the past couple of days she has been a little more responsible, looking before stepping into the path of traffic, rather than the obligatory looking 2/3 the way across.  It is the same principle that moms are beginning to learn, about how children are motivated by the sharing of responsibility.

On Sunday, as we walked around the park, there was a family, with Dad standing back holding the camera and Mom assisting the eldest young daughter who was sitting on a blanket cross-legged under a string of glittery triangular banners having her photo taken while two siblings watched from nearby.  The girl was wearing a black cat mask and this seemed to make Banner uncomfortable.  As we walked past, she issued a loud chastening/complaining bark, while focused straight ahead.  The guy with the camera had asked as we passed what kind of dog she was.  I replied, a talkative one!  I didn’t have time to explain that she didn’t hesitate to express her opinions, but Greg gave the proper reply, “a Newfoundland”.

She continued as Banker used to do in the “Nothin’ gonna break my stride” walk, except for the occasional legitimate reason to pause long enough for people to pet a Newf.  I had been suspicious that she was walking in patterns, depending on the day of the week, and consistent with her new interest in people.  She used to like to walk around the park every time.  But she has discovered that there is more opportunity for interaction if we walk toward the square.  On weekdays, we often walk near but not around the square, and on Saturdays, the Farmers Market is open, so we walk around the square.  Surely enough, she took us around the square on Saturday.  But she is beginning to try a more adventurous path occasionally, some that we haven’t walked before.  Although she does like to find the path back by the place where the Crazy Black Cat is (or used to be – “crazy” may be literal in his case).

As we reached our return point, and the walking leash was traded for a harness, she walked right past me as I reached to pet her, with an expression and gesture that would have easily passed for “S’up”.

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