Here I am, out here on the porch again, thinking about getting my sweatshirt. The blessed, blessed fog is rolling back again, both last night and tonight, and while we’re inland enough to still heat up during the day, it’s cooling down with a smack now that the sun is setting. That makes for one happy Rachael.
I am also made happy by the fact that I ran today, with the Most Perfect Dog. I hadn’t run for over a month. I think in running you get about two or three weeks’ grace. You can jump back in and barely notice you haven’t been out in a while. More than a month and you feel like you’re an elephant with adenoids.
But it was bearable because I was with La Clarita. Clara is the BEST dog. This was really only the second time I’d taken her running. I took her out the first week I had her, and the next day she was limping, and the day after that, she had a sore on her paw that turned into a horrible mess. Turns out it was a foxtail that had gone up and through her paw, and she’d probably come with it, but I didn’t know that at first and I thought the run had broken her.
Since she healed, it’s just been too bloody hot. Down by the marinas, I’m sure it would have been cool enough for her to run, upper sixties, low seventies, with a cool breeze every day, but at our house, where we were living with ninety degrees and up inside, and hotter outside, you couldn’t pay me to put on Spandex running shorts. No way in hell (which we were very close to at that point).
Today was cool enough to try it. And know what? Surprise: she was perfect at it. I’d say, “Let’s go fast!” and I’d adjust the adjustable leash that was strapped to my waist pack. She’d run right next to me, with slack in the short leash. She looked up at me often, with a face that clearly said, “This is fun! Let’s go fast!” Then, when I tired, I’d say, “Okay, that’ll do.” I would release the catch on the leash, and she could play out on the line, sniffing in front of us, and straying behind fifteen feet, but always coming back when the leash went taut.
Also, I hate to brag, but she’s the star pupil in her obedience class. She learned “leave it” in three tries, and then turned her head AWAY from the hot dog when offered. Now, I don’t think even I would do that. I loves me a hot dog with mustard and a little sauerkraut.
Okay, the smells out here are weird tonight. I swear I smelled lamb being cooked on a grill, and now there’s a noxious smell that reminds me of cigarette smoke mixed with bleach. What does meth smell like? Oh, my god. I’m going inside. Can you smell meth? Really, I don’t know. We don’t live on a crack street, but we certainly are adjacent to one (the helicopter is over our house as I type this – it is often over our house).
Pictures now. Alison is right – they’re all cell phone pics nowadays, but you don’t mind much, do you? The real camera tanked, and we haven’t been able to afford a new one. And my cell is always on me, you know? At the ready.
Lala’s girls, smiling
That’s a big stick for a five pound dog
I got this shirt at Goodwill for two bucks.
I refashioned it into this CYOOTE skirt. Chop off the top so that it’ll be length you want, chop off the arms if they’re still on, pin in the shape you want (try it on, carefully) and sew up the side. No modeled shots, sorry. Skirts are hard to model.
911 Duck loves Cowboy Duck
Did I ever show you the curtains I made for the bathroom?
Fabulous upholstery fabric, bought in Arroyo Grande (can’t remember the shop name, sorry)
The top of the fridge belongs to Adah
Clara in the car. Let’s go fast!
Rach, running with the dog sounds so awesome. Makes me wanna run. And have a dog. 🙂
And hey, the skirt is so CUTE! You could model the skirt. If you can do a sweater you could do the skirt!
Reading your blog gives me such dog envy. Which is funny, since I grew up with cats. But I think I’m really a dog person at heart. One day…
Ick about the crack or the meth or whatever it is. My boyfriend used to live in a place where crack addicts would hang out in the alley at night. Oh how fun it is to be awakened at 4 in the morning by people yelling to each other to hide the crack pipe, because the cops are coming. It’s so nice to not live next to that anymore.
2nd photo down: Chihuahua smoking cigar? bwahahaha!
My dogs don’t have a medium gear for running, I’m either dragging them or being dragged; you are lucky (but you know that).
Nick says that’s a pretty apt description of what meth smells like. Sorry.
Mmmmmm…smoked pizzle, that’s a good smell right there too.
RE: Heat:
I was in Walnut Creek for work yesterday, and it was INSANE–something like 108!! My colleague went to an outdoor concert in that area last night, and he said it was miserable(good show though, CSN). Then, back here in lovely SF, I wake up in the middle of the night shivering from the cold. WTF, Bay area????
I like your porch ramblings. And yeah, some things are just better with a big, happy dog beside you.
I can’t imagine running with Bella, but maybe I should try it. That sounds like such a blast. And I want to meet Clara so badly and give her a big ole kiss on the head.
Can you tell me the part about the fog rolling in and cooling things off again? It sounds marvelous….
I love the red bathroom……
Yeah, That’s pretty much what meth smells like.
There are some…shall we say “colorful” members in my extended family, and when one of them was arrested for meth production (HUGE lab – the largest in the state at the time, and that’s saying something), I was “volunteered” by my father to help him cleam out the meth house, and the house house smelled like cigarette smoke and bleach, with a hint of some sort of metallic scent.
If that’s what it smells like, it’s meth. Only twice have I smelled anything like it at all, and both times it was meth.
So glad to see you enjoying your dog so much! What fun! Give her a kiss and bark out from Banjo and Marley.
Oh how I wish I had a dog to run with. I keep begging for one, but the sweet pea tells me that we need outdoor space before we get a dog. Boo! Clara is one cute pooch!
I did my boy’s room in that same exact cowboy fabric–it wears really well, too. (I know, call me Cliche Mom. But I had the opportunity to use cowboy fabric, and I went for it, gender stereotypes be damned.)
I have a never-used valance with ticking tabs for hanging, which is two wide straight pieces, lined in muslin, if you could use them (as curtains or just as yardage to make something else)let me know and I’ll try to find the box they’re in. xox Kay
CUTE CUTE CUTE
I tried biking with Brody once, he zig zags…….not so good for biking I might add.
hugs to all the nummas and cat- nummas too!
Man, border collies are smart, smart dogs. have you ever watched one run an agility course? Amazing.
I am so happy that you are so happy with you newest baby. It does take a little while to get used to each other and learn to live with the little things that are just part of their individual personalities.
She looks like a great dog and she’s so lucky to have a great family who loves her. As far as obedience class goes, the Border Collies usually make all the other dogs jealous with their intelligence. Keep up the good work.
Woof-
Terry
Isn’t it awesome when your dog becomes your friend and you’re on the same page and you can go just about anywhere together and not have to worry about them behaving badly in public?
After growing up with 2 dogs that you couldn’t take outside of the yard because they were so misbehaved, because they were never taken anywhere to begin with, it’s so nice to have our Willis who is our constant companion no matter where we go.
BTW, the skirt is awesome! You’re pretty handy with a sewing machine, I see 🙂
I love what you’ve done with the shirt, it’s a fab idea, thanks for sharing! xx
I love all these pix! I am going to have to try that shirt-to-skirt conversion ~ it’s fab! If you wanna, go read Poetry Daily (www.poems.com) because there’s a Venice poem ~ XXO
The ducks are adorable. For our wedding, our friends put a bunch of rubber duckies on a line in back of our car instead of cans–so I have soft spot for those little dudes…
The skirt is amazingly cute and creative! Wow.
Love the porch ramblings – they make me smile. SO jealous of your smart dog…our lab was sequestered during dog class…hubby was a bit put out by the expereince and ended up pulling her from the class. No one puts Baby in the corner…so to speak.
Cooking meth smells like burning styrofoam. If you smell that smell in your neighborhood there’s a crackhouse somewhere nearby. Call the cops, those things blow up.
You don’t want to know how I know this…
OMG, where did you get that idea? So cute!! So clever!! I’ve cut the sleeves off a shirt before and made… well, another shirt, but a SKIRT!! A top becoming a bottom!! Yowza.
A meth kitchen smells like an apartment filled with 1,000 cats sans litterbox. FYI, it costs over $12K to bag up a meth kitchen. Then you have the Haz-Mat guys ($57K at a conservative guess)and the Health Department gets all involved.(cause that stuff can get in the ground water and runoff and end up in your non meth ivy)…plus your whole BLOCK can blow up. Don’t ask me how I know.
I just saw the following photo, and thought of your beautiful, wonderful Clara. I thought you would enjoy seeing it, too. Jump, doggie (and sheepie), jump!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/bowerbirdknits/211117733/