Suess's Alaskan Adventure

2009-10-04T14:36:00.002-08:00

HE and SHE have been busy this summer making me a new, special little cabin. It smells wonderfully of cedar and they even put my very own little stove in the corner. I can't wait to settle in and relax after they drag me on one of those strange, freezing cold jaunts in the snow that they seem to enjoy!

Here's the little cabin in the glow of the smokey forest fire light. The garden grew nicely too, though I don't seem to be getting many shared carrots from it!

Mushing Adventures

2009-04-11T18:36:00.004-08:00

Trips at -20 require a bit more heavy duty dress, both for the dogs and the mushers. We ran out along Standard Creek and came to the Dunbar Trail from our side.

The Tolovana trip was much warmer, at least +20 if not higher at times. No need for coats for dogs, or even for mushers at times!

What absolutely amazing land we get to travel. I'm still not so sure it's my favorite thing in the world, but if all trips could be like Tolovana I could probably grow to like it much much more as I didn't freeze my paws off! We traveled 11 miles into the cabin where HE and SHE got to enjoy the hotsprings, wish they would have let me jump in. Silly rules, no dogs allowed. They would share some pictures of the springs, but they're a little more self-conscious about flashing skin online. People and their silly hangups.
On the second day they hooked us up and headed out to find the Dunbar trail. A trail that if we followed it 75 miles would bring us back home...an adventure for another day!

Argghhh, numbers already outdated...and then there were eight!

2009-04-11T18:21:00.004-08:00

So Trapper joined the crew sometime this winter too. He's a pretty harmless, happy boy. Still eats more than I'm happy with, swear I'm getting less! But he does help lighten the load on any mushing trips, so must be a good thing!

Number 7 is pictured as well, Chunk is the blond dude. Possibly not the brightest tool in the shed, but boy does he have the brawn!

And then there were seven...

2008-12-30T23:21:00.002-09:00

There would have been a picture, but something isn't working...maybe someday soon there will be a photo of the full team. Don't hold your breath though, as you can tell from the time between blog entries, this hasn't been a high priority. SHE is on vacation this week, but her teaching program will be gearing up again for a loooonnnnngggg semester soon.

Happy Holidays to all and enjoy your New Year celebrations be they large or small!

Rest of the pictures

2008-06-22T11:49:00.003-08:00

Callie's "fun"
She ran off on an adventure one day and came home sporting a brand new bump by her tail. Turns out she managed to impale herself on the stick you see. It extended from her inner thigh through her abdomen and bumped up by her tail. It managed to miss all important innards and she recovered from emergency surgery just fine.

My 5 buddies.

You'll remember Grizzly, and the newest girl Maisie is to the right. Callie is standing up behind them (you can't see her bare spots, but they are there.) Addie is flat out enjoying the sun. Her work ethic had slowed with the summer sun and she's
packing on the pounds, enjoying her time off. HE and SHE took Callie, Maisie and Addie bikejoring the other day and realized a bit more training might be needed to keep Addie in shape. Callie, Maisie and Pence like to play and tend to keep active on their own.
I'm as always my svelte, perfect self. Training to pull a sled is overrated anyway!

HE's becoming quite the handyman - notice the work in progress with the first big window. And she's planning ahead for those dark winter days with a sunny color scheme.

Brrr...

2008-06-22T11:30:00.005-08:00

Brrr...that last post looks cold! Guess its been a while and the next pictures might give a clue as to why.
SHE's been busy - took a couple classes this spring then decided to go back to school full time. Yeah if that means more vacation days at home with us. SHE's got lots of books and spends quite a bit of time readin' and 'ritin' but guess that's what you have to do if you want to be a certified teacher...or in her case certified-certified. This one will open doors in AK though.
HE's been getting his own certifications - passed his firefighter 1 so can officially enter burning buildings. (Why you ask...well so do we!) HE says its fun.
Spring arrived gradually, then as with all things in Alaska, boom, full summer is here! We just past the longest day. SHE was out til 1am walking a 10K race, yes, that's considered fun in AK too.
You'll see I've been working hard supervising garden planting. SHE expanded to twice the size this year, hope there's lots of carrots, I love those. And I've been keeping my eye on the strawberry plants too. Small and limited but oh so sweet, and I should know as I got the only ones last year...first come first serve;-)
You'll see what "fun" Callie was up to - there goes the rainy day fund for the time being.
They were a bit preoccupied when Addie had her fun night - no pictures of her with the porcupine quills poking out of her mouth.
I, of couse, have been behaving myself. Trying to keep the others in line, but as you'll see, they're a troublesome bunch.
Notice the work in progress behind Grizz and Maisie, he's building his first log structure and its for us!
Work's been going on in the house too. New windows to keep us warm this winter - and colors too. She's been busy with the paint brush.
Summer plans include Uncle HE, back to stay in a few weeks. And Grand HE and SHE and Uncle #2 will follow soon too. They'll be 'thrilled' to meet the new guys - but I'm sure I'll forever be the favorite!
Hope all of you are enjoying your summer naps in the sun too:-)

Yukon Quest 2008

2008-02-16T17:02:00.003-09:00

The Quest started in Fairbanks this year, which was a great experience. The temperature hovered around -35, but notice the crowds that came out to support these tough mushers and their teams. For those of you who don't know, the Quest is a 1000-mile (yes that's three zeros) sled-dog race across some amazingly difficult terrain, with some of the most challenging weather conditions you can imagine. Some year's there have been white-out blizzards and temperatures in sections reaching close to -60F. HE volunteered helping to handle some of these teams at the start. SHE heroically watched and even filmed footage for a class project - all fingers and toes are still accounted for! The Quest lasts close to two weeks. Teams have reached Dawson city this weekend where they will rest for 36 hours before pressing on to the end destination - Whitehorse, Yukon Territory. Dog teams start with about 14 and at least 6 dogs need to finish (sick/injured dogs are carried by mushers to a next checkpoint and are flown home). An amazing race of endurance!

New Mushing Trail!

2008-02-16T16:35:00.003-09:00

He's been working hard, hooking us into the trail system. It's still a bit rough, they'll have fun trimming stumps, digging out sides of cliffs to clean-up, flatten and widen our new trail this summer. It connects into our neighbors trail at mile 1, then continues on to a larger trail system. One way to make mushing from our back door possible. The madness continues:-)

Salmon Dip-Netting

2008-01-15T18:57:00.000-09:00

Blueberry Picking

2008-01-15T18:53:00.000-09:00

The Team

2008-01-15T18:43:00.000-09:00

Sun came up...sun went down

2008-01-14T20:20:00.000-09:00

So no excuses...it has been awhile. You'll note the last post was as the sun was on the way up....so sitting inside or in front of a computer (other than the forced situations SHE faces at work) was unthinkable. We were on the down side of daylight for a long time and still no post, but there was the garden, the salmon, the in-laws, the house....and the fall flew by. The household became busy...takes time and energy to keep all us mutts occupied. The last post mentioned some fun with the new girls...well, they are settled it and no longer count as the new girls...because the New new girl has that designation - yep we're up to 5. And as you can tell...having fun. I let them hitch me in, but in all honesty its not my cup of tea. Manhattan to Alaska...fine. Trolling the parks to pulling at sled at -10...not so much. I'll tag along...running loose, and pulling a skijorer's not so bad. Just keep it a couple miles or under and we'll all be happy.
SHE'll throw a couple pictures of the summer in...but don't be fooled. The picture with the snow is where we're at. We're already gaining minutes a day of light - at 5 glorious hours and increasing. Hit -40 today, first time this winter but suppossedly its warming up tomorrow. This weekend snowshoeing at -20 was fine and dandy...but we're still not so fond of temps lower than that:-)
Hope you all had a great holiday season - we had some extra salmon heads and eggs, yum! Happy New year!
From She, He, Suess, Grizzly, Addie, Pence and Callie

Learning new tricks....

2007-05-13T21:12:00.000-08:00

So Pence has proved she's familiar with beds the one time she sneaked into the house and was found curled up...muddy toes and all on the bed. Addie, shows her dexterity with high places by bounding up unto the workbench the minute your back is turned and was noticed happily keeping an eye on things from the top of the chest freezer...so I figured it would be okay to get into the act too. Looking at things from on high isn't such a bad thing. Wonder if HE and SHE will feel the same about the couch?!?
Drugs are goooood. Tooth extraction...well not so much. SHE noticed I was licking my chops alot, and after looking found what I had been trying to tell them...my inner lip was a bit raw from a sharp edged broken tooth. A trip to the vet later and I'm feeling gooooood.

What...we like to canoe too!

2007-05-13T21:05:00.000-08:00

More strange Alaskan adaptations to normal sports:-)

Well, after all they are arctic researchers...well versed in the capabilities of ice

Newbies

2007-04-25T20:22:00.000-08:00

Yep...we were a family of ten for what....2 days? Then there was the Chicken Massacre of '07. No, SHE won't post pictures of that...SHE and HE were not very happy with us. Put it down to bad influence of the Newbies. SHE says its sad on one hand, on the other, what do you expect...doesn't every new Alaskan have to live through a Chicken Massacre at least once in their time in AK?
Well, the girls are still kind of cute...they just might stay. Punishment...spaying for both shortly thereafter.

March entertainment in Fairbanks con't

2007-04-09T11:16:00.000-08:00

(we've been having trouble uploading images...which is why there was quite a hiatus since the last post...since the test one worked, here's a couple more. And what? Don't all normal people play croquet on frozen rivers in the spring?!? And yes, the bright yellow stuff is sunlight...its back!
SHE was busy with a couple little projects this month too. This time a boy is expected so she tried out some new yarn with this pattern. These guys won't felt like the pink baby booties...but they're still darn cute.
SHE spent a week in Seattle, but no pictures from there. SHE left the camera because HE was taking us on a skijoring trek...as HE forgot it, sorry, no pictures from that but we had a great time skijoring 7 miles to a cabin, hanging out with a pack of dogs running loose, and skijoring home.
They didn't take us this past weekend, but SHE ushered in her birthday and easter in this location...not a bad start to a new life year! They said they really missed us....as they had to pack their own bags, 6 miles in to the beautiful camping spot and back out again! Next time they promise to take us...but will insist we pull a sled:-)
Life in Alaska...the deep, dark winter is over and the spring so far is gorgeous so once again something redeeming has been found!

March entertainment in Fairbanks

2007-04-09T11:06:00.000-08:00

Nope, they haven't hooked us up yet...but HE keeps making noises about more dogs. Not too sure yet if we want to share....

New friends and odd eggs...

2007-02-10T09:31:00.000-09:00

No, SHE hasn't caved. These guys aren't permanent additions this time around. The big blonde will be staying for 10 days. HE and SHE are packing bags....and hope they have a house to return too, when they get back. The big guy packs lots of energy and paired with our not inconsiderable enjoyment of play it's likely to be a lively household:-)

The chickens seem to be protesting the imminent departure...giving mini-eggs. As it turns out it was extremely healthy...yolkless!

As a warm up to sharing, the old black dog is staying for a long weekend. He's a bit chubby and lazy, so he hasn't riled us up too much. We figure we'll return him a couple pounds lighter though.

The weather has been consistently warm...we've seemed to have traded temps with the mid-west and east coast. We're staying above zero almost entirely...and warmer in the hills of course. Pleasant teens - SHE's even been walking at lunch without long underwear---whooohooo.

So, ya know how you see these tracks along the side of the road in the winter (especially in snowy areas)? And the thought runs through your head 'damn drunks', or 'fast driver'.

Snort, wouldn't happen to me, well......these ones happen to be about 1/4 mile from our house, and all I can say is glad it came before the truck sign! As it turned out, the truck was out with minimal difficulty thanks to SHE's shoveling skills, tow rope and a couple good samaritans. Oh, and by the way...SHE didn't put it there:-)

Eeeks January 21'st already....

2007-01-21T10:24:00.000-09:00

How time flies when you're having fun. And some of it has been now that (knock on wood) both vehicles are running and the water too. We've had time to go to the races....skijoring that is. We've now spent two Saturdays pulling HE and SHE around at a fun race, and fun it is. We're just learning the ropes but have already taken home prizes- rawhide. Not a bad trade-off for running a couple miles in our mind!
Dogs hitch their people up to them...sometimes up to 5 dogs share the load, what a ride that must be, and we take off on trails of .5m, 1.4m, 2.7m, 3.5m at one minute intervals and the race is on. The first race Grizzly and HE took off first and SHE just flew because I was determined to catch them up....which I did. A good sniff of Grizzly and I was content to slow down for a while. The next race I went first with SHE, but just didn't feel quite the need to go...until Grizzly caught us up. Then another dog passed us, and the chase was on again. I keep hearing grumblings of the need for more dogs, HE likes the idea of two apiece. While that might be nice for pulling, SHE's not too sure at the moment.
Though the skijor list we're on does evil things like notify us that the dog yard at the pound is full and a beautiful female pointer is there...who could be my twin. Weather update 20 above at our place on race day, but quite the inversion as it was still -5 down in Fairbanks. And the light she is acoming, outlines by 9:00am and good visibility (mountain outlines etc) til a bit after 5:30pm.

This last picture...yes we know its dark, but it is quite interesting if you can locate the two specks of light centered about 2/3rds of the way up. That would be a very large moose standing at its manger (aka our compost bin). Grizzly was almost a puppy pancake before SHE realized what he was barking about. A moose high on caffeine (a large part of the compost is coffee grounds) might just be a bit twitchy. HE was snowblowing, SHE was in the house and thought they were having fun chasing the snowblower. Walking casually outside to join them she realized what that dark shadow was that Grizzly was barking around.

Beauty is redeeming....

2007-01-06T11:17:00.000-09:00

This picture was taken at 10:30 (AM not PM) it should be pointed out. But if you look at the next picture, taken at the same time, you'll see that the shot is a little deceiving. The light is amazing, think crisp pink glow. So, its not actually dark all day...and we're even back at the point of gaining 5 minutes a day. The moon can act like a spotlight too and with snow reflecting the light is beautiful. So, we start seeing a glitter in the sky around 9:30 and when SHE left work the other night was shocked to see a deep blue sky with the hills outside Fairbanks outlined in light...and this was at 5:30. The things this land allows you to appreciate, which are normally taken for granted:-)

A beautiful shot of us playing in the snow

Our little abode working hard to keep us warm. So, knock on wood, at least one thing is still working in this climate...for three days we were without water before honing in on the problem - frozen well pipe between the house and well. (Not the well itself - discovered after having it inspected by the drilling company - who's response was 'sorry can't help you there') Though they were nice enough to jump the truck which was frozen solid in the driveway on their way out. (HE had caught a cab home, because at the same time the car was in the shop). A comedy of errors, and bad things come in threes right:-)
The 'thawing' company came out, steamed the well and determined 'nope, well's not frozen' must be a pipe, but 'oops, don't have those tools with us today, will have to come back tomorrow'. So 'tomorrow' they returned, thawed the pipe but when asked so what can be done to prevent it from occuring again they said 'sorry, can't help you there, we just thaw'. Hmmm, sounds like an excellent business plan:-) Now, none of this should have frozen as we responsibly plugged in the heating cable...too bad we had neglected to check whether the thing actually worked. Ah, the fun of discovering how everything works in a 'new-to-you' home. So water is again running (all night and all day actually, keeping a drip going to try to prevent re-freeze). We responsibly bought a new cable and HE struggled manfully to get it in, but unfortunately just would not go back in the full way...even after playing with squirting water out the pipe to unplug. Just imagine, turning a hose on full blast for three seconds and trying to catch the water....in your downstairs bedroom and you can imagine the fun:-)
The car is sort of running - yes, replacing oxygen sensor helped but didn't solve...now we're told the pressure manifold something something is not working, which is why the car likes to stall after 7-9 miles driving. So we almost make it to work, but have to pause, wait, restart...and almost make it home and vice versa. In the meantime (waiting for the part) we've patched cardboard over the air intake to see if that helps, and keep putting 'heet' in the tank with each new fill-up. The low cost alternative some people recommended trying.
And the truck...well after having the battery replaced it ran fine for a bit, and now it turns over nicely, but something else seems to be frozen so its once again sitting solid in the driveway. Thank goodness for Alaska that beauty is redeeming!
:-)

Happy Holidays!

2006-12-26T10:54:00.000-09:00

Pre-Christmas preparation...make yourself comfortable any way you can!

Ohh, what's in those boxes? Some things smell very interesting:-) We helped HE find this tree on our land. It only took two attempts, the first one surprised us by loosing all its needles on the uphaul. The second attempt, as you can see, made it up the hill and in the house just fine. And yes, it might not look exactly like those trees back east, but everyone and everything has to be a little twisted to survive up here!

We got a few of our favorite things...I have a lovely fuzzy squeaky. My favorite, and one thing I am completely unwilling to share with my new buddy. He, on the other hand, loves to chew (as you may have noticed from previous stories) and this time he has sanctioned things to chew on. He loves his new toothbrush and ate his bone in a quarter of the time it took me to finish mine:-)

We too need to burn off some of those holiday pounds. Here we are with our booties (must say not our favorite things) but somewhat helpful for our little pads. We wear these and a harness and HE and SHE hook on behind with their skis and then expect us to pull them. We've decided (for their own good) that we should only pull a little and make sure they get their holiday pounds off too.

Christmas was spent with lots of our new friends. We missed family of course but were happy to have had the chance to send and receive Holiday Greetings. We hope you enjoyed your holiday celebrations as well and wonderful wishes for the new year!

Pictures

2006-11-26T11:13:00.000-09:00

"I'm dreaming of a white 'Thanksgiving'"Yeah aren't we all:-)

Hmmm, wonder how soon we can start nibbling on these new doggie beds SHE made us without being sent back to the pound?!?

Please, please, please can't we have some of that big bird in the oven?

Happy Thanksgiving!

2006-11-25T18:45:00.000-09:00

There were wonderful smells all day (well almost all day). It started with those not so pleasant cleaning smells, and doggie shampoo smells but it rapidly improved from there. He wrestled with a big bird, looked good right out of the fridge to me, but he soaked it and rubbed it and popped it in the oven. She mixed flour and this lovely smelling buttery stuff and mixed meat of her own into meat pies. That went into the oven too and a bit later the turkey started smelling and all was good:-) People started arriving next. Grizzley just growled a little bit at them this time and then he was happy to receive greetings too. They brought lovely smelling dishes as well and we had quite a full house. We finally got a bit of the lovely smelling stuff once everyone started to leave. There are distinct benefits to being hosts in Alaska...SHE believes and while maybe the cleaning isn't one of them, the fact that you don't have to go out at night and warm up the car to go home is a big one! SHE even took advantage to wear a skirt (the first time since August:-)
Hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving too!
(once again SHE forgot to take pictures - but we'll post some of the lovely frozen landscape...maybe we'll include the new truck too) Yes they finally broke down and bought one (after the other car acted up it seemed like an intelligent idea...and as it officially broke down on the way to another friend's Thanksgiving dinner they were happy to have another vehicle sitting at home when they were dropped off later that evening) Now the car is sitting stranded at the garage - fixed but frozen until the garage plugs it in Monday and just maybe the battery will work again!)

Who Me?

2006-10-28T15:05:00.000-08:00

So, some of you may have noticed that its been a little longer...(well okay, so we try to post each week, and we have been known to go a couple weeks between posts...but this time there were extenuating circumstance) ie. Grizzly ate the internet connection!
Yes, its true. They are rather certain anyway that it was Grizzly afterall couldn't be me, I'm such a well behaved dog. Anyway, I've noticed our freedom in the dog room has gradually been curtailed, usually after finding SHE in a not very good mood upon arriving home. SHE gets so upset about little things, like dog beds being outside, or anything left in the yard being rearranged to a much more interesting location. Or I have to admit, maybe spreading white feathers around the yard wasn't the best idea we ever had, as SHE thought for a minute we had somehow gotten hold of one of the new chickens. But what's a dog (or two) to do when left home alone all day? Grizzly had the bright idea of getting into a rubbermaid container that was left near our pen. He wiggled the pen aside then peeked inside, low and behold finding all these neat feathers in plastic bags...very strange, so we had to investigate, hence white feathers all over the lawn. This was before the snow returned of course, for maximum effect. Incidently, HE says we can stay since we didn't also eat the waders that were also in the box containing HIS fly-fishing stuff:-)
So, the pen in the dog room was reinforced, allowing us to continue to relieve ourselves as needed, but strictly reducing the amount of exploring (or chewing on workbench legs) that we were previously able to do. But....they forgot one little detail...and Grizzly didn't overlook it. The router for the internet was sitting about 4 feet up on the window sill. With nothing else for entertainment he decided to pull it on over and munch on the antennae and cord which extended into the wall.
So here's our post a wee bit late this time around. Lucky for him, he didn't eat the whole router, and after a nice visit from a kind man, and relocation of the fun box to the highest shelf in the room with cords all nicely tucked away, we are back up and running!
I had excitement of my own, a visit to a vet, with lots of treats along the way. They came home and finally noticed my poor little dew claw jutting out at a strange angle. Must have been Grizzly's fault again:-) Anway, a snip and clip and I was good to go, a little sore and a couple days going to work with SHE to prevent play and I'm feeling much better.
THEY hope we've gotten whatever it is out of our system because we're apparently having a dog-sitter for a week. We'll see how that goes!

My hero!

2006-10-14T21:32:00.000-08:00

She's got to be my hero! SHE shoots. Notice that lovely cluster of shots just outside the white circle, in the lower right. You'll notice 5 shots (all within a 3 inch radius I might add) clustered beautifully. SHE passed her hunting safety class with flying colors. After briefly thinking, we must admit, that SHE had failed horribly. Her understanding was that SHE had to get the shots clustered in the white area....after missing the first two SHE figured SHE was out of luck and the instructor was just humoring the 'little lady' by telling her SHE had done well! SHE's not sure how much SHE'll like actual hunting, afterall SHE wasn't in favor of it for years-giving GRAND-HE and Uncles grief for years killing those poor, defenseless animals. But now, SHE's a little more up on wildlife management, and if they could 'harvest' that lovely moose that they practically farm in their backyard, a full freezer of meat wouldn't be all that bad. SHE figures her hunting instinct would need lots of work though, as when they were doing the field test (think cowboys with fake guns) SHE was admiring the cranberries:-) Must say, HE passed too, so maybe HE can be the hunter and SHE'll stick with gatherer role.

SHE bakes (what would HE do without her famous Gry's sourdough ryebread, yes beer is involved...HE's german afterall...what would they do with the abundance of fresh eggs that those chickens put out...almost 2-3 a day...without baking for numerous Alaskan potlucks, an all dessert potluck tomorrow so she's getting ready to whip up some tea scones...maybe even three varieties - chocolate chip, Alaskan blueberry and lowbush cranberry - the last two of which SHE gathered. HE'll whip up his yummy spaetzl for Monday's potluck using 6 more of those abundant eggs)

SHE knits (yes, this blog did start thanks to inspiration from her knitting friends, but SHE's a little slow with her progress...besides everyone likes hearing things from my perspective anyway. Her current project to get those fingers limbered up again are scarves knit for a friend whose children will sell them as a fundraiser to help out their dance program. SHE's thrilled to get the chance to try out working with recycled sari silk and help those 'twinkle toes' out.

and SHE hikes.
Which is of course our favorite. They set out with us to finally visit Ester dome...the peak to the right of 'HE' and 'SHE' out our front porch view. The peak with all the radio towers on it. (not sure if my SHE mentioned their nicknames for the hillside out our window...you'll just have to look at previous pictures to see if you can tell why it's earned these nicknames:-) They're a wee bit naked at the moment...that snow did melt and no warm blanket to cover them just yet!

SHE's just an all around amazing woman wouldn't you say:-)

Reprieve

2006-10-08T17:15:00.000-08:00

Well, the snow melted. Rather luckily I guess as it has been known to come very early in September and stay until May. A week of temperatures reaching into the 50's banished it though. Even at our high elevation. SHE never did manage to put the winter tires on the car in her last Auto maintenance class...you have to be on the ball here to get it done. SHE tried to bring it to a place close to her work, but calling at 8:00 found them refusing to take any more for the day as they already had 15 dropped off! Her best bet is to get an early start on Monday, dropping it off around 7:30 might mean it gets fit in. Monday will be a long day as SHE and HE have their hunter safety class...6-10 gasp! Two days in a row... (they won't let us hunt chickens, but apparently they can go get other stuff) They've been doing homework today, mixed in with raking, wood splitting and HE spent time getting nice and dirty up in the attic. SHE's not sure about this hunter safety thing...all she wanted was a bit of advice on outdoor safety, maybe using a gun etc. But it seems pretty into learning the difference between types of bullets and guns (yawn). Maybe SHE won't turn into the mighty hunter HE was hoping for:-)

Time to Put Away the Lawn Furniture Dear!

2006-09-30T09:59:00.000-08:00

So Double Gulp...Winter seems to have arrived. Fall was going along just beautifully, a bit chilly for September (well an east coast September) then boom. "Possibility of snow in higher elevations Friday night and Saturday" Granted this prediction came from the same people who would predict sun in August...'three days of rain, two days of sun'. Get to the two days where it was suppossed to be sunny and lo and behold, 'three days of rain, two days of sun'. Anyone up on this August's weather in Alaska knows we had 23 days straight of rain.So the weather prediction was taken with a grain of salt right up until the time came to drive home....have we mentioned we live three miles straight up? So turns out the 'higher elevations' meant us and it was happily snowing big flakes when we got home...no big deal right. Freak snow showers happen all the time...well, this snow shower just kept right on snow showering until the middle of the night...and we have a good few inches. Suddenly it starts to become a bit clearer that we have "Moved to Alaska". Dog paws were suddenly being wiped regularly again and it has become clear that the lawn furniture on the deck may no longer be needed (though a couple chairs might be nice for northern light viewing (sure to commence soon at 5pm as the light is decreasing by 7min a day) Did we mention it is becoming clear that we did, in fact, "Move to Alaska"? Oh, and the snow tires happily sitting rimless in the shed, just might need to be 'rimmed' and 'mounted' soon. Something SHE was planning on attempting in her auto maintenance class next week. And...when in August snow shovels started appearing in all the big home stores, just maybe they should have bought one instead of putting it off to a more reasonable time like October! The adventure continues...

Flashback to Sept 24'th

2006-09-30T09:02:00.000-08:00

Since SHE is running behind again, we'll take a trip back to the excitement of last weekend! SHE was shocked by me....but give me a break, what does she expect, I'm a BIRDDOG...at least the Pointer/Lab mix they always explain me as indicates this. Anyway, I begged and whined and ran laps along the fence, but they wouldn't give in....no nose up chicken butt or teeth around chicken neck for me (well at least not yet:-) Grizzly seemed confused by my excitement but he faithfully got excited and ran when I did...I don't think he can imagine the fun as much as I can of some squeaky, feathery body to play with...hmmmmm, wonder how far those feathers would fly! SHE and HE keep visiting these chickens and getting little white, green and brown balls out. They never throw them for us though. Just bring them inside. What useless animals if they can't play and can't even produce 'playable' balls! I thought we were going to be invaded by another dog when they arrived home. After all they carried a dog crate into the yard, but it was these squacky, feathery things inside. They said the chickens had flown in all the way from Kotzebue and must be tired. Migratory chickens for our latest household addition. What next?

GULP!

2006-09-29T18:10:00.000-08:00

A long day

2006-09-24T14:43:00.000-08:00

Once again two weeks has passed. She couldn't stand to sit more last Sunday, but we'll back date this and cheat if we can:-) Saturday HE and SHE abanndoned us for a very long day. They were excited when they got back at 11:00pm. Talked about seeing thirteen grizzlies. Not sure what the excitement was about, they could have stayed home and looked at the same Grizzly all day just like I did! They mentioned seeing Denali too, and a very long bus ride with alot of other new people. Someone had won the 'lottery' so they were able to ride all the way to the end of the road in Denali park. They never thought it would be so long...90 miles there, 90 miles in the park, 90 miles back. But oops, apparently 180 miles in the park and it was 35 mph with lots to stop and see....like 30 grizzlies. One mom, cub and yearling that walked right across the road between lots of parked cars. (Yes, very touristy we agree, but SHE hopes that's the last SHE'll see of them in her tenure in Alaska...at least that close up) There were lots of moose too. Why they needed to leave us behind for that too is beyond us, we've been seeing one almost every other day right in the side yard. One even ate the flowers in the flower bed. They got to see a wolf too, when SHE finally located it in the binoculars SHE saw it pooping (need I mention again, they could have seen that posture right in their own backyard too!) Sunday was spent trimming raspberry plants and spreading horse poop around the bottoms. SHE's hoping for a crop next year in her own back yard.

House is warmed!

2006-09-10T19:47:00.000-08:00

Two weekends passed, missed a post and realized how much has passed in that time! We went on a great hike to Angel Rocks with a group of other newbies to the University. Had great weather and will let pictures speak for themselves. HE and SHE soaked with the others in the Chena Hotsprings...we weren't invited:-( A week passed, fall is really arriving. The view is turning a beautiful gold. SHE's putting a picture of us in the driveway, the light was beautiful. Whenever you come to visit maybe this is what you'll see. We had lots of visitors...and even a dog...last night. Grizzly wasn't too sure about the other dog at first, but he soon loosened up. SHE can't believe she forgot to take pictures of all the guests at our 'house warming'. House always felt warm enough to us but you never know. It was also a late bday party for HE...something about his 6'th 29'th whatever that is. There were at least 30 pairs of pant legs to smell, what fun:-) SHE started conversations with a few about starting the 'farthest north SnB'...at least SHE doesn't think one exists yet! SHE hasn't followed the lawsuit so decided to play it safe and not write the full name. Getting sued would be such a bummer:-) Though maybe they wouldn't bother with us...we hear there's alot of guns in Alaska! Today we went on a short walk, but SHE insisted on stopping alot to pick these little red berries. We also had to wait while HE returned a chainsaw that had a screw loose...don't think it was HE anyway that had the screw loose! HE spent some of the afternoon using his new, improved toy. Now they're lazing around enjoying the quiet evening...interrupted only by an occasional Grizzly, watching the sun sink below the horizon at the unbelievable hour of 8:00. Gulp...what does the winter have in store for us! Pictures to follow...

Pictures

2006-09-10T16:25:00.000-08:00

Us in our driveway

Views from the beautiful hike

The cranberries. Our very own view turning golden.

Comfort for all

2006-08-29T19:58:00.000-08:00

Can you guess what we now have? Comfort for us any time of the day or night...plus sleeping in on weekends without loads of guilt for HE and SHE! Comfort for HE and SHE too....if any of you knew them before you know how much SHE loved her old futon...it was sooo hard for her to leave it behind. SHE didn't stop smiling for days. One of the first jobs when SHE got here, besides getting me my new friend of course, was to order a couch. It came in last weekend, ahhhh, no more complaining of bars poking her behind.

No particular order:-)

2006-08-29T19:42:00.000-08:00

So...finally got those pictures up. SHE's so sick of looking at screens by the end of the day it takes a bit of effort to plant her butt in front of the computer come evening. Given the fact that beautiful weather has finally arrived again leads to prolonged procrastination. It's gorgeous 'Fall' weather here, stays light until 'only' 11:00 though, sigh, its so easy to get used to the light. A bit tough to admit but Fall's precisely what it is! Despite the fact that, for you lower 48 folks, its the height of summer:-) Anyway, we're keeping busy here. Grizzly got in trouble the other day because he left the yard and harassed a jogger. SHE and HE had a nice note in the mailbox when they got home. (Welcome to Alaska too...because it was truly a 'nice' note) I imagine in CT our ears would have been burning after reading it! Anyway, SHE spoke to the note writer and promised to do better keeping Grizzly in the yard, and training begins in earnest to get that new boy into the swing of things...being welcoming that is! SHE was appalled at his behaviour and apologized profusely. Nothing SHE hates more than being harassed by uncontrolled dogs when SHE goes for a walk! HE's been busy rigging up some contraption in our doggy room....we'll try pictures but no promises just in case!

more pictures...

2006-08-29T19:33:00.000-08:00

Pictures

2006-08-29T19:25:00.000-08:00

2006-08-20T17:34:00.000-08:00

We have been having lots of fun lately exploring our new plot of land and SHE got some great pictures...but it keeps crashing when SHE tries to upload. There's one of me visiting our new compost heap-yum yum, one of HE working on updating the chicken coop. Rumor goes we may be getting some new fun 'toys' to play with a bit sooner than we thought. There is Grizzly and I exploring some interesting plants on our land. SHE heard there is a mushroom identification class SHE might take next year. Wonder if we could eat these ones! Then there's this really neat footprint and something it leaves behind in the last photo...hopefully SHE'll get the pictures up soon for you!

Goodbye Uncle-HE

2006-08-20T17:10:00.000-08:00

So days became might quieter starting on Wednesday. Suddenly we were left all alone all day with no one to play with. SHE says that Uncle-He left to fly back to Vermont...and soon to start his next adventure. He's suppossed to be looking into a program in the Ukraine. Learning how to teach english. He just has to prove he can speak it first;-) HE and SHE seemed sorry to see him go, but understand...when you're young, footloose and fancy free...might as well find the adventures where you can!

Friends

2006-08-13T19:27:00.000-08:00

We had some fun visitors this evening. After 3 days of rain it was nice to see sun peak out and have little kids to explore the yard with. HE and SHE and Uncle HE had 'The Neighbors' over for dinner. They brought some of their yummy goat cheese and some more goat milk. HE and SHE don't share that with us...but we did get some yummy leftovers thanks to the kids. (kids are so good about leaving tidbits on their plates:-) Someday we hope to visit 'The Neighbors' at their place and get to make the acquaintance of these 'goats'. We think they would be much fun to play with. Wonder what they would think of us!?! 'The Neighbors' once again provided HE and SHE valuable household information. They discussed how to build a cabin (a cabin seems to be a must have on your property in Alaska). As long as lots of nice people come stay in it, and by nice we mean bring lots of treats for the dogs, we would be happy to have another building to explore. 'The Neighbor' was also helpful in solving the little furnace problem...how to shut off the outdoor water valve when the faucet just turned and turned and turned...and never turned anything off. HE could just picture the fun a burst pipe downstairs would be in the middle of -50 in January! 'The Neighbor' handily read the faucet which said 'frost free' and apparently the problem is solved! There is also a couch coming soon (wonder if we'll be allowed up on this one??) and 'The Neighbors' kindly volunteered the use of their truck when it arrived. (Notice: we are still not happy dogs riding in the back of a truck with our tongues hanging out!) Back up a bit...they were gone late Friday night and once again came home full of all sorts of yummy smells. They had apparently been to the auction at the fair. They talked about scary things like how 4-H kids raised animals and then auctioned them off while the auctioneer talked about how good "Dinero" would taste on the table. (Hope we never run into one of these '4-H' kids!) (actually SHE says SHE used to be a 4-H educator...and the kids aren't at all bad...quite good for kids actually. And if you're going to eat meat, at least knowing it had a good life is the way to go. In my opinion, as long as you share it with me, any meat is fine:-) Saturday SHE went shopping again, returning with lots of crinkly bags. We got a new water dispenser out of one of them...fresh water any time we want, just lap and lap and lap. Uncle-HE is apparently leaving us sooner rather than later. But more on that later once we find out what happens when....So all in all, we're happy with our dog's life here in the far north! (especially because SHE unpacked our treats...though that pesky Grizzly had a bit too much fun with my egg....SHE thinks a tug of war might have taken place...and the egg is no more)

Sleepings warmer

2006-08-06T10:50:00.000-08:00

A couple shots of me and my new buddy. Nights are much warmer. SHE says so too, especially now that her bed has arrived! There's been lots of movement around the house lately...men brought stuff in and today HE and Uncle-HE loaded lots of cardboard into the car and took it away. They brought back a couple pieces of wood too...hanging out of the Honda. Wonder how much longer they'll overburden that little car. I see lots of trucks with happy dogs hanging their tongues out, ears flapping in the breeze. Maybe I'll be one of them before too long so we'll all fit into the Alaska resident category better:-) HE and Uncle-HE put lots of new wood on this structure. SHE calls it the foundation for her 'new' greenhouse. At least now when we walk out on it, we don't get yelled at and it doesn't make creaking noises and my paws don't fall through. And no, we don't know why the original residents built it out over the hillside on this structure. We are waiting to see what the sun does through out the year to see if there will be a major revelation as to why this was the perfect place. We still get yelled at though when we nap in our new sandbox...can't figure out why she goes insane whenever she finds us in it!?! Garden, what's that? Grizzly likes the little posts in the corner. That dog sure can chew wood. Anyone ever need bark stripped from logs ought to come see us. It'll be done with pleasure. I remember I used to like a nice stick now and again when I was a bit younger. Those chair legs back in New Haven were pretty good until SHE sprayed them with something. Getting yelled at a couple times for that too cured me of chewing on things other than my sanctioned nylabone! Grizzly's not all civilized just yet...puppies!

Working girl

2006-08-04T16:45:00.000-08:00

SHE's started disappearing alot again lately....coming home a bit pooped. Says she's a working girl again. At least now I have a whole yard to run in and company to play with. Between Grizzly and Uncle-HE, I'm never bored. SHE seems to like her new job. A bit slow going and SHE says SHE definitely doesn't want to look at a screen when SHE gets home. They spend way too much time in front of those strange things anyway! They have no smells, sometimes interesting noises but boring! THEY were really excited last night. HE said that they'll get to sleep in a bed again Friday night. SHE seemed thrilled too, as did Uncle-HE. There's suppossed to be a big truck visiting the yard sometime today. WooooHooo I heard mention of dog toys too. Wonder if I'll have to share. I'm finding a bit more time to sleep nights. The sun disappears a little bit anyway. Not that I have difficulty sleeping in most any situation, but a bit of dark can be restful.

Here he is...

2006-07-28T21:29:00.000-08:00

Here is the new addition to the family! They are continuing to keep busy around the yard and go off in the car once in a while coming back with lots of interesting packages. Nothing for me to eat yet! One thing, a weird motorized contraption came and went and came and went before never returning this last time. SHE said the weed-wacker was a waste...well it got the worst of the tall grass out of the yard but after the 2nd time failing it was gotten rid of! SHE came back with these hand clipper things and kept trimming around. HE and Uncle He moved rocks (why is beyond me). They thought they were working so hard, but at the end of the day were amazed at how small the pile was! We (Grizzly and I) aren't being allowed in the house, except for our special room downstairs ever since these other men came and made the carpet all flowery smelling. SHE says we need to wait until Uncle-HE leaves to prevent his death from allergies. When he leaves is a big question at the moment. Unemployed, college grad with a year before maybe heading for law school...he's at loose ends. He might stay with us in Fairbanks if he can get a job, or he might stay a few months as he looks into the peace corps...or or or. SHE and HE are happy to have him, there is enough space downstairs...or talk of a small cabin circulates. Another building for us to explore! As for all our stuff...we have heard we'll be waiting another two weeks before my kong resurfaces and my special egg. HE and SHE continue to camp on the floor in sleeping bags, I have my bed at least! I dont get much sleep. The sun doesn't seem to know when to go down around here. I eat my dinner and play a bit, waiting for the sign to go to bed, but my eyes are drooping big time before it comes...and then the sun is still up! At midnight it's like early evening and then the sun dips below the mountain at 2 or so in the morning and it's dawn around 3;30! Crazy place!

More arrivals...

2006-07-26T08:30:00.000-08:00

Sorry, no pictures today. HE took the regular laptop with him to the auto shop where the car needs to be investigated for odd noises on braking. No actual brake problems...afterall it continued to stop the last 2000 miles of the trip and SHE had brakes repaired before leaving, but thought it should be investigated just in case. Afterall home now involves 3 miles straight down to get to the main highway to town and wheeee wouldn't that be fun with no brakes! With HE taking the regular laptop...complete with photo album and Kodak program SHE is left with the new laptop (not a hardship, just no photos on file)..so we'll make due with just news for now. By the way, HE is being very sweet by dealing with car problems as that is almost his least favorite thing to do. The lawn is now undercontrol (except for one small detail) and we can enjoy the gorgeous view out the front windows thanks to two days of window washing. SHE has been swearing a bit at the fun of cleaning venetian blinds, but otherwise pretty quiet. So...the small detail that's not undercontrol...HE and SHE disappeared the day after we arrived and didn't return alone! They brought this skinny upstart into the yard and then gave him free access to the house (not Uncle-HE at this point, he hadn't arrived yet) When SHE talked to Grand-SHE, SHE said there was now a Grizzly in the yard. You can imagine how Grand-SHE reacted to this news. Her greatest fear of the wilds of Alaska was coming true. After a bit, it became clear that this Grizzly didn't pose much danger as his modus operandi was more to crawl on his belly and gently lick fingers. Anyway, I barked, bullied and growled to no avail. He was still allowed free access and even given a bed and bowl of food. That was a bit rough to deal with I admit...food has always been just for me! I must say though, this guy is much more fun to chase through the fields, boy can he move. I'm not admitting to age or weight or anything but sometimes pinning him to the ground is the only way for me to win! Evenings are more entertaining now too, with a large empty space inside and someone with boundless energy to wrestle with...HE and SHE commented on the peace during watching a movie. (I know they truly missed my attentions!) Other new news. Uncle HE arrived on Tuesday afternoon...at least two days earlier than expected. HE had a great time on the motorcycle cross country and taking the ferry from Washington to Haines AK. Uncle HE received a loud welcome (I've gotten over my barking hesitation. I have to keep this new property safe afterall, and now a second chimes in no problem). SHE and HE were pleased to see him, gave the tour and heard some stories. Grizzly is a bit slow to warm up to him despite my example. Grizz growls and skirts the edges, maybe it was the height and all that black leather....a bit daunting. He better warm up fast though if he wants to get as many treats as I'm accustomed to! THEY all disappeared for the evening and came back with great smells and talk of visiting new neighbors...carry over friends from when the other Uncle HE lived in Fairbanks. These neighbors have chickens, goats, pet dog, sled dogs and kids! Great smells! They oohhhed and ahhhed at the homestead these new neighbors have established. A great selfbuilt house, cabin (she makes goat milk soap in it!) and a new barn for the goats. Maybe someday we can hope to have such nice outbuildings and furry friends! HE was making very interested noises. First projects will be to reinforce the foundations of what outbuildings we have, get the chicken coop ready for next summer and build a pig pen and fence...HE's dead set on a feeder pig. We'll see what materializes next spring! So pictures promised of the new view and our Grizzly soon!

What a long strange trip its been!

2006-07-24T20:11:00.000-08:00

Well, after leaving the 'chainsaw capital of the world' (SHE was no fun...she didn't let me pee on any of them) we headed off on our journey (ie.more napping). We reached the start of the Alaska Highway in Dawson Creek, BC...and I was rudely awakened at Mile 38 by a loud sound. They informed me that we had received our first windshield ding. A nice big starburst crack, hallmark of the Alaska Highway! We stayed that night at Charlie's lake Provincial park, just outside Fort St. John, BC. We took a nice walk to the lake through woods with trees scarred by itchy antlers. They actually locked us in the park until 7am, you can imagine how HE, early riser that he is reacted to this inconvenience (just kidding SHE says he took it philosophically and we just ate breakfast before heading out).We stopped at Summit lake for a hike...the highest point on the Alaska highway. We slept at Liard hot springs, BC...where the soaking (at least according to HE and SHE) was very nice...no dogs allowed in the hot spring so all I got was eaten by mosquitoes. The next morning we crossed into the Yukon and stopped at a strange place called Watson lake. There was this forest of signposts..again SHE did not allow me to pee! Instead SHE took my tag with the Connecticut address and nailed it to a post!We stopped in Whitehorse for a break at her insistence. We walked a beautiful bike path that ran along the Yukon river (its the color of the Caribbean but somehow I think its not as warm!) We saw something called a salmon ladder but there were no fish just yet. After our walk we stopped at a Backerei (another German restaurant). SHE oohed and ahhed over a Linzer torte, and saved me just a scrap. That night we drove late and HE and SHE got a little soft because they decided to spring for a hotel, and they even found one in Burwash Landing that allowed me to join them for a small fee:-) They had discussed the fact that as the rest of the household things wouldn't be arriving for 2-5 weeks more it might be nice to take this chance to sleep in a bed. I slept great but they didn't seem all that thrilled with the quality of the mattress...the last one for a few weeks proved to be a bit droopy. We arrived at the Alaska border at 9am, the last time change (one more hour back for a total of 4 during the trip) and who should we run into but a busload of, you guessed it, Germans! HE was nice enough to take group photos with 20odd cameras! We ate at Teslin, breaked in Tok and reached Delta Jct at 1:45,more pictures as SHE and HE said it was the end of the Alaska hwy and almost home...whatever that is! We pulled up early in the evening to this brown house with a big front porch and quite a view. They let me in and I wandered...lots of interesting smells, some dogs have been here before!They let me wade through the fenced in yard...HE mentioned the effects 24 hours of sunlight has on grass when left to itself for a couple months! All I know is I couldn't see much. We then explored a field and I marked my new territory. North to the future...we have arrived!

Almost there....

2006-07-16T14:36:00.000-08:00

Well...HE and SHE have been letting me sleep ALOT in the car lately. Pretty much all day:-) And today I here something about Mile 0...the beginning. Seems odd to me, I thought we'd been traveling. (SHE here...actually we're almost to Mile 0 of the Alaska Hwy. We are making good time, enjoying ourselves but at the same time anxious to reach our destination) Suess again, I wrestled back control! We spent last night at a lovely smelling place. I spent some good time smelling out small squeaky things before bed. We got a few drips of rain early in the evening in Mount Robson Provincial Park last night, but then the clouds moved on and therainbows came out, and we were able to finish eating dinner dry and take a nice walk along a gorgeous glacial blue river...HE and SHE kept calling out things like 'Yo Bear' and clapping. Strange behavior! Before that we visited Peter Lougheed P.P. That was gorgeous we had some good hikes and enjoyed lovely weather. HE got a bit tense after that as we headed for a place called Banff, Lake Louise and Jasper park. There were alot of other dogs around (and people of course. Interesting for me but a bit annoying for HE...SHE did a bit better but seemed happy too, to leave them behind and head farther up into British Columbia. Right now I am exploring some amazing wood carvings in the chain saw carving capital of the world in Chetwynd B.C. I'm off to pee!

Mid-way...well not quite

2006-07-13T05:29:00.000-08:00

Hey there,
I've been spending hours and hours in the car. Luckily HE and SHE have relaxed a bit and I can stretch out on the back seat..well at least half way until I prop my head on the cooler. After spending time in VT and saying lots of goodbyes we hopped in the car and they welcomed me to Canada...whyever not I'm such a good guy. I spent the night in a strange room at another Grand-He and SHE's house. It was fun early in the evening as there was a cute little one to play with and a somewhat bigger one who had a ball and took me for a walk! I also got a bit of ham from an honorary 'easter dinner'. We set off at the b***-crack of dawn according to SHE. And passed through a place called Montreal. SHE fell asleep and I admit I did too until well past Ottawa. HE was so excited he had driving duty. We saw lots of interesting things and finally ended the day at Chutes provincial park with a nice walk along a river and waterfall.
I found out this trip might be even more fun when I was invited into the tent at night! Next morning bright and early they set me in the car again and off we went, beautiful countryside across the upper great lakes in Ontario. We stayed in Sleeping Giant Provincial park...another gorgeous site but with not too intelligent ducks who just wouldn't take my hint and fly away...they came back and back again. We got off to a bit of a rocky start due to HE's excitement and his waking up at 4 in the morning...bumbling around and waking the campground according to SHE...and waking SHE who was a bit grumpy about it all and decided to pack it in and were on the road by 5:30. A long day later we ended at River P.P. in Manitoba, and of all things discovered a delicious German restaurant! I was even treated to leftover schnitzel! It was just a little blip town...never know what you'll find. I spent the night guarding he and she again against weird outdoor sounds. SHE was happy that severe thunderstorms didn't materialize and HE was pleased the roof didn't cave in with gusty winds. Manitoba is wierd was the consensus...and HE was really glad he didn't pursue a postdoc in Winnepeg!.THis morning we just entered Saskatchewan and are at the information center where I just had my morning constitutional and enjoyed smelling prairie dog holes. Wonder where we'll end today! Take care all and hopefully they'll find placed where I can post again!

Abandoned

2006-07-05T08:47:00.000-08:00

This is SHE...in the mad throes of final packing. Suess abandoned the last ditch efforts to pack and instead decided to stay by the lake with Grand-HE and SHE and one of his uncles. We had a great visit. Seeing family, Great Grand-SHE turned 80 so all the family was there, and friends. So nice to keep in contact with old high-school friends even if its just once a year or so. We fit in hiking, biking, swimming, water-skiing, a Montreal visit and a lesson on spinning from a very helpful woman at the Old Stone museum in the Northeast Kingdom. Anyway, while Suess stays lounging on the deck receiving treats at every turn, I returned to HE and the eighty-plus degree condo...with the dripping central air conditioner (that I don't dare run anymore and sorry, sorry to the new owner....hopefully it's just condensation from the 90% humidity!) I now have about 20 open boxes and lack the commitment to fill them leaving us sitting in the middle of the rug with nothing to do....but I think the time has arrived. I'm watching the last episode of Northern Exposure that I'll be able to fit in before packing the tv, vcr and dvd player. They'll top off more boxes and then seal and stack. Two more boxes are ready to send media mail and I'll be set to clean tomorrow. Oh joy, my favorite part. We're getting rather antsy...ready to be on the road, away from the heat, humidity, and car alarms:-) Hopefully won't come to regret the lack of heat too soon! Uncle-HE has already hit the road. Suess said his good-byes and is looking forward to receiving alaskan treats from his uncle. He won't be missing the last drive from Connecticut, hope he doesn't mind not getting to say his own goodbyes. I go to knitting at least for a drop in tonight to say more goodbyes. Zarzuela and Nomad are already on their way. HE goes to the German circle tonight to say goodbyes of his own, and I'll try to swing by too. Hopefully we'll be posting together again from the road as we head....North to the Future!

Goodbye's

2006-06-25T12:56:00.000-08:00

SHE said alot of goodbyes her last day at school. To stop being a teacher is hard, but to start a new chapter is exciting. Too think too much is just scary so...SHE started stuffing more things in boxes. I made sure to stay right near her. I don't want to be forgotten and company right now is sure to be appreciated! Saturday, we had a BBQ. It was gray and foggy, and pouring off and on. Nothing like the smell of a wet dog:-) Luckily, the shelter at East Rock was available...not too many other hardy souls out so we had it almost all to ourselves! There was a mix of the german group, He's lab group, and SHE's knitting friends. There were alot of sausages and breads...my favorite foods. Lucky for me later in the day some lovely things appeared in my doggy bowl. I had fun scavenging around the grill areas too. HE and SHE had a great time visiting, knowing they were saying goodbye to some for good was a bit melancholy, but good to know that we have friends in so many places and good memories too. I know I'll always find treats around the world. When we made it home I was so tired I passed out on the floor. HE soon joined me and SHE took the couch. Sunday, more gray weather. Good for long naps and SHE found even more things to stuff in boxes. I have vague memories of one use for newspaper from when I was a puppy but SHE's using it in mass quantities now.
SHE said goodbye to fellow SnB'ers too. SHE said there are alot heading on their way and SHE wishes them the best of luck. Some SHE knows SHE'll see at least once more. 'Nomad' and Zarzuela are well on their way. Thank goodness I started this blog for SHE to keep in touch!

Spiffy clean pup

2006-06-18T09:22:00.000-08:00

SHE and HE took time out of their busy packing schedule to go for a short hike with me this morning. The Branford Supply Ponds are great, especially after a bit of rain that leaves mud. It feels so good squishing between my toes! After I generally get hosed down. With temps in the 90's I can't complain too much today. Especially as I was left in peace to doze and dry on the porch afterwards. I was only disturbed for a bit when SHE noticed a nice photo-op. Too bad 5 minutes before SHE sent off 25 images to be printed for free from Snapfish. Oh well, hard copies of these beauties will have to wait for another day. Conversation overheard on the hike continued to include reference to this 'Alaska' thing. That and shopping. Seemed to be very important to decide whether a spade or shovel was the most needed item. Or what the difference between the two might be? They also seemed to think a vacuum is important (what me shed??), rug cleaning, a wheelbarrow and ladders. SHE also seems very excited about a couch...wonder if that has anything to do with the cheering I heard when the condo buyer agreed to keep the futon! As it's father's day, a big sloppy kiss to all those HE-Dad's out there! SHE called grand-HE yesterday...a bit of date mix up. Better early than late right?!?

Vermont trip

2006-06-17T09:11:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I was placed in the back seat of the car...an adventure! We drove for 5 hours visiting my favorite rest areas on the way, as it turns out, to see Grand-HE and Grand-SHE. They have a lovely place...squeaky little animals that scurry into bushes, a lake, a porch with little houses where birds try to land (I, of course, chase them off as any good guard dog should). There's lots of room to run off leash, unlimited sniffing and marking options and a big old garage to hang out in. Sometimes I even get to visit in the kitchen, but not this time. They said it was warm enough to stay in the garage...too bad I couldn't play outside much though, it rained the whole time! Lot's of people came though, so I had much to do greeting and barking a warning on occasion.
There's a picture that will hopefully be coming soon...if SHE can ever relocate that special little cord SHE was madly running around the house looking for. SHE even looked sideways at me, but I promise I didn't eat it! It shows all the interesting things I could sniff in the garage and one guy (little brother of SHE) who says he's going to be my first guest in this new place called 'Alaska'. He's welcome because every time he looks at me he hands me a treat because I'm just so darn cute. That strange contraption in the background is suppossedly how he's going to get there...I wonder if one of those side boxes is for me?!? I heard a lot of 'He's crazy' and 'Try to talk him out of it', but I figure he's 'Little Brother' and aren't they suppossed to be crazy and have adventures...especially as it coincided with a lot of 'Congratulations on your graduation'.

Alaska impressions

2006-05-31T17:59:00.000-08:00

SHE and I went for our usual walk today...three miles give or take. When we got back (did I mention it's rather hot in Connecticut right now...I hear that I will be much happier in Alaska as I'm not a hot-weather dog) SHE stopped to talk to the neighbor for a bit...meanwhile I was dying of heat and thirst and my butt was a bit sore as we had just been to the vet..but who asks the dog his opinion. Anyway, the neighbor said, "I heard you are moving to Alaska! I heard it's always dark is that true?" Now, again no one asks the dog his opinion, or explains things so...is it true? I need to know, if it is true I might need to plan my escape sooner rather than later, Alaska might not be the place for me afterall!

My new abode?

2006-05-29T16:58:00.000-08:00

SHE was away for a week....I was left with HE, all by ourselves. We gloried in it for a day or two but then it got a bit lonely, and depressing especially when HE forgot to feed me one night! I was forced to hunt for myself. I investigated one of these grey things that runs up trees and eludes close examination. Suddenly I had one of those things under my paws!!!!! what to do next! As HE always talks about rigorous science I had a little peek at the grey thing. Although it was rather still a second ago, the moment I lifted my paw it turned into grey lightening. It was heading to a tree to turn again into a grey thing that runs up trees and eludes close examination but not so fast. Because as HE and HER always talk about mighty hunting dog, I put it under my paws again! By that point HE woke up (was out late last night dining with some women, instead of playing with me!!!!). HE, who is always so tough, in contrast to HER from whom all good things come, made me lay down and the little grey thing ran up a tree. HE, who is always so tough, better not talk to me about rigorous science and exploration anymore!
Anyway...SHE showed us this picture when SHE came back...I'm thinking its a rather nice place, plenty of room to stretch if this is my new place!

SHE's a knitter

2006-05-20T16:03:00.000-08:00

SHE has finally gotten going on some of her knitting projects again, disappearing to that Stitcher and Bitcher thing. SHE seemed so pleased. Once Alaska cleared her brain a bit SHE figured out the problem on the sweater sleeve (tear your eyes away from me and its the green thing on the floor). SHE apparently has these too short arms and the pattern as written would have had sleeves hanging down to her knees...SHE didn't ask me but I think that could have been a good idea...more to play with:-) The green thing on the couch smells wonderful and tickles the nose just right. The pink and blue thing started out much bigger but then suddenly, crazily SHE washed and washed it and now its much smaller (why SHE wasted so much time making it big just to turn around and make it small is beyond me...but who asks just the dog?)

No Sleep for the Just

2006-05-14T04:57:00.000-08:00

It's a dog's life. Last night I was happily sleeping away when who should appear, after midnight!, but SHE (She from whom all good things come). There were these strange fumes (I noticed cheese amongst them...one of my favorite things, and chocolate but no treats appeared for me- unbelievable!) and SHE seemed very happy. SHE went on and on about these Stitchers and Bitchers that SHE's going to miss very much once our Alaskan Adventure begins. SHE talked about how it's so nice to make female friends, especially such an eclectic group as this one. A general theme of knitting gathered them together and now they can discuss anything, especially with an architect, librarian, nurse, environmental engineer, mom, international relationist, speech pathologist-to-be, entomologist and SHE's a teacher of the cute little ones. (Back before this blog began SHE brought me once to visit for a day...there were so many tasty little fingers to lick!)

Once a community begins (finally) everyone moves away. SHE says they are generally in their upper 20's and 30's and at least 5 are off on their own adventures this summer. At least we've discovered blogging and might just get to stay in touch! SHE says Zarzuela is likely to have a picture posted of this fun gathering soon (be sure to notice the food SHE didn't share). You can check it out through my new links...aren't I a smart dog!
HE (He from whom all good things come) never came home at all! SHE says he's off somewhere called Boston meeting with a frat buddy from his veterinarian days in Germany. SHE says HE's sure to be generating some good fumes of his own! SHE stayed here to keep me company so I could have the same food, the same walks, the same bed....ah life is good when you have well-trained humans!

Closing!

2006-05-13T13:46:00.000-08:00

Well, according to my humans I'm homeless again. I don't quite get it however as I'm still eating the same three meals at the same time in the same place, food's the same, bed's the same, walk's the same. If this is 'homeless' I have to say I much prefer it this way than the time loose on the streets I experienced last time. There was one tense day, my humans had a 'closing', and suddenly came home all relaxed and happy. I got extra playtime and a great belly rub. Apparently, in this version of being homeless, we are renters....whatever. Did I mention the food's the same, the bed's the same, the walk's the same....life is good:-)
I've heard that an eight week countdown to our real Alaskan adventure begins. I keep getting big smiles from my humans and they say "just you wait Suessikins, eight more weeks and you'll have a yard, a whole big house and we promise a buddy real soon!" The yard, the house all this sounds great...but a buddy?? Well, as long as the food's the same, the bed's the same.....you get my drift. And about the 'Suessikins', what can you do, it's usually accompanied by a treat and/or a belly rub so I just grin and bear it!
They made me look at these pictures of what will be our new place...I just want to know who that dog is.

The Beginning....

2006-05-06T16:34:00.003-08:00

A while ago I was abandoned on the cold streets of Manhattan. After languishing in the doggie jail, I was transported to the wilds of New Haven Connecticut. I had no idea what was going to happen to me. My new owners, first dragged me up and down Mount Moosilauk in New Hampshire. I was just a week with them and here I was in this scary wilderness.
I was so tired on the way down!!!

I settled in eventually for a contented two years...but now I sense changes in the air. Suddenly people were in and out of the house. One guy kept coming when no one was home but me. I tried my furrocious guard dog routine...but that never seems to work, and its just so hard not to wiggle when someone actually says hi to me. He gave me treats and let other strangers into the house. Now boxes are piling up everywhere and this new word 'Alaska' is heard every other sentence. My owner's even disappeared for a week, leaving me with a friend (I must say I didn't suffer...there was a Basset Hound to play with and treats anytime I tilted my head:-) I'm trying to be really, really good...I don't want to end out in the scary night alone again!