A Photo's Worth

Does having more time means accomplishing more?

CoVid19 means that I am homebound. There is nowhere to go and stay safe for everyone. So I stay home. At first, I tackled each day with a purpose. Using recipes that call for more time. Adding some baking to my repertoire. Reorganizing my rooms. Catching up with all those piles of stuff. I took this time at home as a challenge to work on my hobbies of quilting, photography, and genealogy. But then Charlie came into my life.

My latest involvement has been puppy training. After being in the home for two weeks, he and I are developing a rhythm. The past two nights he has slept through to breakfast. Ok. It is his breakfast time, 5:30 a.m. – 6:00 a.m. But I’ll take it. So the day starts earlier than I am used to. My goal of getting to bed at around midnight is working, but I still can’t seem to want to eat that early.

Charlie takes three longer naps during the day. If it was up to him they would all take place hugging my foot ensconced slipper. Sometimes I slip out and leave the slipper. This doesn’t fool Charlie much. Nothing more pathetic than a puppy crying for me, and I am just down the hall. Got to shake this soon.

Crate training has taken longer with Charlie than with my Libby. After two weeks he readily goes into his “Room” around mealtime. A food-filled Kong can keep him occupied for the moment. But when food is gone Charlie wants out. It starts with a small whine, then some digging, and yapping. I give Charlie the “shush” signal, and when he quiets I let him out. I am making slow progress. I plan to talk to some friends who have had more experience raising different pups.

So I am trained to have eagle eyes and watch for all house training signals. In and out we go to the potty, and back out again. Most of the time he gets with the program. Sometimes we miss the signal, a subtle look. I just added a string of bells, and I am teaching Charlie to ring the bells. Sometimes when Charlie is busy my macro lens finds other things to focus on.

We picked the last of our oranges. Here is the start of next year’s crop.

Each area of the house is a new adventure for Charlie. His approach is very cautious. Outside Charlie is calmly able to explore.

Today, he even watched me go inside, and chose to continue chomping on a twig. He deals with the front of the house differently. The Corona Virus has hindered his socialization. I have taken him out front and from a distance my neighbors have met him. I am holding Charlie, he watches, but there are no tail wags for strangers.

Charlie’s finds plenty of distractions outdoors

The past two days the new experience has been riding in the car. Our 2-hour ride home from Serenity Springs Labradoodles ended with Charlie’s breakfast all over me. So for these two short trips I decided to feed him when we returned. Yesterday we drove to my daughter’s house and showed my grandsons the new pup. Charlie was stressed out, and after lunch took a long nap. Today we picked up our online nursery shopping at Green Acres Nursery. The order went in a couple of days ago, and I got the call to pick up our vegetables this afternoon. This time I brought some water for Charlie, and I think he felt comfortable enough to sleep. Not too interested in looking out the window yet.

My husband planted 5 types of tomatoes, 1 pepper, 1 two-toned squash, and 1 eggplant.

Charlie’s nature is to remain cautious with new experiences. Staying home works with my nature as well. I like a peaceful environment, sunny days outdoors in my backyard, and a relaxing agenda. I like to focus on one thing at a time. And with a new puppy that is about all that I can accomplish. So I will set my site on that and call it a day fulfilled. The garage can wait, the quilting can wait, and the piles of stuff will remain in neat piles. And that is all for now.

Well, not exactly. The answer to my question is not really! Hey, but that is life. What is your take on the subject?

Introducing Charlie – It’s a boy!

The wait is over. Born on February 7, 2020 Ginger and Ace produced a litter of 10 multi-gen Australian Labradoodles. From the moment these puppies were born I was able to see them on a video cam daily. I called it my “Puppy Show”. Jo also posted photos weekly along with all vital statistics.

Lime Boy at one week. Photo courtesy of Jo Ubina-Smith

On March 14th my husband and I traveled up to Orland, Ca. to visit Serenity Springs Labradoodles. Greeted by Jo, Ron and a large litter Australian Labradoodle 5 week old puppies.

Eyes open and sitting pretty. Photo by Jo Ubina-Smith

To give the pups the best experience, Jo introduces the litter to noises like the vacuum cleaner, and a wide variety of toys with different textures, and purposes. When stuck at home she dresses the pups up according to their color name.

Due to the increasing pandemic of the Corona 19 virus (CoVid) we were not able to handle any of the puppies. We were practicing “Social Distancing”. Originally, I planned on adopting a girl. But one of the little boys captured my heart, Lime Boy. First up was to pick a name. Listened to friend suggestions, and finally decided on Charlie.

I began ordering puppy supplies. I could not go to a “Puppies R Us” store. Amazon Prime left many packages at my doorway. I am getting used to shopping online. My breeder sent information each week with suggestions for puppy preparations. Crate, grooming tools, puppy food, and a puppy playpen for traveling. I have been reading up on training a puppy. After all it has been over 9 years since I worked with a puppy.

Saturday March 28th we headed back to Orland for a drive-thru pickup. Jo Ubina-Smith videotaped my instructions, presented us with a bag of supplies, and Charlie’s Notebook. I can’t say enough about this breeder. Every detail is carefully thought out. No question is too small. She is an organized, experienced, patient, caring, and thoroughly researched breeder. I could go on and on.

Charlie relaxing on a huge dog bed that has become his playground

Charlie stops his playing to pose for a photograph

Charlie has been with us for one week, and I think I am starting to get into a rhythm. Jo told me that Charlie approached new things cautiously. He takes a bit more time but then gets more confident.

This “Stay in Place” will definitely not play to Charlie’s advantage to socialize early, and experience many new things, but I will work with what I have.

Charlie seems to act more confident outside.

Had to order a much smaller ball for Charlie to fetch. The Kong squeaker ball does the trick. Charlie eagerly retrieves it!

And like a new Mom, I have to get up to speed for all the bending, ups, and downs my body was not prepared for. Today, I spent catching up with sleep and giving some distance from Charlie. I don’t want him to become too dependent on me.

Tomorrow, I will take Charlie for a ride to our Petco store where I will “Socially distance” have some items brought up to the car. This will give Charlie a new experience.

And so Charlie’s journey begins!

Virtual Living

“Stay at home” order is in effect. This is a good time to appreciate the good times. One way to do this is to look over my organized 40,000+ photographs I have on my computer.

Today, I will take you on a tour of the Capay Valley. Located in Yolo County, this rural valley is northwest of Sacramento. This was the last CTD event I participated in. Early February the almond trees come into blossom, and the Capay Valley hosts the Almond Festival. My photo group decided to avoid the rush and headed to the valley the week before.

My CTD (Camera Totin’ Days) friends head down the lane. Photo demonstrates “Leading Lines”

The almond trees blooming, and some farmers have fenced their trees in so they would not escape.

No, so that the many photographers would not trample their fields and leave an unsightly mess. This has become a problem lately. Aware of this we parked along the fence and with the sun shining grabbed some shots.

Perfect day to pull out my new macro lens. Used the 80mm f2.8with my Fuji xt2.

We headed to Rumford and came across Hayes Longhorns Farm. Don Hayes, an owner/operator of heavy equipment invited our group to roam around the farm and encouraged us to photograph anything.

I found the No Parking sign ironic, the flatbed wagon a forerunner for a Ram Truck, some rusty parts that looked like cats, a face tilt, and a surry without the fringe on the top!

Plenty of photo opportunities, and listening to Don I learned that everyone in the area was getting ready for the Almond Festival.

Before leaving Rumford I checked out the post office. The postmaster pointed out many of the original fixtures inside.

Before leaving I grabbed a bag of freshly picked oranges and left $5.00 in the can.

We always end our day with lunch. This time we returned to a favorite spot of ours, Road Trip Bar & Grill. Great food, great service. And the name fits our day as we travel around our area.

Listening to the advice of medical professional I plan to be socially responsible and remain at home until advised otherwise. So stay safe, and enjoy my virtual journey.

So much happening, so many decisions to make

When last I sat down my grandson Baby Colton arrived, and a week later my puppy-to-be made an appearance.

Three weeks later and much has happened. My 22-year-old grandson visited us for one week in February.

Sacramento Metropolitan Airport public sculpture. I see my red Samsonite!

I haven’t seen him in two years, and the visit ended with him saying, “Best vacation ever!” Not that he has taken many vacations in his short working life. It seems like for being on his own he is doing well. But there were a few details that needed to be addressed. Haircut, eyeglasses, cell phone upgrade, and work clothes set the stage for a busy week.

One thing I have to say about this guy is that he is a foodie. Straight away he planned to eat his way through Sacramento. Straight from the airport, we head to his favorite Fish and Chips place. Interestingly enough, the owners remember him. I guess he frequented this establishment when he lived close by. For dessert, I visited Icicles. Curled up icecream created right before your eyes.

Delicious. Never knew this existed. I plan to visit again.

After taking care of all those details, we planned a day out of town. At first we wanted to go to San Francisco to meet up wtih my son and family. With everyone having a different schedule this was difficult to arrange, and so we went with plan B. Headed east with Reno being our destination. This is the first February where we didn’t have a drop of rain. Weather is just lovely, but I am starting to hear talk of drought again.

First stop, Donner Summit. Checked out Donner Lake. I tried to imagine the Donner Party stuck here.

It was the end of February and there was no snow around.

Some fishermen getting ready to cast their lines.

Another tourist from the Sacramento area. Love the colorful sari.

Searched for a open restroom. Didn’t know this was a seasonal condition. LOL!

We visited the Donner Memorial State Park Visitor Center with a very nice restroom.

From October through the spring snow reached up to the foot of the sculpture when the Donner Party arrived in California. This year’s snowfall wrapped around a tiny sprouting pine tree.

We continue on to Reno and arrived about lunchtime. Headed for miles of food buffet.

My grandson first took a look at the miles of desserts.

He then placed his drink order. He has a unique way of ordering his meal items. But he does it with a pleasant demeanor and the servers try to oblige him.

We walked around Circus Circus, but no performances to view. We checked out the arcade. We needed to walk off that meal!

Tried our hand at 25 cent poker machine, and quick when we were ahead. Winner of $0.55. It was nice sitting and talking while we tried to beat the machine.

Thanksgiving in February with all the trimmings, except pumpkin pie. My grandson requested this holiday meal back in November so I kept a turkey in the freezer for this occasion. He remembered that I usually put walnuts in my stuffing. Not this time. Oh well. I liked the fact that I didn’t have to cook for a couple of days afterward.

Been paying close attention to the upcoming presidential race in November. California moved up the primary vote, and Super Tuesday came and went. No further comment here. I just hope, upon hope that our next president will be someone other that our current ____. You fill in the blank. Decisions, decisions, but not the greatest of choices.

My grandson headed back to Knoxville, and we focused on our upcoming trip to New York City. Then the news of coronavirus ramped up. Decisions, pro/con. After much discussion, we decided that New York City will be there, and we would postpone our trip. Booking.com made it easy to cancel the hotel reservation. I had a harder time with AAA air travel. I purchased travel insurance for my Jet Blue tickets. But I would need to file a claim, and there would be a big hassle. I called Jet Blue and they agreed to give me a 1-year credit for the tickets.

So next up, was opening day of baseball. But it was rained out. Luckily, game was called early. Go figure!

Each day from 1 pm until 7 pm I get to watch puppy television, starring Ginger and her litter of 10. And after 4 weeks they are playing and eating gruel. Next weekend the plan is to drive up north and meet the pups in person. Ginger has 10 puppies. Three girls, and seven boys. I am pretty sure that we will be bringing home a little girl pup, but we will see after we meet all of them next week. We wanted a solid colored pup (only a couple of boys fit that description), but all are so cute and personalities are starting to form. That is more important in the decision process. So excited.

So that is it for the moment. Trying to stay healthy. Relaxing and getting ready for my new adventure.

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