Just Relaxing

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                     Its has been a while since I have posted anything, The truth be told,  by the time I finish doing everything I need to do around the farm, I am just too tuckered out to write.   Any one that has owned a farm or a home knows that there is ALWAYS something that needs to get done, mowing the lawn, fixing the sink, or painting something. On top of all the chores I have around the farm, I just finished teaching for the semester. So, those of you that have kids...imagine having 128 of them. It suffices to say that life comes at you fast, if one was to quote TV commercials. 

     I still wake up at 4:30am. Some old habits are hard to break. I enjoy a good breakfast. Today it was an asparagus and onion frittarta and a cup of strong  coffee.  Then its my routine to take the dogs for their morning walk. Its off down the path through the woods to the pond. I once read that paths are the birthplace of writing, they certainly are the birthplace of reading. Trails are always about signs  and landmarks. Animals leave their signatures. They mark their passages with scat, urine, bones, blood,footprints, heaps of fur, feathers, and shreds of skin. Every animals or hominid that passes leaves its mark on the earth, like an endlessly uncoiling scroll. All this waits to be observed, sniffed-read-by others. The dogs and I take to this uncoiling surface with the same understanding. We read the trail data and feel the pull of its narrative like the lines of a story. We become part of the story, matching all the other legs and feet that have left odoriferous and warm directions scribed into the surface. I use vision and reasoning. The dogs use  vision, smell, and instinct, but we all contribute-compacting the earth with a new verse. keeping the path alive. I don't know how the story ends, but its been interesting and enjoyable so far. It the journey that make life interesting, not the destination.  I'm ready to turn another page and head down a different path. I usually choose to follow paths that are less traveled. I cannot wait to see what new adventures await. You are welcome to come along. until the next time

Peace

~old dog~

Praying for Stability

When the world is spinning off it's axis.. and powers beyond our control try to set the pace for our lives,I believe that there is a higher order to appeal to.

      I do not affiliate to any organized religion, but I do believe that life is not left to gamble with. There is a natural order to adhere to. Take a walk, clear your mind and live!

woodland Ramblings

On my walks with the dogs, I always come across  dead or fallen trees. I find the the decaying trunks of these trees interesting, because they can be the home of many things. Rabbits, moles, mice and a whole hodgepodge of insects.

     Sometime if I am lucky, I'll stumble upon a stump like this one that has decayed  into an interesting shape, or a natural sculpture.   You could  even  consider them a nature's Rorschach test. What do you see when you look at this?
Hmmmm!  This log reminds me of the "Sorting hat from Harry Potter". I wonder how that would be interpreted, But I'll leave that up to you.

Cold day for a swim

After chasing the ducks out of the pond Molly decided it was a good day for a swim.  Its almost impossible to keep her out of the water, even when the air temperature is only 50 degrees.  My water bottle severed as a perfect substitute for a retrieving dummy. The ducks flew to the other side of the pond but Molly still kept her eyes on them in case they tried to come back.     

   Its been too wet to work out in the fields around the farm or vineyard and the weatherman is calling for one to two more inches of rain tonight. so I'm content to play with Molly for a little while longer.

The love dog

Molly waits for me every night. when I pull down the driveway, she is sitting waiting for me to come home. I do not even get the car door open and that anvil of a head pushes through and I am enveloped in  pure, unselfish love.

~ My sunshine doesn't come from the skies,
It comes from the love in my dog's eyes~.

Old Friends

  I spent many hours sitting under this grape vine when I was a kid.
It is now one of my oldest vines.The original vine was planted by my grandfather around 1920. My father took a cutting back in the early 60's and it grew in his yard for over thirty years. We enjoyed delicious jelly, some fantastic wine and tasty fruit produced from this vine.

When my father passed away in the late 90's, I took a chance and transplanted this vine at Yellow Dog Farm. It occupies a place of high honor and we still enjoy the rewards from her fruit. I have made many cuttings from this plant to increase the vineyard.

Signs of Spring

It looks as if old man winter has finally left. What a mess he left around the farm. It will take some time to clean up after him but I am excited to begin. It was a gorgeous spring day today, so I decided to take a walk through the vineyard. The vines have started to sprout.  I will spend many hours walking through the vineyard, pruning, tying up vines,  and talking to my vines encouraging them to be the best they can be.