Thanks 'n a Tag

THANK YOU CHECKERS!
I want to belatedly thank Checkers ("I may be small but I'm definitely in charge") the Peekapoo (http://checkersthepeekapoo.blogspot.com/) for this rockin', sockin' pawsome badge award! It is creative and furry beautiful. Much gratitude and xoxoxoxo!
And my mom has been tagged by Samantha and June at http://ydsalittleofeverythingplace.blogspot.com/!
The rules are:1. Mention and link back to the person who tagged you.2. List 6 little things that make you happy.3. Tag 6 other bloggers and let them know they're "it".
1. I love rock climbing soooo much! The mountains where I've climbed are beautiful... no... spectacular, often requiring hikes that take me through tranquil forests and refreshing lakes and streams. And the challenges of a rock's architecture are so numerous - no two routes are the same!
2. My family is pretty much an instant happymaker! I am extremely lucky! My mom, siblings and their families are all in the northeast, but our son and family are all out here, which is ashame, but we try to gather together at least two to three times annually.
3. I adore traveling. Another instant "happymaker!" Below is a picture taken at about 5 a.m. near Piana in Corsica. We are at Les Roches Rouges, which we knew would be gorgeous at or around sunrise.
4. And speaking/writing of sunrise, I really love an amazing sunset. I took this picture of the sun setting over the Rockies from Colorado Springs on our last evening there a couple of years ago. I just hit shot after shot of the amazing fireball of a show.
5. I love flowers if you didn't know that already hehe! All spring I took pictures of Sammie (poor girl) in a backround of profusions of blossoms!
6. And of course this is truly among the #ONE "little" things that makes me so furry, furry happy! Sammie - you make me experience such a broad range of emotions from love and laughter to tears and fears that I don't know what we've done without you all these years. We are so grateful that we are lucky enough to share what we call HOME with you! This has been a tough tag, as there are so many things I could write about, but there's a start! I know this is a cop-out, but this tag is really a valuable exercise. I urge all doggies to try this. So... I tag all my bloggie pals and look forward to hearing about the "little" things that make your pawrents happy! Huggers,Sammie

The things you think of later on...

Today I had been tidying in my apartment and throwing out. One of the things I came across was a collection of those caps that go on inner tube valves. As had been my reaction so many times this afternoon, I was wondering why on Earth I had kept it -- why had I accumulated this collection? I promptly threw the lot out. It was later when I was doing my traditional "check the spares" routine, that I realised, a quick look at my old bike showed that I had something of a shortage of these things. I had thrown out the solution to a long-standing problem without thinking about it. Ridiculous! Not a major catastrophe of course, but a little annoying nonetheless.
Still, I got a nice Austinville ride this morning. There are some unique trees in the rainforest, such as this one. It's secrets like these that makes the rainforest such a special place, it's the mysteries of how a trunk could take on such an appearance over so many years that adds to the mystique.

Riding in the Battlefield

It was getting "warm" and humid when I got to the Chickamauga Battlefield Vistor Center. The Visitor's Center opens at 8:30. I wanted to get a map. And, I was running late.
It was near 9:30 by the time I was ready to ride and starting to get a bit warm. They have a tour route, mostly on one-way paved park road. The tour clocks in at a little over 7 miles. Figured start out with riding that, then see how it goes.
The route is pretty flat, except for the spur up to Snodgrass Hill. I had to walk the bike - and in the heat it was starting to get to me. When I got back down to the main route, I was OK.
When I completed the tour route, I wanted a few more miles. Re-rode some of the route. Ended up with just over 11 miles in an hour (riding time). Stopped to take a few photos - even some the bike got in!
When I got back at the Visitor Center, i changed clothes (my jersey was pretty wet with sweat). Grabbed the Canon DSLR to get a couple more shots that I had seen on my ride.
I was surprised when I got in the car - the thermometer showed 79 degrees. Not that really hot -- but it was very humid. The 11 mph speed isn't to bad, considering I was stopping to take photos and had to walk that one hill.
Gonna keep this ride in mind for a early ride Sunday before I head to Augusta, GA.

Crossing the Line

I saw the first hummingbird of .. on Thursday morning – it stopped at a Salvia ‘Nuevo Leon’, then moved to the still blooming Coral Honeysuckle/Lonicera sempervirens. I lost sight of it for a few seconds, before catching its final dip toward a Salvia greggii. He was lucky to find something blooming!

I’ve planted plenty of butterfly & hummingbird plants, but they’ve been slow to bloom this year. If the rain stops and the sun heats up we may rapidly cross over that line from Spring to Summer this weekend. I’ve already cut back the once-blooming pink rose to under 6-feet and shortened the iris stalks to make the plants look neater. Another wave of flowers are budded and ready to take their turn.

Last winter’s cold and ice killed the Salvia guaranitica, the Pineapple Sage/Salvia elegans and the hybrid Salvia ‘Black & Blue’ to ground level here in NW Austin. All three Salvias were hummingbird favorites last summer, but the Pineapple sage is still struggling up from the ground, the Black & Blue has only buds, and the Salvia guaranitica in the photo above just started to open in the last few days.

The first Larkspur flowers showed color on Monday, weeks after they were blooming in South Austin gardens. Larkspur/Consolida ambigua self-seed each winter, and usually grow quickly in April. This cooler, wetter spring seemed to delay their growth at first, then allowed them to grow way too tall and top-heavy. Recent thunderstorms toppled some, and the heavy wet soil is making some plants rot at the base. Whenever we expand our planting areas I move a few seedlings to the new beds, leaving it up to the Larkspur if they want to grow there.

The first flowers opened on the double yellow, fragrant Oleander from Plant Delights. I bought the rooted cutting [Tony Avent thinks the variety may be 'Mathilde Ferrier'] in March .., and grew it on the deck at our last Austin house. It’s lived in a series of containers, with the most recent transplanting done in February .. by my friends the Divas of the Dirt.

This week brought the first flowers on the Achillea 'Moonshine', also called yarrow. Both yarrow and lambs ear look good now, but they're frequently a ratty mess by late summer. I just cut them back severely and hope for new fresh foliage. Those buds to the right of the yarrow belong to a lemony yellow reblooming daylily, ‘Happy Returns’.

Around the side of the house, the shelter of the brick wall has persuaded one Canna 'City of Portland' that it's already summertime. I grew this Canna in Illinois and brought a few pieces with me to Texas in 1999. Since it multiplies easily, it's definitely a Passalong plant... I always have some to share.

This bright pink, tidy native is the Cherry Skullcap/ Scutellaria suffrutescens. The plant is generally evergreen here, although the tips were frozen back this winter. Skullcap grows slowly into a mounded sub-shrub that can take sun, heat and is drought resistant. Ta-Da!

Okay, so it’s only a two inch ‘Juliet’ tomato, and it’s in a container not the ground, but it’s still a tomato!

We also have a “real” tomato almost ready to eat – an ‘Early Girl’. This is actually the second to turn orange - we lost the first to the critters, which is why we've given up on vine ripe tomatoes and I’m bringing this one inside. In another few hours, if the squirrels haven’t taken out a chunk out of it, some bird will have pecked a hole in it.
Where’s the satin pillow?

That Clif Bar Thing

The pizza and wine were good. And it was fun to be around and socialize with so many local cyclists.

But...
Personally, I like to be entertained. And most of these guys seemed like they wanted to be somewhere else (like asleep). I wonder if they got paid to appear?
The lava lamp was a big hit.

Fast Freddie (Predictor - Lotto) was there and he's silly. He always seems to have a big smile on his face. Even when I see him riding locally, he's always smiling and waving hi. And he didn't disappoint. He had some good stories.
Freddie gave me a pat on the back one year after I was pulled from the Albany crit. He was hanging around watching our race. Since then I've always liked him

Let's see if I can remember who was there besides Freddie...
Ed Beamon, directeur sportif of Navigators, Gavin Chilcott, directeur sportif of BMC, David Something from BMC, sprinter guy from BMC, Mike Sayers (BMC) Glen (Allan) Chadwick, (Navigators) Ben Day & Hilton Clark (both Navigators), Ken Hanson (BMC), David Vitoria (BMC) and emcees Dylan Seguin and Dave Towle.
Phew!
Mark McCormack was supposed to be there, but alas he sat stuck on a tarmac somewhere waiting for a plane to take off. He would have been interesting to listen to.
It was cool.

Owachomo Bridge, Newspaper Rock, Goosenecks State Park

Staying in Blanding, Utah tonight. After a day filled with sunshine, spotty rain, occasional snow showers, and some pretty good dust storms (not to mention some REALLY cool clouds throughout the day), I caught a nice sunset over Owachomo Bridge at Natural Bridges National Monument. Was hoping to photograph some stars over the same bridge, but it was too cloudy.

Some other highlights from today: Stopped by Newspaper Rock in Canyonlands National Park, an amazing rock which has probably the highest concentration of petroglyphs of any single rock in the Southwest. I also drove through some intense rain today, followed by some amazing skies as the storm broke up. As I drove North from Monument Valley I took a quick side trip to Goosenecks State Park to photograph the sky above the bends in the San Juan River.

DIGGING POT AND ENJOYING THE STONES

I woke up feeling human - wonderful! When I say human, I mean pain-free and able to function again. These three-day migraines really disrupt my life, they hurt dreadfully and make me feel nauseous. Now, apart from some tenderness in my eye socket, and a bit of tiredness, I really do feel great.





George's first outdoor job was to turn the compost heap over - it's a big compost heap - a big job. When I strolled over to see whether he was ready for a cup of tea, I had to laugh. He had two chickens pecking around in the compost and one of the cats walking around the top of the fencing, watching the chickens - they were all being observed by Toby. I ran back indoors and got my camera but couldn't get them all in one shot.





Needless to say, it wasn't long before young Harry called around to see whether Grandpa would take him and Toby into the field ... so off they went. They returned with treasure - bits of old pot found in the mud of the field





The smallest piece is glazed inside and out. The large one was part of the rim of what must have been a very large pot and the orange one looks as though it was a very chunky handle... they are lovely. I wonder how many other treasures are lying around in the field waiting to be discovered. I love thinking about the people who made them, the people who used them, etc.





Apologies for this next bit, Jonny, you already know about my stone collection, but the pots lead on to ...





When we first moved here our son-in-law dismantled the rockery, and didn't want the stones, so I asked for them. They are marvellous - worked by stone masons, goodness knows how long ago, or for what building. They may have been from one of the local churches which now no longer exist, or somewhere very grand... what was the building, who worked the stones, walked through the doorways, or looked through the window arches, even the people who transported them to here... I will never know, but I love the stones just the same. Every so often I clear off the moss and just sit and think about them, trace the workings, admire the skill of those stonemasons of long ago.





Aren't they wonderful? There is nothing there to show the scale and their size - plus of course they are stacked up and mossy - so you are not seeing them at their best. When I have more energy I'll clean them up and share their beautiful shapes and lines with you.





Much more recent history, to do with this lovely old converted stable/cow/cart shed in which we live

I dug up all of these bottles and jars (plus many more) they were approximately three feet and more under the surface of the soil. One turned up during building work and that was it then, I had to do my very own Time Team dig. It was thrilling. I know they are all practically worthless, but to me they are treasure. I can't describe how wonderful it was to gently work through the mud and the muck and scrape away and finally find an intact pot, bottle, jar. I found buckets full of broken china, lots of old, rusty metal work - including some wonderful old cogs - best china, everyday china, perfume bottles, an old shoe... eventually I had to stop excavating and allow the builders to continue to work in that area, but what treasures did I miss?

Gone Triking Again

We should have been packing for our upcoming trip, but that’s not what we were doing this morning.  After consecutive days of ‘this is how it must be inside a furnace’ temps that felt like 105F (41C) thanks to the humidex, we could not resist going out for another trike ride.  We needed to pick up my CamelBak hydration pack from the Phaeton, so we headed to Bull Run Regional Park to kill two birds with one stone :-)

After parking near the entrance, unfolding our bikes, and gearing up, we had a bit of fun on the deserted side road before heading off for a longer ride on the main road.

A 43-second video of us goofing around.

A nice breeze and plenty of shade made for perfect trike riding conditions.  The flapping of our colorful ‘we’re here; don’t run us over’ flags was the only sound to break the morning’s silence until we came upon two hawks calling to each other.  We watched them for a while from our trike seats, our quiet approach allowing us to get surprisingly close to the base of the tree where one was perched.  No photos; I’m afraid — too many branches in the way.

Except for the occasional car heading out from the campground towards town, traffic was nil.  The campers were still fast asleep, and we were the only ones out and about to enjoy the sun streaming through the trees, burning off the light fog.

There’s a small pond not far from the campground store.  At first, we planned to stop there to eat our breakfast bars, but there were too many gnat-like bugs.  Pedaling back towards whence we came, we found another spot instead.  Bugs there, too.  So, we just munched away at our breakfast while sitting in our trikes and quickly high-tailed it out of there.

All in all, I did somewhere around 4-5 miles (6.5-8 km) on this run.  Mui wanted to do a high-speed pedal on our second time around the park, so he got in more mileage today than I did.  By 9:30a, with the temps starting to reach into the 80F (27C) range, we were ready to call it quits.  Not only was there work to do at home, but it also didn’t make sense to over-tire our muscles and pay the piper later!  (So far, no aches or pains — that’s a good thing!)

A bit of biking humor to end this post :-)))

Alert, Alert!  the aliens abducted a triker at bull run.  Only her shoes were left behind :-)

(For those who are not bikers: these shoes snap onto the pedals so that we can pedal at speed without worrying about our feet slipping off.  They also make for a smoother, more comfortable pedaling experience.  With the shoes on our feet, we sit down and snap the shoes onto the pedals.  A slight twist of the ankle frees the foot from the pedal — shoe and all.)

Fineshade Woods

We wimped out of the long drive to Daventry today, and ended up walking about 3 miles in a wet, but not too muddy wander around the woods. A coffee to kick-start us, half an hour or so in the bird-hide, watching woodpeckers and lots of tits - blue, great, coal and (?) marsh - or willow.

No camera today - I opted for the freedom to carry nothing on my back or round my neck - so this photo of a woodpecker magnet will have to do.



Lunch at the cafe, and a browse aroung the RSPB shop - only to discover that it's closing on January 29th.

Not good news.

Still MORE to do in Tehachapi...

Hiya y'all! Yeah... we're still in Tehachapi, but we've found so many outstanding things to do here, that we could stay at least another month - well... if we didn't have a plan we were tryin' to stick to! So here we are at what they call "the Tehachapi Loop." Because it's so hard for us to explain the magnetic appeal of this place to anyone but the diehard choo choo train buffs, who come from all over the world to see this thang, we're gonna jes' set down a link... here! We are definitely not train buffs in any way, but we gotta woof this: it was pawsitively mesmerizing to watch the show, when three loud, whistling diesel engines came 'round the bend, towing 108 cars behind. Seeing the spectacle of that snaking train winding around the LOOP - OVER itself, was incredible. We made a little movie of it all, but it only gets one star compared to other vids of it on youtube! Enjoy!


Mesmerizing. Like a giant Lionel train set or sumpin'!
We had hiked a bit up a trail, then a hill where there were all sorts of rocky hiding places for us. We sniffed out bunches of lizards, rodents and other assordid animals that we couldn't catch, while Ma and Pa set up their flashy beasts.
We always smile on account of three.
Sammie playin' hidey hoo - peekaboo!
Sad to see the train leave for up country, but there'll always be a ton more comin' round the mountain heheh! THEN. We got to visit Tehachapi Mountain Park, which you can check out HERE. Did we ever LOVE this place!
There was still lots of snow (and treeloads of squirrels), so we had our paws loaded with things to do! Plus, we had the whole park to ourselves and took full advantage of all that property up there!
There was some good roaching to be had for Sammie...
...and plenty of snow, as we woofed, so there was no lack of things to do, places to sniff, and fun to be had. We plum wore each other out as well as Mom and Dad, who needed to do some meditations. So, we headed in the opposite direction to...
...a most peaceful and beautiful place called Mountain Spirit Center. (You can go HERE to check out this serene spot)
When we arrived, there was a monk circumnavigating the peace bell pagoda-like structure, all hand painted. He bowed to Mom as she approached quietly - as if to invite her and Dad. We all wondered if the monks at this temple take a vow of silence for certain periods of time occasionally.
And we thought this might be the dojo? Such a beautiful setting... We all felt very much of an inner peace at this lovely place.
We've been having wonderful days during our "enforced" stay here in Tehachapi. If you ever get stuck somewhere, we hope that it will be here - there's loads to do. We still have one more post to do about our travels in and around this area!
Peace out