The Dog

When I come home, Roman is always happy to see me. His tail wags enthusiastically as if we have been apart months instead of hours. Sometimes his entire body bends in the middle as if to emphasize his silent greeting. No matter my mood, no matter how good or tough the day has been, the Dog is steadfast in his acceptance of our pack, and in his joy at my return. Writers with much better vocabulary have penned some thoughtful reflections which I wish to share.

The dog is the only animal that is capable of disinterested affection. He is the only creature that regards the human being in his compassion, and follows him as his friend; the only one that seems to possess a natural desire to be useful to him, or from a spontaneous impulse attaches himself to man. We take the bridle from the mouth of the horse, and turn him free into the pasture, and he testifies his joy in his partially recovered liberty. We exact from the dog the service that is required of him, and still he follows us. He solicits to be continued as our companion and our friend. Many an expressive action tells us how much he is pleased and thankful. He shares in our abundance, and he is content with the scantiest and most humble fare. He loves us while living, and has been known to pine away on the grave of his master.

- William Youatt, from The Dog, 1845


Calm though not mean, courageous without rage,
Serious not dull, and without thinking sage;
Pleas’d at the lot that Nature has assign’d.
Snarl as I list, and freely bark my mind;
As churchman wrangle not with jarring spite,
Nor statesman-like caressing whom I bite;
View all the canine kind with equal eyes,
I dread no mastiff, and no cur despise;
True from the first, and faithful to the end.
My days and nights one equal tenour keep.
Fast but to eat, and only wake to sleep;
Thus stealing along life I live incog,
A very plain and downright honest dog.

- William Hamilton, 18th century from On a Dog

3 Bridges

The Bay Bridge is actually a double-decker bridge-tunnel-bridge spanning the San Francisco Bay from Oakland to "The City". The tunnel is on Treasure Island (Alcatraz is in the foreground).

Depending on what you consider the boundaries of San Francisco Bay, there are from 5 to 9 bridges which cross it. From south to north: Dumbarton, San Mateo, Bay Bridge, Golden Gate, San Rafael, Crockett (2 spans) and Benicia (2 spans). Today I celebrated the beautiful clear, mid-60s weather by riding ma moto across 3 bridges: Bay Bridge into San Francisco, the Golden Gate to Marin County, and then the San Rafael to complete the loop and return home.

Parking at any of the vista points in the Marin Headlands just north of the Golden Gate resulted in the Shiver becoming a conversation starter with locals and tourists alike. A very nice fellow named "Mack" took my picture (below).

The San Rafael bridge is also a double-decker, just like the Bay Bridge; however, it has recently been renovated and the driving surface is uncommonly smooth. Most of the Bay Area highways are in poor condition, but driving across this bridge was an unusually smooth trip.

Everyone has seen the Golden Gate in person or in movies. Still, there is nothing quite as impressive as standing on the Marin Headlands and seeing this magnificent span with "The City" in the background. Can you belive it's January? Drought concerns aside, it was an exciting and relaxing trip.

Aliens on Mt. Shasta

Sundown on Mt. Shasta

Driving south on Interstate 5 returning from Ashland, one can't help but notice how often there are odd cloud formations near the top of Mount Shasta. As the sun set one January afternoon, I was struck by the clouds shaped like rings of Saturn near the summit. My friend Sue thinks that the Lunarians live in the mountain, so probably these special clouds give them cover to land undetected.

The trip back to the Bay Area is visually interesting through the Siskiyou mountains, then you arrive in Redding. Sigh. Continuing south is rather dull, flat, many miles of straight uninspired Interstate with such exciting exits as "Proberta", "Balls Ferry" and the ever popular "Zamora". Often these exits do not provide any services, so one wonders why there is an exit at all. Once I reach the Hwy 505 cutoff back to I-80, the nonsense exits continue. My favorite paradox is Exit 17 to a destination called "Road 8".

More Scents

This warmer-than-necessary January has caused plants to bloom prematurely. We have a small daphne bush in a large pot near the front door. The blooms give off a delicious scent, most noticeable at night and in the morning. As you walk past the plant a gentle but persistent scent is presented to your nose. Scents can be difficult to describe because they are unique and any description is subjective. Daphne is not pungent like gardenia, nor sweet like citrus, but it is a pleasant and unique experience.

We can post photos and videos to the Internet to share a visual experience. What a shame there is no way (yet) to post a scent file to share the olfactory experience.

Growing up near Seattle, mom used to grow daphne and put just one cut sprig in water on the kitchen windowsill. That one sprig with perhaps 2 or 3 small blossoms was all it took to bring the outdoors into the kitchen. The scent takes me back to that image of her at the window, as if I'm truly there with her. What a wonderful comforting memory!

Miles to Nowhere

Interstate 40 crosses the Tehachapi Mountains and the Mojave Desert before entering AZ

We took a 1,100 mile road trip to Lake Havasu, Arizona to visit Dennis' mom last week. The Colorado river widens into a man-made lake at this location because of a downstream dam. So the location is popular with the boating community and those who want to see the London Bridge which was relocated brick by brick to become a tourist attraction. In summer, the temperature can easily reach over 115 degrees, cooling down at night to a mere 104. At least that was our experience when we visited 3 years ago for mom's 75th birthday, and so we nicknamed the barren area "Gates of Hell".

This visit was very nice, including delicious meals and play time with siblings, cousins, aunts, nieces, nephews and (of course) dogs. A paved 4-mile trail is well organized with bicycles going clockwise and walkers going counterclockwise. On skates with dogs, we considered ourselves walkers. Roman actually sustained a 4-mile trot as I skated beside him on the second day. The family members who walked completed the loop in about 1 hr and 20 minutes, a pretty good pace indeed.

Cyndie, Paula, Roman and Josie on the 4-mile path

Cousin Paula made the most hilarious observations of the topography and local community:

• "This place is just like Afghanistan, only without the bullets!" (referring to the rugged, treeless terrain)




• "Bin Laden is probably hiding in the Model homes!" (as we passed an abandoned new housing development with only 3 model homes built and no activity whatsoever, who would think to look for terrorists there?)


Abandoned new housing development with 3 hearty palm trees attempting to survive




• "Mr. Bunny was surprised!" (referring to the cottontail rabbits who routinely traverse mom's backyard and did not expect two dogs to be there, the rabbits left quickly and dashed into the "wash", a gully designed for flash floods. Perhaps the coyotes got them.)




• "It's time for pee-pee NOW!" (this is the universally understood road-trip cry when there are no rest areas for extended periods while crossing the desert)

I was struck by the lack of solar panels on homes. Of all the places I have visited, Lake Havasu would be the ideal location to generate electricity from the sun, especially with the heavy use of residential air conditioning (even the garages have their own, separate swamp coolers!).

On the ride home, I took the snapshot below of the airplane storage area in the Mojave desert. Presumably, planes are stored here because of the low humidity....they don't deteriorate as quickly as they might in a wetter location.



Roman is a great traveler and never once complained about the long stretches. He just slept in doggie business class, the entire backseat being given over to him.

Sticks and Stones

Day 3 of roller blading: Roman can run longer and faster each outing. He understands that we need to pause when the trail meets city streets. I am at my least graceful at these intersections, trying desperately to stop. The all-but-useless brake on the heel of the right skate taunts me as it gives the impression of slowing. Normally I step off into the grass, making a few high stepping moves to come to rest. Or, if there's a handy road sign with a galvanized pole, I grab it and spin until my momentum is gone. Either way, I throw the leash and Roman knows to stop and observe his awkward human finding a way to stop upright.

The childhood rhyme of "sticks and stones may break my bones" came to mind today because the tiniest twig on the asphalt can cause a roller blade wheel to stop abruptly. The same is true for a pebble. When this happens, the body lurches forward, hopefully landing on the other foot to stay upright. Now I've become more cognisant of debris on the path, and I avoid all that I can by stepping carefully over and around it.

Roman's toenails are nicely smoothed from running on pavement. No more wrestling to clip them at home. His pads are toughened to avoid injury, and he is visibly excited when he sees us struggle to get the protective pads on because he knows that leads to an outing when he can run beside me and tow me. Let's hope our injury-free record continues!

Pug with a Chicken Wing

Ground raw chicken, bones and all, defrosted and ready to eat!

Camp Four Paws http://campfourpaws.com/ is a wonderful place for dogs and their human companions. The facility provides a safe, supervised setting for dogs to have play and stimulating activities under the amazing care of the owner, Troy, and her dedicated staff. They screen dogs based on behavior to ensure that everyone gets along. Roman loves going there when we cannot take him with us on trips, and judging by how tired he is when we pick him up, he plays to his heart's delight.

I asked Troy about the merits of feeding dogs raw chicken, having learned recently that the bones and other non-flesh bits provide needed nutrients which may not be in commercial dog food. Apparently, there is a range of opinions on this topic; however, I trust Troy completely and she assured me that the occasional treat of raw chicken is not only healthy, but allows the dog to be, well, a dog! I think what she said to me was, "You haven't lived until you see a Pug with a chicken wing!" That mental image has stuck with me, perhaps longer than necessary.

The merits of raw chicken were reinforced by various people at the dog parks who had painstakingly researched the nutritional and health benefits before offering up a raw chicken back to their pets. I was not surprised to learn from our local butcher shop at Lunardi's that one can purchase frozen blocks of ground up chicken backs and wings for only 99 cents a pound. To serve, merely defrost in the microwave, place before hungry dog, stand back and watch.

Because the bones aren't cooked, they don't become sharp or brittle which could risk internal puncture or other health problem. Judging by the satisfied nap (coma, really) Roman takes after a meal of raw chicken, I'd say that the benefits go beyond taste and any ancient need to eat raw meat. He is now sound asleep, dreaming doggie dreams which make his feet, legs and body twitch as he plays in his own imaginary world where squirrels are slow and clumsy.