Dog Daze

I am now prepared to begin the search for the perfect man for my Boo Bear, however it is going to much harder than I first anticipated. For starters most breeder want an exuberant amount of money up front for the stud fee, second and most troublesome is that most if not all want a head to toe exam done and have been cleared of any and all possible genetic disorders. And the worst hurdle I am coming to is that all expect that they are going to be show ring bred puppies. It is hard to explain that it is mainly for my own personal use, that I have no desire to drive around the freakin’ country to show a dog, running around in circles. Don’t they know that the Sheltie is meant to be a working dog NOT a shiny plack they hang on the wall. What’s the point if you don’t use them for what they are intended for. That is why the AKC has five classes they put the dogs into. Shelties are meant for the small rancher that needs the dog that can do it all. Be a friend, guard, and make sure that the flock is where it’s meant to be. So what’s the problem with breeders who think there is only two worlds for a dog, show or pet. I understand the need to keep the integrity of the breed, but when you are only using them for the ring, then aren’t you then no longer keeping them as they were intended to be a working companion.
Yes, I know that now a days that the need for the working dog is not so great, and yes that is why they now have fly ball, agility, Frisbee, and dock dogs. But in the world of dog breeding must they forget that there is still the working man who still needs the working dog. So then my other thought is if breeders are so damn strict with what they breed, then why are they the only ones who are doing it for the money more that the integrity of the breed. If the almighty breeder is so set on keeping the breed as pure as possible, then answer me this, why are they who complain about over populating, perpetuating the problem; five females to every male on premises, bred at least once a year, four to six puppies per litter, not to mention the numerous male collections for outside females. And that is just one breeder. Times that by fifty “reputable” breeders and that’s a lot of puppies that are not worth the effort just to put them in a show ring. Which by the way is maybe one out of the potential 20 puppies born to their clan alone? So what do they do with the other nineteen? We all know that they don’t keep them.
So I suppose you ask then why am I bothering with breeding my own when there are plenty out there for the taking. Quite simple really, I see something in my girl that I want to see if I can reproduce. She has that natural instinct to do what she (the breed) was intended for, Herding. I don’t care if I make money or get ribbons, points whatever the case may be, for my dog, all I want to do is see if what I see in her can be passed to another. That’s all I want, is to have her by my side out there in the weather, not caring that she gets muddy or wet. Just for me no one else, quite frankly I know that if I were to attempt to find what I am looking for from a breeder it would be even harder, I know what I want and I have a good idea of what I need to look for, I am fairly confident that breeders don’t really look for those traits in what they breed, if they end up with one like that you can bet they quickly discard it.
Believe it or not I have been asked if I could or would be willing to teach/train a dog to herd. Believe me I have no clue, I tell my girl barn and she does the rest. She’s working goats no less, they are a little more independent thinkers than the sheep or cow. So for her to understand how to move a herd is any mans dream dog.
I see in her the perfect specimen the family dog who loves to do a job during the day and by night wants to curl up at the foot of your bed just to be near you. Isn’t that the real aspect of a true dog, not just something you put on your wall to brag how many points and wins they got you?

Oct. 6

I should be writing about all my exciting travel tales; or at the very least finish the ones I’ve started, but today all I can think about is the inevitable. That at some point in our live we MUST experience that loss of a very close and dear member of the family, up until now I have been able to file it away and know that in the future that it would creep back into my thoughts one day, but not in the immediate future. It seems forever ago that my grandma suffered her stroke; reality is that it has only been a year minus a month. How can it be that one day you’re laughing and talking, enjoying life and the next is totally dependent on your daughter to do everything?
Grandma has had so many little slips down the road to the next chapter in her life. When that might be is only up to her and God. Today is yet another example that the finish line is coming into view. It wasn’t a major slip, not much has changed with her, but now she must take yet another pill until the end.
I wonder is this part of the big plan that we as a family have to watch and experience all of these things to bring together this fractured family. What is the big picture? I wonder?

Just Another Day

What can I say other than I am still surprised by the way this company he works for gives us notice where we are going and how long we are planning to be there. So far all I know is we are headed south to Arizona and that we have a day to get there. He has to be at work Monday night. It is going to be a long night and a very long day tomorrow. I have about 2 hours of prep to get us ready to pull out. I also will have very little help from the other half as he will say I just worked and it’s your responsibility. So I hope I can do this quickly. I managed to get almost everything ready; all that’s left is to unhook water, power and sewer. After that all that’s left is to hook up to “Betsy” and take off. Monte said that he wanted an early start so that we weren’t getting there in the dark, but as usual he is sleeping and I am forcing myself to stay awake long enough to get the last little push to get us on the road. However I am in dire need of a nap until he is ready. When that may be is anyone’s guess. I am afraid that if I lay down now I won’t want to get up.
I am glad that I decided that it would be smart to top off the tank before we hooked up; while I was there I washed the windows and checked the wiper fluid and oil levels. Both were nonexistent. A gallon of wiper fluid and a quart of oil later, I hope that it will protect us from the engine monster that loves to eat poor “Betsy’s” heart.
I managed a small nap before we headed south, upon waking we made quick work of packing what little remained and we were off in under an hour. Good for us it normally takes much longer, we are not much of a team when someone gets in a hurry instead of taking a little extra time to ensure that everything is done properly. Oh well, can’t win them all I’m afraid. We got no more than a quarter mile before our first pit stop. The man wanted food and drink to get things rolling, I had no objections. Back on the road we chatted for a while before the sandman started screaming for me to take a nap, climbing into the back I curled up with my blanket and pillow and fell fast asleep. Three hours later I awoke to the man cursing and the thick smell of the summer grass fires we had been driving through. Trying desperately not to get up I summoned the sandman once more, he didn’t come, so reluctantly I made myself get up.
Checking my surrounding I was a bit surprised that we were nearly out of the state, pleased we had gotten that far and it still was early in the day, optimism of the promise of an uneventful trip was within site.
Many more miles pass we have crossed the Utah/Nevada state line everything looks the same mountain desert with a few palm trees and a very strange looking cactus. Up some hills and down then through a mountain pass, they looked cool, as usual I left the camera in the trailer so my mind that was looking at everything that would make a great picture was telling me wish you had the camera don’t you, you moron.
I finally made him pull over so I could change out of my sweats; while sweats are comfortable to travel in they were too hot to wear traveling through southern Nevada. As Las Vegas came into view we were excited that we’d actually get to see something other than the desert. The strip was getting closer and closer Monte was so excited to see the Luxor Hotel while I was just a bit disappointed that the TV shows and movies had glammed it up so much that the appeal was a little less, all I could thing was wow this looks a lot like Reno just bigger. The closest we got to the strip was the very, very east end as we passed by on the highway. Just a little reminder those people in Vegas are crazy idiot drivers, slow down, speed up and never mind that we were towing they even had the nerve to cut us off within feet. Not more than a mile out of Vegas Monte tells me we need gas “I hope there is a gas station soon.” He says, as we head up another hill and Betsy is guzzling the fuel with each passing mile. The road eventually levels out and we see a town closing in and a gas station; relief, thank God we won’t run out of fuel, while we refueled both of us were drooling over all the boats passing us by on the way to the lake. Man I sure do wish we had a boat to enjoy the water. Okay one that at least runs.
Heading out of Boulder City, Lake Mead was in site, I was so happy to see a body of water, even though we were near Utah Lake I never saw it, anyway, we could see all the boats buzzing across the water leaving a white tail behind them. Almost instantly we hit a wall of slow moving traffic, great road construction just what we need to ruin the perfect trip, twenty-five miles an hour was our top speed, I don’t know how it happens but it seems like the last few trips the last 80 miles or so end up to be the worst. But there we were moving at a snail’s pace, down the road we go deeper and deeper into the valley where we would soon cross the Hoover dam. What should have taken ten minutes to descend down the mountain to the check point before the dam took almost forty-five minutes, there’s nothing like getting searched, that was the fasted search ever, less than 5 minutes.
By this point Monte had pointed out that we had no trailer breaks, whatever braking we would be doing would be done just by “Betsy”. Don’t fail us now baby girl was all I could think about as we headed down, riding the brakes the whole way. To help distract myself from what I was sure was going to end this trek I busied myself by taking pictures of whatever I could cars, road work, helicopters, rocks I didn’t care I just wanted to keep my brain from thinking. Finally what seemed to be hours we made it, Hoover Dam I could not believe the amount of people flocking to check out the dam there must have been close to a hundred cars parked alongside the road, not including all those parked in the parking provided for visitors. It was hard to enjoy the magnificent structure with all the people and traffic forcing us to keep moving, I hope we have the time to stop and enjoy it on the way back home.
Just as quick as our descent was are accent, twisting and turning there was a little more speed on the way out but not much. For the next twenty miles it was all construction an absolutely no passing, needless to say “Betsy” not working at full capacity sure didn’t help any, four grand up those hills, oil pressure way up, and her temperature reading well above 210 Degrees, she was definitely telling us something’s wrong. Sixty miles left she was finally allowed a little breather and her temperature came back down, but just as quick it went back up as yet another ever so gently climbing road was in our path. These words kept running through my head “c’mon girl you can do it, it’s just a little farther.”
By now the GPS is no longer working and unless there was a sign we had no idea how much further we had to go, we did know that it had better be soon or poor “Betsy” was going to crap out on us. Finally Kingman came into view, we decided that the first RV park we came to we would check out, as it happened the first exit had one and just off the main road, we pulled in, the office was closed for lunch, we were just about to leave when a kind handyman pulled up in his golf cart, you see a lot of those around here, he asked if he could help, we told him that we were looking for a place for a week or two, he said he would go get the office gal for us, he did and while we waited for her to return Monte called his job supervisor, so we could get a better gauge on how long we needed to stay. Getting his answering machine, we left him a message informing him where we were planning on staying. We decided that this was as good as any so we promptly paid for the week, and told the lady we would let her know just as soon as we know how long were planning on staying. No problem she said, and told us if we were staying for two weeks she would give us the monthly rate as it would be cheaper than paying for another week. We parked the trailer, unhitched, connected power and hoses, feeling settled in we decided to take a drive to acquaint ourselves with the town, but before we left we noticed that there was a nice little spattering of oil coming from under “Betsy” that went half way up the trailer. So instead we headed for the first place we could find to hopefully fix her bleed. We found a shop that would do it they just wanted to wait until the next day as it was almost the end of the day and she was too hot to work on. Okay we say, an hour of time wasted the next day would be no big deal. Besides whatever was making her bleed would be fixed. She was no longer gently dripping she was now spurting out her vital blood; we at least made sure that we put another quart in her until we could get her in to get fixed. And with that our minds were at ease and went to go find dinner, the trailer had turned into a hot house, we in no way wanted to start cooking in there, let alone get out the bar-b-q and cook in 100 degree weather. We had dinner and came back to the slightly cooler trailer, I felt bad making the dogs stay in the trailer but it would have been a death sentence for them if we left them in the car. Finally we could rest and know that even though we were only there a short while everything would get taken care of and we wouldn’t have another problem.

Dog Drama

Sitting here writing this, I am finding it hard to pinpoint the right word to adequately express the past days’ event. This was not directed towards me per say, but being a dog owner I must conclude that at any given time this could happen to me. I witnessed something that is both angering and laughable.
Living in an RV park there are always set guidelines that a guest of the park must adhere to especially if you are a dog owner. Knowing these rules are critical especially when you meet up with an individual who is so apparently loathing towards those who are responsible for those furry four-legged travel companions, who makes it quite clear that they do not and will not tolerate any outburst, or even the site of those lovable creatures.
Case in point; As I sat chatting with a fellow dog owner, his precocious little mini weenie set off to seek out his buddy down the way while his housemate sat despairingly longing to be reunited, making herself known that she was displeased with the other at leaving her alone. As the owner make his way to fetch his runaway the other sounded off. While waiting with the now vocal pup I noticed that we had an audience, I did my best to quiet the girl while still keeping hold of my Boo Bear, this Cruella Deville type stood there seething with hatred, I could see her gears spinning at how best she could manipulate the situation to best suit her. She stood there watching the owner, just as he made his way back to his trailer and the now quiet Cocker Spaniel I had managed to pacify, she quickly and purposefully made her way to the main office with a bag of trash as to not alert anyone that might be watching of her true intentions.
Upon his return we resumed the conversation, thinking nothing of it at the time I hadn’t mentioned that this woman was hawk-eyed glued to his dogs and his apparent lack of control, to her at least. Minutes pass and then out of nowhere here is this irate woman. Spouting off how pissed off she was and how dare he allow his dogs to bark, “I’ve been sitting here watching and your dogs have been barking for the past ten minutes continually, I am getting a tape recorder and prove it to you that it’s your dogs.”
Fine you do that he says, that apparently only aggravated the crazy lady. For now she was posturing aggressively and began to move forward in an attempt to possibly entice the man into a fight.
It’s kind of crazy how much a person’s actions mimic that of an animal if you see the whole picture. In response to this posturing, the man just stood his ground not giving her the satisfaction that she was wanting.
Several minutes pass as the woman refusing to take the hint that this was getting her absolutely nowhere; she finally got the hint and made her way back across the road to her trailer, then promptly climbed into her truck and sped off.
He proceeds to tell me that she HATES dogs and wishes she were home on her cattle ranch. This tidbit of information he had learned in a prior conversation before she decided to make enemies with him.
My thought is that there are several RV parks in the area that do not allow dogs, so if you do not like the why are you staying in a park that allows them, or at the very least why didn’t she request to be placed in an area that had no dogs?
It also begs the question what gives you the right to feel that you are far superior to those whom are dog owners?
My big conundrum with all this is if she went to management and complained to them about this, then why was it necessary to confront the man instead of allowing management talk to him and resolve the issue.
I may never know, but one thing is for sure I have my bases covered, hopefully I won’t need to defend myself.

Brain Overload Fixed

A few day ago I had a major brain overload and I sat down and wrote it all so I could share my thoughts and frustrations, however due to computer problems I lost it all even though I worked on it and finished it, all my ramblings, finally became a cohesive thought, quite suddenly all of it made perfect since. I do believe I finally managed to understand myself better and see different points of view in my own work, so maybe it was a good thing that I lost all that i wrote so I could start fresh without the reminder.

So, now that I have had this euphony, I see more than ever that while family is important and we should NEVER allow the little things to pile up and destroy everything, there are in rare cases when you MUST not allow some behaviors to manifest into something unmanageable, its too bad that it has to come down when you have to say enough is enough and remove those from your life. It is never easy to make those choices, but I suppose if their behavior is out of control then you need to do whats best for you.

While I don't support isolating yourself and removing yourself from whatever salvageable relationship there is, I now understand that in some cases it is vital to your well being to sever all ties to those who are only there to destroy you if only for their own amusement. I definitely think that the decisions that you make affect everyone. Being one recipient if a crazy persons rants because they want to believe that they are not the cause for another's decision, is a strange thing to cope with. It messes with the psychic, it creates a dumbfounded numbness, almost like its not real and yet its devastatingly real. It begs the question, how did it get to this point, was there in the course of all of this that someone could have stopped this? An answer to this I may never have, but at least it can be cleared from my conscience. I can clearly say that whatever this turns into it was not and is not my fault.

Summer Headache

So here I sit in the trailer park, despite it being a sunny day it is hot. I can for the most part handle the heat but today it had to add a strong level of mugginess. It is one of those days that you would be desperately searching for the nearest body of water and not want to get out. I know that in the park there is a pool however it always is full, there is a lake within 5 minutes of here I just haven't gotten to it yet. As I sit here I wish I were there, but I just can't seem to bring myself to climb into "Betsy" to drive the short distance to the lake. And how I am sure that Boo Bear would love the refreshing coolness of the water. I know that the refreshing water would be wonderful. I love water if I could I would never leave I always say and yet here I am so close and yet just won't go. What's wrong with this picture? Why do I not want to go? Is it that even though I would have Boo Bear and Lestat with me I would be alone, or perhaps is it that I fear there is going to be a crowd and I am an out of town er and I just don't feel comfortable?
What ever the reason I haven't got the nerve to leave my little space of comfort.
maybe instead I will wait until it a little cooler and take my bike for a spin around the block and take Bear with me, she has quickly taken to the bike and run along side, no barking either which I an grateful for. I thought for sure that barking would have been something that I would have to deal with, especially since it was an issue at home when I was attempting to get her accustomed to the bike. She is such a smart girl, she not only knows how herd, something I haven't taught her, but she is an awesome swimmer and now she is a good bike companion. I don't know why this should be at all surprising to me after all if there is a treadmill she is on it, I suppose sitting on grandma's stationary bike that just so happens to be sitting next to the treadmill had a little influence on how she would react once put to the real thing.
So we will have our first days off in a few days and maybe I can get Monte to go to the lake with me and the "kids". We shall see, although I should probably drive there just to make sure I know where to go and where it is legal to have you dogs.

Reflection

Many weeks ago as we traveled down south to our home away from the green and the rain, that is again. now that the suburban was at least running maybe not in tippy top shape but at least on the road instead of growing moss and becoming a needle catcher I was telling myself that I needed to write this all down so I can pass along yet another adventure south, but as the days quickly passed I had yet to jot anything down.
As I am now about to plan yet another road trip although not quite as long and definitely none of the extreme passes we go through on the way down from Washington, I begin to reflect on the next new adventure we are about to take. I am a bit more optimistic than the first trip but still nervous that there is a great many miles between those cities and towns that must be seen in the rear view mirror before we reach our final destination.
The days are fast approaching when the move must happen and the only thing that is for sure is that travel is a must and the end result is in Utah. I have up until now never had to actually plan where it is that we are headed, we always new that there was never an issue, but with the impending holiday it has seriously put plans in the shoots and ladders category. Just when I think I am about to make progress down the shoot I go. One thing is for sure at some point there will only be ladders in the road.

Can your pets be your kids? I wonder.....

Is it strange to think of your pets as kids?


Some people, ok most people would agree that anyone who says their dogs are their kids would find you at the very least odd, if not down right loopy. Yes, I have to admit, I fall into the definitely odd but not quite loopy category. So that also means I do indeed buy the sweaters, shirts, coats and yes, the booties too for my little girl.


So then is it also strange for said doggie parent to then explain one pets reaction to another pet equal to that of siblings fighting?

These are questions that have been running through my head over the past few days, I think that at times I must be loosing it being out here on the lonely road with only the dogs to keep me company. I can't say for certain but I may just be imagining this behavior out of sheer boredom.


About two weeks ago "daddy" bought the kids a bone, not a small bone mind you but one of the big leg bones, a whopping 10 lb. leg bone, so other than Boo Bear no one can really pack this thing around, although we do live in a travel trailer so its not like there is many places for them to pack it around. As soon as "daddy" walked in the door with this thing Boo Bear was not so much begging, but definitely had the hurry up and give it to me, take the wrapping off I want it attitude. I have NEVER seen her behave in such a manner before. At first she was somewhat reluctant to share, Boo Bear and Lestat drug that thing back and forth, from bed to bed all night long, by morning my floor was a greasy mess, thankfully it is easily mopped away.

It was quickly apparent my normal non confrontational girl was out the window. She had set it in her mind that her "siblings" were not allowed to come near her and her new prized possession, let alone look in her direction. If they dared she had no problem telling them that this is hers. The first days she growled at every thought that maybe Lestat and Miranda might be looking in her direction, after a few day passed she lost a bit of interest in the bone, she no longer was sleeping with it but made sure that she was within striking distance if need be. Then the day came when she wanted "Mommy's" attention, everyone else was getting attention so would she. So there I was sitting on my couch brushing Miranda and Lestat, so Boo Bear had to as well, you know if one gets it they all must get it, now each were waiting for their own Mommy time and that's when it happened, Boo Bear was laying patiently at my feet and Lestat saw his chance, she had let her guard down, and he was going to take his chance, the bone was gonna be his, or so he thought. In a blink of an eye she was on top of that bone and I swear Lestat jumped clean out of his skin. She had in that second not only gotten the bone back but had managed to pin him in the kennel, well ok she sat on him in the kennel, then just as quickly stepped away from him and the bone, I think if her under her breath growls, could have been words she would have said, "back off that's mine, you can't have it, just 'cause I'm not chewing on it now does not mean you can." Lestat looked at mean as if to say but Mom that's not fair I want to chew on it too, I couldn't help but laugh at this outburst of raw doggie emotion.

If my dogs would have been kids it would have totally looked as if big sister ran over to where little brother was now playing with a toy, that while she was no longer playing with it did not mean he could.

It is now clear to me that, despite what I thought I knew about my "kids" I still know very little. My once passive Boo Bear has now found her voice and now uses it all the time. And my little boy Lestat has now learned that just because he is male does not mean he can boss the girls any longer. So I say bravo to my big girl for doing something I doubt I could have taught that stubborn little guy.

The "what's next"symdrome

Ever since we made the trek to good old Nevada, I keep asking myself what will happen now. Well here is, I thought we had finally made it through the worse of the winter weather. Yes, it is still winter here and most likely continue to see some kind of winter storm until late June, but that's not really what's next. What is, is we have been here one month and have completely ran out of propane and no where within 100 miles to fill the tanks. Three tanks in fact two 40-lb. tanks and a 100-lb. tank, this is a little dis-heartening considering when it is warmer we can go 3-4 months just on the big tank. To make things a little more interesting is that means no cooking, showers, dishes etc... until Friday. Well maybe some cooking as long as its done in the microwave. Oh, did I mention we are completely broke. Yep a whole 35 dollars to our name. So even if I wanted to drive the 100-plus miles to Elko Nevada, I can't. Thankfully I did have the peace if mind to pack the heater, so I won't be in an igloo at nights, i didn't however pack the range just for emergencies such as this.
I do have to be conscious of the fact that I am heating with electric heat, this morning I was with out power, apparently at some point after Monte had left for work the main breaker in the trailer flipped. Not a huge deal it just meant that my heater was working overtime. Note to self, make sure to clean the air intake filter once in a while. It was disgusting. Amazing when its clean it even heats better, what do you know. I'm a genius. NOT!
So for the next two days I am gonna be ruffing it, kinda. if you can call microwave meals and a washcloth shower ruffing it.
As it would seem nothing ever happens just by its self, so while I now have to "ruff" it, it almost got much worse. We had the problem when we arrived, the waste tanks freezing, we fixed that by getting a tarp and wrap part of the end of the trailer to trap some of the heat coming from the propane heater we got to thaw out the tanks. Like I said earlier we are completely out of propane, so heating them to get things moving again was out of the question, unless I wanted to spend my day under the trailer with my blow dryer, and that ain't happening. The low teen temperatures had given me reason to suspect that to be the case. But today, the temperatures once again reached sweltering heat of a whopping 42 degrees. Knowing that I went back to the drawing board, and came to the conclusion we had a plugged toilet. Its definitely not easier to plunge out the clog, mainly because a trailer toilet is well nothing more than a port-a-potty that can imitate a flush. I was hoping to finally use my toilet wand to clear the clog, but alas it didn't help any, so I had to get the broom handle, yes I know what your thinking and no I didn't use my broom, I have an extra handle for such an occasion. With my broomstick in hand and some poking and prodding the blockage washed away. Yeah another headache gone, I'll have to run the water more frequently so this sorta thing doesn't happen again.
Yes it may seem these little incidences are nothing more than a nuisance, but to be living in the moment with them it can feel like nothing good is happening, or than it will never end. You'd think by now after 4 years of trailer life nothing would seem to bother me and I just go with the flow, apparently I get "blocked up" to.

Frustrations

While living in my trailer is quite boring, I do try to find things to occupy my time so the days don't feel like they are never ending. Lately I have been trying to do all the legwork for my grandmother, so that not only she but that family as well, have an up-to-date family tree and address book. I have spent many, many late nights trying to find those who are family and ask for their information, while I have had some success for the most part I have fallen short. I am not sure if it that they just don't feel like replying or they just think I'm some nut trying to get info on them. Either way my efforts are falling on deaf ears.

Not that I'm really complaining, well I guess I am, why must it be so difficult to do something so selfless and take care of the things that mean a great deal to those whom you care greatly for. She (my grandmother) has given of herself for almost 90 years to all who she would call family and friends. She has never asked or wanted help from anyone, maybe it was the era that she was raised, that the woman must take care of the family and household. But now, due to a recent stroke that has taken part of her and her spirit, how can I not want to give her something. She has for many years sent letters, cards well wishes to all she meets, I somehow feel that in some way I am keeping that alive for her even if I am the one doing it. It gives her pleasure knowing that this simple card giving, while to many is outdated thanks to the Internet, is in some small way letting each person that card so lovingly has been sent to, lets them know that yes, there is someone out there that thinks of me and wants me to know that I am loved.

I have been shouldering this burden for 5 months now, even though this is not what I wanted to do in the beginning I knew that it was for her that I was doing it not for me. Knowing that I boxed up my selfishness and chose to give a little of myself for something that is hers and continue sending those little reminders that you are still loved and not forgotten.

How I wish, that there were more out there in the world that gave a moment of the day to someone that just might need that reminder. I know that we are here in this world for better or worse to impact the people we meet and share our lives with.

Yesterday is history

Tomorrow is a mystery

Today is a gift

Those words are so true, how can we not take the time and share a moment of our time with those who are important.

Today is number 1

Well here it is, the very first blog. I will admit this is something that I thought would never be doing, sending out into the Internet stream, my thought, worries and all my crazy travel woes. And yet here I am doing it.
I hope that whomever decides that this is worthy of their time enjoys to read. You might find that some days there will be a long winded narrative of the days happenings and others will be a blip. Either way I'm sure you will enjoy.

This is just a side note, Spot as you would have it is not the names of any of my kids, but was my nickname in high school. Thanks in part to Walt Disney's "The Newsies", even today, 15 years later I'm still stuck with the name.