12th Dog

Seattle Seahawks have a "thing" about their fans.  Or the fans have a "thing" about themselves.  They call themselves the 12th Man or the 12s.  One more presence on the field.

Seattle is all gaga over the Super Bowl game on Sunday.  I suspect almost everyone in the city will be wearing jerseys, jackets, hats today.

Sage, a reluctant football fan, endured a moment of being the 12th dog.

Go Hawks!

Murphy's Day.

Affordable Health Care

Last week Willa had to go to the vet.  She was itching her ears and indeed, she has a little infection.  But going to the vet isn't any of the girls favorite thing to do.  Sage has bad memories of a knee surgery, Annie Oakley just doesn't like anything out of her routine, and while Willa is open to new experiences and new people, she still isn't quite sure of Dr. Amy.

That said, other than refusing to get on the scale, no matter how many treats she got, she was a trooper.  And the ear infection is on it's way to being cured.

We have been going to this vet clinic since 1995, when it used to be "just down the road" in one direction and now it is "just down the road" in the other direction.  The original vet has retired (go figure, she is my age!) and now it's run by several vets...but not a large corporation like so many clinics are nowadays.

But the girl's goal is to stay away as much as they can!

Murphy's Day.

Long Busy Week

Willa realizes this is a long busy week for me.

I'm getting lots of stares, sighs, and muzzles under the arm (as in: "Mom let's get outside, now!").

Murphy's Day.

Friendship

One of the greatest gifts in the world are friends.  Not the ones who expect anything from you, but those who expect to give to you.

A shoulder, a place to rest your head, a warm spot to snuggle.

It really is a gift.

And watching the girls, they show me everyday, what it means to be a friend to someone.

Murphy's Day.

Reminding Us of Wildness

Recently I've been thinking a lot about the urbanization of our country.  More of us live in cities.  To the point we are forgetting wildness.

That is where dogs come in.  Then have the potential of reminding us of our wildness, our connection to nature.  Whether it's the fact that every day, no matter what, they need to go outside (along with you) or whether untethered, in their romping and playing, they can show their wildness.

As you can tell by now, my dogs don't ever wear coats.  They get a lot of time off leash.  And they and I get outside, a lot, every day.  Fortunately, we are able to travel and get places that are not urban, so we get a double dose of "wildness" reminders...the girls and sometimes a deer, or coyote, or quail, or hawk, or aspen leaves in the wind.

For all the "foodie" talk and "farm to table" chic, really, very few of us remember our wildness.  A great loss in the urbanization of our lives.

Murphy's Day.

This is How It Starts

Working from home and being self employed has enormous advantages....and some disadvantages (like never really knowing if you're going to get paid...).

One of the advantages is being able to have such kind, generous, and empathetic supervision.  They know exactly when it is quitting time and enforce my leaving the office quite punctually.  It first begins with a nuzzle to my right arm.  Then a toy is dropped near my desk chair.  And finally, a riot breaks out near-by: wrestling, whimpering, more wrestling.  It's only when I push back my chair and say:

"Ok, anyone want to go outside?" that my bosses finally quiet down.

Of course, after evening play time and dinner, they really don't care if I head back to work....

Murphy's Day.

After Five Miles

We did a lot of hiking over the Christmas break.  Not enough snow to cross country ski, but enough (and the weather was fantastic) to want to be outside, all the time.  So we hiked.

But since the girls have energy that could power the planet, not much could slow them down.  Not even a 5 mile hike straight up and then straight down.

Needless to say my knees welcomed the Advil and Sage loved her heated bed after that hike!

Murphy's Day.

Ready for Action

On New Year's day, Annie Oakley was ready for action.

We ended up taking a 10 mile hike, as if to say we can still do it.

Didn't seem to impact the girls at all.

Me?  Sore for days!

Murphy's Day.

New Year's Eve

Late afternoon on New Year's Eve we hiked up the Canyon to watch the last sunset of 2014 and the moon rise...absolutely gorgeous hike, until I was ambushed by Willa!

Happy New Year!

Murphy's Day.