Category: My dogs.

Northern winds.

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The path down to the bog.

Warmer this morning but with an annoying wind from north but warmer, despite northern winds so why complain 🙂 Also today it took some time before the clouds flew away so that the sun could reach us.

Lots of water in the small creeks.

I met our new neighbours today and can happily tell You it’s a younger couple who loves how quiet it is here. Very easy to talk to as well so that’s a relief 🙂 We met them on our morning walk when they were out walking with their tiny white dog and I shouted to them that Alma most likely would scream as obsessed but that she’s harmless 🙂 🙂 🙂 Yes Alma did shout and pulled the leash but gently greeting their dog and so did Malkolm. I told them that Alma is an escape artist and that they most likely would meet her when they walk out of their home but that she also most likely would run away from them after a sniff or two 🙂 🙂

The path down to the bog.
Lots of water in the small creeks.

They told me that they have chicken and that the rooster crows all the time. No problem said I. I mean roosters do that and I like the sound so that was nothing to be worried about 🙂 They had also already noticed that the wild hogs comes close to their cottage. I didn’t tell them about our wolves though, better to save the exciting things to when they’ve settled 🙂 🙂 🙂 

One really doesn’t want to sink down in that mud 🙂

We walked out to the bog to see if the ground still was frozen enough so that we could walk out to my favourite island but it wasn’t. The ground was frozen all the way to where we’ve just passed the creek and that’s where the sun had reached. If I had had rubber boots I might have been able to go out there but I think it is Alma who chewed through my old ones and I’ve never bothered to buy new ones. The sun slowly started to break through the clouds on our way home but not fully until we’ve had come home, so we’ve spent a lot of time in the garden instead 🙂

I’ve baked some rolls so it is time to have that last cup of tea for the day and then try one of the rolls 🙂

Have a great day!

Snow is slowly melting away again.

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A cold night followed by a sunny morning today, there was no wind when I let the dogs out after we woke up and no wind when I drove to the supermarket. I prefer to go grocery shopping early in the morning when the place hasn’t that many costumers, very few customers are younger than 60 at that time in the morning 🙂 🙂

The weather seems just right for the spruce cones to open up and start spreading their seeds.

There was no one before me when I reached the cashier and no one followed after me when I was done 🙂 It showed in the traffic as well, I didn’t have a single car behind me when I drove back home. I looked towards the lake but could just see photographers with lenses bigger than I thought was possible I guess You need those big ones if You want to photograph the first cranes of the year, later on one can use any camera because the birds walks just a few steps away 🙂

So our morning walk started a bit late and the wind had started to blow but just a little, that has changed now, it’s not like it’s a storm passing by but I think I can say that the wind was a bit brisk 🙂 We walked mostly in the forest though so the worst thing that happened was that big chunks of snow fell down from the trees and covered us in it instead 🙂

The new neighbours are moving in today, they have a small lorry or perhaps I should call it bigger pickup truck? I’ve just seen the vehicle but not those moving in so we still have no idea what they look like 🙂  I guess that if the morning walk is at the right time tomorrow I’ll see them sit in the kitchen having breakfast when we pass 🙂 🙂 The beekeeper removed the hedge when he moved in so we can see straight in to the kitchen when we walk by 🙂 🙂

It is time for that last cup of tea but I ‘ve just had my dinner so I’ll skip anything edible this time, I won’t even have a banana this time 🙂

Have a great day!

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It was cold this morning when the dogs, monster kitten and I woke up. -14C (6,8F) but there was no wind at all so when I walked out in to the shine from the rising sun it actually felt rather nice even though I only wore a sweatshirt and sweatpants. It didn’t take long before I could hear drops dripping from the roof.

Still I can’t say that the snow did a lot of melting during the day even though it did become rather warm. Today the birds started to sing again and I could hear cranes from fields not too far away. I could also hear Alma the entire walk because today she decided that whining in a high pitched tone would make us all happy 🙂 🙂 🙂 She did behave very well otherwise. Instead I had to scold Malkolm because he decided that if Alma was supposed to walk without pulling the leash someone else had to 🙂 🙂 🙂

I haven’t done much today though, applied for some jobs and been outside in the garden every now and again. The snow is slowly melting around the early spring bulbs but that’s it. This is the time of year when newly plants die, the ones planted last autumn that is. Their roots haven’t spread down properly  in to the ground so if the ground still is frozen they’ll dry out pretty quickly when the warmer weather comes, that little soil that they brought with them from the pot will dry out really quickly and since the ground is frozen it can’t get any moisture from it. So just before the cold weather would arrive I was outside watering everything I planted last autumn and those plants that live on the border to what they can manage. All I can do now is to wish that I watered enough.

Everything down in the cool cellar are now getting tiny leafs, rather annoying since I can’t bring anything of it outside and since one of the plant lights I had broke so it is a bit too dark down there now. Can’t do much about it though, not until the nights a get warmer. As soon as they’ve gotten used to be outside they usually can take a night or two in a row without getting damaged. Doesn’t look like that will happen in the closest seven day 🙂 🙂 🙂 I think I have one peach tree, five apricots, two red mulberries and lots of quince seedlings and even though mice? (could also be a monster kitten 🙂 ) have chewed on all the giant sequoias it still looks like four of them have survived, cross Your fingers and hold Your thumbs for good luck 🙂

It is time for that last cup of tea for the day and I hope that it will warm up quickly tomorrow morning (after a pretty cold night again) so I don’t have to scrape ice from the car before I’ll go to the supermarket 🙂

Have a great day!

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Lets hope the new neighbours are good ones.

It continued to snow here well in to the after noon today, thankfully the flakes were tiny so we didn’t get that much more on the ground. The snow actually started to melt on the south side of the cottage during the day but tonight they say will be nasty cold, down to -10C (14F) It will rise to above 0C (32F) during the day though but Saturday will be even warmer so I changed my plans on going to the grocery store tomorrow and go on Saturday instead.

We’re getting new neighbours again. The Beekeeper moved since they rented and the owner was too greedy to give them a fair prise. All we know so far about these new neighbours is that they’ll be renting and possibly buy later but I’m afraid it will be the same outcome again. The place isn’t worth half of what the owner wants to be payed for it. I do hope they like dogs since they most likely will have a visit from my two 🙂 🙂 🙂

The monster kitten hasn’t shown any interest at all in going out to the cold snow again 🙂 🙂 I think that one time will stay in her mind quite some time. I guess that she will mostly stay indoors next winter when it snows again but then again memory can be short lived so she might go out the first time it snows again 🙂

I was filling in a job application today but hit a wall 🙂 They wanted my high school  grades! It is soon 42 years ago that I graduated from high school and I know I have them somewhere but not where 🙂 🙂 🙂 It sort of feels like they only look for young people 🙂 🙂 🙂 If I find them I will fill in the application anyway. I have a very small cottage with few places to store anything and yet I can’t find anything here 🙂 🙂 🙂

It is time to bake some rolls and have that first warm one with a cup of tea. Is there anything tastier than that first warm slice of bread, preferable with cheese that slowly melts?

Have a great day!

So now the snow falls again.

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Not the best photo but it is at least Cranes, they were flying to the other small lake we have in the nature reserve.

 

It is snowing again and will continue for a day or two more. How much we’ll get is hard to guess since they change the amount on the web sites all the time. It will most likely stay for the rest of the week but after that they’re guessing we’ll get warmer temperatures again. I’m not surprised though because as the first Crane arrives here we usually get at least one more snow storm before spring really arrives.

The two days previous to this one was quite wonderful though, a bit chilly in the mornings but sunny and temperatures rose to 10C (50F) and above. Lots more Cranes have arrived though so now I can hear them every morning as soon as I go outside 🙂 I’ve also heard the Larch and the Eurasian curlew. The last one has become a bit rare so I always enjoy hearing it again. So even if spring has reached a temporary halt it feels good to know it’s just around the corner.

I’ve been a bit busy now, well busy isn’t perhaps the right word but I have been to an interview at a staffing agency for a job in the same village as where I worked before but for another company. I must say it did feel like a good meeting so now I’ll have to wait and see what happens. The staffing agency will now recommend the people they think will work well for that company so all I can do now is to wait and hope for the best.

A while ago the employment agency asked if I wanted the help from a job coach and I said why not and today I met her for the first time. She asked me what I had done so far to get a job and it turns out I’m doing what they want me to do. I’ll have a talk with her over the phone every second week and meet her in person the other weeks. When I returned back home she had mailed me some links to companies looking for hiring people. So tomorrow I’ll send an application to each place, as long as the orange idiot doesn’t disturb the world too much I might have a chance.

I would say that the cold is gone but the coughing isn’t. Still very little coughing during nights thankfully. Lots of people have that cold or flu or what ever it is at the moment so I guess I should be happy about having it early especially now when we’ll get winter weather back. I could at least go outside to enjoy the sunshine and warm weather, those having it now just have to suffer through it and not have anything to make the day better.

Can You see the back of the wild hog in the middle of the photo?

Our morning walk was quite nice though, despite the cold wind and dark skies. We walked out to the bog and stood at the end of the peninsula. Alma is behaving so much better now, even the whining is quieting down. We stood there at the end looking out over the bog, all quiet, when we suddenly heard something walking towards us in the thicket. Two wild hogs that must have known we were there suddenly showed themselves to us. This was a bit too much for Alma so she started to whine a lot, so they slowly turned away from us and walked in to the thicket again. I did however get a photos of one of them, even if it only was the back side of it 🙂

It is time for something to eat, haven’t had dinner today. Thinking something easy like sausage and baked white beans. I’ll have my last cup of tea for the day after that 🙂

More croci are showing up just before winter comes back.
Also some spring irises show now. They are built to survive some time of winter returning.
Dying needles on the Himalayan cedar, lets hope it just sheds of the old needles and not dies.

Have a great day! 

Another wonderful spring day.

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So any photo with sunshine is from yesterday.

Two days with temperatures above 10C (50F). Yesterday sunshine all day and today we weren’t supposed to have sunshine so it started to shine after we had come back from our morning walk and lasted almost until the sun was about to set. It has been so nice to being outside but colder weather is on the way. Tomorrow will be the last day with spring temperatures and after that it’ll cool down a lot.

However one isn’t getting any wiser by looking at the weather sites  because they show so different temperatures that it’s impossible to even guess 🙂 🙂 So I’ll do my best to enjoy tomorrow and the sunshine we’ll get.

Most of the cold is gone now but I still have the coughing and I know it most likely will stay for quite some time. I’ve either coughed so hard or sneezed, because I do that as well, that a new little muscle most likely is ruptured but now on my right back side. I know it isn’t Alma this time because she has behaved exemplary these last days. The only thing she still does that annoys me is the whining but actually less than normal. We have of course only walked where the risk of meeting anyone is minimal but I’m still impressed!

I drove to the grocery store yesterday and checked if I could see any Crane but no such luck, lots of different geese and what we call song swans (relatives to Trumpet swans). I think however that I heard a crane this morning but the sound was hard to hear because it was from a long distance. Still they will start arriving any day soon now 🙂

The first one I found today. The sun broke through and the croci opened up 🙂

Yesterday I also allowed Sara to be outside with us. The door was open because I was going in and out of it for a while and then she nonchalantly tried to walk outside not knowing I had my eyes on her the entire time 🙂 🙂 So I carried her around in the garden and then let her walk on the biggest branch of my biggest apple tree. I think she liked it but she wasn’t even close to want to go outside today, lots to so through for her I guess 🙂

It is time for that last cup of tea and then watch some tv I think 🙂

Have a great day!

Roaring winds all night.

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A Hazel in bloom, lost of allergic people now have problems.

I didn’t get a good night sleep last night, I was woken up several times by the roaring in the trees, still no wind in my garden though since all wind hit my neighbours cottage and garage 🙂  Much less wind when we finally could go out for our morning walk. From what I could see al the trees had managed to still stand up.

I went to the grocery store yesterday morning and left both dogs in the dog yard and the evening before Malkolm and I slept without being leashed during the night. Malcolm’s injection seems to have kicked in rather well and Nova is just not interested any more. Since a similar thing happened back in the days and My Erna later had puppies I know nothing happened during the time I was away 🙂

The reason I eventually decided to bring the dogs was because the last time I drove, before the cold hit me my car started to beep every time I drove in a steep up hill road. Didn’t tell me why though, it just beeped until it was less steep for flat ground I was driving on. Really annoying and I think it is a French car thing 🙂 🙂 🙂 It wasn’t too hard to figure out what it was though since it only happened when driving uphill. It must be a fluid and I can only think of three ones. Either it’s for the brakes but then it would have warned as soon as the car started, or it must be the motor oil but the level was good there as well.

So it could only be the coolant level. There’s never any problem seeing the level in a new car but more tricky in an older. So I poured in some more just before driving to the grocery store. No more beeping 🙂 I didn’t have to fill especially much at all so I mostly felt annoyed when I had to 🙂 🙂 🙂 Back in the days we only had a blue coolant but now days we have red ones as well and I have no idea if they work together or not 🙂 🙂 I don’t think the blue and red mix together but what about the different brands in either colour? What actually happens if mixing the wrong kinds together? I need to ask that next time I’ll have to go to the garage!

It is time for that last cup of tea and I bought bananas yesterday so I might have one of those as well. Too green yet for my taste, I don’t mind if they have brown spots.

The Croci show everywhere now.

It looks like all three Camellias have survived the winter but spring is the big killer here so it’s too early to say yippie yet.

Many years of dogs running along the hedge shows now 🙂 🙂

Have a great day!

Windy.

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More or less s storm outside and it will be worse during the night so we haven’t had any walk today, too dangerous to walk amongst trees in these winds. The steady wind isn’t that bad but the gusts are, we’ve spent a lot of time in the garden instead, not the same but better than nothing.

Alma is close to ending being in heat and Malcolm’s injection is close to sick in to a 100% so tonight Malkolm and I won’t be leashed together so all of You cross Your fingers and hold Your thumbs for good luck and that my guess is right 🙂 🙂 🙂

I’ll also go the the grocery store for the first time in a long time tomorrow and I’ll bring the dogs, Alma in the back seat so she has plenty of space to be tangled into the safety belts 🙂 🙂 🙂 and Malkolm beside me in the passenger seat. The winds will still be strong so it’ll be fun to drive to the top of the mountain with no shelter from the forest 🙂 No risk of tipping over in the gusts but I’m pretty sure it’ll be a bumpy ride 🙂 🙂 🙂

It is soon time to bring out the monster kitten to the garden, I’ll need to make some kind of harness because I don’t want her to walk away by her own already now. She’s too small to meet any of the bigger cats in the area on her own yet. It is so much easier in summer when the doors are open all day and she can walk in and out as she pleases and most likely won’t walk away too far, I can say that all she wants right now is to wander the world by her self and she’s really not prepared for that.

It is time for that last cup of tea and then watch some tv.

Have a great day!

Feeling better and spring’s approaching :-)

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We’ve had a couple of wonderful spring days here. Chilly nights perhaps but sunny and warm days. The birds are singing spring songs and I hear the drum rolls from woodpeckers all over the forest. Earlier in February I also heard the owls when it went dark and I do like that sound. Haven’t heard the foxes or the Lynx so far though.

The cold is slowly going away, it shows no hurry to do so though but it is easier to breathe now when the pain is almost gone but a too deep breath only starts the coughing again 🙂 🙂 🙂 It doesn’t feel like I’ve run a half marathon when we come back home after our walks either thankfully. By the way the photos You’ll see today can be from three days, two days ago or from today.

The monster-kitten is back to her evil ways, every day she attacks the dogs 🙂 🙂 Alma has finally started to react to it so the little monster has realised she’s best to use when napping and not playing 🙂 Malkolm still accepts that she chews on him but then again he’s just a year old yet so that might change. His shot has finally started to kick in while Alma slowly is going out of heat. Every now and again though they show that I still can’t trust them being alone for any longer period of time 🙂 🙂 🙂 I must say that being leashed to him during nights is working without any problems at all, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t have said that if it was Alma who had to be leashed to me, she would have been dragging me on the floors all over the cottage 🙂 🙂 🙂

It is time for that last cup of tea for the day. I’ll have nothing to eat though, a good thing with this cold is that I haven’t been hungry at all, normally no sickness of any kind has dampened my appetite but this one has 🙂 I’ve been under surgery lots of time and every time I have woken up I’ve asked when I can have something to eat 🙂 🙂 🙂

Have a great day!

A wonderful spring day :-)

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I’m glad I didn’t have to go anywhere this morning 🙂

So the cold is slowly getting better and this morning the sun shone, which it wasn’t supposed to do and there as frost on the vegetation so we had a short walk in almost perfect weather.  It was so nice to finally be breathing fresh air again 🙂 Alma almost behaved so that helped a lot 🙂 The coughing has started to annoy me a bit but it is at least only while I’m awake and not while I’m sleeping. The sleeping leashed to Malkolm works much better than I thought it would, when he does try to walk away towards Alma I notice it immediately, pulls him back and he just goes back to where he’s supposed to stay.

Even though the walk was really nice it still felt like I had run a marathon when we came back home 🙂 🙂 So I had a nap as soon as I sat down but can’t say I feel anything from that now, I’m just as tired as if I hadn’t napped 🙂 🙂 We’ve also been outside in the garden a lot, I continued the cleaning after the dogs at the same time I kept an eye on the dogs 🙂 The Himalayan Cedar looks really good and so do the two small stems on the English walnut tree.

The hardy Rosemary has some frozen leafs but looks fine otherwise. Some frost damage on the red mulberry tree but that one is still much better than the black mulberry and the white mulberry. The pawpaws look amazingly well since they are the least hardy trees I have, much better than the Persimmon tree. I think that if we don’t get any more cold cold periods that all still has survived this winter. I won’t buy anything more when it comes to trees because now I must think where to plant all the seedlings I have in the cellar 🙂 🙂

I have at least six small pear trees, five or six apricots, two red mulberry trees and one peach. I really don’t have that space but since when has that stopped a gardener 🙂 🙂 🙂

Hard to see but the Himalayan Cedar looks really well, conifers this small usually show pretty early if they are dying.

Hardy Rosemary, it’s an variety from the US and seen as the hardiest Rosemary there is.

Snowdrops.

An iceberg in the water barrel 🙂

Have a great day!

It isn’t easy for them but they still manages to play even though they both most likely wants to do something else 🙂 🙂 🙂

The first Crane has arrived.

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These photos are a couple of days old, we haven’t been on a walk since the cold hit me. There’s absolutely no snow or frost here now, it actually rains.

I’ve survived 🙂 It has been awful but I think I actually have two problems working really well together. The cold and fever is bad enough but that exploding pain every time I took a deep breath or coughed/ sneezed is most likely another problem and her name is Alma 🙂 🙂 🙂

She actually can walk really well to be honest but way too often she see something that she wants to chase or she”s just bored and wants something to happen or god knows what. She had one of those rushes the day before the cold started to show and I was unfortunately a bit too relaxed and never had the chance to fend it. I thought it was odd that the pain mostly only came from the right side of my chest and when I held my arm in a certain position (up in the air) the pain was less horrible. So my guess is that I have perhaps a little rupture in a muscle or tendon beneath the ribs. I just looked it up and yes it’s most likely why it hurts so bad.

So last night I slept in my recliner because I thought at least the coughing would stop, perhaps some but then I had pain in my neck instead 🙂 🙂 🙂 Also I had to be leashed together with Malkolm so he wouldn’t get us in trouble while I was asleep 🙂 🙂 🙂 The poor boy has big problems now when Alma is in heat. Thankfully he does listen to what I say so every time he has tried he stops when I shout at him 🙂 🙂 🙂 One could  think that the chemical neutering at least would have some effect since more than a week has passed since he got it. Alma however doesn’t seem too bothered by being in heat. Anyway tonight we’ll be in the bedroom again and Malkolm and I will be leashed together again 🙂

A sheet of ice was covering the ground, even in the forest.

My neighbour has saved me by getting groceries for me, one can’t get better neighbours than I have! Yesterday instead of pear soda I bought raspberry soda 🙂 WE were supposed to get a visit from the ice cream van this week but suddenly they’ve changed that again!! Now it’s the twelfth of Mars. Would have been nice to have some ice cream with that soda 🙂 Ok I don’t spend any money so perhaps I should see that as positive 🙂

The first Crane has arrived at the lake and that usually also means we’ll have one more snowstorm coming 🙂 The rest of the Cranes will start arriving in the middle of March and so many as 28000 might stop there at the same time.Normally if the weather is warm and nice there won’t be that many at the same time but if the weather is bad they’ll stay because they are being fed. This isn’t a touristy area except for when the cranes are here. I’ve noticed that most of them are idiots because if they see a Crane in the fields they just stop the car open the door and run out to see it better, instead of driving a few hundred meters more to the lake and see thousand there. So now days they put up so many traffic signs and lower the speed limit just during the Crane season 🙂

I haven’t eaten anything today and still isn’t hungry but I think I really need to have something, I will at least have a cup of tea 🙂

Have a great day!

Warmer winds.

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So today was the last day with cold weather and sunshine for quite some time it seems, I’ll miss the sunshine but not the temperatures 🙂 The low pressure is arriving with a roaring wind now and it might even be as warm as 10C (50F) already on Saturday.

This morning however was still pretty cold and the sun shone as well. Thankfully once again totally wind free (it arrived later in the day) so it was quite nice being outside walking. Alma behaved reasonable well but Malkolm pulled the leash instead. He’s not that big and strong though so that isn’t so bad to be honest but if Alma isn’t allowed to do it neither is he. I must start thinking about the possibility that the tutor on my kidney has grown and that I’ll get treatment during the summer so having dogs pulling the leash when I most likely won’t be especially strong is a bad idea. However we aren’t there yet so perhaps I can make them both calm down by then.

I’m so lucky that my neighbour works in a supermarket now when Alma is in heat and the shot Malkolm had doesn’t work properly yet because I realised that the cat litter wouldn’t last for long so she brought home a bag for me plus I suddenly had a craving for some soda, I normally don’t drink soda unless I have a head ache so it will be something with caffein in it. Today I wanted something else, so now I have pear soda at home. I didn’t think they still made that so when she said they sold it I really wanted it 🙂 🙂 🙂 I remember when being at my mormors’ (grandmother on my mothers side) I was always allowed to go downstairs to get a soda and I usually chased between raspberry soda or pear soda 🙂 I was also always allowed to take an ice cream if I wanted to 🙂

The monster kitten was allowed to be without the cone of shame for a couple of hours today and she really enjoyed it. Tomorrow it’ll be eight days after surgery so I’ll allow her to be without it even longer and on Saturday she will not have it any more. It should be totally healed already now I think but it might still be a bit fragile I guess so better be safe than sorry. The scar doesn’t seem to bother her at all though   but to be honest neither does the cone 🙂 The only thing is that the the place where the cone is tied together seems to be itching, as soon as it goes off the itching stops.

Today I won’t have that last cup of tea for the day, instead I’ll have some pear soda 🙂

Have a great day!