Snow Play Time…

The so-called “Beast from the East” arrived overnight and we finally got about 3 inches of snow.  Now, those of you know my blog, know I love snow and have been waiting for a good snowfall since 2010, and today it arrived, but it did not last too long as the sun came out and the temperature reached a whopping 1c and the sky turned blue.  Over the rest of the week, we should be getting more snow, but I doubt it will arrive, this was a rare event here.  M shot a video of me and the dogs in the snow, this is Mazinkeens first proper snow.  Harper has been in the snow before when we have been up in the mountains.  It is a shame Lilu was not still with us as she loved playing in the snow, and we have many videos and photos of her enjoying it.  I think my love of show rubbed off on all my dogs.

Puppy Party…

Saturday Mazikeen went to a puppy party.  The party only had 6 puppies at it, as the organiser keeps it to that level so it is not too overwhelming for all the dogs there.  Mazikeen had a great time, and again gained lots more confidence in doing things and with the other dogs there.  It seems a little odd that she is so shy with other dogs, yet at home, she is a beast and chases Harper all over the house, and play fights all the time.  Outside though she seems a little anxious about other dogs, but slowly she is gaining her confidence.  The lady who runs the classes and the party noted that she was skittish, and is working with me at getting that sorted out.

However, the party was a great learning place for her.  There was a balancing board that she was avoiding like the plague, however, after about 10 minutes of using treats she was happy to get on it and balance on it for treats.  We then went on to the tunnel, only a small one but it was something she was wary about at the start.  There were other things there that she played in like a small ball pool and a pile of cardboard boxes once she discovered treats were hidden in them.

She played with another dog who was a spaniel type, but his coat was sand coloured and quite rough, so not totally sure.  He was terrified of everything that moved and things that did not move too.  At the end of the party, they all got doggy bags of treats, and Mazikeen left with more confidence that when she walked in.

Alas, we did not make it to the Puppy Training Class yesterday as I was suffering from a migraine, I still have a bit of one today, but it is a dull ache now.  It is a shame that we could not go, but I really could not cope with all the barking from some of the other dogs that never seem to stop from the moment they arrive until the moment they leave.

I thought I would share two videos of her having fun.

 

 

I Am! by John Clare

I am—yet what I am none cares or knows;
My friends forsake me like a memory lost:
I am the self-consumer of my woes—
They rise and vanish in oblivious host,
Like shadows in love’s frenzied stifled throes
And yet I am, and live—like vapours tossed

Into the nothingness of scorn and noise,
Into the living sea of waking dreams,
Where there is neither sense of life or joys,
But the vast shipwreck of my life’s esteems;
Even the dearest that I loved the best
Are strange—nay, rather, stranger than the rest.

I long for scenes where man hath never trod
A place where woman never smiled or wept
There to abide with my Creator, God,
And sleep as I in childhood sweetly slept,
Untroubling and untroubled where I lie
The grass below—above the vaulted sky.

 

I love poetry, and always have done, especially from the Romantic Era, including the writings of Samual Taylor Coleridge, Lord Byron, William Blake and many many others, but this has to be my favourite from John Clare.

Lunch…

M and I went for lunch on Thursday with two of my cousins, and all our dogs.  We have a pub that is totally dog-friendly, even to the point of bringing a bowl of water for them to the table.  I had scampi, M lasagne, and the girls had nachos and chicken and bacon salad.  I was driving so had zero alcohol beer which was delicious and seemed no different than normal beer in taste.

Our topics of conversation ran the gamut from them being related to John Lennon (I much prefer Yoko Ono), my Nan’s crochet and embroidery, more of that in a later post, and my asshole father, again, more of that in a later post.

My dogs were very excited needless to say, but in the end, I had to put them back in the car (sunroof open and all windows cracked open too) so they could calm down.  Harper was overexcited, but she tends to be like that when she comes into some of the shops too, yes, we live in quite a dog-friendly place.  Where I grew up all the pubs were dog-friendly, but being int he middle of a farming community it was expected, sometimes people had their horses with them.  I digress.  Rosie the other dog was very well behaved, apart from having a growling moment at my dogs for no reason.  The had all been on walks together with no problem and happy to play together.

It was nice to catch up with them again, and more so that M got to meet them.  He has met one other cousin of mine, but as that side of the family is estranged most of my dad’s side are still standoffish, that is down to him, again, more of that in a later post.

One of my cousins has been undergoing breast cancer treatment, and now finished, she attends the hospital for follow-ups and treatment of side effects, pains in extremities etc., so it was a little surprising to get home and in my email box was one from LoveKnitting.com about knitting for Breast Cancer Haven.  100% of the sale of the patterns got to the charity, so I decided I would make two hats, one for my cousin and the other I would donate to Breast Cancer Haven for another patient going through treatment.  I decided to go for the Plum Tart Hat by Rosee Woodland.  I messaged my cousin asking what her favourite colour is and that all would be explained in time, she said mostly reds and a little lilac.  I have bought two shades of Willow and Lark Ramble yarn which is 100% merino wool, which I love to work with.  I have ordered two shades of red, one called Ox Blood and the other Cranberry.  When I have finished them I will give her the choice and the other I will donate.  I picked this hat out of all the patterns because it had more of a cable design to it, and I thought it quite stunning.  When I have the yarn I will take a pic of it to show you all, and of course, when I have finished each of the hats, do a show and tell too.  Oh, and if you were wondering, my cousin loves hats and wears all kinds, this being due to losing her hair.

Stranger Things…

I know, sounds a little vague, but we discovered Stranger Things last week.  I am not talking odd things going on about the house or indeed the village, god forbid anything exciting would happen here.  I am talking about the TV Show.  Now, I am not usually a fan of this type of series, but, I just cannot get enough, so much so we have binge-watched the first series already, and are about to start the second.

Our discovery was after getting a free month trial of Netflix, but along with Stranger Things, we have also started watching Sense8, Mindhunter, and Altered Carbon.  We were left asking ourselves, how had we not discovered Netflix before.  We have decided to ditch Amazon Prime and replace it with Netflix.  There are more original things to watch and well, lets face it, I am no friend of Amazon as you all will know.