The Big Dipper

Nessie

It Can Not Be

I hear "crinkle crinkle" above my head.  But it can not be the leaves  already.  Not yet. 

But then I hear this.  Listen?  What do you hear in the video.  It can not be.  Not yet....

The Cottingley Fairies

 YAWN.  Guiness here.  What the???  I thought I was at the cabin.  I wake up and I am in this beautiful forest glade. 

 GACK!  There are mushroom rings all around me!  Holy COW.  I know this place.  I am in Cottingley, the land of the fairies!

 How did I get here anyways?  Maybe the fairies stole me and Maggi while we were sleeping!

 Look!  the little fairie houses are everywhere.

 And this little Fairie has his mushroom house right in a blackberry patch!  That is because he is making blackberry wine.  That is what the fairies love the best--did you know?

 Maggi checks under this mushroom but no one is home.

 Yikes!  Maggi nearly tramples a mushroom.  The fairies will be really mad if we destroy their houses.  There is no telling what they may do to us.....GULP!

 ACHOO ACHOO... everything is getting dizzy and blury...it is FAIRIE DUST! OH NO!

WHAT THE?  I wake up.  I am at the cabin.  But what is this by my foot!  COULD IT BE????

GROUCHO'S COCKtail Party Invitation

RSVP

Maggi in the Meadow

 It's Maggi!   Everyone says I am just the sweetest pup.  I am happy ALL the time!

 Wow!  Just look at me!  Look at me!  I am flying... I am FREEEEEEEEEEE.  No cages, no chains...

 Life is so good now.

Can't you just feel it?

The Legend of the Fat Hippo

 Maggi here.  There is a legend in these Woods about a scary, fat hippopotamus that lurks in a deep dark pool.  I am boldly going to brave these woods and settle that rumour once and for all!

 I walk down a long winding road--towards the middle of the forest!  I am not scared.

 Finally I reach the thick fern patch.  I know because I can smell their sweet, lush scent!

 *pant pant huff puff*.  It is hard work being a Myth-Buster!

 I am hot and thirsty after all that walking. AHHH! I feel something cool and wet! 

 Nice!  I cool off in this little pool deep in the forest.  See--I told you.  I searched long and hard and there is no fat hippo lurking away in a deep dark pool in THIS woods!

Ha.  Makes you wonder how stories like that get started in the first place, doesn't it?

Corn Dogs

Think I'll Just Lay Here....

For the Love of Oxen

Guinness here and this is my human at the Exhibition.  That is when all the famers from across the Valley bring all their nice farm crops, crafts and animals for display and judging.  Even though it is nice to see all the horses, pigs, and sheep-- my human has always LOVED the oxen...

 The farmer has to match the bull calves when they are young.  Then they form a very strong bond and love each other very much.  Oxen are simply castrated bulls, so they will grow stout and stocky.

Oxen can be trained quickly once the bond is formed-- but they have to be worked regularly. They learn "GHEE!"  to turn right... and "HAW!" to turn left.  They wear distict bells that are soothing to listen to.  They are very affectionate and calm.  Did you know, they follow their master around just like the most loyal of dogs?  It is a sight to behold.

 Oxen are given sharp, distinct names that are different from each other.  Usually a team of Oxen are named Toby and Spark, or Nickle and Dime.  The most common names are "BRIGHT" and "LION!"  My human has always dreamed of  having a team of Oxen and thinks it would be funny to call them "BRIAN" and "LIGHT" instead of Lion and bright--hehehe!

  The harness and collars are beautifully decorated and very extravagant.  The red yolk must be formed for the team and notched out acording to their individual horn and head shape.  As they grow, the yolk has to be modified.   You can not use a different yolk for a different team.  That would be like wearing someone elses running shoes and you would soon get blisters!

 The oxen are the most beautiful creatures to be around.  They are so gentle and peaceful and play such an important role in Nova Scotia history.  They are used to work the land and clear the woods--it is very beautiful to watch them in the field.  When our friends Waveney and Doug visited us from California they had never seen Oxen before and that was kind of shocking!



In this little video you will hear the soothing sound of the oxen bulls.  Just imagine how beautiful it is to see the team work in the field and lumbering along in their slow, sure litany.   CLONG... LONG... CLONG ....DONG....SO LONG, so loooong....

Doga

Three

(the sun marks Saige's tree)

Peek-a-Boo!

Up Close and Personal

Black fly bites on Guinness ---OUCH!

COULD IT BE??????

It is Guinness and I can't believe my eyes. I was searching on the internet and I was SHOCKED to find an expired webpage that said "picture of 4 month old Groucho. It said he was a real ham and he was getting ready for a beauty pageant."

It said Groucho was born December 29th, 2003 and adopted into his new family April, 2004.

He must have been getting ready for a show and here is a baby picture I found of him. Could this really be our alien?

How Groucho came from being a show dog in Ontario to landing in the slammer in Yarmouth, Nova Scotia is beyond me. My human didn't ask too many questions at the time because the situation seemed a little bit charged and she just wanted to help poor Groucho. That was a loooong time ago. You can read about that here.

I did manage to find some more pictures. It might add some clarity to the situation... I think I actually found proof of Groucho's great alien escape!!!!

LOOK!! Could this be the answer? Is this the moment Groucho first realized he had levitational super powers? Is this his great alien escape caught on film? I guess we will never know.

Pondering

The Brightest Silver Lining in the Clouds Today...

Guinness at the keyboard today and one year after losing Saige we must now bid farewell to her sister, Silver.

Even though we Wolfies are a short lived breed, 3.9 years for Saige and 4.9 years for Silver really is too short.

But as I have told you all before, time is a problem for you humans-- not for us furkind. At some point today you probably thought about what you did yesterday, or perhaps what was going on a year ago. Or maybe you are dreaming about your future...or what you need to get done by the end of the day...or in the next few minutes...

We do not think like that. "THE NOW" is what is important to us dogs. And I will tell you Silver had a life full of wonderful "NOWS." Look how happy all her "NOWS" are in these pictures! It makes me smile.

We often hear people say "Oh! I could never get a wolfhound--it is too sad!" I ask you: Will it not be just as sad to lose a beloved pet after 15, 18 or even 20 years? Of course. Silly humans. You deny us our very life when you confine us to your receding walls of time.

You are a funny breed--you humans. You should all take your lessons from us. Enjoy every moment with us and try to live life the way we do! That is what we are here to teach you!

As you journey through life... a little of us will always stay with you. See, we live on in your hearts. We live in your memories. Those are all very real things. Just think of Silver and she will be right there...

Besides....Queens never die.