Bow Wow

Hank got a new bed cover today.  His old one was full of holes from his evening "nesting" habits.  I found a website, http://www.bowwowbeds.com/  that makes wonderful bed covers.   They are made like a pillow sham cover, no zippers, no velcro, just nice and neat and tidy and made out of duck canvas.   Should hold up to those sharp toenails when he nests.   Lots of colors to choose from. The best part about this product is you can stuff them with anything you like.   Can make for a very inexpensive dog bed.    This color is called "coyote".   I am very pleased.  It's one of those great made in America products.

The back side

Finished

Last night we watched the last Swedish movie from the Stieg Larsson trilogy, The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Nest.  We got introduced and hooked on these books on our cruise in 2010 and could not put them down.  We prefer to watch the movies with subtitles, 'course BJ can understand it but I don't like watching dubbed movies.  Something is lost in translation.   I understand there is an American movie version now of the books but have also heard that they are not very good.  The Swedish versions are so incredibly well cast and I love their cinematography.  My recommendation is to read the books and then see the movies.  I think the movies are really created assuming the viewer has read the book and knows the story line. The books are so well written and it's sad that the author did not live to see the success of his writings.  

Reluctant Participant

It rained all night and no sun was shining this morning but this maple tree is just so gorgeous anyway and I think the reds stand out more in a subdued light.   I "invited" Hank to get in the picture but as you can tell, he was not all that enthusiastic.  A good boy to participate, though.

It's In The Details

Most of you know that we live on a dirt road...a long dirt road.  I have a husband who cleans the outside of my car on a somewhat regular basis and for that I am very grateful.   For some reason today I felt it was time to give my car a little extra TLC.   It had been a very long time...longer than I cared to remember...I only know that the stuff that had collected near the windshield wipers was fertile soil for a new forest.  I have known for a long time that my car has not looked very good.   Since the days when I lived in suburbia and all was pristine and spiffy looking, somehow moving to the island, things started to deteriorate.   I recall one visit from a daughter, when she got into my car and said, "MoTHER!!" and I realized I should have cleaned it before she came.   But, between the dust in the summer and the mud in the winter, it's just so... why bother.   So today was major cleaning day.   Vacuuming, scrubbing...well, it just looks so good.   I told BJ I was going to mark the date on the calendar so I will know when to clean it again...and he said..."you're going to write down the year?"   Oh, thank goodness for a sense of humor!

Famously Funny

Last night we went to a performance at Orcas Center and the Orcas Horns were performing along with a singer and a young woman, Stephanie Trick who is a stride, ragtime and jazz pianist.   BJ and I had no knowledge of what a "stride" pianist is but old clips of Fats Waller were shown to give a history.  Anyway, there was a camera over the keyboard so we could see her hands flying over the keys and especially the left hand that "strides" over the whole left side of the keyboard.  She was beyond amazing, only 24, and one of the few female "stride" pianists.  I guess it helps to have large hands to be a good stride pianist as there is so much keyboad to cover and it's thus harder for women.  Then a couple was escorted to our row and sat next to BJ and I.  This morning at church one of our friends who played with the Orcas Horns said, "do you know who you were sitting next to last night?"  'Course we had no clue and then were informed it was Grant Geissman, a world reknowned guitarist.   The performances were so outstanding during the night, I would have been curious as to how he enjoyed it.   I could hardly sit still during it all, tapping my feet, my hands, slightly bouncing around...I hope he didn't think it was funny if my beat was off...which as many of you know, I have a reputation for.    

A Smile

Is there anything better than a smile?  I don't think so.  Today was a special day.   We got a letter from Daniel, our little boy we sponsor through Compassion.   He turned 8 on Sept. 13 and we sent money again this year for his birthday.   Today with his letter we got a photo and in the picture he is standing with his birthday money purchases consisting of a jacket, pants, athletic shorts for gym class, socks and some soccer socks.  But for the first time we also got a smile...the first one in any picture from him.  That was huge and I just grinned ear to ear when I saw it.  It was confirmation that he is beginning to feel more comfortable with us and getting to know us.   He said he wants to meet us in person and so do we someday.