Daisy

 The Daisies along the rocks are still doing well.

So nice that I can enjoy them from the inside!

I mowed the lawn yesterday, Far Guy rested while I was outside.   The lawn looks better...I dumped the rain gauge too it said 3 inches...that was for a week plus. 

One of my favorite photos of Chance.  I have a similar photo of him on the calendar for July. 

We had a quiet afternoon watching TV...House of Dragon and Grey's Anatomy.

What's cooking?  Omelettes with ham and cheese.

Minnesota weather: Humid... High 86F or 30C  Low was 63F or 17C.

Far Side

Back

 We are back from Dr appointments.  Two appointments turned into three more appointments for me. 

I had an MRI and they may have found the root cause to my back pain and leg numbness...they are not sure so I will see another Dr before another procedure is performed.  In the meantime the MRI showed something else that calls for yet another MRI.

The little pills that I had to take prior to the MRI worked really well...so well that I tripped over my own feet, fell and hit my head and nose...not sure what will turn black or blue yet. The poor nurse had to fill out a report.  

I slept most of the way home and am headed to bed soon:)

A picture of our Border Collie Chance in a little plane that was in our yard in 2005.

What's Cooking  Far Guy made me a ham sandwich and he had lasagna from the freezer. 

Minnesota weather: High 54F  or 12C  Low was 38F or 3C Not much rain fell here.

Far Side

Progress

 I bought a new pole for my flag outside the door.  My old flag pole was too darn difficult to attach a flag and this one works better.  I have enough flags I could change them every week.   (years of collecting)

This is the one I chose for a week maybe two.   The Loons are here down at the lake according to my baby brother.  I have not heard them ...but the Canada Geese are honking when flying over and the Bald Eagle circles above in the trees.  ( He is looking for small critters to eat as most of the road kill has been consumed.)

 The patch in the side yard might be grass someday.  If it doesn't rain soon I will have to get out the water hose and tend to it myself. 

I have been selling some stuff...a very Vintage 1970's love seat left the house yesterday!  One less thing to clean around.   It was fairly ugly... it was useful when youngest Grandson Adam was a little boy ...he could stretch out on it and sleep very comfortably. (He grew)

I bought a set..a sofa and this love seat from friends Bonnie and Rueben when they got new furniture about 1999.  Chance claimed the couch but never the love seat...so it was almost as good as the day I bought it.  No one ever sat it it anymore...Jen used it for a luggage rack.  

Progress is slow but still progress.   Trying to look at the bright side of things!

Supper was salad and a Philly on a pretzel bun.:)

Weather: High was 69 F or 21 C eh.  Warm for the first part of May. 

Far Side

Old Dogs

 Old dogs grow weary, their joints ache, their hearing and sight fail...but they have had a good life.

It is easier to recall them as puppies...recalling the puppy breath, sharp toe nails and teeth.  Puppies always make us smile. 

March of 2012 Steve and Jo next door neighbors got a little Aussie pup and named him Putzer or Putz for short.   He was a very special little puppy. 

Odda, Putz and our Border Collie Chance in 2012.  

These three were great friends, always happy to see each other and ready for a good game of chase.  Putz always greeted us, his whole body wagged.

Sadly Putz crossed the Rainbow Bridge on July 2, 2024.  His nose was still good, but he couldn't hear or see much.  His faithful friends Odda (2009-2021) and Chance(2004-2018) were probably waiting for his arrival. 

Far Side

Photo Project

 I am working on the photo album project for our Grands.  Some of the photos make me smile. 

February 27,  2010  Adam holding Little Elvis. 

Miss Miney, Little Elvis and Chance.  Noah is in the background.   Feb 16, 2010

Little Elvis must have turned 13 now as they have had him 13 years. 

Here is a photo I took just the other day...his eyes are getting cloudy and his hearing is not great, he sleeps in our room most nights.  He has a fluffy dog bed.  He has a touchy tummy so the only treats allowed are rice cakes...and he likes them.

Far Side

Missing Chance

 It has been four years today since Chance died.   We miss him every day.

It doesn't get easier...but it gets easier to deal with the grief that sneaks up on you from time to time. 

We remember the good times and how devoted he was to both of us old farts...when he loved little kids so very much. 

How patient he was with my photography...most of the time. 

How happy he was playing ball.  There is a You Tube Video of Chance.  Hopefully the link works. 

He was a once in a lifetime dog. 

Far Side

Not Much

 Not much snow, a little ice.  I shoveled the patio and the walk.  Far Guy got the mail and visited his new old car.   I made it through all our issues of Woodcarvers Illustrated.   There are now two  magazine upright storage containers that Far Guy can fill with "stuff."

I figured the crochet stitch out and have an idea for a project...I have a few kinks to work out in the binding.  The stitch is called Apache Tears..the special binding covers up all the ends...I have redone it twice now...but I am persistent. Third time is a charm. 

I watched two old movies or most of two old movies...Unforgiven from 1992 and Men Of Honor from 2000. I enjoyed both.  Unforgiven had some really good writers...if you listen closely there is some humor..."I read you were dead?  I read that too... hell I even thought I was dead, till I found out that I was just in Nebraska."

We started a television subscription to Discovery Plus...what a great adventure that is...no news!! AND I signed up for the no ad version....happy dance. 

I have to pick out another paper project to start this week. Not sure what I shall choose probably something to do with Medicare or Insurance.

Progress is very slow on old photos on my computer files.  I make a few puzzles as I go.

Chance and Peonies June 13 2009 a Puzzle

Far Side

One year

Chance has been gone for a year now...we miss him EVERY single day.   He was a one of a kind dog ....a once in a lifetime dog.

2013 With an ever present ball

Waiting for someone to throw the ball

He seemed to prefer the color blue

Playing ball in Indiana 2014

Going for walks

Waiting patiently at his spot.  We had a mail box out by the long driveway for a number of years...he was trained to only go so far...then he would sit and wait.

His best friends sent him gifts! 

Here he is sticking out his tongue at me...he hated my camera and would often close his eyes and refuse to open them.

Recently I moved  his paw print from the kitchen window onto the table.  Later that week I went shopping and bought some scrubby yarn...didn't even look at the name of the color..I just liked all the colors.   I intended to put the paw print upstairs in the cabinet where it won't get dusty.  Maybe later today...or tomorrow I will get it there. 

We will miss Chance... possibly forever..that is how it is with a good dog. 

Border Collies need jobs.  Chances job was to play ball many times a day/night.  We played find the ball in the house on winter nights.  We went for rides every night after supper...he loved watching for deer and turkeys.  He wanted to get the mail even on Sunday.  He was a creature of habit...every morning he would get his belly scratched when Far Guy put on his socks.  He knew when 5:30 rolled around someone should be in the kitchen cooking supper and he would supervise until supper was served...even though he had food in his dish all the time he would only eat once a day when we ate supper.  He knew many words... my vehicle versus Far Guys he knew which one to go to.  He knew when we said the word ride or town he would lay down in front of the door so he would not get left behind...and on the rare occasion he was left alone he would serenade the neighborhood.  One Christmas Eve up in Fisher Minnesota at Andy and Jen's home we left him alone with Miss Miney to go to church a block away...we could hear him from the church parking lot.  That is how it is with a dog that loves you as much as you love him.

Far Side

Wistful Wednesday: Happy Boys

The twins use to live next door. They were almost the same age as Chance.  At first hey were afraid of him and would scream bloody murder when their Mom pushed them over in the stroller.  Chance was confused as he loved all kids.  He didn’t like children crying…he was raised on a farm with lots of small children….I think maybe the Mom there raised her voice when children were crying..so crying children made Chance nervous.

As the twins grew older they began to throw the ball for Chance and eventually out grew their fear of dogs. Their Grandfather would hold the twins in his lap and then let them throw the ball. Now they have two dogs in their family!

Everyone looks so happy in this photo.  I can almost hear Gavin giggling.  Chance loved these boys very much and they loved him too. Chance tried to kidnap Jordan once or twice.

I think most everyone that met Chance loved him very much. We still miss him…everyday.

Far Side

Wistful Wednesday: Meeting Little Elvis

In mid January 2010 Andy bought a Sheltie puppy.  His name was Elvis…Far Guy and I call him Little Elvis.  Chance met Little Elvis for the first time up in Bemidji at Trica and Dicks house in town…Jen, Andy and the boys were visiting for the day.

He was little.  Chance was a tad worried about his tail.

Miss Miney, Little Elvis and Chance.  That is Adam in the background.

Paige, Adam and Noah Jan 2010.

Miss Miney and Little Elvis January 2019.   Elvis is nine years old now.

They are happy to see us when they come to visit.  I wonder if they miss Chance as much as we do.  I wonder if they distrust us because Chance is not here…do they wonder what we did with him…or do they just know.  Jen says they just know.

Do we plan to get another dog?  Not yet, neither of us are ready.  For now we will love our daughters dogs and the neighbor dogs and that is good enough for now.

Far Side

Dog people

We have some good friends whose 14 year old dog died about a year ago…they were miserable…they went out and got a puppy…a Blue Heeler named Buddy who has filled the void for them. They have cattle and Buddy has a job.  We had a lot of fun playing with and petting him the other night.  They mentioned that they knew of some Border Collie pups that were for sale.

We are not ready to fill the void left by Chance.  I am not sure we will every be ready…when we got Chance he/she was named before we got him/her we did not know if we would be getting a male or a female Border Collie.  Anyways we figured it was our last chance to have a dog and made arrangements should the dog out live us.

We are adjusting…some times not so well…as the loneliness and grief overwhelms us.  The last time we were without a dog…2001 when Captain died to 2004 when we got Chance…is the longest either of us has been without a dog our entire lives. 

We are dog people.  I think Chance was a once in a lifetime kinda dog.

Chance in the wildflowers Summer of 2017

Sad

I made it back home….no dog with a waggily tail to greet me.

Far Guy washed the house windows on the outside…so the nose prints are gone.  Chance’s water and food bowls have been washed and are in the back room on a shelf…they will come out when Miney and Little Elvis visit. Some of Chance’s “things” will find a new home with Miney and Little Elvis and the rest will be donated to the local animal shelter. A few balls found their way into the grave…

 

Our flowers are as sad as we are.

Leaves in the lawn were mulched for the 6th time yesterday afternoon.  We still have green growing grass. Far Guy says about half the leaves are gone from the trees.

The Pansies survived the killing frost…soon I will pull out all the dead plant material and put up a few more solar lights.

Life goes on…

Choices

We chose to follow Chance’s choice…he refused all food and water…even ice cubes.  He just wanted to lay outside.  We were very careful to keep a close watch on him and sit with him.  He was telling us that it was time and it was up to us to help him along.

We came to the conclusion that it was hopeless and we wanted him to die as peacefully as possible.  Thanks to a very understanding Vet that was possible…although he required a double dose of sedation…after the first dose we thought he was asleep but I moved toward the door and he woke up and lifted his head as if to say “Where are you going?”  The Vet said “People dogs are very loyal and will fight the sedation to stay awake and keep track of their people.” The second dose had him pain free and in a deep sleep and then other drugs were administered and he just stopped breathing…peacefully and in no visible pain.

We brought him home and buried him in the grave that was dug several years ago (October of 2015).  Far Guy dug it one day when Chance supervised…he was always a bit curious about that spot on the edge of the yard with the wooden cover…like he knew something…Border Collies are pretty smart.  Far Guy was certain Chance would die in the winter and a grave would be impossible to dig…we had five gallon buckets of dirt stored in the woodshop.

No matter how hard it is as pet owners we always have to do what is best for our pets and not what is best for us.

We are crying rivers…not because of our choice or Chance’s choice.  We miss the third member of our team…

Thank you for all the kind comments about Chance…he had many friends all over the world…if you are reading this then you were probably one of those wonderful people. Thank you for loving our dog!

Wistful Wednesday : Chance

We were very fortunate to have a wonderful dog in our lives for a good long time.  Yet it never seems long enough.

Dec 26 2004 shortly afer we brought him home with us after he chose Far Guy.

He brought much joy into our lives everyday. He was singing for Far Guy!

He loved balls…especially the pink ones…and blue ones…fact is if it was a ball that was thrown he probably loved it. He would play ball outside or in the house…he didn’t care just as long as you threw it!

 

He was a loyal friend who would share everything…yes even his beloved balls, toys and his food and water dish with Miney and Little Elvis.  He loved it when they visited!

Most of all he was Far Guy’s faithful companion.

He liked me well enough but he had a special bond with Far Guy. I think it was a “guy” thing.

He tolerated me and my camera.  I think I must have thousands of photos of him.  Here you can see his big heart on his shoulder…he was loved by so many people!

Saying goodbye was hard…  we are incredibly sad, our hearts are broken.

Fall is falling fast

Ack the leaves…I did the 4th mulch yesterday and my husband says about 1/8 of the leaves have fallen…I was hoping he would say 1/4 of them are gone…maybe a big wind will come up and blow them away!  It was cool out…I should have worn gloves and a hat.

I finished packing up/straightening my garage…I still have a few odds and ends that I will try to sell online. I have a car full of stuff to recycle or donate.

Next door the Impatiens have made way for pumpkins and gourds.   I always wonder if the deer will eat them.

Decorating the wreath outside the door for Fall and changing the flag is on my list of things to do.

We have a busy week coming up and I am signed up to attend a retreat at the end of the week.  I will be working on our Christmas cards and a bead project. I have made a list.

Chance is holding his own for now…he has ups and downs…and so do we.