Miss Miney 2005-2021

 Miss Miney (Hermione) has been having a time with Old Dog Vestibular Syndrome.  Some days she was fine ...other days she struggled to get up and down but was still happy.  Yesterday she could not get up from a lying down position.  It was time.   Sadly she made that last trip to the Vets office in the afternoon.  

We will miss her so much.  We were lucky to be able to care for her throughout the years...instead of going to the kennel when her people had to be away she came to our house.  We loved having her visit.  Chance loved her visits.  She was just a little younger than Chance.  She would have been 16 years old this summer.  

August 2005 when she was just a little puppy she made her first visit to our house.  She is sleeping on top of an overnight bag and a pair of shoes most likely Noah's shoes. 

She was a beauty. 

She and Chance were best friends. 

Little Elvis joined the pack. 

Miss Miney was our daughter Jen's "heart dog" ...they come around only a few times in your life if you are a dog person...those dogs are the ones you always miss and remain forever in your heart. 

I am certain that Chance was happy to greet her. 

Goodbye beautiful Miss Miney.

She helped to heal our hearts a bit after Chance died. 

Run free Girlie.

Far Side

Milk Can Project

 The Milk Can Project began many many years ago. 

Photo taken about 1990.

We had two daughters and three Shetland Sheep Dogs or Shelties.   Jen with G'Day Mate, Trica with Misty and Moses.  Misty and Moses were the parents of G'Day Mate...and also Captain who lived for awhile with my parents, we took care of him when they went on vacation and one time he just stayed living with us.  

Moses, Mate and Captain in 1996.  Misty died in  the spring of 1996, Moses died in 1997 and G Day Mate in 1998. Captain held on and was a wonderful companion for us until 2002.

One constant was that I groomed them and cleaned their teeth...usually twice a week..  G'Day Mate loved double turns and Moses would fall asleep while I cleaned his teeth.  Bathing them was a group effort...I would wash and the girls would take turns towel drying them...we bathed them once a month more often if they found a smelly fish to roll in.

I saved all the dog hair.  INSIDE the milk can.  It has been waiting for me to do something with since about 1987.  

I began by sorting the hair outside in the evenings on the patio. 

Getting rid of all the twigs, burrs etc...  I rather enjoyed sorting...I could tell which dog was which and enjoyed the unique fragrance of all the dogs.  Just a few tears were shed.  When I had a bin full I washed it in the kitchen sink. I do like the smell of a wet dog...what can I say I am weird.

I rinsed it many times and took it out to the greenhouse/woodshop to let it dry out.  Batch after batch...I should have counted. I started washing and sorting mid June and finished the first part of July. 

Dog fur drying out. After it was dry I collected the fur in paper grocery bags. 

I ordered some carders.   Through the miracle of You Tube I taught myself to card.  It takes practice. 

I struggled with making rolags...but I think I have the hang of it now. 

The one on the far left  is correct the others will be carded again...although usable they will take up space! 

Otto Bruce my spinning wheel is waiting...Can I spin it ???...that remains to be seen...and that will be a winter project...right now I am concentrating on carding and making rolags. The rolags will be stored in old pillowcases or paper bags until I can work with them.  I have some special roving from some of my favorite sheep to mix in with the dog fur if needed when carding.   Did you know dog fur that is spun into yarn is  called Chiengora?? Someday I hope to make a lap blanket.

So my Milk Can project is coming along.   I hope to work on this project every day for awhile...the weather is cooler and I finally have time to concentrate on carding! 

The Milk Can itself found a new home and is going to be a project for Jen. 

I bet it will be painted burgundy or red and be used on her front porch.  ( She probably will not store dog hair in it as seeing the paper bags of dog hair made her gag.)

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

Wistful Wednesday : Christmas 1997

It was our second Christmas at the house in Harwood ND 21 years ago.

Our oldest grand Savannah was just 17 months old.  Trica was pregnant with Maddie who would be born in April of 1998. Trica was working as a RN in Grand Forks and Richard was the Manager of a Radio Shack Store in Grand Forks.   Jen and Andy were not married until the summer of 1998.

Far Guy was working for the North Dakota Air National Guard and I was a student at NDSU working part time for the University as a Horticulturist.

We had a very sick Sheltie that December.  Moses died the day after Christmas…leaving a huge hole in our hearts.  We still had the juvenile deliquents (Shelties) G’ Day Mate and Captain so we were not dogless.

It would be our second and last Christmas in that house by Lake Shure.  Far Guy retired and we sold the house after it was on the market for a week in the spring of 1998.

Wistful Wednesday: Logan and Captain

Not sure what year this photo was taken.  Logan was 31 last month and he looks like he may be 2 or 3 in the photo.   So that puts it somewhere around…1989-1990.

Captain and Logan

Logan obviously has something in his dish that has Captains full attention. The photo was taken at my parents resort sometime in the summer.

Captain would have been 4 years old.  He was the runt of one of my Sheltie litters and lived with my parents on and off for a few years.  When they were gone on vacations he stayed with us…one time he just stayed forever…and that was fine with us. He lived until 2001 and was our last dog before we got Chance.   He was a undersized Sheltie…just a little bit of a pup when he was born he weighed about 4 ounces…with round the clock care for about ten days nursing everytime he woke up he grew.  His name back then was Captain Stubby Grunter…he was short and grunted when he nursed.  He was the last born in a litter of four remarkable pups.

Oh yes …Logan he is all growed up too…married and lives in Seattle.  He has a PhD in Robotics and Mechanical Engineering, he is working as a Research Scientist. Logan is my nephew…the youngest son of my baby brother.

 

Wistful Wednesday: Rabbits

When I was growing up my brother and I had a rabbit, it was a gift from my Uncle Theron so it was appropriate that the rabbit was named Theron…we may have had more than one rabbit…two maybe.

Years later at the resort I may have taken leave of my senses and purchased two angora rabbits…they died…not sure why.  The children visiting the resort loved the rabbits…the next spring I purchased two regular old rabbits…I was told they were the same sex.  Either both boys or both girls. We named them Ebony and Ivory.

One morning Far Guy hollered for me, something was wrong with Ivory she had blood all over her.  Well I could see nothing visibly wrong with her…then I checked the nest box.  Screamed and slammed the top closed.  Baby bunnies…Ivory was a Mom…which meant that Ebony was the Dad..and they were not the same sex.  Ebony needed to go in his own cage…male rabbits will eat baby bunnies.  Ivory was keeping him at bay…or entertaining him…who really knows what rabbits think.

We went to town and got stuff to build a new hutch…one with an insulated nesting box so the babies would have a chance. One died…as I recall there were 12 little bunnies, they are born hairless or nearly so and look all wrinkled and funny.

We moved the hutches to a spot under the low hanging branches of the Spruce trees where they would be protected by the branches and out of the north wind.  I would have to feed everyone all winter.

Do you know that a rabbits gestation peroid is about 31 days?  

Seems that while Ivory was keeping  Ebony away from her babies…she had been entertaining him…in 31 days we had another batch of rabbits…14 this time if I recall correctly. We had to modify Ebony’s hutch to give him space on one half of the hutch and moved the month old baby rabbits to the other half of his hutch until they could be moved back in with Ivory after the new babies were old enough. 

I fed rabbits all winter and took them fresh water three times a day.   They were tame rabbits and loved to be petted.

At that time we had four Shelties, Misty, Moses, Captain and G’Day Mate.  I taught them not to chase rabbits.  “No chasing bunnies” Oh they wanted too…but they wanted to please me more….and hated being scolded.

G’Day Mate, Ebony, Me and Miss Misty watching from outside of the fence.

The dogs were curious about the bunnies but left them alone.  You see my plan was to release some of the bunnies and find homes for some…my sister Julie took quite a few.

The release went well. My husband had done the math…once he told me how many rabbits I would have to take care of the next winter I knew I had to release them.

We had bunnies all colors, black, white, and every shade of brown.  I fed them morning and night…they would come running out of the woods when I hollered for them.  A few found the way into the neighbors gardens.  Arvilla once said “Funny we have never had problems with rabbits eating our gardens but now we do.”  Rabbits were everywhere that summer, the tourists thought it was great and little kids would run after them…some of the retired guests would see how many bunnies they could count in a day.

A number of years later when we moved back here just about a half a mile from the old resort we drove in the driveway and there was a bunny that greeted us.  Far Guy said “I bet that is a relative of one of your bunnies.”  I got out of the vehicle and just talked to the bunny, it stood up on its haunches and listened. (Perhaps I am a rabbit whisperer)

So you see the rabbits that feed under the bird feeders in our yard probably look like regular domestic rabbits…because they are relatives of the rabbits I accidently raised.

To this day I cannot understand why rabbits are not raised in poor countries for food.  I found rabbits really easy to raise.

Wistful Wednesday: Crazy Project

I have one project that has been on my “mental list” for a number of years.   A long time ago, my friend Susan gave me a milk can that was painted to match my then blue kitchen.  What ever do you store in a milk can?

G’Day Mate, Captain, Miss Misty and Moses

We had four Sheltland Sheepdogs “Shelties”  I did all my own grooming, they got bathed in the bathtub and dried with a blow dryer…and brushed, and brushed some more the girls would help…I would wash and they would dry and brush.   One day I started collecting the fur….it ended up in the milk can.  Years later I can still smell freshly washed Shelties in that old milk can.  That fur has been waiting. 
I talked with a friend Bruce…we will card that fur soon and mix it with some roving to prepare it for spinning. 
So what was the one thing I asked for as a Christmas Gift?  Roving from Punkin’s Patch…I requested Maisie and Daniel…and got some Henri too.  Far Guy took care of all the details!

Maisie ( white with a touch of meaness), Henri ( beautiful softer grey/brown) and Daniel the (soft warm cream color)

My old spinning wheel may see some action yet.  We know it works.

I am certain that whatever I spin will not be perfect yarn…and thats okay with me…I hope to eventually make a lap robe.

Last spring a very kind neighbor brought me her dogs coat…Kodi sheds all at once…she is an Akita. I still have that fur too upstairs in an old pillowcase.

I have all the raw materials…and I look forward to a carding lesson from Bruce in the next month or two.

Wistful Wednesday : Christmas 1996

Back in 1996 we were new grandparents.  Savannah was just 5 months old that Christmas.  We lived in Harwood North Dakota…Savannah lived with her parents up in Buxton North Dakota. 
We decided that she should have a little red wagon for Christmas.

Here I am showing G’Day Mate that the wagon is not big and scary.   Usually I could talk those Shelties into just about anything. ( Yes I have my jammies on…a big nightshirt and a pair of sweatpants….real stylish.)

Moses, G’Day Mate and Captain

This photo hangs in our home. G’Day Mate or “Mate” and Captain were litter mates….Captain was the runt and I struggled to keep him alive…I slept next to the whelping crate and had him nurse every two hours.  His litter mates were fat and sassy and he was just a little guy.  Moses is their father….at the time this photo was taken their Mother Miss Misty had died from pancreatitis earlier that year. We missed her that Christmas….truth be told I still miss her…I miss all of them.  They were wonderful companions…they followed me everywhere…Moses was my protector.

Eventually Savannah showed up and rode around the house in her wagon. Her Auntie Jen pulled her around and around from the living room through the hall into the dining room/kitchen and back into the living room…with dogs following her.

Lily Pads

One by one the signs of Fall are visible.

The Lily Pads are turning yellow.

When I see a good patch of Lily Pads I think of a puppy we had once…Misty was a Shetland Sheepdog (Sheltie) and we got her in the spring of the year.   One weekend we took her down by the docks at my parents and there were some ducks in the water beyond the Lily Pads.  WELL…she was used to green being lawn…so she ran right off the end of the dock.  She learned to swim real fast…and someone saved her…not sure who…that part of the memory is gone.  She never liked water very much after that….but she learned all about docks and Lily Pads. 

Hero Far Guy says “I just reached down in the water and grabbed her.”

Wistful Wednesday: 1991 Live Nativity

Back in 1991 Far Guy and I were both on the Evangelism Committee at the church.  As a community outreach program I spearheaded a Live Nativity.   A crèche was built  and set up on the church lawn  snow bank.  I asked the congregation to donate fabrics, we bought some patterns and a few ladies sewed costumes.  My mother and Naomi sewed a lot that year…costumes for shepherds, kings and angels all sizes.  The congregation was asked to bring cookies and the bell choir played while you had cookies and coffee in the social hall.

This was the crèche indoors.  Groups of people were guided through and sang a verse or two of a Christmas carol at each “station.”  It helped to have choir members be leaders!  I don’t recall how many stations we had..Mary getting the news, shepherds watching their flocks by night, Mary and Joseph going to Bethlehem, the Kings and the manger scene…and there may have been more.

Outside we had shepherds and Mary and Joseph in the crèche.  It was cold outside. Sometimes we would sing to keep warm. Cars would honk and people would drive by slowly...the church is right along the highway. 

It was a fun event.  The next year we had some sheep and a calf outside.  AND an Llama and all four of our Shelties inside..as the shepherds needed sheepdogs!

Far Guy and I were shepherds both years.   Trica played with the bell choir.  Jennifer filled in wherever I needed her…I think she was a Mary one year. ( I am getting older and cannot remember everything.)

Far Guy makes a fine looking shepherd… he is drinking coffee.

I think we did The Live Nativity for three years improving as it went along.  People would talk about it and look forward to it.  I always felt good about it…doing something to bring the Christmas Story and the birth of our Savior front and center where it belongs at Christmas time.

Have you every been to a Live Nativity? 

This is Christmas 1991, Me holding Captain and Moses, Jennifer holding Misty and G’Day Mate is escaping, Trica holding Caramel one of four cats we had back then and the Far Guy in the back.  I still have that same Angel on top of our tree!  ( Misty and Moses were the parents of Captain and G’Day Mate). Jennifer would have been 16 that year and Trica 19. We lived at the resort back then..that striped carpet was something else…but it matched everything.  That house was something else too…but we had some good times there and it was a good place to raise teenage daughters.

Doing something as a group…a family activity like the Live Nativity was a good thing.  I am not certain how fondly the girls remember it…but they were supportive and showed up to do their part.