Bob the Beagle

And this, is Bob the Beagle. I don't even know what to say about him.
Bob is what happens when you get to be our age and don't have children. Bob has never really thought of himself as a dog. Perhaps this is becasue no one has ever really treated him like a dog. Seven years into this plan, we might be a little late in trying to integrate him into another species. So....we make do.

Amber

This is Amber.
She is a 4 year old chocolate lab I rescued from a shelter when she was five months old. Some people think she is a little, um, "overweight"........I think they use the word "fat" behind my back. But I guess I am so used to her this size I don't really notice she doesn't have a neck and when she runs, she looks more like a brown bear cub. This troubles me somewhat since one of my neighbors has been known to carry a gun in his car and he seems to like to shoot things. So, this past year, Amber made the transition from outside mountain dog to inside polite and mannerly young lady. As you might suspect, Amber doesn't fit into tight spaces, so she has to plan her routes very carefully. Although she has the body of a lion, she has the heart of a lamb and is one of the sweetest dogs I have ever had the pleasure of making friends with. She is terribly shy and doesn't seem to mind being bossed around by her best friend, the 30-pound bob the Beagle.

Michael Jackson

Seems like it may quiet some time before Michael Jackson will be allowed to "Rest In Peace".
Every day, something new makes the headlines. Today, CNN's Headline News, TMZ, the Jane Valez Mitchell Show and Nancy Grace have all been reporting that he is NOT the biological father of his three children. Some are speculating Debbie Roe is not the biological mother, but her attorney blasted that rumor today and said it is absolutely untrue. Numerous panel discussions throughout the day have have concluded that this isn't new news.....that there has been speculation throughout the years that doner sperm was used to create the children. To complicate the matter, he never adopted the children. However, California law says that children born to a cohabiting married couple are presumed to be the children of that couple. It may come down to something as simple as that for the two older children. But the birth certificate for the youngest child is circulating, and there is no mother's name listed on it.
Regardless of how they got here, MJ was still their father and the only parent they ever knew. We can only hope Michael's mother, Catherine, is shielding them from this circus since she was awarded temporary custody. Can you imagine being that young, losing your only parent, then a couple of days later, trying to factor in that parent might now be exactly who you thought he was?
According to most reports, it appears Michael may be headed back to his beloved Neverland Ranch.
I fear all of this will make the endless Anna-Nicole debacle look like a 60-second commercial.
How did we get to this?
I don't think I even want to know all of this, but when I turn on a legitimate news channel, this is all I see.
I want to remember Michael Jackson in the best video EVER....no, not "Thriller", but the "BAD" film. I love the story, the music, the dancing.......the modern-day Shakespearian-style story with a bit of West Side Story (without the girl) thrown in for interest. Or, when he was standing in a mockup of the top of the Statue of Liberty, hair and white shirt blowing in the wind, looking so handsome it made your heart hurt, as he told us it didn't matter if you were black or white. the morphing of faces was like nothing I had ever seen at that time.
I think Rev. Al sharpton was so right when he said in his eulogy that before Tiger Woods and before Barack Obama.....there was Michael Jackson.
Michael, somewhere, somehow, I hope you find some peace my friend.

Life Changes

Since I moved here I have:
Found a boar's head (complete with tusks) on my front doorstep, thanks to my dog's late night hunting trip.
Gotten stampeded and trampled by my neighbor's lama.
Traded my BMW for a SUV.
Helped birth 13 puppies (all survived) on Mother's day.
Found a live snake in a downstairs closet.
Planted a vineyard.
Broken my ankle in two places, walking on the mountain after dark.
Rescued 6 abused or abandoned dogs.
Painted a house.
Learned to use a grill for the first time ever.
Made Wall-Mart a weekly pilgrimage.
Made a trip to the emergency room with some sort of undetermined poisoning.
Bought a rhino (the 4-wheel drive vehicle, not the animal).
Assembled my own tool box.
Buried my mother.
Become addicted to CNN, my connection to the outside world.
Two very close friends who are 95 and 99 years old.

Things I have learned since moving here:
The heart and soul of every small town are its school and churches.
People besides criminals and gangsters drive around with loaded weapons in their vehicles.
My muck boots are more useful than my little black Italian sandals.
Always trust your dog's instincts....they are never wrong.
Bigotry and bias have very deep roots.
Things are never what they seem to be.
The security of having your doctor's pager number.
The Baby Boomers' time has come and gone.
We never recover from our childhoods...we just turn into adult versions.
You find the best friends in the most unlikely ways and places.
The value of solitude.
Random acts of kindness are the best.
Eating something you grew connects you to the earth.
Your heart is only as open or as closed as you allow it to be.

And so it goes........

Over the past few years, several of my close friends have asked me to write a blog....I am not sure why.
Maybe it is because I love to read and write?
Maybe it is because I have strong feelings about many subjects?
Maybe it is because my life seems to be very ironic?
But I think it is because I have had a very compelling life.
My husband calls me a female "Forrest Gump"......not because of our mental similarities, but because I seem to be one of those people who have unique/unusual/bizarre experiences. I don't go looking for them, they just seem to find me.
Despite some bumps along the way (big and small), I have been very fortunate/lucky/blessed (depending on your view of our fate). I am a living example that "Life is a journey, not a destination".
I have no idea where this will go, but I look forward to having you along for the trip!