At one corner of our yard, we have a point which is the highest elevation anywhere on our property – unfortunately for Zoe and I it is outside the fence line. We were told that the neighborhood kids call it the mountain and climb up and down it as they await for the school bus. Apparently, in Pre-Covid days, this spot near our mailbox (at the base of the mountain) is where all the kids would congregate and wait for the bus to pick them up. For some reason, a couple of the neighborhood parents warned us about this fact after we moved in. Hmmm. Maybe they thought we’d spend the whole morning saying hello to everyone as they came – then went off to school? There was one day when a rafter of these children ran up and over the mountain and we were there to cheer them on! Imagine doing this every morning and afternoon. We would add so much to the neighborhood!
Anyhow, based on the fact that this location is our high point we decided to call it Mom’s Mountain since that is what the high-point on our Grandparents’ land in New Mexico is called.
View from Above, and from Below
Just in case you are wondering how high up Zoe and Mom are in that last picture, here are a couple of screen shots from an App we have that lets us know all sorts of information – including altitude:
Elevation from the top, and the from the road
Yep. That is correct. The difference is a whopping 16 feet (rounding up a bit)!!!
Pretty tall mountain on our very own land! That is like 4-5 kids stacked one upon the other. No wonder Dad gets winded walking up Mom’s Mountain in Massachusetts!
So, you may be wondering about the altitude change walking up the original Mom’s Mountain in NM. Well, I don’t have the actual data from our app, but I suspect it may be even more than 20′. And my Mom really gets winded going up that one. Is that why it is called Mom’s mountain?
This morning, while Mom was exercising in the basement and Dad was floundering on the elliptical upstairs, Zoe and I decided to work out some too – but in our case it was a blast! Mom and Dad tend to huff and puff and sweat* (something us canines would never think of doing) while they exercise. Zoe likes to try and play with Mom while she is doing her cardio moves. But me and Zoe? We just have a blast whether it be wrestling, playing chase in the backyard, having a good tug-of-war over a toy or stick or blanket… Which brings me to my favorite exercise of all – a game Dad I used to play through the couch cover back in Illinois. In this exercise, I hide my head under some blanket or other relatively thin material. While under there, my eyes are more or less blind-folded but I can open my mouth as wide as I want. Then Dad (or now Zoe) can engage with me and we fight through whatever material is between us. Dad liked to pop me in the nose while I tried to bite him – the material protecting him from my teeth. Zoe tends to try and bite me while I try and bite her. What fun! But on some occasions when Zoe and I play this game the material separating us ends up maybe ripping a little bit. This morning, the results of such a tear in the down comforter was quite spectacular and left both of us covered in feathers as we raced out of the guest room and circled Mom leaving a seasonally appropriate snow storm trail of down throughout the basement surrounding her as she pathetically moved through the exercises led by Shaun T!
Down Fall
Shortly after this Zoe started barking which saved Dad from the elliptical but gave him a new job: Sewing up the comforter and trying to stuff the feathers back into the hole. This was only partly successful and that part of the comforter looks a bit like Frankenstein’s monster.
Vacuumed feathers
The remainder of the feathers in the guest room and the rest of the basement were (mostly) vacuumed up and then disposed of in the trash.
I guess the take home message is: If you come to visit us you should bring an extra pair of socks for bed, or your toes may get cold in the night 😇.
The Tempest
* although I make fun of them for sweating when they do…pretty much anything, I am always willing to help alleviate them from their salty excretions with a good face lick. Especially when Mom is trying to do push-ups. Hee hee hee.
I just recently found out our fence doesn’t follow our property line:
This caused Zoe and I to become a bit miffed since as I understand it, our property extends into the woods behind our house where the turkeys sometimes wander and where we see chipmunks and squirrels who taunt us from the other side.
This makes Dad very happy since he can toss the grass clippings, fall leaves, and pretty much whatever he wants over the fence and it’ll still end up on our property and thus he will not get in trouble.
So this brings me to a story that Sammy related to me when I first joined the pack. The tale has apparently been told multiple times by his Mom (our FarMor) over some meal or while sitting around the family room – in fact I may have even been present during one of these story times but I probably slept through it either because I was behaving admirably while they ate in order to maybe get some of the leftovers or because I had already eaten and thus needed a postprandial nap. On a side note, Sammy and Banshee trained our Father well to always save a little bit of his meal and place it in two small piles on either side of the plate. Zoe and I have not slipped in maintaining his training. Anyhow, as I was saying, Sammy related what he heard it being told by our FarMor at some event or other in Michigan.
It goes something like this:
When Dad was a small lad of say 7 (that is a guess since we dogs don’t track time very well) one of his chores was to pick up after their dog Elsa – she was a collie and was about the same age as Dad as his parents got her shortly after he was born. On this occasion, rather than picking up the poop with a shovel and bringing it to the composting area, young Dad decided to just fling it over the fence into the neighbors yard – his rationale is they had a dog as well and would likely not notice the extras. Unfortunately for him, FarMor was observing his antics and after getting control of her laughter called him over and sternly reprimanded him for his actions. In fact, she meted out a punishment he apparently thought was cruel and unusual: he had to go into the neighbors back yard and pick up all the dog poop – Elsa’s AND Carrie’s(the neighbors Irish Setter)!!! From what Sammy tells me, this was sufficiently effective that he (Dad) never tried that trick again…until now. As I said, whatever flies over the fence at our new house lands on our property so he can now let the s*^% fly! And often, when raking up leaves, one gets more than leaves…if you know what I mean 😉.
“Leaves” being flung over our fence into our unfenced property
Earlier this fall, Zoe and I got a surprise in the middle of the week. Mom didn’t do any Zooming in her office. But she did zoom a little on the expressway as Dad drove us back to Nahant and the ocean! It was one of the first days us dogs were allowed on the beach at the state park and what a beach it was! Thanks to a low tide the water line was WAY out past the sandy part of the coast line. I guess this was, in part, due to a hurricane off shore. In fact a lady stopped and chatted with us (socially distanced with masks) and let us know that the helicopters flying overhead were news helicopters about this event! I wonder if we were on TV?
Zoe tramped through the surf and chased any bird that got within a 100 yards or so from us.
I preferred walking a good distance from where the water finally stopped its ascent up the sand and ebbed back into the sea fearing the salt water would ruin my well manicured nails.
After walking up and down the beach – me in a straight line, Zoe in circle after circle trying her best to get to them irritating flyers (seagulls and sand pipers and…and I am just starting to learn about different types of birds so I am not sure who they all were) – we headed back to the boardwalk so they could visit the restroom and wipe the sand off their feet. While waiting for them to take turns holding us, we just enjoyed the scenery and scents.
Before leaving, the plan was to stop at a little fish monger to get some fresh seafood and maybe lunch. Unfortunately, this plan was thwarted by what we suspect was the Covid – this business was no longer in business. So instead we stopped at a restaurant along the shore for our lunch. Here we are waiting for Mom to return with our food and hoping the nice gentleman on the bench next to us maybe ordered too much food or took pity on us.
Finally she returned with the food – which smelled really good – but despite sitting appropriately on the bench, we were only offered water (tho my Mom did buy us plenty, just in case)…and the view. They (our parents) took no time downing their respective meals at which point they finally took our famine condition into account and gave us a sample of each entree…and some of Dad’s french fries!
Once we got back to the car we checked the data on our respective Whistles. Apparently, Zoe traveled nearly 1.5 miles more than I did. I guess this proves that the shortest distance between two points is a straight (or pretty straight) line and not running amok like a whack job (Zoe).
The reason it has taken me so long to tell this story was of course the standard problem of getting the Scribe to focus. However, aside from that – in his defense – was that Zoe just got around to making a movie of the occasion:
A few notes about the film:
Note I did test the waters despite my concern for my pedicure
Pay close attention to the action at 1:11 of the movie – Zoe just about takes Dad’s head off with her circulating leash…which causes Mother to laugh out loud (after saying “oh no!”).
At one point I try to help Zoe capture the birds.
The leashes (despite being 30′) significantly impair our efforts
Ever notice that in most of Zoe’s films the screen time is dominated by her presence? I realize that directors have often made appearances in their own movies – Alfred Hitchcock would often have a brief cameo early on in his films, Spike Lee was often a character in his dramas – at least the early ones, and Woody Allen tended to be one of the main characters (and had a lot of lines) in his flicks. In fact, Zoe also tends to talk quite a bit in her movies. Does this mean she is like Woody Allen? A little neurotic, kinda funny, and often the center of her own creations? I’ll leave you to ponder that question or find another director who she more emulates. Or is she completely and utterly an unique Auteur?
We have a new cousin in Michigan! Of course thanks to Covid19 it will be quite some time before we really get to meet him – Zoom sessions do not support/provide the most important feature of any introductions…smell. With that said, photographs of him suggests the little guy is quite adorable:
Mungo in his new home (and sweater)*
Just a little over three years ago, Snowy and I made up this awesome game using one of FarMor’s ottomans in her family room. It consisted of one of us (primarily me) hiding under this piece of furniture while the other danced around it nipping at the one beneath said ottoman. At times we would both get our heads under the blanket and underneath the ottoman – butts out! For those that don’t remember this story it may be easier if you watch the video included in that blog:
I’ve written before about some of our family traditions. In fact, I blogged about them three times (see links below). Most of these were related to our immediate “Illinois” pack both past and present.
Snowy and Mungo Playing Big Dog/Little Dog*
I was so happy to see this video in which Snowy teaches Mungo our game! Funny that this time around Snowy is the “Big Dog” – made me kind of laugh to myself a bit. My sphere of influence is growing!!! As is our pack.
I suppose that like most of you, I can’t wait for this pandemic to end and we can once again see our extended pack members – especially with the holiday season fast approaching (maybe we should all celebrate the holidays in July?). To those of you lucky enough to live in areas where appropriate actions were implemented early on (New Zealanders) may you enjoy this holiday season with your favorite pack members!
The Tempest
*= Photo and video credits go to my aunties in Michigan. Thanks for the permission to include these in my post.
One of the interesting things about all this working from home is my Mom is experimenting with new recipes. Given they are a) trying to eat healthy(ier), and b) they are in fish land, this has resulted in some great exploration of fish dishes. Late last week, Mom made fish chowder (or as they say around these parts chahwdah), which Zoe and I thought smelled fantastic – even during the prepping stage. Zoe is a great help in the kitchen monitoring the dicing of the potatoes (she even endures a chunk being thrown at her), checking the pot every so often to make sure it is at the right temperature and not boiling over, and of course getting tired of waiting for someone to take it off the stove and pour it into our bowls. I think the pictures tell the story pretty well so I stop with the commentary now.
Will it ever be ready?
Except to say, that we were mighty upset that the finished product did NOT end up in our bowls! After all the supervising Zoe did with the prep staff, the chef, and the dishwasher, and my supervision of Zoe – quite an important job as she tends to …need help with a word here …get off task frequently (usually to look around the kitchen for scraps). Although I do have to say she is pretty good about barking at the kitchen staff if they are not doing their job – this is particularly true in the morning when our breakfasts’ are being prepared. Mother then had the leftovers for lunch on many days since it was originally made and not once did we get our bowls filled with this tasty meal – we do know it tasted great since we did get a smattering of licks of her (mostly) empty bowl.
Next time, if she makes it again, Zoe and I have agreed to a create some diversion that’ll require both our parents to leave the kitchen which will allow us to run off with the pot and hide it in our room until it cools off. Hopefully this will be soon as we really, really, REALLY liked the chahwdah.
This past weekend was that time of year when Zoe and I are forced to wear ridiculous things on our heads and people -mostly children- walk around in strange clothes and gather candy (that last part was something Zoe and I were all in for but never were allowed to partake). Just like last year, there was snow on the ground during the so called “Trick-or-Treating.” This year it came the day before so the streets were pretty much cleared off by the time the kids started their sweets parade. Apparently this rarely (never?) happens in our neighborhood on account of the houses being so far apart so the steps taken per treat ratio is not as good as say in Deerfield or the center of Carlisle. So the children would normally gather “downtown” and hit up a as many of the houses in this locale as possible. Of course this strategy affected the household budgets (candy buying) disproportionately across the town. This problem was solved long ago (according to local sources who’ve lived here longer than us) through the help of our one store, Ferns. Anyone who lived in the more remote neighborhoods (e.g. – ours), could bring bags of candy to the store and they would distribute the candy to the houses where the kids did their collecting.
But this is 2020. The year of Covid19. Therefore, such a congregation of kids, parents, candy distributors, and other bystanders was not permitted due to physical distancing measures the town has been trying to enforce. So, as I understand it, our neighborhood was one of a handful chosen for a limited number of children to make their rounds; anyone in Carlisle could sign up for a slot in advance. In addition, instead of going up to each door, the home owners were encouraged to set up a table at the end of their driveways with the candy laid out for the kids to take. Mom did an excellent job with our table (she even has hand sanitizer!) – Zoe even jumped on it a couple of times I am guessing thinking she’d have her chance to pick out a few pieces to munch on while we watched the parade.
Our Table prior to Trick-or-Treaters
I am supposed to be a lion and Zoe is a black cat…so humiliating…we HATE all felines. At least we are appropriately classified within the cat hierarchy – Me: Royalty of the Jungle; Zoe: an omen of bad times to come (from Wikipedia: “The black cat in folklore has been able to change into human shape to act as a spy or courier for witches or demons”). Although she is still insisting that she went as a black panther. She is unique and rare, but really? Mom dressed as a sad Michigan fan.
Aside from it being Halloween, it was also a Michigan Football Game Day so Dad picked a yellow dahlia to bring some Michigan color to one of the bathrooms. Unfortunately, the team under performed and lost to one of their rivals…maybe putting something in the bathroom was a bad idea (?).
Speaking of Bad Omens…
The evening got rather chilly and we were left with a lot of leftover candy despite a fairly robust turnout of children. Toward the end of the scheduled time slot for the event (3-6 PM), Dad and us pups went inside to start up the fire which was much appreciated by Mom who came in with VERY cold hands! The fire turned out to also be quite cozy for the rest of us which maybe got our eyelids a little heavy.
How Zoe can sleep like that is beyond me (that is her on Mom’s leg). But as it turns out, neither of us were allowed to stay this comfy due to the astrological phenomenon that was also occurring that evening: A Blue Moon on Halloween. I didn’t find this all that fascinating but I guess it won’t happen again until like 2077 which sounds like a long time from now. Our aunts, cousins, far-mor, and more, started sharing pictures from their various locations of the moon which was kind of fun. Here are a few from our house:
The Halloween Blue Moon from Carlisle
FRIDAY:
As I mentioned, Friday – the so called Devil’s Night in which certain pranks/vandalism can occur – started early with a rare October snow storm in Massachusetts. Of course this was our first time spending this day in our new home so it didn’t seem rare for us (1 for 1 is 100% in my books).
The storm made the scenery very pretty and didn’t stop Zoe and I from playing in our yard. However, it was not so nice to the plants and trees in our yard and in the rest of the neighborhood and nearby trails. The snow being rather wet was therefore rather heavy resulting in smaller trees being completely bent over so that their tops were touching the ground as if they were praying to their god(s). Some branches of larger trees were also pulled to the ground or snapped completely off due to the weight of the snow, while others looked like they were slumped over by some depressing idea that winter is now upon us.
SUNDAY
Luckily, Sunday morning the sun came out and we were able to take one of our favorite walks: The Loop. The sides of the roads were still snow covered but the street, although wet, was clear and relatively devoid of traffic (cars and bikers). The few bikers that did pass us were all bundled up in winter gear and not looking too happy about the weather conditions – these are the bikers types that are on bicycles. I make this distinction because as we were nearing Prospect Rd, a whole slew of motorcycle bikers drove by which was an unusual site. Who knew that there was a CCMC (Carlisle-Concord Motorcycle Club)…at least that’s what we decided they were and they all forgot their club leathers. Along the way, I stopped and posed on one of the many stone wall that runs along the roads around here.
Aside from knocking down some branches, the storm also convinced a lot of the trees to drop their leaves. It was almost as if we had another storm in which the sky was dropping leaves and pine needles instead of water – in one form or another.
As I mentioned, a lot of the plants in our yard also did not fair well following the storm. Among those particularly damaged were the elephant ears, the potato vines, the impatiens, and the dahlias.
Too bad, since Zoe and I enjoyed looking at the dahlias in front of our wall when we would go for walks, or the elephant ears and dahlias by our gate in the backyard. The potato vines are OK but they do occasionally get in our way when we are in pursuit of some rodent or other.
The good news is that we were able to dig up the dahlias and elephant ears so they will be back next year. We also have some potato vine clippings in water and they have already sprouted roots so hopefully we’ll have more of these next year as well.
Montana Moments 