Hammock Time

This weekend was the first time our parents got to really try out their new mosquito abatement system that they are reviewing for the company Thermacell located in nearby Bedford. This was great timing since July in Car-lie-lee has been historically wet which has resulted in a large population of mosquitos being born … which is evident by the swarms of them we have been running into during our walks around the neighborhood lately and while running around our backyard. The even seem to find a way into our screened in porch.

The good news is the new LIV system seems to be defending our new downstairs patio from the little pests so we have been able to eat outside and watch the 2020 Summer Olympics from Tokyo on our outdoor TV.

Our attention briefly distracted from the beach volleyball match by the food in front of our Mother.

Yesterday afternoon, Dad broke out the hammocks that have been stored in our garage since we moved. I can’t even remember if Zoe ever enjoyed them back in Illinois. His idea was that they could “watch” sports from the yard while possibly taking a nap. Unfortunately, he was a bit short sighted in the original spots he set them up as they were outside the protected zone of the LIV which he discovered shortly after getting comfy when the skeeters descended on him. He claimed it was an appropriate control to the experiment on the viability of the system.

While conducting his experiment, I got myself curled up nicely on the lower level of the bunk bed hammock.

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That is until Zoe discovered my nice little resting spot.

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After a little of this “fun” I took a break in my crate inside the house – which just so happens to also be fairly mosquito (and Zoe) free.

Apparently, while I was away, Dad moved the hammocks inside the safe zone, and set up another one that we all forgotten we had. And as I then found out, there was a good reason not to remember that stupid death trap. And back in the house I went!

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The Tempest

FYI – the post from the other day that was blank was recreated and can be found at the URL below in case you did not receive an alert (😎):

Road Trip 2021: Part 3 – Alone Time (redux)

Road Trip 2021: Part 3 – Alone Time (redux)

POOF! As it turns out, the text and pictures from my post last night somehow disappeared (thanks to a few of my readers for the heads up about this snafu). This was after having it proofread and edited – very disappointing. You may be asking about the auto-correct feature of WordPress. Yeah, me too! So instead of just trying to re-post what was written last night, I will have to try and recreate it…and hope the Scribe successfully transcribes it and uploads it! It’s likely not going to be exactly the same but I’ll try my best. Here goes!

On our last night in Michigan, there was a dinner party in the backyard of one of our aunts…and Zoe and I were not invited! And having been there before, I happen to know Snowy lives right next door and I assume Mungo does as well so I suspect they’ll be in attendance. Of course, I don’t know for a fact that Mungo lives there but have deduced he lives at the same location as Snowy as he always arrived at Far-Mor’s house at the same time as her and would also leave when she did. Then I found photographic evidence on my parents iPhones that they sit on couches together and sleep on the same bed (which would not be permitted at Far-Mor’s – at least when she is watching).

But this is an aside from my real story of how we were left locked up in our respective crates as our parents and Far-Mor took off for the party. It didn’t seem like they were gone all that long of a time but without my Apple Watch to keep track of time it is anyone’s guess how long they were actually away plus I was enjoying a good snooze. But based on what Zoe accomplished in that time it may have actually been awhile.

You may ask if I have an Apple Watch and in fact I did for a short time.

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Of course with a glove on I couldn’t read my watch even with my glasses on, so I grabbed my bag and left the house…this was back in Illinois…and I haven’t seen the watch again.

Now being locked in our crate is a rarity since we moved to Massachusetts. First off, Dad is home pretty much everyday all day and Mom has spent most of her time in her office in our lower level. I will spend time in my crate in the evenings and Zoe will go into hers when she gets hot and doesn’t have access to the bathtub. There are times however that both our parents go out shopping and we have to go in our crate with the doors closed so we don’t wreak havoc on in the house while alone. We don’t mind going in because we always get a treat filled Kong and they aren’t gone for very long. In short, we have spent a LOT less time locked up in our new house.

This may be part of the reason Zoe got stressed when all the people took off and left us in the cool basement alone on a hot summer evening. So when I awoke upon hearing the front door opening and saw the chewed up pair of Mom’s jeans, a couple of Dad’s t-shirts and even the shredded up Big Barker bed that lined her crate. Her crate at home is often where clean clothes are set before being put away in their correct spot and she has never once done any restyling of any apparel – so I realized just how upset she really was. Then as soon as we were released, Zoe headed right out in the backyard and had a bout of diarrhea…poor girl.

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Our parents felt badly that she was so distressed that they didn’t get upset about the state of their clothes or her bed. However, they aren’t sure if the fashionista will have a career in design.

The Tempest

PS – this is the first time any of our Big Barker beds has suffered any damage and it took extreme circumstances.

Foraging: Low Hanging Fruit

Another quick entry that has nothing to do with our recent epic trip. This diversion is about one way we think Zoe has finally tipped the scale above 50 lbs (aim is still to get her to 55 so this may be why she continues this behavior). Surprisingly, this has nothing to do with the consumption of soap. In fact, she didn’t once go for the bar of soap 🧼 on the counter in the bathroom at our NM g-parents house in the mountains. Rather, this has to do with our blueberry and raspberry plants in the backyard. I have been discreet in not mentioning the blueberry bushes in the front yard, in part, because we are still doing work in our backyard and there is a section of fence that hasn’t been put back to it’s original form but would still be tough to escape through – not that both Zoe and I have investigated this site or anything. But given her (Zoe’s) current fixation I was afraid she might find a way through to get to the other bushes. Of course, she still has plenty in the backyard to munch on but my mother taught me to prepare for the worst…and be prepared for all eventualities. For instance, if I were to encounter a shark, I know s/he has no chance to bite me if I start dragging it backwards through the water as it will be unable to breath. Or, if chased by a bear, I know to speak in a soft monotone voice and wave my arms to let the animal know I am big bad Tempi! Oh wait… is that run downhill?

Anyhoo, I have skills and am prepared.

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Mmmm Raspberry

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And more raspberries!

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And the blueberries aren’t bad either!

Interestingly, Zoe found the bounty of these plants before they have even ripened. Luckily, she didn’t eat ALL the flowers off the plants so there were some berries for me (and if lucky), my parents!

The Tempest

Road Trip 2021: Part 2 – Meeting Mungo in Michigan

So upon reaching Michigan, we finally got to see our Far-Mor for the first time in what seemed like 7 years! But then again, we canines are not known for our recall of the amount of time that lapses between one event and the return of one of our pack. For instance, Mom had to actually go into work recently – and not the office in our lower level – and upon her return we were like: “WhoooHooo! When was the last time we saw you?”

Almost immediately upon our return, one of our favorite cousins showed up with her new brother: The aforementioned huMungo…the dog that grows daily. And moments later we were all taking a walk. This was obviously one of those human ideas that are meant to help us bond before we moved on to our Grandmother’s yard which each of us might consider our own territory. Of course, this notion arises from the fact that their noses…well suck – no offense. We (Zoe and I) had already had a romp around the yard and knew from their markings that Mungo and Snowy – and possibly a few other pups – had spent some time between those fences. And I assume, our scents were still present from our last visit. Be it as long as it as been…

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  OOO (the Ohio plate tic-tac-toe 😳).

Apparently, our Dad thought it was funny that we were all about the same height, we were all different colors and our under-tail orifices were all visible in a line (so immature).

Mungo staying a safe distance from the girl fight

Mungo’s apprehension in getting involved in our group romps through our grandmother’s backyard after he was reprimanded by Zoe for entering the tight confines of her kitchen when there was food on the counters and Zoe was still in her hunger zone. The, what we will call a bi*&%-slap from his elder cousin, was something that Snowy also learned hours after meeting Zoe. Of course, the Snowy incident occurred before Zoe had her pancreatic enzyme issues. But this time, it was when she topped 50 pounds again (thanks to her new meds)!

I say: Go Zoe! Just be nice to your cousins from now on – you will get your food.

Not long afterwards…

Chillin with my new cousin under the picnic table.

But there was still more fun to have: like dog piling our aunt (their mother):

Mugging Mungo and Snowy’s Mom during our football match.

And then there is our father confident he has control of the four of us (eye roll):

Dad thinking he is training the pack 😉!

And then there are those moments that Mungo expressed his own…personality?

Um, what’s Mungo up to?

And then there is this unique behavior of his 🤣.

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Mungo’s apparent new found enemy: fizzy bubbles from a coke bottle

But in the end, we, as pack animals will do, found our own spaces!

We each have our own seat to the show

But where are the minstrels to entertain us?

The Tempest

While we were away…

A quick aside from our travel log…

Apparently, we can’t leave this town for even a minute before all hell breaks loose. As soon as we returned to town we got the latest Mosquito in our mailbox and look at the top story! Pigs on parade across the village!

Luckily the Police Officer and others were able to lasso them and save the bacon for the town!

But if you look closely at this picture you’ll see the true (unsung) hero of this escapade. One of my own who no doubt did the bulk of the work in getting the pigs to safety.

The Tempest

-more soon about our road trip

Road Trip 2021: Part 1, MA to MI

Firstly, I must make the point that this was our first “real” trip since we arrived in Car-Lie-le MA. Sure we had a day trip to New Hampshire for a fall foliage drive by, and a couple of trips to the dog beach in Nahant, but none of these “trips” were what I would call over night expeditions. In fact, until this road trip to visit our families (packs) in Michigan and New Mexico, we have spent every night in our new homestead in MA – which quite frankly we enjoyed and rooted us in our new digs!

With that said, it was nice to really hit the road again with our entire pack: Me (The Tempest), Zoe-Zoe, Super Mom, and the Scribe!

Unfortunately, our father called for a reservation at a hotel in the Buffalo area but there apparently was some communication issue with the 1-800 number representative for the hotel chain, an inn that welcomes us canine children, but instead of getting a room in NY they ended up with one in Wichita Kansas! This was discovered when dad, doing his due diligence, checked the reservation confirmation email – which he looked at because the woman helping him kept asking about children and he kept saying dogs and he determined communication may have been a problem. Once the miscue was identified, mom called the Wichita hotel directly to cancel the original reservation and explained that Kansas was not New York…which the guy in Kansas immediately recognized was true.

So, the next step was to book a hotel along our intended travel route. Unfortunately, as we were starting our adventure on a Friday, all the hotels along the lake(s) were already booked – whether it be in NY, Pennsylvania, or Ohio! Finally, one of the people our mother called told her it was not going to happen as all hotel rooms for the summer weekends were sold out! Whether this was a result of the pandemic being “over”, or limited occupancy at each hotel, was not determined through her conversation, but what was clear is we’d have to go a different (and longer) road to Michigan!

As it turns out, the hotel we found in Grove City, Pennsylvania was just perfect for us pups – especially because it meant we didn’t have to hunker down in the Buckeye State of Ohio (a place we despise…apparently).

Unexpectedly, the sheets were so abrasive our Mom got what you might call rug burns from them on her elbows! Luckily, Zoe and I slept fine and there was a Sheetz gas station in the same parking lot as the Supercharger that had good breakfast options the next day. Oh, and once we were settled into our overnight accommodations we still had time to send our grandparents an email photo letting them know we arrived at stop #1 safely!

The Tempest

Ruby Slippers

Although we had a blast over the past 2+ weeks, traveling first to Michigan to visit our paternal and canineonical relatives there (and meet our newest cousin…Sir huMungo), and then on to northern New Mexico to visit our maternal grandparents, we must say there is No Place Like Home!

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Not that we didn’t have a blast and a huge number of adventures along the way (which I hope The Scribe will help me document over the next few days), but isn’t sleep always best in your own bed?

,Or better yet, if you have the opportunity to take advantage of your parents snoozing on the couch, to catch some Z’s on the clean sheets on their bed with no one around to mess with your paws…except the occasional Paparazzi!

If the creeper would just go away I could finally get some well deserved sleep!

More soon (I hope)

The Tempest