Maria’s view of Log Cabin Living

We saw our first robin yesterday, so I guess that Spring is on it’s way to Montana!  In a way, I’m sorry to see Winter leaving, but the freshness of a new season does bring a certain excitement and anticipation to us.   We’re anxious to see the wildflowers bloom, the grass and trees turn green, and the river rise.

The baby wrens pictured here were from last year.  The mom wren had moved into a birdhouse we put on a tree, and she raised her 5 babies there.  We watched her as she brought in sticks and twigs to build her nest.  Before too long, her eggs hatched and we began to hear the peeping of the babies. 

Some time later, the babies began to stick their heads out of the holes, as they hungrily waited for the mom to bring worms or bugs.  This was a seemingly endless process…all day long, mom wren would fly away and soon return with a tidbit for one of them.  I wondered if she could keep up with the 5 little ones’ hunger for food, but she did!   Did she ever find time for herself to eat? 

Then it was time for them to leave the nest, and we were thrilled to watch as each baby cautiously hopped out.  Hours later, after each of the babies had tried to return to the nest, some more than once (who can blame them?  it’s a tough world out there!), they ventured several feet away, into the brushy outskirts of our yard.  They found a heavily wooded bush and a pile of fallen limbs we’d gathered, in which they were able to play for hours, sheltered by the intertwining limbs.  They practiced hopping, perching, and even flew a little, their wings still not strong enough to support them in full flight.  I thought of a baby trying to walk for the first time, still unsure of just exactly what their legs will do.

 After several days and a lot of photo shooting, the little wrens had gained the strength to fly away.  And then they were gone.  We never saw them again.  Even I, as a spectator, felt something of an empty-nest syndrome.  Sure, it was a little quieter without them, but how we missed those baby wrens!

We just found out that my older sister, A, was diagnosed with colon cancer.  There’s no history of this in our family, but it does underscore the need for regular testing.  Yes, I know….we all get squeamish at the thought of that test (I know I do!!  Yikes!), but it saves lives.   “A” goes in for more tests this week, so everyone please keep her in your prayers, would ya’?  She lives in New Jersey, and I’ll be flying there, at some point, to be with her for surgery.  That’s all we know about it, so far.

She is only 2 1/2 years older than me.  A thing like this makes me really feel my age.  Usually, my mind feels like age 30…..if only I didn’t have to look in the mirror, I would think I am!  In truth, I haven’t seen 30 in a long time.  It’s funny how, as we age, we keep the same mindset, to a certain degree.  Of course, we gain wisdom (one hopes!), but we still have many of the same desires for fun and adventure that we did years ago. 

So that’s all for today.  It’s hard to write when I’m worried.. 

   This is the end-of-Summer view of the mountains, taken from the road to our cabin.  Our cabin is pictured in the 2nd picture.  I’ll tell ya’…sometimes, you could almost run off the road… it’s so pretty!  Even after a year, I’m still in awe of the scenery here in Montana.  I don’t know…for some reason, I never thought of Montana as a state with beautiful scenery.  In my head, I imagined it as a desolate place.  I realize now how crazy that idea was.  I thought the same thing about Utah, before Hubby took me there in 1980.  Turns out it’s one of the most gorgeous places you’ll ever see.

    We took this shot of a log home in the Beartooths this Winter, while on an afternoon ride not too far from home.  It had just snowed the night before, and we were anxious to see how pretty it all was.  We rode up to the East (or was it West) Rosebud river and cruised around enjoying the snow.  If I remember correctly, it was pretty thick, and we couldn’t go as far as we’d hoped.  The sun was going down in the sky, and we were stunned at how pretty this was.

Kinda’ makes you want to take a road trip, yes?

  I told you all about Daisy in a previous post.  Now, I’ll tell you about my other dog, Lucy.  She’s what I call “the intelligent one.”  She’s a sweet little dogs, and much calmer and quieter than Daisy.  Daisy, being a Jack Russell terrier mix, is very hyper and happy-go-lucky.  Lucy is more introspective… a thinker….a very devoted little pup.  She’s also the alpha dog.  At 20 pounds, she’s a little squirt.

Realizing that there’s a natural pecking order with dogs, I’ve always let “the girls” solve their own disputes.  Not that they fight or anything like that…not at all (well ok, occasionally over a bone)…but Lucy does feel the need to exercise her authority at times.  For example, if I’m petting Daisy, Lucy will strong-arm her way in by me, so that she can be the one being petted. 

I had rescued Lucy before I rescued Daisy, but under much less dramatic circumstances.  Lucy came from the same house…reputed at the time to be a crack house.  It seems that was true, because a few months later, there was a big drug bust at that same house.  But before that happened, Lucy, at about 4 months old, had been wandering around loose in that neighborhood during the cold of Winter.  A neighbor (and fellow animal welfare activist) told me about the poor little neglected tan dog.

My friend and I drove to the neighborhood and knocked on the door of the reputed crack dealer.  We asked them if they wanted the little dog.  They said no, take her.  So I did!  She was in good health and seemed to be well fed, unlike Daisy, as we later found out.

The thing about dogs is that, with them around, you can never get too much of a case of the blues.  Just the fact that they depend on you keeps you going.  And then there are their silly antics to keep you laughing.  They help to keep your mind off your troubles.  Yes, dogs are good medicine.

  In this picture, I’m sure the girls had no idea where they were being taken and what the heck was happening, as we moved me from Florida to Montana last February.  We stopped in motels for several nights, and one of our stops was at Mount Rushmore in South Dakota (a place I’d always wanted to visit).  Before we left Florida, I had bought harnesses and retractable leashes from Drs. Foster & Smith for the girls, and I was glad I did.  By the way, ’scuse how goofy I look…we’d been on a harrowing road trip in the snow and ice for several days!

  The girls, being terriers, absolutely love to dig for underground critters.  In this case, it’s moles.  Daisy does it for fun, but Lucy is very, very serious about her craft.  Consequently, Lucy has caught several of them.  Daisy… well, she has other good qualities!   They entertain themselves for hours with this sport.  

  This little dog can run like a speeding bullet.  I wonder if I can teach her to be a frisbee dog.  Trouble is, I’d have to put Daisy in the house.  I tried it with the frisbee once, but with both of them outside, there was too much confusion….neither dog could concentrate.

I remember when we first moved here (after all, it was only a year ago).  After having a small yard in Florida and never having been off the leash when out of that yard, they were able to run free on the property we have in Montana.  On the first day we let them outside, once Lucy discovered that she was “free,” she took off running ’round and ’round the house as fast as she could.  I swear she was smiling the whole time.   It was so cute to see her that happy!

   Last summer, we took the girls with us on an uphill hike on the Woodbine trail in the mountains nearby.  Hubby convinced me to let the girls off their leashes away from home, for the very first time.  I was a nervous wreck, but he insisted they would not run off.  And he was right!  They happily followed us on the trail, sniffing most everything, as we hiked along.  Once we got to the little wooden bridge that crossed this little river, the girls apprehensively crossed it with us.  We stopped to sit on the rocks and take a break, and Lucy promptly hopped into the rushing water.  It seemed as if she didn’t realize what she’d done, until she was already in the water.  I watched her closely, as she stumbled on the slippery rocks.  Then I called her out and rewarded her response with a ‘biscuit’…….one of the girls’ favorite things in the world!

Every day is a new adventure with the girls.  They light up my life.

     Is there anything quite as majestic as America’s beloved Bald Eagle?  I’m honored to have the good fortune of seeing them fly down the Stillwater River by our cabin every day.  They have continued to do it all Winter, passing us 2 or 3 times a day.  I haven’t seen one of them dive down and get a fish, though I’m sure I will one day.

Also gracing us with their presence are the huge Golden Eagles, though not as often.  But this week, the Golden Eagle seems to be stalking our house.  Is he after a rabbit?  A fish?  One of my dogs?  Yesterday afternoon, I saw him dive down at 5 Canadian geese who were happily floating on the river.  The geese all fled at once, as the eagle dove almost to water level and then swerved back up.  He didn’t grab any of the geese, so now I wonder… did he see a fish and the geese just happened to be in the way?  Or was he after one of the geese?

 It’s finally finished!  Hubby has finished his new DVD, and I believe it’s really the best so far.  He has it on our website, and we’re already filling orders for it.  He lived in Southern California for over 25 years, and this DVD has the best of Southern California’s rocky coastline, harbors, ferry rides, seals, tall ships, and surfers, accompanied by a beautiful musical score.  I’m very proud of him!

 http://facts.hillaryhub.com/  

I can’t keep politics out of this any longer.  Sorry guys, I feel compelled to say this:  It’s a crying shame that so many men are so afraid of a woman in a power position.  I have seen this fear many times in my lifetime.  Years ago, one man I knew repeatedly said he hated Oprah.  When I asked why, he had no answer.  Another time, he said he hated Barbara Walters.  Again, when I asked why, he had no answer.  After this happened several times, always with a woman in a position of power, he said he hated them….never having a reason, when pressed for one…I decided that a type of fear was causing this so-called “hate.”  This characteristic is evident in many men (not all men, of course) to whom I have spoken, over the years.  What I detected with them was a profound fear (either conciously or subconsiously) of women in power, which manifested itself as a type of hate. 

This alarms me.  I hope it does you, too.

I believe that, in spite of all that is said about her, Hillary Clinton would make a great president.  Further, being a brilliant person, she would realize the honor and magnitude of her being elected as the first woman president, and she would do everything possible to manage her presidency in a way in which all Americans could be proud.  She would understand the importance of her legacy to those who follow.

All I can say is that this will be one hell of an election.  

One day last summer, after a particularly hard rain (I love rain!), I was sitting on the deck and admiring the amazing view, when I noticed 2 turkey vultures had landed high in a tree, just up the river from our cabin.  I called Hubby to come and see, then I grabbed the camera and got a shot or two, and then we waited and watched.  Soon after, another vulture landed in the same tree…and then another.  Finally, there was a whole flock (do vultures call themselves a “flock?”) in that same tree.  Yes, I know it sounds crazy to be excited about birds in a tree, but ya’ gotta’ keep in mind… we’re in a remote location in Montana, so we get our thrills with stuff like this.

  We watched those vultures and soon realized why they had landed.   They hadn’t landed there to conduct an orchestra.  It wasn’t to practice their drama queen routine for an upcoming stage debut, either.  No, it was because the sun was just beginning to come out, and one by one, the vultures opened their wings.  They were drying their wings in the sun!  I wondered how they could keep their balance with their wings fully raised, but they did.  This went on for 1/2 hour or so, then one by one they flew away.

Hey, they’re not much to look at (understatement of the year!!), but it was a fun afternoon with the vultures as entertainment.   I didn’t give a lot of thought to things like this, when I lived in the city.  Now that I’m slowing down and admiring the view, it’s a trip to see what the birds and wildlife are doing….at least, to me and hubby, it is.  I wonder how many people never notice..

‘Scuze me…the Canada Geese are outside, cruisin’ on the river…gotta’ run!

With his sports picture collection proudly displayed on the vaulted ceiling in the loft, Hubby is so happy!  Now he can sit back in his chair at the computer and gaze at his favorite sports figures.  He loves all sports, and he has many favorite players (don’t ask me to name them….I go blank at the thought of most sports stuff).  Maybe you can see in the pictures who his favorites are.  There’s a lot of history in those pictures!

Hubby played college football at Montana State College (now MSU).    Let’s see if I can remember…oh yes, I remember now……he was an offensive guard.  And unfortunately, he’s got injuries that go along with it.

He has several cool trophies from when he played baseball as a kid in Brooklyn.  He went to a Catholic school, and they had a winning baseball team!  Who woulda’ thought?!  Catholic school?  Sports?  It just never occurred to me.

Me?  I was all thumbs and elbows, gangly and tall as a kid, so no trophies here…but I always secretly wished I’d somehow win one.

Since we got married, I’m trying to gain more sports knowledge, and I actually enjoy football and basketball now.  I especially like Steve Nash on the Phoenix Suns basketball team.  I had no idea a “short” guy (compared to his teammates) could play like that!!   Dammit baby, white men CAN jump!   I’m really looking forward to the playoffs, after getting familiar with Nash last year.  And now the Suns have Shaquille O’Neal (did I spell that right?), so look out Lakers!  

It was a busy day for Cowboy the cat…stalking birds, contemplating the meaning of life, posing for pictures, taking naps on the dog’s bed, and generally enjoying life.  He follows me around the yard, and even comes to the river with me and takes a long drink of the icy cold water.  Hubby is still amazed that a cat would follow a person.  I’m enjoying seeing how much he, a former cat hater, enjoys Cowboy!

Meanwhile, Daisy was playing in the snow, making a point of running as much as possible to keep her waistline trim.  At 6 years old (or is it 7?), she’s still like a puppy in many ways. 

Daisy is a rescue dog.  The previous owners almost killed her from neglect (it makes me furious to think of those idiots!).  As an animal welfare activist, I had heard about Daisy from a fellow activist.  She knew someone across the street from Daisy’s previous owner who told her about the little dog. 

So one day, my friend and I knocked on the previous owner’s door.  My friend, always fast on her feet, told the owner that we were from Animal Control and were following up on a complaint.  The lady went and got the dog and brought her outside, all the time holding her.  Long story short, after 45 minutes, we talked the lady into handing me the dog, after telling her the dog would die without veterinary care.  After she handed me the emaciated dog, we immediately turned and left in my friend’s car.

My friend and I were so appalled and disgusted at the dog’s weakened and emaciated appearance that we discussed involving Animal Care and Control to press charges against the owner, but we decided not to, realizing that they would take the dog as “evidence,” and I didn’t want to give her up.

The vet’s office was closed, so I took the dog home with me, planning to take her to the vet in the morning.  The dog was skin and bones and was so weak that she could not stand up.  I determined that she was not only starved, but she was severely dehydrated, too.  She hadn’t even been given any water!!

That night, the dog began convulsing, which scared the hell out of me.  I stayed by her side for hours, and it occurred to me that her name should be “Daisy.”  The next day, the vet took the dog as an inpatient for 3 days, warning me that the dog would probably not survive.  Somehow, I knew she would survive!  The vet said that without care, the dog would have been dead within 24 hours, due to the severe dehydration.  She told me the dehydration had caused the previous night’s convulsions.  Daisy was in “intensive care” for 3 days.

Once I brought her home, she still had trouble standing up.  I gave her tender loving care, as she began to gain weight and become stronger.  It took 2 months for her to get her full strength back, and then look out!  She’s part Jack Russell terrier, and I found out quick how active they are! 

She has a happy go-lucky, adorable personality.  What a sweet, loving little dog.  How could a person treat her the way those people did?!