A Beautiful Saturday Morning

The day started with one of the strangest dreams I've had in a while. Maybe it was because it woke me up, but I remembered a few of the details of the dream.

It was so strange because I was confused why I needed to go to a job from 25 years ago. I was late for work and couldn't figure out why I was even going to work, since I thought I was retired.

I had some of my past hounds playing in the house with none of them being bloodhounds. It was so weird to see the old Winston wrestling with himself as a puppy. The other two basset hounds were laying in the sunshine sleeping and I was still trying to figure out why I was going to work if I was retired. Had something changed?

So I was more than happy to open my eyes to see Sadie standing next to the bed staring at me at eye level with that look she has every morning "I have to go outside". The bedroom was so full of sunshine I had no idea what time it was and from the dream I wasn't even sure that day it was. To say I was confused would be a compliment. I knew I needed coffee and I needed it as fast as possible.

I could tell it was extremely cold outside as I changed into my clothes, because the storm windows were covered with frozen ice. As I walked through the kitchen to let the hounds outside, my iPhone weather app told me it was 13° with hopes of getting all the way up to 38 by this afternoon.

The hounds made their normal first trip outside while I poured their breakfast kibble. Once inside Heidi sprints for her bowl, Stella starts howling with excitement and Sadie goes into her hopping up and down routine ... to bad that exercise does not help her lose weight.

I have to have both of their bowls of food sitting high on a shelf because I cannot have them on the floor when they walk in ... each bloodhound will do anything to eat both bowls of food. Yet, they never both Heidi or her bowl of food.

By 10:30am it was up to 21° although the 'feels like' was only 9°. A perfect time for a walk.

The field was covered with frost, the air was crisp but it did not feel as cold as 9°, in fact it felt a little warmer than yesterday's morning walk. With the down parka and ski gloves I was very warm.

I would really like to find out what is buried so deep inside those frozen leaves and grass that Stella and Sadie find so interesting. The times I have walked to where they have their noses plastered to the ground, I don't find anything most of the time.

Sadie turned one last time to see if Stella was coming and then took off for her walk. She is the perfect hound for walking. She keeps up, still wanders off following her nose, yet never falls too far behind ... and will come when called. Even Winston use to lag way behind at his own pace and at times in June before they baled the field he would get no further than the corner of the house barking the whole time we were gone. I still miss that hound a lot.

At this point I am almost to the corner of the field where we veer right. I could tell by Stella's lack of movement it was be the same for her as it has been the past week or so. She will not get as far as the first corner and will walked toward the neighbor's wooded area without heading our direction.

An interesting leaf ... makes me want those 100° days in July.

The cold weather had energized Sadie. She was running everywhere and at times faster than I could keep her in the view finder of the camera. The camera caught this strange stance ... she was actually moving at the time.

She tracked a lot of area today but never stayed long whenever she stopped.

In the meantime there was still no sign of Stella as she was off in her own little world.

Hard to believe I walked into the same pile of frozen dirt causing me to stumble forward with the same sore toe from previous accidents. I was still able to hang onto the camera and decided it might be time to move back to the steel toe hiking boots in our next walks.

As I was about to make the final turn toward home, look who I see up on the horizon staring right back at me. Does she come when I call her name ... not a chance. She went right back to eating deer scat.

Sadie decided to go check on Stella without me saying a word today. I kept walking and knew I'd have to walk over to Stella before she would move. I can't say that I am a big fan of her recent routine and can't wait for it to change.

I kept calling her name as I got closer. I might as well kept my mouth shut from the response she was giving me. Not until I got within a foot of her, did she left her head and walked over to me. I guess she expected me to hook her up to the leash, but I never took it out of my pocket.

It didn't matter what she was doing, at least the morning was beautiful with bright sunshine, clear blue skies and higher temps on the way.

The highway in this picture is a lot further away from her than the picture shows. I'd guess Stella is about half way between the highway and the path I am on ... that's a lot of field between us.

I don't care for Sycamore trees in general but this one is still nice to me. I had two more like it on the bank along the driveway until the straight-line winds pulled them out of the ground like weeds in June 2008. After they fell they covered all of my front yard.

When the ground is really saturated and winds get up in the 60mph range I wonder if that tree will fall like the others did. I hope not because if it fell due north like the others, that will be right down the center of the house.

It might be time this summer to have a crew come in and trim the top 25% off but I always hate seeing that happen to trees. If you look at the far right tree you will notice it does not go as high as the other 3 limbs.

The top of that limb was struck by lightning in that 2008 windstorm and fell onto the corner of my carport. It was long enough to be sitting on the ground at an angle, damaging the corner of the house and a good 6' above the roof.

By the time I almost to the house, the hounds were happy to go inside where they instantly fell asleep, which will last until lunch kibble is served.

No plans today but continue reading my books. I guess I should start giving some of the books I read a title and author. I guess today I will take the chance of hearing some sort of backlash and tell you what I am reading. In today's world on social media, phone calls with old friends or those that have family dinners ... hardly anything can be discussed anymore about current events without an argument starting.

So the book I started reading yesterday afternoon and couldn't put down, forcing myself to turn off the lights and go to bed at 3am is by Roger Stone -- "The Making of the President 2016". It's a great book and shows just how close it was to having a different result in this years election, plus all the action behind the scenes you never read about.

I tried to head a different direction in subject matter yesterday in the library, but I pulled this off the 'new' book shelf. After this is finished sometime today or tonight, I'll flip into an old John Grisham novel for a change of pace. I still have plenty of books on my personal bookshelves that have never been read, yet some have been read three or four times.

No plans today except reading and another late afternoon hound walk. Did you like two posts in one day or prefer one long post showing up in the 6-7pm range?

I have stated in previous blog posts that I am a football addict but it's the same this year as many years before ... I don't watch nor read anything about the upcoming Super Bowl. I'll not turn my tv on until the exact time for kickoff and will not only turn down the sound but will turn the tv off at halftime of the game. I really wish we could separate sports and politics.

I figure by Monday I will be back at the library to turn in the two books I have now and search for more reading material. I am addicted to reading right now. Any suggestions for good books to read, any of your favorites?

I am happy and the hounds are happy today in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.

2012 Mini Cooper S Countryman Passes Test

That title may not draw a many regular readers but it's purpose is actually for those in the future that will find my review at the bottom of this blog due to Google spiders indexing it.

There might be someone like me that will be looking for some owner experience in the Mini Cooper Countryman and would like to know what it does in general terms.

So for those that have arrived, maybe curious ... we are starting with the normal hound's morning walk photos. Just as many as usual with only one picture of the Cooper Countryman at the bottom of this post to show the results of my test for it today.

It was very nice to feel the temps in the 40's as we stepped outside this morning. The skies look like rain maybe but by that time I'll be sunk into my couch watching an Indiana basketball game at 12:30am, where I do not expect them to win. That will lead me to the game I really want to watch today around 3pm ... the Washington vs Alabama football game.

Once again the team that I will be cheering for probably will not win ... The Dawgs of Washington. They could but probably won't. Then we will finish the evening with the Clemson vs Ohio State game, one that I don't care who wins nor do I care about either team. Yet, they are part of the 4 team playoff for college football.

I let the hounds roam at their own pace while I walked mine this morning. I was actually more interested in the 'sky show' I was seeing with different cloud formations ever direction you turned.

The normal storm systems will travel north of me and south of me ... it seems. That does not matter if it is winter snow storms or spring tornadoes. For years I have watched them split at the Indiana/Illinois state line and then follow I-70 to the north and the Ohio River to the south. We will still get some severe storms here in 'the tropics' but not nearly as much as those 70 miles north of us.

Stella was in the mood to keep up with Sadie today. I'm not sure what her thought process was but she was interested in following Sadie.

All the pictures look the same to me, at times bore me but then after downloading them and looking at them closer I can usually see something slightly different that my eyesight did not.

One thing I did notice this morning though were both hounds moving deeper into the wooded area, the tall dormant grass and even into the top part of the gully.

They were both thrilled to be back at their 'happy hunting grounds'. I could tell from the start that neither of them were going to leave too soon and most likely I would be on my final approach to home, after making the final turn.

It wasn't so much the tower nor the turkey farms that caught my attention in this picture ... it was the sky.

In these next 7-8 pictures you can see the difference between Sadie and Stella. Notice that Sadie is looking at me and probably cannot see me clearly but they sure do look like they are looking right at you even from a far away distance.

Sadie will ALWAYS come toward me after looking at me if she knows I am pretty far away. Okay, there are those few times where she doesn't but I would say that happens less than 1% of the time.

She will run in my direction without being called.

Whereas Stella may look right at me but that does not mean she is going to come running towards me. She is just the opposite of Sadie where if she does come my direction, it is less than 1% of the time time.

She will always stare at you, then turn the opposite direction and go back to what she was doing and doesn't have a care in the world what is going on around her. I wonder at times when she does this, if she will ever come home if I were to ignore her and keep walking.

Still has no intentions of heading Sadie and my direction.

Then with an abrupt left turn she will start her gallop usually right into my leg where she can nudge me with her nose to let me know she is back or she is there.

You might think snow is on the way but it's to be in the 50's for the next few days before going back to the daytime highs in the 20's.

While Stella, Sadie and I were finishing our morning walk ... I decided I was going to take the Mini Cooper Countryman out a different road but it would be a 'true test' for what this car could do. The Edmund's review says it can do everything the FJ can do EXCEPT climb large rocks and rutted roads where you have less than 4" of ground clearance. It also has 20 cubic inches less in the cargo area. All things I knew before making the trade.

I decided to head out to my friends house, the same road the hounds and I took in the summer, out through the cornfields, gravel and hard packed dirt roads. We blogged and took pictures of that local trip.

I wanted to try out his driveway. It starts with a 60° or steeper incline with sharp left and right curves. He says if you don't have 4x4 you will not make it ... I noticed the other day his wife was driving a Toyota Rav4 so I was pretty sure 'The Countryman' could do it.

It climbed without any problem. Having the manual transmission was a plus I think in all of this testing today, especially the driveway. The first half of the road test was mostly gravel, semi loose gravel since they had just laid a single lane of new gravel in preparation for winter snow and rain. At times this same road will washout due to the small creek that runs the full border of the road.

I came to a T in the road where I decided to take a left instead of the normal right. I had a vague idea where it would end up but I had no idea what the road was like getting there. The road went up and down, sharp curves, maybe 1-1/2 lane but a lot of time just 1 lane ... all on hard packed gravel and dirt with occasional mud. It had blind corners on top or just past a steep hill, not knowing if traffic was coming from the opposite direction.

The All4 drive performed just as described, whether it was on loose gravel, hard packed dirt or spots of mud. Sometimes the lanes were worn down enough I wondered if 4" clearance was going to be enough ... but each time it was. Those gravel/dirt roads later turned into some new pavement with the same type of up and down hills, sharp curves and narrow roads.

The Countryman naturally went into it's sports car mode and handled just as good as my BMW Z4, although the Z is a smoother ride, has more power but at no time did I feel a lack of response from the Mini Cooper S 181hp engine.

Once again I feel good about the transaction and am finding out there is not much I am missing with the Toyota FJ. I definitely like the 34mpg gas mileage I am getting in all types of driving.

Well the hounds need a quick 'pre-game' break outside to dump their tanks and then I'll be on my football game marathon for the rest of the day.

I am still deciding on which direction to take on buying new tires. I have barely enough tread left on these Pirelli Run Flat tires that came with the car.

Happy New Year from 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.

Lost Track Of Days

Every since I retired in April 2014 I find it normal that I lose track of days. With our fast paced lifestyle her in 'the tropics' it's really not a big deal when that happens.

Whether it is Wednesday or a Saturday the hounds have the same routine, even on declared holidays.

So as we were out this morning, me with a cup of coffee in hand while Sadie and Stella walked around the field, I realized I had no idea what day of the week it was. Luckily the print out I have for the college football bowl games on tv reminds me not only who is scheduled to play that day or night ... but shows me the day of the week. How convenient is that?

Even with my cup of coffee in my hand and no camera, Sadie still gave me that stare she has when she wants to walk.

When I told her "not yet" ... she went back to what she was doing.

It wasn't long though ... just one more cup of coffee ... then we headed out to enjoy a beautiful sunny morning, no wind and a crisp feeling to the air.

The hounds were more than happy to get started ... meanwhile back inside the house, Heidi was in full winter mode and had not come up for air while sleeping under a sleeping back, every since she had finished her breakfast kibble. That routine in the winter cold temps is nothing new for her ... she has done this every winter since I brought her home in 2011.

The hounds were on their own as I walked. I could tell early in this walk that Stella had different things to check out and most likely would not be walking with Sadie and I. She was good though, getting back to us without being called.

When I zoomed in for this picture I knew Stella had no intentions of following our pace.

That never bothers Sadie as she sprinted past me on the path and headed for the back of the field. Even at 34°, it felt warmer than the pictures show.

Has Stella even moved since we left that spot? Even lifted her head from the ground?

Then out of nowhere, she decided she had better catch up with us.

Just as she glanced to her right up to the far corner of the field, while Sadie and I were heading home ... she made a quick left turn only to be interrupted by something her nose found.

Not to be fooled into who was really in control of this walk ... she took off trotting to a corner that is about as far away as she could get. Sadie and I continued our path home ... I was really curious what Stella would end up doing. I wondered if it was going to be one of those days where Stella lags so far behind that she is out of sight as I would make my last turn home.

But just like before she started trotting our way. With her nose to the ground she followed our steps along the edge of the field and evidently smelled Sadie and changed direction to come right at us.

Maybe she was getting cold and wanted to get home, I'm not sure. She let Sadie know she was headed home.

By the time I am almost at the edge of the backyard, Sadie gave me that stare again ... only this time she wanted to stay outside.

Stella was in no hurry to come inside either so I let them roam while I picked up more twigs around the yard on the north side of the house. When I made it back up the hill after a quick trip to the mailbox, both of them were waiting for me at the door, thinking I had left them and had gone inside.

Stella had to come to remind me it was time to feed them lunch. A quick nudge by her nose gives me the first warning shot, after that she will move to the howling stage which gets Heidi out of her deep sleep into a barking mode. I find out within 30 minutes if I am really behind in the feeding schedule.

I tried getting a picture of Heidi today to let everyone know that she really does have a pulse and actually gets outside her (mine) sleeping bag. She was so quick I barely caught her as she was moving under the yews and out to the front yard.

Stella debated whether to head out to the field or back inside. She is also not a fan of cold weather and since this morning, winds had picked up and was blowing freezing air from 15-20mph. She turned and went back to the house with Heidi and I.

Sadie never cares how cold, how much rain or snow ... she just loves being outside. I let her hangout in the field for almost an hour, then I hooked Stella up to the retractable leash and went for a 'supervise' afternoon walk. The winds were stronger and the air was colder coming from the west. Sadie was happy with a 2nd walk and was quiet the rest of the afternoon.

While they spent the rest of the afternoon sleeping, I spent time setting up all of my new spreadsheets for 2017. Seems like it was a pretty fast year and some of the spreadsheets were showing some interesting results over the past year.

It is another night of no interest in watching the 3 college football bowl games being televised so it might be back to book reading or watching a movie.

I almost forgot ... Heidi had a 20 minute soak in warm water and Epsom Salts. She likes that enough that she almost lays down in the water but that would put her head barely above water. Her skin looks good but compared to past Decembers, it's about the normal condition for this month. I've thought for the longest time this year her skin problems are airborne allergies.

As long as the sunshine is out, we are happy here in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.