A Very Nice Sunday

It was sunny and cold when we woke up this morning but I'll take that over winter weather any day of the week.

Not much was planned for today, besides the normal Sunday NFL games, buy some gas for the FJ, and cook my weekly batch of brown rice, different beans for salads and burritos this week.

Knowing I had shoes that could handle the wet field dew, our first walk of the day was pretty early but after the two cups of daily coffee. Today I thought I'd pull another new pair of hiking boots out of my closet to make sure they were waterproof. I wanted to try them on this wet morning walk.

I had bought some Oboz Tamarack hiking shoes a couple of years ago and never used them because I couldn't make up my mind if I really liked them after I bought them. I had gone to the store to buy some Keen's but they were sold out and I was told they were getting great feedback on this model of shoe.

They also worked well in the wet field, were comfortable, but didn't feel as good as the last pair of Keens I had wore out. Since I've worn them in the field, no chance I'll sell them 'used' on eBay for any price close to what they are worth ... so I think I'll start wearing them a little bit each day to break them in before this winter.

It was another beautiful morning and Sadie didn't want to wait to long before she and Stella could start their exploring.

They didn't wait for me to take the picture above, by the time I looked down after taking the picture both of them were sprinting for the turn ... I didn't see any deer on the horizon but they obviously had found something of interest.

I finally caught up with them and let both of them roam at their own pace. No commands, just let them do what they wanted ... as long as Stella stayed within her boundary.

After taking a lot of pictures this time of day, late morning, I have come to the conclusion that might be the worst time of day to take pictures because of the lighting.

Both of the hounds were very active with scent tracking. We must have missed deer by minutes or half hours ... but they had been through this area very recently.

They don't know what to do ... obviously the deer scent is really strong but they don't see or know anything is in the area ... should they take off or return to where I am. I still had not said anything to them.

They are almost beside themselves with confusion.

While we made the last veer to the left to head the final leg home, they still had a lot of stuff to identify. Really that is what the majority of their nose activity is ... 'identifying' what has been in the area.

Finally Sadie decided she was coming in for the afternoon.

Between that last walk and the first football game at 1pm ... the hounds jumped into the FJ and we headed to Country Mart gas/mini mart. Their gasoline quality is rated a top tier plus their 91 octane gas has no ethanol in it. Since it was mentioned on the FJ forum that might be the reason for my warning lights on my dash ... I thought I'd give it a try. It's the same gas I put in the Z4.

While suffering through another Indianapolis Colts game ... only they won this time after blowing a lead ... I decided that as soon as the game was over I'd give Heidi not only a bath with shampoo but end it with a 20 minute soak in warm water and Epsom Salts for her skin.

She actually laid down in the water this time and almost fell asleep again. I was ready to pull her out of the tub if her nose went below the water line. It came close as her lips were underwater with her eyes closed.

After that it was time for the afternoon walk. How did I know that?? Stella was howling and Sadie was hopping up and down on her rear legs as if we were going for a ride in the FJ. It was already 5:30pm.

 
Once again I let the hounds roam at their pace. As Sadie and I were almost to the back of the field ... there was no sign that Stella had even made the first turn.

By the time we were walking parallel with the back edge of the field, Stella came running as if she had heard a gunshot somewhere. She is 'gun shy' but I did not hear anything.

She was really on her own pace during this afternoon walk. Sadie and I were heading for the last half of the walk and Stella was still at the back of the field.

She finally figured out I wasn't going to call her and she was way behind us.

That gave her and Sadie check out some places one more time before coming in.

Sadie was ready to 'call it a day' ... Stella had other plans.

Sadie and I were already back at the house. I went inside, loaded the photo card into the iMac and made sure Stella was still out there. I wanted to see if she would come home on her own.

It didn't take long for her to glance up and she could tell Sadie and I were not around. She sprinted from the back of the field directly behind the house all the way to the door ... she was happy to come inside.

With only one NFL game on local tv at 4:30, I've had it turned on in the background but while it was on I've washed hound bedding and vacuumed the house. I'm going to put air in the tires of the mountain bike and start riding that around the border of the field without the hounds.

It seems like a picturesque idea to have both bloodhounds follow along side me while I ride around the border of the field but there are two issues with that.

1. No matter what I am doing or where I am riding -- they would follow their nose at their pace.
2. If I ride along the edge of the field I will be going by the yards of three neighbors, places where I don't want Stella and Sadie to become familiar with. The old 'out of sight out of mind' theory works for them.

Big plans for Monday afternoon ... mowing the grass and mulching as many leaves as possible during that exercise. There are not many more times left to mow the yard for this year but a lot of leaves left on the trees. 

I can't complain about anything ... the weather has been great this fall and October is a week away of being over. I am hoping for a mild winter.

All is good today in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.

A Beautiful Saturday Morning

I stepped outside with my first cup of coffee this morning wearing cargo shorts and a sweatshirt only to see the old thermometer showing 46° ... but the sun was out.

Not a cloud in the sky and it actually felt like what I call "football weather". Looking at the print out tv schedule today, and yellow highlights of the games I want to watch ... not as many as past weekends but some good games that will fill the day and night. Basically that means I won't have to watch a lot of different games at once. Each good game will be on a different time without running into each other.

I had not finished my first cup of coffee yet when I glanced over from my computer desk to see Sadie sitting 'at attention' giving me the stare down to let me know it was time for a walk. Yet, from our first trip outside I knew the field was soaked and wetter than normal, with heavy dew and at 46° my wet feet would be freezing.

I grabbed my last cup of coffee .... THEN IT HIT ME ... A BRAIN FLASH!!!

I have had shoes in my closet for years, in brand new condition because they were made for hiking in the snow. They are The North Face Northortic Pro 2.0

They would keep my feet not only dry but warm. They are extremely light and I had only worn them outside during the winters when we walked in the snow or I shoveled the driveway. Why not give them a try?

So I changed from my old New Balance 'yard shoes' with a mesh outer shell, into these boots that came just above my ankle. I do have some brand new, never used, hiking boots on that closet shelf ... sitting up high to prevent Stella from inspecting them, but I thought these boots would fit the situation with the wet grass.

The hounds didn't mind the wet grass ... they were off in many different directions, almost in a hyper state of mind. Luckily with the dirt piles from moles being more wet than fine powder, neither were interested in having the dirt for a snack.

We had a couple of hawks flying above us but they are hard for me to catch with a picture ... this was the only picture worth posting.

It was a day where Sadie didn't want Stella to get away with something she might like and vise versa.

With all the scents deep into the brush along the fence line in back of the field, Stella recently has been going deep enough into that brush where at times you cannot see her. There is an old fence to keep her out of the field behind the field we walk but is low enough for her to jump if she saw deer.

A little different path on the way home. As we were in the section of field directly behind the house walking back to the house ... both hounds moved to the far left exploring the area we walked through to start the walk.

Even after arriving at home they still had to explore the field near their yard, the north border then the backyard instead of walking with me directly to the house.

In the meantime the North Face boots worked out perfect. They were very light in weight, very comfortable and kept my feet dry. I have no idea why I didn't think of them before today. They are now lined up with my other running shoes I wear for the afternoon walks and will be used every morning if the grass is wet.

My day of football starts in about 10 minutes but we will fit an afternoon walk in later today. The three hounds will assume their normal spots around the living room to sleep while I watch the games. Although Stella does not like it when I am yelling at the referees on tv and will wake up on occasion whining if she hears me ... LOL

A beautiful day here in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.

Hounds Survive Rain

Somewhere we lost a day this week. I have had a hard time believing today is already Friday.

There was a reason we didn't blog on Thursday. For most of the day we were shut inside with the surrounding area above the saturation point.

Each time I would step into the yard yesterday, water would come up around the edges of my shoes. Throw in the temperatures in the high 50s and it was a pretty easy decision to stay inside. It all started late Wednesday afternoon right after the hounds started home from visiting a friend.

About 15 miles from home it started raining at blinding speed and didn't stop. Later that night storms knocked out not only our internet signal for a short time but Directv was lost for about half of an inning in the Dodger/Cubs game.

Consequently Thursday didn't bring much action besides this. I guess the hounds didn't like feeling the water come up the sides of their paws. Heidi was not available for photos since her trips outside were an immediate right hand turn behind the yews and under the roof overhang each time she needed to go outside.

Today was a different story with sunshine trying to break through the overcast skies. Sadie and Stella were not outside long this morning before running to get back inside for their morning siestas.

Stella was still trying to wake up here this morning with her eyes closed.

It wasn't until a few hours after lunch, with hopes those extra hours would help dry the ground, that we had our first walk in two days.

With their fast start telling me the ground was okay to them ... we took off ... while water squished along the edges of my shoes with each step. The strange thing is, it gets wetter the higher the ground goes towards the back of the field.

There were plenty of deer scents to keep them interested but neither one stayed in one place for too long.

Stella follows a deer path in the thick brush.

Sadie continues to wait for me but I can tell she is anxious to keep moving on  ... she has places to go.

Then the normal nose exercises for each hound while Heidi stayed back inside with the temps barely crawling over 60°.

This is along the back edge of the field. Sadie is okay, but Stella tries to quietly sneak away into her 'no fly zone'.

Looking dismayed as usual, she returns to the house at the end of her walk.

With the overload of carbohydrates for lunch, it wasn't long before the hounds and I were down and out for an afternoon siesta for a few hours.

I will say the energy I felt with the Paleo Diet I followed for 16 months with meat, fish, chicken, eggs, fruits and veggies has disappeared with a large increase in carbohydrates, no meat, no fish, no poultry of any kind. It's been six weeks of a Vegan Diet and I am looking at making some adjustments.

We might see the World Series before November. It's one of my pet peeves when MLB runs too late in in the year. (Follow The Money) It will either be a good book, or a possible college football for tonight's entertainment.

In the meantime Sadie is letting me know we need to go for a 2nd walk to make up for the lost day yesterday. She has stood in the doorway staring at me the time I have taken to write and post this.

The fall temperatures are here in 'the tropics' of southern Indiana.