Spartacus

First Hot One – Day 589

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Spartacus – Photo: L. Weikel

First Hot One

I wasn’t sure how I wanted to title tonight’s post. Obviously, it’s a commentary on Spartacus’s sprawling position under the birdfeeders today. With his toy and a bottle nearby (albeit of olive oil), you would be forgiven for assuming Spart had partaken in a night of debauchery. Instead of “First Hot One,” I nearly named it, “What a Night!”

I chose  “First Hot One,” because like clockwork, the solstice occurs and we get slammed with oppressive heat and humidity. And that definitely was the case today, although I know the humidity can (and will) get even worse.

But today was one of the first days of truly summer weather. The thunderheads gathering in massive, billowing threats on the horizon struck fear in our hearts as we crested the first hill on our shorter trek. A jagged flash of piercing lightning struck just ahead of us, and almost instantaneously a massive thunder clap let us know that jagged strike had issued forth much closer than was comfortable

Sheila’s daily constitutional would have to be cut short tonight, which was not a welcome development for either of us. I needed a walk. Desperately.

Crisis Averted

Why? Because unbelievably (in hindsight), I tried to help my laptop complete its Windows 10 update (which it insisted on telling me day after day was needed) but which it kept informing me was unable to be consummated because I didn’t have enough memory on my laptop. So I bit the bullet. I took care of business with an external hard drive and moved some files around.

And I forgot Mercury was retrograde.

I actually forgot that messing around with my laptops when Mercury is retrograde has not ended well for me in the past. Indeed, I’ve even written about some of those debacles – at length – and the disastrous results that, for one thing, explain why I write all of my posts on my Apple instead of the Dell.

How did I forget the sins of my past?!

Black Screen White Cursor

Well, that just goes to show how we can get lulled into a sense of complacency and then – bam!

All of a sudden, I was looking at a black screen. Not a blue screen of death (thank goodness), but a black screen that I couldn’t coax into doing anything else. No control-alt-delete. No holding the power button down for a really, really long time. Nothing. In fact, it looked as though the power was off, although eventually a white cursor seemed to randomly show up. But that was it, the only concession the machine would make to me bringing it inside. (Karl insisted it was probably just hot.)

And that’s when it hit me that I’d been to this rodeo with this stupid computer (the Dell) – once before – during Mercury Retrograde.

All’s well that ends well (so far anyway). It looks like this snafu may have been connected to the Windows update.

Would someone please remind me never to update Windows again when Mercury is retrograde?!

After all was said and done, believe me when I say that I felt like Spartacus looks in that photo above. Worn the heck out.

So much for the first hot one of the season.

Thunderheads matching my mood! – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-522)

Cuteness – Day 554

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May I have more, Mommy? – Photo: L. Weikel

Cuteness

Sometimes cuteness is the only thing that gets me through the day. Especially lately. Not my own, by any stretch of the imagination. Good grief. No…I’m talking about the irresistible expressions of adorableness that I enjoy every single day at the paws of my familiars.

I cringe at the thought of imagining life without the daily dose of joy I receive from my pups and kittens. And even the fact that I refer to my old chunks of fur (none of my three cats are younger than at least 7 years old) as kittens tells you how cherished a place they hold in my heart.

It’s odd that I’m sitting here writing about the cats, though, when it’s Spartacus who’s been taking the cuteness cake lately.

Innocent Delight

Just that face; I mean really. I let Spartacus lick clean a container of yogurt the other day and this was my reward a few minutes later. The innocent delight was palpable. I could not look at him without grinning myself – and day after day I keep realizing just how precious it is to have a reason to smile.

Tonight, as I was sitting here contemplating what I could write this evening that might distract us all from, well, everything that’s going on in our world right now, I could hear Karl calling to Spartacus. Karl was trying to talk him into going upstairs with him because he’s such great company.

But take a look at where Spart was at the time he was being summoned by Karl:

Spartacus, wedged and cuddling – Photo: L. Weikel

He was wedged between my legs and the cushions of our couch. His ears curled just slightly when he heard Karl calling his name. I knew he was tempted. There’s nothing worse to Spart than being asked to split his loyalties and choose between us. But I could tell, at least for the time being, he’d found his sweet spot.

Sheila

It’s hard for me to write so much and so often about Spartacus, when he quite literally would not be here if it weren’t for Sheila. Not only is she his mother, but she also was our first dog as a family. It was a monumental decision for us to decide to get a puppy. We’d always been cat people. And let’s face it, cats train their owners; dogs, however, require a completely different skill set (beyond love, which it goes without saying is necessary for all animals).

Sheila changed our lives. If she hadn’t turned out to be the best addition to our family, Spartacus wouldn’t even have been a glint in our eye. It makes me sad now that she is so deeply ensconced within her own inner world, having lost her sight to cataracts and her hearing to old age.

And that’s not to say that she doesn’t still exude a ton of personality, as I realize I’m not shy in sharing with you. And she is the epitome of cuteness – even still – as the old gray-muzzled hound she’s become.

Part of the Family

I’m so grateful for all the animals that share their lives with me. Of course, my life wouldn’t be nearly as rich or entertained without my Sheila, Spartacus, Precious, Cletus, and Tigger. But I’d also be lost without the variety of animals that cross my path each day, lurk in the woods beside our garage, visit our feeders, prance around our compost pile, or grok at me as they swoop in to snag a peanut.

All of the creatures I’m lucky enough to share life with are a part of my family. And sometimes they’re the only ones whose cuteness can brighten my day.

(T-557)

Any Port in the Storm – Day 553

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Tigger and Spartacus snuggling – Photo: L. Weikel

Any Port in the Storm

Hey, sometimes it’s just nice to have somebody at your back. Or as my mother used to say, “Any port in the storm.”

Clearly that had to have been what Tigger and Spartacus were thinking the other day when I happened upon this surprising snugglefest taking place on our bed. When I walked up the wooden pie-shaped steps from our kitchen into our bedroom, I fumbled for my phone to capture the unexpected cuteness of the moment.

You can sort of see that Tigger woke up during my effort, which annoyed and disappointed me. They were so cute.

The photo above is ok, and it almost captures the magic – but not quite. If you can imagine it, when I initially walked into the room (in my defense, the wooden stairs do squeak), they were laying in that same position, spine to spine, but Tigger’s head was down and they were both very obviously completely at home and at peace, and deeply asleep. Surprisingly, their trust in each other was complete.

How Rare Is That?

All of which sort of makes me wonder. How rare is that, really? We hear talk of cats and dogs being natural enemies, but I think a lot of that is hype. In fact, in a lot of ways, that supposed rivalry seems more like propaganda that’s oddly based in human gender stereotypes than true feline/canine rivalry or inherent dislike.

I’ll bet almost everyone reading this knows of cats and dogs that have lived beyond peaceably within their own home. Heck, I’ve even witnessed Cletus (who we can all agree is beautiful but a real jerk, what with all his hissing and biting and unwarranted lashing out with claws at no provocation) walk up to Spartacus (who can become wild-eyed and a jerk himself if you try sticking your muzzle into his food bowl) and first flaunt his tail directly in Spart’s face and then turn around, chirrup at him, and groom Spartacus’s ear.

I thought for sure it was going to be curtains for both of them the first time I saw Cletus sidle up to Spartacus that way.

And I’ve seen all three of our cats cuddle with both dogs periodically. I remember having lots of photos of White Satan cuddling with Sheila and Spartacus. And at first, I thought the pups were simply being kind to him, realizing that he didn’t even comprehend that his behavior was socially inappropriate, since he was deaf. But apparently that wasn’t the case.

Makes Me Wonder

So much of what we think is based on stuff we’ve been told all our lives. Much of what underpins our belief systems are thoughts and opinions that we actually have never had to form through personal experience. We’ve simply taken someone else’s word for it. Usually, it was our parents’ word for things, but also our teachers’, our friends’, and the thoughts, prejudices, and assumptions of people on television.

It makes me wonder what life could be like – especially in our country, now, when so many seem to loathe those who aren’t like them – if we could just drop the hype and be real with each other.

Any port in the storm.

If we’re not careful, we may soon experience our own personal ‘any port in the storm’ moment, causing us to care for or be cared for by those whom society, or our parents, or even our president, has told us we should fear or loathe or judge as less than. Maybe then we’ll realize the truth.

What will we do then? How will we love? Will we snuggle up and keep each other warm against the cold?

Sheila, Spart, and White Satan – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-558)

Not Fair – Day 516

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“She took my bowl” – Photo: L. Weikel

Not Fair

Sometimes life’s not fair.

Good grief. If that’s not an understatement of the century, I don’t know what is.

And of course, images and knowledge of the hell so many are enduring right now spring to mind almost without bidding. Fairness? There’s very little ‘fairness’ in anything we see playing out around us.

And so, of course, I am not invoking the suffering of so many of our brothers and sisters, neighbors and friends, and the many people we don’t know, have never met, and probably will never encounter in our lives – those who are either suffering acutely from Covid-19 or are trying to help those afflicted survive it.

Nope. I’m going for a scootch less serious here, folks.

Always the Puppy

I took the photo above this evening after I witnessed Sheila, who is blind and deaf and over 15 and a half years old, hone in on a bowl of icing I’d put on the floor in front of Spartacus. (Not a full bowl, of course. How could you even imagine such a travesty? No, just a bowl ‘to be licked.’)

Sheila was asleep. Spartacus got a few licks in – maybe three – when she opened her rheumy eyes, raised her unsteady carcass, and lurched across the room with a single minded focus that was impressive, I must admit.

Spartacus didn’t know what hit him. Well, yes he did. Sheila immediately grasped the solid, hefty glass bowl in her determined little mouth and pulled the bowl away from Spartacus, who had his face fully immersed in it. He didn’t growl; but neither did he yield. He stuck with it for another couple licks, but Sheila would have none of it.

Or rather, she would have all of it. She dragged it halfway across the room, this bowl that’s so heavy there’s no way she’d be able to lift it. But she dragged it far enough that he got the message.

And that’s when I snapped the photo. His look said it all. “She took my bowl. I’m sad. But there’s nothing I can do. She’s my mom.”

Good Boy

Karl and I told him what a good boy he was for sharing, even if it wasn’t entirely voluntary. And we paid extra special attention to him, which in Spartacus land, is every bit as sweet as any icing he might score. Plus, we knew he’d gotten in a couple good licks – that was why I’d given the bowl to him in the first place. I knew Sheila’s sense of smell remains unerring – and her love of icing may only be eclipsed by her passion for ice cream. I knew she’d be on it like lightning, no matter how deep in Dreamtime she might initially be.

We show love in so many ways. Whether we’re humans or canines, a little bit of patience, a choice to be kind or generous, a gesture of compassion. Every time we show or do any of these toward another, we make life here on Earth a little bit better.

So before you say or think, “Not fair” today, may you give a nod to Spartacus and share your bowl of icing with those you love the most – with nary a growl nor a grudge.

Yin/Yang – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-595)

DST Arrives – Day 483

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Spartacus Making a Warm Spot – Photo: L. Weikel

DST Arrives

I’ll admit it: For the most part, I enjoy the extra daylight tacked on to the end of our days during Daylight Savings Time. Part of the reason, I suppose, is rooted in the fact that I’m generally a ‘night’ person, and I become more and more animated as the day wears on. Which is why I’m finding it a little distressing today, as DST arrives, to be reacting physically to it in a most illogical fashion.

I’m barely able to keep my eyes open!

I’m writing this post significantly earlier in the evening than I normally do. Which means that, from my body’s perspective, I’m writing even earlier than when I would usually consider earlier!

Exquisite Weather

Lucky for me (and those who live in my neck of the woods), the weather today was luscious. It was a perfect spring day – and by that, I mean the clear blue skies and gentle, cool breezes made me want to laugh, and walk zig-zag in the road, and breathe deeply.

Yes, it’s early in March to have such balmy temperatures. And yes, daffodils are probably going to bloom sometime this week, judging by how much they grew just in the past few days – and that does feel quite a bit too early.

But it was so liberating to walk without a jacket on! Funny, how the little things in life make us feel lighthearted and hopeful.

Tomorrow Should Be Even Better

They’re forecasting that it could get close to 70 degrees out tomorrow. A bit too warm for March 9thif you ask me, but I’ll take it. And I’ll run with it! Well, erm, no. I’ll walk with it. Not sure how far, but I did manage to walk six miles today, so I’m cautiously optimistic.

Which reminds me. Pretty soon – one of these evenings – I’m going to have to recapitulate my walking milestones from over the past year. Since I turned 60 on my last birthday, I’ve made a concerted effort to walk more than I used to. Now I have to tally things up. And then, perhaps, set new goals. We’ll see.

Puppies

In the meantime, it’s time for me to hit the sheets. It may not make a ton of sense that I’m more tired after ‘springing forward’ but it’s the truth for me. And I ask you: how could I resist the opportunity to snuggle with my Spartacus, who’s upstairs, as we speak, ‘making a warm spot’ for me in our bed?

And Sheila…well, she’s being her usual amazing, loving self, waiting patiently for me to finish what I’m writing so the two of us girls can make our way upstairs. She’s the best.

Remember, it’s a full moon today (Monday the 9th, when you’re probably reading this). Be extra kind to yourself today. Try to get outside, even if it’s only for a couple minutes, and allow yourself to drink in the sunshine and warmth. Sink your roots into the Earth and feel yourself connected to Her – solid, balanced, centered, and peaceful.

And if you’re not sure how you feel, smile. Everything will feel better if you do.

Sheila Snoozing With Her Monkey – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-628)

Remorse or Retaliation – Day 327

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What? – Photo: L. Weikel

Remorse or Retaliation?

Just look at that face.

This is what greeted me when I returned home this afternoon.

I don’t think the title to this post poses a legitimate question. Not if you take a close look at her mug. I’m pretty sure Sheila is not too subtly giving me the proverbial paw and asking me what I’m gonna do about it.

************************************************************

She shredded it. What of it?

It was there. She was bored. It reminded her of her puppyhood. Case closed.

Did I leave her anything extra to eat when I left? No? It seems I was gone an awful long time. She was concerned. Stressed.

Oh, yeah – that snack bag of treats she took out of my jacket pocket, ripping the inside of it as she dug at it in a frenzy? They were old. Stale. I could’ve packed a higher quality treat in that snack bag, to be honest. She’d worked up an appetite teaching that stuffed owl a lesson. Rude bird. And then forcing her to play hide-and-seek in my coat pocket? Just for a snack? A snack she deserved?

She’s OLD, dammit! And half blind. And deaf. How could she have lifted a paw against that evil raptor?

Really, that owl was looking for trouble. It’s been taunting her for months – maybe years; hard to say – her perspective is canine. And a girl can only take so much before her paw is forced. These weird stuffy things need to be shown who’s boss. She’s boss.

 

Disavowal – Photo: L. Weikel

Ick. No. Don’t put it near her. She doesn’t want to look at it.

And besides: She had nothing to do with it.

It was Spartacus.

I didn’t do it – Photo: L. Weikel

(T-784)

An Unintended Consequence – Day 289

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Spartacus and Sheila – Photo: L. Weikel

An Unintended Consequence

This is probably going to be TMI for many of you. But that’s what happens when you’re writing blog posts 289 days in a row. Some days you just get stymied for something to write, and stuff gets personal. It’s an unintended consequence of the 1111 Devotion.

Honestly, though? It’s not just the number of consecutive days I’ve written. Another contributing factor to my ‘having to go TMI’ is that Verizon Wireless sporadically, haphazardly and maddeningly sends photos around the world a couple of times before delivering them, via email, to my laptop. This ‘long way home’ for my photos occasionally means that I will send myself one or two that I’d like to include in a post that evening – and they mysteriously do not arrive until 10:00 or 11:00 a.m. the next day!

It’s ridiculous. And there’s neither rhyme nor reason to it (as far as I can tell). It’s happened before – many times – but this is apparently only the second time I’ve mentioned it in a post. I’m surprised by my restraint! Ha ha.

The transfer lag time means that I can’t take advantage of photos I deliberately took during the day so I might share them with you (and by extension, give me something to write about). So…we all lose when VZ Wireless drops the ball.

The Original Premise of This Post

Back to my initial proposed over-share: An unintended consequence of my engaging in this Act of Power, this daily commitment to writing a post every night, is the fact that I have not taken one long, relaxing bath in the evening, even after a really hard day of physical work or even after a massage.

And I have to tell you: it’s been a sacrifice.

I used to love taking a bath before bed. Sinking into a tub of steaming water that’s had Epsom salts generously heaped into it, plus some aromatic oil to indulge the senses… Oh yum. And those hot baths with Epsom salts do work wonders to remove the kinks and soreness of lawn mowing or weeding.

Baths Cannot Be Short-shrifted or Compromised

The reason I’ve had to give it up is precisely linked to the fact that I just glanced at the time and see that it is 12:54 a.m. I will need to go to sleep as soon as I publish this (and ‘share’ it on my FB pages). I will be too tired to take a bath tonight.

And I refuse to take one earlier in the evening because I become completely relaxed when I take a long, hot bath. There is no way I have any desire to fight all of my bodily instincts in order to drag my consciousness back into the requisite hyper-awareness I need to write my posts. (Believe it or not!)

An odd, unintended consequence of my 1111 Devotion indeed.

Oh – and since I didn’t acknowledge the completely fabricated “Dog Day” (or whatever it was called yesterday) by posting a photo of my pups online, I’ll add this one again ‘from the archives.’ Here’s to Spartacus and Sheila!

(T-822)

Tuckered Out – Day 209

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June Sunset – Photo: L. Weikel

Tuckered Out                                  

I was feeling kind of bad tonight that I am so freaking tired and sore. It just seems like no matter how much I walk, day in and day out, I still tire a lot more quickly than I remember ever doing before. While I’m trying not to judge or speak to myself harshly, it is a bit disconcerting, and it takes discipline not to feel disappointed in myself.

For the most part, I’ve been maintaining my walking regimen that I began right around my birthday. Yesterday, though, I barely registered any mileage, since I had a session with a client.

I tried to bounce right back onto the wagon today, though, clocking in 6.3 miles.

The First Leg

Spartacus and I did an initial 4.1 on our own.

Among some of the fascinating things he found to smell, explore, and ‘mark’ on our journey today, we did spot this evidence of a raccoon passing through.

Raccoon passing through – Photo: L. Weikel

About 20 minutes after our return, Karl came in and wanted to do our usual walk. Since I hadn’t taken Sheila on the 4.1, we knew it would be best for all of us to take her out and at least ‘do the two.’

I’m so glad we did! Not only were the clouds and colors of the sunset beyond compare, the lightning bugs were coming into their glory tonight. It was so great to walk through the woods at High Rocks and watch them rise from the forest floor. Of course, they were also rising from the meadows, too, as our path took us from forest tunnel to open fields and back again.

But as I started saying at the outset of this post, I was really feeling a bit disappointed in myself for feeling so tired.

Until I took a look at Spartacus. He sacked out like this as soon as we walked in the door. Looks like he is every bit as tuckered out as I am. Weird, perhaps, but I took comfort in this.

A tuckered Spart (with friends watching his back) – Photo: L. Weikel

I’m grateful my body can carry me around the countryside, logging 6.3 miles on a gorgeous Saturday. And I hope and expect to get up tomorrow and walk some more. I’m on the cusp of making some changes and this walking is clarifying and solidifying some choices for change that are a long time coming.

(T-902)

Back in the Saddle – Day 176

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Breathtaking Beauty – Photo: L. Weikel

Back in the Saddle

We managed to get back on the proverbial horse today, Spartacus and I. We walked. Gratefully. Without incident.

That does remind me, though. The next chance I get, I’ll have to take a photo of the Wolfhounds that now bark at and chase us aggressively all along their masters’ property line (as it follows the road). They live on our road but are only now on our route when we take ‘the longer way.’

These dogs are massive and there are five of them. All appearances would indicate that they would all enjoy an evening snack on some tasty Boston Terrier. Honestly, I can’t tell if they’re just big talkers or if they would try to eat him for lunch. But they sure do bark a good game.

Recent Days Have Felt Distorted

It felt great to be walking again today. Although I did walk on Saturday (I’m pretty sure I even posted a photo of the lonely empty path before me – without Spartacus or Sheila leading the way), it’s felt like I’ve been away from my ‘habit’ a lot longer. I can’t quite explain it. The last few days have felt like they passed through a thick jelly-like atmosphere. It’s sort of felt like I was trying to run in a swimming pool.

The clouds were particularly magnificent this early evening. They caught in my chest, filling my heart with awe.

And you are all probably on to me by now: When I run out of words, I post photos.

Some Days Silence is All One Can Muster

Karl and I were silent during most of our walk today. The majesty conveyed by the clouds felt like it would be profane to make small talk when surrounded by these massive intermediaries between the Upper World and the Middle World.

And with practically every step we took, these Beings shifted and parted. Danced and obscured. Pretended they were bringing wild winds and whipping rain.

It’s at times like these that I feel so small.

Bank of Clouds – Is that a Silver Lining? Photo: L. Weikel

 

(T-935)

Still Recuperating – Day 175

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Spartacus basking in the sun (but not today) – Photo: L. Weikel

Still Recuperating                           

I guess I’m lucky my fracas with the neighbor dogs happened on a Friday. If I’d had to have a session with a client yesterday or today, it would’ve been tough. My body has ached and hurt a lot more than I thought it would, and both Spartacus and I are still recuperating.

But all I can say is, I’m grateful for the remarkable resilience of my body. I feel extremely lucky that I bounced and didn’t break. (Although it does feel as though things ‘shifted’ inside. Hopefully they’ll ‘shift’ back into place soon!)

Appreciating the Rain

I’d also like to give a shout-out of thanks to Mother Earth. For what, you might ask? For creating atmospheric conditions that caused it to rain all day today – steadily enough so both Spartacus and I could take a break from walking without me feeling guilty for not ‘getting back in the saddle.’ It was good for both of us, I think, to have a day of enforced rest.

I even – gasp – took a short nap in the afternoon.

This is a sign of the apocalypse. I never nap. I can be 98% zombie and I will nevertheless refuse to take a nap. (This is attributable 100% to my father. My mother could nap with the best of them. So of course, on some level, I judged her as weak.)

Yes, yes; this is all a very screwed up attitude. I know that. And I’m not proud of it.

Progress is Being Made

I’ve come a long way with respect to my attitude toward napping. I know there’s plenty of research out there (here and here, for instance) that touts its many benefits. But those old, seared-into-your-brain prejudices of youth can be hard to shake.

So while I’ve progressed to the point that I no longer refuse to nap ever, it still usually takes me feeling pretty crappy to succumb. A wonderfully dark day and the sound of rain pattering on the metal porch roof outside our bedroom window take me a long way toward self-kindness and recuperation.

The Spartacus Lure

Oh, and did I mention? It was Spartacus who spurred the whole napping thing to begin with today. I went looking for him when I realized he wasn’t snuggling on the couch or cuddled up with his mother under a blanket here in the living room. Naturally, I’ve been a bit hyper-vigilant about him the past couple days, and wanted to make sure he was OK.

I found him upstairs in our bed, literally tucked in and gently snoring underneath our covers! (Yes, I’d made the bed. These dogs are remarkably resourceful at making their own nests – and laying in them!)

Suffice it to say, it was irresistible. The lure of Spartacus napping beside me, his body nestled up against the crook of my back and serving as a canine heating pad on my sore spine, was an incredible comfort.

I do believe he and I are even closer as a result of this mishap.

Sleepy Boy (Spartacus) – Photo: L.Weikel

(T-936)