Buster’s Blog

There are daffodils blooming in our side yard.  I doubt that MomK is impressed, I mean with orchards growing wild and all, but  here it is a big deal.

We went to George and Julie’s for New Years Eve and put Buster in the kennel.  The kennel required that you have your dog on a leash when you bring it in so I came out the back door with the leash in my hand and Buster tore out to the car and stood by the back door waiting for me to open it.  When I did he jumped right in like he knew just where we were going.

When I picked him up he did seem happy to see me, but not that anxious to leave the kennel.

I took Buster to the kennel yesterday for a bath in preparation for Mary and Rob’s arrival today.  It is so good to be able to pet him at any time and not just when I headed to the sink to wash my hands anyway.
I took his electronic fence collar off and he took off and wouldn’t come back for me to put on his leash.  He only ran as far as the car and turned and looked back at me.  It took me a minute to realize that he wasn’t running away from me, but was running to the car to take a ride.  The back door wasn’t open but the driver’s door was so he just hopped in the front.  It took a bit of persuasion to get him to sit in the back.
At the kennel he was much more interested in sniffing everything in site than going in.  The poor dog needs a social life.

For the first time I can remember, there is no water in our creek.  Even the deep hole that I can’t wade across with my hip waders on is dry.  At the upper end of the creek there are still two pools with water in them but below that is nothing.  The sky looks like this may be the day we get some rain.

Last weekend we went to Nashville to see the Grand Old Opry and had to put Buster in the kennel.  This weekend we went to Atlanta to see a Braves game and had to put Buster in the kennel again.  He has been there enough that they call him by name as soon as he comes in the door.  It has never been a problem to get him in the car.  All I do is open the back door and give him permission and he hops right in so he must enjoy the experience even though sometimes he gets a bath while he is there.  
The reason for all of the trips is that we have a German exchange student staying with us and we want to give her the American experience.  It turns out that she isn’t too interested in country music, but she likes baseball.  We also took her to a Chattanooga Lookouts game so she could see the difference in minor league and major league play.  It turned out that there were more errors in the Braves game than in the Lookouts game.  At the Braves game there was a 30 minute rain delay in which they ran a profile on their right fielder (whose name I can’t remember, but it starts with F and has a lot of letters in it).  He made a couple of nice plays in the field after that and at the bottom of the ninth with the score tied and two outs and the bases loaded, he came up to bat.  It went to a full count so the tension was so thick you could cut it with a knife. He hit a single to drive in the winning run and the stadium exploded.  Katherine is a loyal Braves fan and she was very happy.  Steve is a loyal Mets fan and was disappointed.
I need to go pick up Buster now.

This blog is supposed to be about Buster, but since we got the invisible fence, about the only thing he does is bark at squirrels and occasionally dig up a shrub.  So to keep this from going completely silent I need to put in something that isn’t about the dog.  Yesterday a great big owl flew across the yard and lit low in a tree between us and the log house.  This weekend a Pileated Woodpecker worked over a dead limb on a Tulip Poplar in the front yard.  We have Indigo Buntings coming to our feeder and I never saw one until last year.

Yesterday I was watering the landscaping at the log house and I saw a coyote pup walking across the church property.  There were no adults with it. Monday Buster tore off toward the church property and I thought he would go across the invisible fence but he turned tail and came back with two adult coyotes chasing him.  I hollered and they just evaporated. 

Our granddaughter, Emily, is visiting Steve in the log house this week and we are afraid to let her play outside by herself now. 

Sorry about the long absence. 
Yesterday as we walked to the mailbox to pick up the Sunday paper we saw four deer making their get away.  Last week or the week before, Buster was making such a racket that I went upstairs to see what was the matter and there were two Coyotes in the yard.  When they saw me they walked away looking back as if I were the intruder.  A couple of days later it was deer just beyond the invisible fence that were exciting him.  Yesterday was the first time since then that I have seen the deer.  One night early last week the coyotes howled all night long keeping both Marilyn and me awake.  Well, it seemed like all night long anyway.
We can’t find the camera, not that I posted that many pictures anyway.  How many pictures of a dog barking up a tree can you stand anyway.  I do hope we find the camera some day.
 

We went to Atlanta to George and Julie’s for an “Open That Bottle Night” party where you take a wine that you have been saving for a special occasion and no occasion was special enough to open the bottle.   We called George and told him what we were bringing so he could get Julie to match the food to the wine.

Here is the menu which someof you have already seen.—————————————————————-OPEN THAT BOTTLE NIGHT
February 24, 2007
Spicy Parmesan Crackers
Smoked Trout Spread
Cristalino Sparkling Brut, Spain
Savory Fig Tart
Pavillon Blanc du Chateau Margaux, 2001, Bordeaux, France
Baby Spinach Salad with Pine Nuts, Apples and Bacon Piesporter Goldtropfchen, 2005, Riesling Kabinett, Germany
Meyer Lemon Sorbet
Boneless Rib Roast with Pan Dripping and Assortment of Mushrooms Roasted Tri-Color Mini Potatoes Sauteed Asparagus Tips La Landonne, Cote Rotie, 1978, E. Guigal, Rhone, France Chateau Palmer, Margaux, 1978, France
Pear and Hazelnut Gratin with Cream
Stony Hill, Semillon de Soleil, 1995, Napa Valley Morgan, Botrytis, Semillon, 1999, Hunter Valley, Australia
Vintage Port, Cheese, and Chocolates
 

I’m concerned thay you may be concerned that something is wrong since I haven’t posted anything in a while.  Just how many pictures of a dog running through the woods can you stand anyway?