The current weather is unsettled. Yesterday we heard thunder nearby without seeing a storm and had numerous rain squalls with no thunder or lightning. Temperatures are dropping; our heat came on this morning. The forecast is for diminishing rain and lower temperatures, then warming up again through the weekend.
Tasha is feeling more like normal now and thanks you for all of your well wishes. Woof! Just a case of normal dog behavior, as we suspected.
Good news and not so good news. First, good news: our landscape contractor texted me yesterday morning that he and his crew would be coming to do the hedges. Yes! Yes! They spent the whole day and did a spectacular job. I don't have photos, yet, because it's now raining. But I'm not complaining.
Not so good news: Tasha's got a belly ache. We think that she gobbled up something on her walk and it's made her sick. Constipated, maybe. She threw up her breakfast yesterday and didn't even touch today's. So, we're keeping an eye on her and giving her free access to the yard if she needs it. I'm pretty sure this type of thing has happened before.
This big pile of logs started to lean and it looked like it might fall over. Whoever owns/manages the piles (I think it's the Artsy Organized Neighbor) built up this barrier to reinforce the main pile and keep it standing. Sort of a log jam, if you will. Tasha will keep a watchful eye out.
I was somewhat productive yesterday afternoon and mowed the north and south forties of the yard. If things go right, I can get the west forty done today. Fingers crossed.
Tasha hears a deer. We both heard the rustle of leaves on the edge of the nearby woods as an animal moved away from us. Then we heard the coarse bark of a roe deer. Tasha was very excited and ready to bolt toward the retreating deer, but she listened to me when I told her to "stop!" and "stay!" Then we continued on our walk.We heard the deer's bark a few more times as it moved away from us. Did you know that roe dear bark? That was one of the first things I learned while walking through the vineyard with our dog, Collette, back when we moved here in 2003. She loved to chase the deer, but we had to be very careful on hunt days that she wasn't mistaken for one.
I'm not enjoying the cool/cold wave that's currently upon us. It's not stopping the grass from growing, however. It's time to mow again.
Here we are on the first of April! But we're still suffering a stubborn spring. It's so not spring-like that I typed March instead of April. Turns out, I'm the April Fool. Even Tasha was saying, "Huh?"
There's a section of a vineyard parcel just to our north that is planted in chardonnay. I believe the grapes are used for blending in the winery's sparkling wines. Imagine my surprise when, while walking over there last evening, I noticed that many of the vines already have leaves! Better pictures soon. Happy March April!
Just so you know: I had two ideas for a post this morning. As I worked on them they sort of merged. When I tried to separate them, this is some of what I got. What a mess.
Did I tell you about our little scare with Tasha? I think Ken blogged about it, but here it is in a nutshell. About a month ago, we noticed that Tasha was drinking a lot of water, way more than she normally does. One of our neighbors, also a dog person, said that could be a sign of diabetes. That was nerve wracking. So Ken stopped by the vet's office while out running errands and made an appointment for that afternoon. The vet took a blood sample and a urine sample (he said it could also be a urinary tract infection) and prescribed a course of antibiotics. Both tests were negative. Nonetheless, we noticed that Tasha has cut down on her water intake. So we feel good about that. The vet said to let her run the full course of antibiotics just for good measure. That will be over in a few days.
We're still waiting for the landscape guy. I'm starting to wonder if he'll get the work done before summer. Bother. This view of our hamlet is toward the northeast. The yellow spot is our forsythia.
So insists Hyacinth Bucket in the popular British sit-com, "Keeping Up Appearances." This is all that's left of the jacinthes in this patch. There's a larger patch of white hyacinths way out back. I haven't really paid attention to them in a long while, but it's always nice to catch a glimpse of them this time of year.
Tasha gave us a bit of a scare. A few weeks ago she started drinking a lot of water, more than seems normal or healthy. We talked to some friends and consulted the gurus of the internet. Her excessive drinking could be an indicator of diabetes. Yikes! Yesterday she saw the vet and a simple blood test ruled that out. Thank goodness. The vet thinks it might be a U.T.I. (urinary tract infection) and is testing for that. Meanwhile, Tasha's on a brief run of antibiotics. She's already more or less back to normal and we're happy about that. We'll get the test results in a few days.
I was crouching down to take pictures of the daffodils. Maybe she thought I had some treats in my pocket. I didn't.
Trees are in bloom all over the neighborhood. I'll have to take some photos the next time I'm out and about.
Today is Tasha's 9th birthday! Woof!
In France, they expect that dogs, especially those with "papers," to be given a name that starts with a certain letter of the alphabet. When Tasha was born, the official initial (chuckle) for 2017 was "N." We wracked our brains for several days to come up with a name that works both in French and in English* and finally landed on "Natasha". She actually gets called "Tasha" (or just "Tash") most of the time, but her registered name begins with an "N." We joke that we named her after a Star Trek character.
It helps to say the name out loud and imagine yourself calling that name in public.
That's the word of the day. Or week. Or month. Maussade. Gloomy, dull, and dreary.
On the bright side, I've decided to make a coq au vin some time in the coming week. Ken got us a chicken from the supermarket and we haven't had a good fricassée in a while. Something to look forward to!
We haven't been back to the piney woods since I took this photo a week ago. I'm not sure nothing's changed. I heard some sounds that could have been chainsaws over the past few days. Like I said, I don't want to be out there with Tasha if there's a crew working. She gets excited.
I know that Ken already posted photos of this recent meal. But here it is again in case you missed it. A delicious omelette aux épinards (spinach omelet) and air fryer frites (French fries).
Here's an added bonus! Can you see Tasha in the picture? Where there's food...
Tasha doesn't mind the chilly weather. And why not? Look at that fur coat!
Still no sign of after-effects of the flu and covid vaxes I had on Saturday. I hope it stays that way.
Finally, here's a photo of Tasha shortly after her grooming last week. She's not very good at "sit and stay." She sits on command, but the "stay" part is not one of her best tricks. So I get photos like this one where, at least, she's looking at the camera.
The chimney is swept. There was a lot of soot; I'm glad it's gone. We also had new faucets and a new drain plug installed in the bathroom (sink and bidet). It's nice to have things working as they should again.
Actually, she wasn't. Tasha was focused forward until I called her name and she turned to see why. Then I snapped the photo. The grape vine leaves are turning to their fall colors now. It's still mostly green out there, but there's more yellow every day. And some red.
The groomer came by as expected yesterday. Tasha resisted at first but she soon gave in and went along with it. I'll try to get an "after" photo today.
A gloomy, almost ghostly morning among the grape vines yesterday. And chilly.
Today is Tasha's grooming day! The itinerant pet groomer arrives at 09h00. I got the grooming area (our utility room) cleaned up a little for the occasion.
A short post today. Typing and especially mousing (is that a verb?) are painful.
