To Be Continued, I Promise!

Oh lordy, I've fallen off the blog wagon, but I intend to get back on! I met up with Becky and Cricket over the weekend, a friendship that came about through our blogs, and I was reminded of all the good things that have resulted from this blog. Plus, I had a few other reminders. A dog park friend said that Cabana was the nicest dog she'd ever met, and another said that at 4.5 years old, Cabana was in her prime. I thought, these are little things I want to remember. Time goes by so fast, and I may not remember this special time in my life and in Cabana's life if I don't record it on this blog. I know that Facebook has taken the place of blogging for many people, but I need to remember that this blog is first and foremost for ME. It's a record of Cabana's life, and I intend to keep blogging for the entirety of it.

A year or more ago, I vowed to start taking Cabana to the beach more often, my goal being like 10 times a year. Well, that didn't happen, BUT I did take Cabana there a couple days ago. It's a 30-minute drive there, 2 hours to leisurely walk the length of the beach and back, another 30-minute drive back, plus about an hour to bathe her (and myself) afterwards. It's a time commitment that I can't justify often, but I was glad to get to do it on Monday.

When we first arrived at the beach, we saw our old friends, the Blue Picardy Spaniels, arriving at the same time. Such a happy surprise! They haven't been coming to the dog park lately, so it had been almost a year since we'd seen them. Cabana recognized them right away, and they were excited to see her, too.

The Blue Pics are "regulars" at the beach--their breeder brings them 3 times a week. It was evident that there were other "regulars", too, gathering together to chat and let their dogs intermingle.

Some of the regulars noticed Cabana and decided to come in for a closer sniff.

I could tell by Cabana's pinned-back ears that she was a little overwhelmed by the mass scrutiny, but she passed muster, as I knew she would.

The town of Dillon Beach is a tiny place. About 90% of it is pictured here. Would I like to live in one of those houses overlooking the ocean? If I had a spare $2 million, maybe--but it's so often foggy at the coast, so for that reason (and not because of the $2 million thing) I'll stay where I am.

Cabana spots a dead crab in the waves. I wonder if she knows that's what's in the crabcakes I often make. Cabana loves crabcakes, but then, what food doesn't Cabana love?

Cabana also loves babies, or at least, she loves the way they smell. Here she is, trying to be polite but get a good whiff of the baby at the same time.

It's funny how the kelp mounds together in little piles that dot the shore. I bet there's some scientific law of nature as to why it does this, like matter attracting matter. Kinda like how Cabana's fur gathers in little tufts under the kitchen table.

Cabana on things.

I didn't even know Cabana had momentarily stolen another dog's ball until I saw this photo! She's a sly one.

We had a great time. I don't usually like butt shots, but it seems appropriate here. The end.

Read more...

Beach Resolution 2012

Cabana and I love going to the off-leash dog beach, and it's an absolute CRIME that we go there just once or twice a year. We only live 30 minutes away, but we don't go more often because (these reasons need to be read in a high-pitched whiny voice) it's almost always foggy and windy on the coast, Cabana gets all sandy and stinky, and it costs $7.00 to park our dern vehicle.

But our crazy northern California temperatures have been in the 70s this past week, and since the coast was clear (ha ha, by that I mean no fog), I made it a priority to go there. And this time, we got to go with our friend Susan and her English Springer Spaniel, Maggie.

Cabana has lots of doggy pals, but none are as special to her as Maggie. I don't think it's anthropomorphizing to say that they are true friends. When Cabana and Maggie see each other, it is pure joy--for them and for anyone who is watching. In fact, people at the dog park comment all the time on how these two girls play. They sneak up on each other, pounce, go for the other's hind legs, while all the time running and rolling and growling playfully. They never get upset with each other--they just are so comfortable and in sync when they play. I never get tired of watching them.

Cabana thinks the beach is great no matter what, but being there with Maggie was really the icing on the cake.

I hereby resolve to go to the beach more often this year, at least 6 times. So this was my first time in 2012--I'll post about our 5 subsequent visits, so keep me accountable! This was Maggie's first time ever at this dog beach, but I'm sure she'll be back. Hopefully, with us!

Read more...

Sunny at the Beach

Recently, I got a huge order from a chain of wineries who will be carrying some of my cork items. It's sort of a good and bad thing because I make all the items myself, so I've been cranking away at the sewing machine, which is where I'll be for at least 3 more weeks, making over 300 items as fast as my fingers will let me.

I try not to let it affect Cabana's life too much. She still gets her morning walks and trips to the park--but after that, she needs to entertain herself. She's good about it, usually hanging out in my sewing room with me.

But I decided to give us both a little break this morning, and we took a trip to the off-leash dog beach. We don't get to the beach often enough, even though it's only 30 minutes away. I know, how ridiculous of me! But today, the weatherman predicted a rare sunny morning there (the coast is usually encased in fog until it burns off midday), and I was so glad to take advantage of it because it turned out to be gorgeous.

Cabana's first response to the beach is always sniffing around the sand like crazy. I would think she'd head straight for the water, but no, this dog needs to make sure there's nothing good to eat hiding under the kelp mounds. Unfortunately, she usually finds something to consume, whether it's food or some other substance. Today, it was a corn-less corn cob--she started chomping away, but when I told her to "drop it", she did. I smushed it into the sand with my foot, but about 20 minutes later, she made her way back to that spot, dug it up, and ate it. Was she thinking about that corn cob the whole time?!

Finally, Cabana leaves the sniffing behind and heads for the water. She switches gears with a vengeance, dashing in and out of the waves like a true water dog.


Here's a video of Cabana's frenzied cavorting. Imagine having this kind of energy! If only I could sew like Cabana cavorts....

But Cabana is only a "faux" water dog. She doesn't go any deeper than this because Cabana does NOT like to swim--she ONLY likes to wade.

We stopped and played with a few dogs as we walked along, but when we came to this boy, Cabana was enchanted. I was worried she'd knock him over or jump on him, but she didn't. She just wanted to hang around him and be his buddy.

That is, until she saw this black Lab! They were drawn to each other like magnets. And of course, it's because career changed guide dogs always seem to recognize each other!

I couldn't tell just by looking, but Cabana obviously could! This black Lab turned out to be Jordan, who was released from guide dog training for growling (not aggressive at all, but he just growls sometimes).

Jordan's owner is a current trainer at Guide Dogs for the Blind, and they live just a few blocks from us. We have met a few times on walks, but Cabana and Jordan have never gotten to truly play together. The dogs definitely were happy to finally get the chance!

Now it's back to the sewing machine for me, and I think Cabana will be happy to veg on the floor for the rest of the day.

P.S. I took these photos with my 50mm/f1.8 lens that I've had for a year but hadn't used in a while. Lovenandaleash reminded me of it with her comment on my last post--thank you, Aleksandra! I think it makes a huge difference in the quality of my photos.

Read more...

Back at the Ranch

A year ago, we took a trip down the California coast to Santa Margarita, where we stayed at Seven Oaks Ranch, which has three vacation homes nestled on 200+ acres. We got to go there again last week, where this time we stayed in the owners' home while they were away and puppysat for their 3-month old cocker spaniel, Margie (pronounced with the G like "guy", rather than like "gender").

Margie is an adorable, spunky little gal who adored Cabana--and piddled on the floor as soon as she saw her, the first of many piddles to come, unfortunately! But aside from the challenges of potty training, it was fun to see Margie and Cabana interact.

They played a lot of tug with this stuffed snake. Cabana was great with the puppy, very gentle and playful and PATIENT!

Cabana endured quite a bit of ear biting, face nibbling, general pestering, and getting climbed on.

As if they weren't enough for each other, here Cabana and Margie are waiting for a certain male visitor.

Scout belonged to the people who were staying in one of the other vacation homes, and he would come over often for canine companionship. His owners let him roam around the property at will, but I wasn't quite comfortable with that and kept Cabana on leash around the house and the pond. The water level in the pond was extremely low, making it very full of algae and mud--oh no, I was quite aware of where Cabana would end up if I let her roam around off-leash.

But Cabana got plenty of off-leash time on our daily hikes AWAY from the pond.

We climbed some steep ridges.

But the view was so worth it!


Not a building or another person around us for miles. Nothing but beautiful, vast, open expanse--exhilarating!

There are lots of great beaches in that area. Avila Beach has a section that is just for off-leash dogs.

There were tons of friendly dogs to meet and play with.

Cabana gravitated toward a fellow yellow Lab, one that is a TRUE retriever, unlike Cabana.

But that's okay, Cabana found other ways to amuse herself, like levitation.

There wasn't much time for R&R, but Cabana managed to get in some sunbathing on the deck. Still, no matter how great a vacation might be, it's always so nice to get back home and sleep in your own bed. Does that make me sound really old? Then, I guess I must be old!

Read more...

Beach Birthday Babylon

Our coastal regions are almost always foggy, but I wanted to go to the beach on my birthday, regardless of the weather, so Cabana and I took the 40-minute drive to the off-leash beach. We drove through quiet groves of redwoods, past lots of open space and pasture land.

When we got to the parking area, where it costs a ridiculous $7.00 to park, I saw this sign. The guy in the booth asked if I had a dog with me and what breed it was. I asked if they'd had recent trouble with a pit bull, and he said yes. If the trouble had been with a Labrador or a golden retriever, I wondered if they would have dared to put up a sign saying "NO LABS OR GOLDENS ALLOWED". Wouldn't that seem totally wrong? To me, it doesn't seem any less wrong to discriminate against pit bulls.

After getting out of the car, Cabana turned into this strange creature. She's barely recognizable!!

Behind some rocks, Cabana found a whole bully stick! I don't know why someone would give their dog a bully stick at the beach, or even more so, why a dog would ever abandon it. In the photo above, you can kind of see the bully stick crosswise in Cabana's mouth. She kept her distance from me for the next 20 minutes, worried that I would take it away from her (which I probably would have). I was just glad that she stayed close enough for me to see what it was and that she didn't choke herself by running and chewing at the same time.

Cabana doesn't mind getting wet, but she never goes in too deep. She may be a water dog, but she's not a swimming dog. She prefers chasing and being chased by the waves.

There weren't many other people/dogs there, but we did meet this chocolate lab. A few seconds after I took this photo, the chocolate lab vomited. In his pile of barf, there were about 5-10 mysterious pink pellet-shaped objects...strange. To my horror, while I was still trying to figure out what the pellets could possibly be, Cabana gobbled up the vomit, pink pellets and all. I worried that they were medicine or heaven only knows what, but whatever they were, Cabana seemed unaffected by them.

After passing the chocolate lab and gobbling up his vomit, we crossed paths with these little guys. Adorable!

But mostly, we had the whole place to ourselves.

Cabana's birthday is on Tuesday. Maybe we'll have to spend Cabana's birthday at the beach, too!

Read more...

What I Did on My Birthday

Thanks to all of you who filled out my questionnaire! If you didn't do it yet, you still have one more day. Deadline is October 3 at midnight. I'll randomly pick a winner on Monday, October 4.

It was really fun to read your answers. Amazing how many similar answers there were, although wanting to spend time with our dogs is probably not a surprising one, given that we're all crazy dog bloggers!

I had a great birthday and got to do all the things I most wanted. Here are my answers:

1. As you can guess from the photo, I spent the morning with Cabana at the beach (Ro and Cassie had the same idea). Do you see that dirty tummy? Pictures and more details coming tomorrow.

2. I spent the day with Cabana and the evening with my husband and daughters. Which is what I do just about everyday, so it's a good thing that's what I'd pick if I had a choice. Not that I don't have a choice, but you know what I mean. Anyway, thinking about this question made me realize how fortunate I am.

3. I went to Macy's in the afternoon, determined to splurge on something with my $100. But I couldn't find a thing I wanted. Does that happen to anyone else? So instead, I signed up for a month of boot camp, similar to Raiser Erin's idea. It normally costs over $300, but I got in on a special for only $97. Now I only have $3 burning a hole in my pocket.

4. I had eggplant tofu and fried rice from Panda Express.

5. The Italian restaurant where I wanted to eat was all booked up! So we ate at Mary's Pizza Shack, which isn't at all fancy, but they give you a salad with your entree--obviously a big plus. I had lobster ravioli--yummmmmm.

6. My husband brought home a HUGE cookie dough ice cream cake from Cold Stone. We will be enjoying it all week!

Read more...

Playing at the Beach

Hi, I'm Cabana. I'm a yellow Lab and I'm 1.75 years old. What's your name?
My name is Bowser. I'm half German shepherd, half wolf, and I'm just 5 months old.

Wow, Bowser, you sure run fast for a baby!

Hey there, black Labs, can we play with you?

C'mon Bowser, we're playing Follow the Leader! Get in line!!

Time to do what Mom says for a minute. Cheese. Can I go play now?

Finally!! I don't have time to sit still. I gotta catch the waves...

...before they catch me!!

Read more...