The Old Goat

One summer, when I was about 10 years old my parents acquired a couple goats.  We lived quite a distance from neighbors so after the goats escaped their fence for the 100th time they were given their freedom.

Curious, playful, friendly and so darn cute, these wonderful creatures quickly became my entertainment and although I don't remember much about those years, I'll always remember the goats.

Years later, when I married, they got a small herd of goats.  My parents were going to raise dairy goats so they carefully build an escape proof fence but from then on the most commonly heard comment was, "#&*#!, the goats are out again." 

This one was my favourite.   Her name was Blossom and she would follow you around everywhere tugging at your clothing, pulling at your hair and just being a lovable nuisance.

Lovable Old Goat, Farm Animal by countrymousestudio

Humor Lovable Old Goat, Animal, Farm Pet by countrymousestudio

Birthday Brother Over the Hill Old Goat Humor, by countrymousestudio

Newest Family Member

We used to have a Pomeranian/ Chihuahua mix dog.  He was a little grumpy and snappy so we decided that the next dog we got would be a big friendly one.

I didn't expect my son to take on the project of finding the perfect dog.   He researched, saved and monitored the classifieds until one day he told me he'd found a great deal on a dog and it was exactly the one he wanted... a Great Dane.

I believe I was in denial but I went along.  After all, I'd promised him a big dog for the next one.  He mapped out the way to the breeders house and we arrived.  The owners had both mom and dad there for us to meet along with 8 pups.  Having never seen a Great Dane I was speechless.  The very friendly dad came up to my chest.  His nose could touch my chin as he looked at me.  I gingerly pet him and he leaned on me knocking me into the fence.  Apparently leaning is one of their traits.

We sat amid the pups and one kept coming by so he became the one we chose.  Originally my son had intended on getting the typical blonde color and had picked out the name Whiskey because of the color but none of the blonde ones came near us.   So Whiskey is his name but he's a reverse brindle color.

Spring puppy chasing bugs

Long legged teenager by fall

And now he's all grown up!

He loves to sit on your knee.  Somehow he has no idea how big he is and still wants to be on your lap. 

March Blahs

Much to my delight looking up the word blah on Google brought me these definitions:

- nonsense, malaise and as an adjective - insipid, dull and uninteresting.

That pretty much sums up this month so far.  It's too late to enjoy winter and too early to enjoy spring.  We need a mid season term.

That mood led me to do this poster.  I need one on my bedroom wall as the first thing I see in the morning:

and maybe one to take with me when I go out

But I'm thinking what I really need to do is Motivate and Encourage myself with this one.

So I hope you are not suffering the March Blahs too!

Perfect Moment

I pass this spot about once a week and as I came up over the mountain, I realized that I would be able to see the distant Monashee Mountains.

Usually they are behind cloud or fog and by the time the valley clears in the spring, the snow has melted off the tops and they're not so visible. 
As I turned the corner, I made a quick decision to pull off the road and capture their beauty.

Everything was perfect even the evening light touching the tops.

How Do You Look?

This is my happy face! by countrymousestudio

It's been a hectic couple weeks but one thing kept popping up.   I came across a blog by a woman who said that when she was doing nothing in particular like shopping, her resting or neutral face looked angry or upset and people were always asking her if she was okay.

I couldn't believe the number of people who commented saying they had the same problem.  Then I remembered a tv show I'd seen years ago on the same topic.  The host asked people if they were aware of the type of look that was on their face when they were resting and not thinking about anything in particular.
I mentioned it to my daughter and she said her boyfriend had complained about the same problem.

  Apparently all his life, people have thought he was upset or angry when he wasn't at all.  It was just his facial expression when resting.   He said it often made him seem confrontational and it made strangers  defensive as if waiting for him to explode about something that bothered him.  Over the years, he's become self conscious about it and always wonders what expression is on his face before he goes in to meet someone for the first time.

I hadn't thought about it before, do you know anyone with the problem?

I'm not sad or grumpy this is how I look Owl by countrymousestudio

Funny, Smile for the Camera, Grumpy Owl by countrymousestudio
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Red Squirrels - Neighbors from Hell

Red Squirrel Watercolor Acrylic Sculpture by countrymousestudio

A while ago, Ratty's blog Everyday Adventurer did a feature on Red Squirrels which reminded me of what difficult neighbors they are.
We moved from a very busy urban life to a cabin along a lake to find some peace and quiet.   We didn't know that a Red Squirrel already lived there.  I was used to them chattering at me when I went for a walk in the forest but knew little else of them or I might have changed my mind.

From the moment spring arrived, the squirrel was present and first light, each morning until sunset at night, everything that moved caused it to chatter angrily.  If you went outside, it chattered as loud as it could until you gave up and went back in.

I was determined to live peacefully with the annoying little thing until I put up my first bird feeder.  The previous owners had attached the feeder to the clothes line strung across middle of the yard.  Turns out  this squirrel would take flying leaps off the roof or tree branches until it could land on the feeder.  I spent weeks trying to find the exact spot to move this feeder where it couldn't reach.
There was a small 2 foot area it could be hung in that the squirrel couldn't reach but sometimes the wind would blow it out of that safe area.  The other problem was if it couldn't reach it, the squirrel just chattered more and more.  When it did reach the feeder, it would sit on the roof  chattering and attacking any bird that attempted to land. So to resolve the situation, I'd move the feeder so the squirrel could eat, then would refill it and move it away so the birds could eat.

Later, I foolishly planted a garden, which it also claimed.  It ate anything that grew above ground.  I never got a single pea, bean or strawberry.

It did give me two  very special memories though:
1. The neighbor boy discovered her nest full of babies in his attic and brought one over for me to pet before replacing them..  We noticed they were full of fleas (maybe that's why they were so irritable)
2.In the fall, it picked mushrooms and hung them on the tree branches to dry before storing them. At first, I thought my husband had done it as a joke but we watched and when the mushrooms dried, the squirrel gathered them all.
I never knew any animal did that.

For some beautiful photos of Red Squirrels go to Ginny's Blog 

Just found a site that sells squirrel proof bird feeders http://bromebirdcare.com/

Cute Squirrel & Tracks , Watercolor Animal Nature by countrymousestudio
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Watercolor Cute Red Squirrel Animal Nature by countrymousestudio
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Cute Squirrel & Tracks , Watercolor Animal Nature by countrymousestudio
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Watercolor Red Squirrel and Tracks Animal  countrymousestudio
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