farewell Christmas...

 animals are always welcome in my place...now i have a few more.  thanks to all that were generous and kind through the holidays.  always appreciated.

 we got a nice snow fall these past days.  more fell today.  the pups and i did some major shoveling this morning.

 i can't say that Tusker is the most helpful in this task as he chases the shovel and is digging the snow off as quickly as i can put it on.  Ivy then attacks Tusker and i can get some snow actually shoveled while they wrestle a bit. 

 today we just hit the dog park at U-Lake, yesterday we did Connors Bog.  there were several moose chilling there and it was sheer ice covered in powder. i really should have worn my cleats despite the snow. 

 got some fun videos of the dogs unwrapping their gifts. cracked me up that they nosed out the tennis balls first. Ivy is a slash and tear unwrapper while Tusker is more slow and measured in his task.  they just have different personalities and it comes out in funny ways.

 my sister sewed these new scrub tops for me.  i selected material up here and sent it down to her.  she is just an amazing seamstress.  very detail focused, which i am not.  i cut corners at every task i can.  that is just who i am. 

 i enjoy baking but i tend to cut corners with baking as well.  I'm basically lazy at everything i attempt.  i do manage to get by in life somehow.  i have managed so far anyway. 

 worry about what you must but i am not big on worrying about the future i guess.  never have been. i just enjoy the day that i have ahead of me.  i think much of that comes from years of being a nurse.  you just see how fragile life is.  i could slip, fall and have a brain bleed tomorrow.  enjoy each day...don't waste it. 

 haven't looked at the pics on the big camera yet.  so these are from June.  a mixture...almost done with June anyway. as the light returns i will again get out more and more so I'll start getting behind on photo's again. 

 these aren't actually sunset, but they look that way due to the smoke from the many fires we had this summer.

 it did look beautiful though. 

 it made me sad to see all the lost trees and think of all the lost animals. 

 Australia is being hit with major fires at this time...their summer.  it looks awful and the fear is many animals will have a tough time recovering.  just devastating.

 the smoke was all over this summer.  between that and the heat i had a tough time attempting bigger walks.

 lungs not the best really.  not bad...happy i left Los Angeles.  i would be much less healthy if i had stayed there.  returning is always terrible certain times of the year.  my lungs and smog are not a good combination.

 usually the air up here is perfect. 

 this is from a trek to Reed Lakes. i was attempting to get out of the smoke by going to Hatchers Pass to hike.  the smoke made it's way there by late afternoon but if i got out early enough i could avoid the worst of it.  i do recall this day being super hot though, which was tough...now super hot here is the 80's but that is nearly 24 hours of heat.  we just do not tolerate that up here.  hard to explain why that heat feels hotter, but i know that when temps drop into the 50's in L. A. we were always freezing.  just what you get used to sometimes.

 overall it was a pretty day.  i just tried to adapt to what we had. 

 these are old mine areas. 

 proof that those who scar the land do not return them to nature but instead leave their mark forever.

 lots of pretty flowers in June up here.

 i made sure to select walks that would have water access.  a must for the dogs on hot days.  i think i dunked my head this day as well.

 is this from the iron in the area? or leftover from the stuff left behind?

 i really just wanted to sleep all day today.  the dogs were very patient with me and eventually they were rewarded with outdoor play time while i shoveled and a walk.

 i was out of eggs as well so i braved the grocery. 

 back to work tomorrow.  2 on, 2 off. i work New Years Eve.  the only worry will be the possible fireworks getting to the dogs.  may just shut the dog door while i am out or see if someone will come close them in. people get nuts on holidays. 

 i have two puppies sleeping behind me. 

 need to do house clean up and un-decorating at some point.  i suspect I'll wait until after this stretch. 

 always enjoy the Christmas Tree lights.  the smell....the house is due for a good cleaning though. 

 at least now the dogs are just tracking in snow and not mud.

 we are expecting more snow over the next several days, also the temps are supposed to drop below 0F. 

 this is from a day at University lake..this moose was standing in the water, walked under the little bridge there and then up to the trail.

 looks little in the first picture but looks much bigger in the second one..same moose.  just looking down at in in first and across in the next on.  strange.

 another day out at Hatchers Pass.  this day i took the dogs to a trail out of Independence Mine.  Gold Cord lake.  not a long walk.  some uphill...actually below you can see the area of the lake. 

 not too difficult, short like i said.  and you are rewarded with a lake at the top

 there was also creek access for the pups early on so they could get soaked and stay cool til we go to the lake

 they do dry fairly quickly though.

 we do switchbacks a bit up that rock hill

 view of the mines below.  i had never done this hike, had heard of it, but wasn't sure where it was.

 i will do it again...though it was pretty crowded the day i did it. everyone was getting out of the smoke i guess.

 there is this little relic part way up.

 that little hill looks bigger as you get closer

 focused on going up the hill. boulders and thin trails with humans...so i had to focus on the dogs so they wouldn't cause me or others to tumble down the mountain.  this is what you get to enjoy at the top though.

 still snow!

 the dogs, of course, got to chase the tennis ball and cool off.  a few humans went in...it is a bit chilly though.  it was hot out.

 guess i shall crash for the night. good night...hope your Christmas was pleasant.  i know it's not always what we want it to be or what we remember from years past....some times you have to reside in the good memories, cherish those and hope they carry you forward.

grateful for: A. kind friends and happy dogs  B. family who accept and respect me for who i am C. the laughter and joy the dogs bring in to my life.