awoke to wet dogs...

 

that meant it was snowing or raining...today it's snow. 

lost track of the photos i was putting in so this is probably a mess, perhaps some doubles. no doubt ramblings of a crazy person.

the snow is melting fast but that doesn't mean we won't get fresh snow from time to time over the next month or so. 

it's a lazy day, although i just realized it's election day so i will have to leave the house at some point to deliver my ballot. 

guess i could go vote in person. the ballot drop box is near the dog park so that is also an option.  could also drop and head to ruths.  won't be too many rocks visible due to the snow. not sure what i'll end up doing. crazy dogs every day though. 

this little guy is in an active phase...it's called puppyhood. getting him out walked helps save the cats from the chasing a bit.  not completely....and i have to say, part of me thinks they enjoy it a bit. 

they also seem to enjoy the corn cobbing...which is what my friends and i call the nibbling that Sunny does to the cats and his dog friends.  not all appreciate it though. 

i hand washed the cr-v yesterday. got a layer off anyway.  always nuts to wash a car in the spring...we jinx ourselves thinking winter is abating a bit so we do crazy things like wash the car, put away sleds and change over tires.

i also swept a bit of the front drive and side walk. 

have been waking up way too early. very odd for me. i play games, watch inane tv or scroll some stuff on the phone before returning to sleep....only to be woke up by wet dogs of course. 

russia is doing the gop dance of i didn't do anything wrong, it's them. they are lying and they are the ones who really did all the bad stuff. claiming Ukraine killed their own citizens and left them in the street...is that because that is what russia would do with it's citizens? 

love to pop over to faux station every so often just to witness the mularky. it's in fine form these days. while many on their station opening support putin and sing his praises, they trash Biden for not doing more to help Ukraine.  they are totally oblivious to the irony of anything. they are incapable of admitting they are wrong on anything.  they do absolutely nothing to actually help even their own people while wasting time on banning books and Disney and attacking women, gays, trans, Disney of course, teachers, Sesame Street, Big Bird.  they just scream and so their followers also just scream. 

ignorance leads to fear which leads to hatred and all they have to do is take advantage of ignorance and fear and guide it to hate. once they have made their followers filled with hate and rage they have control over them. 

it's odd to me that so many i know have spent years reading about wwII and being appalled by all that Germany and hitler did but now are willing to defend and protect putin and trump and all the other gop members who stand with these horrific humans. they can't see that they are choosing the wrong side of history. they are on the side that they always claimed to oppose historically but now seem totally unable and unwilling to see the repeat of history. 

putin is pushing that the scenes in Bucha are faked or staged. this only will further traumatize those who survived the horrors of these past weeks...soon to be months. of course, the right also looked the other way as creeps like alex jones claimed the Sandy Hook shootings were fake. 

they are willing to believe all sorts of insane conspiracy theories without blinking an eye though.  it's so bizarre to me. JFK or is it JFK Jr will return to be trumps vp...they don't believe he is dead or that he was a democrat for some odd reason.  some lady was going on about how the space force has all the information on voter fraud and will rise up to put trump back in power. it's absolutely bonkers the stuff they have bought into and yet the facts that are put before them are clearly faked in their minds. 

religions often put people in bubbles which can make them easier to manipulate. they are used to believing magical things like arks that carry two of every sort of animal on the planet. all of these things fall apart if you ask a few questions...but they are programmed to not ask the questions. 

if they do ask the questions they are quickly shot down and shunned just for asking questions.  they are the evil ones to dare ask those questions and god will be angered by their lack of faith. 

religion is often tied into cult activities.  false prophets who always seem to take their followers money and wives for that matter. it's not difficult to follow our nations own path down this dangerous track.  i remember watching a documentary decades ago, "jesus camp". it scared the hell out of me. the folks running this were purposely using the radical islam methods of indoctrinating very young kids to become warriors of christ. 

televangelicals were seen as a total joke when i was a kid but now these mega churches have grown and the people have become very cult like in their actions and words. 

killing kids with guns is fine but fetuses? they must all be saved. jesus just never seemed like a gun toting sort of guy in all i read of the accounts. there are just so many things that baffle the mind about it all. i'd have more sympathy for the abortion fighters if they protected any kids after they were born or were supportive of handing out birth control or education regarding sex and preventing pregnancies, but they are even trying to take away birth control from married people.  get back to the days when women just had baby after baby. 

it all gets down to power. a segment of white males are feeling the pressure.  women are stronger, the black and brown are stronger...they fear they will lose the power they have clung to for generations. 

the harder they push their more and more insane agenda the more they seem to make the more rational of the population wake up. i hope enough wake up to turn this crap around. they are putting themselves in to important positions at the lower levels, election officials, state and local officials. it's really scary. 

i have dogs farting around me. 

perhaps a walk and then a nap. 

it looks like it's stopped snowing for the moment.  my snow boots did arrive. not sure how they will do for the coldest days of winter but them seem to be working for the spring/fall snow. 

loved all the bright colors in this rock below. it wasn't one of mine.  something i could paint though. i like color. 

will have to look a my pinterest rock saves and see what fun things i can attempt. i will soon be replenishing my rock stores.

starting to hear more news about the people from Mariupul taken to russia.  i find myself very worried about their fate.  i'm sure part of it is hostage for use as bargaining chips...no doubt many children as well. how are they being treated where ever they are being held in russia? are they being killed, raped, tortured? 

it appears nk is learning from russia and using the threat of nucs. we need to face the truth of the horror of these governments gone amuck and stand up not back down. 

Zelenskyy has again plead with the UN council to do more.  he has said that each gallon of gas/oil bought from russia is the blood of Ukrainians. it is odd that germany is one of the nations that has refused to stop their purchase from russia. considering their own history of genocide...i would hope that they would reconsider. i realize they are one of the more dependent on russia for these products but russia took crimea by force in 2014 so it's not like russias intentions haven't been amping up over the years. the signs have been there. 

Sunny just barked and i jumped...

the snow has stopped so i really should make a move to do something with these two. 

these are from October when the snow was just starting to fall. 

bears were still out and now we have to think about the bears returning. these warmer days mean a return of the bears.

many factors in where i end up walking these days. 

the bottom line really is that the dogs could care less where we go, they just want to be out there. 

we lose a tennis ball each day.  thankfully, i keep finding more as the snow in the yard melts back. 

the animals are all fed and the human is fed as well. 

the to do list for the week is pretty much done.  next stretch off i really need to begin getting out more.  bummer with the gas prices but there are things closer to home that will save gas money. thankfully, this is a beautiful place. even just in the neighborhood

things change so much week by week that even going to the same places appears very different

the pile of rocks..these groups have decreased a lot over this winter. the area got discovered and people seem to fill their pockets with every rock they can find. of course, the rockers themselves don't seem to see their role in this. they have kid rock hunting events where they basically teach kids to hunt for and collect every rock they find and they also request people post their finds on the facebook pages...which you have to join in order to post..

still a lot of good from the rocks. mostly it's just drop them and hope they make someone smile. 

i don't make the request for posting.  so i don't see my rocks turn up except those that i drop in ruths really. 

i just let them take their own journey. i'll drop them places i go this summer and spend less time in ruths until next fall i'd guess. 

it's still a good between shift walk...that and the dog park.  i had avoided both with the puppy and now i try to avoid ruths on the weekend.  too busy. the dog park is safer in that off leash is fine. 

nice to have this guy sleeping on the bed more.  he's getting used to the puppies antics

it's always an adjustment, new pets in the house, but so fun to watch their relationships develope

many animals have died in Ukraine. an aid worker was killed who was delivering dog/cat food to rescue places. have heard of at least one rescue place that was forced to be abandoned and hundreds of dogs/cats starved i guess. 

the zoo animals have also been hit. they have been trying to get as many as possible to alternative locations.  driving them in whatever vehicles they can. 

alright, i  will get prepared to get these pups out.  vote, walk then nap i guess. 

thankful for A. the rational people out there. B. facts C. being woken up by sweet, wet dogs