When I was a kid riding in our car, I used to wonder how the world would look if we'd left the house a minute earlier, if that stop light had stayed green another ten seconds. If that car that just passed us from Kansas had changed any one of a thousand points in its journey, I'd have never seen them.
I was reflecting on that idea this weekend, which I often do when I'm back in Spokane.
Silas and Lucy, my sister's dobies, were in fine form Thursday and Friday, and this is a moderately rare photo... I actually got them to hold still close to each other. Silas (sitting) looks like he's winking, but it's either a half-blink or (more likely) Lucy spat in his eye to gain an advantage. Lucy's the alpha dog. She's also cute, sweet, demure, and a documented, unapologetic dirty fighter.
I also helped my folks prepare their new garden. It's a huge area, and a completely blank slate. We're still getting frosts here, so our starters are not ready for the great outdoors. They're ready, and we're ready, but the weather is not quite ready. Our little 4'x4' garden bed will be chock full o' green bits, when we can actually get stuff into it.
The world-famous Bloomsday race was Sunday,
and it was a glorious morning. I wasn't able to get my usual perch, and had I arrived two minutes earlier, my second-favorite spot would've been open. I took a few pics of wheelchair racers warming up, and the start of the race for the elite women and men, and the wheelchairs.
Micah Kogo won in record time; in the photo below, he's number 103 (on the right). I've never been a runner. I could run fairly fast for a short period, but running -- jogging or sprinting -- has always been a painful, unnatural, un-fun activity.
I appreciate what good runners can do, and it's always fun watching someone who's genuinely gifted at their craft.
And finally, on the way home, I saw this lovely family. I won't say where I came across them, but as soon as she saw me, mama headed back up the hill and the triplets clambered dutifully behind.
Had I left Spokane five minutes earlier or later, I would have missed them. Had I not stopped at St. Regis (and I didn't need to), I would've missed them. Had I driven just a couple miles an hour slower or faster, ... ... ...
Timing.
This was taken just before noon, when it had been snowing for almost four hours.
Lucy (on the couch) and Silas (on the floor) and Carla (not pictured... see her blog here) arrived this afternoon, we had pizza, we played in the snow, and in keeping with the rather odd weather happenings, we listened to Christmas music and watched the Peanuts Christmas Special after dinner.
The crabapple tree's flowers are mostly gone now, but it was a beautiful bloom. We've been weeding, and scattering seeds, and basically walking around saying "green!" to each other. (Yes, this picture focuses on pink, but you get my drift).
We've taken the kayak out a few times, Monique having gone the furthest so far. It's a good little boat, and once I feel more confident in my balance, and once the river's dropped a little, I'll try it from upriver a ways. The water's still high, and the sound it over flowing by is one of my strongest childhood memories from the old cabin. Spring runoff is not done, but there's almost no "stuff" floating by -- the logs, branches, stumps, twigs, posts, and planks that were sitting low throughout winter have moved on.
Three hundred and nine shades of green, and at least that for sweet smells attracting all manner of bugs and birds. Our little river rising, scouring the banks, sending more than a smidge of offal on its way.
This shot shows my Grandma's dock (steel cable from it around the apple tree). The foreground dock is usually ten feet from the water, but the slope's gentle here, and a little rise means a lot of encroaching.
I've never understood how irises work. It's a long, flat leaf, there's really no stem, and from the long flat leaf flowers emerge. Amazing.
This is a shot I took the other evening. Normally I like to hide buildings, power lines, etc., but I kinda liked the look of this, so I kept it in.
Tuesday was the big day, when the 24'x30' building arrived by truck, courtesy of Kinninburgh Construction. The first pic shows them coming on the property, apparently about to take out a few trees. In reality, I didn't have to remove any, and they didn't even run any over. The middle picture shows them moving it into place over the slab, and a Montana Highway Patrol car... seems when the guys were moving it over the Flathead River during a rainstorm, some yahoo decided to ignore the flashing lights, the "Oversize Load" sign, and the guy holding a stop sign on the road, flew by, and crashed into the cars that had actually decided to obey the law. The moving guys did everything they were supposed to do; morons will be morons.
Silas and Lucy, my sister's dobies, were in fine form Thursday and Friday, and this is a moderately rare photo... I actually got them to hold still close to each other. Silas (sitting) looks like he's winking, but it's either a half-blink or (more likely) Lucy spat in his eye to gain an advantage. Lucy's the alpha dog. She's also cute, sweet, demure, and a documented, unapologetic dirty fighter.
and it was a glorious morning. I wasn't able to get my usual perch, and had I arrived two minutes earlier, my second-favorite spot would've been open. I took a few pics of wheelchair racers warming up, and the start of the race for the elite women and men, and the wheelchairs.
