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Musings: to meditate, think, contemplate, deliberate, ponder, reflect, ruminate, reverie, daydream, introspection, dream, preoccupation, brood, cogitate.

Wednesday, November 30, 2016

This & That - November

November began with a show of colors, finally. . . .

But wildlife dominates the theme this month again.  A few years ago one of my sons gave us this sign after we had a bear get into our garbage can--which we no longer leave outside. . . .

Last year I had a near encounter with a bear when I surprised it coming up the boardwalk ramp (seen in photo above) to our deck.  Well, our bear paid us another visit this month!  I was at my desk one evening this month when Gabriel, who was under my desk, suddenly got up and went over to the door to the deck (which is off the room where my computer resides).  He was growling a low growl.  I grabbed my camera this time, turned on the light and there it was just coming into view!  But it turned and headed back down the ramp.  I ran to one of the rooms facing the ramp and caught it in my lens. . . .

A few days after this, about 2 miles away, a woman was mauled pretty badly by a momma bear protecting her 3 cubs.  The authorities killed the bear which had been tagged because she'd been a nuisance in the area before.  Then we heard a report of another bear just down the mountain from us--about 1/4 mile--had gotten into a chicken house.  There were a few casualties--chickens, that is.

Our granddaughter, Olivia (aka Olive) spent two nights with us.  Here she and Granddaddy are making pretzels. . . .

The Take Joy Society get-together was about Italy.  You can read about it HERE. . . .

One day I was in my basement laundry room and glanced up to see this ivy.  I wondered how my garland had gotten up there, but then realized it was the real thing coming in through the window. . . .

I'm not done with my animal stories!  Gabriel and I were out for our daily romp when Gabriel ran up to our splitrail fence to watch the sheep.  I realized they were on the wrong side of their fence, so I took Gabriel back to the house and got Ken to help me herd them home. . . . .

It was more like follow them home.  We first followed them further down the fence line hoping we'd find where they'd gotten out.  We found a new patch on the fence so Ken proceeded to unfasten it so we could herd them through the opening.  I kept them in place.  Once Ken got the fence apart I started moving them toward him, but one broke from the group and headed to the right and the rest followed!  So I followed them all back up to the lane where they started running down the pavement. If I didn't catch up with them they'd run right past the gate at the driveway to our neighbor's property and soon be at the main road. . . .

But the gate was open!  And they just ran through it over to the pasture gate, which was closed.  They must have broken out into the yard and left through the main gate, which the neighbor had probably left open when they drove out.  I closed that gate and left them where they were--huddled together by the pasture gate. . . .

We put the birdfeeder in the window next to my desk.  I only fill it in the morning so that most of the feed is gone by night--I don't want an open invitation to our neighborhood bear. . . .

Poetry loves sitting on my desk watching the birds.  Gabriel got really upset and wanted to see why she was pawing at the window so I put his pillow on my desk so he could have a look, too. . . .

We had our usual Thanksgiving feast.  All our sons, wives and children came--plus our youngest's son's fiancee.  They're planning a wedding for late next year.  My menu. . . .

This is my plate. . . .

I spent the weekend after Thanksgiving decorating the house for  Christmas.  This year Susan Branch's trip to Scotland inspired me to make plaid my theme. . . .

I ended the month taking Poetry to her annual check-up.  She cried the entire way there, the entire time we were there, and the entire trip home.  You can see she is more than a little put out.  She even garnered Gabriel's concern when she started crying as soon as I put her in her crate.  Here she is waiting for the doctor. . . .
She's 9 years old now and doing great!

.•*¨`*•. ☆ .•*¨`*•
Take Joy!

22 comments:

  1. Poetry certainly knew where she was going and must be a smart one that remembers the dreaded vet. I thought of you when I heard about the bear mauling. That poor woman is lucky to have survived! Be careful when you are out and about. ♥

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    1. The mistake she made was to go out after dark with her dog to see why her daughter's dogs were barking. The bear had been tagged already because it had been seen before in the area. We are (and she) near a state park and a mountain range that runs through Maryland. It reminds me of people who exit their cars in a wild animal park and are then surprised they get attacked by the lion!

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  2. Loved reading about the various animals that visit you & your Thanksgiving feast looks delicious. Have a wonderful Christmas!

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  3. The only place our collie went in the car was to the vet so she would start stalling as soon as we headed to the car with her, hyperventilating and whining the whole way. Of course she remembered shots are painful I guess. I enjoyed your animal stories very much. Your Thanksgiving sounded delicious! I will have to check out your Italian Take Joy--the food--pizza of some sort--looks good!

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    1. Yes, it was a very entertaining month with all the animal adventures and get-togethers with family and friends! The only time Poetry goes in the car is to the Vet, too, once a year. Animals have very good memories! There is a groomer who goes around to people's houses with her dog-washing van. Vets should have something like that--but I suspect I would not care to pay the added cost for such a venture.

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  4. It looks like you had a very nice month of November, Cathy. Great work getting the photo of the bear! I know how quickly those kind of sightings happen, and it's hard to snap a photo. Do you worry about Gabriel encountering one?

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    1. Ever since my bear encounter on that ramp that leads up to our deck last year I always turn the light on and look before I let Gabriel out onto the deck which leads to our fenced yard. The ramp comes up to the deck from the other direction and there is a gate there. I'm sure the bear could climb it, but if there was a bear already in the fenced yard Gabriel's behavior would alert me. His reaction to the bear that night that could not be seen yet was entirely different from his reaction to deer and squirrels. I know what to look/listen for now!

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  5. I cannot imagine being able to see a bear in my garden so close, whilst I am sure it must be scary what an experience. Your thanksgiving meal certainly looked good. Hopefully I am going to make a start with the Christmas décor tomorrow.

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    1. I would not like to meet a bear face-to-face, but from inside my house it was rather exciting!

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  6. It is always the same with wildlife, people don't treat it with respect, or act foolishly, then wonder why something goes wrong. A little caution and common sense is all it takes and we can all get along nicely.
    Love your Italian table, it really does look Italian and very inviting.

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    1. Thanks, but I can't take credit for the Italian table. Cindy hosted this time.

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  7. Your Thanksgiving menu looked delicious. I think about changing things up, but I stick to the usual - my people do not like change. When my niece comes she brings a new soup or salad and that is acceptable!
    Your Take Joy meeting certainly looked like a fun day: good friends, good food and fun crafts - sounds delightful, Cathy.
    And, your geranium post made me smile. I always see photos of geraniums in windows and my mom used to overwinter them but I have never tried. Enjoy!

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    1. Thank you, Elaine. I make the same thing every year, too, except I change the vegetables.

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  8. Wow, that's amazing that Gabriel could sense the bear nearby even though he was inside & not seeing it. What a terrific watchdog he is! Must provide some peace of mind for you, although you still have to be super-alert when letting HIM out into the yard! I wonder what he would do if he encountered a bear near the house? Do you think he'd try to run it off? Or would he beat a hasty retreat back to your door to be let in again? He's so intelligent I have to think he'd hotfoot it right out of there & back to the safety of the house. The ivy coming in your basement window reminds me of the time Susan Branch found a tiny slip of a plant coming up through the floor of her house from the basement. Plant life can be every bit as surprising as animals at times, huh? I bet Ken & Olivia had a wonderful time making pretzels. Loved the designs they made, and of course her name spelled out too. They look really delicious too. I bet they can't be beat when eaten just past "hot" - yum! Now that I know that gluten affects my skin I have to steer clear of it in most cases, but every once in a while I have a little "gluteny" something. If I don't have too much or indulge for more than a day, I usually don't have any ill effects. But I still miss it, because bread, pizza, pasta, baked goods etc - these are some of my favorite things ever. Oh well, it's worth it to have much better skin. Have a great week ahead! ⭐️

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    1. I think he would bark like crazy, but if the bear moved toward him I'm pretty sure he'd run! I thought of Susan Branch, too, when I saw the ivy. You could probably find gluten-free pretzels and pizza if you called around because so many people have problems with it anymore.

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  9. I had no idea you had a problem with bears! Many in East Tn have this problem, but I've never seen one on our property....maybe my dogs are keeping them at bay. Oh those darn, silly sheep....poor dears haven't a brain the size of a bean. Your Thanksgiving table is so warm and inviting, stunning at the same time. I really have not had a family Thanksgiving meal for 20 years, isn't that awful?! We are always setting up a booth somewhere on Thanksgiving day. I told my husband, NOT next year!

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    1. Our first bear sighting was in 2011 when it got in our trash can. We've seen evidence of what we figured was a bear every year since then. We were visited again in 2014 and now this one recently.

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  10. I forgot to mention, the ivy. So funny because we have the same thing here! It crept right through the clapboards and managed to decorate our Laundry area quite nicely. I just left it there, it was so ...so.. alive.

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  11. Oh dear you have had an exciting month with animals. I wonder what Tavi would think if he was ever to see a bear! He doesn't like visiting cats! Your thanksgiving meal looks delicious. Sarah x

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