The Dog Days of Summer

(Today's word will be in red and bold.)


Much of the country has been feeling the heat of summer over the past week or more, the Pacific Northwest included.

Though this area isn't nearly as bad as anywhere else in the U.S., it's definitely warm; especially for our furry, four legged friends.  That's the case with our dog, Phluffernuffer.

Phluffer is an Australian Shepard/Chow mix.  She has the face and tail of an Aussie, and the coloring and tons of fur like a Chow. 

Because of so much fur, and the heat, we decided it was time to take her to be shaved, and groomed.  She's an outdoor dog, so she really needs to be able to stay cool during the summer.  We'd done this once before, and she seemed to like it; so we did it again.  Honestly, other than her face, and when she "smiles", she doesn't even look like the same dog!  Still super adorable though!

We had a bit of a scare after her fur came off though.  It seems that all that fur was hiding a rather large growth.  We went to the 24 hour vet care, since it was Sunday, and had Phluffer checked.  The conclusion was, it's a tumor.  

My son and dad took Phluffer to her regular vet on Monday, where the doctor did a biopsy and other stuff and found a second growth.  We should have the results of all the tests by Wednesday or Thursday.  I'm really hoping the tests come back negative for cancer.  Either way though, our "puppy" is going to have to have surgery, to remove the growth and tumor.  

Phluffer has had absolutely no health issues in her twelve years of life; and now this.  To say the least, I'm a bit out of sorts at the moment.  I'm just going to keep praying she'll come through all of this with flying colors.

Of Life & Death

Today's post is in honor of two of my favorite recording artists. One is celebrating 70 years of life; the other, I'm remembering a life that ended seven years ago.

March 9, 1942, Mark Allen Lindsay was born in Idaho.

For those not familiar with the name, Mark was the original singer for Paul Revere & the Raiders. He was one of the biggest teen heartthrobs of the sixties.

I first saw Mark on TV one summer when I was nine years old. It was the show, "It's Happening", starring the Raiders. Even at nine, I was like many girls from that era, instantly taken with Mark's good looks and voice. I was further intrigued by the fact that the Raiders were from my home territory, the Pacific Northwest.

Over the years, because of the music, Mark and the local connection, I've been a loyal fan of the man and the band.

Happy 70th birthday Mark!

On a sadder note, it was seven years ago today that rodeo champion, and country singer Chris LeDoux passed away.

Known mostly for rodeo and singing, there were other facets to Chris' life that most didn't know. For instance, he was also an artist, working in metal sculpturing. His work was beautiful, and reflected his passions in life.

LeDoux was one country artist that both my son and I just had to see whenever he was playing nearby. Chris put on a show that was always excellent and worth seeing.

I remember when he first became ill, needing a liver transplant. Many automatically assumed Chris was a heavy drinker, and that's why the transplant was needed. In reality, he had a rare liver disease that had nothing to do with alcohol. Fortunately, a donor was found for LeDoux, and he was afforded a few more years on this earth.

The remission ended though, and on March 9, 2005, so did Chris LeDoux's fight for life.

I remember where I was, and how I found out Chris had died. Some friends and I were at the Ponderosa Lounge in Portland, Oregon, waiting to see David Lee Murphy. During the concert, David Lee mentioned that Chris had passed away that day, and told about Chris recording a song he'd written. He then sang the song, "Scatter the Ashes", in tribute to Chris.

I don't have a version of the song by David Lee Murphy, so I'll add Chris' version here, in tribute once again to a life ended too soon.

Of Weather & Roadways

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)

I've been sitting at my computer, trying to figure out how to write today's post. I've started several times, only to delete what I've written and try again.

It's not like I haven't written about the weather before; most of my recent posts have mentioned the conditions I've been experiencing in my part of the Pacific Northwest.

Today's post however has to do with the weather and drivers. I don't know what it is, but some drivers just seem to lose all common sense with the changing of the weather.

For instance, around here, it rains a lot, so when the sun comes out, there are those who seem like moles. The bright sunlight blinds them and makes them drive crazy.

Then again, when it hasn't rained in awhile, there are those who seem to be just as crazy as the sun people.

Rather than try to make sense of it to those drivers, I've decided to make things simple.

Dear drivers,

Whether it's sun, rain, hail, sleet, or snow coming down, trust me, the sky is not falling; therefore PLEASE don't drive like it is!

Thank you.

Okay, It's Pretty!

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.


Well, it's officially winter in the Pacific Northwest. West to east, from the coast to the Cascades; and north to south, from Longview, Washington to Salem, Oregon, almost everyone saw some snow on Monday, January 16, 2012.

A lot of the snow below 1000' didn't last, even though there were snow showers all day.

For those of us above 1000' feet, it was a different story. I wasn't able to make it out of my driveway, and ended up taking a vacation day from work. I took photos from my front window and back door of the snow and sent them to my co-workers. This was around 8:00 AM, (West Coast time).


Later in the afternoon, around 3:00 PM, I shot the following video, and sent it to my co-workers as well.


As I've always said, compared to other places, the snow we get isn't a big deal. For us living here though, it can be. Monday's snow wasn't the last either. There's a winter storm watch in effect through Wednesday. Depending on what the weather does, we could get more snow then. Today, above 1000' is supposed to get 1 to 3 more inches of snow.

Not too thrilled at that prospect, because of work, (had to take another vacation day today), but I will admit, it *is* PRETTY!

Baby It's Cold Outside

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.

We all know winter is supposed to be cold. Even the mildest winters are still cold, in relation to the other three seasons of the year. You would think living my entire life in the Pacific Northwest, I'd be used to the cold weather; not so much.

True, even the coldest winters here are nothing compared to the east coast, Alaska, or other places. For instance, this photo was taken by my cousin in Alaska, January 10, 2012. He described it as "blizzard like conditions". The photo was taken from the porch of his house:

(Photo courtesy of Troy Hvass)

BRR!!! No thank you to that!

We're actually barely into winter and I've already come to a conclusion about it. Besides not liking the cold, I'd actually rather deal with that, and rain, than wind.

The next few days we're supposed to have a lot of wind; not good. It's bad enough when it's 30 some degrees out and raining; add wind to that and the wind chill factor just makes it worse.

Of course, this is just my opinion on the whole subject of cold weather. I know there are those who love this time of year, and I'm happy for them. I'll just be even more happy when summer finally gets here!

Sunny Days Are Here Again!

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)


You'd think living in the Pacific Northwest all my life, I'd be used to the cold and rain. Okay, I am used to it; I still don't like it though!

As I've said in at least one other blog, I feel this area got cheated out of summer this year. We had some warm days, however nothing like summer in the Pacific Northwest is supposed to be.

Now it's fall, the middle of October, and chances of nice, somewhat warm days are slim to none for the most part.

Hold on though; what's this? The entire next week is supposed to be sunny, and warm?! Yay!!! There's still hope before the real cold and wet sets in!

Mind you, I realize that since this is the Pacific Northwest, that forecast can change a hundred times or more between now and the weekend. At this point in time however, I'm simply choosing to ignore that possibility. Instead, I'm going to stay positive that the SUNSHINE and warm weather will be here again before winter!

Really? Already?!

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)

So, in my last blog I complained some about how the Pacific Northwest didn't have a real summer this year. I felt cheated because it didn't get as warm as it usually does that time of year. Now it's fall, the days are getting shorter, colder and wetter.

If that's not enough, what did I hear on the radio this morning? The dreaded "s" word. The word that can literally make a person shiver, (if they're out in it). It was in regards to Willamette Pass; evidently the bad word made it's way through the pass, leaving a dusting as it went.

By now you've probably already figured out what I'm talking about; if not however, let me spell it out, loud and clear: SNOW!

Really? It's barely fall! We had an iffy summer, and now winter just wants to barge right in on fall? I don't like that, even a little bit!!!

All I can say is, if winter insists on taking over fall, I hope spring and summer are better next year than they were this year!

To Every Season

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)

I'll be the first to admit, I'm not a fan of cold weather. I'd be happy with summer 365 days a year; with just enough rain to keep things from drying out.

However, this year the Pacific Northwest didn't really have much of a real summer, and to be honest, I feel a bit cheated. I wait through three other seasons just to get those three months of really warm weather, then it all but doesn't happen.

So, now it's fall, and soon all the trees will be losing their leaves after turning beautiful colors. I do like the colors changing, no problem with that. It's the COLD I don't like. I realize that the leaves won't change color without the changing of the weather. I just wish there was some way to have both the pretty leaves of fall, and still stay warm.

And while we're on the subject, if you think I don't like the cold in fall, you can imagine what I think of winter! Brrrrrr!!!! I honestly don't mind snow, unless I have to be out in it; then forget it. If it's going to snow this coming winter, I want it to be on a weekend, when I'm not going somewhere. Not usually how it happens, but one can always hope.

Summer!!!

(Today's word will be in ALL CAPS, BOLD, ITALIC, and STRIKETHROUGH.)

Most of the U.S. has had an overly warm summer of 2011. Here in the Pacific Northwest however, we've had the opposite, until now.

Before this week, we've had a day or two here and there that got a bit warm; but then the weather would cool down again.

This week though, the week all the kids are back in school, this week we're hitting in the 90's for more than one day. Personally I'm very happy about that!

I know getting past the 80 degree mark is too warm for most people. I'm not going to complain though, because I've been waiting all summer for summer to finally get here! I was feeling a bit sad that we hadn't really had a decent summer, so these warmer temperatures are welcome to come and stay awhile. Then maybe I'll feel like we actually had a summer.

On the opposite side of the coin, if winter decides it wants to take it's time getting here, like summer did, I have no problem with that! I don't like being cold and the only time I want to see snow is if I don't have to be somewhere other than home.

Then again, winter really should get here on time and leave on time. Not like a couple years ago when we got two inches of snow on April 20th! Nothing like snow covered daffodils!

For now though, back to the current WEATHER. Thank you summer for finally showing up. Please feel free to stay as long as you'd like. Thank you.