Nearly every morning and in this order I get up, walk to the living room open the door so the dogs can get out, turn on the computer, get coffee started, get the dog food ready, go and relieve myself (I know TMI) feed the dogs, get a cup of coffee and sit at the computer to check out the weather, e-mail, and NEWS. I am not happy when this routine is interrupted especially when I have to work. 10 minutes with a nice hot cup of coffee and my equivalent to the news paper just makes my morning. Well today at 0610 that’s 6:10 in the am Trip the girl dog came into the house foaming at the mouth and with an odor that brought tears to my eyes. That damn dog got into another skunk; the second one this year. To make things worse I had to be at work for a mandatory class at 8:00 am and it takes an hour to get where the class was being held!!!!! Well I got the Dawn soap and the vinegar, threw Trip in the shower gave her a quick bath and rinse, I did not have the 10 minutes to wait with the Dawn on but since the skunk spray was still wet I figured something was better than nothing. Trip got out of the shower and on to the porch and I hopped in took a quick shower and off to class I went. Class was canceled because of a computer glitch but not before my coworkers got a scent of my new perfume. It seems there was just a hint of essence de la skunk on me. With the cost of gas I went ahead and got my errands done while I was out. I stopped at three places, the first place I stopped I heard a man say to a woman, “Do you smell that I think it is something electrical” her reply “NO that is SKUNK!”

I have spent all afternoon cleaning house and dog and I can still smell that skunk…… Damn that dog!!!!

Trip smells spring


just a taste of Willis spring color


on one of the trials near Blowing Rock NC

the valley before brunch

the valley after Brunch

It’s been a busy few weeks for me. I have been getting things ready for spring planting and trying to catch up on some outside repairs of course I have been working in between storms. It seems that every day I am off it is either raining or I have to “do something” away from home.

Last Friday a friend and I went to Blowing Rock NC for the weekend and there was a tornado that set down about 40 miles from my house, that was a blessing but I was told that the wind and rain at my place was torrential. This week end the same storm system that started in Oklahoma has brought an unbelievable amt of rain to us in south western Virginia. The fields down from my cabin have a stream running down one side of them. That stream became a river today. I had never seen it do that before. That land is pasture land and hay field in a flood plain and today I could see why it will most likely not be used for anything else.

The daffodils are hidden under the snow to the left of the photo.

It’s been quite a week here. Monday it snowed then it rained then it just plane got cold and today they call for high winds. Hummm….. I have finished my book and magazines, I have baked bread and I have cleaned house. It was warmer here the beginning of March than it is now!!! I had all my seeds out and was planning on where to plant them and now I have been reminded that winter is not over yet. I want to plant things and I need to cut the grass but it is winter again!!!! Agggggg I have spring fever sooooo bad!!!!!!

I did get to see a sun set last night, it wasn’t as pretty as the sun sets at the beach but I do miss seeing the sun rise and sun set so while it was not perfect it was very nice.