It’s all “back on the farm” today. I’m getting my paws back on the ground after being at IFAAB (lots of article topics to come from there) and three heavenly vacation days in Tucson. I’m also finally feeling like myself after re-arranging my brain two and a half weeks ago in a fall, so I’m feeling a tad behind. Stay tuned for lots of pithy content to come, and forgive my indulging myself this week in a short post.
It’s very March-y here in Wisconsin. Snowy/rainy/sleety/sunny–you name it, it’s a typical March in Wisconsin. This morning it’s warm and sunny, after a huge thunderstorm blew through last night, threatening to cut off my access to the last Downton Abbey show (a crisis beyond description). But now that the storm has past, it’s feels very springish. There are even bulbs poking their pointy ovals of green out of the mud. I can barely imagine flowers blooming here, after a typical winter of black and white, grey and brown. But soon there will be daffodils and scilla and crocus waving their glory in the breeze. I can barely wait. And lambs too! Lady Godiva is due just a month from now. I’m hoping for twins, so cross your hooves for me.
Flowers were abundant in the botanical gardens at the Arizona Sonora Desert Museum. I love the contrast of feathery petals and cactus spines along one of the paths:
Here’s a lovely stand of Saguaro, a cactus unique to the Sonoran Desert and a few areas of Mexico and southern California. These noble plants are home to many a bird, including woodpeckers, flickers, elf owls and canyon wrens. I grew up surrounded by saguaros and always love to see them.
We also visited Sabino Canyon, a truly gorgeous area just outside of Tucson. You can take a trolley up up and up the canyon, and hike down all or part of the trip. Great birding if you are so inclined (Broad-billed Hummingbird, Phainopepla for example.)
Now that we’re home, the farm is all about garden clean up not done in fall, getting the barn cleaned out and ready for lambing, and working Maggie to prepare her for her first trial at the end of May. She’s made so much progress in the last year–more confident staying on contact with the sheep, driving well at least at short to moderate distances, learning her whistles–but she and I both have a long way to go to be truly trial ready.
Meanwhile, back at your “farm,” have a good week. I’m off to try to catch up!
Chloe Desegonzac says
The comment about downtown Abbey…haha
Nic1 says
Trisha, so sorry to hear about your fall! Not too serious I hope but fortunately it hasn’t affected your ability to write your lovely blog posts and keep us up to date with lovely pics from your travels. I hope you are taking care and got some rest!
Rosemary Teetor says
Here in the Pacific Northwet (spelling intentional) it IS. Soggy. We’ve had our customary two-weeks February promissory note on summer (daytime temps in the low 60s) and croci, daffodils and hyacinth are blooming. Ornamental cherries, too.
Glad to hear hear spring is springing in Wisconsin, also. And that you are feeling recovered from the fall.
Sally took an unintended month off from training while I succumbed to, then recovered from a sinus infection. She and I will be hitting the training trail again this week also.
Suzi Scholtz says
Oh MY…. you might have missed DA? So glad THAT didn’t happen! Spring is here too – in Northern Illinois. I just took my two “oldies” (12-year-old Afghan Hounds) for a stroll to visit the field at the end of our street. No bunnies…. what THEYwere hoping to see… but I saw and heard CRANES! I just LOVE to see the cranes swinging around in the sky – do they EVER fly in a straight line? But even if I can’t see them, their call is music to my ears. Now after I eat some soup made with almost the last of my garden tomatoes, Elvis and I are off to Barnhunt practice. For an Afghan, he sure likes to find that RAT!S
Kevin Johnson says
Wow! Didn’t realize how sharp-eyed your fans are:
Only a couple weeks have gone by and already the “throw-treats-at-the-aggresive-dog” technique has been a plot point on the ABC show “The Mysteries of Laura.” The episode is “Laura and the Mystery of the End of Watch.” It’s on Hulu now.
Hope the royalties start rolling in soon!
Monika & Sam says
Sorry about your fall and injury. Hope you are fully recovered. It does feel good to get one’s hands in the dirt this time of year. 🙂
Kelly Schlesinger says
We loved the DA finale. Mary got a heart, Edith got a brain and Mr. Barrow got a home. …And Robert got a puppy.
Jann Becker says
Here in St. Louis we are seeing the first little buds on the trees (to which I’m allergic. Sigh.) But the forecast is for rain from tomorrow (Tuesday) through the rest of the week with potential flooding along the rivers, where people were already flooded out over the winter. We had very little snow but all too much rain.
Fortunately, we live on a hill, but my Goldendoodle’s paws are nature’s little sponges. Whatever I put down in the way of mats in front of doors she’s going to be squishing in with muddy paws; she starts the night on my side of the bed so I have to wash the spread every few days. Our really special quilt is hung on the wall!
Bruce says
Hi Trisha, glad to hear that your brain is unscrambling and that you are seeing signs of spring. Driving past our old house I noticed that the crocuses we planted have carpeted the front garden in a sold sheet of purple. Note to self: plant some crocuses at the new house.
Apropos of nothing, here is a slice of dog life from this weekend.
Dog park is next to a busy road. Guy parks his car next to the dog park with a German Shepherd leaning out of the open car window. Shepherd sees dogs, jumps out of the window, and runs back and forth outside the dog park fence with cars zooming by a few feet away. Guy attempts to catch Shepherd, who has no interest in being caught. Everyone at the dog park holds breath, waiting for the worst.
Guy eventually catches and berates Shepherd, and puts the dog back in the car with the window still open. Shepherd jumps out again. Traffic continues whizzing by. Guy eventually catches dog with shouts and rough shakes. Dog park denizens yell at the guy, who yells back. No one learns anything.
The poor German Shepherd may have learned something, though – I suspect he will be much harder to catch next time.
John Thomson says
Hi Tricia from across the pond in Norfolk, England. So glad to hear that you’re recovering from your fall and the old synapses are operating ok. In this part of the UK, rain, rain and more rain seems to be the predominant feature with daytime temperatures going from 33F-43F in two days. The ground is saturated with water so no matter where I go with my Golden Retriever Bella, we come back wet, muddy but happy (hard not to be anything else with a Goldie!). We got caught in our first serious hail storm last week and she was trying to bite the hail whilst it was all I could do to walk in a straight line. We do love reading your blog, it opens up another dog world for us.
Now DA is finished, there is another period drama by the same director just started here…”Dr. Thorne”. Addictive, you might see it sometime hopefully.
In another hour or so me and the pup (nearly 4y.o.) will be battling the wet again for an hour or two in a nearby forest…ahhh, I do love the smell of wet dog.
Alice R. says
Glad you are feeling better after your fall. This getting older thing is no picnic, is it? Struggling a bit myself right now.
Loved your beautiful desert pictures. Have you become too much of a dog person when your first thought is “how do you walk a dog through that!?!”. Hee hee.
lin says
We lived in Phoenix for a short while, and my husband (who went to UA) and I hiked Seven Falls in Sabino Canyon. Water in the desert always feels like a miracle.
Take all the time you want in the next post. We’re all just glad no serious damage was done.
Luna Grace says
To Alice R
The only thing stopping me from moving to New Mexico were the “goatherds” my dog got stuck in his paws the minute he jumped out of the car to hike . Circumstances dictated that we move here sooner than I anticipated . Two dogs now to learn how to deal with the goatherds. Took them about two months to learn how to avoid them. No only happily walk the Mesa, avoiding prickly pear and all other paw stickers.
Luna Grace says
GOATHEADS — not goatherds?
Chris from Boise says
The Sonoran Desert is one of my most favorite places in the world! Glad you had some time outside IFAAB to enjoy it. Looking forward to posts about all you learned.
Back at our ‘farm’, Habi had surgery today to repair a ruptured cruciate ligament (happened chasing ground squirrels on a desert hike – probably turning at high speed). Thankful we have a talented surgeon and wonderful sports vet, but we are SO not looking forward to weeks of crate rest. Will be reviewing your posts from when Will was laid up.
Speaking of hail (@John Thomson), I well remember one hike in the mountains in which we got caught in a thunderstorm. As we were hustling to get off an exposed ridge before being fried by lightning, the hail started. Great big nickel-sized balls pounded us. Our red heeler Pica folded her great big ears over the top of her head as best she could, winced at every blow. “Ouch! ouch! ouch”!, and raced down the trail to shelter.
Glad you’re getting your wits back about you – have fun with lambs and Maggie!