Don't Fence Me In (but keep the dogs safe)

Jonquils in the snow - yes, this is April in County Lanark...
Phew - to quote the wonderful Jerry, What a Long Strange Trip it's Been! The fence is as good as it's gonna get, the dogs are adapting (so far, so good - still keepin' the fingers crossed), Flashlightie is looking good (and is a total purr factory - hey, if I spent all day snoozing in the sun, I'd purr too), some of the plants have been moved (and I've only lost 2/3 of them, not all). The back hoe will be arriving later this week and once they dig out the foundation of the new buildings, the driver will dig out my new flower bed. We're exhausted - it rained hard all day Wednesday when we were trying to get set up for the weekend's construction, so we were soaked to the skin, cold and tired. K the elder worked Thursday but had Friday, Saturday & Sunday off - so it was full tilt boogie for every hour of every day. And, because the universe has a sense of humor - it snowed every day! Mein Zeyde used to used to say, 'if you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans'. Ok, I get it, Zeyde, I get it!

On Friday, we managed to get the main structure set up, but were missing 10 feet of board that we needed to finish up (of course!) - with the store closed, we had to wait. At 7h00 the next morning, K the Elder was in the car, off to pick up the last bit of board. With the frame and wire fencing installed, we were roughly finished by 13h00 but K (typical...) fussed around for the next 3 hours, looking for fault and things to do. I was ready to shout, 'good enough, Boris' (hee hee hee Russian humor - yeah!) but I left him to his fussing.
It doesn't look like much despite all the work, eh?
I was going to stain the bugger (the fence, not K the E) but it looks good the way it is. It'll grey out nicely and blend into the landscape. I really like the wire fencing - it 'disappears' and it's nice to be able to see into the yard on both sides without worrying about the 'boys' running loose and getting hurt. Jack is so damaged by his first year and the abuse heaped on him that he just wants to 'do right'. He is really frightened by change and has been on tenterhooks this past few months, with the construction going on around him. Because we now need to escort the dogs to their run, we need to do one dog at a time but Jack has decided that he wants to please us and is going straight to the run all by himself, no leash. I wonder how long this will last - once he relaxes, the good behaviour usually drops off and Gentleman Jack is replaced by his uncouth cousin, Silly Boy Jack. If he was a human, he'd be a good ole boy at this time, looking for fun, driving too fast. If it wasn't such a pain to try and correct his behaviour, I'd like to see the silly guy more. There have been days when I've prayed that he would 'just be a normal dog'... but I knew that I was bringing home a 'problem' when I adopted him. We were his last chance and I do not regret any of it (but I do wish that I was wiser, more patient, a better dog owner).

Pat made his usual weekly call home (yay!) - this is what happens when your kids pair off with good partners - They call home 'just to chat'!. I think that Val has brought Pat closer into the family and it's just another reason to love her. He was telling us about his last show at Zaphod's and how some of the guys he had gone to high school with were there. Pat was an 'artsy' kid in high school and marched to his own beat. Once, just 'because', he took an online "course" with a virtual church and obtained the faux-title of Reverend. His teachers were NOT impressed with him signing all of his papers with the 'Honorable Reverend Pat XXXX' (I think my favorite comment from on of his teachers was 'Pat, cut the garbage and be sensible!'. Yes, he was just that weird. He had a close circle of friends (most of whom are still his friends today) but like a lot of kids, took his fair share of teasing and abuse by the bigger 'jockocracy' that dominates small town life. So when those past bullies turned up at his show, wanting to be his friend because he was playing there, he was pissed. "I didn't want to be their friends then so why would I want to now?". Pat, darling - sometimes people will not get you when they should. Sometimes, in their ignorance, they will hurt you. Whatever they do or say, stretch your wings and be who you are supposed to be. I would rather have you 'odd' than have you unhappy. Anyone who knows Pat knows what a happy soul he is - he's living his purpose. I can only pray that those sad souls who bullied him back then find their purpose and a little happiness.

On the knitting front, I've churned out 11 pairs of LK mittens in the past 10 days - how? I have no clue... I've set a steep goal for myself this year - 60 pairs by September 30th. Think I can do it? Not sure but I'll give it a brave try. Last year, I knit 36 pairs in 3 months so I should be all right with 60 in 6 months. That is 9-10 schools worth of mittens so it's well worth the effort. If you know of a local school that would benefit from receiving a 'mitten bag' next winter or if you'd like to knit along with me (1 pair is just fine - don't worry about the other 59; I'll do those) - drop me a line.

I wanted to take a few seconds to all of the kind souls who were there with kindness when we were so worried about our little Flashlight - she seems fine and is back to being silly and even cuddled up with me the other evening. I suspect that she really wanted to sleep on this blanket but I'm telling myself that it's because she loves me. And don't even get me started about those who commented about the garden woes - a lot of people 'get' the need to till the soil and I was touched by the concern. I am always amazed at the 'strangers' out there who take time to leave a comment and there are times when those comments get us through the hard times. In this virtual neighbourhood, no one stays a stranger for long - here's to this brave new world and many, many new friends!