Change Is Hard

…but change is certain.

Tag Archives: Spring


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Rivers and mountains oh my!

Anyone want to float down the river?


Katie here. I guess I have to do all the explaining cause mama is lazy. You’d think this was my blog or something, she hardly does anything anymore. She says she’s on vacation.

Whatever.

So anyway, we’ve been over in Columbus Georgia the past few days, visiting family and taking it easy. Well. I’ve been taking it easy. Mama and family have been working hard on projects and stuff.

They did stop working for a bit to take me on a walk along the Columbus waterfront. What a pretty place!

I’d rent one of these but my fur gets curly when it’s wet.

We walked and walked for about a hundred million miles. Good thing mama had water and treats for me. We watched people going down the rapids in a big yellow rubber raft…

They are definitely going to get wet!

…and in little tiny kayaks. Seems like the water would be way too cold for that! Plus it would mess up your hair. I’m pretty sure I’m not a kayak kind of girl.

Kinda scary if you ask me!

Mama says she likes kayaks but wouldn’t want to go down those rapids! Smart mama!

We saw lots of pretty stuff. We walked in Alabama and in Georgia! I don’t think I’ve ever walked in two states on one walk before!

A lone fisher-bird.

We walked so long that I slept all night without bugging mama! Mama said that was a wonderful thing. I slept with the new toy my Aunt got me. Isn’t it cute? (I’m cute too..it’s OK, you can say it out loud.)

It’s a hedgehog…zzzzzzzzzzzzz…

Anyway, we’re back home at the lake now, and today mama took me to Smith Mountain again for a walk. (Cause I was bugging her while she was napping. I think she wanted revenge.)

You are so slow mama!

This time we walked up what is usually the exit down from the mountain top. It was very steep.

Come on! I ran up these, you can too!

Good thing mama had me to show her the way! Sometimes I had to drag her up steep passages!

Just follow me mama!

These are baby long leaf pines. Mama loves these trees. I think they are pretty too.

I secretly don’t mind posing. It means I get to rest and I get a treat!

We had to go way up here and I scampered right up. It was awesome.

Are we THERE YET mama?

But about 3/4 of the way up I figured that was enough and I started back down the path. Mama said oh no..we’re not going back down this steep path and she took me all the way to the top!!!

Good thing I didn’t have to go all the way to the top of the fire tower too!

Not going up there mama!

We walked back to the car down the road. There was lots of pretty stuff to see there too….including native azaleas in bloom.

Pretty pink deep in the woods.

I was a slowpoke on the road down, but as soon as I saw my car I started trotting ahead of mama. Enough is enough mama!

I see my car mama! Hurry!!

Time to get a little shut eye….mama says we have a big day tomorrow. I have no idea what she’s got in store for me now, but if there’s anything I’ve learned it’s to be well rested!

-Your tour guide gal Katie

Here’s the start of the trail up. (I’ll wait for you here.)


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WordPress Photo Challenge: The Road Taken

Walking a forest fire access road around the mountain we were surprised to find a bit of the lake hiding in back.

Let's go explore that shoreline mama!

Let’s go explore that shoreline mama!

We were glad we took this road a bit further than we ever had before.

Wonder what surprises other people have found on the roads they’ve taken? Check out the link above. Or here are a couple I especially liked.

Katie says she hopes everyone gets out today on a walk filled with wonderful surprises.

And that you all get to take a nap after.

Come along with me!

Come along with me!


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Perfect weather

Sometimes when you wake up in early morning darkness you go back to sleep. And other days, for some reason, you get up, pull the curtains back and check the sky.

Last week I got lucky.

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The sun was coming up over the hills behind me, just touching the house across the way as it sat under a big rolling cloud racing across the sky. The light was only like this for a moment. So brief I might have imagined it.

This morning I woke and caught a sliver of light through a crack in the blinds. It looked a bit gold, so I leaped out of bed and threw back the curtains.

Not gold, but just as rich.

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“Those are Snaphappy Gal clouds!” I cried. (Go to her photography site, you’ll see she loves clouds!) Katie looked at me with held tilted as I raced outside with my camera.

And then the sky turned into a van Gogh right before my eyes.

Which way does the wind blow?

Which way does the wind blow?


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Pictures for my mom

My mom was an artist, she painted and crafted, and back when we were kids she ran a ceramics store and tried to instill in her students bravery to try new things.

I’ve often thought of her during this trip. I’ll shoot something and automatically think ‘mom will like that one.’ Most of these images don’t make it into a blog, because they’re not part of a story. These are just individual shots, not related to each other, that I liked.

Turns out there’s quite a few.

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You’ll notice there’s not a single shot of Katie-girl, and that’s intentional. She gets plenty of blog time, and though she’s certainly beautiful this time it’s all about other pretty things.

I hope you enjoy looking at them as much as I enjoyed taking them. Though that would be hard to do, because I really really enjoyed being in the moment and capturing these beautiful places and things.

And after all, since mom was right there with me, I guess she’s already seen them. That makes me smile.


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WordPress Photo Challenge: A Good Match

Mahogany sable sheltie in the Alabama red clay woods.

Come on mama! Let's go see what's over here!

Come on mama! Let’s go see what’s over here!

A good match.

Want to see some other good matches? Check out the link above. Or if you’re short on time, a couple of my favorites so far are here and here. Go ahead and take a look. I think you’ll be surprised and then you’ll smile.

Katie says everyone needs at least one smile each day.

Smile everybody!

Smile everybody!


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And then there was the eagle

Headed up the river.

Headed up the river.

While we were on our boat ride yesterday, traveling up the river into the wilder part of town, we came across an eagle. It would have been a great photo…the sun was behind us, shining on him. But by the time we realized he was there he had flown off behind the trees. I only saw a bit of his white behind before he disappeared into the pines.

So I focused on shooting other pretty things.

I'll just wait over here while you go by.

I’ll just wait over here while you go by.

But on our way back down the river I was ready for him. Sort of. The sun would be behind him, I figured I’d get a silhouette at best. Still I couldn’t pass up the opportunity to try.

We puttered down the river, I could see him far far away in the top of his favorite tree. Just a spot really. I took a few shots.

See that black dot up in that tree?

See that black dot up in that tree?

He let us get closer, closer. I continued to shoot. His back was to us and he turned his head to watch us approach.

What are you people looking at?

What are you people looking at?

He let us get nearly under him before he rose up from his perch and majestically flew behind the trees.

You're bugging me people, I"m outta here!

You’re bugging me people, I”m outta here!

He was magnificent!

Bet you guys wish you could fly like this!

Bet you guys wish you could fly like this!

The light still wasn’t great. And he was pretty much a shadow. But boy oh boy.

An American icon.

An American icon.

Just look at him.


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Reilly and me

Katie here. HEY! After years and years of a long distance relationship I finally got to meet Reilly the Cowspot Dog in person! Nose to nose! Well, more like nose to behind at first, but now we’re on a nose to nose basis. He is so tall, dark and handsome! I just love him to pieces. I think he likes me too.

Me and Reilly - taken by Reilly's mom.

Me and Reilly – taken by Reilly’s mom.

Mama and I got down to Florida on Thursday evening, and we all spent some time getting to know each other. There’s Reilly the big boy, and his little brother and best man Denny. And of course his mom and dad.

My Reilly and his brother Denny.

My Reilly and his brother Denny.

I like everyone here, though I have to admit I did show Reilly my teeth a tiny bit right at first. But now all three of us doggies can run and chase the ball in the living room. Reilly usually wins, cause he’s the biggest. And to be truthful, I generally just jump up on the sofa when they’re playing, as is due my stature as a princess. That way I can watch the action without getting stepped on.

I also have sucked up…um…bonded.. with Riley’s mom and dad. In fact my mama and Reilly’s mom went away for most of the day today and I hung out with Reilly’s dad. It was fun. I got to sit on the sofa with him and chill out. All us pups slept a lot today which is a good thing. Cause the moms are making us go on lots of mini adventures while I’m here.

Our first adventure was a walk on the beach!

Our first adventure was a walk on the beach!

I’ve been to the beach! On the Atlantic Ocean! Oh my dog, that’s one big lake!

But mama! Reilly and I want to explore those sandy hills over there!

But mama! Reilly and I want to explore those sandy hills over there!

And I’ve visited a couple of Reilly’s parks Everything is so green!

It looks like summer around here mama!

It looks like summer around here mama!

I’m not used to that in February; usually I have snow to play in…but it’s pretty wonderful here right now. No snow, but not so hot as to make a sheltie-girl miserable. No bugs to speak of either. Mama saw some great campgrounds that we would have loved to explore. Maybe someday we’ll be back with our tent!

It's like a jungle here!

It’s like a jungle here!

I had a lot of fun. When mama asked me last week if I wanted to go on an adventure I never dreamed it would be like this!

Going for a walk with my guys.

Going for a walk with my guys.

I’m not sure what we’re going to do tomorrow, but I heard someone say something about a sunrise. Maybe I better hit the sack early tonight so I can be sure to get mama up extra early.

I know she’d appreciate that.

My man Reilly. Isn't he beautiful?

My man Reilly. Isn’t he beautiful?


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The greening of Eastern Tennessee

Wednesday Katie and I went out exploring early in the day. We knew there was no sense sticking close to the hotel because the car wasn’t going to be ready. So we headed back toward Gatlinburg, hoping to find a trail that would keep Katie happy and some photogenic stuff for me.

This time I was more observant, and as I drove into Gatlinburg I noticed the blackened hills above the commercial strip, the hulks of huge burned out homes stark against the sky. The firefighters saved the blocks of restaurants and bars, pancake houses and fudge shops, wax museums and curio shops. But all around town, at the fringes of prosperity, was evidence of the fire that roared through last October.

It is heartbreaking. Especially when you realize that some of the fires were set by humans. And that so many people died. These were people’s homes, their possessions that lay among the blackened rubble.

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And yet. It’s trying to be spring in Tennessee. Up through the blackened brush, the toppled trees, the crumbled walls bits of green are pushing through. Spring doesn’t recognize the devastation of fall. It just does spring.

After I wandered among some of the wreckage a bit I took Katie to a cool green path along the Little Pigeon River. I let her walk as long as she wanted, sniffing the fresh green. She loved it. I did too.

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We’re ready to move on, that’s for certain. But I’m glad I had this day to see up close how nature heals. We have good news too. We got the car back from the dealership yesterday late afternoon. So today, as you’re reading this Katie and I are on the road again.

Soothing.

Soothing.

We’re excited.

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