Easter Saturday: long walk with the dogs

I tend to wake up early on weekends to scroll through the internet before getting out of bed. I did the same today. My goal was to walk Gretchen, Fritz, and Wolfie before heading to the house. Soon I will be doing this before sunrise. Today it was overcast and windy, with a cool breeze. I didn't get started until 9:30am with Gretchen. Since she is tethered to avoid her jumping the fence, I always focus on walking her first. The other dogs are untethered and have the whole back yard to run in. Gretchen loves these walks, looking in all directions for something to chase, especially rabbits. Today it was a long walk holding on to the leash tightly, as she spotted a few yard dogs she wanted to fight with. The other dogs distracted me and I missed a crucual left turn and ended up walking a whole mile out of my way. The first three miles with Gretchen tired me out. I rested in the house when I got back and drank iced tea before resuming my walk with Fritz. Fritz' head was bloodied when I got him ready. He had fought with Wolfie while I was walking Gretchen. I hosed Fritz down to cool him off and get the blood off. While superficial wounds, the fact that both dogs continue to fight made me realize the dogs can't stay together. I walked Wolfie around the hood for the last 2.8 miles. He walks smoothly on leash. I didn't see him limp until after the walk, when I noticed two small puncture wounds on top of the first one he got two weeks ago. I hosed hdim down as well as he had dust all over his back, most likely from the fight with Fritz when Fritz held him down. I let Wolfie dry off before I took him with me in the CRV into town. He seemed relaxed in no pain, laying low in the back seat while I had a quick lunch at a Mexican restaurant and then another stop at a CBD store that sells CBD treats for dogs. I figured why not try CBD on Sweetie, who isn't showing any improvement with all the medications she is on. I also stopped to get some first aid medical wraps for Wolfie to wrap up his open wounds. He let me touch him, again without protest, and spend some time with him in the driveway of the house. This is the first time we had a one-on-one. Wolfie is never alone. He always has a sibling near him. I was afraid he'd bark being left alone, but he seemed content being with just me. He gently licked me and let me cuddle him. He took his medication without whining. Then he crawled into one of the dog houses as it got darker. The wind had gotten stronger. This time with him made me fall in love with him. He is a gentle giant. I called Susan to arrange meeting her later. I had canned food to drop off. She was willing to try CBD on Sweetie. I gave Sweetie one treat and we both noticed an immediate calmness. She didn't pace around the house. She lay down on her bed and napped for the duration of my two-hour stay. The SpaceX rocket was scheduled to launch tonight at 7:30pm from Vandenburg AFB but it got delayed to 9pm and them 10:30pm. I stayed a little longer for the 9pm delay, but left when I knew I couldn't stay past 10pm without checking up on Wolfie. Wolfie was still in his dog house when I came by. That's when I was assured he would do well overnight. r

Weekend with my mother and a family reunion

The news about my mother left me paralyzed all day Friday. I lost an entire day of working on the house. All I managed was a long walk with Gretchen We all eventually die, but in my mother's case, it's a story of lost opportunities. She never allowed anyone, especially any of her five children, get close to her. She always had to be in control. The plan was to spend the weekend with my mother whom I haven't seen in ten years. I didn't realize it was that long until she reminded me of that. Both Iris and Mom were surprised that I agreed to visit her, which surprised me.It's not that my mother and I are estranged, it's that we simply don't mesh well. She always finds a way to put me down. To avoid negative feelings about myself, I took the easy way out and didn't visit her. It's a complicated story. I got up early to walk Fritz around the neighborhood. He was the first dog out the gate. I left the side gate improperly latched and Zeus, CC's dog, got out. He doesn't get walked much so he probably enjoyed his freedom, running to back yards with dogs so he could talk with them. Luckily Jay saw his silhoette as he walked past his window and he helped me coral the dog back home: Jay with treats and me with a short walk around the block. It's a pretty drive to Sahuarita via the backroads, but I ended up taking I-10 to the Houghton Road exit, then backtracked south to Sahuarita Road, I still remembered the route! Mom lives in Rancho Sahuarita, a gated community. Luckily someone was ahead of me and I was able to drive in. Iris never gave me the gate code as she and her fiance were picking Jason and his wife Ela up from the airport. My sister Alex was due in at 2pm. I arrived at 1pm. I was alone with Mom and her husband Bill. I was afraid of what I would see when I saw mom. Iris had said that she was frail and had lost a lot of weight. And she had, but she still looked beautiful despite her 88 years. Her straight nose and that clear skin made her look younger.

She was lying low on the couch, almost swallowed by pillows. We chatted comfortably. I was more at ease than I thought I would be. She didn't disparage me, or talk badly of Kevin, whom she never liked. Why did it take me ten years? I know the answer, but that answer is mute now. All we have now is the future. Iris, her fiance Matt, Jason and Ela, all came back by 3pm, followed by Alex 30 minutes later. I always enjoy seeing Jason. Of all my siblings, I share the most in common with him. He loves mountains, cycling, hiking and road trips I n a campervan.

 We had a large dinner at the Arizona Family Restaurant in Green Valley where I had a mediocre taco salad that barely had any refried beans in it. More importantly, though, was being with family Jason and Ela were still too jetlagged from their 36-hour flight and delay from Germany and they went to their hotel room right after dinner, and Iris and Matt did the same. That left me alone with Alex and Bill in the evening. Mom was already upstairs asleep. It had been years since I had spoken with Alex. Kevin and I flew to her wedding in Orlando 14 years ago. She is now a mom of two, but her marriage to her Matt has staled over the years. Matt is a great father, said Alex, but a negligent husband. I know the feeling. Alex left at 10pm to go to her hotel room. She had flown in from North Carolina. 

 That gave me an opportunity to walk around Sahuarita Town Lake, an artificial lake stocked with fish. The lake was the reason Mom and Bill moved to their home, as Mom always liked water sports. In her younger years, she'd kayak on the lake. Here I was, walking the 0.93-mile perimeter, remembering when Mom forced me to kayak with her on the lake. I've never had upper body strength like I have lower body strength, but kayaked nonetheless to make her happy. She always had an intense look on her face, which she still has today, and that look can be misunderstood by strangers as anger. I see that same look in me at times. The lake is officially closed after sunset, but there were a few anglers along the shore. No one bothered the other. I got up early Sunday morning to repeat the walk around the town lake, where I could see the various water fowl, enjoy the flowers, and see the many two-story homes qvetched on small lots. I expanded my walk by continuing along the Wilderness trail west of the lake. The arch over the trailhead intrigued me, so I ended up finishing my walk along this paved path that envelops Ranch Sahuarita to the north. I had walked over 6.6 miles, over four which were on the Wilderness trail which should have been named the Saguaro trail as I spotted three beautiful crested saguaros along the route. 

Sahuarita Town Lake and the Wilderness Trail.

Sahuarita Town lake is a ten-acre artificial lake that neasures 0.93 miles around. It's 12 foot deep and stocked with trout, bass, sunfish. No swimming is allowed, but non-motorized boats can use the boat ramp on the north end of the lake. 

 I was up to walk the perimeter at 7:30am. My mom's house is on the south end of the lake. I was impressed with the many early birds out jogging, walking, fishing, dogwalking. Young and old use this lake! There are blue metal benches every 0.1 miles along the way to sit back and listen to the birds. 

 A tree full of what I thought were American coots or comorants were perched in one tree gawking loudly. There were other sounds I heard, but couldn't identify the bird. Can waterfowl perch in trees?

 Large two-story homes with small yards line the lake. A lot of people live in the Rancho Sahuarita area, and many of them were up early. I admire active people. 

 

I walked the lake twice, once in each direction. But then I got bored and decided to walk into town, toward the strip mall where the grocery store is to grab a cup of coffee. But along the way the arched trailhead marking the Wilderness trail caught my attention. So why not see where it lead? I had until 10am to explore. 

 The Wilderness trail is an 8-foot-wide paved path that envelops Rancho Sahuarita. It's popular with cyclists. The west end is two miles long and arched on either entrance. To the west is desert land and a dry wash.

 There's not much wilderness to be seen here, but there are some lovely samples of crested saguaros. I continued my walk on the sidewalk, now on my return walk along Sahuarita Boulevard. This section had palm trees along the neighborhood, but it was still mostly exposed. There is still much undeveloped land here. What this neighborhood could use is a cafe or coffee shop. All the stores are clustered near the I-19 exits instead.

Canada del Oro with Wolfie

Weather was forecasted as sunny but overcast, with highs in the low 70s. This sounded like the best option for a trip toward Tucson.  I needed a taste of Tucson while on spring break.  I took Wolfie to have an excuse to get his vaccines at the ABC pet services on Broadway and then drive toward Oro Valley to finish the northern section of the CBO.  The unmarked trailhead parking is off Tangerine Road across from the hospital.

Wolfie is another special-needs dog.  He's slower than the rest of his siblings and not very bright.  His recall is better than Gretchen's but he always acts confused when following the others, as if he is asking "Duh, where are we going?"  So I had no idea how he would do today by himself. He has always been with a packmate.

He still gets car sick. He threw up on the back seat and probably peed as well as his leash stunk of urine when we waited in the lobby. He did well at the ABC clinic until other dogs came in and he lunged at them, immediately marking him as a reactive dog.  At least I know that now.  He's the same as all the other pups, unfortunately.

Wolfie weighs 98 pounds.  Ninety-eight pounds!  That's a big dog!  I could tattoo his ears and belly, put a baseball cap on him backwards, and he could be the next canine version of a Southwestern redneck.  At least he is gentle with people.  Dogs, not so much.

But all that aside, he walked well today.  He doesn't pull on the leash like Gretchen does.  He looked up to me for assurance several times and I realized that he simply didn't get the chance to socialize with other dogs like his siblings did when he was younger because they always beat him to the front door.  I have to work on that now.

We started the walk at 2:35pm from the Oro Valley Marketplace, in an undeveloped parking area. Purple lupines were blooming off the path, but there were no big fields of Arizona poppies like I had hoped.ò

We came to the Putsch View Road rest area in three miles.  This is where Zana and I turned around last time we walked the CDO on February 18th.  We rested here again, I gave him water, and watched Wolfie in his element.  He was calm, but looked confused.  And boy, did I notice the extra weight on him!

By now the sky was cloudier.  Despite the 68F, it felt cooler with that chilled mountain air.  Wolfie was panting but not because of the heat, but because of his weight.  Fritz panted the first few months I had him in the front yard until he got used to his daily walks.  I have to do the same with him now.   It's going to take a few months.

He did well, I will give him that.  I held him close when other dogs passed us.  I held him closer when cyclists whizzed by.

We were back at the CRV shortly after 5pm.  Wolfie got more water and a can of food.  I had my meal at Kabab in downtown Oro valley, an area that looked new.  The owner is Iranian and very proud of his restaurant.  I had chicken beryani.  The saffron reminded me of the meals I had in Kuwait.

The last time I was in OV was with Kevin in 2005 or so, and I don't remember many businesses there.  Now the town 14 miles north of Tucson along the Catalina foothills looks like a retirement community for wealthy golfers.  The views of the mountains, I must admit, are beautiful.  

I left Kabab at sunset, driving back toward north Tucson when my sister Iris called.

"I have some good news and some bad news" she began.  "The good news is that we're in Tucson.  The bad news it's because of mom.  She's not doing too well."

I'll write more later.  

Sweetie goes to the vet

 Her appointment today was at 9am.  I was up early to walk Fritz around the 'hood at sunrise, then drove to Susan's place to pick her up.  We drove in separate cars and arrived at the clinic at 8:57am.  Sweetie weighed in at 55 pounds.

We were seen right away by DVM Etta Watts, the new owner of Jackson's Veterinary Services.  She and her husband Jim bought the business last December from Dr Jackson.  Jackson still works at the clinic to help out, she said.  She is a petite slender woman who looks to be in her 40s, with thick dark brown shoulder-length hair.

Dr Watts impressed both Susan and me.  She explained that Sweetie is suffering fr om advanced arthritis.  She  showed us on Sweetie's body where the pain is, and what the medications she prescribed for her do for her.  Watts prescribed three medications: 300mg Gabapentin, 50mg Tramadol, 300mg Clindamycin, all three every 12 hours.  I'm a little concerned about the Tramadol long-term as it's an opiate.

I went ahead and ordered a Senior Wellness Bundle, a complete blood panel that gets overnight shipped to a lab in Kansas.  I want to rule any other diseases  for Sweetie.  If all she is suffering from is arthritis and her pain can be managed, she should live longer as long as she is otherwise healthy.  Susan and I agree on this.

We were in the exam room for over an hour.  I've never had a veterinarian spend so much time with me explaining the details.  Even Susan was impressed.  The bill for the exam, meds, and blood panel was $266.80.

We drove back to her place for breakfast.  I couldn't stay long as I wanted to take Wolfie to Dr Geiger's walk-in vaccine clinic, only to discover the clinic now closes at 1pm instead of 2pm.  It was 1:25pm when I stopped by.  I then drove to CC's place to drop Wolfie off in the backyard with Fritz and Gretchen to get my hair cut in town.  I hadn't had my hair cut since the start of school.

Walking from Old Bisbee to Lowell

 Bill and I had a 7am date to walk the Bisbee stairs again.  I arrived early as I left from CC's house and had Gretchen with me.  We arrived at 7:48am just as the morning sun's rays lighted the hillsides. Bill texted me saying he would be late, so I took the extra time to clean out the trash in the car. I didn't see his 6:45am follow-up text saying he suddenly got sick and drove back home until 7:10am.  

Not wanting to waste the morning, I opted instead to drive to Old Bisbee and walk around there.  Nothing was open yet for business and the streets were barren, with just sunlight filtering through.

I parked in front of the Kafka Kafe and walked with Gretchen along historic Route 80 to the Lavender Pit and Lowell. The Lavender Pit is a former open-pit copper mine that is now a huge gaping hole outside Old Bisbee.  It is named after Harrison M. Lavender (1890- 1952), General Manager for Phelps-Dodge mining company, the company that for decades owned the subsurface around Bisbee.

I had always wanted to walk that stretch at least once just to find any sites not normally visible from the car driving by at 35mph.  Many cars drive faster than that anyway and the walkway for cyclists and pedestrians isn't very wide.

It's not a very scenic walk.  There's nothing scenic about a big hole in the earth, despite a "scenic overlook" stop for passers-by. There are gaps in the fence to stick a camera through for better pictures. Even when I briefly got off the road and walked along the ditch and through some tunnels, there is not much to discover that doesn't involve trespassing on mine property.  We came across graffiti  and roadside trash.  Gretchen didn't like having cars speed past us just a few feet away.

The walk from the Kafe to the Bisbee Breakfast club is just under two miles, and it involves always watching traffic.  A local cyclist, Sergio Lalli, was struck by driver Noe Jesus Smith on Friday, June 11, 2021 and died two days later.  His mangled bike is now a white ghost bike chained to the chain-link fence that borders the Lavender Pit along the road.  He is not the first cyclist killed along that route.

https://www.myheraldreview.com/news/bisbee/cyclist-struck-by-hit-and-run-motorist-on-state-route-80-at-pit-driver-arrested/article_43e38434-caf9-11eb-85be-538af9043c8a.html

I discovered a bordered-up mine entrance and got up close to the three concrete mining structures.  Then I decided to go all touristy and walked the main street of Lowell, where vintage cars from the 1940s and 1950s are parked along the street for photographers. 

One motorcyclist from Los Angeles, on his first visit to Bisbee, asked me to photograph him "filling up" his tank in front of a pump that reads 34 cents a gallon. That was in 1967 when gasoline sold for that price in Arizona.

I made it to the Lowell Police Department bike patrol car before turning around.  I was now just under three miles and walked the same route back, this time walking the east side closer to the fence.  I watched the tourists photograph all the cars. some leaving their tiny hotel rooms nearby.  I never knew there were hotels in Lowell!

I got back to the Kafka Kafe at 9:25 am. We had walked for two hours.  I kept Gretchen in the car as I went inside for coffee.  Soon Frank, the homeless man I met on Wednesday, walked in, recognized me, and we had coffee together outside.

Frank appears to be well-known among the locals.  He had already had coffee and bagel from another person.  I was his second donator.  He was in good spirits.  Another local man came up to Frank, hugged him and told him that Frank looked healthier and happier now.

Frank is an interesting character.  Born in Brooklyn, New York in 1976, he grew up in New Jersey, but has lived in California, Florida, New Mexico.  How he landed in Bisbee six years is still a mystery to me, but he is generally in good spirits and not a public nuisance.  Perhaps because of his homelessness, he prefers to sit outside and not bother the clients inside Kafka Kafe. He stuffed his pipe with a blunt of cannabis and smoked it briefly. He is very animated and would jump up and start waving his arms about.

We chatted a bit more, but I was aware of the time.  I wanted to get back to the house by 1:30pm and prep either Zana or Wolfie for the vaccine clinic at Tractor Supply. I bit farewell to Frank, then walked to the nearby Grass Shop smoothie  place for an Orange Dreamcicle.  A few minutes after I arrived, Frank shows up and gets a free smoothie from the shop owner.  It's obvious that locals know of him and feed him!  Frank recognized me, waved at me, and then went back to the Kafka Kafe.  He was still there when I finally drove off at  noon.

I got back to the house at 1:30 and continued throwing moldy books away before I realized it was already 2:30pm.  I took the first dog out the door -- Zana -- but a few miles toward town realized I had left my jacket and wallet by the Ford Escape.  I had to turn around.

And then chaos erupted.  Both Gretchen and Zana started fighting.  Neither dog would give in.  Three times they attacked each other.  I had to pull over, cover my head, and scream for them to stop it.  By the time I got back to the house, it was too late to drive into town.  Both Zana and Gretchen were bloodied up.

Thus ended my otherwise busy Sunday.  

A long Sunday walk

I like my Sunday morning solitude.

I had some catching up  to do at the house so I stayed local today.  The plan was to walk the dogs early and then get to the house for more clean-up.  I want to get my old office cleaned up.

It almost turned out that way.  I took Fritz out first, creating a 1.5-mile loop in the immediate area.  It was 60F at 10am. Other people were also walking, many in couples, or singles with dogs.  Since Fritz has free roam of CC's back yard, it was Gretchen I focused on.  After dropping Fritz off, it was her turn and I walked south on  Equestrian Drive via the bike path to the Pueblo del Sol refuge.  We had reached the three-mile mark now.

We walked at a good pace, but the rising warmth was starting to affect us.  I wasn't wearing a hat nor did I have water for Gretchen.  We reached Cherokee Drive at the 3.8-mile mark and continued due north via the urban trail.We turned east on Kalispell Avenue and were back home in just under two hours. We had covered 6.1 miles.

The walk kicked my butt!  I drank water for two hours before I felt refreshed to continue on the house at 3pm.

My next urban walk will be to walk north on Equestrian Drive to the Garden Canyon linear park due north.  Construction on an 8'-wide paved path has already begun.

Gretchen is now an escape artist

 My plan for today was to walk Fritz around the neighborhood, then head out to the house to clean out the office.  Most of the stuff in my old office is no longer salvageable.

Things didn't work out that way, though.  I didn't start walking Fritz until 10am.  We had just turned the corner on Kalispell, when Gretchen comes speeding around the corner.  She had gotten out of the yard and ran to join us. Her running got Fritz pulling on the leash trying to go after her and I struggled to keep him on the leash.  My priority now was getting Gretchen back in the yard.

I took Fritz back to the house to be able to capture Gretchen.  I guess I had not properly latched the side gate and she had pushed her way out to freedom, but then how did she get out of the back yard?  Once she was back on a leash, I took her for the 2.35-mile walk that I had wanted to take Fritz on. 

All the neighbors around CC have dogs and she knows where they all are now.  There is a German shepherd across the street and a mountain dog around the corner that jumped his fence to get to Gretchen. (And the owner blamed me for allowing Gretchen to talk his dog to jump his own fence!)  She ran from house to house trying to taunt any dog behind the fence. She came back to me panting after her attempts were unsuccessful, so getting her back in the yard was easy as she needed water.

But just minutes later she was out the yard again.  That ungrateful bitch!!! The neighbor across the street came by to tell us she was on the loose again.  Now I was perplexed.  How was she getting out?

Trip (CC's husband) checked the fence and placed large rocks around holes Gretchen has been digging under the fence.  Can she squeeze under an opening?  She is a thin dog for sure, but not thin enough to squeeze under three inches.  I still wasn't satisfied with how she is escaping the yard.

She got out three times.  "Dogs!" exclaimed Jay (another housemate of Tripp's) as Jay walked out to his car, aware of the drama. By then it was 11am and I had wanted to be at the house by then.  On the third  escape I saw her in action:  She ran to the southern edge of the chain-link fence, jumped and then used the links to push herself up and over the fence to freedom.  Fritz ran after her, but he's too heavy to pull himself over the fence and began whining because he was alone now.

My only option now was to lock Gretchen in her kennel.  I hate doing this, but I can't have her running around this neighborhood annoying others.  The kennel is 4' x 8', so not much room to move around in.  I will have to take her on walks when I get home every day for her exercise.

Shortly after that ordeal was resolved, I heard from Susan.  She had gotten a flat tire on her way to a hike nearby and was stranded in Whetstone.  She was supposed to meet me at my house after the hike to pick up Sweetie's medication.  We were both late for our plans and ended up meeting at her house at 1:40pm.  I had wanted to see Sweetie anyway as it's been a few weeks. Living in one spot, having dogs in two spots and working full time  gives me little time to just sit around and chat with Susan.

Susan had called a few days ago saying she didn't think Sweetie had much longer, as she whimpered in pain all the time and was very restless.

Susan and Sweetie were in front of her garage, in the shade, as I pulled up.  I could see the pain in Sweetie's face even from from the 30 feet distance.  She reminded me of Zeke's face shortly before he died. She has aged a lot this past year.  Her muzzle is greyer and her movement slow. If only she could speak!

Susan wanted Sweetie to pee in her front yard, but she was having trouble walking.  But once she defecated, she walked better and slowly followed Susan back into her house.

I ended up staying with Sweetie and Susan until 6pm.  Susan is very gentle with Sweetie.  Sweetie paced from inside the house to outside for a good hour before she finally lay down and napped.  That's when Susan and I sat down and chatted, like old times.  We talked about our old dogs: Allie, Zeke, Minnie.

Sweetie has an appointment with Dr Jackson on March 12th.  I plan on being with her.  If Sweetie's pain can be managed with medication, I want to prescribe her that.  But if the blood test reveals cancer anywhere, I'm OK with letting Sweetie pass on humanely.  Letting her go will relieve her of her chronic pain, but it ill devastate me as she's the last connection I have with Kevin.  Sweetie was Kevin's dog and she adored him.

Needless to say, I got nothing accomplished at the house.  Will try again tomorrow.