GIFTS

GIFTS

Sometimes the greatest gifts you receive are the unintentional ones. I never ever thought I would own a Beagle. Then Joey came into my life. A couple of years later Joey found Ralphie emancipated in a briar patch. They are old and winding down now; but they both still have the heart they have always had. Poor Joey was down in the back and legs all summer. I had to carry him around everywhere we went. That was from May until September. He has been doing pretty well since then until this week. He has been lame in one back leg.

We stopped at a place where we normally go for walks about 52 times per year. Anything to be seen there; we have already seen. I left the camera in the truck this time; of course. We walked awhile and got to the waterhole they always get a drink from. There was a WalMart bag in the water; therefore Joey would not drink from it. He wanted to go to the river so there we went; him limping & hobbling down the steep rocky hill to the river. While he was drinking his head suddenly came up. He smelled something and they both started sniffing & snorting around. Joey insisted in heading upstream; so we went along with him.

They were trailing something as they always are on 30 foot leashes as always. Joey is limping and sniffing. Ralphie is getting hung up as always. Joey went over one log; Ralphie went under the same log, so I’m untangling again. I see Joey 25 feet ahead start over top of a BIG log and he lets out a high pitched scream. I thought that was it he either just broke his back or his hip had come out of its socket. Figured Oh, Shit. Then Ralphie bellowed and Joey was full steam ahead. I was running behind them for about 150 yards until Ralphie got tangled in the rhododendron really bad. I had to get him undone as a one point he was hanging by his neck and still bellowing and trying to go. I had to let go of Joey’s leash at that point.

I got Ralphie loose from the tangle and could still hear Joey screaming up ahead. By the time we got to Joey again..He had a 200 pound bear up a poplar tree..They screamed at the bottom of the tree and Joey yes, crippled up joey was climbing 6 feet up the tree with every attempt.. They got tired and couldn’t bark any more and we went limping & hobbling back to the truck. The chase only lasted about 300 yards before Joey treed him!! I looked back when we were about halfway to the truck and saw the bear cross the road and head to higher ground. The photo is from when we got back to the truck, They don't appear to be any worse off than when we started out & I'm the only one bleeding! So all is good.

Yep, some gifts you do not plan on ever getting..But, they happen anyway..Merry Christmas..

GRAY DAYS

 GRAY DAYS

Wow, it is December. They always said that the older you get the quicker time goes by. I never did pay any attention to old wives tales. But, this one may be correct. It seems to me that just a few months ago it was cold, rainy and dull. It was the beginning of December; I looked at the weather forecast for the upcoming week and decided to take my muzzleloader out of my truck and put it away. Yep, the day before season came in I put it back into the closet. I didn’t think I would get to use it and the weather fellow was actually right.

I do tend to dread the time period between when I put the last deer in the freezer and dig my first ramps of the season. Yep, 5 months or more of brown, black, white and gray. It will be a long time until green unfolds in the landscape. That period of time does not seem to fly by. The only thing I like about it is on those rare pleasant days; there aren’t many people stirring. The worst thing about living in a tourism based area is that when you actually have time to do something; it is too crowded to do it.

I’m sorry but I just don’t get very worked up over the holiday seasons. The commercialization has ruined the season. I saw decorations out before Halloween, this year. I have nothing against all who do. What you do and enjoy doing is entirely up to you and nobody else. Always remember that. I guess I’ll spend my free time this month hunting a little, looking for ducks when it isn’t fit to hunt and sorting photos that have accumulated over the year. The rest of the time I will spend driving on slick, dirty roads and squirting windshield wiper fluid. That’s about the extent of it. Yes, we have to take those gray days in stride.

I guess that all seems gloomy and doomy but, it isn’t meant to be. Maybe what I am trying to get to is the fact that every day is Thanksgiving Day for me. Every day I find, discover or learn something new is like Christmas to me and I get to experience many of those days throughout the entire year. Yes, as some would say; I’m blessed and I’m thankful for that every single day. It is your life to live as you see fit and ultimately you are the only one that can make you happy. Do what you really enjoy doing. It’s up to you and nobody else.

Try to enjoy the many long dull days that lay ahead. It is up to you to make the most out of them. Strive to learn something new or do something interesting every single day; even if you only have a few free moments to do so. It can be done if you actually try. Enjoy the holidays and enjoy the shades of gray. There is a light out there somewhere on the horizon. It’s called May.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!!

This is my final article for Two=Lane Livin...9 years, Wow.