October-Pumpkin spice and other odd things

Closing down the fish pond for the season.  We bring the fish in to tanks-one for the older fish, one for the little ones they had this year,  About 15 small ones, with one little one left in the outside pool.  It's about half an inch long and colored to blend with the maple leaves that fall into the pond.  I pump the pond down a few inches, let it clear up, and try to see the little thing.

Doug

Got the little creature.  Mottled gold, brown and grey.  Quick little thing.  Wife is on a bus heading into NYC tonight.  Chores are done, run some errands, take Sky to a WMA for a good round of exercise (birds are scarce in Nicollet county-hard to call it hunting)..  Take the car tomorrow and head for Madelia, pheasant capital of MN according to the billboard by the highway.  Also where Jessie James and the Younger Brothers were cornered after the Northfield raid got them shot up by a bunch of Norwegian farmers.

I installed a wheelchair ramp for Mom--having a house built on a hill makes for a very long ramp! We're testing it out this weekend. (I'm taking her to see The King and I.)  I think it will make life much easier for her. She also just qualified for home health care--now we have to see who will actually come to the island.

Rock starts back at his pet therapy work at the college on Thursday. He was nosing through his bag--he is ready!  

OK--off to watch the World Series!

Hey all, it looks like some of you are getting some fall weather. We are 80 for a few days then it will drop to the 70s. Craziest weather. Doug I heard there is some snow in MN?

Checking in on everybody. Callie I hope Your trip went well. Glenda hope you are enjoying that grand baby. Kate, I am interested in the therapy dog training, always have been, what reading would you recommend.

Happy Halloween! Stay safe and don't eat too much candy

Northern MN, probably the Duluth area.  Still warm and rainy here.  Running Sky through the WMAs and places that should be dry are past damp and splash a lot.

Tree leaves are blowing nicely into the neighbors yard, so he can vacuum them.

Picked up a chunk of wood at the recycle lot in N Mankato.  People can drop off chunks of trees they have trimmed or dropped.  Looks like walnut.  Will return to see if there is any left.  The city chews it up and uses it to line walking trails.  

Lots of corn still standing.  Our soil is high in clay and gets hard to drive in when wet.  

The current highway detour runs by a herd of Alpaca.  My kind of farming.  Cute animals raised for their hair.  Hire a barber once a year to sell the hair.  They can spit accurately 30".  I was warned once by a woman with a small herd to stay back from the male.  He didn't want his herd messed with.

Hit the dog park yesterday.  Long haired dog playing in the mud puddle getting slimy, then rolling in the sand.  Chunks of dirt falling off her when she walked by.  Lots of people out running their dogs.  Winter is coming and some don't like standing in the cold wind and deep snow.

Happy Halloween to everyone and to your 4-legged furry goblins!  We get tons of kids at our door, so it presents a challenge with Ruby.  DH has to hang on to her leash while I pass out the candy.  We don't let her get too close to the door because we worry she'll jump on the kids, or worse.  When DH gets tired of having to leave the football game on TV, he'll crate her until the candy is gone.

Callie, I hope your trip to NY went okay -- that the weather wasn't too awful and that you felt like it was productive.  Having to deal with all kinds of issues with an elder attorney for my MIL's situation the past couple years, I know how frustrating all that can be.  Sometimes you just want to scream!

Glenda, I hope you're feeling better.  I ruptured an eardrum when I was a kid and I remember how painful it was, the drainage, etc.  To this day, my ears give me way more problems than the average person -- like when I'm on an airplane, for example.

Doug, I know a woman who raises alpacas and spins their fur/hair and makes many beautiful items she sells at local farmers' markets and such.  They are so cute from the photos I've seen.  She has told me to come visit her farm to meet them in person.  I hope to do that soon.

Kate, I hope the new ramp offers much more convenience for your Mom.  Best wishes to Rock for a happy return to pet therapy!

Ginger, good to "see" you, too.  I'm afraid I will not be heeding your warning about too much candy.  I expect I will be eating several pieces leftover tonight!!  :-)

The wood is walnut.  A few of the pieces of tree are big enough to make boards, but are too heavy for me to lift.  Got enough logs to have some fun making bowls and candlestick holders-thats the wife idea.  

Had about 50 kids at the house last night begging for candy.  Sky was excited, watching out the window and greeting them at the door.  He also met a Samoyed in one crowd.  

Wife is getting back from her trip to the East coast.  She enjoyed the Hershey tour.  Charlie and the Chocolate Factory comes to mind.

Just erased my post!

Warm here today--in the mid-60s, so I bathed all the dogs outside. Mozey is now trying to dry her feet. It might get to 70 tomorrow--amazing.

Ginger, we completed the pet therapy training program offered at our community college. It had a course for the humans, a course (8 weeks) for Rock and I (which was completed at a local nursing home), and two internships. It was likely more extensive that some programs, but I wanted something that would help me work with Rock at a slower pace, if needed. (He's not a common breed for pet therapy and he was used to working independently in his coon hunting days.) We used Pearl Salotto's book Pet Assisted Therapy: A loving intervention and an emerging profession--Leading to a friendlier, healthier, and more peaceful world.

There's also an entire issue of The Army Medical Department Journal (April-June 2012) about Canine-Assisted Therapy in Military Medicine. It's available (free) at www.cs.amedd.army.mil/FileDownloadpublic.aspx  

There are several organizations that have good training programs and resources--some are national, others are more regional. (Ours is regional but will credential people from other parts of the country.) I can send you more info, if you'd like. You're welcome to borrow my book, too.

I ate too much candy at work--yummy but not good for the waist line!