61 posts tagged “the aerie”

It was a busy morning for our little pack -- with Family Dog I, a trip to dog beach with her best pal Roxy and then a walk through Del Mar (for us) to get a late brunch.

Since then, it's been reading and lying around.  Some folks were even happy to lie on my chest in the late afternoon sun.

Over the last couple of weeks, there have been a number of posts here and on fb by parents about their child’s first day of school.  For a parent, this can be a traumatic day – a sense of time passing too quickly and anxiety about whether their fledgling can handle the classroom.  Of course, there’s also a feeling of pride seeing your little one move on to the next level.

And so it was at The Aerie this morning as Penny began taking her first class – Family Dog I.  She had never taken  “Puppy Kindergarten” because of her age when we got her and when she finished getting her shots.  Now, she’s done pretty good around the house and on walks, but we wondered how she’d do in a more formalized setting.

We stopped off at the dog park on our way over to class to let her burn off some steam.  It was a foggy early morning and we certainly appreciated how quickly one can lose a white dog in a fog bank.

Soon we were at our class (held at a great local pet-store) with about seven other really nice seeming dogs, aged a few months to a couple of years.  Penny seemed to be right in the middle age-wise.

The early lessons – including “sit”, which she’d already gotten pretty early in her stay here  -- were pretty easy and Penny did pretty well.  She was pretty easily distracted by the other dogs and passersby, but could usually be called back to attention.  After some time, she began to whine a bit – being on a short leash and not being able to play with her new friends seemed to be the issue.  Oh, the drama of growing up!

Afterwards, we were off to dog-beach so she could really run out some of her excitement/frustration.  And someone even got a Texas Toothpick treat after her big first day of school.

Good job, Penny!

Just spent 90 minutes out in our backyard with my neighbors and two excellent county animal control people -- corralling and causing the ultimate demise of two rattlesnakes that were in the hedges between our two yards.

We think there's one that got away.  And more unfortunately, yesterday one had bitten their dog -- a small dog -- that's still under observation after receiving three anti-venom shots.

So, last week I showed how Penny has been more than willing to help out while I play the piano, and the other day she decided that she could help out with Happy Hour.

Now, without opposable thumbs, she’s not very good with a cocktail shaker, but she did show a lot of interest in “helping” me while the Beloved and I were playing a few hands of gin rummy…

… looks like I had a good hand.

I feel badly for champagne.*  It’s fizzy. It’s tasty. It’s very refreshing on a summer’s day.  It does a wonderful job of picking up autumnal fruit flavors.  It is smashing with dessert.

And the only time people seem to drink it is during the last hour of the year and the first hour of a wedding reception.

What a waste.

And I think waste is the problem.  If your house is like mine, not everyone likes champagne (e.g. it's too sweet, I don't like the bubbles, it always gives me a headache**).  And if you open a bottle – pop! – you better finish it (which is probably a bad idea if you’re the only one having champagne).  Because it’s well known that champagnes don’t keep, right?   Wrong.

Enter the champagne bottle stopper – which is designed to re-seal the bottle so it can go back in the refrigerator to please another day.  A re-sealed bottle will easily last for a week or more – allowing plenty of time to finish off a bottle at an easy pace.  I got this little beauty at Amazon.  Set me back a whole $7.50.

Having champagne on-hand also opens up a whole world of champagne cocktails that go way beyond the mimosa.   One of my first attempts was “The Ritz”

The Ritz
¾ oz orange juice
½ oz cognac
¼ oz citronage (or cointreau, or triple-sec)

Mix these three together briskly and add to the bottom of a flute.  Top with champagne.  The cognac mellows out the sweetness of champagne and the citrus adds a nice tang, creating a well-balanced and refreshing drink on a warm summer’s evening.  I had two – and was considering a third, when I thought better of it…

*and for sparkling wine, as it’s called outside the Champagne region of France, and being a global citizen, I will refer to all of them as champagne.
**in order, don't buy "very dry" buy "brut" instead, nothing to do about that, don't buy really cheap stuff.

The other day on our afternoon walk, Penny and I bumped into a mom and son that we see sometimes and who like to fuss over Penny (well, the mom does).  The son that afternoon was playing with bubbles -- you know, the detergent solution with the little wand...

Well, it turns out that a certain pointer thinks that chasing bubbles and catching them in her mouth is about the Best. Thing. Ever.

So, yesterday I stopped by the store and brought home some bubbles of our own (when was the last time I bought those?).

Happy dog.

After our trip to Monterey and Big Sur last spring, I'd been meaning to read Steinbeck's Cannery Row (I'd never read it before) and I did so last month.  While I was reading it, I came upon this quote:

"I know" said the captain "[...] People don't take interest in bird dogs like they used to.  It's all poodles and boxers and Dobermans."

"I know," said Mack. "And there ain't no dog like a pointer for a man."

Couldn't agree more.

Today was a very relaxing day at The Aerie, and I realized that since Penny came to be part of our pack on the day after Memorial Day, that today was her first holiday at home.

There was plenty of resting…

And a little curiosity about the gardening we did

And a little curiosity about the camera

And finally, a nice Happy Hour hanging out with a good drink and a good book.

Happy Independence Day to all!

So, there I was, trying to beat Cori at WordTwist while Penny was asleep in her crate when there came a flutter.  And I mean a bigtime whooshwhooshwhoosh flutter.

Yep – bird in the house. (We keep our screenless backdoor open when it’s warm because there aren’t really any bugs to speak of here…)  I walked out and there on the transom was one confused male California Quail.   Apparently one of our favorite birds decided to come on in and see what was happening.

He made another fluttery flight for the dining room window – which unfortunately for him was closed.  THONK!  Sorry buddy.

I think that left him scared and/or dazed enough to permit me to get him to hop up onto a broom that I slid out towards him.  I slowly moved him to the back again and as soon as I tipped him onto the patio, there was one more big flutter and he was off to the safety of the nearby scrub brush.

So – after yesterday’s snake and today’s quail, I find myself wondering what’s going to happen tomorrow!

We were sitting out back reading this afternoon, when Penny went over to the side yard where she tends to "do her business" and we noticed she got VERY still.

I guess it's the first time she saw a ~ 4-foot California Kingsnake.  She didn't attack it, but she was watching with a LOT of interest.  Good girl.