I Smell a Rat

When Vicky was one she participated in some FastCAT competitions and earned her first ranking of B-CAT. FastCAT is a lure chasing event managed by AKC. A plastic bag lure is pulled in front of a dog leading them on a 100 yard dash as fast as they can go. Vicky ran 19.6 mph in her last race. Kaitlyn was two days too young to participate the first time, but she was able to take an introductory class and seemed to love it. During one of the fun runs she pulled or tore her CCL. We decided that perhaps racing our dogs as fast as they could go was not such a great idea!

However, while we were at the events holding FastCAT there were other AKC competitions going on, including Dock Diving, Agility, Obedience and Barn Hunt, to name a few. Both the Mister and I were intrigued by Barn Hunt. In this competition dogs must find one or more hidden rats (housed in sturdy PVC containers with air holes) hidden in, on, or around hay bales. I thought Kaitlyn would love this task. 

Wednesday we took both dogs to an introductory session at a training facility about an hour from us . The trainer showed each dog (individually) a rat in a cage and I was to praise the dog for 'engaging' with the rat. The trainer moved the caged along the floor and encouraged the dog to follow, again earning lots of praise and pats and scritches from me. Then the trainer draped a little straw over the cage, having me ask the dog to find it, praising and showing great joy when she stopped and sniffed, or pawed at the cage or assumed 'play' position in front of the cage. The trainer had each dog do this a few times, then gave them a break to 'think about it'. 

Each dog had two other opportunities to find rats. The second and third time there were two rats; one in the cage and one in a tube. On the third experience for each dog, one of the rat cages was placed up on a hay bale. It had already been suggested that I encourage the dogs to go through tunnels formed by the hay bales, and to climb on them. Both dogs are familiar with tunnels as we have played with some agility equipment before, and jumping up on the hay bales was not an obstacle for either of them. I think Kaitlyn actually enjoyed going through the various tunnels. 

There's a rat in the tube below Vicky's nose.

You can make out the PVC plug at the bottom of the picture, on the left.

Nope! No rat here!

I didn't see either dog demonstrate much enthusiasm for this 'sport', but they are still trying to figure out what it was I was asking of them. I'll continue taking them to some more training sessions and see how it goes. The "Mister" is ready to get a rat, make a tube for it and make some mazes with hay bales in our barn! I think the tail may be wagging the dog....but wait, our dogs don't have tails, so that wouldn't work!!

Today's Kill

 I remember seeing a picture of my grandfather as a young man standing in front of a structure where a few dozen ducks were hanging; the spoils from his hunt. It was unsettling to me. 

But, today I had my own booty: a baker's dozen of Sabal Palm seedlings... 

and it doesn't bother me in the least! 

We have 4 Sabal Palms, also called Cabbage Palms, behind our house. They are messy plants, and definitely not my choice! The lower branches of the palms die. They hang onto the tree for a while, making it look like the tree is sick, then they break off leaving a "boot" behind. This is the "Y" shaped base that straddles the trunk. It is what makes the area under the fronds look like some sort of lattice.  The boots also eventually fall off. More stuff to pickup! 

And if the fronds and the boots aren't messy enough, each spring several flower stalks, up to 7 feet in length, emerge with thousands of tiny flowers, that turn into thousands of seeds. The good news is that the flowers and seeds feed a variety of wildlife. The bad news is that the seeds that aren't eaten (lots and lots of them) sprout when they fall to the ground. I am constantly pulling them up.

However, if they aren't pulled out promptly they will become secure in the ground and required a shovel and some elbow grease to get them out. 

All palm seedlings, take notice, I am waging war on you! I will continue to dig you out. I will search for each of one of you that dares to put down a root and grow, even the tiniest bit. I will cut you off at the knees, well, I'll cut your flower stalks, at least those I can reach with a tree trimmer. I do not want you here! 

Despite the fact that I don't like them in my garden, I am fascinated by the structure of the 'root'.  It's like an upside down carrot, with a smooth round bottom end, and a point growing up the sides of the frond stalks. The palm grows wider before it begins to put on height. It can take 15 or more years before the tree begins to show height, and at that point whatever the diameter of the base is, is the final diameter of the tree. Unlike most trees, the palm does not put on growth rings each year. 

Wet Dreams

Did that get your attention! LOL

We are wishin', and hopin', and thinkin' and praying' about rain. We have not had enough. We don't see much coming in the near future. The water management district has declared a "Modified Phase III “Extreme” Water Shortage." We are allowed to water lawns between midnight and 4 AM on Monday* morning. As we have more than an acre, we may also water between 8 PM and midnight on Monday. The water district does permit 'hand watering' and 'micro irrigation', and that may be done before 8 AM or after 6 PM. We can only wash a car on our lawn watering day, and restaurants can only provide water to diners if it is requested. The days and timing of watering haven't changed, but a strict policy of citations and fines is part of the change. 

Apparently, in addition to a 13" deficit in water amounts for the year,  the water in our aquifers is dropping, and of course, more and more people and businesses are coming to the area putting increasing burdens on our water resources.

I felt we needed to maximize the use of our irrigation system for plantings immediately around the house. I robbed every spray can top I could find as I wanted straight-sided containers to place around the yard and measure the amount of water each area receives. The answer: not enough! I'll run the test a few more times as I adjust the times for each zone, and possibly adjust sprinkler heads. 

What will the future hold? It's scary to see changing weather patterns across the world and experience the effects. 

* Watering days are determined by the last numeral of everyone's address

What Makes Me Happy?

 Earlier this week I was asked to pick a word that described or defined me. I chose JUGGLER. I've written about it before, but the suggestion made me rethink it, and I realized that I am happiest when I am juggling several things at one time, and moving forward with each thing. 

Now, don't get me wrong, if I have too many things up in the air, or if there are deadlines that are out of my control, or if my time is limited, then the juggling may produce stress, and that brings no joy at all. I do not thrive on stress.

But, this week I juggled a number of projects. I worked on cleaning up our lanai and front porch. The weather is perfect for sitting outside, and the oak trees are finished with most of their pollen production that results in a coat of yellow dust on everything! I worked a bit in the garden, pulling annoying weeds, removing some plants that didn't make it through the winter, and repotting and replacing a few plants to fill the voids. I wrote a letter to a friend; a real paper and pen sort of letter! And, I worked on quilting a few quilts on the long arm machine and sewing pieces of fabric together for another quilt. 

Working with the long arm machine has brought me the most satisfaction this week (I think!). I am getting to the point where I know what buttons to push to tell the machine what I need it to do. And I can do this without laying the manual out on the quilt next to me so I can follow each step, moving my finger along the text! Today I am finishing my "Pinwheel" quilt. I finished the top of this quilt two years ago. What I especially like about the finished quilt is that I changed it up to make it mine! This is the original pattern. 

I used fabric that I had purchased at Missouri Star, the publisher of the pattern, in 2016!

So, here it is 2026...ten years later, and it looks like I might actually finish the quilt!

Once I finished the quilt in 2024 I realized that I did not care for the open spaces in the middle of the stars. That's where I changed up the pattern! I ripped open the seams and inserted folded triangles in a way that made the four pieces look like a child's pinwheel.

I knew when I put those pieces in that I would have to be careful quilting around them. I didn't realize that I would be telling a machine not to quilt around them! 

Here's a closer look at the pinwheel. You can see how the foot and needle of the machine could easily be tripped up by the pieces of the pinwheel. 

Here's a shot of the computer screen and the block.

On the screen you might be able to see the red line forming a square, set on point.

That's where I told it not to stitch....

and it worked! 

I'll soon be on the last pass of the long arm quilting machine. Thus, I will need to roll the quilt up, one more time and realign the needle to where the quilt is now positioned. I'll need to redefine the edges and the bottom of the quilt, and push "Start". 

If all goes well....my quilt will be sewn according to the design!

My Bonnie Lies Over the Long Arm

 I finally completed the 'flimsy' of Lupine and Laughter, Bonnie Hunter's 2025-26 Mystery Quilt. 

Ta daaaaa!

And, of course, no quilt is acceptable until it gets the 

Two Corgi seal of approval!

(and is thus blessed with Corgi glitter)

Iron Deficiency?

 During the pandemic I became enamored with online auctions. I didn't go overboard with it, but I did come across some interesting finds. One was a collection of toy irons. I have since added a few toys and salesmen's models since then:

While we were in Asheville I came across another iron. 

I asked the Mister if this should become part of my collection,

because obviously, my collection was lacking!

The iron was created by Reed Todd a quirky nod to the

"flat iron" building in Asheville, built in 1927. 

Escape Room

I had never participated in an 'escape room' adventure until my family came to Lake Lure. It seemed like a good family activity, and it didn't disappoint! 

We participated in "Merlin's Apprentice" at Lake Lure Escape Games, helping fairytale characters solve riddles in order to escape. We were led to a room with a large, central console. The console had drawers and doors and lights and sounds that all did their thing if we touched the correct buttons, in the correct sequence. There were interesting objects and illustrations on the walls that may or may not have been clues. We were asked not to take pictures so as not to ruin other's fun, but I had to take a few (and they didn't really give away any of the puzzles!)

For just over an hour we rolled up our sleeves and worked together to solve a number of puzzles. It was so much fun to watch the family interact. Everyone participated and each of us played a key role in solving one or more of the puzzles. 

Puzzles were presented on various sized panels,

and a reusable tablet was provided to jot down notes.

Ah hah! 

Chris thinks he has found something...

Could it be over there?

Yes! 

This has to be it!

Yup! 

We rocked that puzzle!

We ultimately solved all of the puzzles, 

needing hints on two of them.

.... most important,

we escaped the escape room!

Truth be told...

it took us slightly longer than the allotted hour,

but the puzzle master wanted to boost our egos!

Lake Lure Escape Games has another 'game' - it takes place in an elevator in the '20s

That sounds like it might be fun for a group of our contemporaries...

maybe we should have a 20's themed party and participate in escaping from the elevator!!