Truman Waterfront Dawn

The moral of this story is don't leave your camera in the car. My idea was to refill Rusty's water jug at the fountain at the waterfront walk him a little around the palms as we had just finished a long walk downtown, and then bug out to Publix to walk in the doors the minute they opened, buy fruit and vegetables and head for a nap at home. Then the sun started to peek over the horizon.

The light and the colors were exceptional with a just a couple of thunderheads to add interest.

There was no wind so just to add to the atmosphere the waters were flat.

I was glad I had bothered to sling my camera around my neck. 

Rusty led me by leash but he was slow so I had time to place with the focus of my attention.

Below we see the navy basin reserved for its use by the US Navy.  After World War Two they parked submarines here which was the era before giant nuclear submarines went to see for months at a time. The National parks Service and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration have docks here. From Time to time you'll see Navy ships, including foreign visitors tied up to the far wall, which is known as the Outer Mole where a mole is what civilians call a pier, where the street lights are.  The Inner Mole is at the bottom of the picture and that's what's known as the place where visiting boat racers used to tie u when there were events involving boats in Key West. Power Boat Races? Gone. January sailboat races? Gone. Change is good they say.

The former coastguard cutter Ingham is a museum nowadays owned by a former city commissioner and it was once open for tours.  These virus infested days attractions restaurants and public spaces open and close seemingly at random.

None of this photography and talk mattered at the moment when another dog showed up. Rusty played until a third dog joined the group and the two friends ignored their new playmate. So Rusty moved aside, the spare wheel at the playground. We left.

Rusty’s Black Friday

Rusty came to my wife bleeding from his front paw. She wrapped it in a towel and drove to Marathon on Thanksgiving Day. 

The day started out normally with his usual walk and plans for a afternoon with friends at dinner. I stayed behind and got a picture showing a happy dog. 

My wife has been really good about bringing the outside world into my rehab life. Lots of pictures. A while later she said she was taking him to the twenty four hour hospital in Marathon. That took me aback a bit but on arrival with the blood flow dried up and the back of the car looking like a slaughter house they took him in for surgery almost immediately. 

He tore a tendon on his walk and they said they weren’t sure if they could put it back together. An hour later they said all was well and with care he would be fully restored. 

At this stage he is pretty quiet and we are watching his bandaged paw for signs of swelling. 

Thanksgiving evening Rusty slept in the car while we ate. Layne slipped out repeatedly to check  on him but he was passed out.  

I’m not good at selfies but it was a grand evening as Thanksgivings big should be. Sid and Deborah have interesting friends in the arts. My enjoyment of motorcycles was viewed rather dimly. Especially now. Is life to be lived or merely survived?

Blue Hole

I took the photographs on this page on August 28th three days before my epic scooter crash. It was a gloomy damp day typical of summer rainy season and I was looking for a place to walk Rusty away from mud and puddles. Besides I hadn’t visited the Blue Hole, a freshwater former gravel quarry turned into a tourist attraction, in a long time. 

We were alone. And the hole is not at all blue even under sunny skies.

There are a couple of alligators in the water but there was no sign of wildlife at all. No turtles no dinosaurs no birds. Except himself. 

It was a pleasant enough interlude and I enjoyed strolling around with Rusty. I didn’t know how lucky I was to be walking...

It’s a short walk made shorter because half the circumference is closed to the public. The edges are vertical rock and not easy for a dog to climb up.  I know this as Cheyenne took an accidental plunge years ago and I hauled her wet 100 pounds out in double time seeing her as the most vulnerable and tasty of alligator bait. 

No drama necessary.

Wild Life, Wild Living

I came out of the house to find my semi savage Carolina Dog enjoying the hot summer afternoon:

Carolina Dog in the wild:

Local wandering the bike path:

My alter ego:

A wild one:

Taming the wild:

It takes a lot of bobbing and weaving to find breakfast in the wild:

Too much wild:

Happy wild:

Joyous Rusty

Here is my dog, my American Dingo my companion on the trail with me. He brings joy into my life every day and I would be a poorer man without him. There is lots I would do without, but my dog never lets me down. He's one of the steadfast elements in my life, the ones that deliver laughter. 

I got him just over two years ago and we have settled into a routine of walks and naps all leavened with fun. He  and I walk all over the place, different places every day and on those days when I can't take him as far as he'd like he waits patiently for the next opportunity. He is my accomplice in getting me out of the house and making the bleakest landscapes places of exploration and fun. I laugh more with him than anywhere. He is a gift.

We are losing another experienced dispatcher at work and Shannon's shoes will be hard to fill, Her husband an air traffic controller got a transfer and she wants to go back to school, not to continue dispatching.  You can hardly blame her as she aspires to a new career, but the pressure is now tighter than ever at night with only three experienced dispatchers and two recently trained inexperienced employees to cover six positions. The idea has been to have two seasoned dispatchers on each shift so now to accomplish that we will have an increasing share of overtime to help each other out.

For Rusty this doesn't mean much except that I have less energy to take him into town for walks. I know he likes urban walks but early in the morning walks only come if I get two nights off in a  row and can rest,

 Fortunately there are lots of trails we can enjoy closer to home.

I am always amazed by the equanimity of this dog in the face of a past that I am pretty sure was rough before he was abandoned in the Redlands of Homestead. I get  hints every now and again. The other day I pulled a broom out of the closet and walked towards him simply carrying it. H scuttled out onto the terrace to get away. I had to take the time to convince him he wasn't getting a beating. I think he's over that PTSD trigger at least for now.

Gunfire freaks him out but with some justification as nursery operators in the Redlands hate stray dogs and poison and shoot them. It's had to imagine humans recovering from such abuse, but Rusty has turned it all around. He impresses me in ways most humans cannot.

I look at dogs walked daily on my street plodding along the same route day after day with no hope of variety or excitement or a break in their routine. Rusty gets a different walk every day. Every day we  hop in the car and take a short drive to a different trail or open space. This way I keep keep him fresh and alert and help to keep his mind active. 

I would miss him terribly were he to walk out of my life. I trust we have quite a few years ahead and for both our benefit we will keep walking.

Dusk

A cold winter walk at the beach, my wife and I, with Rusty, a week ago.

 The sun sets before six these days and by six it is dark.

 Rusty allowed me a quick picture while he waited for us to climb the hill.

 At these latitudes there is no prolonged dusk.

 Now it's light.

 Now it's night.