ON THE ROAD AGAIN AND A VERY LUCKY DOG...

When I jokingly remarked 

in my last post that a hurricane was coming...

better think before I speak!

Well, it wasn't exactly a hurricane 

but we did have some very high winds

 on our last night at the RV park.

However,

 we were able to drive all the way home

 before the rains hit.

Oh happy days,

 we finally got some rain but no snow, although the white stuff fell in the higher elevations 

so that will be good for some runoff. 

 But, now we are back

 to nice, balmy, sunny days

 with frosty nights.

 Well, we surely will take

 what we can get.

Back to the camping trip.

  We had a great time. 

 We met up with my cousins and their two sweet little rescued doggies

 and spent some much needed time

 having fun.

This is Izzy. 

 She is such a little character

 and she whizzes around a lot. 

 She tends to dance rather than walk

 and is a total joy to watch

 and to be around.

This is Roxie. 

 She is very mellow and doesn't move too fast,

 quite the opposite from little Izzy. 

 She certainly puts Izzy in her place

 when she thinks she is not behaving well.  Roxie likes to sit with you

 and love you with her eyes,

 which are very beautiful. 

 She also really likes me

 so that puts me 

over the moon.

We did a small amount of gambling 

and found a machine that was paying off a little bit. 

 I won around $50 after putting in $20

 so that wasn't too bad. 

 The machine was based on the movie,

 Titanic,

 so it had beautiful pictures 

of Leo and Kate,

 and every time it payed off

 it played the theme song.

 It was so loud that I could sing right along with it

 and nobody could hear me.

Road time 

To and from Jackson:

 4 hours

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The little town of Amador City on historic Highway 49

We got home about 11:30 on Friday

 and picked up our mail at the post office.  We had an announcement from my friend, Sandy at Country Living. 

 That was my most favorite shopping place in Amador City.

 It turns out that, after 45 years,

 she has picked up and moved her shop to Lodi

 and was having a grand opening between 4:00 and 8:00 PM that evening.

  We cleaned up a bit,

 put our camping stuff away, 

jumped back into the car and drove to Lodi.

  We had never been there

 and it is a really cute town. 

 Although most places had closed by the time we arrived,

 darn it!

 We will have to go back again some time.

  I didn't take pictures like I had planned

 so I will have to get them next time.

I picked up this cute little bird on a perch of twine...

...and the roosting chicken sign and bright, cheery table runner.

Road time

 To and from Lodi:

 3 hours

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

On Monday, 

we received an e-mail from Sammie's Friends,

 the shelter where the Captain walks dogs.

  They were asking for a volunteer

 to take a dog to a new home in Pacific Grove.

 Long story short: we said we would do it.

We picked up Barney at 8:00 AM on Tuesday and left for Pacific Grove. 

 The Captain had walked Barney many times as he has been at the shelter for nine, long, months.

  Too long of a time. 

 I had never met him,

 but right away it was like we had known him forever. 

 Such a sweet and gentle dog. 

 He is a black lab mix and 8 years old.

 I don't know his back story but

 he seems well adjusted, gets along with other dogs but doesn't like cats. 

 They recommended he be in a home with older children.

It turns out that Peace of Mind Dog Rescue in Pacific Grove 

stepped up to take him out of the shelter.

  They are a rescue for senior people who,

 for what ever reason,

 can't care for their pets anymore

 or for senior dogs that have been in a shelter situation. 

 They are not a kennel

 so they do not have any dogs on site,

 but they do find either foster or forever homes

 for the dogs they take in.

Barney is going to a foster home

 with a lady who has her own dog approximately the same size and age as Barney. 

 He will stay with her until a forever home can be found for him,

 and until then,

 he will be cared for as if he is in a forever home

 which is so much better than being at a shelter.

Like I said,

 our first initial meeting with 

Barney was one of joy on both parts,

 but as we got on our way

 it was the strangest feeling.

 I guess because he was different from Buddy and what we were used to,

 it seemed almost like a bother to have him there. 

 It is a hard-to-explain  feeling,

 even to myself,

 because I love dogs,

 but as he settled in to the ride and the time went on, 

 we stopped a few times for him to go out

 and I gave him a few treats which he took with such gentleness,

that when we had to drop him off,

 I had tears in my eyes and a sense of loss.

 We both kept having the feeling

 that he was still in the car

 when we were on our way home.

Barney with Carrie from Peace of Mind Rescue

Barney is such a gentleman and sweet dog.

  He will now be living in a beautiful setting with fresh air, sand and ocean all around him

 and when he finds his forever home,

 I know he will live the life which he deserves.

A hand-painted mural on back of the house

After dropping Barney off

 we stopped for lunch on Cannery Row

 and then on to home. 

 Before we got out of town,

 there was a Tuesday Morning with a parking spot right in front, 

imagine that!!

 Of course, we couldn't just keep on

 without stopping...

...there was this cute chorus line of rabbits

 doing what rabbits do best...

duh! the Bunny Hop! 

 If you are not older than dirt 

you might not be familiar with this dance...

...and this sweet little sparrow

 all dressed up for that first

 soft spring shower...

...I spotted this little stand with the bird's nest on top.

  I think I will embellish it with some real looking nest supplies

 and it, too,

 will be ready for spring.

Road time

 To and from Pacific Grove:

 8 hours and 19 minutes

In less than a week

 we have been on the road

 for almost 16 hours,

 for a total of

 837 miles!

And,

 we would do it all over again, 

BUT

 we will wait awhile!

 Barney,

 a contented guy 

and one lucky dog!

...Judy...

Can you tell 

Barney was here?

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