Iris makes a friend

Iris has not been "Miss Sociability" since we brought her here to stay, as far as other dogs are concerned.  She attacked my sister-in-law's cute little mini-dachshund; she picked a fight with my daughter's dog, Hawkeye, and made such a point with him that he refused to get out of their pickup for a few visits thereafter.
Iris hasn't been so kind to my granddaughter's mini-pin, either.
The best she's been able to do with other dogs is to act as though they aren't there.  But that's a big improvement, considering how it was when she first arrived.
Adam was here tonight to have his horses shod; he always brings his dog, Cinch, along.
Iris went with me to the mailbox, and there was something in her attitude that seemed as though she wanted to get better acquainted with Cinch.  I let them sniff one another and then brought Iris inside.
Later, Iris was looking out the window and whimpering; I went to see what she was looking at, and it was Cinch, who was in our yard marking his territory.  I decided to let them get together.  Here is Iris, finally making a canine friend.





It actually got a lot better than this, but my camera battery was low, and I thought this was enough to convey what was going on.  Cliff's sister and her husband are coming this weekend, along with their dog, Mindy.  I am hoping Iris finally bonds with her, now that she's learned to play.  

odds and ends

I've been moving all week long, and now have most of my earthly possessions here at the mobile home. It's been a week of ups and downs, and there is still much to do. Today Culligan will see that our water softening equipment is installed; and the central air conditioning will be hooked up and charged, just in time for a heat wave: I'll have A/C for the first time in my life.

Also, an exterminator will come by and treat beneath the trailer for ants. He was going to be in the area treating a local church anyway, so he gave me a deal. No guarantees, though: "If you live in Missouri, you will have ants," he told me. Thank goodness for Terro, which has killed literally thousands of the little varmints in the past few days. Amazing stuff, and I read about it on somebody's blog. I may be the last civilized person to discover this stuff, because both my sister and my daughter were familiar with it.

Those are dead ants you're seeing. I love dead ants.

Although not everything is hung up or put away properly, the inside of this trailer house is feeling like home. As for the outside, that will probably take all summer. We will eventually have a driveway and a yard and some add-on porches and a deck; right now we're simply in a trailer house in the middle of the pasture, out behind the barn.

You can't believe how much quieter it is, five hundred feet further back than the old house. I haven't seen a single dog crapping near this house. Sadie used to spend half her days barking at the numerous mongrels roaming through our yard; now the only dog she occasionally sees is the retarded boxer she hates with a passion.

I can barely hear motorcycles going past on the gravel road, or on the highway.

I'm throwing away clothes I don't wear and items I don't use (except for the silly old things I love, and in this house, I can keep those in reach and revel in the memories they evoke). I sold my Kitchen-Aid mixer for $75 on Craigslist, because at this point in my life all I need is a hand mixer. I don't bake like I did a dozen years ago when I bought the thing.

I am thoroughly enjoying having a second bathroom, another first for me. No more waiting for Cliff to hurry up and get ready for work so I can "go". Ah yes, an addition to my list of life's simple pleasures.
I rode my horse twice this past week. One of those days, I was surprised to see a young lady park her car and take a walk on the river bottoms; it's so secluded down there, I'd hate to be on foot all alone.
This is a rambling bit of nonsense, I know. I usually try not to cover numerous subjects in one entry, but since I already have, I'll share a couple of pictures of Cinch, the pup belonging to the couple who board their horses here. There he is with his proud owner, Adam.
He's a difficult dog to photograph because he's so seldom still.
Here he is practicing his herding techniques on Secret, who is neither impressed nor intimidated.