Scavenger Dog

Thursdays are the day Sheryl and I walk on the bridle path that is the border between Hollywood Riviera and P.V. There are many people and dogs populating this path in the morning. I've learned to overcome my inherent fear of dogs, at least the friendly looking ones. Now, I hold the top of my hand out for sociable dogs to sniff, (thanks for that tip, Dog Whisperer!). Today, a man was running with his two dogs, one big and one small. The little guy was trotting along in the lead with what I thought was a big chew toy. I wondered if he might drop it and let me throw it for him. As he came closer, my eyes adjusted and I realized he was proudly hauling a dead squirrel in his mouth. I think Sheryl and I must have processed it at the same time; we turned and gave each other the 'ick' look. Even the owner was shaking his head in disgust at his dog's treasure. No wonder dogs have such bad breath!

I'm glad to read Lilly's tales from London. It sounds like she is meeting a lot of people and getting out quite a bit. I suppose some day she'll give a few details regarding the 'other' education she is getting by going to some classes.

This morning, Bud told me I'm like grass-fed cattle; soft on the outside and tough on the inside. These are the compliments I get. It beats a comment from a couple of weeks ago when he looked at my 'wake up do' and called me buffalo head. He is such a romantic!

Suburban Naturalists or Flipper, Rated X

Sheryl and I took our usual walk to the pier this morning. As we prepared to run our 7 sets of the daunting stairs that are part of our workout, we had a welcome distraction- DOLPHINS! We often have dolphin-sightings when we do our walk but this was amazing. It started when I noticed a dolphin leaping out of the water. I stopped Sheryl so we could watch for another great leap, (and avoid that stair run!). Sure enough, another leap occurred. Troupers that we are, we got back to the work of running those stairs. At the top, we had to catch our breath. As we looked out at the ocean, we saw that the dolphins were body surfing, too. Leaping or surfing waves over and over again. There were so many pods of adults and calves enjoying those waves. It was so incredible. When they caught a wave, some would ride the waves straight toward shore. Others would suddenly turn to the side, shooting the curl through the translucent water. Several times, we could see a dolphin on its back under another dolphin while shooting the curl, its white belly a vivid contrast to the blue water. We left our topside view to head down the ramp and out to the shore to watch from a different perspective. Their dazzling show continued very close to shore. Finally, Sheryl and I decided to head up the stairs one more time; we had watched the show for so long that we were out of time for our usual workout, (any excuse, right?). We climbed the beastly stairs once more. At the top, catching our breath once again, we took another look. As we watched, another woman struck up a conversation with us. She happened to be a docent at Point Vicente and was quite knowledgeable about both whales and dolphins. Natalie explained that when the male dolphin is 'belly up' under the female, they are positioned for mating. She said the actual act is very fast so it isn't obvious unless you know dolphin behavior. Who knew? Natalie, evidently. Natalie said she spotted something she had never seen before; a calf suckling on its mother as they rode through a wave. How fortunate to have such a show of the natural world just a short walk from my front door!

Is this the only way I can comment on Lil's blog?

Luddite that I am, I am stumbling through how I can comment on Lilly's blog. Perhaps having my own blog will allow me access? That seems rather convoluted. It's tough being mid-50s and trying to figure out this silly stuff. I should have called it quits at Facebook, eh? Will this get posted? Will I be able to make snide comments on Lilly's blog? To be continued...