Dispersing

The remaining wood chips pile
looking West from my driveway

Rain finally here. It started last evening and rained pretty much off and on. In my front yard rain gauge 5.8" has collected. Now it is mid afternoon on Saturday, November 18, and the rain has significantly subsided to misting off and on. Shasta, as am I, are impacted by the biometric pressure. As I can hear my my late brother saying we are "wonky". So today we are both pretty slow moving. Shasta is sleeping most of the day.

I trust that I have not
buried too deeply the milkweed plants
with wood chips and mulch.

At this time of November, instead of planning when I might complete "refreshing" the wood chips, in the past Dwight and I were readying ourselves for our month long excursion to the Mono Lake area. We usually stayed in the downstairs apartment at the Walker River Lodge in Bridgeport.

The view out the kitchen window
looking East. It often snowed
after we arrived. By the time
we departed the roads
were all not only clear but dry.

On our way home we would take Highway 182. We would stop when we saw what looked like a healthy stand of Pinyon pine trees. Having brought our own saw we would share the activity of sawing our holiday tree. Dwight would then tie it to the top of our Prius using the rack on top of the car.

Shasta was very good at "supervising" the process. She never seemed interested in running around. I think there were often stickers in the sandy soil although I never found any imbedded in her paws.

This is one of my favorite pictures taken on our walk out of Bridgeport on Twin Lakes Road. Rose was such a incredible being. You can find her story by checking the archives on this blog. I vaguely remember the title as The Incredible Lightness of Being. She was extremely connected to Dwight.

So for me this particular time in November each year is "bitter sweet" as remember the fabulous excursions with Dwight and whatever dog or dogs we happened to have. Presently I do not feel motivated to drive myself and Shasta to the Eastern Sierras. 

As I face this particular difficult time without Dwight may I release the emotions with a frequent belly 

My All Time Favorite Walking Companion

Shasta and Cathie walking along 
the dirt road after we park just off 
the paved road on one clear
November day

A hands full of miles West of Bridgeport, California, right on a creek, is Doc and Al's Camp and Cabin. Shasta "girl" as I often call her was great to walk with her since she would come when called so could be "off leash".

Now here in my newly adopted home town Shasta is a wonderful companion to take on my morning walks. She just trots right along matching my pace. She gets to choose the route once the are through the park across the street from our house. Unfortunately she cannot be off leash since she is often aggressive with other dogs. The animal communicator says it is not the dog but the owner that riles her up.

To return to the garden in which I have planted number of annual Tithonia plants that I started from seed. The Monarch and Queen butterflies love their nectar. So when I water the plants in the front yard I can feast on these flowers plethora of visitors.

"Black and orange butterfly ---

Flying joyously

Wings like a nun's hands:

First folded in prayer,

Then open in offering."

Deng Ming-Dao

I will leave the plants even after they have died so the birds can feast on the seeds. Of course, I will save some seeds for planting in 2024.

And all the while, I will

Plethora, Part 2

"We should not fritter our efforts away . . . we should concentrate on endeavor most important to us."

                                          Deng Ming-Dao

Dwight, once he "retired" as president of
Protected Investors of America, did indeed
"concentrate on endeavor most important to" him.

Once the previous post of Plethora was complete I walked about the inside of the house. What I observed was more . . . many more of Dwight's creations. Some of the most treasured are those he pit fired the beach with a gaggle of others. Some camped for two nights but Dwight always came home to sleep in our bed. Whatever dog or dogs we had at the time and I would drive down to see the pit opened. WOW the pieces were always breathe taking.

 

This is the cabinet in which the TV and other
devices call home. The top is a perfect
AND safe place to display
these priceless pit fired creations of Dwight's.

"Pit firing is a primitive, low-tech method of firing pots. Traditionally a pit was dug into the earth, and pots were fired in this pit with wood and other organic materials, such as dried dung, used as fuel."  Below are a series of pictures taken at Dillon Beach when Dwight participated in a pit firing. 

When we moved from MuRefuge,
this piece was shipped to Dwight's daughter in Seattle.
It sits on her deck she and husband walk out onto.

I loved this arrangement in the front yard of MuRefuge:
the 4 directions were depicted
by a different nationality.

This has been used at Halloween.

Some of Dwight's work he used Raku firing as opposed to pit firing. Looking at all these I have a difficult time knowing if they were pit fired or a Raku firing was used?? Can you?

Some pieces are just displayed for their beauty . . .

Other pieces fill an utilitarian purpose . . .

                                                                                

I love using this "sign" for the dishwasher. Dwight's clever double sided clay piece reminds whether the dishes are clean or dirty.

The piece in the back is filled
with salt we use in a neti pot
to clear the nose during allergy season.

After the previous
post where I featured
Dwight's pots for 
houseplants,
I realized this one was not included.

This is my all time very favorite
creation of Dwight's.

                                                                                       

Well, I discovered, when dining out recently with friends,  my posts are actually read. So in response to her inquiry about clay pots I shared that I always found them rather boring . . . useful but unattractive.

One of my favorite pictures of Dwight
taken during a morning walk in Bridgeport, California.
The Sawtooth mountains are in the background.

As I write this post and see pictures of the many impressive, creations in clay that Dwight has left me with, I 

                                         

Mono Lake

Sad, sad, sad; overwhelmed with sadness as we drove along Highway 50 East of Placerville where the Caldor fire, the 15th largest in the state of California, raged this summer past. Seeing all of the old, old, old trees burned was just heart wrenchingly devastating.  The travel through the area is slow as crews are cleaning up and logging trees, so ample opportunity to BE with the ravaging of the landscape. 

In spite of the delays on Highway 50 we arrived in Bridgeport, the home of the stately county courthouse where we were married.

Much of the town is now shuttered. The effects of the sequestering during the pandemic? Or houses and businesses have just been forever vacated? Or just shut down for the Winter? Luckily the library is open and we were free to check out books which we did. It is so much easier to find the best reads here than within the Sonoma County library system where, of course, the demand is far greater.

The view of Mono Lake 
hiking the trail from South Lee Vining
to the Visitors' Center.

Another view of Mono Lake
hiking along Lee Vining Creek
towards the Visitors' Center.

Lee Vining Creek
which has so much less water
than usual because of the
severe drought.
We noticed many of the older
and larger sagebrush, 
are dying from the severe drought.

Mono Lake Committee mission statement: "The Mono Lake Committee is a non-profit citizens' group dedicated to protecting and restoring the Mono Basin ecosystem, educating the public about Mono Lake and the impacts on the environment of excessive water use, and promoting cooperative solutions that protect Mono Lake and meet real water needs without transferring environmental problems to other areas."  

We delight in donating to this endeavor, which is close to our hearts, that does such stellar work safe guarding this treasure, Mono Lake .                                                                                                        

Hiking from Doc & Al's Resort

to amidst the aspen trees

and up into the Ponderosa pines
looking Southward towards the
Sawtooth Mountains.
On Shasta's way back to Stella, our Prius,
she found a deer bone which was
pretty fresh and cracked, probably
gifted to her by a Mountain Lion.
As she pick up the bone, she thought "a very tasty treat."

 

Returning to Stella with Shasta carrying her treasure.

The rock pile in Lundy Canyon where we have 
culled gorgeous rocks for our gardens.

Shasta checking out all of the good smells
while we search for just the "perfect" rocks to place in our Cotati garden.

The view towards the Sierras
from the rock pile.

The beaver dam and beaver on the Walker River,
which meanders along side of the 
Walker River Lodge
where we stayed in Bridgeport for the last time.

A beaver swimming 
in the river just below their dam.

The sign on the West side of 
LeeVining Creek.
We love hiking along the road
parallel to Mono Lake.

Shasta enjoying running along the road away from Lee Vining Creek.
She had such a great time with her freedom from a leash.
She is usually a good dog to come when called. 
If she does not respond, a treat will bring her running.

The North view of Mono Lake
taken from the end of the 
boardwalk from the County Park

Shasta, with visible tufa in the background, 
on the boardwalk in the
Mono Lake Tufa State Natural Reserve 

               

County Park
where over the many years we have
spent time in Cathie's most favorite place (Mono Lake)
on Mother Earth.

Our week long respite from our arduous year past of relocating from Santa Fe and back to Sonoma County, California, was topped off with a familiar event. On our way home we ventured out into the National Forest to the North of Bridgeport. 

Here in this stunning beauty depicted above, we cut a Pinyon pine for our annual holiday tree; markedly smaller than any previous. We also, as is our tradition, cut a small one for Shasta's Auntie T which she already picked up and transported to her home in Point Reyes Station.

As we settle back into our Cotati home preparing for the holiday season please join us in a hardy