Wednesday morning, First Reflections

Yesterday was another busy day, though much lower drama than the rest of the past week. With the movers now gone, it was mostly us, a house with lots of unfamiliar technology gizmos, and an ungodly number of packed boxes – all of which we have to now unpack.

The boxes had the upper hand; they knew they had us outnumbered. Like many a Match.com personal ad, the writing on the surface was often no better than a hint as to what might lie within. And if there’s one specific item you need to find right away? Fuggedaboutit; unless you were a champion player at Where’s Waldo?, you’ll just have to be patient until things are ready to reveal their hiding places.

Technology, too, seems to be having its way with us. There are a lot of systems and gadgets here, all with the stated claim of making our lives simpler and easier. Yeah, sure. Maybe, eventually that’ll be the case, but there’s gonna be an extended hazing period before the gadgets accept us into their fraternity. 

Perhaps you remember Sunday, when we arrived here after 2000+ miles of adventure. Here’s the picture we posted of Robbyne and Daisy at the front door, just before our triumphant entrance:

That wasn’t exactly the entire story. The untold part was that just after that picture was taken, we tried to enter through the front door, and could not get it open. So we went around to a side door, unlocked it, and went in. Immediately a beep-beep-beep noise went off, letting us know that we had a few seconds before the alarm went into full you’re-in-trouble-now mode. Calmly, we stepped over to the alarm keypad and entered our code number. Oops, didn’t work. Second try, oops again. A few more failed attempts and the siren went off. Hi neighbors! Guess who’s just arrived? We called Fred, our Project Manager Extraordinaire, who then called the monitoring company; it was all straightened out only a few minutes after the Police had been dispatched. Otherwise, Sunday was pretty awesome, but we learned how much of a technology learning curve we had ahead of us.

Tuesday night was another first for us! We enjoyed a nice dinner with Jack & Karen C., our good friends who’ve also recently moved here and who put us up (put up with us?) since we arrived Sunday. Then we came back here to the house for our first overnighter. It was strangely different from what the past two days had accustomed us to; the landscape workers had all left, the power equipment had all gone quiet, and the bright sunshine had by now slid beneath the horizon. The three of us, on eight legs, walked around the now-quiet house, out to the portal, and up to the roof deck. Crickets and a light breeze through the trees were the only sounds to hear. A half-moon was by now almost overhead, nearly bright enough to read by but not too bright to wash out the Milky Way.


With some of our McLean furniture moved in, and with some of our boxes unpacked, we fell asleep in a place that seemed at once both familiar and foreign. It was quiet and dark, almost too  quiet and dark. The occasional house noise took on an outsized proportion. Was that clinking sound from an ice maker, or something else? Was the rustling sound from packing papers being blown by a breeze, or a coyote sneaking in for a Daisy-snack?


But now it’s Wednesday morning, and a glorious day here in Santa Fe: temps in the high 70s, cool dry breezes, blue sky for miles and miles. No relief in sight. 
    

From Daisy & Dan’s morning walk, a glimpse up at the new homestead:

We learn a lot from Daisy, who often seems wise beyond her years. She’s been apprehensive with all the commotion, but is increasingly settling in and enjoying her new routines. From her perspective, if your Peeps this week are the same ones you had last week, you’re probably where you ought to be. Sleep well, wake up refreshed, and make your morning walks “meaningful.” And on this morning’s walk, Daisy found -- and promptly inhaled -- two Cheetos someone had earlier dropped by the roadside. There’s treasure everywhere! 

     
Dan & Robbyne

Moving in!!!

Daisy Jones-Klein here, reporting again today. My Peeps had quite a memorable Memorial Day with all the moving, and by day's end realized that they didn't have the energy levels they had when they were pups. So once again, reporting the news is up to me.

Since our stuff got here ahead of schedule, the movers began early Monday on Memorial Day. We met the van at the bottom of the hill in our neighborhood, where they had already begun transferring everything into a smaller shuttle truck to run up the rest of the way to our house:

There were lots and lots of people and boxes and noises! Apparently, for some strange reason, my Peeps didn't like me barking at each and every person passing by me! As if a little ankle nip would interrupt anything! Anyway, Mom and Dad decided that it would be a good day for me (or, as they sometimes call me, "Our Lil' Liability") to get to know my own room a little better.

I joined my Peeps for a lunch break. Their first meal on their deck (which around here is called a portal)! Best of all, lots of bits of ham and bacon dropping off of their sandwiches. Good thing I was around to help clean up the floor, huh?

All day long, there's stuff moving in, boxes being opened, furniture being reassembled, and empties going out. But by late in the day, it started to seem a little more normal, and some of our favorite Terri Knoll Court pieces began to adapt to their locations in their new Forever Home:

About 10 hours later, the movers had all left, and the house started getting quiet. My Peeps left me here to guard and protect the place while they went next door for a neighborhood Memorial Day get-together. They got to look down and see the house from a little higher up:

Then they smooched as the sun went down:

Someone probably said something like "Get a room!" They laughed, and just pointed next door, where I had already found my room:

Today (and the next week or two) is gonna be another unpacking day, and lots more visitors! Mom & Dad have already told me that it's probably a good day to stay in my crib. Seems I'm already getting a reputation around these parts.

       
Daisy Jones-Klein, The Bark of the West

Home: Latitude 35°43'40.66"N, Longitude 105°54'23.65"W

Daisy Jones-Klein reports on Sunday's big day:

Even the road-trip-lovingest dog can get a little road weary and be ready to settle down for a while. So it's a good thing that today my Peeps are taking me to Santa Fe.

Sunday started off in Amarillo. I went on a little horseback ride before we all got into the cars:

And not long after we started driving, we all got out to say goodbye to Texas, but more importantly, to say hello to New Mexico!

We stopped for lunch at a place call Clines Corner in NM, even though they didn't spell the name like Dad thought they should.

Most significant for us, this was where we finally pulled off of I-40, our steadfast companion for the last 1700 miles or so. It's a great road and let us see so much of this huge and beautiful land as we moved across it. Thanks, I-40! 

And as we got further into New Mexico, the skies got more blue, the landscape less barren, and the terrain more interesting. That is, less and less like the Texas panhandle!

As we got closer and closer to Santa Fe, the Kick-ass Song of the Day Competition heated up. Early in the day's drive, the leading contender was "Our House," from Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young on their 1970 album Déjà Vu. I had to veto it, however, because they kept singing about two cats in the yard, as if that was a good thing (definitely not!). But then we heard "Almost Cut My Hair" from the same album; Dad's favorite line is "I feel like letting my Freak Flag fly", which sounded like a good theme for our week in general and especially for Memorial Day, what with all the bikers on the road and Rolling Thunder taking place in Washington DC.

But just as we were pulling into the city of Santa Fe, a dark-horse song sneaked up and stole the crown. "Ridgetop", from Jesse Colin Young's live On the Road album, is a long jazzy love song to living up in the mountains. It took us all the way from the center of Santa Fe:

... up to our new place in the mountains:

So here we are in Santa Fe, one week older and 2000+ miles more driven. As Road Trips go, this was indeed excellent, at times sublime.
     

We'll be staying a couple of days with our good friends Jack & Karen C. across the valley, but first we had to take a quick peek into the new digs:

Then, my Peeps decided to make it all official by putting in the change of address form for yours truly. Off with the Old; in with the New! They're big on ceremony, you know:

Tomorrow is Monday, and not just Memorial Day, but also Moving Day! Our movers arrived in Santa Fe ahead of schedule, and asked if they could deliver our stuff on Monday instead of Tuesday. Gonna be busy! But for this Sunday, the sun's gone, and we're declaring an end to Santa Fe Day #1.

In a couple of days, once my Peep's stuff is in and a little more unpacked, we'll be back with you. And remember, the best things in life are furry!

     
Daisy Jones-Klein, Terrier of the West

Okies and Aggies!

Hi, everybody! Daisy Jones-Klein, your intrepid quadruped reporter, here. We're in Amarillo, Texas tonight. Mom & Dad went to a steakhouse tonight, and sent me back this picture:

This is why my Peeps left it up to me to tell you about today.

And it was another good day to be Daisy! Actually, most days are good days if you're a Jack Russell Terrier, but if you like road trips as much as I do, today was the jackpot. Over 450 miles! Right after we left Ft. Smith Arkansas, we crossed over into Oklahoma:

Dad seemed pretty excited about this. Turns out that for a long time, Oklahoma was the only one of 50 states that he hadn't been in. So I guess today was kind of a bucket list item for him. But strangely enough, 300+ miles later, he seemed at least as excited to be leaving Oklahoma. Go figure ....

Oklahoma was pretty much like you'd expect: hot, dry, pretty flat. Nice for driving, but there's probably a reason why people don't complain about the Memorial Day traffic jams in Oklahoma.

But for those of you who think we only take pictures of fossil-fired power plants, we did see a lot of windmills:

For me, the best part of the day was when we stopped in the Cherokee Nation so Mom & Dad could have lunch. After lunch, they let me go buffalo riding:

Finally, we made it into the panhandle of Texas. I guess you could say that Oklahoma was OK!!! ... uhhh ... meh.

We stopped for a break, and saw another Jack Russell Terrier named Scout, perhaps a cousin or something. But as you can see, Scout had obviously been malnourished, and was waaaay underweight. Her peeps ought to be feeding her more kibble, and maybe chicken or even bacon. Especially bacon! Mmmmmm, bacon ..... but I digress ...

After 25 or 30 miles into Texas, we saw this sign that made us think that either we had headed east by accident, or had overshot our exit and ended up circumnavigating the globe:

So in late afternoon we were pulling into Amarillo. Dad found his Song of the Day, this time an early one from Bob Dylan with the Band called "I Shall Be Released". (He says the covers by Joan Baez and Bette Midler are also shiver-inducing.) Anyway, with the late afternoon sun ahead of us, and the volume cranked up high, the chorus goes:

I see my light come shining 
From the west unto the east 
Any day now, any day now, 
I shall be released.

So the song wraps up, and we pull into Amarillo. You know how yesterday we said that Ft. Smith was 90 degrees and 90% humidity? Well, it's sorta like that here, except that the second 90 refers to wind speed instead of humidity. One of my dinner bowls blew off halfway across the parking lot -- losing that would have been a catastrophe!

More reader questions! I've been asked what my favorite place name was. For the first couple of days, it was a tossup between French Broad River and Pigeon Forge, both in the Great Smokey Mountains of Tennessee. But when we were in Arkansas and passed by Toad Suck State Park (and I am so not making that up), I knew I'd found my personal favorite! Anyone got anything to top that?

And also a question from Margaret J. in Cerrillos NM, who asks if I'm planning to get a rattlesnake vaccination once I'm in New Mexico. I'm thinking not; the reptiles will just have to take their chances with me!

Well, it's late and this doggy's a tired pup. 'Nite all. Next stop, Santa Fe, where we're told there's a home waiting for us.


     
Daisy Jones-Klein, a.k.a. She who must not be named

"Swell Touring" in Ft. Smith, Arkansas

Daisy Jones-Klein said she was taking the day off from making these reports. So, Dan is the second-string reporter today.

We left Memphis this morning and crossed the Mississippi River into Arkansas:

For us, this was symbolic on several levels. Traditionally an east-west boundary, the Mississippi River was also very nearly the halfway mark in mileage on our trip. Makes it awkward to turn around, now. For this trip, at least, there are more miles behind us than ahead of us.

I was listening to a Memphis-area classic rock station as we drove over the river. The Allman Brothers were playing the long version of Freebird (at high volume of course). It didn't seem coincidental:

If I leave here tomorrow
Would you still remember me?
For I must be traveling on, now,
'Cause there's too many places I've got to see. 

Later, the radio station played the old Loggins & Messina tune "House at Pooh Corner". Daisy said it was one of her favorite songs, since to her it sounded like a frequent place to stop on our walks.

About halfway into the day's drive, we found a place called Razorback Pizza, just after Little Rock, where Daisy could accompany us inside to eat. It was actually on an outside deck and no one else was there, because anyone with good sense and no dog was inside in the AC. That said, there was a breeze and Daisy quite enjoyed the various orts of pizza crust that happened to come her way -- she also enjoyed a few from the floor that had been there a while, but such is her nature. Her wagging tail said "de-lish!"

But now we're here in Ft. Smith, at the western edge of Arkansas. Both temperature and humidity are in the 90s, making for "swell touring." That, plus a possible activities list that includes the Trolley Museum, the Ft. Smith Art Center, and the Janet Huckabee Nature Center, persuaded us that we might instead just take in a movie in a nice air-conditioned theater.

FUN FACT! If you Google the phrase "fun in Ft. Smith", you get 1,140 hits. Many of the hits, alas, are preceded by "Is there any", or "Where can I find", or lead-ins like that. However, if you Google "unrelenting heat and humidity", you get 34,800 hits, about a 30-to-1 ratio. Hence, tonight is movie night.

Tomorrow, Amarillo Texas, and cow for supper!

     
Dan

Nashville to Memphis

Hi, everybody. Daisy Jones-Klein here again. We're in Memphis now, where tonight my Peeps left me alone while they went down to Beale Street for an evening of BBQ and Memphis Blues music. Yep, I'm all alone .... just me .... and an open wi-fi connection .... and maybe pay-per-view .....

Today was a good day to be Daisy! (Actually, most days are good to be me, but today was extra good.) We left Nashville late in the morning, and a little over 3 hours later we were in Memphis. After unpacking, we drove into downtown Memphis along the Mississippi River waterfront, and walked and walked and walked. We saw a creek that was way, way bigger than Pimmit Run Creek that ran near our house in McLean:

We saw Mississippi Riverboats:

We saw a giant named Elvis. Mom and Dad said he was really big in Rock, but I think he was actually made of metal:

And then we went to a really neat old hotel called the Peabody.

In the middle of the lobby of the Peabody, they have this huge fountain where five ducks come down from their penthouse each day to swim around, and then go back up to their penthouse at day's end.

Apparently they didn't know what Jack Russell Terriers are really like when other critters are a-flappin' nearby! Also, the horses pulling the carriages outside the hotel didn't seem to know either. But barking is in my blood; I can't help it. (I certainly would not be convicted by a jury of my peers!) But let's just say that I don't think I'm going to be invited back there... but they did let me take my picture with a couple of humongous metal dogs they had in the lobby:

So my Peeps just sent in these pictures from Beale Street. Looks like fun, but apparently quadrupeds are not welcome there, either. So that's why I'm here, now, just blogging away until The Dog Whisperer comes on the TV.

And here's a reader question: Lynn H. of Kensington MD asks whether I'm a front or back-seat driver, and what my favorite songs are. On the first question, it's an easy answer: neither. I have my Peeps to chauffeur me around; after all, that is what staff is for. Usually I'm in the back seat of Dad's car in my travel crib, where it's nice for long naps. but when we drove to downtown Memphis to go to the waterfront, I was curled up at Mom's feet in the front seat, where I found a cookie on the floor that couldn't have been more than 3-4 days old. Sweeeeet!!!

As for Lynn H's second question, I've always been partial to music by SheDAISY. DUH!!. But Dad seems to be stuck on classic rock from the 60s and 70s, which is okay enough I guess. But today, driving through Tennessee, he seemed to be particularly fond of Emmylou Harris, Linda Ronstadt, and early Bob Dylan. Actually, I like all of Dad's music, except for Cat Stevens for the obvious reasons.

My Peeps will be back here soon. Better sign off before they suspect!

 
Daisy Jones-Klein