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Archive for the ‘Adventures With Pepper’ Category

The Best Canine Companion in the World

Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Dogs, Journeys, Travel, tagged , , , , , on January 30, 2013| 5 Comments »

    “Ever wonder where you’d end up if you took your dog for a walk and never once pulled back on the leash?” – Robert Brault

Pepper, who is sitting in the new arm chair I bought for my new apartment and asking me just why it is that I can't take her for a walk. Thankfully the dog walker I hired until my foot is better arrived a few minutes later.

Pepper, who is sitting in the new arm-chair I bought for my new apartment and asking me just why it is that I can’t take her for a walk. Thankfully the dog walker I hired until my foot is better arrived a few minutes later. — Photo by Pat Bean

My Dog, Pepper

Pepper turned one-year-old December 26, 2012. She adopted me when she was 4 ½ months old and weighed 11 pounds. She weighs in at about 20 pounds these days.

I say she adopted me because I wasn’t looking for a puppy, and I had never known a terrier I wanted to own. Too high-strung and energetic was how I looked at them.

My armchair travels today took me to Ushuaia, where I took a hike on the Martial Glacier. -- Wikipedia photo

My armchair travels today took me to Ushuaia, where I took a hike on the Martial Glacier. — Wikipedia photo

But Pepper, a Scottie-mix or so the SPCA shelter where I got her said, took one look at me, stopped running around with all the other dogs in the enclosure, and made a mad dash toward me.  I was sitting on a bench at the time, observing the animals and looking for a cocker spaniel-mix about two years old. But she hopped into my lap, connected her creamy chocolate eyes onto my blue ones, and in no uncertain terms told me she was coming home with me.            “That’s Kenzie,” the shelter worker said.

I now know what love at first sight means. Of course she came home with me. And on that drive, as I sat in the back seat of my daughter’s car, I decided she wasn’t a Kenzie.”

“So what shall we call you,” I asked her out loud. I went through half a dozen names, and when I said Pepper, she yelped “Yow!” in agreement.

She’s turned out to be the best companion in the whole world. I’m one lucky dog owner.

The Wondering Wanderer's blog pick of the day.

The Wondering Wanderer’s blog pick of the day.

Bean’s Pat: Climbing in Patagonia: http://tinyurl.com/a9x55qk While stuck in my third-floor apartment with a broken foot, I have to do my traveling via an armchair, the one Pepper’s sitting in above. I found this to be a great hike, and especially loved passing through the haunted and twisted forest.

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Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Art, Birds, Favorite Places, Journeys, Nature, Travel, tagged , , , , on January 28, 2013| 14 Comments »

A Change in my Blogging Voice

One of the few pieces of art that I did while living in Gypsy Lee. I painted it during a 10-day stay at Zion National Park, which is one of my favorite places to visit.

One of the few pieces of art that I did while living in Gypsy Lee. I painted it during a 10-day stay at Zion National Park, which is one of my favorite places to visit.

      “…The whole part of a journal is to catch events on the wing.” May Sarton

From the Road to at least Temporary Roots

            My dookie beginning to 2013, thanks to the flu-crud and a broken foot, has slowed this wondering-wandering old broad down.

But I was slowing down even before that. Today marks the first day of the second month in which I traded life on the road in a 22-foot RV called Gypsy Lee for a 600-square foot apartment in the foothills of the Catalina Mountains.

A canyon wren that I saw, and painted, in Zion National Park.

A canyon wren that I saw, and painted, in Zion National Park.

I spent almost nine years in Gypsy Lee, which I realized is more time than I lived in any one home with roots in my life. These past years were the culmination of a lifetime of dreams, and I’m proud of myself that I made them come true. They were the ones in which I truly felt I was living the life I was supposed to lead.            I hope travel will continue to be a part of my life, well as soon as my foot heals and lets me once again handle the three flights of stairs up to my apartment. But for now I am enjoying my choice of a temporary home base.

And I can’t help but think that perhaps being slowed down for a while isn’t even going to turn out to be a blessing in disguise. Yes, I’m still a Pollyanna kind of girl who will never give up looking for that rainbow after the storm.

Zion, River Walk 2

My inspiration for my tree and canyon wall painting — Photo by Pat Bean

One of the silver linings to have magically appeared has been Betty Ann, a neighbor who now gives my energetic canine companion, Pepper, her daily four walks. She’s turned out to be a kindred soul, who shares my love of books, writing and animals. If not for her I would either have had to move in with my gracious, Tucson daughter, who is currently doing my laundry and shopping, or sent Pepper home with her until my foot healed. I wasn’t fond of either of those choices.

The second bit of silver is that my forced inside time has me once again dragging out my art supplies. I carried them around with me in Gypsy Lee, but except for a rare occasion they stayed packed away. Now I have room to keep them handy and hope to return to being artsy fartsy, as I call my amateur endeavors. I’m even going to be brave enough to start sharing them with you.

Meanwhile, I’m feeling my way as to what this blog will be all about in the coming year. The best I can tell you is it’s going to be eclectic and “my life on the wing.” Hopefully it will once again be daily as well. I think I have my blogging mojo back. But don’t hold your breath.

The Wondering Wanderer's blog pick of the day.

The Wondering Wanderer’s blog pick of the day.

Bean’s Pat: Relax – Go with the flow http://tinyurl.com/abhdxpv Since I’m been doing this since breaking my foot, I liked this post for making me feel better about myself.

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Bad Start to New Year Continues

Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Birds, Journeys, tagged , , , , , on January 17, 2013| 17 Comments »

            “Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its meaning if it were not balanced by sadness. It is far better to take things as they come along with patience and equanimity.” – Carl Jung

Just as this gorgeous great blue heron sits behind a bramble of thorny branches, I'm hoping for the silver lining behind my sprained ankle. -- Photo by Pat Bean

Just as this gorgeous great blue heron sits behind a bramble of thorny branches, I’m hoping for the silver lining behind my sprained ankle. — Photo by Pat Bean

  I Hate Whiners, and Now I Am One

My sprained ankle is not one bit better. In fact, I think it is worse, perhaps because of the three flights of stairs I have to go up and down daily to walk Pepper. I’m thinking of getting a dog walker for a few days in hopes if I let my foot rest, it will begin healing. When I’m on it for more than a few minutes it swells up like a grapefruit.

I did finally go to the doctor, and X-rays showed nothing broken. They gave me a gel brace to wear, which sometimes helps and sometimes doesn’t. Meanwhile I am not getting much writing done, mostly just my weekly three blogs for American Profile magazine in which I get to write about this country’s many sight-seeing opportunities. http://blogs.americanprofile.com/

I’m simply not one of those people who can work through a painful distraction, perhaps because I have been blessed to have had very few sick or painful days in my life.  Even now I feel ashamed for whining.

Perhaps this incident will help me more patient of those who do. I mean there’s got to be a silver lining somewhere. I’ve always found it before.

The Wondering Wanderer's blog pick of the day.

The Wondering Wanderer’s blog pick of the day.

Bean’s Pat:  http://tinyurl.com/b5gdsy9 Angel’s Rest, where unwanted animals find sanctuary. If you’re ever in this awesome area of Southern Utah, you should drop by.

 

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Passing the Buck to Edward Abbey

Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Journeys, Nature, tagged , , on December 20, 2012| 7 Comments »

Edward Abbey -- Wikipedia photo

Edward Abbey — Wikipedia photo

            “May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds.” – Edward Abbey

One of My Heroes

            Edward Abbey’s above quote is possibly my favorite of all quotes. If you’re one of those like me, who seeks out Mother Nature at every opportunity, I’m sure you’ll understand.

Abbey, author of the “Monkey Wrench Gang,” “Desert Solitaire,” “Fire on the Mountain,” and others, also said:

  “Growth for the sake of growth is the ideology of the cancer cell.”

            “The tragedy of modern war is that the young men die fighting each other – instead of their real enemies back home in the capitals.”

            “Wilderness is not a luxury, but a necessity of the human spirit.”

            “Society is like a stew. If you don’t stir it up every once in a while then a layer of scum floats to the top.”

The Wondering Wanderer's blog pick of the day.

The Wondering Wanderer’s blog pick of the day.

Bean’s Pat: Penguin Encounter http://tinyurl.com/cqqocs3 Continuation of  Wild Junket’s Antarctica adventure.

 

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Passing the Buck

Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Books, Journeys, Writing, tagged , , , , on December 19, 2012| 8 Comments »

A Word from the Cat in the Hat

inspiration-quote-quote-of-the-day

I’m in the middle of  a lifestyle transition, have four books to read by January for a contest I’m judging, blogging three times a week for American Profile magazine,  getting ready for Christmas, enjoying my youngest daughter and her family, preparing to move into an apartment for which I need furniture, and am trying to cope with a dog that has decided a grandson’s room is a nice place to poop.

Pepper’s done the dirty deed twice, but  I think it’s been because I haven’t been up to our normal long walks. The physical therapist I visited Monday said it was a hip impingement.

I’m getting physical therapy and doing exercises for the leg so hopefully things will be back to normal soon. In the meantime, Pepper and I have been taking a lot of short walks to solve the problem.  I sure hope so because my new apartment is a third-story walk-up.

So, for the remainder of the year, I’m going to rely on some of my favorite people to help me out. Today it’s Dr. Seuss, whose advice I’ve enjoyed for a long, long time. Here are three of my favorite Seuss quotes.

“You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself, any direction you choose.”

“So the writer who breeds more words than he needs, is making a chore for the readers who reads.”

“Today you are you, that’s truer than true.  There’s no one alive who is youer than you.”

Book Report: We’re not going to say any more about this until Jan. 1, 2013.

The Wondering Wanderer's blog pick of the day.

The Wondering Wanderer’s blog pick of the day.

Bean’s Pat: Transplanted Tatar http://tinyurl.com/ayyyn4r A Glimpse of Paradise, or more specifically, the landscape that has claimed a piece of my soul.

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Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Journeys, Nature, Travel, Writing, tagged , , , , , on December 18, 2012| 4 Comments »

Texas to Arizona

            “Life is one big road with lots of signs. So when you’re riding through the ruts, don’t complicate your mind. Flee from hate, mischief and jealousy. Don’t bury your thoughts, put your visit to reality. Wake up and live!” – Bob Marley

Changing Lifestyles – At Least Temporarily

  

The Guadalupe Mountains -- Photo by Pat Bean

The Guadalupe Mountains — Photo by Pat Bean

          After two months of leisurely cross-country travel, which I just completed blogging about, and six weeks traveling around Texas to enjoy the company of  children and grandchildren whom I hadn’t seen since April or longer, I set off to Tucson to spend Christmas with my youngest daughter and her family.

My canine traveling companion, Pepper, and I made the 950-mile trip in three days, which was way too fast for sight-seeing along the way. That’s best done by traveling only a hundred miles and then staying put for a day or more.

The first night I made it to Anson, Texas, where I hooked Gypsy Lee up for the night in a not-too-appealing RV park that was shared with a motel. It was located next to a noisy cotton mill and litter, every piece of which Pepper wanted to investigate, was plentiful on our short walks around the area.

Guadalupe Peak -- Photo by PatBean

Guadalupe Peak — Photo by PatBean

The next day, the drive was accompanied by rain, dust storms and high winds that sent tumbleweeds doing their thing across the highway. The wind had RV, Gypsy Lee, doing a rock and roll dance, even after I stopped for the day early in Carlsbad, New Mexico. Thankfully the RV park was nicer.

The next day was calm, and when Highway 180 took me back into Texas through the Guadalupe Mountains, I stopped briefly to enjoy being in the presence of Guadalupe Peak which at 8,749 feet is the highest point in Texas.

After that, I stayed in the driver’s seat, stopping only for gas until I reached Tucson, which is where Pepper and I are going to stay — at least for a while. I found a small pet-friendly, one-bedroom apartment in the Catalina Mountain foothills, which after living in a tiny RV for eight years, seems like a mansion.

But I’m keeping Gypsy Lee primed for the road for when the wanderlust hits again.

Book Report:  Still in snail mode.

            Bean’s Pat: Bird Light Wind http://tinyurl.com/cnevdu8 Red-shouldered hawk. Fantastic photos

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Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Journeys, Travel, tagged , , on December 11, 2012| 4 Comments »

last sunset on the road

The rv park wasn’t all that great, but the sunset made everything perfect this last night on the road of this journey. — Photo by Pat Bean

            “We shall not cease from exploration, and the end of all our exploring will be to arrive where we started and know the place for the first time.” – T.S. Eliot

Adventures with Pepper: Day 55 Continued

            Today’s plan was to drive to Memphis, stop at the Graceland RV Park, then spend a couple of days exploring the city, much like I had done in Nashville.

   

One of the many squirrels that delighted me and taunted Pepper during this journey. -- Photo by Pat Bean

One of the many squirrels that delighted me and taunted Pepper during this journey. — Photo by Pat Bean

         After my leisurely morning of birds, a walk with Pepper and a small pot of cream-laced African coffee, I set out on my short drive to the city Elvis called home.            As I neared Memphis, my quiet, peaceful morning turned into a cacophony of loud traffic and a tangled web of too crowded roads leading into the heart of chaos – and yet once again I changed my plans. .

            When I came to the turnoff I needed to take to carry out the plans that had been brewing in my head for the past week, I drove right on by. I knew that one big city in a week, away from Mother Nature, had been just right. An echo of that week would make me as sick as eating too much candy.

             I had decided to drive on for about another hour, and then stop at the first RV park that looked decent. I figured that wouldn’t be a problem, since for the first time in two months I was driving on an interstate and not a back-country road.

            It was over three hours later, after I had passed Little Rock, Arkansas, however before I found one. It was not very inviting but I stopped anyway because I didn’t want to continue driving after dark.

            Tomorrow would take me into Dallas, where my oldest daughter lived, and bring an end to this leg of my journeys. I’m glad you came along for the 6,000-mile, zigzagging ride from Idaho to Texas — past dinosaur bones, up and over the Rocky Mountains, sleeping among prairie dogs, winding through  the Appalachians on the Blue Ridge Parkway, through the Smoky Mountains and finally hooking up at the Grand Ole Opry.

            It was a fun trip. Where do you think we should go next?

            Book Report: Still slowly moving forward. Wish I was in a faster lane, but then I’d miss the flowers along the way. It’s hard being a writer when you always afraid you’re going to miss something.

         

The Wondering Wanderer's blog pick of the day.

The Wondering Wanderer’s blog pick of the day.

   Bean’s Pat: Song for Today http://tinyurl.com/bm4tz9w It’s all about Pooh and Christopher Robin and feeling young again.   

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A Tennessee Warbler and a Bluebird

Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Birds, Journeys, Nature, Travel, Writing, tagged , , , , on December 8, 2012| 3 Comments »

            “I know the world is filled with troubles and many injustices. But reality is as beautiful as it is ugly. I think it is just as important to sing about beautiful mornings as it is to talk about slums. I just couldn’t write anything without hope in it. – Oscar Hammerstein II

Tennessee warbler -- Wikipedia photo by Jerry Oldenette

Tennessee warbler — Wikipedia photo by Jerry Oldenette

Adventures with Pepper: Day 55

            Natchez Trace State Resort Park was awesome, and I would have stayed much longer than one night except I had no phone or internet service, and I had a magazine writing deadline to meet.          

Eastern bluebird -- Photo by Pat Bean

Eastern bluebird — Photo by Pat Bean

   I didn’t rush to get off the next morning, however, because my plan was to just drive to Memphis, 120 miles away.

             After much debating with myself during the night, I had decided to skip the remainder of the Natchez Trace and take the quicker shorter route home to family. The decision was partly based on my desire to hug children and grandchildren and partly on budget concerns. Gypsy Lee’s furnace was acting up and I needed to get it checked out, and I thought what I saved on the trip would cover any needed repairs.

            Thankful that I had finally made the decision, I let myself enjoy a cup of coffee while I stared out at Pin Oak Lake and watched the sun come up. I’m learning that sometimes you need to just sit for a while without your hands on a keyboard or a book in your hand. It’s taken me way too many years to learn the reward of doing this, which most days is just renewed energy for a busy day ahead.

            This day I had a different reward. First there was the Tennessee warbler, about 10 of them merrily pecking in the grass right outside my RV. Thankfully they stayed around long enough for me to get out my field guide and identify them as the bird was a lifer for me, meaning the first one of its species that I had identified.

            It was the 703rd bird species to go on my list, and I watched them until they decided it was time to move on.

            The second reward was a colorful eastern bluebird that was using the mirror of the truck parked next to me to watch itself in the vehicle’s window. It kept turning around and around for a better look. And it was so interested in itself that I was able to slide my RV window open and get a good picture.

            What a great start to my day.

            Book Report: Back to working on Travels with Maggie more seriously. I’m almost back to where I decided to reread what I had already edited this second time around. I was mostly pleased with what I read, and made a format decision that should let me finish the last few chapters more quickly.

          

The Wondering Wanderer's blog pick of the day.

The Wondering Wanderer’s blog pick of the day.

  Bean’s Pat: Serenity Spell http://tinyurl.com/a4gfcco Eyes of the Everglades. I love black-crowned night herons.

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Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Journeys, Nature, Travel, Writing, tagged , , , , , on December 6, 2012| 6 Comments »

The Road Not Taken — and Kudzu  

Kudzu taking over the landscape. Photo by Pat Bean ,

Kudzu taking over the landscape. Photo by Pat Bean ,

            “Everyone has to make their own decisions … You just have to be able to accept the consequences without complaining.” – Grace Jones

Adventures with Pepper: Day: Day 53-54

After two sight-seeing filled days in Nashville, I stayed put at Nashville RV Park for an extra day so as to catch up on my journal, my writing, and some needed rest. I spent most of that day, however, replotting my route back to Texas.

Pin Oak Lake, Natchz Trace State Resort Park, Tennessee. -- Photo by Pat Bean

Pin Oak Lake, Natchz Trace State Resort Park, Tennessee. — Photo by Pat Bean

I had planned to drive the entire Natchez Trace but was now reconsidering. I had previously driven the lower end of the trace, and if I only spent one day on the historic old foot path, I could cut miles and days off my trip back to Texas.

Usually when I get into an argument with myself about which route to take, the longer, slower, less traveled one wins the day. But my slow, beit fantastic, drive through Shenandoah National Park on Skyline Trail and the Blue Ridge Parkway had been tiring.

I was also eager to once again hook up with kids and grandkids that I hadn’t seen in over half a year. So this time, after a night of sleeplessly continuing to mull the decision, I didn’t take Robert Frost’s less-traveled road, but his road-not-taken instead.

It was

A bit of color could be seen through the trees, but today's drive was mostly a green one. -- Photo by Pat Bean

A bit of color could be seen through the trees, but today’s drive was mostly a green one. — Photo by Pat Bean

a slow pleasant 150-mile drive in which autumn’s fall colors had been replaced by trees buried beneath kudzu. If you’re not from the South, you might ask what is kudzu.

It’s an invasive plant that grows and spreads over the landscape like uncontrolled wild fires, beautiful but deadly to plants that it envelops in its viny arms.

I ended the day at Tennessee’s Natchez Trace State Resort Park, where I hooked Gypsy Lee up beside Pin Oak Lake, took Pepper for a long walk, then settled down with her outside to watch the sun set over the lake.

I went to be still thinking about my choice of routes because the options were still ahead of me.

Book Report: Worked on Travels with Maggie for only a half hour this morning, stopping for a dentist appointment.

The Wondering Wanderer's blog pick of the day.

The Wondering Wanderer’s blog pick of the day.

 

Bean’s Pat: Life out of the Box http://tinyurl.com/cptj25y The value of a notebook. This should give us all pause to be thankful for what we have.

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Opryland: Where Outside is Inside

Posted in Adventures With Pepper, Birds, Favorite Places, Nature, Travel, Writing, tagged , , , , on December 4, 2012| Leave a Comment »

Looking up at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel rooms from one of the complex's atriums. -- Photo by Pat Bean

Looking up at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel rooms from one of the complex’s atriums. — Photo by Pat Bean

 “Do not disturb signs should be written in the language of the hotel maids.” –Tim Bedore           

Adventures with Pepper: Day 52 continued   

One of numerous waterfalls that help create the illusion of bringing the outdoors inside. -- Photo by Pat Bean

One of numerous waterfalls that help create the illusion of bringing the outdoors inside. — Photo by Pat Bean

          What started out in 1877 as the 600-room Opryland Hotel   is today the largest non-casino hotel in this country. Numerous expansions and the big renovation after the hotel was flooded in May of 2010, along with the next door Grand Ole Opry, have inspired the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and Convention Center ad men  to use the words, “You won’t believe what’s under our roof,” in their promotional copy.

A tour of the hotel was the second part of this Gray Line tour, which earlier had me standing on the “Unbroken Circle” of the Grand Ole Opry stage.

Wow, I think was my surprised response as I wandered through the complex and then took the quarter-mile boat ride around the glass-roofed, landscaped-to-perfection complex.

 

I wondered what Opryland charges these colorful wood ducks for their space in one of the complex's atriums. I shot this photo of the ducks during the boat ride.

I wondered what Opryland charges these colorful wood ducks for their space in one of the complex’s atriums. I shot this photo of the ducks during the boat ride.

Normal room rates to stay at the hotel range from $169 to $244 per night. I was curious and checked it out to see how it compared with the $34 per night cost of my stay at the Nashville Country RV Park.                        While it would have been fun to stay in the hotel during my Nashville stay, it wasn’t within my travel budget, nor, I suspected, would my canine traveling companion, Pepper, have been allowed to stay with me.

Book Report: Still dinking along while some of my writing colleagues are making amazing amounts of progress on their projects. But I got most of my Christmas shopping done yesterday.

The Wondering Wanderer's blog pick of the day.

The Wondering Wanderer’s blog pick of the day.

Bean’s Pat: What I See is What I Shoot http://tinyurl.com/c9kgaqx Far away in the Wonderland. A quirky blog that usually fascinates me. Today you can learn how to say bicycle in Russian

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