Here's how awesome & funny life is

   This morning I reminded myself that in order for Zoey to get adopted, she really needs to get more comfortable in the outside world and with walking on leash. So I walked all three dogs for about an hour this morning, up to Strang Park. It was hot, so we took our time. Zoey pulled and resisted a little at first, tail between her legs with nervousness. But as we walked, she steadily improved.

   We stopped to rest at the park, and I sat on the bench and gave the dogs attention as they laid and rolled in the grass. We were in no hurry, and were under a huge, shady tree in the center of the park. This gave us a 360 view of all the other walkers, joggers, kids, and dogs, though our sitting area was quiet. And Zoey's fear shifted into curiosity, then contentment. She settled in and laid down with my dogs, eyes blinking gently and no longer vigilant to the other activity in the park On the way home, her tail went back up, and she walked much more confidently. I felt like a million bucks, and thought to myself, "She has come a LONG way since May 19... She's about ready to be adopted!" It felt like a huge win. I am quite proud of how well my dogs have instructed her... and they do deserve most of the credit!

*** FLASH FORWARD TO THIS EVENING ***

   I attended a dinner tonight for our local Japan-America Society. It was at Sama Zama (the new One Bite), and I talked Kelly into joining since neither of us had been there yet. We arrived about 15 minutes late due to a soccer game Kelly was watching. No big deal.

   But if we hadn't arrived late, we may have been sitting at one of the big tables rather than the "kids' table" (a 4-seater off to the side). This ended up to be significant. Patty introduced us to our dinner company, Mindy and Eric. I'd heard of Mindy for years, as she teaches Japanese in the Olathe district, and have been at some of the same language competitions in the past, but had never met her. She and Eric are both awesome & we had a blast talking with them.

   At one point I mentioned my dogs (they're Japanese, after all), including Zoey, my foster pup. And they mentioned that fellow Japanese teacher Dianne was looking for a dog, as she & her husband lost their 18 year old mixed breed last fall. Mindy was telling us that she & Dianne just returned from Japan two weeks ago, and saw Shibas all over, and they had both fallen in love with them. I showed her a photo of Zoey and she said, "She looks just like Dianne's old dog!" I gave her my card with my information on it, but wasn't expecting anything.

   BUT apparently as we were all on our way home, Mindy texted Dianne to tell her about Zoey, because Dianne called me before I had even pulled in to my driveway, to see how soon they could meet her! And... Long story short, Dianne and her husband Jerry just left my house. They loved Zoey, and showed me some photos of their old boy, Boomer, and he looks a LOT like Zoey. (Larger, but with the same pointy ears and curved tail, and SAME coloration!)

   They are experienced with dogs and enjoy daily training. Sounds like Boomer had a very active/smart personality & they loved the challenge of keeping him engaged. We still have to go through the application process, but I think they'd be a FANTASTIC home for Zoey and they sound like they want her.

   I'm going over there to do the home evaluation tomorrow night, and they're going to try to get the application done before then! Unbelievable. So, so excited and hopeful that this is the perfect home that little Zoey has been waiting over two years for. That would be sweeter than tonight's かき氷 (Japanese snow cone)!

A tree at sunset, Stoll Park

Snowy Owl, is that You?

A secret no longer...

   Every few years (I just learned), snowy owls descend from the Arctic tundra in search of food, as lemmings become scarce. Joni alerted me that the owls had been spotted in our area, and we spent most of this weekend tracking them down. Ah, the thrill of the hunt! (Don't worry, we were hunting with our cameras.)

   While we weren't lucky enough to see them up close, we did see two of them on Saturday, and all three of them today. I took a few photos of what mostly look like white blobs, but having seen the incredible birds through binoculars and high-powered scopes (Swarovski, no less!), at least the photos will help me remember the experience. I'm very grateful to Joni for spending her whole weekend with me, chasing these guys around Smithville. (And Brett says they've been spotted at Clinton Lake, too... ROAD TRIP!!!)
   The females appear darker due to the more plentiful black bars on their feathers, and the males are snowy-white. The owls have the utmost patience, sitting for hours in the same spot, calmly spinning their head from side to side, and sleepily opening their eyes and yawning occasionally.
   This was the scene Saturday at dusk, on the dam, with a male perched on the sign:

That's him on the sign. Trust me.

   And this was the same location on Sunday morning, with a juvenile sitting among the rocks. There was a male on the larger rocks headed towards the dam, too:

That's his little white head popping up in the center. I swear.

   See the next post for the main event... we got a tip that the female was over at the boat launch in Little Platte Park...

Another 3 Chicks + 7 Canines Hike!

   This afternoon, I met up with Joni and her friend, Susan, at Weston Bend State Park for a hike with Wager, Kip, Asher, Louie, Sanda, and of course, Aki and Taylor. I forgot my camera (the horror!) so I was restricted to the use of my Blackberry. Still, I managed to get a couple of fun shots of our gang:

the pack spreading out on the trail

the pups fall in line

everyone begs Susan for a post-hike refreshment

The following photos are Joni Johnson-Godsy's:

Believe it or not, the Shibas are hidden at the center of the crowd; first in line!

Wager (aka Pawsome) and me

Wager strikes a pose; everyone else ignores the camera in favor of treats

3 Chicks + 7 Canines

   Renee invited Joni and me (and our associated canines) for a hike at Shawnee Mission Park this afternoon. Great fun was had by all, which included: Renee, Rosie & Boo; Joni, Wager, Kip & Asher; myself, Aki & Taylor. 45 degrees is great for a late December day, but it's a little cold for swimming! Didn't stop the dogs!!! (Other than Aki, who clearly must be the smartest of the bunch.)

This is what a very happy Shiba looks like!

Bordermobile

Shibamobile

Muttmobile

Surprise 10k Day!

   This morning I set out at 7:15 am (in freezing weather, no less) for what I thought would be about a 3-mile trail run at Shawnee Mission Park with my 2 Shibas + 2 friends, Rafael & Brett. Brett brought his pup, Sam, with him too. I *always* let Aki off the leash, and she *always* stays in view & comes right back to me. Not today. About 2.5 miles into the run, she took off after a squirrel. We kept running, as we always do. She loses the chase and then catches up. Today, apparently, she got lost.

   Rafael, Brett and Sam continued on the orange loop, looking for her. I went back out across the street and down to the lake, because I had heard a lot of geese honking and assuming Aki was out there chasing them. Nope. I ran all along the north side of the lake, calling for her, and at the northwest corner where the trailheads are, I hopped onto the violet trail, not wanting to leave any stone unturned. As violet looped back into orange, I heard Rafael calling for me. Aki had been following a couple of women, then saw Rafael and remembered him, and followed him. Brett stashed her in his car.

   I ran 6.2 miles before she was found. And do you know where she showed up? Same place where we last saw her. And there I am, running around ALL the other trails thinking she was far afield!  Naughty, naughty Shiba!!!!!!!!!!!!!

   On the bright side, Taylor and I ran a 10k! And we've both been lounging on the couch ever since. I wish more races allowed dogs to run, too... this guy is awesome!

Autumn on Antioch