Good morning. 🕊️🕊️🕊️
4 January 2026
Yesterday I cleaned the family room, and it’s clear I need to do that more often. Charlie, being a border collie, sheds enough to knit a second dog. Besties are worth it, though. I once read that happiness is being covered in dog hair, and I’m starting to believe it.
While cleaning, I finally got around to removing Ben’s bed. He passed more than six months ago, and the bed just sat there, waiting for me to be ready. We gifted it to the neighbors across the street—they have two small dogs who will put it to good use. It’s a pricey bed, with a foam‑core mattress and a tough, washable cover. Charlie has the same model, just in a different color. I slid his bed into Ben’s old spot of sixteen years, tucked under the old sofa table. Charlie is top dog now.
I’d probably have more to write about if I left the house once in a while. My car hasn’t left the garage in over three weeks. The last time I drove was to buy several cases of water from the supermarket. I say “the supermarket” because there’s only one—unless you count Walmart, which I refer to as “the mall.”
I’m not a prepper in the strictest sense, but I keep a few cases of bottled water in the garage for those times when a storm blows through and the taps go dry. It happens around here more often than I’d like, and if you wait for the news to warn you, it’s already too late. I also keep a few five‑gallon cans filled—not for drinking, but for the practical things, like making sure the toilets can still be used. Body functions don’t stop just because the water does.
Well, that’s enough rambling for now.
“Because of the dog’s joyfulness, our own is increased. It is no small gift.” — Mary Oliver
“Before you get a dog, you can’t quite imagine what living with one might be like; afterward, you can’t imagine living any other way.” — Caroline Knapp
#photo #photography #wildlife #nature #bird #birds #birding #birdwatching #birdphotography #morning #doves #MourningDoves #dogs #water
