Tis the season

Seeing summer out

A little visual to savor on this day after the autumnal equinox, the last day of summer punctuated by blue skies and Border collie anticipation, and within hours after this Frisbee lawn ritual, a cold front moved through Whatcom County, accompanied by non-stop rain showers and gusty winds. And from now until May, Casey will have to finesse each catch through fall and winter blusters. 

Another must-share

This is just another one of those feel-good videos that a friend of mine posted on Facebook that I just had to share. After all, it has all the right ingredients, abandoned pets, inseparable companions, frolicking in a river, and a happy ending. How can it not go viral? 

 

Purple summer send-off

Catching my eye today as I was cutting the lawn was a showy purple perennial that was pulsating with living color, enhanced by late afternoon sunshine and hundreds of honey bees in a mad scramble to collect an autumn cache of pollen to last the winter.

Of course right away I’m thinking Chrysanthemums until I check with Victoria and Google. It seems this variety is the Michaelmas daisy, or aster, and it doesn’t show any signs of slowing down, at least for the next few days, as it ushers in fall.   

Soft landing

All we ever have to say aloud is, “Did we do Casey’s eyes today?” and he immediately goes airborne, landing right in the center of the living room couch. It’s not that he’s excited to receive his daily dose of tacrolimus on each cornea, he’s not. He just knows that it’s inevitable, so he assumes the position on the couch – usually after a standing jump - and Vic works her magic, applying a dab in each eye. Today grandson Ezra and daughter-in-law Ernelyn got a lapful of Border collie before we could rephrase the question. Cute picture though.

Sweet spot

Oh boy! Greg’s home. And before he can even get shut his car door Casey’s on his way across the street to shamelessly work his favorite guy neighbor for a rubdown. When it comes to soliciting for a scratch behind the ear, or anyplace else for that matter, the kid’s got no pride, and like most pooches, is all sweet spot.

 

Oh yeah. Right there.

Grabbing a nap

With the grand kids at the house after school (you can tell by the backpacks on the right), Casey knows to keep a low profile while grabbing a well-deserved snooze. Smart guy.

Peace rally in Bellingham

A enthusiastic gathering of over 150 organized by Bellingham’s peace coalition and represented by banner and sign holders from across generational and political spectrums – progressives, anti-war activists, county Tea Party supporters, Republicans and Dems - occupied Bellingham’s Five Corners intersection at Lakeway and Ellis for over an hour beginning at noon on Saturday.

And after an enthusiastic midtown response from hundreds of drivers opposing war in Syria, the crowd marched on both sides of Holly Street to the Farmers Market where members were tabling for another week to gather signatures for a petition demanding a peaceful resolution to the Syrian conflict. Organizers are hoping for the best but planning for additional actions and demonstrations this week following a less than favorable vote in the Senate or House, and even worse, a possible attack on Syria with global repercussions.

Leavings

Synchronizing rain showers today paid off with an opportunity to get in a jog on the south side with the kid. And, from the looks of the trail, the soggy leavings of summer are just about everywhere, clear evidence that the party’s just about over as far as our annual ration of 70◦ sunshine is concerned.

Bergamot with bee

How serendipitous is this shot. I had absolutely no idea what kind of a summer bloom this was until Victoria schooled me. There was something especially intergalactic about it so I had to get a shot before it started losing its luster. 

And I ended up with a “two-fer” that included this lonely bumblebee giving a splash of bergamot lavender a once-over.