Leissl

Today’s Plantings

During my lunch break today, I saw ominous rain clouds approaching for the first time in two solid months. So I figured it was a good time to get some more seeds in the ground, fast! I chose the next two packets in my pile of seeds. The third type of pumpkin and a bell pepper that is supposed to ripen into white fruit. The pumpkin seeds were fine, but those pepper seeds were small!

It was a challenge, but I got them both into the ground before any rain fell.

The rains hadn’t arrived yet, but thunder had. I like a good challenge, so went to get the next two packets in the pile. These were tomatoes. The seeds in these packets were also small. I never really looked at the seeds in tomatoes while I’m eating them, this was a wake up call. Small!

I started cursing at this point being the packet said to plant them 1/4-inch into the ground, the ground is not totally soil, it’s got a lot of lumpy rocks in it, and the seeds I could barely see. But, I did something along the lines of planting, as I poked a hole, plopped in a seed, and found some soil to pour over the indentation.

Just about then, the rains came. Woohoo! I didn’t have to water the newly planted seeds. And Raven got a good look at the first rain storm of the summer. She’s always at the front of the line.

After work, I decided to plant two more of the remaining four packets. Lettuce and zucchini were next in the line-up. The zucchini was a fine sized seed, but I about fell over when I opened the lettuce packet and tried to find the seeds. They pretty much are the size of flea dirt, but they’re white. I have no idea where the seeds are in a head of lettuce, but at this size, I won’t hold my breath, or maybe I should. A seed this size could easily go up one’s nostril with a mere inhalation.

I planted the zucchini back in this little spot.

Being I couldn’t see the microscopic lettuce seeds, I can only surmise that there are some in the dirt here.

Leissl and Ginger told me it was a job well done. Aren’t they the cutest smiley faces around?

Then Ginger said, “Play ball!”
So we did.

Helen

Ginger, Leissl, Raven, Trees and Plants

22

May

2008

Birthday Girls (7 and 11) at the Birthday Park

Helen

Baby and Leissl’s birthdays are one day apart. Today we three went to the birthday park for a cool Sunday walk around.

First we went to the big fruit field.

Well, this is no fun.

Time for a break on the bench for a picture with Dobermom and Baby, who will be eleven tomorrow.

Leissl is seven today.

Leissl sang to herself.

Then she sang to Baby.

When she finished singing and stood up, well, we found that nature has a purpose for everything – even birthday girls sitting down for a sing. Leissl walked around the rest of the Birthday park and deposited the seeds she had collected while singing her birthday tune.

We went to the black forest (schwarzwald) and Leissl’s ears have never looked like this before. I don’t know what she was listening to. But Baby’s got a little odd-shaped too. So we took a quick picture, and scrammed in case there were lions, tigers and bears hiding out!

We went to Iguana Lake next. Here, Baby showed her curly tongue talent as she talked to the Iguana nearby.

Here is the Iguana. Baby chased it into the lake.

Then she laid by the shore to be sure it didn’t come back. That’s Baby.

While Leissl and Baby took a moment…

…a hunk on a bicycle stopped to say he was a “Dobermann man” and wanted to know where he could get a Doberboy pup. I said, “R-E-S-C-U-E-Z … that’s how Dobies come to thee.” I sang. If Leissl can…so can I!

Then we were asked to leave. (OK, I was asked to leave.) We got a drink from our Thermos of water and jumped in.

Then we hit the road to go home.

Till next year, Birthday Park!

Happy Birthday, Leissl!

Helen

Today is Leissl’s 7th birthday!

Time for the magic!

Leissl’s favorite part…good eats.

Happy Birthday, Kissy Girl.

I smell like vinegar. How about you?

Helen

At lunch, I was making a big bottle of a concoction that always blows the lid off the gallon container I mix it in, if it has a chance. It’s my secret dog pee shampoo for the ground. Well, I guess it pretty much happened as the minutes ticked by and I was getting later on the leaving home part and going back to work part, so I did a quick turn of the bottle to mix it, and when I flipped it over and flipped the lid so it could breathe, MOG! That’s when Fort Doberdale had its first volcanic erruption. Would’ve been nice if it smelled better. Lots of foam. And vinegar fragrance. Yes, one of the secret ingredients IS vinegar. Uh huh. That is why I sit at my desk at work this afternoon smelling like a Ceasar salad. I’m trying to be a hermit.

On another front, last night Leissl the Wubba player…

…cut her paw and I do not know how. What I do know is when you have a few paws around, it’s not as easy as one would think to track the dog and paw that’s leaving bloody imprints all over the white tile floor. When I did, eeegads, it was ugly!

I cleaned the paw with peroxide, put some Qwik Stop on it, cotton and gauze. After that, I washed the blood off the floor. Later, I found more blood spots. Leissl’s bandage was leaking blood. Mon Dieu! This was some time around 11:30 on the p.m. dial. Bandage was blood soaked, so I had to remove it, and get out the liquid Qwik Stop. That stuff stinks. And so does blood. I don’t like the smell of either. I bandaged Leissl’s paw again, and this time, I put her in a crate so she would be still all night. Went to bed.

During the night, I heard what I now believe is a paw boomerang. This is when Leissl would hold onto the end of the bandage, pull her back paw away while clamping onto the bandage. When the pull outweighed the grasp, the paw would go flying against the side of the crate. Bang! This went on during the night, and by morning, the bandage was off – it was just sitting in her crate like a complete and whole cast. Yes, she pulled that off in one piece.

When I let her out in the morning, Leissl had her back leg in the air and her toes were contorted. Imagine my surprise! I’ve seen a lot, but this was special. Mind you, her back leg was shaking as if it was having spasms. I have about one hour to do everything I need to do in the morning, and I knew I was in trouble with this fine mess. So I hauled Leissl’s hiney inside, gave the paw a peroixed bath, pulled off the caked on Qwik Stop, (yuk!), and slathered some Neosporin in the paw crevices, wrapped lightly with gauze, put a sock on, wrapped top of sock with gauze (hot pink), and put a no bite on her. Then I fed her and the FDSP breakfast. She actually ate! That was a relief. Though I’m not sure if she did so in order to have amunition to poop out later in the day so I will have something to come home to.

At work, I called my vet’s office to be sure I’d have a slot to take Leissl in this afternoon should we need it. But when I went back home at lunch to see how my poopsie woopsie was doing, she was much much better and there were no gifts on the floor. She was standing on her socked paw, wiggling butt, so I took off the no-bite collar and let her be free. When I left, though, I re-collared her because I know her. She’d have taken the sock off by the time I got home, otherwise.

Let’s see what surprises await me when I get home tonight.

Helen