Saturday, July 28, 2012

The Last Duck Lunch

I'm not sure why I've put off sharing this duck video for so long. Maybe it was my fear of becoming a "duck blogger" or just my reluctance to admit I'm a serious duck lover. Or maybe it was withdrawals. I don't miss their mess and feeling like I need to supervise Mabel but... I do miss them! This was our last lunch... 7/03/12.

 

On a funny side note... over on YouTube they have an automatic transcription service. Click that button and read along... it's hilarious what it gets wrong and even more amazing what it get's right! Cad = Quack; I'm I'm seat a = Mamasita...You'll enjoy!

I'm certain Mallory still does flyovers and checks in. At first, I thought I must be hallucinating upon hearing an odd quack in the middle of the afternoon. But one day, I was working in the shop and Mabel was snoopervising. I know she heard it too!

It would appear, this relationship is only just getting started...

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Digger Dawg

He digs and he digs...


Is he going to China???


Mabel "snoopervises"....


Yeah, he eats dirt too!

Tuesday, July 17, 2012

Not My Duck

OMD! Mabel Lou is right... this HAS become a dang duck blog!

Yesterday, the bestie and I went out to Westlake to visit her mother-in-law on the island. I noticed some large Canadian honkers were fleeing the canal behind grandma's house, crossing the road through a  vacant lot to get to the other part of the lake. And then I saw her... a mamma mallard was also coming out of the water and climbing the hill to the road.

It seems there was a large motor-barge skimming the lake. Normally only electric vehicles are allowed on the lake - but work boats are the exception. The loud motor was scaring the birds.  The mallard came close to me. I kept telling her it would all be fine; that she was safe. Just then a neighbor across the street opened his door to get his mail and his dog started barking. The mallard freaked! Again, I told her she would be fine, that the dog could not get her.

Just as she calmed again, the barge started to our side of the canal.  I told her she should go back to where she was fishing. "Come, let's go this way." And she followed me!

At that point, Grandma emerged with several slices of bread and the duck was no longer afraid of the barge!  Grandma tossed the duck a few morsels and went and got on her boat to feed a mother swan and her three HUGE babies.

I took a piece of bread and this is what happened next.




Don't tell Mallory, OK???

Sunday, July 08, 2012

Louisiana in March

I've mentioned before how long it takes me to clean out my camera phone... Well, these azalea pics were taken in my mother's driveway in late March. That would be two trips ago!


That trip was such an emotional roller coaster. They had told us to go plan my sister's funeral. We did and, as if on cue, she woke up from that coma, sat up in bed and started talking nonstop!


For those of you unfamiliar with azaleas, they are really beautiful...for about five minutes! The flowers are thin and fragile and as soon as it rains, they are gone. The rest of the year, they are these large, gray-green, fuzzy bushes, living just for a fleeting bit of glory!



I think that when I took these, I was looking for a little beauty in a world so bleak and...the glass head inside me was wishing someone made glass in that color pink!

Saturday, July 07, 2012

Digging for Treasure

Our Aussie friend Atila or 'tila boy has a remarkable prey drive. This differs from Mabel's prey drive in that hers is about the chase whereas 'tila is looking for a meal! (Ewww!) 'tila discovered there were rats living in a trash pile at the creek and managed to convince his human to actually hike with a shovel to help him discover more rats! Some of the pack rats actually line their homes with cactus splinters so that shovel comes in handy! 'tila dives in and points and his human digs.

Sometimes, Bart "helps."
 And what does our heroine do while all this digging is going on??? Why, she snoopervises, of course!


About the only good thing about the Rangers taking over our beloved trails is... they cleaned up all the trash!



Friday, July 06, 2012

Viscious Black & White Kitty

I've spent a lot of time on my own blog lately... rereading this post.

Yes, Mabel has been playing with the nasty black and white kitteh at the creek! Actually BART has! Riddle me this: How does Bart sees skunk + Bart chases skunk + Bart barks at skunk = Mabel gets sprayed????

I heard his strange barking as the dogs has run on ahead to a favorite swimming hole. I called them both as I ran toward the entrance where I found Mabel running back to Momma! She was kinda freaked. I phoned Bart's Mom as we walked back. We were a good 75 yards down stream from the incident when suddenly there's the skunk again, tail UP!

I leashed up Mabel and had the hardest time with Bart... he wanted no part of the skunk but he knew he didn't want to be near Mabel!  After a gag inducing drive home, I knew the drill. But not the proportions! Thank goodness I wrote the recipe down.

One soaking of the baking soda / peroxide / Dawn +
rinse+
One thorough soaking of Skin So Soft and another soaking of the baking soda+
rinse+
One Hairy Beast shampoo+
rinse

and she's "almost" skunk free!  There is a faint hint of it and I'm sure there will be for a month or so.

My poor baby!

Monday, July 02, 2012

This Sucks!

Mabel Lou here. It seems my mom has turned this into a stupid duck blog! Mallory Shamallory! She needs to be writing some more posts about ME! And if that's not bad enough, just look at what happens to ME when she goes to feed the ducks:

Yeah, THIS SUCKS! Momma won't let me go in cause there's now leash laws even though nobody is there AND Momma thinks I'M gonna scare Mallory and those viscous dinosaur descendants of hers! AS IF!

We see a momma duck with SEVEN babies on our new hiking trail and I don't bother them at all. Not me! I keep a VERY respectful distance!! Momma ducks are MEAN and I myself have witnessed  those nasty little duckings attack little birds in our own pool!  This rottweiler mix is no match for ducks!

Momma tells me we are "almost" done with ducks... whatever that means... I just hope she means it!

Sunday, July 01, 2012

Coyote in the Duck Pond!

The other day, as I popped in to feed the ducks, I startled this guy heading into the duck pond!

I gave chase to make certain he was scared off before calling the ducks.  They all came but several would remain in the water while others ate... each taking a turn. The whole flock seemed very nervous the whole time and I stayed there keeping watch until they all had their fill.

Now that I have ducks I love... I'm so glad our state, California banned foie gras!!