Recent content by packleader

What purpose has life in retirement? After my wife had left early for work this morning, I had for breakfast porridge with 100% Cocoa; and then I went on the usual walk with my three Boxer pups. Afterwards, I rested for an hour as usual. In the late morning, it was time for checking news on TV...

My wife's roses are in full bloom. Bottom picture: near the top of the Palm Tree (in the center of the picture where the hole is with the blue sky) is a hawk's nest. When I don't have the camera handy, then I see the parents flying in and out. And when I hold the camera and am waiting, then...

The most beautiful dream escapes we ever had were in the South Pacific: 1996 to Tahiti and Morea; 1997 to Fiji and New Zealand; 2013 to Rarotonga Island and Aitutaki Atoll; and in 2016 to Tahiti and Bora Bora. It's 8 flying hours from Los Angeles to Tahiti, and another two to Bora Bora where we...

How to catch a rooster and lose a hen; or, the saga of a suburban micro farm Both my wife and I had our happiest childhoods on farms. So, when I heard three years ago that a large chicken farm gave away egg-laying hens for free, I told my wife about it. OK, we got four hens for free and paid...

Life is wonderful; enjoy it while you can. When I go on my morning walks with the pups, then I often contemplate about my life. This morning I remembered my college days when I literally banged my head against the wall and screamed, “I must, I must, I must.” I succeeded, and that gives me now a...

Taking my pups on walks

And our evening walk. We are fortunate to be surrounded by large undeveloped areas, starting just a few walking minutes away from our house. On the flipside though, we are zoned as a high fire danger area and that drives up the house insurance. Anyway, it feels like living in the boondocks...

Our delayed morning walk Ocean fog rolled in during the night, as it is quite common at this time of the year. At daybreak we had drizzle, and it was cool and uncomfortable outside. My big guy is now a senior and doesn't like go walking anymore unless the sun is shining. So, we waited till...

@hollydolly -- I get splinters all the time when working in the garden, building another doghouse with plywood, or from the wooden handle of a wheel barrow. This is how I take care of splinters, but not everyone may like the way I remove them. My nail clipper has a very sharp tip. It's...

@HoneyNut If you like to travel, then plan your next visit to Los Angeles/Santa Barbara/Catalina Island/San Diego, etc. Just tell me what you are interested in, and I'll send you a list of what you may want to see. Here are just 5 pictures as a teaser of what SoCal is all about. The SR-71...

My project for today. Cleaning the hummingbird feeder with apple cider vinegar, preparing the nectar (1 part sugar to 4 parts water) and then waiting till they come to drink (the center picture was taken earlier.) While I was waiting, I saw a hawk sitting in our Eucalyptus Tree (but also flying...

I love my pups, but sometimes they create a little bit of trouble. The covers of the dog beds are difficult to take off, wash, and to fit on again. So, I bought a bunch of mini blankets to cover the dog beds because they are much easier washed. The problem is that my pups curl them up and use...

Deleting the duplication, no idea how that happened.

I believe strongly in something that we cannot explain. That “unexplainable” has been transformed into several religions. I also believe that we are made of stardust, and will eventually become again stardust. Those two aspects are not necessarily contradictory. During the Middle Ages, the...

I always liked and still like to look at pretty girls in bikinis (top left pix: Newport Beach, SoCal, last January.) Even better, at the French Riviera many girls go topless (bottom 2 pixs) as I also have seen it at an over-water bungalow on Bora Bora (top right pix.) I am not ashamed to...