Thank you for listening

I found out tonight that you have the cancer. You are still a happy girl according to your capable caretaker, but you are weak, and the nausea and diarrhea has taken 20lbs away from your once strong frame. The vet says that three months would be a long time for you, and that the best thing to do is to make you comfortable, let you eat anything you want and give your ears extra rubs.

You were the first dog I ever loved, and when I realized that fact, and how much space you took up in my heart, I was so overjoyed it. I had made space for you, and that meant I was getting better, becoming well again. Proof that I was becoming less selfish.

When I first met you, I was quite annoyed at you. I was on a date, and you stood on the console between myself and the driver, looking at her. Not looking at me. It was obvious that I was being snubbed.

It took a year or two, but one day I realized that you were my dog. Or more accurately, you picked me to lead. Oh, you loved Summer (your best love) fiercely, and scrambled around when she came home and looked to her when I was busy, but you followed me everywhere.

You play a shitty game of fetch, but you were a mighty squirreler.You became a mind reader for bacon and streak, and could eat a shelf worth of books in an evening. I never though a dog could go through a pound of sugar and a case of cliff bars, soap and candy in an evening, and use the garbage a nightcap,

I admired your genius at enjoying life and its comforts. Early morning potty breaks that lasted 2 hours, and included a swim in the creek and a roll in rotten salmon.

I would crawl back to bed, and you would start at one side of the bed,rubbing you body around the edge, from my pillow down to the foot and around the corner to the head on the other side, turning and repeating until the comforter was in a pile on the floor. You had taken almost all the wet and mud off your legs, side and belly and you would look at us, sitting up, shivering and confused.

Then you would bark.

Things fell apart though at the farm though. Your people made choices and changes. You were left out in the decision making. I am sure your solutions would have been more logical than ours were. “Lets walk it out!!” “Lets play in the creek instead!!” “Why are you fighting when there is PERFECTLY GOOD steak in the pan?”

I left, moved to a place far away, and my visits shortened.

When I moved my things on that last trip you were very anxious. You would not part more than a foot from me.

You tried to get into the truck, even though it was unfamiliar to you, because you knew I was leaving in it.

The next time I saw you was a couple months later, I think. I saw your best love in the parking lot and walked over to see you two. You saw me ran up, sniffed me and then walked away, climbing into the back of your best loves car, peering out. She laughed and said “I think she is angry at you.” I sat next to you,but you moved over, and rolled up, pushing your head as far away from me as you could.

“I think she is saying ‘fuck you’ to you”

“Yes.” I said.

The next time I saw you, I was working hard between shifts or something and asked if I could sleep at the farm for an hour, and you came home. You must have smelled me because you ran straight in and BURST through the door and jumped up on the bed just frantic, like it was old times, like it was all solved and everything was in it right place. After a minute you cooled off, like “Oh.. shit, that was embarrassing, I am mad at him you know.”

I asked if I could see you again. To say goodbye and slip you a treat or two. I think it will work out. Your best love and I still have to figure our people problems out, but I am sure I will get a chance to say “Thank you” to you.

Sobbing right now.

My favorite picture of you is this one. Sitting next the the creek, just enjoying the day with me. I think it was the day I was pulling the fence out of the creek to help with the salmon run. Remember that you flushed that massive Chinook at me, like a cannon ball of endangered species and you came crashing after barking at me like I was an idiot for not grabbing it.

I am pretty sure that dogs end up in the big park in the sky, with the chew toy that never quite gives up the squeaky box in it chest, a clear creek, tall grass and rabbits and fish and goats and deer for days and days and days.

I took a friend out for his first time on the fly. He is new in the area, and wanted a scenic drive, so we swung past Chinook Bend on the way up to the Middle Fork. The flows were at 4500 when I left at 7am and while the big gravel bar was accessible, the water was fast and dark.

Note to self; Bring a machete next time, or let someone else lead. I am pretty sure that either those were noxious weeds that we were prancing through, or perhaps I now have robotic scabies.
We dropped by Fall City to see what the water looked like. Looked much more fishable, but still dark.
There was a gentleman, who was trying to fish using a style I was unfamiliar with. Using a spincasting outfit, he would launch the paylod 30 feet straight up and about 15 feet out. Was he trying to bonk the fish on the head? Distract them while someone sneaks up from behind?

While walking back to the car he started yelling and screaming. We were out of range for a visual, but I think he caught either a neckfish or landed his tackle on top of his head.

Middle Fork Road is a really nice drive in the morning. Lots of sunlight peeking through. The road was in really bad shape in march after/during the winter/spring thaw, but had been sanded and graded very recently. Better surface to drive on than the road I live on.

We headed out to the main bend about a half mile before the bridge. I wanted my friend to have some space to show him how to cast poorly. Above the falls the flows were just under 1900. By the time I was home they were at 1600.

The river was running full and chalky and green. Fast too.
There is a pool left of the run, and there were fish jumping everywhere. I am still very new in my insect identification, but I will describe what I saw. The flies seemed to have a lighter colored wing and a copper body. I grabbed one off the surface, only to find that the case was empty and that the fly had gotten away. It was soft, not like the barrels of sand that you find with a caddis. The shucked case was orange or copper. I changed from a Parachute Adams to some gifted fly with a copper colored body with white wings. Two casts and a bump. Two more casts and a little 10″ beauty. Two more bumps, and the fish seems to back off the pool.

We talked for a bit about the hatch, me knowing little, trying to educate one who knows less. I caught another bug, hoping for a good look at what the fish were locking on to and it seemed to be a different bug, same size, same wing white/grey wings, but a straighter body, this time a grey/green body. No more bumps, blood sugar dropping, my friend needed a place with TP.

BWO? Caddis? Will there ever be a bikini hatch of 17-18 emergers or is that just for other people?

Verified. Mayfly hatch, followed by a Caddis hatch.

The below pics are from a trip to Icicle Crick. 1 8″ trout. Threw it back, gently of course. Sure did wiggle.

Things get different, don’t they?

There is a long story and a short story to everything. I think today is short story time. The lady and I are no longer, and thus, my tenure at the farm is over. No more coyotes in the back pasture, no more cows eating the apples, no more salmon spawning in the creek, no more Abberdoodle.

I was going to write “No more Aberdoodle killing moles.” or “.. disappearing for 3 hours while hunting whatever” but the fact is this: Very little Poodle in my life. I swung by to get the almost-to-the-last of my stuff and Abby ignored me. I started loading out things and she followed me out, but stayed put until my car door was open and hopped up.

I told her to get down, but she just stared at me, and curled up and laid down, head buried and facing the other way.

We drove on a flat tire to the gas station, aired up enough to go to the Tire store, and took my dearest to whole foods, where we ate pizza and apples. She loves apples. We then had coffee and sat in the sun where she took to task a chew toy. We drove home and I dropped her off.

 

 Underworld - Dirty Epic: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download

Here is what I have been listening to. Underworld’s “Dirty Epic”. Good moody tune to sing along with.  This is about half of the song. Easy to buy if you want the rest.

“Sweet in winter sweet in rain
shake well before use she said,
You never touch me anymore this way”

This is a very cool idea. Take your old, crotch numbing and “this little piggy got hypothermia” inflicting wet protecters and send them to Recycled Waders. They will take them, and for a fee, will turn them into a messenger bag, a wallet or a banana hammock bikini string brief. I wonder if they can make me panniers for my bike?