Nearby Lake Siskiyou

Here are some winter shots of Lake Siskiyou, which offers great swimming in July! With the odd warm dry winter we're having, we've enjoyed going over to the lake just to sit on short beach chairs and put our faces in the sun. So far, only one real snowfall lets us know it's winter, but last year it was a St. Patrick's Day blizzard that buried us, so winter's far from over. How is it where you are?

Somethin' Fishy Around Here!

Our new baby, Cameron Clare. Blind Jack just loves her and licks her on the head, though he plays a little rough. This quiet tiny kitten from the shelter has turned into a wild waterdog who loves all water spots in the house & isn't into hugs. But she does give snuffly kisses in the night as she performs the ritual bedcheck. She was about four months old in this living room shot. Very cute! ANy new pets at your house?!

Kitchen Window Scene, Blizzard #1

Well, she waited until Jan. 19th and then she hit: a nice lttle snowstorm that slammed into the Northwest much more strongly than us. Supposed to keep up for a week! Time for a pot of beans and retreat to a warm spot--woodstove's working well! Hope it's cozy where you are!

Moon over Mt. Shasta

I took this picture with a Japanese alumni friend Jan. 7th. It was an eerie twilight moment, cold with a touch of fog. Come back, Fuji, and we'll take one with the new fallen snow!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

We are having one of the dryest and warmest winters on record, which is great for a snow-hater like me, but bad for the spring waters needed. No doubt we'll be seeing snow before long, but meanwhile, we're all enjoying temperatures in the 50's during the day.

Life's busy, with occasional guests coming through and a tasty crab feed this Saturday that Michael's band will play for. Hope the new year is good to you, too!!

Santa's Best Friend

Santa and Boris see eye to eye during our recent Santa Paws event. Boris Osborn has his own Facebook page and is about a year old. I just love both their expressions!

Merry Thanksgiving to All!

This is actually from last year when we were hiking to a high mountain lake with our new Belgian friends. Some of us take our fiddle everywhere! We are grateful for all the old and new friends we have, and hope they'll come to Mt. Shasta befoe long. Happy Turkey/Tofu Day!!

And the band played on...from benefits to the holiday season

Evelyn Horner and the Front Porch Swing band get ready for the season! Thanks for being the headliner of our recent benefit for the animal shelter!

Winter Comes Around Again

November 12 we had a great fundraising event for the Siskiyou Humane Society. Everyone pitched in with desserts to auction, drawing prizes, and a fun warm evening with singalongs and laughter. Can hardly wait for next year!

Here's a few shots (after a few tries--the new blog in-structions/formats aren't easy...)

Where do the months go when you're.....

...summer and autumn 2011 went peacefully around here, although we were deeply struck by the loss of three people very dear to us. Dad was buried and we learned that Kaimi and Leticia passed on as well. Sadness all around. Yet the summertime was glorious and extended way past Indian Summer days.

Kitten season hit early and hasn't let up yet. Dapple here is a character cat. They're all amazing. I help mainly in the infirmary with the babies and the sick ones. Someday we'll have more room!

Summer Sights

Here we have the baby boy Ambrose, guest kitty from the shelter, and some shots up the north fork of the Sacramento River, above our Lake Siskiyou. The prickly red berries were teensy little things, too, and I'd never seen them before--almost like mini-rambutans!

Summer 2011

More fiddle camping & visitors to Mt. Shasta, some climbing up up up!

Diamond Lake fiddle camp

What you can't see are the ten billion mosquitos there, but we made the best of it...

This unusual orange female tabby is up for adoption--isn't she lovely? She's at the Siskiyou Humane Society Adoption Center in Mt. Shasta, CA.

Can you hear the loud roaring of the creek in Lithia Park, Ashland, OR?

And here's one of my yellow squash blossoms (which was supposed to print large in the middle of the page....sigh)...

Goodbye, July!!

Here's Heidi and sister Kathi, circa 1954-55, on our front yard in Camas, WA, right near the Columbia River. Numerous cats shared the household as well. About six years later, only my St. Bernard and I were left to migrate to California...

It's KITTEN SEASON!

Kate and Alyssa took these pictures--aren't they cute? We have many more!

HAPPY SUMMERTIME!

About the only excuse I have for not posting here is the many more comments I receive for my Facebook page! Maybe the commenting part of this blog deters folks, but I'd sure like to hear a bit from all those red dots all over the globe that show quite a few people have dropped by!?

Meanwhile, our winter has slowly turned to summer (no spring to speak of, ever, around the Mt. Shasta, CA region) and we've finally moved outdoors. So here is a potpourri of pictures from April, 2011 to now, just after the 4th. Enjoy, and drop a note, por favor!

Have Vehicle, Will Travel

I don't think I've mentioned that we have a 1966 Gillig school bus, 35 feet. We've partially converted her, but now we need something much smaller that I can also drive when we escape the snow for a few months each winter. Maybe a trade out there!? It's been a grand old bus which has been great to take to some of our high mountain lakes around Siskiyou county. Bus camping is inexpensive, and fun!

Winter Friends

Animals are amazing!

Siskiyou County Times

Autumn and early winter have been kind to us overall, this cycle. And predictably, we get smacked with snow mid-March. Here are a few scenes from our fun swim class, and the amazing life at the shelter. Black and white Nellie wants so much to be adopted, she asked that her picture be included twice... ;)