The Heavens Declare....

"God's glory is on tour in the skies, God-craft on exhibit across the horizon."
Psalm 19: 1 The Message

Here is the view out of my office window this morning. My inadequate photography skills and simple camera don't capture the majesty, but you get the idea. What an incredible and blessed start to this day!

Best Friends - Morning of Day Two

Hmmmm.........

Best Friends - Day One

(Click on photo to enlarge.) Today was our first day at Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in Kanab, Utah and a meaningful day it was! The ranch is everything we expected it to be. The facility itself is outstanding. The dedicated staff is excellent! This place is an authentic sanctuary for all of these animals. It is the largest "no kill" sanctuary in the United States.

Our day was spent in orientation ensuring we understood the rules and boundaries for our behaviors. For good reason there is more concern about us than there is with the animals! We started our day with puppy socialization. Before Best Friends started this training 35% of adopted puppies were returned to the ranch. Now, they have had only one puppy returned in over three years! Wow! Next Joyce and I swept dog runs for a few hours. Next was more socialization time with a select group of dogs. Following lunch we participated in a training seminar.

We then picked a canine guest for a sleep over tonight! It appears to be working! Say Hello to a wonderful lab mix they named Synergy. Sounds like a "new age" metaphysical name don't you think. Should we decide to keep her, her name will instantly be changed to Faith or Hope. Why? She is ten years old and has been at Best Friends eight of those years without being adopted. That is both Faith and Hope! She is very sweet, well-mannered, and smart. We'll see what tomorrow brings.....

Best Burgers - And Rings!

A block and a half from our one star hotel was this dive called Hodad's! This funky place is celebrating its 40th anniversary and continues to serve amazing, burgers, rings, and shakes! At 1:30 PM, the line to get in extended a full city block. Nobody was complaining. They all understood this was the price of entry. I ordered a double meat and cheese burger. Should have stayed with a single. Such sweet misery!

International Model A Day

Joyce wanted to take a long walk on Harbor Island Drive this morning. It was a rare break and opportunity for us so we made the most of it. It was a beautiful morning and a great time to walk, talk, and take in the beautiful water and sights. All of a sudden I noticed a parade of restored Model A Fords passing us. There were over 50 of these beauties headed for the parking lot at the end of Harbor Drive. The whole group parked and took group photos of the owners and cars. What great fun to be in the right place at the right time. They were honking their oooga horns and strutting their stuff. They were mechanically and cosmetically perfect. What a hoot!

The One Star Hotel

You have heard of five star hotels, but have you ever chosen to stay in a one star hotel. As we planned this trip to San Diego we decided to find an inexpensive place on the beach. It is one of those times when things look great on the website but weren't quite the same when we signed in! When we checked in and opened the door to our room it had not been cleaned. Thankfully no one was still in the room! The night manager was very nice, and gave us an "upgraded room" for the same low price. The upgrade was that we had a sliding door onto the main street of Ocean Beach. The space was tight, smelled musty, and the water was like we treat in developing countries. The noise from the street was loud. Should we stay or look for another place? We crashed for the night and decided to see how we felt in the morning.

The next morning the whole place begin to grow on us. The early morning surfers, the people of the street, the unique junk shops and the local crowd became our friends. We didn't fit with our age and non-surfing clothes, but no matter. Two days later we have become friends with the locals, have experienced great local food, and have a new love for the beach. While we didn't know we picked a one star hotel, we wouldn't hesitate to stay here again. Friday night and all day Saturday were worth the price of admission. What a hoot! We love this one star place!

First Snow

Here it is Monday, September 21, 2009, and the leaves on the Aspen trees are just starting to turn their brilliant gold. Mother Nature has her ways of helping them along. As I pulled into my parking space early this morning, a herd of over twenty Elk were bugling nearby. It is this sweet but eerie sound like nothing else in the world. Shortly thereafter, the snow started to fall and is still falling lightly. Winter has announced its emminent arrival and has blessed us with an appetizer. Temperatures will be back in the high 70's and low 80's by Thursday, but Winter has let us know it is on its way.