09.01.08
Forum Repairs and one wet dog.
For most of today Daniel got his wish (to do nothing), but a few minor problems that cropped up on the forum intervened. I took care of the things I could correct, but he pitched in and took over a few of the more time consuming problems. While all of the data transferred from the old forum, there were a few compatibility issues that required us to go in and correct manually. Overall though I am very pleased with the transition, and from what I can tell, the forum seems to be working well for everyone.
Late this morning I began to water the herb garden with the sprinkler attached to the pond pump. Chester was intrigued and began to lap at the water as it sprayed onto the tomatoes and herbs. An hour later when I moved the sprinkler to the lawn, Chester noticed the streams of water landing fifteen feet away and he went berserk, attacking the streams of water and chasing them. At first I found this funny, and I turned my attention to some weeding. Less than five minutes later I turned around to check on him and found our little white dog was gray and dripping clods of mud. He was having a good old time, but I had already cleaned his paws and legs from his activity in the herb garden. I used the garden hose to rinse him off and he decided that was a toy as well. I’m not sure how much he drank, but he was peeing all afternoon.
This evening before dinner, I performed a routine water change on the pond. The fish have learned that feeding time is just around the corner when the pond water level drops. In their anticipation, they begin to churn the water and jump and splash. Chester immediately picked up on this and decided to investigate. Why for the past three days this meant nothing to him I’ll never know. I called Daniel to come outside to watch as I anticipated the inevitable.
For a good ten minutes he hung over the edge of the settling chamber looking down at the fast moving goldfish. He was in kill mode, and he ignored my commands to come. He circled round and round the sides loosening the stones that adorn the water’s edge. I decided that if he falls or jumps in he would have to get himself out. Finally he couldn’t take it any more and he jumped in. When his little body hit the water he realized he couldn’t climb out because the water level was more than a foot below the rocks. It was one of the funniest things I’ve ever seen, and I literally fell out. I couldn’t stop laughing. He looked at the two of us with the most pitiful expression and after a minute or so, I decided to come to his rescue. No sooner had I pulled him out, then back he went, this time circling the pond. In less than a minute he was in the pond with the big koi, half swimming half walking on the bird control netting I have over the pond to keep the blue heron out. This continued for another ten minutes. Whenever he reached the rocks he would climb out, run around the pond and jump back in from another vantage point. No matter how I tried to anticipate his moves, I couldn’t catch him. He was having a grand old time. Finally he began to tire, and I was able to get ahold of him. After using two bath towels I had him dry enough to return to the house.
After dinner I took him out for his evening constitutional. The garden hose was still running to fill the pond, and Chester decided it was another opportunity to hone his hunting skills. He ran to the hose and began to bite at the stream of water. In a few seconds he realized the water was landing fifteen feet away on the surface of the pond, and he decided to give chase. He crouched down and sprung into the air intending to catch that water. I don’t know how I did it, but I caught him in mid flight three feet off the ground. Needless to say, he was disappointed. For the remainder of the evening, he went out into the yard on a leash. It’s just about bedtime, and he’s still a little damp so I’ll covered him with the down comforter. He’s fast asleep right now lying next to me on the sofa.
O.P.W.