Mail update

Hey, what's up, dogs?  I know, I know...I've been gone for a while.  I've finally surfaced because I noticed a stack of mail piling up, which my secretary has been too busy to post about.  Bad!  Bad human!  No treats for you!

Ahem.  Anyway...here's the mail we've received in the last month or two...

This one's from Sandy Bear and Cocoa.  They sent it shortly before Sandy left to visit Jerry and Ben!

The back of the card states this is a painting called "The Horse,"  displayed in the Museum of Modern Art in New York, and painted by Alexander Calder.  Hmmm.  I guess I can see it...can you?

Next up, another artistic postcard--this one from Jerry and Ben.  They went to the Minneapolis Institute of Art.  All this art is making me want to visit my own local museums.  Thanks, J & B!  

And last, but not least, we have a postcard from Little Fox, who apparently is vacationing in Alaska's Denali National Park!  Wow!  That's the ultimate outdoor destination.  Stay safe and take lots of pictures, L.F.!

Thanks for all the cool mail, guys.  I'm lucky to have such great pen pals!  Hope everyone is staying healthy and safe...

Easter update, and tiptoeing through the not-tulips

 Hey, what's up, dogs?  Last weekend was Easter, and our pal Sandy Bear sent us a card to remind us of the occasion.  Look at this adorable little fawn on the front cover.  

You know, I haven't watched the Bambi movie in a long, long time.  I have the urge to watch it now.  A Meat Lover's pizza does sound like a good alternative to chocolate...I'll get my human on that right away.  Thanks, Sandy!

On the same weekend, my human and I took a field trip to track down the Texas state flower, the bluebonnet.  Sometimes you can see a few here or there along the side of the highway, but if you're willing to take a longer drive, you can find places like this...

Wow.  I mean....just WOW.  It's like a wall-to-wall carpet of flowers!

A dog could get lost in a field like this.

The blue flowers are, obviously, the bluebonnets.  There are red Indian paintbrushes as well.  Occasionally you'll see a soft pink flower mixed in...those are the Texas primroses, and they're much more common.  There are a couple of primroses at the bottom left of the photo below...

Oh, hey, look at this.  This bluebonnet's a little different.  It's...well...not blue!  It's an albino bluebonnet.  This happens sometimes, when a mutant gene stops producing color.    

"And apparently another mutation can also make them pink!" someone sang out, right behind me. 

Really?  Wow, I didn't know that.  Good information, thanks!  

--Who said that, anyway?....

...It's Ajdin.  Of course it's Ajdin.  I really shouldn't be surprised anymore...he seems to show up wherever we go.

Anyway, hope you guys had a great Easter holiday and enjoyed my bluebonnet adventure.  Until next time, remember...wag to the right!

  

Birthday mail!

 Hey, what's up, dogs?  More mail!  My human admits to being jealous of the amount of mail I get.  I'm lucky to have so many friends sending me stuff. 

Anyway...today it's from Sandy.   Look at all the adorable dog stickers!  The one on the bottom right bears an uncanny resemblance to Patch, don't you think?  

And inside...it's a birthday wish!  Thanks, Sandy!  

We also received an animated birthday e-card from Little Fox!  Unfortunately, my human is not smart enough to figure out how to post a picture of it here on the blog.  (That's definitely going to hurt her annual performance evaluation.)  Thank you just the same, L.F.!

Belated St. Patrick's Day greeting

Hey, what's up, dogs?  I'm here with another mail call today.  This time it's from Sandy Bear, who sent us a St. Patrick's Day greeting last week.  I can tell it's Sandy because of the custom postage stamp...and I can tell it's St. Patrick's Day-related because of all the shamrocks...

Oh, look!  It's a dog card!  Super cute. 

Sandy asks if I had any green bacon to celebrate the holiday.  Unfortunately not.  Perhaps I should ask my human to prepare some green eggs and ham.  I've read about that somewhere...if only I could remember where...

Hope everybody had a great St. Paddy's Day!

Happy Valentine's Day!

 Hey, what's up, dogs?  Today is February 14th, and that means...

It's Valentine's Day!  We got a letter in the mail a few days ago, and judging from the illustration on the envelope, I'm pretty sure I know who it's from...

...Yep, I was right.  This card comes from Jerry and Ben.  Thanks, and Happy V-Day to you too, fellas!

And, of course, Happy Valentine's Day to all of you out there, as well.  I WOOF you very much!

Hope you have a great day!

Season's greetings!

Hey, what's up, dogs?  Got some mail recently from my blog pals.  First up is Little Fox, who is officially my first stuffie friend to ring in the holiday season with this custom-made card:

And on the back, he asks a question:  "Do you know where I'm at in this pic?"

Why, yes...yes I do.  It looks like Joshua Tree National Park, which was quite a hit with the stuffie crowd this season.  Little Fox went there first, and I drove through it later in the year...and while I was there, I happened to run into Ajdin.  Thanks for the card, L.F.!

And speaking of Ajdin, here's our bear buddy's holiday card.  Looks like surf's up for Santa!  Hope he didn't forget the sunscreen...

Thanks, Ajdin!  Hope everyone is staying safe and healthy leading up to the holidays.

Prize!

 Hey, what's up, dogs?  Jerry and Ben sent me a prize  from their Halloween costume contest this year!  How exciting!

It's a Starbucks card!  Nice.  I'll have to avoid the  chocolatey and caffeinated treats, but I'm sure my human can find something tasty for me.  Thanks J & B!  

Happy Belated Halloween!....and some delayed correspondence...

 Hey, what's up, dogs?  Good to see all of you again...it's been a while!  I realized I neglected to post about my Halloween costume a few days ago, so here it is...

And from another angle...

I'm dressed as the main character from one of my human's favorite Disney animated movies.  Hope everyone is having an "oo-de-lally!" kind of day!

I also want to mention a couple of mailings I got since my last post.  Jerry and Ben sent me a postcard in July (yes, I know, JULY, and here we are in NOVEMBER.  Blame my secretary) telling me about their trip to Isle Royale National Park.  Despite the picture on the postcard, they did not see any moose.

Hey, I have a question...if the plural of goose is "geese," shouldn't the plural of moose be "meese"?  Just wondering...Thanks for the postcard, guys.

More recently, I got a card from Sandy, giving me an update on his recent adventures.  Lots of pretty floral stickers here, which he got from his Gramma.  Also note the signature Sandy postage stamp.  Good stuff!

Thanks, Sandy!  Tell your Gramma she has excellent taste in stickers.

Well, that's all for now.  What did you guys dress up as for Halloween?...

Bacon in the mail!

Hey, what's up, dogs?  I got a special package from Ajdin a couple of weeks ago.  It's a bacon sticker!  Nice.  I think I'll frame it and hang it where I can stare at my favorite thing all day.

I also got a postcard from our pal Little Fox.  It's from Lombard Street, California.  My human has been to this street...it's a VERY steep and winding road down one of San Francisco's many hills.  I guess this means L.F. visited San Fran recently?  

In any case, he thanks us for the postcard we sent him from our Arizona/California trip.  You're very welcome, L.F.  Thanks for your postcard too!

Happy Independence Day to our pals in the U.S.!

 

Postcard from Devil's Tower...

 Hey, what's up, dogs?  Catching up with some correspondence...I received this postcard from Jerry and Ben last month, but didn't get around to posting it till now.  

I have never been to the Black Hills or Devil's Tower...time to visit Wikipedia!

Hmmm...looks like our intrepid bear friends must have been in South Dakota and Wyoming.  Gotta love those wide open spaces!

Thanks for the postcard, you guys!

Dog in the Desert, Part 4

Hey, what's up, dogs?  I am back with the last part of my series on my Arizona/California trip.  

After escaping from Death Valley, my human and I made our way to Joshua Tree National Park.  This is a very popular destination for stuffies recently...Little Fox took a trip there earlier this year, and Ajdin just posted about Joshua Tree in his last blog entry.  I wonder if we'll run into anybody we know?...

 This formation is called Skull Rock.  Looks like we're following in Ajdin's footsteps...I think it looks more like a skull from far away.  What do you think?

The Joshua trees in the park remind me of cacti in some ways, especially because of the long spiny leaves.  According to the Internet, local native people used to use the spines to weave sandals and baskets!  I imagine they had to use extreme caution. 

Below is the biggest Joshua tree we could find on our drive through the park.  

Anyway, this has all been very interesting, but the big question I have is this:  Who is/was Joshua, and why did they name the trees after him?...  

All right, on to our last stop.  We're driving on to....drumroll please...the port of SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA!  

Our mission:  to visit the USS Midway Museum.  Near the ship, we saw a memorial to Bob Hope, the legendary entertainer who took his variety show on the road to lift the spirits of American soldiers overseas. 

Thanks for the memories, Bob.

Aha...here we are.  The USS Midway Museum!  It's huge.  Well, of course...it's a converted aircraft carrier.

Welcome aboard!

There are a lot of exhibits here showing how the crewmen lived from day to day.  

The living quarters are pretty tight on a ship!

Here are the giant chains that raise and lower the  Midway's anchor.  Apparently, taking care of them was one of the most dangerous jobs on board, and so the lowest crewmen on the totem pole would be found here.

Here's an interesting display.  Traditionally, sailors throughout history had to know how to tie all different kinds of knots.

There are also a lot of planes and helicopters on board.  Some of them are inside the ship, but some of them are up on deck.  

And some of them were flown by famous people!  

For example, we found this plane, once flown by the late John Glenn, who later became an astronaut.

And here's a plane once flown by the late former U.S. President, George H.W. Bush.  You can see he dedicated it to his wife, Barbara.

Well, I think we've seen the most interesting stuff.  I wonder what this guy is pointing to?...

Oh, he's pointing us in the direction of DINNER.  Yes.  A very important stop.  Can't skip that.

Thanks for coming with me on my whirlwind tour of Arizona and California!  Hope to have more adventures to share with you soon...