August, 2000:

January, 2000:

• Once again, we welcomed in the New Year with our neighbors and a few new friends we've made since moving to Henniker almost two years ago. It was the perfect way to celebrate the final year of the old millenium.
  (Yes, we're sticking with the scientists on the fact that the new millenium really starts on January 1, 2001.)
• I saw the most beautiful owl hunting our back field a few days ago. It wasn't around for very long, but I believe it was a Northern Hawk Owl based on its markings and behavior. Hopefully this was not a one-time occurrence.
• We've broken the 1956 record for the latest winter date (January 8) with no appreciable snow-fall. It finally snowed enough to barely cover the ground on the 15th. There's still not enough for snowmob's though and it's colder than heck. I didn't realize how smart I was when I taught Kisa (my dog) to pee on command... poor Tom is lucky if he can get Larkin (his dog... at least during the winter) to stop playing in the leaves long enough to get him back in the house.)
• I started swimming lessons. I think I found the right instructor this time because I'm actually making progress... at least my kick no longer propels me backwards. I'm finding it hard to believe I didn't learn how before now.

December, 1999:

• We're busy getting ready for the holidays as we're going to have a house-full of guests this year... 9 adults, 2 kids, 5 dogs and 2 cats. I'm looking forward to every minute of it.
  (Really, I am...)
• My husband has finally learned how to do Christmas shopping. We normally go through this routine where I mark the catalogs and he places the orders and pays for everything. This year he actually bought me something I didn't pick out myself. You should have seen how proud he was.
  (Oh, the gift? I'm probably dressed in one of my two absolutely favorite fabrics (denim and flannel) almost every day of the year... for Christmas he bought me a flannel-lined denim shirt. And to think I accused him of not paying attention...)
• Larkin has finally mastered the down command. Actually, I think it has finally occurred to him what the whole point of this training thing is.
  "Oh, I get it... you're asking me to do something and if I do it, you'll be really happy with me? Why didn't you say so in the first place?".
• I finished my third masters course... 9 more to go.

November, 1999:

• Our Australia trip was unbelievable... particularly since the SpoilSport crew decided it was time for me to go down under "down under". I ended up doing four dives with one or the other of the two DM's on board for two very memorable moments... one would be diving with sharks in open water and being outside the cage and the other would be my first dive where my instructor ran out of air. Personally, I think he was trying to figure out whether I would panic... but it gave us all something to laugh about on the boat.

October, 1999:

• We're frantically getting ready to go on vacation. This year takes us to Australia where we'll be spending a week diving on the SpoilSport and another 12 days visiting Townsville, Cairns, Ayers Rock, Alice Springs, Sydney and Melbourne. I should say my husband will be diving (I can't even swim) and I'll be soaking up the sun and catching up on my reading. With the trip just around the corner, there won't be much to report this month.

September, 1999:

• We're doing obedience again... round 2 for Kisa and beginner's classes for Larkin. I was very worried about Kisa moving into the more advance class, but once again she really surprised me. All of a sudden, she understands stay and is doing it in the midst of many distractions. I thought Larkin was going to be a breeze because of how quickly he responded to the sit command... that was before I realized sitting is just Larkin's favorite thing to do.
  ("Down? Not!!! Stay? No way!!! Come? Only if you have treats!!!")

August, 1999:

• Our second Leo Larkin arrive safe and sound. I wonder a hundred times a day whether we did the right thing getting them so close together. I always end up answering yes when I realize how lonely it would be at home all day without them. There won't be much to post this month... I'm way too busy with puppies.

July, 1999:

• The bear is a regular occurrence these days and definitely showing it's intelligence. I think it's a she because it's showing the cubs where to find free food.
  (Like my neighbor's really expensive bird feeders.)
• Kisa has been doing agility and obedience training. The first time we ran the agility course off leash, she was all over the place for the first four or five obstacles -- about a minute and a half to do a couple of jumps. Her favorite squeaky toy got her through the rest of the course in 15 seconds. Obedience is a different story.
  ("Down and stay? At the same time? When there are other dogs around I can play with? Do I get treats for all this nonsense?")
• The big snake is either gone or has been reincarnated into a thousand little ones. Kisa pees on one almost every time we take her outside.
• I'm almost done with my second graduate school course. Only ten more to go.
  (What was I thinking about?)
• They finally paved the road. But not before we totally trashed the suspension and alignment in both vehicles. It's really a shame because I think I almost had Tom convinced we need to buy a Hummer.
• One of our local bats finally made its way into the house a few nights ago and was flying out of control from one end of the house to the other. The dog's chasing it up and down the hall, I'm bellying across the floor because the bat is flying two feet off the ground, trying to catch the dog and maintain my sanity while Tom's yelling "Get the dog out of the way... I don't have a catcher's mitt... I need a catcher's mitt!!!" What a comedy... I finally cornered the dog and got her out of the room and Tom chased it out the door with a couple of baseball caps.
• Our bat experience isn't nearly as bad as another one we've heard. Apparently, there were millions of them living in the attic over the Town Hall... I think they said there was between one and two feet of bat guano on the floor. Anyway, they called someone in to get rid of the bats. They succeeded, but most of the bats moved into the attic of someone's house across the street.
  (I hope they have a catcher's mitt.)

June, 1999:

• The bear hasn't been seen for several weeks now.
  (That really does a lot for our peace of mind when we walk the dog.)
• There's a 4-foot-long yet-to-be identified snake in the field behind the house. We've narrowed it down to either a timber rattler or a milk snake.
  (So much for peace of mind.)
• We have a snapping turtle laying eggs in the back field.
  (We still love New Hampshire... perhaps we don't have minds to begin with.)

May, 1999:

• Everything is green and blooming and beautiful.
• Because of road construction, our dirt road is in better shape than the main road leading into our neighborhood; the highway department says they will not be paving until sometime this fall. If you're planning on visiting, we'd suggest renting a Hummer.
• The local bear is making nightly visits to our neighbor's house and completely trashing bird feeders, porch steps and anything else he can get his hands on. We don't give him too much thought until we're halfway down the road walking the dog. Of course, we normally walk the dog around 7:00 and the bear doesn't show up until at least 7:03.
• You can mow four fields in one day if you try really hard... and if you have a weekend guest from the city who thinks the tractor is just a big 4-wheel drive to play with.
• No mud in March and fewer black flies in April obviously means many more mosquitoes in May... we're starting to worry about being carried off in the middle of the night.
• Ten to fifteen 20-foot maple saplings will chip down to two bucketfuls of mulch.
• After all we've learned in the last 18 months, we still love New Hampshire.

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