Looking Back at 2023...

No long look back at the year 2023 as it comes to a close...the few posts I have made thus far this year pretty much tells it ...

No major vacation for me and the wife this year, she spent about 2 weeks with her remaining family in SE Wisconsin this Summer, I took the oldest Grandson down to Space Camp in Alabama in July, then headed to Cedar Key, Florida, before the September Hurricane hit...got a bit of fishing in, some beer drinking, cigar smoking, and a larger part spent doing some Florida outdoor photography. I just couldn't see putting the old Schnauzer Mix Rescue Dog, Cam, in the kennel...he is now 16 and I won't mess with his life end times by sticking him in a kennel, while he can no longer see and is getting old...he eats fine and is aware so he is good to go for the duration.

No major Dual Sport Motorcycle adventure rides again this year, and my riding buddy Nick and I decided to sell the Yamaha TW200s, but after nobody seemed to want to travel to our area to look them over, we are likely to pull them off the market...Hell old or not, we can still ride, and probably will in 2024...



As I posted last week, I did make a somewhat crazy decision to buy another Airedale Terrier Pup...as of today "Millie" is 9 weeks and 2 days old and already 18 pounds and headed towards 70 plus likely...she is about 95% house trained, but still does chew with those puppy choppers...the entire family was here for Christmas Eve and the 2 older grandsons, 12 and 9 got some quality time with Millie...

Top Photo: Millie this morning, taking a nap and back in 2015 Me, Old Blue, Fred and Nick at Canyonlands outside of Moab, Utah...


What will 2024 bring?  

No Idea...as fucked up as that Demented Son of a Bitch is, who knows?  World War III, Martial Law, Civil War against the Leftist Bastards, I have little clue...hopefully the Bastards and his Marxist Administration will be the Hell out of office by January 2025, and the gawd damn borders will be closed. Perhaps we will get lucky and Jesus will return soon...but I think more pain and blood letting will happen before that comes about.

I plan on enjoying what time I have left on this Earth {turn 75 in March}...and sure the Hell don't worry about what may come personally...I worry for the younger family members and friend's kids and grandkids, but as for myself...?  F' It...I have lived on Hell of a life and if it ends tomorrow I'm good.

Top 9 year old Kam and Millie, and his older brother 12 year old Kasyn with the pup...

Back Later, probably 2024, if all goes well>>>

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Airedales {Again}

 

When our last Airedale, Reagan, passed away in 2012 just a couple months shy of 14, we decided no more dogs...  Well!

Along came 2 Schnauzer mixed, rescue pups, courtesy of youngest son and his wife, when the grandsons started coming...they stayed off and on with us for a few years, then after Avery died, we got Cam Dog back a few years ago...he is still with us at about 16 years old.  A kitten came calling about 12 years ago on Christmas Night, she has now been a house cat for those dozen or so years..5 more outdoor kittens were rescued and became Garage/Outdoor cats...2 of them still hang around.

About a month or so ago I got a burr and even though I will be 75 in March, and wife just turned 70, we are in good shape, mostly, despite my {?} Agent Orange related Diabetes II...so I started looking for Farm Bred, non show quality Airedales...yep, crazy I know, what was I thinking?

After looking awhile, and the prices sure have changed since we sold our last litter, back on the farm for around $200 per pup {we started out at $50 per dog up in Northern Wisconsin back in the late 1970s}.  Today's Airedales are fetching anywhere from $900 to $2750 or so, that I could find on the Internet.  I found a farm that raised Large Oorang Airedale pups for $1200 each....and they had a litter born on October 22nd, they would be ready around December 16th...located about 140 miles away near Ashland, Ohio.

I conversed with the couple, the husband's parents and brother had raised Airedales as well...and they were well versed in the non show Airedales.  I ended up putting down the $200 deposit on one of the 7 females in the litter of 10 and was told I had pick #5....that was OK, I know Airedales, wife knows Airedales, and I know most people, unless they have had multiple Airedales, really don't know how to select one, so I was fine with #5...

Last Saturday I headed to just outside the tiny berg of Mifflin in Ashland County...the day was

mostly sunny and nice for mid December and I arrived about a half hour ahead of my scheduled selection time of 11:30am...giving me a chance to check out the parents of my pup as well as the other stud dogs and bitches...including one huge Airedale that was in the 130 pound range.  My original stud dog, Max, was about 100 pounds but this one, name of Boone, makes Max look "average"...Big Dog.  Boone is not our pup's {who wife named "Millie"} dad, Beau is about 90 pounds while momma Jasmine is around 70-75...big Airedales, but reasonable, so Millie won't be to big for the house...unless I miss my guess...at 8 1/2 weeks she is about 14 pounds and growing daily.

Anyway Millie got home Saturday, here it is Wednesday, she is about 80% trained, still pees in the Mud Room, on occasion, by the door instead of letting me know she has to get out that back door...but for the most part she does here business outside and only chewing on things other than her "stuff" is the only other concern, but with less than 100 hours at our place, she is learning quick.

Hopefully she will survive and we will survive over the coming Christmas weekend, with the kids, and grandkids here...after that we should be able to concentrate on getting her trained properly...but after all these years of being sans Airedales, it will still be a challenge.

One other thing, old Cam Dog wants no part of her, he is about totally blind and just wants to eat, sleep, and for her to leave him alone...the indoor cat avoids her, and the outdoor cats despise her and her rambunctious ways of puppyhood...they warn her off, which they need to, because by spring she will be way to large for them to handle.