Bravo wins big, (and other deep thoughts...)

Friday I skipped out of work early and hit the road.  Bravo was riding shotgun.  We headed north, on some scenic back roads, until we hit 95, then we drove, and drove, and drove some more. Soon there were no towns, just numbers. We were deep in what Mainers call, "the county." I listened to a book on Audible, and it was terrific, making the miles fly by.

 Finally we arrived in Presque Isle, a sweet little college town. We'd been there before, last spring, for a similar event. Dog training in a discipline called "Wag It Games."  Bravo and I have been training in Games since he was a young pup,we both think it's a lot of fun. This time he was 6 months older, and it really showed.  He was calm, confident, and paid good attention to me as we trained, and later as we trialed.  The proof, as they say, was in the pudding.

It went like this, both Saturday and Sunday mornings we had fun lessons and trained.After a friendly lunch, there were trials to see how much the dogs knew about the things we had worked on.  The top picture is from Saturday, when Bravo won some very nice ribbons.  The second picture was on Sunday, when he got a whole new slew of ribbons and his first "title" ribbon, which he found to be quite tasty. He was such a good boy, all weekend long, and we both had a really good time.

The weather took a nasty turn Monday morning, with hurricane force winds. I drove home white knuckled all the way.  Bravo, however, felt fully confident in my abilities, and snoozed happily the entire trip. There were many trees down along the roadsides,and huge gusts of wind buffeted and bluffeted my little truck.  Over 500,000 homes in Maine were without power. Including ours.

The weather was unseasonably warm, which was good. Except for the fact that I have several big freezers filled with locally raised pork, beef, and home raised chickens.  I went to bed last night fretting and worrying about things thawing. All day today there was no power. I could not work.  I cleaned the kitchen, and the bathroom, and the the front and living rooms. I cleaned the wood stove, swept the floors.

Rachel had brought me a special book to read.  When I was a child I adored the Little House series of books, written by Laura Ingalls Wilder.  I still have the collection, and re-read them from time to time.  Rachel had found a book called Caroline, Little House, Revisited. Based in the 1870's, it takes the story of the famous family into account from the mothers point of view. She
was a very young  woman, pregnant, with two little girls. She and her husband packed everything they could fit into a wagon and headed west, pioneers, in search of a dream.  I paused between cleaning chores, (with no running water and no electricity) and snuggled on the sofa, reading Caroline's story.  My brief period of not having electricity paled in comparison to her life, and put the little pause in my regular routine nicely into perspective.

The house feels different when there is no electricity. Even during the day, with the light steaming in, things are oddly quiet. There is no hum from the refrigerator and freezers. No sound of water rushing through the pipes as the washing machine or dishwasher spin and churn.  No music from the stereo, no whir of the fan of the computer.If I wake in the night, there is no glowing face of the electric clock, no familiar swish of  the window fan. And since we have well water, there is no flushing the commode. I missed that most of all.
The dogs notice the quiet, too. They seem a little subdued.

I grilled bratwurst outside at dusk, and kept it warm on the wood stove. And then, in a whoosh, the lights were on.  Magic, really.  What would Caroline Ingalls have thought of all the conveniences I enjoy?  I try hard not to take them for granted, always, but especially so after doing without for 30 hours or more.

So tonight, I am grateful for a lovely weekend away with my smart puppy, (such NICE people there!)
 safe travels, great books, electricity, the people that keep electricity coming to my home and running water.  That's a lot to be grateful for.