Back to the regular Sunday Picture Parade.
Warmest thanks to Larry Little from next door for sending these great pictures across to me.
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Another wonderful set next Sunday.
Be happy good people!
Category: Art
If dogs could talk!
Sharing the ups and downs of life with your dog.
Yesterday I used the phrase, “A number of domestic circumstances are taking priority at the moment …” and I wasn’t overplaying that. I can’t say anymore at this stage other than to say that a very close family member has been diagnosed with a terminal illness (and it’s not Jeannie, my son or my daughter.)
Naturally, it has been dominating my thoughts and emotions these last 72 hours but my ability to comprehend what has happened and to weep from time to time would have been impossible without the love of my sweet, dear Jeannie and the emotional sensitivity of our dogs.
For example, yesterday morning when I swung myself out of bed a little after 5:15am, the room still dark, and then sat on the side of the bed wondering what the diagnosis would be from the consultant in London, Brandy came up to me and just buried his head in between my slightly opened legs. With his head held down he pressed himself into my crutch and I then bent my own chest and head down and buried my face in the warm fur of Brandy’s neck just behind his ears.
So on to a short film that has been shown before here on Learning from Dogs but is still worth seeing again.
Published on Mar 27, 2015Hey:)
Thanks for watching my film. I really hope you share and comment as we love your feedback also feel free to email your thoughts as well. www.ShawnWellingVisuals.com for more info and my email.
The Director
-Shawn Welling
Full Synopsis:
A friend to share the ups and downs of life with him — and, soon, his family. “If I Could Talk” gives this dog the one chance he wants to share his thoughts.
Director: Shawn Welling AXI
Story: Mark Galvin / Shawn Welling
Screenplay: Shawn Welling
Starring:
Max Welling / The White Lab
Shawn Welling / Shawn Welling
Michelle Simmons / Michelle Welling
Grace Calabrese / Grace Welling
Kalyssa Lauer / Kalyssa Welling
Music:
Reuel
Composer:
Phillip Glass
Cinematographer
Shawn Welling
Art Giraldo
Scott Budge
Thinking of every one of you and what your dogs mean to you!
In praise of beautiful prose.
None better than Alistair Cooke.
In 1968 I went out to live in Sydney, Australia.
By chance a work colleague in my workplace in Sydney introduced me to an organization called Rostrum. They still exist today and as their ‘About’ page on their website explains:
The History of Rostrum
Rostrum Australia is an association of public speaking clubs, founded on 21 July 1930. The original Rostrum club (“The Rostrum”) was founded in Manchester, England, on 21 July 1923 and its first meeting was held under a yew tree at Greendale Farm near Manchester. The first meeting in Australia was held under an Angophora tree in 1930.
This makes Rostrum the longest-running public speaking organisation in the world.
General Information
Rostrum clubs aim to help their members improve their speaking and meeting skills. They do this primarily through regular club meetings and less frequent competitions. The main national competition for members is the Sidney Wicks Speaking Competition, held about every 6 years. State and territory competitions are held throughout the year.
It was a marvelous connection for me for later on in life I was required to give many public speeches.
Anyway, back to those days in Sydney. I still recall how one meeting was devoted to listening to and understanding one of the most eloquent and masterful speakers ever: Alistair Cooke. Listening to Alistair Cooke’s Letter from America on BBC radio was a passion for me until the day he died.
Here’s how Wikipedia describes this wonderful man.
Alistair Cooke, KBE (20 November 1908 – 30 March 2004) was a British journalist, television personality and broadcaster.[1] Outside his journalistic output, which included Letter from America and Alistair Cooke’s America, he was well known in the United States as the host of PBS Masterpiece Theatre from 1971 to 1992. After holding the job for 22 years, and having worked in television for 42 years, Cooke retired in 1992, although he continued to present Letter from America until shortly before his death. He was the father of author and folk singer John Byrne Cooke.
It was a great pleasure to discover that the BBC still holds archives of many of the broadcasts of Letter from America but, in addition, some of Alistair Cooke’s broadcasts are on YouTube.
Please settle down for 15 minutes and listen to one of best writers and speakers to have graced this world.
Broadcast on Fri 12 Dec 1980, BBC Radio
The shooting of John Lennon on the 8th December 1980 sparks a debate over the need for national gun control law in America.
Some issues never go out of date!
Truck buddies!
Of people, dogs and mutual love!
(The second part of Peter and Leslie Sonne’s guest post. Do read the first part before today’s post.)
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It was December 2010. We didn’t need another dog. We had four at the time, one of whom had just started chemotherapy.
A staff member at our specialty vet knew of a rescue that reminded her of our beloved cattle dog, who we had lost the year before, and pushed us to contact the foster mom. Peter had really been missing his truck buddy and none of the other dogs had worked as his constant companion.
The photos melted our hearts and we contacted the foster mom, Jenn. The little girl was called Hedgehog, as she had lost much of her hair due to neglect and as it was growing back in, everyone thought she looked like a hedgehog. It was love at first sight, but Jenn diligently ensured that “Hedgy” got along with the rest of the ranch hands before approving the adoption. Peter teaching her to roll over within 5 minutes of meeting her helped seal the deal. The adoption led to an immediate name change and our Peggy Sue joined the pack. We thank Jenn for giving us the thumbs up and allowing us to share the second half of Peggy’s life.
Peggy acclimated to the pack quickly, although she was a loner. Fiercely independent, she would 
often be in her rocker in the great room, keeping an eye on the scary ceiling fan, while the rest of the gang was in the office or kitchen with us. She sort of just tolerated the others, although on rare occasion her nub would go up and she would play with someone for about 30 seconds – almost like she figured it was expected of her now and then.
One of Peggy’s favorites things was to go for rides in the truck. She preferred to be alone, but would grudgingly share her backseat with one or more siblings if necessary. We think she actually preferred to be with only one of us so that she could ride shotgun, resting her head on the console and gazing at us with eyes full of love. The ear massages as we meandered down the road helped!
We discovered right away that she was a foodie. While she never really begged, actually feigning a look of boredom at the human meal process, she moved with lightning speed to get any morsel that fell to the ground and the others quickly learned to not even try to out maneuver her.
Peggy was not overtly affectionate, did not like to cuddle and really did not give kisses. However, it was certainly OK for some humans to give her belly rubs, neck massages and her favorite, massages to her ears. Peggy had a signature gait where as she trotted along every few steps her back legs would do a little hop, which would propel her back end forward, causing her to look like the letter “J.” I loved to watch, as she would trot down the hall each morning beside Peter.
Last August, we found a small lump on her neck and she was diagnosed with lymphoma. She breezed through the chemotherapy and was in remission when a different lymphoma was discovered. She breezed through that treatment and all was good. She was in remission from both when she started having GI problems and unspecified infections. Initially, she was able to respond and rebound but a couple of days ago she got sick again. Hoping for the best, we treated her, but when our little foodie stopped eating, not even tempted with the tastiest morsel, we felt that she was giving us a sign.
Last night, we spent a couple of hours with her as she relaxed on the lawn. Her nose was often raised in the air as if taking in all the smells of the ranch that she loved so much. This morning, Mille, Samantha and Jake all said their goodbyes, and she accepted their kisses, which was another sign to us that she was ready to go.
As we sat with her this morning we knew that she was dancing across the Rainbow Bridge, with her signature hop, as she went to join all of our other ranch hands that have gone before. We pictured Bucky and Spencer playing in the river with Lexy and Minnie, Sundance egging Jack and Gus into a game of tag and Queenie impatiently waiting for Peggy to brief her on the ins and outs of her new pack. Big Jake happily grazes nearby and looks forward to a nap in the sun while the others watch his back.
From the bottom of our hearts we thank Dr. Merrianne Burtch from Pacific Veterinary Specialists for her initial treatment and Dr. Theresa Arteaga from Animal Cancer Center for her loving extended treatment (and both of them for their friendship). Dr. Arteaga and her fantastic staff (Jodi, Linda, Nicole and Elizabeth) always made Peggy’s treatments as relaxing as possible and this morning was no exception.
To know us is to know our dogs. To know us is to know our heartache.
Peter and Leslie
PS- Miss Peggy Sue most certainly did become Peter’s truck buddy and constant companion!
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When I was working on this post yesterday afternoon, I didn’t have a clue as to how to close it off. This from someone who is not normally lost for words.
But I wanted some words that would leave the most glorious echo or afterglow of Peggy, and of every other dog that brings out the best of love in us.
One of the followers of this place is Susan Leighton. This is her blog: Woman on the Ledge.
I will close with Susan’s words:
I guess one of the reasons I am enamored with dogs is because they give to us unconditional love. They don’t care what we look like, if we are rich or poor, they are attracted to our souls.
Picture Parade One Hundred and Sixty-Two
The third set of the family portrait photographs.
(Set One is here and Set Two here.)
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What an antidote these pictures are to the many strange and unsettling things going on in the world just now.
Once again, thank you to neighbour Dordie for sending me the link to these wonderful pictures.
Picture Parade One Hundred and Sixty-One
The second set of those wonderful family portraits!
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The third set will be out in a week’s time. Thank you to neighbour Dordie for sending me the link to these wonderful pictures.
You all take care out there!
Picture Parade One Hundred and Sixty.
Family portraits!
(In gratitude to Dordie who sent these on.)
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Another set of these wonderful pictures in a week’s time.
You all look after yourselves including your families!
Further reflections on the natural world.
An inspirational essay from Arizona.
I was speaking recently with John Hurlburt whom Jean and I knew well when we were living in Payson, AZ. Subsequently, John sent me a wonderful essay with his permission for me to share it with all you good folks!
A quick web search found a photograph of Wildcat Canyon and that is at the end of today’s guest post.
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Midnight in Wildcat Canyon
The dirt road maze in our Arizona forests covers hundreds of miles. It’s quite possible to drive all day without encountering another human being. I once ended up at a place called Wildcat Canyon at midnight after taking a wrong turn on a wet rocky mountain road.
Cell phones are problematical in the high country. It would have helped if there had been a back woods road map on board. Fortunately there was a GPS that worked.
Wildcat Canyon in the moonlight was well worth visiting. The heavens were open above without a trace of man made light. The impact was awe inspiring. As we intuitively agree, everything fits together or we’d be random atoms.
Although, it may seem random to the casual observer, we scientifically know that the cosmos is unified from the quantum level of physics up with the classical level of physics and back again through fundamental forces we have barely begun to understand.
Einstein’s theories prove that the cosmos turns inside out without breaking. Slight earthly energy shifts can modify and potentially eliminate all life on earth. There’s no need to contribute to the problem by aggravating the negative effects of climate shift through either our deliberate negative action or our thoughtless lack of action.
It’s difficult to understand why we’re fussing and fuming as though we owned the earth, the moon, the sun, and the stars. There’s consensus on the body of scientific fact that supports a holistic understanding of our relative insignificance and our corresponding responsibilities as a consciously aware biological species which is presently the dominate life form on a remote garden planet.
Signs of our cultural crisis of consciousness are clear. Science is ignored or denied unless convenient and/or profitable. World economics are systemically corrupt. Slick politicians twist reality on its ear without regard for truth, justice, liberty, or equality.
Knowledge, understanding and wisdom are disparaged.
Insanity, driven by both conscious and unconscious human fears, masquerades as truth and reason. War is profitable and encouraged. Our politicians know better if they have any awareness or compassion at all in their hearts and souls. It seems that even when most politicians are aware of reality to some degree, they simply don’t care for much beyond themselves in the long run. Political ends justify the means without regard and without regret. Hyper concentrated economic power takes no prisoners.
Insanity is cold. We light a fire to keep us warm and to heat our food.
As the flame burns, we realize that matter and energy are interchangeable. We realize that the earth is finite. We know that we’re energized by the universe. We are children of the light. We are the voice of life and the hope of the future and we’ve lost our moral compass.
Nature always wins and doesn’t care about the quarterly bottom line. Peace is a verb.
Without a unifying purpose, surrender and unilateral acceptance are dubious. What could be more unifying than our instinctive need to survive? Our common objective is to sustain our natural balance. Our immediate practical objective is to save our planetary farm.
We don’t become fully consciously aware until we are born. We begin learning about our world in our cribs. Consider that we live in a garden cradle at the edge of the Milky Way. Change is constant as our universe emerges. Adapting to change is the prime directive for all life forms.
Our problems are complex. The simple answer is found in all our human wisdom traditions. “Be of service to the Earth which sustains all planetary life.” The answer to our political quandary is similarly simple. We can vote for the Nature of Creation or we can vote for Mammon.
We can vote for Sanity (Greek: sanos; balance, wholeness and well being) or we can vote for the meaningless night shades of human insanity. We may vote for Nature or we may vote for global corporate financial interests.
It’s important to note that the unaided human mind is limited. Dumb comes with the territory with no additional charge. Our lives are a learning experience with an ongoing purpose of growth and service.
It took about an hour to get back to a main highway from Wildcat Canyon. It was a matter of back tracking through landmarks noted along the way such as the occasional miniature lake in the middle of the trail or a stretch of jagged rocky out cropping. It was a relief to return to an asphalt road about an hour later.
A wave is breaking. Take care and maintain an even strain.
an old lamplighter
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You all have a very peaceful weekend. (Oh, and you may want to drop across to Sustainable Rim Country, a fabulous project that John and others have under way.)
Picture Parade One Hundred and Fifty-Seven.
The concluding photographs from the 10th annual Dog Photographer of the Year competition.
The first set were published a week ago, together with this introduction:
Incredible, prize-winning, images of dogs.
The following was read over on Mother Nature News on June 30th. They just have to be shared with you.
However, to ensure the integrity of republication and the identity of the photographers, I’m going to include the photographs and the words of the original MNN piece, and split it across today and next Sunday.
Trust me you will adore these photographs.
Here are the concluding photographs.
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These prize-winning images of dogs will steal your heart.
10th annual Dog Photographer of the Year competition drew entries from photographers in 90 countries.
Jaymi Heimbuch June 30, 2016.
Hugo the puppy is the subject of this winning image by 16-year-old Jade Hudson.
The gray faces of old dogs speak to all the love and friendship they’ve provided over the years as Lizzie, a 12-year-old mixed breed dog, shows us. Curling up with a cracking fire and your four-legged BFF is one of life’s great joys.
This portrait of two Afghan hounds named Ozzie and Elvis took first place for the Dog Portrait category. The setting is the idyllic Ashdown Forest in Sussex.
And finally, the winner of the Puppy category is little rescue puppy Buddy enjoying a bowl of milk. The photo was taken by Colorado-based photographer Linda Storm.
“The entries for this year’s Dog Photographer of the Year competition were some of the best we have ever seen,” says Rosemary Smart, Kennel Club chief executive. “Choosing the winners was an incredibly challenging task and we commend every photographer who entered. Each of the winning photographers beautifully captured the essence of their canine subjects on camera, demonstrating how important dogs are to us in every walk of life.”
If you’re a photographer who loves dogs as your subject, keep an eye on the opening date for next year’s competition!
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Going to repeat the words of Rosemary Smart as I can’t even come close to the power of what she said:
The entries for this year’s Dog Photographer of the Year competition were some of the best we have ever seen.
Choosing the winners was an incredibly challenging task and we commend every photographer who entered. Each of the winning photographers beautifully captured the essence of their canine subjects on camera, demonstrating how important dogs are to us in every walk of life.
How very important our dogs are to us!
Picture Parade One Hundred and Fifty-Six
Incredible, prize-winning, images of dogs.
The following was read over on Mother Nature News on June 30th. The item, and especially the photographs, just had to be shared with you.
However, to ensure the integrity of republication and the identity of the photographers, I’m going to include the photographs and the words of the original MNN piece, and split it across today and next Sunday.
Trust me you will adore these photographs.
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These prize-winning images of dogs will steal your heart.
10th annual Dog Photographer of the Year competition drew entries from photographers in 90 countries.
Jaymi Heimbuch June 30, 2016.
The love of a dog is a universal joy, as the latest photography competition from The Kennel Club illustrates. The 10th annual competition drew over 13,000 entries from photographers in 90 countries. The photographs show the beauty, loyalty, companionship, dignity and, of course, the adorableness of dogs around the world.
The competition features eight categories, including Puppies, Oldies, Dogs at Work, Dogs at Play, Man’s Best Friend (winner pictured above), Assistance Dogs and Dog Charities, Dog Portraits and I Love Dogs Because.
This image of Sheldon the English springer spaniel enjoying a mist-shrouded pond early one morning is the work of Anastasia Vetkovskaya from Russia. Not only did it win for the Dogs At Work category, but it also placed as the overall winner of the competition.
Vetkovskaya states, “I have loved animals from an early age, which is why I went to Moscow Veterinary Academy and became a veterinary surgeon in 2007. Around this period of time, my husband gave me my first SLR camera, and since then I have devoted all of my free time to photography. My specialty is pets, and I am inspired most by horses and dogs.”
Baxter the Westie inspired his photography-loving human, Tom Lowe, to snap this image of Baxter playing in the water of Loch Lomond in Scotland.
This poignant image was taken by Michael Higginson, and features his brother Dale with Esta the dog. The win not only benefits the photographer but also a charity of his choice. The Kennel Club is making a donation to Higginson’s favorite charity, Dogs for Good.
Higginson states, “Winning the Assistance Dog category has made it even more special. It’s an honor to be able to show the world what a difference a dog can make to someone else’s life.”
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Aren’t they breath-takingly beautiful!
The rest of these fabulous photographs in a week’s time.
Learning from Dogs 