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March 23, 2004 ~ A Weekend in My Life, Illustrated. Part IV
This is part of a series. You may want to start with the first entry.
Sunday, March 21th.
Morgan had to go into work for a few hours on Sunday morning, so we ate grits, oranges, and the leftover raspberry crisp for breakfast, then he was off.
breakfast
While he was gone, I edited the images for that entry and started on the ones for this one. I also cared for the newly planted seeds.
seed pods
When he got back (running very late, which made me grumpy), we hit the road for the wolf Rescue Sanctuary where we volunteer every Sunday, eating our lunch of hummus sandwiches, apples, veggie jerky, and sesame sticks in the car. The day was cold and windy, but clear.
After the long drive up into the mountains, we arrived at the Sanctuary. First, we met the new wolves who had come in during the last week, Lakota, Tatanka (sp?), Chayda, Pocahontas (Poco), and Mo. Most were quite wild and skittish, though Chayda came up to the fence for lovin's and scratchins. We had to be careful with him, though, as he's a fear-biter. After a few weeks (or months) of settling in, though, I bet these five won't be quite so wild. That's the job of everyone who works at the Sanctuary. To help the wolves get used to people, so that they can find more permanent homes. With some wolves, that takes years and years.
Lakota
Time with Delaware and Cheyenne in their pen. I also spent some time next to Sassy's pen, the new female from last week. And you know, that wolf, who last week hid in her little house and wouldn't come out, who has never had human contact before in her life, she came up to me this week, and licked my hand? Twice? All it takes with these creatures is time and some patience. They are naturally curious and friendly, if you are willing to come to them on their own terms. The damage of past abuse and neglect can be reversed.
A man who lived nearby had donated a freezer to the Sanctuary (to store meat for the wolves), but before we could go pick it up, I had to get all of the mulch out of the back of the truck.
mulching
We set out on a drive through an absolutely gorgeous area, with amazing views of the mountains, and eventually pulled into a drive that crossed over a secluded stream, and the trees opened into a clearing, where a story-book house stood, surrounded with huge standing stones (like Stonehenge), strange sculptures, and daffodils blooming in profusion everywhere.
The man who owned the place was an absolutely amazing old man. He had inventions and contraptions all around the house, lamps that ran on only a certain mineral and water. There were animals everywhere. He had diverted the stream down over a waterwheel, where he got most of the electricity for his house, then on into a huge pond that he was using as a restorative habitat for loons, herons, and other water birds. Solar panels stood along the drive.
"He raised those standing stones by hand, the old fashioned way," said L.
"Yep. From little pebbles. Nurtured them with love and lots of food until they grew," he quipped with a grin.
He asked lots of questions of each of us, wanting to know what sort of people we are, what we do, what drives us. A curious mind. I instantly liked him. And I love his home. A little slice of paradise.
We returned to the Sanctuary, freezer in tow, unloaded it.
It was feeding time. High-protein kibble for the day, rather than meat, for once.
getting ready to feed Autumn
We fed all of the wolves. Some, however, made it clear to me that they wanted attention even more than food (which is saying a lot, coming from a wolf).
Autumn, begging for attention
The rest of the evening was spent socializing with some of the animals in their pens. Unfortunately, Noshi wasn't accessible this week, as he's just moved in with Maya, and she's pretty upset about all of the changes. I didn't want to further stress her out. I also avoided Banjo and Yetti, only played with them through the fence, even though I love them both, because this week I just didn't particularly feel like getting beat up in another wrestling match. (Which accounts for why I walked away with under fifty bruises and cuts, this week, rather than the usual). Those two are two handfuls and then some.
Most of my time was spent with KK and Monty.
KK left and Monty right
Monty, as you can see from that picture, who had been so shy before, not coming anywhere near me, has been coming up to me, begging for scratchin's and even giving me the occasional lick for the past couple weeks. KK, of course, is still madly in love with me, licking me constantly everywhere she can reach the entire time that I'm in their pen, showing me her belly, whimpering if I turn away or when I leave.
time with KK and Monty
Every week, I start to miss all of them as soon as we leave.
leaving
We stop in Black mountain at My Father's Pizza, meeting two friends, Sloan and Ryan (Sloan just bought a new house nearby. He served us dinner there last week). I have spaghetti (pretty much the only thing on the menu that can be made vegan). There is much talk and laughter. We part ways, and Morgan and I return home, tired. I get long phone calls from both my mother and my grade school friend Suzanne (who's getting married next year!). Then, exhausted, to bed.
And there ends a typical weekend in my life.
...retreat to Part III...
A Weekend in My Life, Illustrated. Series.
Part I | Part II | Part III | Part IV
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