Oliver the Champion
He is the Champion. He won. The Battle is over. Oliver is the winner of the world.
Mabel and Me: A San Diego Boy and His Always Do Right Dog
His name is John. We call him Little John because he is tiny. And, I guess also because his dad’s name is Big John. This is the story of John and his always do right dog – Mabel. They live in San Diego.
John and Mabel are best of friends. They have been since they were both born. When John is away, Mabel waits in the window for him. “Where is Little John?”, she says.
And sometimes, when Mabel goes out for a walk with Dad, Little John sits in the window waiting for her to come home. “Where is Mabel?”, he says.
No matter where they are, they like to pretend. They always dress up when they pretend. Sometimes Little John dresses up like a cowboy.
And sometimes he makes Mabel be his horse. Just like a real cowboy has a real horse. But Mabel’s not a real horse. She just sits there. “Come on Mabel, Giddyup!” yells Little John. But still, Mabel just sits there.
Mabel likes it better when she gets to be a Warrior. Mabel say’s to herself. “I am not a horse. I am a Warrior!” And than she barks to show you she means business.
But mostly, Mabel just likes to be Mabel, the-always-do-right-dog.
And she likes to do cool dog things. Like run outside. “Running outside is a great dog thing to do!,” Mabel says. She goes outside almost everyday. A perfect day is a day outside with Little John.
She always does the right things, never the wrong things. Like always peeing in the right places. Not the wrong places.
..Or letting Little John eat her dog treats and not saying anything. “If Little John wants my dog treat. He can have my dog treat!” she says as she gazes the other way to avoid making him feel uncomfortable for stealing her biscuits.
And if anyone tries to do anything to Little John, she makes a mad face and stands like this. “No one is going to hurt Little John”, she says. And she barks again to show you she means business.
If he ever needs me, I’ll be right there for him. Because he’s always right there for me. I’m Mabel-The-Always-Do-Right-Dog.
And so that is how the story goes. Legend has it that Little John and his Dog Mabel went on to conquer the world together.
Well, even if it was at night and even if it was only in their dreams. They still did it. And they did it together. That’s all that matters to this boy and his dog.
Check out DogVacay in San Diego if you love Dogs. Its an interesting alternative to your dog sitting problems and one that looks like it’s getting a lot traction.
The Cults are back in Town
Madeline and Ryan’s group – The Cults – made another stop in San Diego. They played one of the best shows I have seen this night. The venue is an old Church called Irenic. They played on the altar.
Maddie stopped the show in the middle, ran off stage and grabbed Lucy and Mila and took them back stage. While back stage the girls opened and closed the door, waving to all the Cults Fans off stage. Then Maddie ran back on stage and sang “Go Outside”. Could it be any more perfect. Maddie was such a super star this night. Later that night, Mila explained to me how awesome it was. She was so excited, I don’t think she probably slept last night.
Thank you Maddie for a great night.
Adorable Rare Double Rainbow Spotted in San Diego
An adorable and extremely rare double rainbow was spotted in San Diego. The double rainbow is not often spotted, particularly one that is this remarkable. What do you think of this? Is this amazing?
Montreal Street Scenes
Montreal is a great city. This is Part II of our Canadian Travel pictures. These are street scenes from the cool city.
Vietnam – Laughing Girls
I found these pictures that I never posted. When I was in Vietnam, these girls wanted some pictures. They were funny and as I took more pictures, they got more and more goofy. Who doesn’t like seeing photographs of kids being funny and cute.
24 Rainy Hours in Quebec with thin-soled shoes
When you travel you are always there. That’s always my motto. What this means is that the minute you leave home to travel, that you are already there. Whether you are stuck in the snowed in airport overnight on the way to a beautiful Hawaiian Beach, or in your hotel while the rain pelts outside – you are always there and the minute you step out of your house, your adventure has already begun.
Sometimes when you travel you have visions in your head of what the place you are visiting will be like. Those visions can be so strong, that when you finally arrive you are disappointed because it is different. You have to accept what it is and love it for that.
We had visions in our head of Quebec; beautiful castles and churches against sunny skies and warm breezes. or perhaps, lightly snow dusted streets – something out of postcards. Hoping off the train in Quebec City that Sunday, we realized it would be quite different than the vision in our mind. The rain was pelting down. It was just above freezing – too warm to turn the rain to beautiful snow yet cold enough to feel like sharp pins hitting your face.
Ducking under any awning we could find at the train station and running to the cab I encountered my first large cold puddle of rain. Looking down at my woefully inadequate white converse in the cab on the ride to the hotel I realized much too late that I was in Rainy Quebec with thin soled shoes. This was going to be different than the picture perfect postcard visions in our head. I reminded myself – when you travel, you are always there.
A rainy, but comfortable train ride to Quebec City.
We were quite happy that the hotel provided us with an Umbrella, something else we forgot to bring
Beautiful Parks with trees like this are all over Quebec. Even in rain they were beautiful.
We loved this park. So calm, so peaceful. And it was all ours. Thank you to the rain.
A feeling of Europe, so close to home.
Horse drawn carriages. The clopping of horse shoes on cobblestone. What a beautiful sound.
Graffiti provides beauty in the city as well. It is quite common in many parts.
A ghostly figure of an elderly lady. She walked slowly. I followed her and took a photograph
Pay phones. They are everywhere. No one uses them. Canadians are slower than us to abandon traditions.
A beautiful church, the lights reflect off the wet ground.
The entire city is built of stone and brick – so few cities are like this anymore.
A beautiful hotel from afar. It was morning. I got up early and everyone was still sleeping.
This is the famous church. Each year, perhaps millions take a picture here.
If you like small beautiful quaint hotels, come to Quebec because they are everywhere. You cannot go wrong.
Quebec is to Americans what Europe is to the UK – Quebec is our Europe. A 4 hour plane ride to arrive in another world.
Quebec is extremely French. Without the tourist many might stop speaking english altogether.
Too bad we were not foodies. We didn’t take advantage of the excellent food in the city.
This sweet tree with 4 benches. I am sure many come here to sit and read.
Our trip to Quebec was nice memories. In spite of the cold rain, we still loved everything about the city. The people, the town, the scenes.
Even with rain, thin shoes and cold feet, the city warmed our hearts and is a place we will return to again and again.