ugh, so oogy feeling.

For some reason, I thought today would be a good day to start taking guaifenesin again to get rid of the sinus gunk that seems to have built up in my laziness (didn't irrigate for a couple weeks).

I forgot that draining gunk = nausea. And I'm already nauseated and gut-tastic from the gluten reaction I've having.

Bah. I should just go back to bed.

Instead, I have errands to run. I need to go buy some 5W-30 because the Buick is a mite bit low. I need to buy baking soda at Sam's for nannar (that might have to wait). nothingoth has requested flyering assistance because he's working today. I can't do it alone, but could possibly do it with a helper this afternoon. About the only thing that sounds palatable to me is espresso of some sort, so if anyone feels up to coffee and flyering (UVA's campus. Sorry, Chad, I just can't do both campus and downtown today.) should give me a buzz.

My caniche is growing up.

Jericho's not been getting enough exercise lately. We've been busy trying to see the last four movies at the Jefferson and just all around stuff-what-keeps-one-busy.

So I just ran him in the yard pretty hard. Ball time is a good way to burn up energy.

He's panting happily on the hardwood floor. Our living room has carpet (only room with it). He actually left the couch for the floor, then left the floor for the hardwood. He's also in the path of the AC fan. Yay! I exercised him darn good!

In other news, according to some of the records we have, Jericho is SEVEN today. He sure doesn't act like an old dog. I suppose that's the blessing of having a poodle with the energy of a grown puppy. They live to be pretty old and every day is a joy, even the days after the nights where he hasn't let us sleep.

I'm getting ready to head over to flickr and post a new picture of him. Happy Poodle Dog.

AT, Blue Ridge Parkway 10vi2006

explodingcat has been feeling fairly fatigued lately. Overworked, overstressed, underslept . . . so our hikes may have to be scaled down. To that end, I'm looking for more destination hikes and fewer "tramp through the woods" hikes. For a while, this will involve just picking viewpoints on the AT which aren't too far from a parking area, nor with much elevation change.

On Saturday, we went for what I consider a leg-stretcher. We parked at the northern picnic area on the Blue Ridge Parkway and hiked the spur trail to the AT. It was about a quarter mile to the AT and then another half to three-quarters of a mile to our viewpoint--cliffs on the trail.

The picnic grounds are full of old hog walls. The spur trail runs near an excellent specimen for a little bit.

Once we were on the AT, we had minimal uphill climbing, mostly just a nice walk in the woods. At one point, though, Jericho decided to leave his calling card *right in the middle* of the trail. I wasn't carrying a shovel or bags, so I stepped off the trail to grab a bunch of chestnut leaves. And then I screamed, because this is what I saw immediately under my foot, which was in the air mid-step. I'm sure I woke it up. I backed away and turned on the camera, which then got to zoooooom in: sleeping babe. I told Tom to keep an eye out for momma while I snapped a few shots, then we backed off, picked up Jerry's waste, and moved on.

When we got to our destination point, we sat for a bit, enjoying the wind. We admired the rocks, not so much for their quartzite banding as for their bird droppings.

We eventually got chilled and headed back, peeking at the fawn briefly before moving on. It was still there, cozy in the weeds.

Tom got stuck in a tree and I had to leave him in the woods. Jericho went back for him, though, and we all came home together.