A few years ago we found this great rope swing in one of Lucy’s favorite parks. It was fashioned from a heavy sisal rope, tied around an oak branch about 100 feet up, and the seat was a 1 1/2 foot long, well-worn, sturdy branch—not a real comfortable sit, but it did the job. It was situated on the side of a steep hill and swung out and over a small creek at the foot of the hill. Sometime last year, though, vandals broke the surrounding saplings, which started to encroach on the swing space, and shortly afterward the swing was cut down, most likely by park employees.
Well, now the swing is back. I have no idea who managed to tie the new rope, much less make it up there, but I only hope they know their knots. The rope is now a thin bungee-like cord, and dare I say that I noticed a frayed spot? Well, I did, but I took a ride anyway…put my life in the hands of a bunch of kids who probably had nothing better to do. And lived to tell about it. Actually, Lucy proved more of a danger than the amateur ride as she lunged at, and bit me on takeoff. Please excuse her incessant barking and my poor video skills.
We often see deer in the late afternoon at the Annandale Community Park (where we saw the Butterfly Bench). Lucy would catch their scent as soon as she gets out of the car and she would lead us straight to them. The video shows our approach towards the deer. Lucy was instinctively silent as she stalked her prey, but once we got about 10 feet away from the deer, she just couldn’t contain herself anymore and started barking loudly and pulling hard on her leash. You can hear her shrilly bark at the very end of the video clip. The deer took off as soon as she started.
A little background on this video, which isn’t my best. It usually occurs to me to hit record well after the action has started. Anyway, Lucy has really taken to the tennis ball lately, and will even retrieve it, but not when it’s in the water. Sunay, however, does otherwise. Here, the tennis ball floats at the water’s edge, wondering if it will be saved by Sunay or doomed to a life of drifting in the murky waters of the Potomac. Lucy is just fine with that and wants to make sure that if she isn’t saving it, no one is.
All of these shenanigans followed the first meeting of Lucy, Sunay and Posey.
Saturday, I again caught a performance of Jamey Turner and his glass harp, and this time I remembered to hit record. Yay. Unlike my previous sighting of him right outside the Torpedo Factory Art Center, this time he was just steps away at the corner of King and Union Streets.
I was kind of surprised that the woman I captured here in the video interrupted him with a question in the midst of his performance. Urgh.
Some extraordinary videos of Lucy at the dog park, in the sense that she hasn’t played like this, in one session, in a long time. We have to thank Tracy, her new friend, for that, as Tracy was very persistent and didn’t give Lucy a moment’s rest. Note Lucy’s run for the water puddle…if it were a hot summer day, she would’ve landed in someone’s water bowl, a habit she’s carried with her since puppydom.
Tracy is the vocal one…
And the play ends with a round of Protect the Hole. All dogs seem to know this game, and Lucy knows it well as she’s played it with others since she was a puppy. The game’s no good unless it ends with eating the contents of said hole. Again, Tracy is the vocal one…
Recently, Lucy has become so excited while waiting to chase the ball that she’s started hopping in circles, revving up, kinda. So, seeing an opportunity to exploit her enthusiasm, I started telling her to “circle” in preparation for the kick-off. As you can see, I’m goading her with the ball to keep her attention, and I think she’s got the hang of it. Good girl!
I apologize for my poor video skills—keeping Lucy in frame while keeping track of the ball was a bit much to handle, but I think it suffices in showing Lucy’s spirit. You also get a good dose of my spirit as well—Lucy does that to you! This is how she is when she’s not resting nor waiting to be fed—a ball of energy full of fun and life!
Her fetching skills have improved alot since my last post, aided by treats and a little consistency on our part. She’ll still only chase a kicked ball, but that’s okay as that makes it even more fun for us. As you’ll see, my kicking skills aren’t all that Lucy would hope for. Hmmm, seems that I may need more training than Lucy…
Grace
T
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