This Little Egge

A Saturday Afternoon at the Beach

A couple weekends ago, C and I decided to spend an afternoon at one of the many beaches up Highway 1--we packed a beach bag, loaded Buckwheat in the car, picked up some sandwiches on the way out of town and embarked on a beach adventure. We were shooting for a beach that our friend had recommended but the directions were vague so, after realizing we had missed it, we decided to stop at Greyhound Rock Beach instead.

The beach was reached via a descent down a narrow trail and was home to a enormous rock jutting out of the water just offshore. It was also fairly unpopulated. We walked south past a couple groups of people and selected a spot that we thought looked sheltered. C proclaimed himself starving and ripped into his sandwich as soon as the blanket was down. Moments later, Buckwheat, in a burst of excitement, kicked sand all over the blanket (and all over C's sandwich). It was our first lesson of day: always keep your dog secured or at a safe distance while eating at the beach (or your sandwich might end up with some actual sand in it!).

Soon after we finished our sandwiches, it became clear that our sheltered location was actually not that sheltered. This was most evident when I found myself chasing a brown piece of paper 100 feet down the beach (it kept blowing away just as I was about to grab it!). A bit of scouting solved this problem. Beach lesson #2: figure out which way the breeze is blowing before unpacking your beach bag.

Our last lesson of the afternoon came when we sat down to play backgammon. Neither of us had played in several months and there was zero cell service to assist us. I set up the board to the best of my recollection. It was not right. The game felt clumsy. It just wasn't as fun. Beach lesson #3: know how to set up a backgammon board before heading out of cell phone range (this lesson proved useful for our trip to Tahoe).

The rest of our afternoon was uneventful (which was just how we wanted it). I read Ender's Game (because we had recently seen a preview for the movie and I hate to see a movie before I read the book). C read The Great Gatsby (because he had somehow made it through high school without reading it and we wanted to see the movie later that weekend). We ate some chips and salsa and a bag of Skittles Blenders (I don't even like original Skittles but these things are delicious!). There was some exploring and some snoozing and some goofing around. C and I agreed we should do it more often. We're talking about exploring a different beach this weekend. I hope we do!

Below are some photos from our Saturday afternoon at Greyhound Rock Beach:

Buckwheat explores

Beach Essentials or Things that Start with B: Buckwheat, Backgammon, Book, Blanket, (Sun) Block, (Ray) Bans

Backgammon Fail

Buckwheat Basks

People like Ants on Greyhound Rock

Buckwheat Does Tricks 1

Buckwheat Does Tricks 2

Beach Day Portraits

Caught in the Breeze

Love Him.

All Packed Up

Cliffs.

Looking Back

Scruffy Pup.

Surf and Sand.

Greyhound Rock from Above.

The End.

It's afternoons like these that I feel especially grateful to live here.

Summer Camping Trip # 1: Meeks Bay, Lake Tahoe

Last weekend, C and I drove to Lake Tahoe to go camping just the three of us (C, B and me). The trip almost didn't happen, though. We left at 2pm on Friday and arrived nine hours later. During that span of nine hours we got stuck in rush hour traffic, temperatures rose into the triple digits, our car broke down, roadside assistance was called, a tow truck was dispatched with an ETA an hour and a half out, a man with a giant stuffed monster hanging out the back of his truck bed kindly towed us onto the shoulder, we got the car running again, a DOT worker helped us off of the freeway, the tow truck was cancelled, we ate dinner outside (read: in the sweltering heat) of an air conditioned Chick-Fil-A (because we didn't want to leave Buckwheat in the car in those conditions), we drove to a park and sat in the shade on a slope of cool grass, we discussed getting a hotel, we called several car rental companies (all of which were closed), we thought it wisest to turn around and go home . . . and then we decided, "Tahoe or Bust!". The "or Bust" part made the rest of drive a bit nerve wrecking but we made it all the way to Tahoe. And the rest of the weekend turned out just great!

We passed the weekend with seven games of backgammon, one hand of gin rummy, three blongo ball matches, four bowls of peanut butter puffins, six packets of Via Coffee, several plates of pasta, one bag of spring mix, two apples, eight marshmallows, four graham crackers, 3/4 of a Hershey's almond chocolate bar, one roaring campfire, five cans of Hell or High Watermelon, four cans of Lava Lake Wit, three plunges (each) into Lake Tahoe, several hours spent on beach towels, three trail runs (C went twice, I went once--the elevation was killer!), one trip to the PDQ Market for a sandwhich (when we discovered we had brought cream cheese but had failed to purchase bagels), 96 pages of Slaughterhouse Five (me), 33 pages of Ender's Game (him), one stop at a vista point, a quick stroll down a dog beach (where Buckwheat greeted at least five dogs) and one lunch (consisting of two sandwiches, an order of fries and side salad from the Get Away Cafe) on our way out of town.

Below are some photos from our above described weekend in Tahoe:

7 games of Backgammon

Camp Cook (photo taken by C)

We might have cooked TOO much pasta (photo taken by C)

Sunset from our campsite

Views from our tent

Views of our tent "Big Agnes"

Buckwheat taking a snooze

Camp Dog

Looking up

Tree tops

We pitched tent in a perfect little grove of trees (in the dark, I might add!)

Camping trips = cereal for breakfast!

Clear Water

Morning on Meeks Bay 1

Morning on Meeks Bay 2

Horizon

Shore

Roadside vistas

(We were told there was a tea house on this island)

Dog friendly Kiva Beach

C and B at Kiva Beach

Just goofin around

(Buckwheat's a pretty good sport).

Waves and a single fuffy cloud

Good Bye, Tahoe

Until next time!

I had been to Tahoe once before (when I was ten). What I remember from that trip are the windy roads, the pool at our hotel, getting stuck on rocks while trying to raft the Truckee and my childhood best friend accidentally throwing her glass of ice water into the river after dinner one night (long story). I didn't actually remember much about Tahoe, aside from it being very large and very blue.

When we drove into Tahoe on Friday, it was too dark to see the lake in any detail. We stayed at Meeks Bay Campground and in the daytime, parts of the beach are visible from most campsites. I first got a glimpse of the lake when I woke up Saturday morning and caught a bit of the sunrise over the water while in route to the bathroom. It was an impressive first glimpse. The view of the rest of the bay waited until noon--first came a little more sleep, breakfast, a trail run and some reading while C went on his run. When I finally made it down to the beach, I was not disappointed. Even from a beach full of people, Tahoe looked spectacular: the fine red sand, the tall skinny pines surrounding the shores, the clear clear water, the smooth colorful rocks beneath the surface, the saturated hues of the lake en masse, the faded blue silhouettes of distant mountains, and the sheer enormity of it all. And that was just one bay of a gigantic lake. Yes, we'll definitely be going back to Tahoe (hopefully several times)! In the meantime we have two more camping trips planned. And I can't wait!

Happy Adoption Day Mr. B!

On June 15th, 2012 Buckwheat came into our lives. In a way, he felt meant for us. He showed up on the SPCA website on a Monday, the very week we had set as the week we could start looking for a dog. I was instantly smitten--his bright eyes, his funny ears, his cowlicks, his stance. I checked the website every day that week (often several times a day) to make sure he was still there. I spontaneously called out his name around our condo; I sent C texts and Gchat messages composed of a single word: "Buckwheat!". By Friday, he was ours.

I thought I was prepared for the love I would feel for him. My family had two dogs growing up and I adored them both. The first, Coco Bear, was a lap dog with an adventurous streak (and a bit of a feisty side). He still makes appearances in my dreams. The second, Lucy, was a big stray that loved people and walks and fetch and swimming. She was a total sweetheart and practically our whole neighborhood fell in love with her. But my love for Buckwheat is on a whole different level. It was immediate and strong and deep; it's the kind of love you feel in your stomach; the kind of love that makes you giddy and causes you to smile spontaneously. I suppose it comes from being charged with his care and from the intimacy of sharing a home (and a life). But really, he just melts my heart. Every single day.

Over the last year, Buckwheat has acquired too many nicknames to count. He's Mr. B, BW, B Dubs, B Whizzle, Buck, Bucky, Buckaroni, Bug, Buggy, Bugaroo, Bugsy and Bugsy Malone--all riffs on Love Bug which is actually short for Love Bug Jr. (which is occasionally abbreviated to LBJ); he's our little nut ball, our fur child, our wild man; he's a smoochy pooch, a muskrat, a bundle and a puppy face . . . And that's just the ones I can think of off the top of my head. Other people call him cute, SO cute, adorable, handsome, and good looking. They say he looks like Benji or a wookie or a teddy bear. He's even been called a rock star. He attracts people from all walks of life. He makes people smile. I see it as they walk by.

When Buckwheat walks down the street, he has a pep in his step. His walk has been called a prance. A man once stopped me and said, "That dogs so cool. He walks SO proud". It's true--his strut looks proud. There's a spirit, an ease and an enthusiasm when he walks--whenever he walks, wherever he goes. On my laziest days, Buckwheat gets me out of the house and reminds me that the world is exciting and that we should never stop being curious and that we should continue to be playful and that we should always be grateful .

He's a happy, plucky dog with a sweet, sweet heart. In the evenings he joins us on the couch and we rub his belly and he makes us laugh (and laugh, and laugh). Before bed, he sometime leads us on chases through the living room--he jumps up on furniture, crouches, spins wildly in the air, runs around the table and then does it all over again--these also tend to end in laughter. And Buckwheat has that doggy intuition. When I'm sad or worried or can't sleep--he'll curl up close and keep me company (I don't even have to say anything).

Our life is sillier, happier and sweeter with Buckwheat in it. There are more walks, more laughter, more lazy mornings, more adventures--our life is more complete. Before, there was A and C and we were married and in love and happy. Now we are ABC--we're a little family; we're a pack.

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In honor of Buckwheat's adoption day, we spoiled him rotten--I baked him doggy cupcakes and C grilled him his very own steak (half of which we saved for tomorrow). I won't apologize for it though--it was definitely a day worth celebrating. We love you Mr. B!

And now for a selection of Buckwheat photos: