A Word About the Neighbors . . .

Not the human neighbors (although they are all very nice), the four legged neighbors who leave their tracks along side ours, all throughout the valley (and not the dogs, who are also very nice). I'm talking about the foxes. The valley foxes are not like the "townie" foxes - they don't skulk, beg, or slink. They live on a natural diet of grasses, grains, berries, insects, mice ptarmigan and fish. They don't approach humans for food because they are self-sufficient. And humans (at least the ones in my household) don't feed foxes, because they care for their well-being.

Valley foxes are beautiful and self-assured . . . .

Sharing the land with them is a privilege - granted, they are not the wolf, bear, coyote, moose and caribou that I loved to watch on mainland Alaska for 20 years before moving out here . . .

But they still are a joy to see, and their relative abundance means there are usually at least a couple joyous occasions each and every day . . .

Like seeing one crossing my driveway tonight from my living room window (hard to see, just trust me or click the photo to enlarge). Another reason for joy? This photo was taken at 7 PM, we are actually having a small bit of evening after work!

Alright, my better half has returned from the Vagina Monologue performance at the Grand. I would have gone - I am pro-vagina for the record - but my assigned task was to hang out with Chico, keep one eye on the Olympics, and figure out how to rearrange the front room so we can move the computer desk in, making the dining room a proper, umm, dining room.

Goldfish, by the way, is particularly enchanted with sharing the valley with foxes, and she took half of the fox photos above. Foxes make her smile, and well, anything that makes Goldfish smile is a-okay with me . . . .