Looks Like We Get To Stay

Well, it looks like the Food Guy and I get to stay in Athens for another year. The Food Guy defended his Comprehensive Exams this morning, and he said things went great. I wasn't really worried about it. That guy has spent so much time reading and writing lately that I don't see how he could have done anything but pass, but I guess you never know. Anyway, I'm pretty psyched that he's done with all that. Now, hopefully we'll have more time to play outside.

Yesterday was a bit on the crazy side though. Right after Food Guy emailed off a bunch of grades and notes to one of the professors he works for, his computer crashed. And I mean crashed. The thing was totally fried! Wouldn't do anything. He took it to the Apple Store (I didn't get to go, but I didn't mind since I needed to catch up on SportsCenter- I'd missed the morning show). Anyway, he had to send the thing back to Apple so they can try to fix it. Good thing Food Guy is OCD about backing his files up. Our buddy Eric lent him a computer, so he was able to get all his notes ready for the defense today. All's well that ends well.

I'm looking forward to this weekend. Hopefully Food Guy will take me for a good run and a hike. Our next big adventure is coming up in a couple of weeks. We're heading to Amicalola Falls so the Food Guy can do a writing workshop. He's going to write his prospectus for his dissertation. I get to go too! It's gonna be awesome. A week in a cabin in the woods. I'll get to sleep on the porch while the Food Guy writes. Plus, we'll get to go for a long run every morning on the Approach Trail to the AT. Should be great!

A little break before the defense

Well, what's up y'all?! I know it's been a while since I got my paws on the keyboard, but the Food Guy has been writing his comprehensive exams day and night for the last 3 months. So computer time has been hard to come by for this Yellow Dog. Well, Ok, maybe not day and night. We have had some good adventures here and there. We've gone to the mountains a few times and took a few trips to Charlotte to check on the Food Guy's dad. 

Food Guy turned his exams in last week, so he decided it was time for a little vacation. He decided to meet some friends and go to West Virginia to paddle for a few days. I didn't get to go though, which I wasn't too happy about. But the campground didn't allow dogs. It's OK though- A friend of the Food Guy who is about to head off for Marine Officer Candidate School stayed with me here in Athens. He did a good job of being alternate Food Guy. He took me for lots of walks! 

Anyway, the Food Guy finally finished all of the grading he should have done this weekend, so now I can get to the computer while he finishes cleaning all of his gear from the trip. While he's doing that, I'll fill ya in on the latest. 

Mostly, it's been pretty quiet. Food Guy defends his exams on Wednesday, so he's pretty focused on that right now. He did have a great trip to WVa though. He told me all about it. I wish  I could have gone it is pretty up there. See: 

He drove over to NC Thursday morning and jumped in the truck with Brian. Then they drove all day Thursday and got to the Cheat River at about 9 oclock. Friday morning they went up to PA and paddled part of the Yough. (I can't spell the rest of that word- it's a long one and I'm a smart dog but even I have my limits.) Then they headed back to WVa to chill at the camp. I heard it rained a lot up there. They didn't even get to paddle the Cheat.  But they did get to paddle the Big Sandy. Looks like fun, huh? Food Guy hasn't been kayaking much lately, so I'm glad they decided to paddle something easy. Wouldn't want him to get all busted up. I need somebody to take me on long hikes and runs on the trail! It looks like there were some great surf waves on that river. 

After they finished paddling, Food Guy and his friends went back to camp and ate some food. Man, think of all the food I could have gotten people to give me if I could have gone! I gotta make sure I get to go next time!

Next they went over to the Cheat River Festival. It sounds like it was a lot of fun. Food Guy said there was some great music at the festival on Saturday night. It was of the bluegrass variety, which is my favorite. I know, Reeve would say Food Guy and I are dirty hippies, but whatever! Anyway, check out this pic of the buildaround Food Guy saw at the river:

This is some high quality Appalachian workmanship. It's a singlewide, a camper, and a building. Crazy, huh?! I thought I'd seen some good stuff in NC, but this tops it all!

Well, that's about it for now. I'll be sure to let y'all know how the Food Guy does at his Comps Defense on Wednesday. He'd better pass. We can't afford for him to get booted out of school. Plus, he spent way too much time working on those papers to fail. I mean, we could have been out having some serious fun during all those hours he was working!

Spring Break Starts on the AT

The Food Guy's spring break started on Friday, so when he got home from the library we packed up the rolling doghouse and headed for WNC to go for a run on the AT. Y'all know I like going for a run in the mountains, so I was pretty psyched. We got our friend Ben to drop us off in Reeve's truck at the Wesser Creek trail on saturday morning after spending some time hanging out and visiting folks around NOC. Ben's the man for dropping us off and having Reeve's truck back at NOC for us when we finished our run. 'Cause I was tired and ready for some food.

Wait 'till you see where we went, and you'll know why I was so tired I couldn't even jump in the truck at the end of the day. After a long, long uphill on the Wesser Creek trail, we hit the AT and from there it wasn't too long before we got to Wesser Bald. It was a steep climb, but there were lots of creeks to drink from and even a few spots of snow to eat. Food Guy and Reeve were working hard to keep running in a few spots and they had to settle for a fast hike for some long sections. I didn't mind that since it gave me more time to run around smelling stuff. I think I might have used a little too much energy- by the time we got the Wesser Bald, I was pretty tired. 

The run back down to NOC was pretty fun. It was fast and had lots of twists and turns and I was entertained by how many times Food Guy and Reeve rolled their ankles on roots and rocks. You know- it's all fun and games 'til somebody gets hurt, then it's hilarious. 

Once we got down to the Center, I was pretty tired. Food Guy gave me some dog bones and I drank from the river for a little while. It's still too early in the year for Reeve to turn the water on at the Silvermine house, so, I just slept in the back of the truck while the people went up to base camp and took showers. All in all, I'd say it was a great first day of Spring Break. Food Guy didn't bring his computer, so he didn't do any work at all. I took a long nap while Food Guy and Reeve went into town to eat Mexican food with the crew from NOC. 

Day 2 was pretty sweet too. I was pretty tired in the morning and Reeve and Food Guy let me sleep in while they went and had breakfast with Ken and Juliet. Then, Food Guy and I headed for Amicalola Falls to hike part of the approach trail to the AT. Check this place out:

There were lots of people there, so I had to stay on a leash for a while. Once we got away from all the people, I got off the leash and got to run all around. We hiked around for about 4 or 5 hours- I don't know much about clocks and time, but it was long enough for me to be tired. I was pretty glad we were hiking around a river because I was a thirsty yellow dog. Food Guy carried water and a bowl for me, but I like to drink out of the creek whenever I get a chance. 

We hike along the creek and hung out on a bridge overlooking the river for a while. We saw some really cool stuff. Check out this old truck. 

 I found a ball on the trail, and I got the Food Guy to throw it for me for a while- note to self: chasing a ball while hiking is a bad idea the day after a long run. I was so worn out when we got back to the car that Food Guy had to pick me and put me in the back seat. I slept the whole way home and I wasn't exactly feeling like bugging the Food Guy to take me for a walk this morning. I'll wait 'till tonight to make sure everything is as it should be on our trails behind the house. 

Food Guys parents came were passing through Athens this morning, so he went and ate breakfast with them while I slept in again. You know something? I'm pretty good at sleeping. I had a good teacher. My buddy Zozo told me I should sleep at least 18 hours a day. Sometimes, I don't get that much sleeping in, so I'm making up for it today.  I think he probably needs a day off too. I'm thinking we'll both take the day off today and then head back out for a run tomorrow. 

Snow in Athens!

What a crazy day yesterday! Food Guy and I got up in the morning and drove to Gwinett to help some friends pack a moving truck. It was raining like crazy- again, and they were calling for snow. Snow in Georgia? Really?! Food Guy said he didn't think it would happen, so we were planning to go for an afternoon hike on the AT. Well, the snow came like crazy, so we just went back to Athens. Glad we did, 'cause we never would have made it back if we didn't come home when we did.

It started snowing around 12 and it was still snowing went we went to bed last night. I've never seen that much snow before. In fact, I've never actually seen snow fall from the sky. It was so cool. I ran around catching it in my mouth. Good thing I have a fur coat and I don't get ice cream headaches! Food Guy says he hasn't seen that much snow since he left the mountains and moved to Athens. 

I think he was glad we didn't have to go anywhere. Instead we just went outside and played in the snow. It was so much fun. Lots of people from the neighborhood were out. Everyone was throwing snowballs, which was great for me 'cause I like to catch snowballs. I think I ate 50 snowballs yesterday. 

I got to play with lots of people and even another dog.

Most of our friends here in Athens lost power, but we didn't ever lose power for very long. One of our friends gave us some candles in case the power did go out, but we only needed them for a few minutes. We got lucky. We even had internet! Crazy huh?

 

Food Guy and I got up this morning and walked around to look at all the trees that fell down last night. It was kind of icy out, which I didn't like too much. I like the soft snow. I heard my buddy Zozo took a spill on the ice this morning while she was out walking with Jen and Sug. Poor Zozo. I'll have to be careful out there. Anyway, the fallen trees are pretty crazy. Our trails are totally blocked by fallen trees, and the road going back to the trails is blocked by a bunch of trees. We even had a huge tree break right outside our back door. Check it out:

Well, they called off school today, so there aren't any classes or anything. But, Food Guy still has to write. They didn't call off comprehensive exams, so I'd better let him have the computer back. I'm sure we'll go back and play some more before the snow melts. Y'all have a good one. 

Writing, hiking, running

What's up y'all?! I know it's been forever since I've managed to get my dog feet on the keyboard, so I've got lots to catch you all up on. The Food Guy has been writing his comprehensive exams for the last couple of weeks, so he's always on our computer. But, he's taking a nap after running a half-marathon at Ft. Yargo right now, so I'll try to catch y'all up while he's sleeping. I'll start with today and then try to remember what happened since I ate last. Well, first of all the Food Guy got up at some ungodly hour this morning to head out to the race. It's been raining in Athens for two days, so I can't figure out why he went to run a trail race today. I didn't even get to go 'cause it was raining again. I was a little bummed to have to stay home alone- I mean, it's not like I'm a regular dog who's used to that sort of thing. Food Guy usually takes me everywhere. But I wasn't complaining when I saw what he looked like when the race was over. Talk about muddy- check it out:

Crazy, huh? Y'all know I'm kind of a crazy showering dog and I don't like to be muddy, so I'm not too sad that I missed that run. So, what else have we been up to? Well, let's see. Like I said Food Guy is constantly on the computer writing his exams, but that does mean that he's home all day with me a lot. So, I like that. He hasn't really had time to ride his bike very much, which is good for me since I can't go with him on the bike. We've been running almost everyday, which is great. I love running. There's so much good stuff to smell out there on the trails. Plus, we stop by the dog park a lot on our runs. Did I mention that I like the dog park?

Food Guy did take a weekend off a couple of weeks ago. We went up to NC to meet Brian and Nate for a weekend hike on the AT. It was awesome. It was so cold though. We hiked from Stecoah Gap to Cheoah Bald on Saturday. It was amazing. Check out the sunset:

Pretty sweet, huh? The moon rising was also not a bad touch. 

It did seem like we picked the windiest place on earth to pitch the tents though. I guess I should not complain. Food Guy carried all of my food and water for me. Plus he carried the tent and the sleeping bag. It was so cold up there! Once we climbed in the tent for the night, I couldn't stop shivering. Food Guy wrapped me up in his jacket, but that just didn't cut it. I was FREEZING. Finally, the Food Guy let me crawl into the sleeping bag. Ahh, now that was the stuff! I slept all nice and toasty warm in the bottom of the mummy bag. Mountain Hardware makes a pretty bad ass sleeping bag. Room enough for a Yellow Dog in the bottom of the bag. Well done, boys, well done. 

Anyway. Food Guy woke me up for breakfast and we packed up and finished the hike in the morning. We walked along a beautiful trail to the NOC. Food Guy used to work there, so he had to stop and talk to all his friends and eat some lunch. I thought I'd get to go into the restaurant, but I had to stay outside. 

I thought that was a little silly. I mean, it's not like I'm a regular dog or anything. Heck, I can write, and I have my own blog. But, some people just don't understand how the world should work. I was pretty tired from running up and down the trail trying to make sure I got to smell everything. I mean, it's not like I was carrying anything and walking 8 or 9 miles in a morning is not big deal anyway. Food Guy and I run that far a couple of days a week. So, I had to make sure I got a good workout in. I don't want Zozo and Sug to think I'm getting fat and lazy. I'll bet I hiked 30 miles that weekend. It was pretty sweet. Although, I think I should have run around a little less. Food Guy mentioned something about getting me my own pack so I can carry my own food and water next time we go hiking. I'm cool with that as long as Food Guy slips a few extra dog bones in that pack.

Well, Food Guy's waking up from his nap. We're gonna watch the Heels finish whooping Ga. Tech. Hope y'all have a great week. Don't work too hard or anything. You know I won't. 

A new semester...

Well, school's back with a vengeance, so that means the Food Guy isn't home as much as he usually is. That means I get to spend a lot of time sleeping, which isn't really all that bad. I usually sleep on the Food Guy's bed or on the couch watching The Ocho while Food Guy's on campus. But once in a while I like to sleep on my dog bed, just to show the Food Guy that I appreciate having one. I like to sleep with my toys spread out around me. Like this:

Food Guy's been back on the bike lately too. That means I don't get to go running as much, but he still takes me running a few days a week, which is really OK with me as long as I get to go on lots of walks. The upside is that we play more frisbee when we don't run as much. I love playing with my frisbee. I can can catch it in the air and everything. Mostly I just like to catch it and then carry it around like this. 

It makes me look like I have giant red dog lips. Pretty funny huh? Anyway, life is good here in Athens. I'm sad that football season's over. I don't really know what to think about the stupid Gators winning another National Championship. I mean, you have to be happy that your conference owns the trophy. You have to happy that we put the Big 12 in their place, but Florida? Florida! Really, I hate them so much. Oh well, next year. I have to say that my favorite part of that game was watching Tebow get a taunting penalty. My favorite blogger over at Hey Jenny Slater said it best: "Taunting your opponent makes the Baby Jesus Cry, Tim. Funny stuff!

Anyway, that's about it from Athens for now. Food Guy's reading lots of books and getting ready to start writing his exams. I'm still looking for more dog food. Things are pretty much as they should be. Well, Go Heels. We'll have to survive on basketball until the Braves get going. Not too sure how that's going to pan out since Frank Wren can't seem to sign anyone decent, but hope does spring eternal. Who knows what can happen with 162 games on the slate. 

New Year's: Cards, Clogged sinks & A Win for the Dawgs

Well, the Food Guy and I got dragged our tired selves back from the ATL today. It was another fun trip- as always. New Year's Eve was pretty fun. We went to Reeve and Corinne's and had a cookout. But first Reeve, Food Guy and I went for a good run at the trails at Sope Creek. No matter how many times Food Guy takes me running there I'm always amazed that we're actually in Atlanta while we're running. That place is awesome. After we finished our run we headed to the house to get ready for the New Year's Eve Festivities. That was an adventure. I was happy to see Java, O-Dog, Maya, and Bella (some of my favorite ATL Dog-peeps). We ran around and played with tennis balls while Food Guy and Reeve sat there still freezing from their run. Reeve & Rin's hot water heater took the Big Ambien, so there was no water or heat in the house while some people were installing a new one. That actually worked out pretty well for me and the rest of the doggies since Reeve and Food Guy decided they would be warmer if they took us back outside for a hike (note to self- sabotaging hot water heaters = more outside time). Anyway, eventually the people decided it was time to start grilling out since it was going to be hours before anyone could take a shower. Let me tell you, the grill smelled so good! Food Guy was grilling these gigantic pork chops that Rin had marinated earlier in the day. I sat there doing my best good dog impression and gave Food Guy my best I'm SO HUNGRY face but he still wouldn't give me a pork chop- someone really needs to talk to him about the no people food thing. I did manage to snag some people food from Rin, but I ended up throwing it up. Not a good thing to do when you're trying to make a case for getting to eat people food once in a while. 

Anyway, after the people ate all their good food, they played this crazy card game. It's called Dirty Clubs. It's kind of like Spades, but the person that loses has to do the forfeit. The forfeit for this game was the famous "PowerNut" which consists of taking 6 hot Krispy Kreme donuts, mashing them together, and eating them like a Big Mac. 

Poor Justin lost. So all the people loaded up in cars and headed to the QT to obtain some donuts. Justin cruised through the first half of his forfeit, but Food Guy said he looked like he was hating it for the last few bites. Hopefully he hasn't gone into a diabetic coma.

New Year's Ended with another plumbing commodity at Reeve and Rin's. Food Guy and Reeve started doing the dishes when the sink decided it didn't want to drain anymore. I tried to tell the Food Guy that this wouldn't have happened if he let me lick all the plates clean, but I interrupted myself by throwing up the food Rin had snuck me earlier. Not too convenient. Anyway Reeve and Food Guy spent most of the day trying to sort out the plumbing issues. They didn't have much luck. 

The first good news of the day was the Dawgs win at the Capital One Bowl. I was pretty happy to watch the boys take care of business and beat the Spartans. I wasn't too happy the my boy AJ Green didn't get to break the 1000 yd receiving mark, but we won. All in all not a bad year considering all the injuries we had this season. Like  I said before, I'm pretty sad that football's over. But I got some pretty sweet christmas presents from Jen, Zozo, and Sug. On our way home, Food Guy and I stopped by to visit them. I got a brand new bone with dead animal still on it and everything. It is so good. I chewed on it for most of the night. Then I played with the Yellow Baby that they gave me until I was so tired I fell asleep. 

All in all it was a pretty good start to 2009. Good times with good friends, a W for my Dawgs and some good presents. 2008 was a pretty good year, but I'll bet 2009 will be even better.