LIFE'S BETTER IN THE MOUNTAINS

Friday, October 19, 2018

We Love Lucy

Lucy continues to be more active and seems to feel much better on the new medication.  It's an anti-inflammatory, similar (or perhaps identical) to one used for human arthritis and is worth every penny of its high cost.  She is clearly a more comfortable and happier dog.

We live in the woods and are used to wildlife of all sorts.  But we recently got a real surprise.  A black bear inside our garage!  We bring all our bird feeders into the garage every evening at dusk and put them in a closed container.  Some spilled birdseed had not been swept up and this bear walked between our two vehicles to get to the seeds.  Imagine my husband's surprise when he opened the door to the garage and saw the bear.  My husband made a loud noise, slapping the wall and the bear took off as fast as he could.  In an extremely frightening second, Lucy took out after the bear.  Fortunately the bear had a head start and Lucy quickly ran out of steam.  I shudder to think what might have happened had the bear turned around to face Lucy.  It all happened so fast my husband simply shouted at Lucy to come back.

Thank goodness it was a rather small bear, likely one whose mother had "kicked" him out in order to care for her younger cubs and prepare for the winter's new ones.  It seems this was its first encounter with humans so we are ever so glad it was very frightened.  Our new habit is to close the garage door at 4:30, and it will be earlier as the dusk comes earlier.  Obviously we are more careful to pick up any stray seeds that may have fallen.


Lucy looks pretty gentle to be a bear dog.


In our continued plan to make our home safer as we age, we are having decorative (but functional) fencing placed by the stone steps and walk you see in the photograph.  We already have a metal railing that lines the stones steps going from the back of the house down into the woods.

Early voting has begun here in North Carolina.  So it is appropriate that today's quote should be about voting.  It is a quote from Franklin Delano Roosevelt and was accurate for its time.  Sadly, it is no long correct.  And for that we can blame the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) and gerrymandering.  And it is a shame.

Nobody will ever deprive the American people of the right to vote except the American people themselves and the only way they could do this is by not voting.

Today we are seeing other ways to deprive Americans the right to vote.  If you haven't been keeping up, read about the voter suppression in Georgia, and in the Dakotas.  The SCOTUS opened the door for such massive last-minute changes to the voting process.  (And that was even before Kavanaugh was seated.)  Polling places have abruptly been changed, and many have been closed.  Registration requirements for absolutely identical information have been invoked.  (If you used a middle initial, your information must also include that initial.  Even an extra space between names could invalidate the information.)  In some areas university students were told how to register as residents of the town where they go to school.  Now those requirements have changed and those students who followed the instructions will no longer be registered.  They will have to reapply consistent with the new regulations.

All of these maneuvers are designed to make it harder for people to vote.  And every singe one of them are in GOP-held areas and are much more likely to affect the Democrat voters.  Surely you can see the unfairness of this even if you are a Republican yourself.

So it's up to us.  We cannot afford to miss this opportunity to exercise our rights to vote.  Vote early if you can.  Offer to drive a neighbor who might not otherwise be able to get to the polls.

HAVE A WONDERFUL WEEK, EVERYONE

VOTE AS SOON AS YOU CAN

16 comments:

Barbara Rogers said...

Oh my, what a surprise to have a bear so close. Glad that Lucy and bear didn't interact...and so happy to hear that she's having relief from arthritis. I've already voted... was 10th in line at the library yesterday...and was done in 15 min. including the line time. So good to have the line going out the door! A word to North Carolina voters...the state constitutional amendments are not to the benefit of anyone but the GOP legislators.

Pudge450 said...

Just curious. How do the issues you mentioned relate uniquely to Democrats rather than Republicans?

NCmountainwoman said...

Pudge450 - Welcome. The issues relate to Democrats because the voters that are being disenfranchised are predominantly in strong Democrat areas. And in each case, the prohibitions are being brought about by Republican governors, or State legislators. In Georgia particularly, the GOP candidate for governor (Brian Kemp) currently holds the office of Secretary of State for Georgia. That office is responsible for election oversight. So the candidate himself is able to make changes that benefit his party and reduce the number of Democrats voting. In the Dakotas, the Native Americans are now required to have a unique address whereas before a PO Box or the reservation address was sufficient. Some 22 days before the election, they are now required to have a street address and none of the streets on the reservations are numbered. These voters are largely Democrats.

Cheryl said...

I am so pleased that Lucy's medication is working.
I am now thinking this may just be an issue with Nella.
Next vets visit I will make enquiries.

Wow I cannot for one moment imagine having a bear in the garage. Thank goodness Lucy was ok. I always worry about Nella and wildlife as I know she would give chase and not give up. I always am concerned she may not find her way back.

I love your stepping stones, beautiful.

Politics :(

The Bug said...

I'm so glad the medication is working for Lucy! But I'm also glad she wasn't able to catch that bear - sheesh!

I voted on Wednesday & had my drivers license all ready to give the person at the desk. However, she didn't need to see it. I wonder if it's because I'm not a person of color? Makes me twitchy!

Anonymous said...

Really glad to know that the arthritis medication is working. Makes me wonder if I should consider something like that when my back pain finally gets unbearable (it's on its way). And, what a wild story about a bear in your garage! Wow. That's one close encounter that would really shock me. Glad it all worked out. Ah, the quote. What a time we are living in that people are working really hard to stop other people from voting. Sigh.

Arkansas Patti said...

What a surprise in your garage. So glad Lucy wasn't able to challenge the bear. Not a fair fight. Very pleased that her meds are working so well.
The voting changes are frightening. Here we have an issue on the ballot requiring photo ID. I am voting no. We not only have to worry about out politicians but also hackers. I might ask for a paper ballot this year. Sigh.

Kay G. said...

A bear! That is scary. I will do early voting next week but I l ice in Georgia and I go by my middle name. Wonder if they will let me vote!? My license has my full name, first and middle but I have always voted with my middle name. Guess I will find out.

Busy Bee Suz said...

I'm so happy about Lucy feeling better and NOT having a face to face with the bear. I can't even imagine finding one in my garage....sounds like it all worked out and you've learned to do even more than before as far as seed/safety goes.
I'll be voting as will everyone in our family.

Nance said...

I already voted on Friday, and my son went with me. I also have volunteered to send personal letters urging irregular voters in pivotal OH districts to vote--those are written and ready to send!* This midterm election is so, so crucial!

Your bear story was such a surprise! Glad it ended well. Goodness!


*If anyone wishes to volunteer in this effort in their state, please do at VoteForward.com

Beatrice P. Boyd said...

Glad the meds are helping Lucy’s arthritis, but still glad she wasn’t able to catch up with that surprise intruder. Yes, a good reminder to get out and vote as we will be doing here in Nashua next Tuesday.

KB said...

Wow, Lucy the Bear Dog! I'm glad that she ran out of steam before getting close.

I have my ballot, and I'll be voting very soon. The attempts to reduce voter turn-out and to ratchet up immigrant fear are despicable.

Vicki Lane said...

Oh, my! A bear in the garage! We haven't had bears near the house (to my knowledge) but I know they're on the mountain. So glad Lucy didn't catch it.

Lowcarb team member said...

So pleased that the medication prescribed for Lucy is helping her.
Scary finding a bear in your garage!

All the best Jan

Goldendaze-Ginnie said...

I've already voted. Like yours, my blog is not usually centered around politics but this year I feel it critical to highlight what is going on. Trump has declared he is a Nationalist … does he not know that Hitler was a nationalist or is that his real aim? Extremely scary.
(also scary … Lucy and the bear. So glad she turned back when your husband called.)

NCmountainwoman said...

Thanks for your comments, everyone.

Barbara - Amen to the amendments. Even the ex-GOP governors are opposed.

Pudge 450 - I responded to your comment before. Glad to have your input.

Cheryl - It is unusual for Lucy to chase any wildlife. I think she sensed my husband's panic and decided to defend him. Hope you find relief for dear Nella.

Bug - Glad you were able to vote already. I don't think they are checking IDs yet.

Robin - I also have pretty bad back pain from compression fractures due to the chemotherapy. Because I have a history of a bleeding ulcer, I was warned only to take acetaminophen. It really did not work so well, so I decided to take ibuprofen anyway. I told my doctor I'd rather bleed out again than have all this pain. It works ever so much better and I do take it only with food and I also take Prevacid to help prevent another ulcer. There just comes a time when relief of the pain consumes your thoughts and you need some relief, even if it's only to get the pain to a tolerable level. Good luck.

Patti - I am very worried not only about the voting changes, but also the tampering of machines. Here in NC we have had at least one instance in which Democrat votes were changed by the machine to Republican candidates. When the voter notified the supervisor, they noted other changes and shut the machine down. Makes one wonder how many other machines have been affected.

Kay - We all have heard the horrible stories from your state. And it makes me so angry that the Supreme Court seems perfectly fine. If you are refused, demand a provisional ballot.

Suz - Yes, we know we live among the bears, but we didn't figure on one in the garage. Kudos to your voting family.

Nance - Glad you are helping out. Thanks to you and all the other volunteers.

Beatrice - Thanks. I'm not sure she has ever seen a bear up close.

KB - Yes, we were lucky the bear was young and afraid. And fast. The only other wildlife Lucy has ever chased was a turkey. We were hiking in the woods and she took off like a flash. I was terrified the turkey would not find an open space to get airborne but he did. Thank goodness.

Vicki - Our house is on a cul-de-sac street that ends at a lake. And we have a creek at the back of our property so it is not uncommon for us to see a bear wander. But we've never had one in the garage before. Needless to say, the garage gets closed well before dusk nowadays.

Jan - It was indeed a surprise. Thank goodness my husband thought to make a lot of noise.

Ginnie - Yes, this is a very scary election year. I have more or less resigned myself to the fact that all the interference and cheating going on will result in the GOP keeping both houses of Congress. And that makes me sad.