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That Oddball is in the air and Jasper locks on, waiting for just the right moment to spring up and nab it out of the air. The anticipation is palpable.
...and his name was Jasper. A visit to Boyce Thompson Arboretum over the weekend. Jasper waiting for me to get a move on, while looking extra fluffy
An impromptu portrait as Jasper and I enjoyed a little outdoor time while Jean (my wife) finished up with piano lessons.
We celebrated Jasper's 12th birthday last weekend and we took him to the Riparian Preserve at Water Ranch for his birthday walk. He loves that place with all of its smells. It was a very nice peaceful sunrise walk
Most Saturdays we try to walk someplace other than our own neighborhood. Sometimes we just choose a random neighborhood. This past weekend we came across a mesquite tree with a rather horizontal trunk that just begged to be posed upon.
Having herded all the cattle to the back 40, Jasper surveys his ranch, proud of the work he's done. It's the life of a working dog breed
Jasper stands sentry in the neighborhood. Rest assured no rogue critters will penetrate his defenses
Well, there's a street and a light pole and some buildings in the shot, but at least Jasper nailed his role.
The 'Aussie Magic' charter yacht.
On Sydney harbour last Saturday afternoon.
Saturday 1st July, 2023.
Photographed from the Blues Point Reserve.
Blues Point. Near McMahons Point.
At the end of Blues Point Road.
My Canon EOS 5D Mk IV with the Canon EF 75-300mm f/4-5.6L lens
Processed in Adobe Lightroom and PhotoPad Pro by NCH software.
A Legacy 'Candy' filter from the Flickr Photo Editor.
A nice afternoon walk at the Riparian Preserve found us at Pond 6, Jasper greeting folks from a safe social distance.
Jasper got 3 toys for Christmas. A monkey. A new Oddball. And this guy, Wuffy the wolf with six pack abs (kind of like me 😉) Wuffy brings out Jasper's inner wolf - tough and ferocious - the enforcer. Guess our home is safe 😉. We got in some good play on Christmas. Jasper was literally trembling with excitement about his gifts. He kept charging the camera so none of the videos worked out.
Watching TV in the evening, if one of us gets up, Jasper is at full attention, certain (or perhaps ever hopeful) that something wonderful and fun is about to happen. Sometimes its even true 😁
Sometimes Jasper takes it upon himself to take up the neighborhood watch, looking for ne'er-do-wells. This time hiding in the lantana flowers.
"Yes, Mother? Of course. Anything you say" Oh Jasper can pour on the charm and sincerity if he thinks there's a play or treat reward at stake. Who would not believe this face sincere?
(once again, the lens shown is wrong. I shot this with a Sigma 50mm f 1.4)
While on shrubbery patrol, Jasper needs to remain alert, ready to slay any would-be dragons lurking in our neighborhood.
This is Cal (Short for Calvados) who lives with my sister-in-law (Jean's sister) in Wisconsin. We've been getting text messages with pictures of Jasper from our pet sitter every day, but it was nice to visit Cal and get a bit of an Aussie fix. He's actually Jasper's blood-nephew, a big fluffy, goofy boy. Click on Cal's eyes to zoom in and see his poly-chromatic (multi-colored) eyes. Merry Christmas!
Last evening we had a bit of a monsoon roll through. Jasper heard it and went over to the patio door to check it out. I said to him, "You don't want to go out there buddy. It's coming down pretty hard." But he insisted he go out. Jasper does not like to get wet at all so I thought he'd just go out onto the patio which is covered. But no, he ran out into the yard and did a quick dash before coming back to the patio and shaking it out. From then on, I kept singing … If you like piña coladas, and gettin' caught in the rain (Rupert Holmes Escape song reference)
This is baby Sheriff, he's a 12 month old mini aussie, he loves to play all day long but also loves to give hugs. It's very hard for him to stand still for more than a few seconds since he has so much energy but we're working on it. He's just a goofy puppy that always puts a smile on my face
Big Welcome to all new members and welcome back to all the regular members I've gotten to know throughout my projects
Prowling the jungles of Phoenix, Jasper spies unsuspecting prey within striking distance. Or so the fantasy goes.
Jasper has been assigned the dawn shift. There have been reports of bunnies scurrying around the neighborhood overnight. We have to nip this problem in the bud!
Jasper checking out the neighborhood just after Sunday sunrise.
For some reason Sunday mornings are special for Jasper. It's the one day of the week that I take him on his morning "walk" alone. I put that in quotes because on Sundays, and only on Sundays, Jasper wants to run. We sprint the first block and then jog the rest of the way. 3 miles (4.8 km). I know I could insist on walking instead, but he gets so excited and seems to love it so much. So on Sundays we both get a little extra exercise.
Jasper is always such a considerate dog, making sure I have toys to play with should the urge arise 😁
Jasper employs this look of melancholy yearning to get his human's off their butts to play. Which of course we do. You can see his toy, Penny Puppy, has a bit of a slit throat. But she's still a player
After quite a bit of play last night I just had to ignore Jasper's taunts for even more play. So he went back by his toy stash to sulk. The poor lad never gets any attention 😜
Fun times in the back yard. Jasper loves his Oddball and we are out playing with it on a daily basis. Not sure what the Oddball rules are, but I am sure that Jasper always wins.
Early dogs lived in caves with their humans and fashioned toys from stones and sticks found in their environment.
OK, Jasper isn't really a Cro-Magnon dog. But we found this rock cave-like thing and decided it would be a fitting story. Having not been born yesterday, we did not venture passed the entrance. We live in a place where there are rattlesnakes and other creepy crawly stuff. Who knows what dangers lurk in there. This cave is at the end of the Hieroglyphic Canyon.
Jasper is sort of a self-appointed neighborhood watchdog. Don't want riff raff to sneak in and do evil
Jasper took a moment to contemplate life in the demonstration gardens at Boyce Thompson Arboretum. It's a really beautiful part of the park and a wonderful place to take a rest. Despite living his entire life in the desert with lots of prickly stuff Jasper has had very few issues with cacti.
(Just between us, I don't think he was doing to much contemplation. He was just actively avoiding looking at the camera. Even a modeling pro like Jasper reaches his limit, especially near the end of our visit)
If Jean and I start talking human stuff during playtime, Jasper will just go lay down and wait until we're ready to get our heads back in the game.
Mom is checking sprinkler heads. Dad is reviewing photos on his camera. Come ON humans! This is about ME!
After the play subsides and starts slowing down we humans get distracted by stuff and Jasper doesn't like that. "Well, Jasper, you stopped playing so we thought you were done." "No, I was just taking a breather" replies Jasper. You can see his trusty Oddball on the ground to his right
For whatever reason I'm fascinated by the twisty trunks of the mesquite trees common to our community. Jasper posed for me but was really more interested in passers by than me and my infernal click box
Jasper watching his human mom re-enter the family room. Hope springs eternal that she's bringing a treat or some delightful new toy. Alas, not this time. But we did play some more, so there's that
My happy chappy, checking out the urban wonders of downtown Gilbert, Arizona, the town in which we live. Trivia: Gilbert is the largest town in the United States. Most municipalities get to a certain size and then organize as a city, but Gilbert remains a town. Frankly the difference between a city and a town is lost on me - something to do with voting districts or something. The population of Gilbert is about 250,000, but the downtown has a decidedly small town / home town vibe. The downtown area is only a few blocks long and is lined with eateries, bars and small shops. A lot has been done in the last 10 years to vitalize the downtown to make it a family destination spot. Jasper sure likes it.
Foregoing the ottoman this time, Jasper brought Betty Bunny right to me on the couch. The technique is a little more "in your face" and has greater potential to incite a chase. I'm happy to report that Betty Bunny (that's her between Jasper's paws) is in pretty good shape. She came to us in July on Jasper's birthday and she has no open wounds and hasn't required stitches despite daily play.
(in case you're wondering, no I don't pose Jasper or the toy that way. It's all Jasper's doing)
Jasper out on patrol again, making sure the neighborhood stays safe. He deftly slipped behind this bird of paradise bush to spy on potential wrongdoers . (Yes, I know the bird of paradise plant in Arizona is weird, not looking at all like the "normal" bird of paradise)
Jasper knows that it pays to be a bit paranoid, casting a quick sideways glance to ensure his mom doesn't flank him and steal the OddBall.
We had to do a bit of yardwork on Saturday morning, trimming the bushes and tidying up. Jasper just kept dropping the OddBall in our path. And we'd dutifully pick it up and toss it every time. It does slow work progress a bit, but Jasper believes the primary reason to be in the back yard is to play. None of this "work" nonsense.