Happy Birthday, Chamberlain!

The Birthday Boy turns 13 today
(Sorry about the hat buddy... )

A Rough Morning for the Old Boy

During our nearly-daily post-getting-Chloe-on-the-bus-in-the-morning walk, I noticed Chamberlain take a step and then wobble for a brief moment, but then kept on chugging along.  When we got back to the house, though, a light trail of blood made me wonder if there was something more to that wobble.  It was then that I noticed that the dew claw on his front left leg was practically torn off.  I blotted the area as best I could (and as much as he would allow) then had him lay on his bed to let him, literally, lick his wound.

Chamberlain and his new accessories

A couple of minutes later, I checked on him and noticed he completely removed his dew claw, and there were a couple decent-sized blotches of blood on his bed.  I called the vet to give them the heads up we were heading down, secured some paper towels to his paw with rubber bands, got him in the car, and headed down to the vet.  It was there he was outfitted with that ever-so-stylish cone and bandage for his paw, and given an antibiotic. 

As if the dew claw incident wasn't enough, the vet also check Chamberlain's heart (he has a murmur) and based on that examination, the vet felt it was time to add a diuretic and venous dilator added to the Ol' Boy's daily cocktail of drugs.

A Quick Recap, and a Funny Incident Involving a "C"

Yes, I know there's been another gap of substantive posts from me (not that I consider our wedding anniversary "unsubstantial") but when things get busy, the blog takes a seat on the back burner.  But, because of a funny little incident this morning, I thought I'd bang out some words to give a quick update on things, and finish up with this morning's incident.

Finishing up the
TT in Steamboat

 - I'm still biking and racing, though my racing season comes to an end this month.  I was in a stage race in Steamboat Springs over labor day weekend.  It started out well (5th out of 43 in the TT) but the wheels came off on the following days... I had to avoid 2 crashes in the crit, and flatted going over some RR tracks in the road race.  It clearly wasn't my weekend to complete the race, so I DNF-ed.  Despite that disappointment, I'm very happy with my TT performance and place.  I'm currently taking part in a 4-week TT race series, the first was last Thursday.  Continuing the "luck" from Steamboat, I dropped a chain at the start and lost about 40"... I finished 12th out 23, but would have come in around 5th or 6th had I had a smooth start.

Chloe before her 1st
soccer match

 - Chloe's been in school about a month already and really enjoys her teacher.  Her fall soccer season started as well, and has played 2 games already.  She's playing well (though still has some "picking daisies" lapses), and seems more comfortable in the "defense" positions.
 - Peggy's work is going well, and, as anticipated during these first couple of months with her new company, has her traveling a lot lately. (I'm estimating that between July24th and today, we've been together as a family for 3 weeks.... some of it is her travel, some of that is my time in France.)  But, we knew this would be the case so it's not a complete shock.  She really enjoys her new colleagues and role, so that makes it a lot easier for her (and us) to deal with the separation.

 - And finally, Chamberlain, the seldom-mentioned member of the family... he's doing well, and is the subject of this morning's "incident."  I took him with me as I walked Chloe to the bus stop.  Once she boarded and departed, I continued to walk with him around the neighborhood for a bit.  We were walking on a sidewalk, when up ahead of us, I, and he, noticed a rabbit sitting along a fence.  He kept an eye on it as we got closer, and when we got to about 15 feet of it, it took off in front of us and across the street. 
     I fully expected to have a tug-o-war on my hands.  But instead, I watched Chamberlain watch the rabbit run, and then watched him walk over to the fence to where the rabbit was sitting and take a leak!

A Post of Posts

I know it's been a while since I put anything up here, so rather than go back and create separate posts for events in the past, I'm using this post to highlight some of the recent goings on.

- I know writing about money is not the best way to lead off, but I wanted to make sure if one thing got read on this post, this item would. Next month, Chloe and I are participating in a fundraising event to benefit a local charity that provides services to families in medical crisis. (You may recall I did this last year, too, whereby I had my head shaved.) Chloe obviously won't be getting her head shaved (I will, though), but is looking to get it cut pretty short (for her) and, remembering this event from last year, wanted to tie her haircut to fundraising for this nonprofit. So, if you are so inclined to help her fundraising efforts, please visit https://shop.therewithcare.org/donate.asp to begin the donation process.

NOTE: On the final "check out" page (where billing information is entered), there's a section to personalize the transaction. To make sure your donation is attributed to Chloe, choose "On Behalf of" for the "Dedication" field, and enter "Chloe Schrammel - Give Hair with Care" for the "Name of person being honored" field.

And on behalf of Chloe, thanks your consideration and support.

- Chloe's Spring Soccer season kicked off a couple of weeks ago, and to date she and her teammates have played 3 games. The most notable change this season -- other than Chloe's marked improvement in skills due to her European training [hah!] -- is the renaming of the team. The now-former moniker of "Banana Bees" was in use for several seasons and there was a groundswell of support in the ranks to change it. So, after a round or two of voting, the girls voted to call themselves the "Fire Pickles."
Name change aside, Chloe's been playing well thus far and, to borrow an ice hockey phrase, put the biscuit in the basket at last week's game. She and her teammates have been lucky this spring season as all games thus far have been played in decent weather. In previous years, it was common for games to be either postponed due to snow or played in pretty cold conditions. With April upon us, everyone is hoping we've dodged that bullet and play the remainder of the season in decent weather. But, with Colorado weather being what it is, one can never fully tell.

- Chamberlain recently celebrated the completion of his 12th year on this earth. And by celebrated, I mean ate a huge chew stick and dined on a fair amount of cooked ground beef. And then proceeded to have an upset stomach for the next 36 hours. That short period of nastiness aside, he's in good health and trotting along just fine.

- Peg's work situation is about to change. It's been a struggle for a long time for her to come to some understanding with some powers-that-be about what precisely her role is, how much autonomy she has over the practice area she was hired to lead, and how much trust and respect she has from some supervisors. Long story short, some in organization treated her as if she had little autonomy, leaving her feeling disrespected and not trusted. It became a pretty big quality of life issue and as we're prone to say "Life's too short..." and she gave notice.
Not surprisingly, though -- especially to yours truly -- she's been approached by 2 companies already about possible senior management positions with them. And the kicker is she hasn't begun in earnest a search for a new job... these were unsolicited inquiries.

- As for me, well, I'm about to kick off yet another bike racing season this weekend with a time trial, so I get to use my new "horse." I'm also still dealing with some post-UK-bike-accident residuals. I unfortunately had to enlist the help of a lawyer to file a claim for damages resulting from my bike crash last September. Plus, the chap who knocked me over is being charged with "driving without due care" and I've been given notice that I might be asked to appear in court. Ugh. As much as I am a fan of justice, I must admit I am doing my best to not have to go... I have a feeling I'd spend more time waiting in line at airport security than I would in the witness stand.

That's it for now... I hope you enjoyed this quick recap.

The Birthday Boy

Chamberlain turns 11 (or 77) today!

The ol' boy is in pretty good shape for his age. He had a recent check-up at the vet, and the vet was very glad to see how he was doing... his weight is good (often a concern of beagles as they advance in years) and is showing pretty good mobility/flexibility (despite what the vet thinks are pretty screwed up rear knees... he thinks Chamberlain had two previously undiagnosed minor ligament tears in each leg!), and the leaky heart valve detected several months ago doesn't seem to be any worse.

We did, however, have to start Chamberlain on some anti-seizure medicine. He's had sporadic seizures for the last couple of years, so the vet said it was time to put him on phenobarbital to make sure the seizures don't become tragically worse.

We're All a Little Bit Excited Today

For it's not everyday one closes on a house!

This morning, while Chloe was at school, Peggy and I put a lot of ink to paper and got keys to our new home. The house is in the same neighborhood as our current rental, just about 1/2 mile northwest (had we been in the new house in January, we would have the equivalent of 3rd row seats for the wildfire!)

We'll be moving as much stuff as we can ourselves via many carloads over the next 10 days, and then have movers coming on the 26th to take the big and/or heavy stuff up.

I know such an occasion would probably warrant a bigger write-up, but I thought I would let some video clips convey how excited we are.

Here are our first steps inside our new home after closing...

Chloe checks out our new home after school...

He's 10 (or 70-ish)

Ten years ago Chamberlain was born, crooked tail and all. He's received a few more bumps and lumps since then -- and quite a bit more white on the muzzle -- but overall he's been a great pet and member of the family (despite his affinity for chewing on things that you and I put in the waste basket.) We weren't able to celebrate properly due to the yucky weather (yup, more snow today), but we did make a special meal for him... about 3/4 pound's worth of stew meat ended up in his bowl.

*** I just noticed that another post about Chamberlain on 3/20/09 was never published. It is now, and has a picture of him. ***

Mandarin and Minty Fresh

It's been awhile since I put anything up about Chamberlain. And chances are, the last time I did was probably well after his last bath. So this morning, the boy was due for a new scent... the accumulation of dog-funk over the last several months was getting to be a bit much.

I didn't have any luck finding his shampoo, so I delved into Peg's stash of little bottles of "spa" shampoos and lathered him up with Mandarin and Mint. He sat pretty well for the exercise, and not surprisingly, a lot of dirt and hair came out (I spared you a picture of the "ring" around the tub after I drained the water.)

While I thought it was worthwhile and not done with malice, Chamberlain apparently have revenge on his mind: shortly after I put him outside to shake himself dry, he began to roll around in the dirt and grass.

Chamberlain vs. A Cougar

As has been posted before, cougars (a.k.a. mountain lions, pumas, panthers) are not foreign to Boulder. In fact, earlier today there was another incursion. A baby mountain lion had been trapped in a neighborhood not too far away from both our home and Chloe's school, and the mother was believed to still be at large. Neighbors were advised by the Division of Wildlife to keep their children and animals inside.

While we acknowledge the situation is one not be shrugged off, it nonetheless got Peggy and I wondering how things would transpire if Chamberlain ever crossed paths with a cougar (and I'm not talking about Demi Moore.) Peggy thought Chamberlain's loud howling would dissuade the cat from advancing, but that if it did get within striking distance, he could hold his own.

I thought differently. I reflected back on the several run-ins he had with my parents' Abyssinian cat, Scooter. Scooter was (maybe) 8 pounds, but packed A LOT of fury into his little paws when 35 pound Chamberlain came to visit. Despite being undersized and weighing considerably less, Scooter beat the snot out of Chamberlain every single time, and would even sometimes attack him as he was retreating with his tail between his legs, just to get in a couple of more good swats for good measure. So, with that as my reference point, I thought that if Chamberlain ever did tangle with a cougar, I guess the best I could hope for is that he would somehow channel some of Scooter's fury and put up a good fight.

Christmas & New Year's Recap

All of the excitement from last week has passed, allowing me to a quick recap of what we were up to from late-December to early-January.

On the 30th, we got an early jump on the day as we needed to drop Chamberlain off at the "spa" before making our way to the airport to fly back East. For late December, it was a warm day (temps in the low 50s at 8a) but a particularly windy day. I didn't count how many, but I ran over several tumbleweeds on the way to the airport. The same winds that made the drive to the airport such a challenge proved to be pretty helpful once airborne — we took off about 25 minutes late, but the nice tailwind allowed us to land on time in Philly.

It was then up to the Lehigh Valley area to visit family and friends for the next several days. Some of the "friends" we had yet to see; namely, the 3 female beagle puppies from a litter born about 2.5 months ago. (Pictured to the right is Chloe holding TomBo Chloe's Princess.) Despite occasional pleas from some in our party, we came back to Colorado with the same number of dogs we went to Pennsylvania with. We did, however, come back to Colorado with well-founded hopes that we'll be getting more visitors out here in the months ahead... awesome! Come on out folks!

January 5th was notable for 2 reasons: 1) it was our last day visiting in PA for this trip, and 2) it was Peggy's last day of her "sabbatical." On the 6th, she became "Peggy Schrammel, Vice President - Registries and Post Approval Development, United BioSource Corporation." What's her job? I'm not 100% sure, but I think, based on the title, that part of it has something to do with helping soon-to-be-married couples pick out everyday stemware at Crate and Barrel.

On morning of the 7th, it was back to the routine for everyone: Peggy slapping the snooze once before going downstairs to get her cup of coffee and start work in her home office; me trying to dislodge Chloe from her bed so she can get moving and eventually/hopefully catch the bus; and Chamberlain following me around, anticipating a visit to the dog park.

Playtime for All!

Peggy's just 4 days into her "sabbatical" and to be honest with you, I've seen less of her now then when she was working from home. Today's adventure took her and Chamberlain hiking just North of Lyons, CO (which is about 13 miles north of Boulder). They did about 6 miles on mostly-snow-covered trails, not seeing a single soul all day, unless you count the 15 or so deer. (Interesting sidenote: the one trail they took is called Sleeping Lion Trail, and it got its name from a mountain lion that used to take a 45 minute nap there.) Unfortunately, the battery on the point and shoot petered out and she wasn't able to get pix of Mt. Meeker and Longs Peak. But she was able to get a picture of Chamberlain in the snow (right).

But, Peggy and Chamberlain weren't the only ones to have some outdoor fun today. Chloe and I were invited to join her friend Clay and his mom for some ice skating after school. It was the first time skating for both Chloe and Clay... each took their fair share of falls, the worst of which was less than 30 seconds before stepping off the ice to leave. But considering they've never tried to balance and propel themselves on two narrow slivers of steel, both did very well. Perhaps another Torvill and Dean in the making? Luckily, I recharged the battery on the point and shoot and was able to take some pix. (Right: Clay and Chloe waiting for the Zamboni to clear the ice.)

Another family hike

KnPnCnC took advantage of yet another unseasonably warm day (temp in the mid/upper 50s) and headed to NCAR (National Center for Atmospheric Research), which is located in southwest Boulder. The destination: Mallory Cave. The distance: 1.1 miles O/W. The elevation gain: 920 feet.

For a good part of the year (from April 1 to October 1) entrance into Mallory Cave is closed in order to protect the Townsend's big-eared bat, a species of bat that uses the cave as a breeding place. The first part of trail has an interpretative section, with signage along the way informing readers about local weather patterns. One little nugget we picked up from this section of trail was that West Boulder gets, on average, 20 more inches of snow per year than East Boulder. (If you're a weather nut and/or would like to pick up some other little nuggets on regional Boulder weather, visit this site.) Once past the interpretive section, it was pretty normal hiking... rocks, trees, the occasional view of Denver, and Chamberlain sniffing EVERYTHING. Eventually, we got to a place in the trail where dogs were allowed to be off-leash, and Chamberlain looked like a pup again (whitening face aside.)

The final approach to the final approach (you read that right) was unlike any other we've seen... the trail became a series of multiple short switchbacks, many of which were less than 20 feet in length, as it worked its way up between two huge slabs of pink sandstone. Once done with the switchbacks, we saw the final approach to the cave... a 50-foot vertical scramble up a sandstone slab.

Considering she had never done anything like this, Peggy and I were surprised with Chloe's enthusiasm for scrambling up it. This wasn't like her time in the rock gym where there were ropes and helmet... one misstep here could lead to a pretty good "ouchy." With Chamberlain along, we knew it wouldn't be in his best interest to attempt the scramble, so Peg stayed behind. (Even if he could manage the scramble, who knows what the boy would get himself into in a cave where bat guano might be aplenty.)

So up Chloe and I went, her first with me close behind, pointing out where to put hands and feet, and putting myself in position to act as a net if need be. Thankfully, that part of my service went unused. In fact, she did GREAT! Grabbing and pulling and pushing and squeezing her way up to the top, and not thinking much of it. As we got to the cave, we realized we left the flashlight with Peggy, but no matter as the bats were gone and it was basically one large chamber and not really much else to explore. Now it was time to explain to Chloe that there's another half to the challenge of visiting the cave: getting back down the steep 50-foot slab.

So, now in reverse order (and me still preserving the roles of hold pointer and net) down we went. In order to keep her close to the slab and leaning back, we spent a lot of time on the descent scooting along on our butts. Chloe commented at one point, "It's just like going down a slide!" I didn't feel it was right to tell her there weren't cushioning wood chips awaiting us at the bottom if we started sliding, though. Just like her performance ascending, she did a great job coming back down... finding places to put her hands and feet so she can lower herself down and control her own weight. It was a great achievement for our 5 year old (and a pretty proud moment for Peggy and I), and one that I put up there with her learning how to ride a bike. Chloe was so bolstered by her performance that once we got back down with Peggy and Chamberlain, it didn't take long for her to start giving pointers to other hikers contemplating making the scramble!

As we started making our way down the switchbacks, it became apparent that Chamberlain took the time waiting for Chloe and I to return to recharge his batteries. No sooner do we get past the first couple of switchbacks and he starts running around like a maniac. He goes charging down the trail to play with 2 Blue Heelers and had a display of energy the likes of which neither Peggy nor I have seen in a while.

By the time we got back to the car, Chamberlain's energy had waned, but Chloe's was pretty solid, for she knew the next stop was an ice cream shop. (Thanks Yardley friends... we finally got around to using the Glacier Homemade Ice Cream gift certificate!)

All in all, a great day in Boulder!


We didn't take a camera with us, but here are two pictures by others I found on the web of the final approach to the cave.
http://www.thedenverchannel.com/image/17870669/detail.html
http://picasaweb.google.com/briangbrown/MalloryCave#4994113232388227090

C.C.C.P.

Chloe... reached a mini-milestone recently: She is now tying her own shoes! We were surprised to see how quickly she picked it up. (Insert joke here of her helping her old man how to learn to tie his shoes.) Speaking of Chloe, here's her school picture.

Constitutional Right to Vote... was exercised today by both Peggy and I. We took advantage of the early voting sessions primarily because a) Peggy's going to be traveling on Election Day next week and b) it will hopefully cut back on the phone calls and knocks on the door. In addition to the myriad political and judicial posts up for grabs, there were an additional 23 state/county/city ballot questions. I'm thankful the one question involved making it (slightly) more difficult to get a question put on the ballot.

Chamberlain... I haven't written too much about him lately and, well, that won't change much now. (There's really not much to write about when 80% of his day is spent sleeping.) But with this post is a recent photo of him. Notice how excited he is to be getting a bath?

Philadelphia Phillies: World Series Champs... pretty amazing! I'm not much of a baseball fan, but over the last week or so I found myself watching and rooting for the Phillies more often than I did the whole time when I was in PA. (The fact that the games were over at a decent time here in the MDT time zone helped, too.) I'm happy they won not because I directly get a joy out of it, rather because certain segments of my family are huge fans and I know they directly will. (Go to the parade, Mom and Eric... it'll be fun!)

Beagle stuff

Chamberlain was due for a teeth cleaning, so Peg took him in this morning. For the uninitiated, getting a dog's teeth cleaned is not as simple as telling the dog to smile and then taking a Sonicare to the pearly whites. There's an IV, general anesthesia, morphine and, because Chamberlain has a heart murmur, an EKG involved.

Everything went well, and Peg picked him up in the afternoon. He was still pretty groggy and not stabilizing himself or focusing real well, but he was mobile. He was discharged with the usual care instructions -- limited food for several hours, not a lot of activity, etc. We were also given one warning from the vet: "Dogs who have had morphine administered earlier in the day sometimes wake up howling at night. If this happens to Chamberlain, it's nothing to worry about... he's not hurt or in pain. He's just coming down off his trip." We're hoping for a quiet night.

And while I'm on the topic of beagles, I thought I'd post this link that my brother sent to me. It's pretty amazing... but does give me pause as to why, given what that beagle can do, Chamberlain, well, makes the dietary choices he does sometimes.

"My (Dog's) Name is Earl" and the weather

I know I just wrote about Chamberlain, but I just had to post again about today's trip to the dog park. Before I go any further, though, which picture is a picture of Chamberlain and Earl? Only if you guessed "Both" would you be right. In the top picture, Earl is a Wheaton Terrier (foreground) and as you might suspect, isn't as keen as the Earl in the bottom picture of having Chamberlain on his lap.

Based on recent temperature observations, one could easily say "It's summertime." For example, yesterday's high was 91 degrees. And based on recent temperature forecasts, one could say "It's summertime in Boulder." Tomorrow's high is to be around 55 degrees, with possible snow flurries in higher elevations. I better tune up the skis!

Some news on Chamberlain

So far, the old boy is adjusting well to city life. Perhaps the biggest adjustment he had to make was getting used to the new size of his outdoor empire: he went from having about 2/3 of an acre to roam around to about 350 sq. ft. Thankfully, there's a dog park that's about a 7-10 minute walk away, so Chloe and I usually take him over there several times a week. Occasionally, he thinks he rules that, too, so it's fun to watch when another dog put's him in his place. We also take him with us to the neighborhood park and playground whenever we take Chloe there, and more often than not there are dogs there for him to play with. (Picture: Chloe filling the doggie fountain for Chamberlain at the dog park.)