Nelsens in Napa

This weekend, the Nelsen ladies convened in Napa for an annual (realistically every 5 years, but hey!) get together. This year, us young ones were invited. This is almost all of us, except for darlin Katiekins who couldn’t make it.

It was a romping good time with good food, good wine
and girlish giggles.And the dynamics were, as always, entertaining. You've got to love family, even if we are all crazy.

Number 20!

I've got another foster, that makes 20 dogs that have come through my house. Amazing huh? This lovely lady is named Belle. She is one giant hunk of burning love, all 95 pounds of her. I call her the Queen Latifa of the dog world because she is big, black, and BEAUTIFUL.

Rub my belly, please?!
This dog is a first (at least for quite some time) in many ways. She is the first girl I've had in ages (unless you count Mrs. Chew, but I only had her for the weekend). She is the first that I can walk on leash without getting pulled across the room, the leash is even slack! She is also the first in quite a while to scare the crap out of me. See, this silly little love tried to kill herself yesterday, got into some rat poison at the greenhouse where I work. A lovely rush to the vet later, after 2 doses of vomit inducer, and 2 ensuing doses of hydrogen peroxide down the gullet (1 dose of either of these usually makes any sane dog heave their guts out), and she still refused to give it up. Guts of steel I guess. We have an antidote, so it isn't the end of the world, but it is seriously expensive, and we aren't even sure she ate the damn stuff (I saw her doing it and grabbed that poor girl, shaking some, if not all out of her mouth).
The good news (ha!) is that I have proof that you can do anything to this dog and she will not hurt you. I stuck my silly hand halfway down her throat to try and make her vomit, and she didn’t even fight. Funny thing. She just desperately wants 2 things: a person to adore and follow everywhere, and food, tons of food (hence the gobbling down of the illicit substance).
I left her in the office when I went out to lunch today, and I've been told that every time someone walked past the office, she howled heartbreakingly. ooooops! It is a good thing she is so easy and well behaved when she is with you, otherwise I would have a very hard time with this dog!

Remember Sammiekins?

I went to the farmer's market this weekend. Ah, what joy to have vegetables! My Darling Sam was there and he remembered me. Almost knowcked me down in his excitement in fact. We got all cuddly, and then? He got adopted! Yea for Sam (sniff sniff for Heather).
This is his new family. I just hope they listened when I told them that he was smart, and don't let him take over their whole household. This dog was terribly lovable... but also one of the most challenging dogs I've had. And man did he know how to manipulate me!

Holy Schnikey!

I just got a crazy birthday present! From my school no less! I got a Dissertation Year Fellowship, to the tune of $20,000! I have to admit, I don't understand why they gave it to me, but no complaints! The only scary thing is, it comes with the expectation that I am done in July 2009. Possible, but just barely! Holy Schnikey

Goodbyes

Well, all good things must end, or so they say. I left Czech yesterday. I just wanted to say thank you to the wonderful girls (and their men) that took such good care of me.

Here is my Darlin Dasa and I

Bara and Vojta

And I finally made it home! After a very long flight, and some amusing encounters with various roving groups of boys... springtime in Davis!

Praha

Ok, I've totally overdone it with pictures here, but we are talking about Prague! You can't show Prague in just a few pictures. I left Daša today (so sad!) and rode the train to Prague to visit Bara. It was an absolutely crazy day. Snow one minute, sun the next. It made pictures chancy, and made the day an adventure.

We started (or at least my decent pictures started) at Orloj, or the Municipality Hall Tower.

It has a really neat astronomical clock that is pretty famousEvery hour it plays a song and puts on a show.

I loved this church, it's called Tynsky Church

all of these pictures were taken from Old Town Square

It's Easter, hence the bizarre tree

Prašna brana, or the gunpowder tower. We climbed to the top of this. it was a crazy narrow spiral staircase that made even me nervous. We were halfway up when we met someone coming down... back down we went, sigh
The view, through a break in the snow: another view of the Tinskey Church



From sun to snow, brrrr

Hradčany (Prague castle)
The Charles Bridge (Karlův most)
the bridge gate
Charles IV. (Karel IV, from around year 1348). this is a view that has made generations of Czech school children snigger

On the other side of old town, headed up to the castle
St. Nicolas Church (Kostel Sv. Mikuláše)
A close up view of the Rennaisance building detail. I still think it is strange.
Prague Castle with St. Vit´s Cathedral (Pražský hrad s Katedrálou Sv. Víta)Katedrálou Sv. Víta
Inside
I loved the stained glass

More around the castle. this area is now mostly the seat of the government.

We went down this path. It was pretty, but scary for me. My fancy hiking boots dont grip so well on wet cobblestone!

Vysehrad (Vyšehrad) is across town, and on top of a hill overlooking the city and the Vltava River. It has a cemetary that holds the remains of numerous famous people. And, it has a lovely view.

Romanic rotunda at Vysehrad

Vysehrad
The Vltava River, from the church

Hugo's project

Remember that little project Daša and I started on our artsy day? Well, it still isn't finished, but it is functional. There are 3 different boards with panels of different climates. Then, Daša and I made little animals that velcro on. The idea is that Hugo can move them around to the different places and learn who goes where. It has been a ton of fun. We need to make more animals still, but isn't it cool?

Update:

Daša and I painted a bunch more animals yesterday. Most of them are still unattached, but they turned out pretty neat.

Ocean creatures Mountain/forest critters
African savanna (the zebra isn't done yet)
JungleDesert
Wetland
Polar

The final panals, with all the animals