Be Careful What You Wish For

Posted on June 19, 2014June 19, 2014 by Dusty Roads

About a month ago, right before I left for my Tennessee vacation I received a promotion at work. I applied with some hesitation because I was in pretty good place. I wasn’t working very hard and I was making an OK salary. I didn’t have to start work until noon and even then I didn’t have a whole lot to do.

I admit, I was a little bored and I wouldn’t mind the chance to earn a bit more money for those extra things but I was also very aware that I am willing to slow down a bit. I was getting quite a bit of subtle pressure to apply along with assurances that once I mastered the learning curve I’d only be working about 4 hours a day.

So I applied and I got it. Yay! It came with a raise and a chance to earn bonuses. It also came with a fast pace and tons more work. After the first week I really wondered if I’d made a mistake. I was really pushing to keep up and more work just kept coming. I never had a chance to learn the ropes. It was sink or swim and I was dog paddling like crazy.

Now, one month into it I’ve begun to see the pattern. I’ve almost got a hold of the crazy workload. None of it is rocket science. I don’t have to be an attorney to do this job. I just need to keep an eye on the calendar, a lot of what I do is time sensitive. But I am busy and that was one of the things I wanted. And yes, I’ve already made some of the bonuses.

The downside is that I’m really busy. I started out supporting 2 agents and have just added one more who is working in another state altogether. So I’m learning the ropes for a different state. Another learning curve.

I find I am mentally tired at the end of the day. My hobbies, which are cerebral, from photography to reading to writing this blog, have taken a back seat. I just can’t concentrate by the end of my shift. I usually end my day chatting with the senior agent and it turns into a giggle fest because we’re both so tired we’re punchy.

So I apologize if these pages suffer. I’m having a blast with the new job but I’m not sure I’ll be keeping up the every day pace of my posts. 🙁 That makes me sad because I really wanted to meet a goal of posting every day but I guess no post is better than a bad post.

I’ll keep trying but forgive me if I miss a day here and there.

Photo of the week – 24

Posted on June 18, 2014June 18, 2014 by Dusty Roads

The dog lovers carried the day. I admit, it’s a pretty cute picture. So this weeks photo of the week with 23 points is Best Friends.

Don’t forget to visit www.dustyroadsphotos.com to get you vote counted.Points for “likes”, “Shares” and comments.

Shhh! It’s a Secret.

Posted on June 17, 2014June 17, 2014 by Dusty Roads

I found a very interesting place but it’s a well kept secret. I’d heard rumors about this place for two years before I found it. My best lead came from a chance encounter on a whale watch last summer. That person had the name of the area but couldn’t give me directions.

Slowly I narrowed down the location. It’s such a secret place that even the state game warden I asked had never heard of it. But I kept looking .Unlike so many conservation areas that are being exploited and over run by humans, this one is still largely undiscovered. Back in March I think I finally found it.

Back then it was snow covered but now it’s a walk in the woods.

I did meet some folks along the way, mostly dog walkers.

As I followed the trail I spotted several lady slippers. Not too close to each other, they prefer to stand solitary.

As I skirted a muddy section of the trail I could tell the trees ahead were thinning and then there it was. My destination.

A huge beaver pond spread out in front of me. The signs of beaver were very apparent.

The trail followed the shore a bit and I spotted the beaver lodge but no beavers.

Dead trees towered above the still water.

Almost every dead tree was crowned with a huge nest and perched in each nest was a blue heron chick. They are about a week from fledgling so they are almost as big as the parents. By next week the sky will be filled with all these young birds testing their wings.

The sound was amazing. The chicks were making a chirping that sounded almost like peepers. There were so many chirping all at once that it was quite loud. When some of the adult birds began to come back to feed them the drop off in the noise level was very noticeable just like the way it gets quieter in a human household when dinner is served.

The surface of the pond was covered with either duck weed or algae, I really couldn’t tell which from my vantage point. A family of geese weaved their way among the dead tree trunks.

What a great find! I hope this place remains a “well kept secret” for a long time to come.

Thumbelina’s Story

Posted on June 16, 2014June 16, 2014 by Dusty Roads

Tiny Thumbelina is a fairy tale; a tiny girl whose adventures include toads , moles and naughty boys. Eventually like all good fairy tales, she finds her true love, a flower-fairy prince just her size.

When Mama goat had a pair of twins this spring there was a tiny surprise, a 3rd sibling but so tiny. Only about 1/3 the size of her brother and sister. She was very weak. The farmer watched closely but long after her siblings were on their feet and nursing the tiny goat-ling just lay in the hay.

It did not look good for the tiny baby. But the farmer was not going to give up so easily. He scooped up the tiny creature who was so small she fit in the palm of his large hands. He gently took her into the house where he cleaned her up and began the long process of hand feeding her.

She needed her mother’s milk with it’s special immunity giving properties so the farmer milked mama so that the littlest goat could have the same nutrition as her bigger brother and sister. It was nip and tuck at first but once the farmer knew his little charge would make it he named her Thumbelina.

By the time Thumbelina was 3 weeks old she was hopping and careening around the yard and head butting the pet dog Bandit. Bandit doesn’t seem to mind and follows the little terror everywhere.

She follows farmer as he goes about his chores. She has clearly bonded with the gentle man who saved her. She is too small for the barnyard so she lives in a child’s playpen in the house as a family pet.

Yes Thumbelina has become a healthy, if tiny, 3 week old kid. She is 6 inches tall and weighs about 4 lbs. It looks like Thumbelina, the pygmy goat, has found her happy ending just like the fairy tale.

Thumbelina is a pygmy goat but tiny even for that breed.

Choices

Posted on June 15, 2014June 15, 2014 by Dusty Roads

I’m sitting here at home relaxing after a crazy day at work. I had the TV on although it was more for background than entertainment. At least that was until I heard the train whistle. I had the station set to PBS and they were running their train special. I wish I could tell you the name of it but I wasn’t paying much attention until they began talking about train rides in Tennessee.

The train ride they featured was the one that left from Etowah. This was the train ride I was originally going to take while I was on vacation. Oh what a difference. Now I understand that PBS sent a professional film crew but oh my. The scenery was far more spectacular than than what I experienced.

The all day trip was only $57.00. My trip was more than $75.00.

So I made the wrong choice when I Chose the Nantahala Gorge over the Hiwassee River Gorge. If I get back to the area I’ll be sure to pick the right train.

It got me feeling philosophical.

Isn’t life all about choices. We make choices all day long from what to wear in the morning to what to do for a career. What college to attend, or even do we go to college.

And when we make those choices we have to deal with the results that inevitably follow. More choices. An endless river of choices.

I don’t know about you but I’ve made more than a few wrong choices so far and I’m sure there are more to come but that just means more choices…endlessly!