This story has a happy ending.

This is my Ryder-Dog. He's been my best friend since I was 13. Last night I called my mother to have a chat and when she answered her "hello" sounded shaky and panicked. I asked her if everything was OK and she gave me the run down of the day.

"Ryder has disappeared. We've searched the house three times over and he isn't anywhere. I left for work and he was on the couch. George called me at 3 and told me the dog was MIA. We have no idea where he is. We think that someone may have opened the door at some point during the day and Ryder escaped."

My first reaction was to freak out. I tried to remain calm and told my mom that people love cocker spaniels. Anyone would stop their car and try to save the lil' guy. Don't freak out until day three...then you're allowed to freak out. We spoke for ten minutes and figured out a game plan. Then I hung up the phone and proceeded to freak out.

Ryder is 16 years old. Although he's pretty darn healthy he is deaf. I began to worry about the cars, weather, bad people...all sorts of stuff. Terrible thoughts ran through my head and I worried that I would never see my best friend again. I was worried that we would never know what happened to him, that we'd all have to live with a horrible mystery.

I cried myself to sleep.

Then morning came. I called my mother and we voiced our insecurities about the situation. We spoke about how amazing Ryder is and how we knew we'd find him. My mother said goodbye and started her day of flyering and shelter visiting.

Two hours later I called my mother to find out how the search was going.

" WE FOUND HIM!"

Ryder did escape from the house. That 16 year old cocker spaniel wandered across several busy intersections and ended up on the other side of town....THREE MILES AWAY! I couldn't believe my ears. Apparently, people called the local shelter and told them about the Ryder sightings. An officer was sent out to pick up my wayward pooch and he was taken to the Oak Park Animal Care League Shelter. I am going to send them a 50 dollar donation today as a huge thank you for saving my best friend.

I couldn't have asked for a better ending. I'm so thankful for all the people who worked together to find Ryder. I wish I could hug all of them. So, people...don't take your dog for granted. Get your dog micro-chipped. Take your dog for its annual vet visit. Hug your dog daily and try to be the person your dog thinks you are.

Thank you universe for bringing Ryder home.

treasure hunt!

Its been a good week for treasure hunting. First the fossils, then these geodes and finally........
A 1948 wheat penny! I found it in the take a penny leave a penny tray at Kum and Go (the most hilarious name for a gas station...ever).

Happy hunting, people.

sunday fossil hunt!

Sunday was pretty nice. The sky was blue and cloudless... sunshine made the air warm, no wind was present, and there wasn't a lot of snow to speak of. Sunday was perfection.

A perfect day is easily wasted and I didn't feel like doing that. Mudd, Kyle, and I hopped into the truck and drove towards my new favorite ditch. This is what we found.
Overall, pretty damn successful. We even found a new kind of fossil. In the top photo you'll see some fossils that look like branched coral...yup, I'm pretty sure those are branched coral. Its always cool to find a new specimen for my collection.

Another cool thing...THIS IS A GEODE DITCH!!! I found evidence of geodes. More on that tomorrow.

Happy Valentines Day.

To celebrate this unnecessary holiday I will share my favorite Valentines Day story.

There once was a kid named Jaime, Jaime went to my high school. He was a nice boy. He always sported a dapper middle part and a well pressed nine inch nails shirt... I didn't know the guy too well but I did know that he was permanently attached to his girlfriend. And Valentines day was coming up.

What to buy, what to buy for a girl that has everything? Jaime decided to hop on the bus and hit Spencers at the mall. There he would procure a pair of edible undies for his lady friend. For those of you who don't know, edible underpants are essentially fruit roll ups shaped like a g-sting.

Jaime thought he hit it out of the ballpark. The gift was sexy, romantic, and totally cheap. What lady wouldn't like a gift from Spencers? Jaime took the bus home, yanked on the "let me out!" chord, and hopped off. Gift in hand he walked up the stairs to his lady's apartment.

But Jaime wasn't greeted with a Valentines Day kiss from his pretty lil' gf. He was greeted with a hearty,

"I think we need to see other people."

Despondent and totally hungry, Jaime got back onto the bus, rode it home, went into his room, and proceeded to eat the pair of Valentines Day edible underpants on his twin bed all by his lonesome. Poor guy. I'll bet they tasted terrible.

bat wreath

click on the image for a better view.

weekend bobcat.

click on the image for a better view.

Pileated Woodpecker landmass.

click on the image for a better view.

they don't get thaaat big.

I'm growing dinosaurs in a mason jar.

sickly weekend drawin'. I have a cold.

click on image for a better view.

The dog almost caught a deer.

Trevor, Mudd, and I went for a walk through the fields yesterday. We walked around the muck and snow, we looked at old/lightning struck trees, and followed turkey tracks.

Suddenly, there was a crashing sound in the timber and a male whitetail deer (antlers and all) came crashing out from the trees. The deer was scared but the dog wasn't. Mudd perked up his ears, growled, and took off full bore after the gigantic beast.

"Mudd! Stop!" I yelled this over and over but the deer was out of sight.

I heard some more crashing and the deer came running from the other side of the field. Mudd was still behind him, running as fast as he could. Eventually, I was able to get to a high point and see my little pooch. He was panting and excited. But, really, what would he have done if the deer decided to stop? I dunno. A kick. A deer kick. All I know is my dog wanted to eat this deer.

Really, this was all my fault. I take him to see deer all the time. Watch the video. I'm just glad the dog is ok.

It is the day of my birth. My birthday, if you will.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0fxmX230bzc&feature=related

1. Victoria surprised me with a whole batch of melted snowman cookies as a birthday present! Such a treat. Victoria also introduced me to a new word awhile ago. In Chicago, we'll call a sprinkle a "sprinkle"...in Phili they call them "jimmies". These snowmen have marshmallow heads and jimmies for noses. What a great birthday present! I won't even tell you guys what everyone did to my desk to celebrate. Let's just say I filled up a whole garbage can with packing peanuts by the time I was done cleaning up. Thanks guys!
2. On Saturday a group of us went to Zombie Burger to celebrate my 29th. We had a damn fine time...except for the snotty bartender that made me feel like a dummy. I ordered a "redneck" burger. What was on that?: bologna patte, chicken friend bacon, mayo, and I can't remember the rest because I stroked out before I was done eating it. So much fun.
3. here is my birthday horoscope and the surprise 50 dollar bill my mom sent to me today. She hid it inside of a new sketchbook. I'm a lucky girl.

4. Here's a photo of me, kyle, and two girls from Fong's pizza. We went there on Saturday to try a kamikaze shot...they make you wear the helmets, not my choice. The nice woman on the right offered to take our photo and I told her I had no camera. She whipped out her cell phone, sent me the photos to my gmail, and saved the day. Smart phones are incredible...kind of like my birthday. Its not even over yet.

Northern Cardinal.

Cardinalidae

moon dog.

I thought this was beautiful. I was a lucky witness.

Vulpes Vulpes

Vulpes Vulpes

Birding.

A tree full of bald eagles.
Trumpeter Swans!? Well, I'm pretty sure these big white birds are trumpeter swans. I saw them floating in the Des Moines River last Saturday and they peaked my interest. I've only seen swans in ponds, never in a river. I did some research and read that the Midwest is working on restoration projects to reintroduce these FORTY POUND birds back into the ecosystem. Looks like it may be working.

December Fossil Hunters!

(horned coral, bivalve fossils, flint, and various rocks)

Unseasonable warmth made for a good day of fossil hunting. I'm completely happy because I found well over 20 fossils on December 31st. Kyle found an arrowhead and we found out that the dog can leap off ten foot cliffs. A good start to a new year.

Here's a very distracted video of me and Mudd finding a horned coral fossil. I found four horned corals in one hour. Sidenote: when I yell "Whoa, Dog!"...its because he just jumped off a ten foot cliff. That terrier is a stuntman.

holiday. day 3 and 4.

1. I woke up at 7 am on December 23rd to visit my pal, Leksi. Of course, she wasn't awake...who would be on a vacation day? So, I tooled around Oak Park, walked the dogs, drank way too much coffee, and waited for the hours to pass. Which they did quickly. Before I knew it I was at Leksi's house drinking more coffee. She told me she had a surprise and we walked onto her roof. Leksi had urban chickens! I was excited. My favorite chicken was the grey, fluffy headed lady. But Ol' fluffy-head chicken had a spinal deformity and couldn't lay eggs. Even though she was completely useless as a chicken she was good for a laugh. What a ridiculous animal. And a lucky one. Leksi and I went to eat at Lula cafe (delicious) and once we were done it was time to get home and get ready for my mother's party.
2. (Friday) At 7pm my mother celebrated her 60th birthday at Fitzgerald's in Berwyn, Illinois. Fitzgeralds is a well established music joint/bar and the band American English was playing. We got to the place at 7:45...whoops, fashionably late. 50 of my mother's closest friends were there by 8:15. I barely had time to talk with mom because she was so sought after socially. This didn't bother me, I had three of my closest friends to hang out with that night. Virginia, Ali, and Juice...not to mention Dean, Kate, Nick, Vince, all my brothers (cept' paul who isn't 21), my step mom, neighbors, and the list goes on. We drank, danced, smoked (in the COLD, Cold outdoors. I should quit smoking), and chatted the night away. American English had three set changes, each with a costume change, and they did a damn fine job. Eventually, I asked Virginia, Vince, Nick, Ali, and juice if they were hungry. It was midnight and we went on a munchy run to Wendy's then left the party and chilled at my mom's. I couldn't have asked for a better visit with my closest friends and family. Hell, I actually felt festive.
3. (Saturday) Something that is not so cool? Waking up at 8 am when you went to bed at 3am. I am no longer 18 and that is no longer "fun". But I did it. My brothers (all strapping and shown above) and I went to Rush Street to visit my dad and his wife, Cheryl. And although the Weber Grill overcooked three of the five ordered steaks, I didn't let it ruin my time. I was with my brothers. Who can be pissed when they're around?

Overall, an amazing holiday. I saw all of my closest friends and family, I got to see my dogs, the city, Dekalb. I was able to have an honest to goodness balls to the walls road trip. i couldn't have asked for a better holiday.

Holiday. day 1 and 2.

I hit the road for the holidays and had a lot to get done in a short amount of time. But, damn it, I did it and I'm damn proud of myself. My hectic day began on the 21st at 5am in Iowa. Although I was ready to leave at 5am I still had to work until 11am. So, I printed t-shirts and stared at the clock too much, I was close to insane by lunch time. 11am eventually showed up and I hit the ground running...red bull, coffee, red bull, coffee, change lanes, change highways, more coffee.

I sailed into Dekalb, Illinois on an insane caffeine high at 4pm. Ann and her fiance were house hunting so I had a couple of hours to kill in the "big" city. Its amazing, I used to hate Dekalb but after I went country feral it seemed a lot bigger and a lot more wonderful. I shopped and bought locally, take that economy. Ann was done house shopping by 5:30 and we went to stuff ourselves with Miller Light and chicken wings at Buffalo Wild Wings.

Soon it was time for ol' jane to meet a couple of collegiate chums at my favorite dive bar, the Annex. It was good to see those jerks (tim and ryan), I got some art out of the deal and an underemployed gentleman tried to sell me slightly irregular women's shoes in the alley. Good times.

12 am rolled around, I had been up since 5am and I was damn tired. Lucky for me, Ann was willing to open the doors to her home and the seat of her couch to me. I finally fell asleep at 2am. Damn Red Bull.
I left Dekalb on the morning of the 22nd and made it to Chicago by noon. I came home to an empty home. At first, I was pissed. No one's home...its Christmas time and I'm by myself. My self pity ended when I realized that my mother works. I am dumb. So, I occupied my time by staring at my cat while he drank out of various sinks in the house. Entertaining? A little.

Shortly after, my brother and I got into a fun lil' Christmas fight over cigarettes but shook hands when the fight ended...this made my mother so proud she bought us steaks and beer at the Avenue Ale House in Oak Park (my home town). Full of steak and slightly intoxicated, my mother drove us home in her new Prius and I crashed on her couch like a wet slug and watched tv into the wee hours of the morning.

Day 3: Coming tomorrow.

in honor of another roadtrip. oh yeah, and a happy holiday to all of you.

Souvenirs. Wyoming.

why, hello!

I walked through some trees, I looked up, I found this little man.

lots and lots of sea glass.

1. Sea glass. Collected from Lake Michigan over the course of 4 years.
2. Sea glass that has been bound together with deer sinew.
3. Polished Creek Rocks from Wyoming.
4. Lead Bullet. or slug. Whatever you want to call it.

One day I will be old and surrounded by a lot of stuff I've found on the ground.

photos from the drive home.

1. Its best to treat every day like a road trip. What's the point of driving if you can't pull over ever time something peaks your interest? I was on 34 West when I noticed a large animal eating grass behind barbed wire. It wasn't a cow and it wasn't a horse...it was an ELK! I love elk farms. Elk taste delicious...I pulled off the highway, found the access road, and had a photo shoot with these beautiful cow elk. The owners of the farm saw me, they gave me several dirty looks.
2. I've always wanted a tacky, cement, lawn ornament. Seriously, since I was a kid. I found these beauties in Fairfield, Iowa. I'm going back and buying them this Spring.
3. It was very cold. The stream from this factory billowed like a cumulonimbus cloud on a breezy day. I thought it was so beautiful I put my life in danger and snapped a few shots while driving a cool 70 mph. There were no other cars near me so I'd like to think the only life that was in danger was my own.

happy friday!

Drawing faces on an unsuspecting taproot. This should put anyone in a good mood.

Horrible Taxidermy. HORRIBLE!

1. this weasel is not an albino. Its sun-bleached, horrifying and is possibly the worst taxidermy mount I've ever seen.

Customer: "Hello, good sir. I've procured a weasel this week and would like it preserved as a taxidermy mount. Can you make any suggestions on a lifelike scene?"

taxidermist: " Most weasels are in logs. I'll just cut it in half and shove it into a log hole."

Seriously, the weasel is cut in half and shoved into a log hole. Its the worst thing I've ever seen.
2. This was in the store's window display. They put it in the window display!

Shop owner: "how can we encourage customers to buy our taxidermy, friend?"

Friend: " Stick a rotting muskrat corpse in the window display. People go batshit for that stuff."

my trip to chicago summed up in four photos.

1. The city put up a sculpture of Marilyn Monroe by the river. Its simply atrocious but the people love it. I had to see it for myself. First impression...uhhh, if you have nothing nice to say don't say anything at all. At least there's some VPL for everyone to enjoy.

To read more visit http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/07/15/marilyn-monroe-sculpture-_n_899978.html#undefined
2. We visited Chicago's famous Billy Goat Tavern located in scenic Lower Wacker Drive. I had a Billy Goat lager but enjoyed the Schlitz draft better then the signature brew. Great ambiance. http://www.billygoattavern.com/
3. "Cloud Gate" lovingly renamed "the bean" by Chicago locals and tourists alike. Pretty cool sculpture.
4. HA! Never in all my years have I bumped into the CTA's Santa Express. Every year around the holidays the Chicago Transit Authority decorates an L trains and throws Santa aboard. I was thrilled. Santa doesn't look very thrilled, though.

only to find gideon's bible.

Well, I feel rejuvenated. Nothing like a good trip to get the creative juices flowing.

Spent the other night in Coralville, Iowa. Of course I had to leave my' mark somewhere in the room. Petty vandalism is always good for a cheap thrill.

I also got a lucky wheat penny in my change from CVS. This is always a good omen. Next blog...my brief trip to Chicago.

dirty toes

It rained yesterday. Cold, wet drops landed everywhere all day long. Slowly but surely, it saturated the ground.

I've become accustomed to walking the dog in the back field. The dog also enjoys this ritual and I knew we were in for a muddy ordeal when we walked to our regular stomping grounds. Even with all the rain, the ground was a solid wet...not a sloppy wet. I didn't think we'd get too dirty.

Mudd and I ventured into the back field and he blasted off into the distance like a dog-rocket. He loved the dirt and had a good time running. By 5:30 we both looked like we had hoofs. There was no definition of "foot" on either of us. Just mud caked clodhoppers.

So, here's a picture of Mudd (post mud walk) I took with my new camera in low light. Mudd is showing off his dirty feet for you. He got a good bath shortly after this photo was taken.

Some random finds from Sunday and Monday.

Found: In the back field and on a river sandbar.

Top: Rabbit shoulder blades.

bottom: Holes in hard rock.

I found a deer mouse nest...by accident.

Oh no! I was on a hike and my curiosity got the best of me....again.

Don't put your hands into mysterious holes, friends. I've been surprised far too many times. The other day, I spied a a wooden drop box at the Lake Miami nature trail. I had to see what was inside, what if it was money?

I opened the lid...

Nope, it wasn't money. It was a mouse house and there were five nuzzled together in a filthy nest. Of course I had to photograph them and I managed to disturb their tranquility while doing so. The mice quickly decided that they had had enough of me (who can blame them?). One by one, the furry animals exploded out of their box and onto the ground. They jumped like gold medal Olympians and I was truly impressed by their leaping abilities. In order to prevent head to head collisions I had to duck.

Touché, mice. Touché.

No mice were harmed in the making of this blog entry.

the iowa whitetail.

The young bucks of Lake Miami.

Don't you just love fall? I certainly do. The best part for me?... rutting season. Rutting season is that magical time of the year when the whitetail deer decide its time to get it on. When the deer decide to make some babies they make their presence known to the general population of Iowa. The deer are, literally, everywhere. They're on the side of the road, in front of my car, littering empty corn fields, in my backyard, they're even by the damn bowling alley...throw a stone, you could hit an Iowa Whitetail. Just try not to hit them with your car.

painting time.

Here's a snippet of the new painting I've been working on. The full image is approximately 15 X 22 inches...painted with Windsor an' Newton gouache.

a snake tail.

UPDATE! : I've been told that this is not a young bull snake but is an adult brown snake. I've got some smart friends. nov.2

The dog and I have been taking a lot of walks. Every time there's a walk there's an adventure. Saturday, Mudd's ears perked up and he began to paw at dry grass. Of course, this perked my human interest and I bent over to separate the grass blades and maybe figure out what the dog was looking at.
This is what I found. But it's kind of an odd story. The snake was small, about seven inches long, maybe 9. I reached down to pull the snake off the grass and had a hell of a time trying to get it to release it's grip. A small snake couldn't hold on that strong, right?

I was partially correct. I finally got the snake off the grass and it was super heavy. I looked at the bottom of the snake and a small grey mammal was voraciously gnawing, biting, shaking, and HANGING from the snakes tail. It was a shrew and it was trying to eat the snake! Wow. Eventually the shrew released it's death grip and disappeared into the tall grass. I stood there, befuddled.

I shook off the shock, photographed the snake and returned it to the wild.

Iowa Artifacts. 2011

Since arrowhead hunting is officially over for the season I'd better post a picture of all of the great pieces Kyle and I found. We started at Spring's first rain and ended after the leaves began to fall off Autumn trees. If you look close there are some pretty amazing pieces... It takes a lot of work to find this much stuff. Probably 3 hours of walking for every piece you see.