Encountering a Runner with my Furry Companion, Darby

While Darby and I were out for an afternoon run this past weekend on the Rails to Trails at Black Creek Park, on the return leg of an out-and-back, we approached a fellow runner. 

As she got closer, I observed what appeared to be an expression of recognition on her face. So I immediately went into "Do I know her?! I don't know her?! Maybe I should know her!" mode. 

As we got within a few yards of one another, she pulled to a stop and asked, "Is that Darby?" I must have appeared bemused when I affirmed that it was. She proceeded to tell me that she had recently moved here from Hoover and had come across this blog while in search of places to run. She had read the blogs featuring Darby at Black Creek Park and on the Rails to Trails.

So recent transferee from Hoover, if you're still visiting here, we hope you enjoy our little stretch of woods, and Darby and I are glad to have met you!

Darby at Full Speed, Ears Flailing at the Rails to Trails

Even when running at full speed, ears flapping furiously, the apparent smile on Darby's face gives evidence to the notion that this creature knows how to soak in life's simple pleasures. On this day that included swimming in Black Creek, hiking in the woods, hopping through piles of leaves, and running the Rails to Trails at Black Creek Park, all of which gave rise to the need for a bath (in which Darby found no pleasure).

Darby Navigating the Waters at Black Creek Park

In keeping with recent Darby-themed posts, my Golden Retriever and I recently went on a walk at Black Creek Park, at which one of us could not help but navigate and submerge herself into the creek's still-frigid waters.

Darby, Surveying the Landscape for Adventure

Having frolicked through the frigid waters that eventually flow into Black Creek, alongside the Rails to Trails in Fultondale, Darby ascends the banks and surveys the landscape to determine the next adventure that's on her horizon.

Darby, the Queen of her Domain

Darby is the Queen of her Domain, and the Ottoman in her Purchase.

Darby Surveying with a Snow-Powdered Nose

After romping through the snow with an overly zealous fervor, Darby takes the time afterward to survey the destruction her raucous behavior has visited on the previously pure sheet of snow. Her keen sense will notify her if she has left any patch undisturbed, where she might go root about with her snow-splashed nose.

Romping in a Winter Wonderland with Darby, Fultondale

With a second winter storm in as many weeks that visited us in Birmingham in mid-February 2014, this time dropping four inches of powdery snow, our Golden Retriever could not be contained inside. Renewing her enthusiasm for water in all its forms, Darby can be seen here at full tilt making laps around the yard as though it were the Talladega Super Speedway.

Withstanding the Dreary Winter Weather with Darby

Despite the beatdown that I and many other reasonable people like me feel winter to be, there are those among us who inexplicably thrive for the cold temperatures and blustery winds. During no other time of year does Darby seem to have more life and vivacity than when the mercury in the thermometer plummets and she gets to put that fur coat to good use.

Withstanding the Winter with Darby on the Rails to Trails

at Black Creek Park in Fultondale, Alabama

Other photos and videos of Darby, from puppyhood to present, can be found here.

Photographing Darby with the Agfa Billy Record

Photographing Darby with my 80-year-old Agfa Billy Record, while she's running wide open, was an enjoyable experiment in contrasting existences. This photograph was taken on Black Creek Park's Rails to Trails in Fultondale, Alabama.

Classic Portraiture with Darby

Although she normally goes into playful attack mode as soon as my phone is pointed at her for a photo, on this occasion Darby continued to gaze at whatever she found so intriguing about the lamp. More photos of Darby can be found here.

The Carolina Wren, an Unsympathetic Victim

For a couple of days in early May, our yard was inundated with Carolina Wrens. The perched on the fence, the side of the house, the window screens, and with all this perching, they tortured Darby, our golden retriever.

She stared out the glass door, pointing with all earnestness, and with murder in her heart. In my naivete, I thought that when I opened the back door and let Darby out, the wrens, like all other birds that land in our yard, would scatter to the safety of the woods behind our house.

They did not. Rather they just fluttered further away...and not quickly enough. Twice Darby got one between her jaws, but between their fluttering and my scolding and rescue attempts, we were able to get it them to safety. And by this time, I had begun to lose patience and sympathy with these dimwits, who were not smart enough to take flight. "Survival of the fittest" was a phrase that began to rattle around my brain as Darby continued to see red. And finally she batted one down with her substantial paws, picked it up, and began to "play", but her playmate was not up to the task. Eventually, I got him away, but he had been mortally wounded...and I had no sympathy for it.

Billy Goat's Ruff

There have been more than a couple of occasions in the past year-and-a-half that I've been all but certain that although we believed ourselves to have have purchased a Golden Retriever, we came a away with some hybrid creature that is half dog-half mountain goat.

Never have I beheld a creature more determined to crawl, scramble, leap, or climb on any object that requires such an action, inclusive of boulders, fallen trees, and picnic tables.

Of course there may also be some billy goat mixed into the breed as well, because I have lost count of the myriad foreign substances (some of which were unidentifiable) which Darby has ingested, and somehow managed to survive.

So between now and the time that she does something truly harmful, I will continue to be in awe, horror, dread, and bemusement at her curious ways, sometimes experiencing all of those things concurrently.

This and other photos of Darby and her escapades can be found on her Gallery, here.

Darby's Ever-Growing Rap Sheet

Of all her crimes, and there are many, the most egregious and frequently occurring is chair thievery. And if I had to guess, I'd suggest she does it knowing that this chair, for which she's developed such an affinity, is my favorite seat in the house.

Our felonious little Golden Retriever, Darby, Trying to Catch a Nap, in my Chair

Unfortunate Plight of the Stink Bug

The stink bug was suddenly buffeted (repeatedly) with the stark and unforgiving reality that the defense mechanisms with which God had endowed it were of no consequence to this casual and indiscriminate predator/diner.

Summer Morning Hike at Turkey Creek

An alternate title for this post could be: "Darby, a Water Dog at Long Last." For some time now I have been somewhat ashamed of my Golden Retriever who appeared to be scared of swimming. She loves water and splashing about the local creeks. But she does not like the swimming pool, and refuses to go in it of her own accord. So we thought she was defectective.

But today, I had a chance to go down to Turkey Creek Nature Preserve in Pinson, Alabama, with a couple of friends and Darby. And since the water wasn't running overwhelmingly fast, I decided it was time to put Darby to the test, and she performed beautifully. The video below offers some snippets from our morning, including such items as a footrace between Darby and myself, which I led most of the way, and Darby's swim across gallant Turkey Creek.

All photos and video were shot on my GoPro Hero2 HD camera, which can be found at Amazon.com: GoPro HD HERO2: Outdoor Edition.

Acanthocephela Declivis, A Giant Leaf-Footed Bug

Acanthocephela declivis is a bug of many names. In searching for information about this insect, I found it to be known as: pumpkin bug, giant leaf-footed bug, giant spine-headed bug, and a "bad dude." They are known to feed on gourds, melons, and tomatoes, so gardeners beware. They are also reported to emit a very bad odor that can be smelled from a couple feet away. Apparently, this species is the least commonly found of the three species that make up the genus.

Giant Leaf-Footed Bug :: Canon Rebel T2i, Tokina AT-X 35mm f/2.8 Macro, f/8 @ 1/60s, ISO 400

Giant Leaf-Footed Bug :: Canon Rebel T2i, Tokina AT-X 35mm f/2.8 Macro, f/8 @ 1/15s, ISO 400

And they almost got a little less commonly found still, when my golden retriever, Darby, spied what I was photographing and, at the time, videoing, and thought it looked like a tasty, crunchy mid-afternoon snack.

Why Darby Might Be Part Billy Goat

At the time of purchasing, I was certain we were getting a full-blood Golden Retriever in Darby. The paperwork was there. The breeder seemed reputable. I saw Darby's mother and father. But somewhere along the way, some billy goat blood got in those lines. Among the many things that Darby loves (including chasing ice and chomping bees), she seems to be particularly passionate about cropping grass. And we're not talking about grazing like cattle, but really reaching deep and tearing out of the ground by the roots, resulting in a yard that suffers from patchy baldness and a generally mangy look. But far be it from me to deprive a creature of a part of her day that seems so overwhelmingly joyous.

Canon Rebel T2i, EF 135mm f/2.8 SF, 1/3200s @ f/2.8, ISO 200

Further evidence of this behavior is evidenced below, in a photograph taken almost three months ago when the pup was only ten weeks old. I offer this as proof that the above photograph is not some sort of anomalous aberration from her normal behavior.

Canon Rebel T2i, EF 24-85mm f/3.5-4.5 @ 85mm, 1/500s @ f/4.5, ISO 100

Technorati Tags: alabama, goat, golden retriever,

...at Play

One of the things I received for Christmas was the newly-released GoPro HERO2 Surf Edition Camera. I got the "Surf Edition" so that I can mount it to my kayak. But between now and the time I get out on the water, I'll have to video what I can find. So for my first video, I captured Blake and Darby at play.

Darby v. Doorstop, Round 2

Know What's Cuter than Puppy Paws?

Well probably nothing...

...unless it's a puppy chasing and capturing an inanimate object.

In case you missed it, Darby was introduced in a prior post on Thursday.