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Marty’s photo of the day #4010: All the rain this year has made for spectacular waves of wildflowers at the Essen Wildlife Refuge, surrounding Deb’s and my house. A few weeks ago, the white flowers of the serviceberry bushes were everywhere; then they were replaced by the yellow flowers of arrowleaf balsamroots; now they are […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3951: This photo is from last summer, at the end of the first day of Nellie’s first backpacking trip. After hiking twice as far as Deb and me, Nellie really wanted to take a nap. But what if the day’s adventures weren’t over? She must keep her eyes open—just in […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3936: Nellie is one-half golden retriever and one-half Australian cattle dog (which also makes her one-quarter dingo). Consequently, she is the most intelligent dog Deb and I have ever had, and she requires a lot of mental stimulation. Each morning—no matter what the weather—I take Nellie to an open section […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3932: Nellie would like to announce: “I caught two Frisbees at once!” (She didn’t.) and “I’m such a good dog that I deserve two cookies when we go inside.” (Well, okay.)
Marty’s photo of the day #3887: Marty: “Just enjoying a break from writing my latest novel. This one will be my best ever. Not only is it hilarious, but it is also controversial enough to be banned by Republican-controlled school boards from coast-to-coast.” Nellie: “I’ve been watching you write all day. We finally get outside, […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3884: Nellie: “Seriously Dad. When are you going to put away that camera and do something really important, like play football with the dog?”
Marty’s photo of the day #3877: I am a fan of winter, but only if winter has the decency to drop below freezing and stay there. This winter (in the Bitterroot Valley of Montana) is my least favorite winter in twenty-five years. We get snow—Yay, skiing!—and then it gets warm enough to start melting the […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3862: After Deb and I adopted Nellie from an animal shelter, we had her DNA tested. She is one-half golden retriever and one-half Australian cattle dog (which also makes her one-quarter dingo). Those bloodlines have given her the most unique personality of any dog we’ve ever owned. Being that half […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3839: I’ve always had dogs in my life, but none have enjoyed the snow as much as Nellie does. Whenever we have new snow, she’ll run through the forest surrounding our house, exclaiming in her own language: “Look at all this white stuff! It’s everywhere! Oh, this white stuff is […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3830: Every morning at 8:30 Nellie comes into my writing room and stares at me until I take her outside to play Frisbee. Although she does catch the disc, doing so isn’t a high priority for her. She would rather retrieve the Frisbee and then pull it away a split-second […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3826: I’m not allergic to anything, and I have never had a reaction to any shot—except the Moderna shot. Deb and I got our boosters on Wednesday, and we both had a reaction. For me, it was as if I had gone several rounds with a heavyweight boxer. I ached […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3811: Nellie helps me look for snakes in the tall grass, at the American Prairie Reserve, earlier this summer.
Marty’s photo of the day #3809: My dog, Nellie, gets credit for this shot. Yesterday I took her outside for a pee break and she immediately sniffed the air and charged into the woods. I assumed it was just her five-times-daily inventory of trees containing squirrels, but then she barked and froze. Just ahead of […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3797: Nellie thanks everyone for all the birthday wishes yesterday—except the skunk! Yes, last night I took Nellie outside for her final pee break before bedtime. She’s really good about staying in sight at night, but last night I stepped into the garage just long enough to toss a bottle […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3796: Happy Birthday to Nellie! She is two-years-old today. Well, since she was a stray, adopted from an animal shelter, I’m not sure of the exact date. But based on the age estimate from the animal shelter and the fifteen months she’s lived with us, I am likely within a […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3780: We adopted Nellie from an animal shelter a little over a year ago. At the time she was about nine months old. Since Deb and I live in the mountains of the Bitterroot Valley, there aren’t any lakes nearby. So last month when Nellie joined us on the trip […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3779: This is Lake Bowdoin in northeastern Montana, near the town of Malta. When Deb and I traveled to the American Prairie Reserve, we took the long way and drove north out of the Bitterroot Valley, stopped in Kalispell, where I performed a show at Flathead Valley Community College, and […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3768: When Deb and I traveled the world for my first book, Cool Creatures, Hot Planet: Exploring the Seven Continents, I loved all of our adventures. Even so, our least exotic trip, to the top of Canada, always gives me the warmest feelings when I think back about it. That’s […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3765-3767: Plant life close-ups on the American Prairie Reserve (Montana). The most nerve-racking aspect of visiting the American Prairie Reserve was all the prickly pear cactus. When hiking, Deb and I had to be careful that our dog, Nellie, didn’t step on any of it. Months before our trip, we […]
Marty’s photo of the day #3764: When Deb and I adopted Nellie from the animal shelter, a little over a year ago, we assumed she was a black Lab mix. A DNA test showed otherwise. She’s actually one-half golden retriever and one-half Australian cattle dog. We don’t dispute the DNA test, as we can see […]
