I'm back...

...back home, back to writing, back to my books, back to everything that we call 'normal' in this big old house of ours tucked into the Hill Country.

My husband and I took a trip to Canada last week... a trip that had been planned before our dog Savannah went 'missing' for twelve days. Even though we had made arrangements for Savannah to be brought to an excellent boarding facility if she had turned up while we were out of town, I'm still thankful that she found her way home the week before we left for Niagara Falls. We're still pinching ourselves at such good luck and the protection of the angels.... Savannah finding her way back to us without being hurt (or worse) by the dreadful wildlife out in the woods here.

Our 'lost' dog was the star of the boarding kennel when we dropped her off, being that everyone had seen our lost-dog posters in our town and the five surrounding towns.  We were thrilled to have Savannah home, but not so thrilled to be leaving town just a week after her return. This was her first experience at the kennel, and because Savannah had the deluxe kennel with only six other dogs in the very large room, her time in 'puppy camp' worked out very well.  (And I only called them twice while we were away, just to check and see if she was indeed adjusting to her days without us.)

We flew to the tip of upstate New York and then drove over the Rainbow Bridge into Canada, to see the Falls and to spend some time in Toronto. Niagara Falls was breath-taking from both the New York and the Canadian side, to say the least, but the weather was less than perfect... in one 24-hour period, we had rain, bits of sleet, and tiny snow flurries. Cold, cold, cold, especially since it was nearly 90 degrees when we got on the plane in Houston. The wet and dreary weather lasted for each of the days in Toronto, but we lucked out at the end of our stay up there because the weather turned from November-ish to mid-Summer, and we went back to see the Falls when the sun was shining and the sky was blue and just a light sweater was needed when we stood on Table Rock and watched Niagara spilling over and over and over. An incredible sight.

Speaking of incredible, we also made a quick side-trip to Cooperstown, NY, home of The National Baseball Hall Of Fame. Tissues were quickly needed when we started the tour... it was very emotional, all the bronze plaques in a church-like setting with the sun streaming in the windows and you could have heard a pin dropping on the wood floors as everyone silently paid homage to the baseball greats. Everyone spoke in whispers, standing quietly in front of the plaques of their favorite players. The Hall of Fame is beautifully set up to honor the men whose hearts and souls became part of baseball and its historic legacy.  Cooperstown is a quaint and lovely town... time just stops there, the B&Bs are all beautiful, and the small-town experience reminded me of our own little town here in the hills.

We found bookshops in just about every town we visited, and I came home with a dozen books... biographies and novels, vintage British children's stories, and books on Niagara Falls and Cooperstown.  We visited the beautiful home and museum of George Eastman (of the Eastman-Kodak Company), and we toured elaborate castles built with both money and love, such as Casa Loma and Dundurn Castle.                                                                                                                                            
The castle that I will remember always is "Boldt Castle," commissioned by George Boldt (who built the original Waldorf Hotel in NYC).  His castle was a gift for his beloved wife, and was to be a surprise for her. Craftsmen were contracted from all over the world to carry out the plans for this family home that was built on a heart-shaped island in the "Thousand Islands" area of the uppermost part of New York state.  The island was named "Heart Island" because of its shape, and George Boldt's blueprints for his castle had heart-designs both in the exterior stonework and in the flowerbeds of the gardens. Sadly, Boldt's wife died suddenly at 43 years of age, before the castle was completed... on the day she died, George Boldt sent word to the workers on Heart Island and told them to leave, just leave... all the construction and work stopped, the castle remained in its unfinished condition, and Boldt never set foot on that island again.  The castle remained neglected until a special commission within the town decided to complete the dream of George Boldt.  And indeed they did, resulting in the most beautiful castle-like home imaginable. It was enough to bring tears to my eyes, and it was very hard to leave Heart Island that afternoon.

The traffic and construction within the city of Toronto was daunting... but the bookshops were superb. We found Greek restaurants (all quite good) in all the towns we visited along the way.  We met people with big dogs who reminded us of Savannah, and we saw little dogs whose cuteness was hard to resist. With each dog we saw along the way, my husband said  "I'm so glad we got Savannah back."

There were vintage carousels in Canada and Cooperstown, and we rode them round and round, in total awe of the painting and the workmanship of a lost art, a lost craft. What will happen to these carousels if no one is out there to carry on such craftsmanship for future generations?

We got up early on the morning after we got home from the airport, determined to get Savannah at the boarding facility the minute they unlocked their doors at eight o'clock.  They told us Savannah was 'a sweet girl,' 'a very pretty dog,' 'easy and cooperative.'  When Savannah was brought out into the lobby, she saw my husband first because I was around at the far end of the counter settling the bill. Savannah went up to my husband and sat down by his legs, waiting for her special hug from him... one hand on her heart, the other on the back of her neck... and she sat there quietly being hugged and then lifted her head to lick his face. I just stood off to the side and watched for a few minutes, giving Savannah her moment before letting her see me. The ladies at the boarder's gave her a bath and brushed her long hair till it was shining and clean and beautiful... all of the woodsy, musky odor from her 'lost' days was gone, and when I hugged Savannah she smelled like lavender, sweet and tender, and I was so happy to see her that I couldn't stop smiling.

We had a very nice trip.... wonderful memories filled with baseball and bookshops, castles and carousels, and small-town magic wrapped up in a magnificent waterfall. But now we're home... and Savannah is here with us... and I couldn't think of a better place in the world to be right at this very minute.