December 20, 2007 

have worked 50 days straight I think at this point, minus yesterday. Tomorrow I have the day off. I would like to sleep I think, but I need to go about building new dog boxes for my truck. I also need to get the magazine done and out. (I think I need a twin or a clone of me.) I do not want to injure my other dog boxes that fit a full sized truck as I plan on having a full sized truck one day, but I need some dog boxes for my smaller pickup or I cannot get my dogs exercised enough to be able to go on the Mail Run event. I do have a huge network of trails near me, but I am not comfortable taking them on the road for 2 miles down and back as my team tends to take their half out of the middle and I have not yet been able to get them to stay on the shoulder. I have about 30 days to get them in tip top condition to carry real mail over 100 miles of mountains. I snuck in about an hour of running dogs yesterday and I will run the dogs late tonight in the dark. There is a bit of a moon and with a headlamp I will be able to see well enough. 

Also some good news after the loss of "Tess", which left me without a reliable leader. I have been shuffling dogs around to see who would be a good candidate and one of my most unlikely dogs actually knows her stuff. She has been a swing position dog for many years (in order, there are your leaders, your swing dogs, your team dogs and your wheel dogs), but she knows all the commands and snaps right to them. I am SOOOOOO pleased. It is very much like driving down the freeway at 65 mph without a steering wheel, without a decent lead dog. 

I do not get many pictures of me as I am the only one who seemed to be able to work a camera and now that I live alone, it is even more scarce to get any. My friend snapped this one of me as I was sweeping off the front porch and talking to another friend on the phone, just before breakfast. I hate a messy porch! The dog sled is always parked where it is at in the picture when I get done hauling wood down with "Cyrus".  

Cinnamon Bear Episode 23: Enchanted by Santa's Storeroom
Jack Frost observes the Bad Dolls - a group of mean-spirited dolls made with bad sawdust - running off with the silver star. Santa sends out the Tin Soldiers and invites Paddy, Judy, and Jimmy to the big storeroom where they reunite with Crazy Quilt. Eventually, Santa receives word that the soldiers need reinforcements because some hideous green creature is leading the Bad Dolls.