Welcome to the first Friday of August. Hi-ya, Elsa here. My inbox has been flooded with requests to be this week’s correspondent for the post.
Norman: You have an inbox?
Elsa: Quiet, you big oaf, I was referring to my mystical inbox where I ‘feel‘ all the energy from my avid readers jonesing on my top notch, award winning reporting skills and there you go trying to harsh my mellow!
Norman: I don’t mean to harsh anything, dear sister. I’m just wondering about the veracity of your opening salvo, that’s all. But I see it’s business as usual so I’ll let you get on with it.
Elsa: FINALLY…sheesh, I let you do a couple of posts and right away you go and develop journalistic ethics. What’s this world coming to? Don’t answer that! Anywho…I’m going to do this week’s walk about nature as we join Rosy, and the gang from LLB in Our Backyard for their blog hop. Today we’re gonna check out the Colorado Dragon Races that Mom recently attended.
Norman: I heard Mum talk about it. When she said it was at Sloan’s Lake I wanted to go and see what it was all about, but with that whole water thing and the fact that it was hotter than bloody blue blazes, well I passed.
Elsa: Pfft…you passed because you’re a big baby. I mean, come on, people, food, Canadian Geese…that’s a dream outing in my books.
Norman: Perhaps, but there’s still that water thing that puts me off. Besides, you remember how we’d already taken our morning constitution at the crack of dawn and frankly, it seemed like it was going to be too far to go and it would have meant walking uphill in the heat on the way home. No thanks.
Elsa: Don’t talk about heat to me…remember I’m the one who wears a black fur coat. With our altitude, sunny bright days are murder on me. Apart from potentially messing with my biorhythms and inducing seizures in the extreme temps…well…for me anyway, it’s just not worth chasing seeing those geese in conditions like that.
Norman: Right-o, Ninja. So…care to start this week’s post or do you plan to wax on about other unrelated trivia.
Elsa: Don’t push it, dude. I’m getting to it. Good gravy, you have a couple of guest posts under your belt and right away you’re acting like some sort of rigid taskmaster editor. Lighten up, pal.
Elsa: [continuing on] So…as I was saying…Mom went down first thing as soon as the event opened; she’s a wuss when it comes to those hot temps too. Plus she was able to avoid the crowds which she figured would be large after a two year hiatus due to COVID. She did manage to capture a few interesting photos.
Elsa: [Moving on] Let’s kind of take a look around before getting to the race, ok? As you know, Mom is always wary around those Canadian Geese; I have no idea why, Canadians are well known for their friendly disposition. But she found a couple of ‘spectators’ down by the water’s edge that she felt comfortable being around. I dunno…those beaks seem a bit sketchy to me but whatever. I think they were rooting for Mom’s favorite Dragon Boat, #4 which had a number of disabled participants which she thought was very cool. They didn’t win their heat but they had good game and were an enthusiastic bunch.
Norman: That is outstanding, I say! I mean the part about the disabled contestants being participants. Not the water.
Elsa: I figured you would probably be afraid of those ducks just like you are of the Canadian Geese, not to mention being so close to the water’s edge.
Norman: [interrupting] I beg your pardon. For the record, I. AM. NOT. AFRAID. OF. GEESE. Canadian or otherwise. Some of my best friends are Canadian.
Elsa: [snickering] Yeah, right. We all know otherwise but by all means, make yourself feel better.
Norman: [sounding miffed] You keep making it sound like I’m some sort of coward but we both know how I always come to your defense especially whenever we meet that insane fence barking dog down the street.
Elsa: Oh yeah, I do recall you ripping Mom’s shoulder out to defend me. Ok, well, I’ve got a post to finish, so let’s move on, okay. Mom has attended the Dragon Boat Festival before but you can see her last post here for more details.
Elsa: [continuing] There was lots of entertainment celebrating Asian Pacific Islander culture. She stopped by to check out the first dance performers. It was beautiful and they performed flawlessly.
Elsa: There was the main pavillon area with all manner of food booths and tchotchkes for sale. There was even a row of food trucks and an ATM machine at an entrance. Looks like the organizers thought of everything to make it easy to spend money enjoy just about anything.
Elsa: There always seems to be quite a diverse batch of attendees. Mom is always on the lookout for the most unusual, or most handsome attendees. She even found one dandy of a Dane for me {swoon}. Talk about handsome!
Norman: That was one big fella and he had the best manners but I’d rush to your defense if he acted up around you.
Elsa: Yeah, right. You know perfectly well, I can hold my own around anyone. I was more than ready to take on the raccoons we encountered just before returning from this morning’s walk. As I recall you were kind of “meh…no big deal.”
Norman: I didn’t see any upside of engaging with them and besides, I really couldn’t understand what the mama raccoon was chittering about after she shooed her two babies down the storm sewer.
Elsa: [giggling hysterically] Your denials are laughable. I was more than ready to take her on. ‘Mama o mama’ style.
Norman: [eyes rolling] Which is exactly why Mum moved us along to avoid a confrontation. Afterall, neither of us need expose ourselves to a potential case of rabies. [shudder]
Elsa: Good point. Well it made for an interesting conclusion to the end of our morning walk. I hope you got a flavor of the Dragon Boat Festival and enjoyed seeing something a little unusual from our ‘Hood.
Elsa: Got any big plans for this first weekend of August? The countdown towards autumn’s arrival seems to be moving along-48 days by my count. And not a day too soon. These relentlessly hot days have overstayed their welcome this summer, don’t you think?
Norman: Amen, Ninja. We both hope you have a splendid weekend and find something interesting to see in Mother Nature’s realm. Stay cool.
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Some of my best friends are Canada Gooses.
The pups sure made this festival report even more interesting! It would be fun to have something like that festival around here (where it’s also still miserably hot).
Many thanks. You’re very kind to say that. The Dragon Boat Festival is one of the most fascinating events held at Sloan’s Lake and provides such a remarkable look at Asian culture.
Oh!!! You’re bringing back so many wonderful memories. I used to race Dragon Boats in my previous BC (before children) life. It’s a great workout, requires excellent teamwork, precision, endurance and the ability to sprint within the endurance event. If I lived closer to the water, I’d still be racing.
Thanks for your excellent write-up.
Alisen
Thank you! You’re so right…a great workout and terrific teamwork makes this fun to do and fun to watch. Thanks for swinging by the Ranch; we 💙 visitors.
Oh that Dragon Boat Festival looks like it was super interesting and fun. Very colorful!
Hugs, Pam
It’s a terrific event with something for everyone. Have a ‘wagnificent’ weekend.
Well that was a super outing and an excellent report, despite all the bickering at the start. We are happy that the dragon boat race was open too all kinds of participant, and agree that the Great Dane was very handsome (although Gail says his owners looks a bit “pouty”)
Toodle-oo!
Nobby
Hi Nobby, thanks for dropping by, as I explained on your previous comment, WP might have had a seizure since 30 some comments ended up in my spam folder. Spam…can you believe it? From Scottish pups?! The nerve. Hrumpf.
There is a doggy run festival at a local doggy park, but since we are looking at a humid 90F here tomorrow, I do think I shall pass. If its already 80F at 10am…that just makes everything miserable for doggy and peep alike.
There is a kitten adoption even at our local pet shop…but if I go there, I shall have major kitten fever…our pups would go bonkers if I brought in a kitten, or two…maybe when they slow down in old age, BOL!
Since I mowed the weeds…(aka the lawn)…today, I can have a nice lazy weekend! Ahhh.
Enjoy a peaceful and restful weekend. Humidity and outdoor events don’t go together in my books either.
Elsa, thank you for sharing all the fun things and beautiful photos of the Dragon Festival. We also love the banter between you and Norman:)
Woos – Lightning, Misty, and Timber
Thanks much, guys. We bet you’d love wandering around all those people and checking out the boats before each race. So fascinating! Hope you’re staying cool and have a great weekend.
Good job Elsa! Love the dragon boats. Being on the water in this heat is great! Loved the Dane too!
Thank you, Kate. That Dane was one hunka-handsome boy! 😉He totally dwarfed the brother.
Great job, Elsa. Sounds like a fun event.
Thanks, John. It really was a great event, especially since it hadn’t been held the past two years. Have a swell weekend.
Have a swell weekend too.
Thank you to Elsa and Norman for keeping it cool under the dragon’s breath!
Thank YOU, Marc. We’re always chuffed when yo drop in on our shenanigans, er adventures. Have a terrific weekend.
Both! LOL
That looks such a great day out….
It was a great until it started heating up. Then Mom had to skedadel for home (she’s such a wimp). She’s looking forward to going back to the lake when it’s cooler. Heck…we all are-nothing quite like a breakfast of goose poop! 😉
Your pal, Elsa 🐾
Great job Elsa…Mama says you and Norman remind her of me and Sunny.
Something about rarely agreeing on anything!
xoxo,
Rosy
Except you don’t live with a hairy Sasquatch, Rosy! BOL
Welcome back Elsa! Very cool about the Dragon boat. Always enjoy sharing in your adventures. Keep as cold as you all can! Happy Weekend!
Thank you, we’ll be happy if it’s ‘just’ lukewarm over the next few days. We hope you have a ‘wagnificent’ weekend.
🙂💕
Wonderful Nature Friday. I love these conversations.
Have a woof woof day and weekend. Scritches to you both, a smooch to Norman and a big hug to mom. ♥
Thanks, Miss Sandee. The “Bickerton’s” are alive and well as they observe nature and life in general.
Wow…where do I begin? What a fantastic time! Those dragon boats must have been some wonderful sight to see! And that Dane was quite the looker! What a wonderful festival to attend. You guys are lucky dogs! Oh, and I love that little raccoon cutie pie peeking up at you all! Thanks for sharing such a fun day, Elsa, Norman, and Hu-Mum!
Our great pleasure, Dorothy. The Dragon Boat Festival and races are such a terrific event. And you just never know what or who you’ll see there. Have a terrific weekend-hopefully you’re enjoying cooler temps.
Some of my friends are Canadian…both of the human and goose variety. They should be very friendly. I can’t speak towards the racoon’s demeanor however. Probably proceed with caution there. The dragon boats are neat-looking, as is the giant orange inflatable dragon. I’d like to put that in the front yard, if only to “compete” with one neighbor who puts out their inflatable dragon at Christmas. Countdown to Autumn is picking up speed ranch-hands! Have a great weekend.
We’ve seen a couple of those inflatable dragons in our neighborhood around Halloween-they are very cool. We’re not so sure about the Canadian geese at Sloan’s Lake. They can be pretty aggressive, especially if they think a dog is going to challenge them. Here’s hoping for a good weekend-it might be below 90 finally here. But today will be close to a 100ºF-it feels a lot like a pizza oven. Ugh.
We got a break last night with storms carrying much needed rain. We had a surplus headed into July, but now we’re in a rainfall deficit mode. Temp’s supposedly staying in the high 80’s for awhile, but occasional storms the next few days hopefully will cool things down more. Hang in there. Think Autumn.
Good for you. It’s only gotten cloudy in the afternoons-no moisture but keep hoping for some soon. Have a great weekend, Bruce.
What a fun activity! I might have mentioned I have a friend who races dragon boats. There was a big competition last week in Florida. Didn’t look like this kind of shindig, though.
Have a wonderful Friday and superbe week-end!
It really is a terrific and fun-filled event for the whole family. There’s so much to see and appreciate. Mom is always inspired by the folks who row their hearts out and then she grabs her shoulder that was crocheted back together after an ugly scooter accident, smiles and is grateful she can at least raise her hand even if she can’t row worth a darn anymore. 😆
I feel for her. It’s always hard when once we could do something but now, no longer can. Good of her to look at the silver lining 🙂
What else is she gonna do? Mom’s not ready to sit on a front porch rocker just yet. She thinks it’s better to act her shoe size than her age. 😈
Oh hell no! Tell her: Just what is acting one’s age anyway? Who says we are limited by a number? Not me. Not my mother who is 81 today…
Many happy returns to your mum! 🎉 We love people who live life to the fullest!
Absolutely! I know I plan to keep on keeping on as such!
Woohoo! Bravo.
🙂
Thanks for sharing your mom’s pictures of the festival! I never knew I wanted a panda parasol until just this very moment.
They are pretty cool, aren’t they? We all hope you have a terrific weekend.
Same to you!
oooh ducks and dragons and dancers… and we bet there was good food too… what a super event… happy furryday and a good weekend
Boy you said it, Weims! A little something for everyone. We hope you have a great weekend.
how wonderful…. I want one of the parasols, or big hats especially.
love to you two bickersons!
LeeAnna
Bickerson’s! Bwahahaha…good one. Have a great weekend.