Harvest Moon, originally uploaded by Matthew Singer.

Beth, one of the photo club members and employee at the Prichard Art Gallery downtown, mentioned at our last meeting that a student was in town with the current exhibit at the gallery. He didn’t know anyone and was desperate to hang out with people his own age. So we got a group together last night and hung out around the town.

I thought the visiting student was an art student, but it turns out he’s actually studying conservation biology and had spent some time working environmental education. And, he’s from Maine. Well wouldn’t you know it? He spent some time at the Ferry Beach Ecology School. He knows a lot of the people I worked with, either by working with them himself, or interacting with them during one of the FBES alumni reunions that I have been unable to attend. He’s also in grad school with another Ferry Beach alum that I worked with.

In addition to teaching environmental ed, Will is also an avid birder and hiker. He’s an awesome guy and I now wish I had the opportunity to work with him in Maine. So far, he seems to be enjoying his time in Moscow, so maybe we’ll get him to return for a more recreational visit.

It’s a small world.

Out of nowhere, our dog population has increased four fold. Here’s the back story.

Several weeks ago, I came home to find two extra dogs at the house. They were two German Shepherds, a male and a female, that Erin had decided to watch for a friend while she got on her feet and found a place to live with her dogs. Four big dogs in our tiny house is a bit much, and it didn’t help that the two we were watching were very active. Lana, the female, is a very nervous dog, especially around men, and she would just pace around. Ace, the male, was a one-year old and in tact, so his energy was more youthful, but nonetheless, he also began to pick on our other animals. The two would routinely stalk the cats. But the last straw was when they, along with Greta, attacked and killed one of our chickens. We had to return the dogs for fear that one of the cats would be the next victim.

Lana was also pregnant before we got the dogs. The original owner was unable to keep both dogs and Ace was her baby. She had acquired Lana from someone else. She was going to breed the dogs and sell the puppies, and as it turned out, Lana was pregnant. So when we went to return the dogs, we made the deal to keep Lana indefinitely and deal with the puppies. So, Lana is now our dog for the moment.

The puppies came yesterday, starting around 7 pm. When I got home an hour and a half later, the fifth puppy had popped out. When it seemed like she was done, three more came out. We have eight puppies in total, all purebred German shepherds. The goal is to sell them all in 8-10 weeks, and once they are gone, we will find Lana a new home.