The end

From Jose

We spent a few great days in Prescott Valley with Donna.  She cooks the coolest pumpkin pancakes that are delicious and healthy. Yummy! We all wanted mostly to relax so there's not much exciting to report.

From Donna's we drove straight through to my daughter's near LA, about 330 miles.  This is where the trip "officially" started on March 24, 2013 so I guess the trip is "officially"  finished.  We are both so ready to get on our lives.

It was nice to see my daughter and her family again.  The biggest change was with my grandson. He was 5 when I started the trip.  He is 6 and in first grade now.  His vocabulary is greatly expanded and it's cool to see his reasoning and analytical mind.

I plan to depart my daughter's tomorrow and drive straight to Kanab, about 440 miles. I will probably take about a week to unwind and catch my breath. One of the first missions when I get back will be to get a companion, the 4-legged kind.

I will post at least one more update to recap the trip.

Stay tuned

Trenton

From Jose

Our next stop was Weeki Wachee Spring. They have a very cool mermaid show. The audience sits in an underwater theater with glass panels looking into the spring while the mermaids perform underwater. I had been there many years ago but Diane had no idea this place existed. They also have a training camp where young women can train to become mermaids. Diane's niece Mariah likes Weeki Wachee very much and would like to attend the camp. I got my picture taken with a mermaid. Diane and I asked her some technical questions about the diving and the mermaid answered in a very thorough but simple way. She seemed to enjoy her "work"  and be genuinely friendly.

From Weeki Wachee we went to Clearwater to visit another friend. That visit did not work out but fortunately the purpose of the trip is to travel and see the US so coming to Clearwater was not a total waste. We did have some trouble finding a place to stay.  All the campgrounds were booked  or did not allow dogs. Finally the people at Lee's RV Park  made an exception to their 20 pound dog limit (Abe is 43 lb) and allowed us in. Apparently Abe did not understand that these nice people were doing him a big favor because he darted out the door again and went for a fast sprint all over the campground, as mentioned a few blog entries back. This is where I made the decision to return Abe to his shelter. So we backtracked to DeLand and to the Southeastern Border Collie Rescue before heading to Trenton to see Diane's friend MaryBeth.

MaryBeth and her husband Bruce live on a 5-acre farm with MaryBeth's mom Mary, Bruce' sister Jan, 9 dogs, 3 cows, 2 miniature horses and 1 goat. It sounds very hectic but in reality is a very peaceful and healing place. I made great strides in healing from the loss of my beloved Matilda. All the humans were so friendly and the animals, with their adventurous shyness, made it feel like being home. Bruce needed help putting up a fence in the horses' pasture and he asked us to stay a couple of extra days to help with that project. I'm not sure how much I actually helped but I was glad to be outdoors, breathing the fresh air, moving around.

As I have mentioned earlier, the trip is not the same without Matilda, so from Trenton we fast forwarded West towards Donna in Prescott, Arizona. Up to that point in the trip we averaged 50 miles per day but after Trenton we averaged about 200. I just want to get home.

Stay tuned

Orlando

From José

We finally arrived in the Orlando area. I lived in
Oviedo for about 20 years, and my brother Rick moved to Oviedo also, not far from my house. I parked the RV in Rick's driveway and was able to connect my extension cord to his electric outlet. While staying at Rick's I made some side trips to visit other friends. First side trip was to see Dianne. She was a nurse who helped me a lot during my parents' final years. I met her when she worked at a nursing home where my parents spent some time.  After my parents left her nursing home I often asked her about symptoms, medicines, etc.  Her advise helped me be a better caregiver for my parents.

I also made a short trip to meet Mary, a former running partner, at a nearby park. When I joined the Orlando Runners Club many years ago Mary took the time to show me the ropes and make me feel welcome. I always remember her kindness. Mary knows Rick, they met at Toastmasters, so she followed me to his house. We ordered pizza and stayed up "late" chatting.

After we left Rick's I drove by the house where I lived in Oviedo. It's still the same. The trees lining the street have grown bigger and meet with trees from the other side, making a tunnel.

I also visited my dad's niece, Dolly and her husband Felipe. I had not seen either for many years. Dolly is an excellent storyteller and has even written some historical articles. I could have listened to her stories for a long time. I also asked her some questions about my genealogy which she answered beautifully, in her unique storytelling style.

We then went to downtown Orlando and met Diane's niece Mitra. She lives right smack in downtown Orlando near Lake Eola, where many of the races I participated in as runner or photographer took place. Mitra works so it was a very short visit during lunch. But while Diane and Mitra chatted I took a quick walk around Lake Eola.

We also took a quick drive to Track Shack, the people that organized the races I participated in as runner or photographer. They not only remembered me but we're happy see me.  As a memento of the visit they gave me a long-sleeved T-shirt with their logo. I promised I will send them a picture of me wearing that shirt in some famous place .

From there we went to DeBary to visit Diane's other niece Mariah. DeBary is a cute town near Lake Monroe and the St Johns river. We stayed at Lake Monroe County Park, close to the water. Diane did a lot of catching up with Mariah and would have liked to stay longer.

Next we visited my cousin Juan and his wife Josselin, west of Orlando. They got their first grandson not long ago and are very proud grandparents. He and I went to school together, from first grade to graduating from college, both electrical engineers. Then he went in the Air Force and I went in the Army. They showed us some cool pictures of Air Force planes and of Puerto Rico.

Orlando now has overpasses in some of the most crowded and dangerous intersections, which has reduced traffic congestion considerably. I also noticed that growth has been managed carefully and the city remains clean and beautiful.

From there we left the Orlando area. On our next stop I got my picture taken with a very enchanting creature, but you'll have to wait for my next entry to find out what it is.

Stay tuned

Titusville

From Jose

As you all know, Matilda's loss has occupied my mind for the past month or so, and this blog has reflected that. Thank you all for your fantastic support during this difficult time. Matilda will always be in a very special place in my heart. But I need to get back to writing about the trip. The show must go on, it's just not going to be the same show as before. I was very tempted to cancel the remainder of the trip and head straight to Kanab. But I finally decided to to contntine with an abbreviated trip, not stopping as much or staying as long in any one place.

After I picked up Matilda's ashes I continued North, retracing our steps. This gave us a chance to visit my friend Patty one more time.  As you might recall when we left Patty she was going into the hospice home.  She was there about a week and now she was back home. They adjusted her meds in such a way that now she was feeling much better. She was smiling, laughing and being the Patty I remembered. We did not stay long this time and left happier than last time, knowing that Patty was feeling a lot better.

From Sebring we headed to the Titusville area where many of my former colleagues still live. Swinging near St Cloud we stopped to say hello to Diane Smith, my brother Cris' friend. Even on short notice she prepared us a delicious lunch and then we hung out in her warm and cozy home, arching up on the latest news in her life.  She recently retired from Disney and is adjusting to retired live very nicely.

We then went to the Titusville area to visit my former coworker Beth and her dogs Murphee,  Patch and Zack.  Murphee is almost 17 years old. All 3 dogs are very smart Border Collies and Beth is very good at training them. We stayed at Beth's for a few days. While there we made a side trip to visit Cheryl and her two daughters Tasha and Hannah.

Last time I saw Hannah she was 9 years old, now she is 16. Big difference. She has a good head on her shoulders and a good study plan for high school and college. She wants to be a nurse and I'm sure she'll will go far. Tasha just got a great job in Atlanta doing research. A dream job. Two successful young ladies and one proud mama.

I also took another side trip to meet Dori, another coworker. I used to photograph Dori's daughters when they played soccer in school. Both daughters are all grown up.

Beth took us to DeLand, FL to see the Southeastern Border Collie Rescue.  As you might remember that is where I got Abe. He was the subject of the last two entries and I  not going to repeat that. After we left Titusville we headed for the Orlando area. That is a whole other story.

Stay tuned

A tough decision

From Jose

I thought I was ready for a new dog in my life and Abe thought he was ready to be in a home. We both had different ideas of what that meant so it ended up an imperfect fit, and over the last two weeks we struggled with communicating with each other. Abe is a smart loving dog but also very stubborn. I worry for his safety and after two weeks and two escapes from the RV and me unable to run after him, our trust in one another was not strong enough to weather another month of RV living.

Could I have changed this relationship when we got back to Kanab ? Possibly. But it was unfair to put him in a stressful situation and let him continue with his bad habits while in the meantime we all were affected by the stress. In the beginning I really had high hopes for the relationship but then Maguire and Abe had some spats because of close quarters. Abe had learned to sit, stay and follow some direction but his focus was very inconsistent; he never answered to his name and was not food or treat motivated which made it difficult to attract his attention and more importantly distract him from focusing on the wrong things.

Whenever I ignore the little voice in my head in  situations and try to look at the positive, it often backfires. This time the little voice was telling me to bring Abe back to the rescue, and this time I listened as it became persistent and louder. I made the hard decision to take him back to his rescue hoping that at least Abe learned something from me that will help him in a forever perfect home. Believe me this is not a decision I have taken lightly. I really like Abe. We didn't bond as much as I had hoped. I really wanted him to be a companion.

When we drove to the rescue, as soon as we turned the corner he recognized his home and was very excited. As soon as we were in the yard and his caregiver unleashed him, Abe took off running and never looked back.

Abe

No dog will ever take Matilda's place in my heart, but now there is room for another passenger in the RV. Say hello to Abe. Formerly residing at the Southeastern Border Collie Rescue League in Deland, FL. Now and forever residing right next to me.

Stay tuned

Carmel Junction

From Jose

A few blog entries back I related some stories about Matilda. I asked my awesome brother Cris to share a story of him and Matilda. This is what he wrote:

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It is my pleasure to write a little note about a wonderful dog that won our hearts with her dynamism and playfulness.

One afternoon camping at the Junction I started climbing a hill with many trees. Matilda followed me and checked on me occasionally. As I went up I didn't see Matilda for a while so I called her a few times without response. I wondered where she was.To my surprise I looked to the top of the hill and... There she was wiggling her tail welcoming me, making my climb more interesting.

I have never had pets, but now I know how one can fall in love with one of these selfless four legged companions! Thanks Matilda for the memories.

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Back to Jose

The picture has a story also.  I sent this picture to my niece, Cris' daughter, who I got Matilda from. When she first saw the picture she thought it was strange that Matilda was behind my brother.  Then she looked carefully and noticed that they were coming down and Matilda is in front, which is more like Matilda.

Thanks Cris for the cool story. And thanks Maria for giving me five fantastic years with  my doggie soulmate.

Cremains

From Jose

I picked up Matilda's ashes ("cremains"). That finally brought home the fact that she's not coming back. She was the most amazing dog I've ever known and I will never stop missing her. I don't want to.

Before I started this trip Lenny and Brenda were my neighbors. I knew Lenny gave treats to the dogs across the fence (left to right Eclipse, Matilda and Maguire). Eclipse crossed in December of 2012 and Maguire does not care for treats that much.  But Matilda woke up before me every morning and went outside to wait for her treats from Uncle Lenny. They had a special relationship of their own. Lenny made this montage of pictures he took of her. Huge thanks to Lenny for loving my girl and making her life more interesting.

I'd like to hear your opinions whether I should get another dog and when.

Stay tuned 

Thoughts

From Jose

Thank you for your many emails and texts of condolences for the loss of my beloved Matilda. I would like to say that I am ready to move on but that is not the case.  We were so close and she left so suddenly and unexpectedly. Yesterday I thought I was doing OK.  Then we arrived at a new campground and I remembered how happy and excited she was to check out a new place, and that made me very sad. I know someday time will do its magic and I will be happy again, but not yet.  I miss her painfully .

What follows are some stories and thoughts that have come to mind since Matilda passed. I initially wrote them for my own use but some of the readers who were not lucky enough to meet her personally might get an idea of her unique personality. Sorry if it's too mushy. Too bad. To quote my brother Cris, "she was a exploring, happy dog". If any reader has something to add to my thoughts please add a comment or email me. My brother Cris has a cool story about him and Matilda climbing a hill at Carmel Junction.  Would you share it with us, Cris? Thanks Diane, Edwin and Lynne for some of the pictures. 

----------------------

Life (and death) is so not fair. How can someone so full of life like Matilda die?  It's not fair.

From the first time Matilda saw me, the day I went to pick her up at my niece's, she knew she was mine. There was no introduction needed. No getting to know each other. When it was time to go she got right in my car like she had been doing it all her life.

Matilda and I had a very tight spiritual communication. We were so in tune with each other. I think if she was a low key dog that just laid there out of the way I would not miss her so much. But she was so intense, so busy, always on a mission, always wanting to be part of whatever I was doing, that now anything I do brings back memories of her and devastating sadness.

Matilda's contagious spirit of adventure was a big part of the reason I decided to undertake this trip. 

Matilda was truly an exceptional dog. It's hard to imagine life without her. I will be lucky to someday find a dog half as smart as her, or that will be so much a part of my soul.

Every time I came back from a store with packages she asked to sniff each bag, as if to see if any of them had something for her.  I just brought the bags down to her level and she sniffed each one.  When she was satisfied she looked at me, which meant she was finished. But if any of the bags contained something for her, even if it was something not normally meant as a dog toy or treat, just something I bought with her in mind, she would know it and get really excited.

On Jan 16, her last full day, we were at the southeasternmost point of the US in Key West when a guy on a bicycle stopped near us.  Matilda immediately went towards him, paying a lot of attention to him.  I commented to the guy "she really likes you, she's not usually this friendly to strangers".  He pulled a  bag of treats from his bicycle basket and said "maybe it's these".  We all got a laugh from that, but she he did not get a treat that time.

Earlier in the trip, in Aberdeen, WA,  I was taking her for a walk in a Walmart parking lot when a lady came the other way.  Matilda approached her and I pulled Matilda back saying, "no Matilda. She does not have any treats for you".  The lady said "oh, but I do. I have dogs also and always have treats in my pocket".  And Matilda did get a treat that time, which made her very happy.

Sometimes when the four of us were out on a walk (Diane, Maguire, Matilda and I)  I would need to go someplace by myself (to a campground office, etc).  I would leave Matilda with Diane telling Matilda "you stay with Diane"  which she understood perfectly. When I had finished whatever I needed to do and approached the group Matilda would recognize me from very far and get excited to see me. Sometimes Diane would encourage her saying "there's your papa! ".  Sometimes Diane would then turn Matilda loose to run and meet me, which Matilda enjoyed very much.

Commands she knew :
Stay (voice and hand signal)
Sit
Come
Lay down
Go around (when she clotheslined me or a pole)
You stay with...
You go with...

Actually she did not know lots of commands like some other dogs do. And in any case, even if she knew a command she would do it only if she wanted to. But most of all she understood hand signals and body language. For example, when I woke up in the morning I signaled her to stay up on our (Matilda and i) bed above the cab until Diane started waking up on her sofabed. Then I alerted Diane to watch her legs and signaled Matilda to jump down to Diane's bed and from there to the floor. I just had to point to Matilda and then to the floor. But after a while Matilda learned that when I alerted Diane it was time to come down and she did not wait for my command.

Matilda cleaned up her food bowl very thoroughly and Maguire not so much. So when they were both finished eating we gave Maguire's bowl to Matilda to clean up. A few times when I was busy or forgot to give her Maguire's bowl, Matilda would get her front paws on the bed where Maguire ate to reach the bowl and clean it up. But she never bothered Maguire while he was still eating.

Matilda knew that she was going to get some of whatever I was eating (of course unless it was something that dogs are not supposed to eat, like chocolate, grapes, etc) . So anytime I was eating anything she was right there patiently waiting for her share. She was not an aggressive begger, she just sat there and drooled and stared at each bite as it went into my mouth. Even after I gave her some, as long as there was any left she begged.  She always got the last little bite. And she always felt like the most important dog in the world because she got a treat.

She loved to fetch.  Inside the house I often liked to throw her toy behind a chair, on a ledge or somewhere that would make her have to think how to solve the problem. On the few occasions when she just could not figure it out she would look at me asking for help. I would tell her how to solve it without actually doing it for her.  I would tell her in plain English, pointing out the steps, "You climb here first and then put your leg there and climb there. Now you do it".  She would always "get it" and follow the instructions. Then she would be very proud of herself. And she would never need help with that particular situation again, she would remember how to solve it.

She had a special way to tell me she wanted something.  She would look at me, then look at whatever she wanted, then look again at me and then again at the object of her desire, and so on. If I did not react to her satisfaction she would change her position slightly, such as taking a quick step forward. By that time I could not resist anymore and gave her whatever she wanted (usually treats ) .

Matilda did not mind the rain.  When it was time for Matilda and Maguire to go outside and it was drizzling, Maguire (aka Twinkle Toes) was hesitant to go out. Matilda did not care. She was ready to go out rain or shine.

One of Matilda's favorite places was a primitive campsite next to a creek near Carmel Junction.  There is a place where you can pull off the main road and camp next to a creek. Matilda and I went there many times, with Diane and Maguire, with Carey and Maggie, with my brother Cris or just Matilda and I. As soon  as I pulled off the main road she recognized the location and started whining with excitement. As soon as we arrived she would be the first one out and running towards the creek. She always returned a few minutes later sopping wet from jumping in the creek. I did not like her being in the creek by herself but there never was a problem.

She loved squirrels and stuffed toys.  She destroyed stuffed toys with great determination within seconds. She never caught a squirrel that I know of but she was at Patty's fenced yard in the company of many squirrels up on  the trees.  She kept good watch on the squirrels.

When we were driving Matilda's usual spot was on the sofa bed behind the driver looking over the driver's shoulder. Many times she would be shaking.  I never really found out why she was shaking but Diane once held Matilda tight and that stopped the shaking. Matilda rarely wanted to get on the driver or passenger's lap.  She was not a lap dog and not much of a snuggler either.

On her last days she stopped eating but when offered food she showed enthusiasm but just could not eat. Similarly on her last day I took her for a walk and there was a cat nearby. Her reaction was same as always, she wanted to go see if the cat wanted to play. And on the way into the vet's office for her final visit Matilda found and ate something crunchy (a chicken bone?) in the parking lot. Her spirit never left her.

I hope that I was as good a dad to Matilda as she deserved. She truly was an amazing dog. I admired her and miss her every second of the day.

RIP Matilda :-(

Her liver was full of tumors.

Matilda

From Jose

Matilda Xray shows spleen a little enlarged but a needle to the abdomen revealed free blood in the abdomen. Ultrasound shows a possible tumor in the liver. If that is the case then that's the end. Now going into surgery. If the worst happens then I will probably call off the remainder of the trip and return to Kanab. I hope you can understand. :-(

Key Largo

From Jose

As you might recall from my last update, we were traveling South and Diane was not feeling well. I failed to tell you that Matilda was not feeling well either. She has lost a lot of weight, drinks water all the time, refuses her food, is not as energetic as usual. I took her to a vet and it turns out she has Lyme disease. Transmitted by ticks. Got some antibiotics and she should be fine.  Poor thing. She has had two torn ACLs, been sprayed by a skunk, bit by a rattlesnake, and now Lymes. She sure lives life to the fullest.

We are in Key Largo heading to Key West soon.

Stay tuned

Lake Placid, West Palm

From Jose

We left Patty's with a sad heart. She was having difficulty breathing and she decided to go into the hospital to get her meds adjusted. We decided to continue the trip to give her freedom to do what she needs to do. We'll check with her again on the way back north.

Not far from Sebring we stopped in Lake Placid, FL to see the house where my parents lived from 1975 to 1995.  When my parents lived there it was a cute little house and I had many good memories of it. The owners after my parents enclosed the carport and the back porch in a very tacky way. The house has been empty for three or four years and is up for sale.  When I went there there were two guys working on restoring water to the house because the water pump had been stolen and someone is interested in buying it. I think I'll just keep the memories, thank you very much.

We headed south, around the south side of  Lake Okeechobee to the West Palm Beach area and checked in at a cool campground with lakefront sites. Diane had been complaining of abdominal pain for a couple of days and when we got to our campsite it got bad enough that she (finally) agreed to go to a walk-in clinic. They did some tests which showed that it could be serious and recommended she go to the ER.

Not to appear that it's all about me, Diane was in excruciating pain, but I'll tell you my side of the story. You have to picture this. By now it was dark (we both hate driving at night), it was raining buckets, we checked in to the ER and Diane was assigned a room. I reached for my wallet to show ID to be allowed in with her and my wallet was not in my pocket. I went back to the RV (still torrential rain) searched all over, no wallet. My guess is that when I came in the RV after paying for the campground I did not put it back in my pocket and it fell off at our site. The angel behind the front desk allowed me in anyway.  By now Diane was off to some more tests and I was contemplating driving back to the campsite without my wallet, at night, during a bad storm to search for my drenched wallet. What else could go wrong?  Diane came back from the tests, still with a lot of pain, and we waited for the results. About this time the angel behind the front desk walked in with my wallet! It fell off my pocket in the ER waiting area. Somehow it got to her, she opened it and saw it belonged to me, tracked me down to Diane's room. I gave her a big hug.

The doctor came in and told Diane the diagnosis, prescribed some meds and sent us on our way. Next task was finding a 24-hour Walgreens. Still raining very hard, flooded streets, the GPS loosing signal because of the heavy rain.

We got back to our campsite after midnight and did not hook up or even back in. Just shut the engine off, warmed up some leftovers and went to sleep, glad that day was over.

Unfortunately the next day was not much better. Diane's abdominal pain continued, even with the high-powered meds she was taking. Again, I'll let her go into the details, but her suffering was to continue for some time... The heat and humidity is very uncomfortable, we have the air conditioning on all the time. It is harder to find a Campground with vacancy, they are all booked with snowbirds.  Aaaahhh!

We have traveled South some more, now near Miami and if I can help it this will be as close as I'm going to get.

Stay tuned

Still Sebring

From Jose.

At the end of my last update we had just arrived at Patty's in Sebring and were getting settled.  I think we got settled real good because we are still in Sebring. Patty has a big fenced yard that all the animals take turns visiting. Matilda and Maguire, Patty's service dog Brim, and Patty's cat Kipper. As usual, Maguire's first reaction when meeting a new person is to bark, but after a few minutes he is best buddy. He is good friends with Patty's dad.

From Patty's we took a day trip a few miles north on FL-27 to visit Charlie, my former boss several lives ago. He has 45 acres near 27 but his place is as quiet as if it was in the middle of nowhere. He has some cows, and tons of squirrels, birds of every kind, the occasional deer and uninvited wild hog. We enjoyed the peace and quiet and catching up on our old coworkers. Charlie gave us a pineapple right from the plant. The ones from the store don't compare.

We spent one night at Charlie's and then returned to Patty's. I'm still not sure how long we'll stay in Sebring.  Patty would like us to stay here forever. We'll see.

Stay tuned.