One of the things about having Lylah is that you are constantly outside and exploring new areas to make sure that she gets the appropriate amount of exercise. The other day we went to a greenway area to walk and go to a dog park. The whole greenway is just a little over three miles there and back so it's perfect to go out and just have a stroll. We get out to the greenway (which is new for us both) and we walk and start doing some small training exercises to get her used to the area. We get a mile in and you have to go under a bridge which Lylah is timid of but seemed to be ok going under it. 

We get under the bridge and on the other side and immediately her tail is down. Over to my left, there are some teenage girls dancing and singing to some hip-hop music near a soccer field. I look over and observe while slowing down to try and see if Lylah will give me any sort of attention. She is trying to focus on me but the girls are loud and at some point, there are screaming and pointing at me. I didn't hear what they said but they were making a point to be obnoxious. I keep moving and choose to ignore them. It's not a bad area in town and for them to scream and yell only made me roll my eyes. 

So Lylah and I keep moving and I see up ahead that someone is coming our way. Lylah stops and goes to the side and lays down on the grass staring as the person comes closer. He is on a skateboard and lylah is terrified of skateboards. We haven't had much of a chance to work with them to ease that fear since I no longer own one so I let her get her distance and watch her closely as the guy goes by. He then yelled at me too. I pull out my earbud and look at him 

"What?"

"You should take that dog out more so she not so scared"

I raised my eyebrow at him and scoffed. 

"She's scared of your skateboard so keep moving".

He stared at me and eventually kept going and we made our way to the dog park. Lylah hasn't been to one since she turned one and she seemed ok there but wasn't interested in the other dogs. She tried to play but couldn't find a good buddy to play with so we left. The whole walk back all I could think about was the people screaming at me. It's been a while since someone felt entitled enough to try to tell me what to do with Lylah and it annoyed me a bit. Nobody has a right to judge on what you do with your dog and Lylah has gotten out more than most dogs. She's not comfortable with cities like noise and that's because she hasn't really been around it and we are working on it. So if you feel like judging someone for how they are with their dog maybe think about that before you say anything. Most of us are just trying to do the best we can for our pets.  

Having a dog is a joy and also a strange burden. For those that have never owned a puppy and raised it just imagine a toddler screaming at your for six months, you have no idea what kind of personality they will have and just constantly watching them day in and day out, correcting them on what is good and bad and giving up normal sleep so they can go out to potty.  That's what the first six months or so were like for me when I adopted Lylah. 

Lylah came into my life at a time when I really needed it and we struggled to figure out a good rhythm as owner and dog said, owner. I live a pretty active lifestyle so for the first six months, her life was riddled with adventure. We did training constantly and we were bonding over crossing the United States on a vast road of unknowns. In the first six months of her life Lylah got to visit 11 states in two months. To me, that's a feat for not only a person but for a six-month-old puppy that's wild. Most people probably would think that I overdid it for her but in honesty, it helped so much. It made her tired constantly and she got to understand that I am her human. THat the world is vast and beautiful and that she was a part of it. 

The first year of a dog's life is so crucial. They are getting to know you, they are understanding your language, the rules, how you act, who you know around you, what to expect in this short life of theirs, and most of all how to be the dog you shape them to be while being themselves. You have a short window of time to train properly and a short window to form this bond with them to show that YOU are their person. Of course, there are situations where you will rescue older dogs or dogs past that puppy stage but the first year is still something that they are going to remember. That was the start of their life and for dogs, life moves so quickly. They only have a short time in our lives. A blip compared to a human and giving them their best foundation and life is what matters. 

Lylah will be two in April and it's hard to believe we have come so far in such a short time. We have so many adventures to go on and I am so proud of how far we have come together. I am more and more surprised as the days go on that she still is a part of my life, that she has put up with my rules and that she has still decided a day in and day out to come back to me when I ask her to. Just like dogs, it's a choice. they know when you are good or bad, they can sense it before we can see it and I am grateful Lylah sees the good in me and continues to be my adventure buddy. 

I'm hoping to give her the life she deserves and to make her happy and so far I think I'm doing that and I hope to continue that journey with her by my side. After all, she is the first dog that I have raised and trained and I want to do good for her. She taught me so much and I hope to use what I have learned for future dogs (if that is what I decide). 

So if you decide to get a dog or a puppy please realize that they are DOGS and not humans. You have to do right by them and teach them properly and give them a foundation. They are not Children and they need to have good structure and a ton of love. After all, that is what dogs deserve from us. 

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Gallery is here 

I have a few more pieces that will be posted over the next few weeks. I'm excited to show the rest of what I have for sale and to see some of these pieces sell. I am planning to do another series the first week of April and I'm hoping to mix things up for that series and do some hand stitching pieces which I haven't done in a while. They will be smaller, probably 8*8 pieces since hand stitching pieces is tedious and take such a long time for them to make and be done and ready to ship out. 

I am excited to make some more pieces and to work my creative brain and hands with some canvas's and maybe some oils. I'm ready to make some pieces that are different from what I currently make and to expand the color parts of my mind. It's been so long since I've made different types of art pieces and I'm ready to get fancy with it again. 

For now, though I ask thank you guys take a look at what I have in my gallery by clicking here, and down below are the newest pieces from my collection. Stay tuned for more to come. 

Into the Stars $128 12*12

The Highest Point 16*20 $180

Sparks of the Galaxy $145 11*14

Into The Interstellar 12*12 $128

As we all are very aware Covid has impacted us all in ways that we would just love to reverse. I know for me it ruined traveling overseas for two years and it made finding an apartment back in my hometown impossible due to the new standards that they put in place to try and prevent people from hunkering down in the apartment without paying. It became a hassle and they were asking for unreasonable amounts of money to have a place to live. It ultimately is what broke down some of my relationships and forced me to have to make decisions to make sure I didn't become homeless with a dog and a cat trying to live in a van like home (which is possible but not when the van wasn't even close to ready to a van lifestyle or mindset). Ultimately I left my old life behind and made the decision to move to Tennessee to not only save myself from what was to come back in my hometown but to also help my sanity. 

It turns out that was the right call and six months later I'm doing much better and I'm not figuring out my next steps in this crazy adulthood life that was thrown upon me. I'm hopeful for change and that is also why I have been getting into my business more and trying to get things back on track. 

Of course, Covid still has some impact on my living situation and that's been a tough one to overcome. IM looking for small homes to rent out west and it's been interesting to read what these places have in place because of covid. Most of them are requiring you to make three to four times the rent which in some places seems unreasonable considering the circumstances. Luckily none seem to require vaccinations or any of that crap which is good. I mostly worry about them trying to play that card if I decided to move out there and rent from someone. Of course, I'm hopeful that things go smoothly when I do decide. The other option is to just live in the van for a bit and travel but the first it has to find a job where I don't need to have a wired connection to work or have a huge desktop to make that happen. With my current job, those two things are required and I'm hoping to find something with salary base pay instead. 

Covid has really messed things up and it's been a struggle to figure out how to move forward with all this craziness that's going around. I'm not a fan of it and It gives me a headache just thinking about it. 

As most of you read on my Twitter account I was recently in Asheville. The reason for my visit was because my friend J and I were out on the east side of the state visiting Chimney Rock. There is a bunch of bouldering out there that has amazing rock quality and the best times to climb in that particular area is between December all the way till the end of February. After that, it becomes difficult to climb there due to mosquitos, humidity, and heat. So we took the time to rent an Airbnb and go on a weekend adventure. Most of our time was spent out in the boulder field but on the way back we decided to stop and get some pizza. 

We've eaten at a similar location that is in downtown Asheville and we had decided to make a pit stop at their second location which was a little farther away and had a movie theater inside. Not gonna lie but it sounded pretty awesome and I was intrigued by the idea of going there and seeing the place in person. 

NOw just a quick note here. I do not believe the vaccinations for covid 19 work and I will never get the vaccinations. I have already had covid and I like being healthy and don't need or want to jeopardize that so I am against the covid 19 vaccinations. With that said I don't necessarily mind the masks to a certain degree. If it's just wearing it to get to a table or if there is an outside option where I don't have to wear the mask then I don't really care. More often than not I would choose the outdoor option any day and if we're going somewhere where it is required I won't put it on until someone actually tells or asks me to. Most of the time I don't get asked to put it on. 

On this particular trip, I got to witness something new. 

So we arrive at this pizza joint and I see this big sign saying masks are required. That's fine. I then read further saying that photo i.d and vaccination cards are needed to sit inside. At first glance, I thought it was a joke or maybe a recommendation. I decide to put the mask on and walk inside with J. The lady at the desk asks how many, we tell her two people, and then she stands up. 

"We need photo I.D and proof of vaccinations"

Now I normally wouldn't stay somewhere that does something like that and I would certainly have gone to the first location downtown if it were me but with the company and the option to sit outside regardless of status that's what we chose to do. The place wasn't busy and people were leaving right after they pulled up (more often than go in) due to the sign. Next time I won't stay somewhere like that or show any support for it but in the company, I was in we stayed and just made the choice to not validate the vaccination mandate they were requiring to go inside. 

I do hope that this choice to show "proof of vaccinations" will go away soon. It's not ok and it's almost Hitler-like. To think that we have "grown" as a country from that time period. Shame on us for allowing this kind of discrimination to show as a country and shame on those who think it's ok to continue to put up with the lies.