So much more than just curves before coffee!

Oh my gosh, I have so many pictures from this weekend, I'll provide you the Flickr link!  But still, there's going to be SO MANY PICS!

FLICKR ALBUM

So, our weekend started yesterday after work.  David met me at the office, and we left from there!  Yesterday's ride seemed to fly by; I knew it would be today that would be the bulk riding (and our source of exhaustion!).  We had a nice and uneventful ride into Waynesville, NC.  We had to visit the Indian dealer out there, of course.  We took a fun back road into Pigeon Forge/bypassed Gatlinburg, then took the National Park out to Maggie Valley and hit the Blue Ridge Parkway for a bit.  It was smooth and beautiful; not closed this time.  No elk.  In fact, the only live creatures we laid our eyes on was a few birds and squirrels.  I don't mind at all!  Makes my ride way less risky :D

Hendersonville is beautiful.  We found our adorable accommodations, unpacked, then found the amazing steak house David had already picked out.  It was SO GOOD!  Binions steak house in Hendersonville, NC.  GO EAT THERE.  We took a pass through downtown Main St, then fell into bed.

We woke up before the alarm this morning, and hit our first named road; the Sidewinder.  Loved it!  A nice mix of sweeping curves and tight curves; it took us up into Black Mountain for breakfast.  We both got this unbelievable biscuit/gravy/fried chicken/bacon/cheese concoction.  DANG!  Couldn't finish that, or the giant cinnamon roll we shared.

Left from breakfast and hit the 2nd named road; the Diamondback.  We had our sticker for this road; just hadn't put it on because we hadn't ridden it yet.  This road was a mix of the Devil's Triangle, the Copperhead, and the Dragon.  I tried SO hard to keep up with David; he just rides faster than my comfort level through the curves.  Hopefully this year is my year to work on that.  I constantly checked my tenseness, loosening my hands on the grips and rolling my head.  The first 3/4 of the road was perfect; coming down I was getting a little tired from pushing so hard, and I slid the rear tire a little on a particularly tight turn.  Just enough to shoot the adrenaline through me.   This little road has WICKED off camber curves at the end of it; in fact, I think this one should have been named the Sidewinder, as it was a weird kind of curvy.

Finished up there and mad our way to the third and final new road; the Devil's Whip.  I made a boo boo on this road, a pretty big mistake.  It was towards the end, and it was on a right hand switchback.  I thank God up above that it was just David and I, no other cars around.  There were some at the beginnings, so this little mishap was timed well.  Oh, AND David was behind me, not in front.  So as I started up the switchback, I just didn't set up well.  I looked up and to the right to make that curve, and I really needed to drop all the way into 1st but I was going too fast, so when I downshifted, it didn't go.  The engine revved as I gave it throttle, and with the curve climbing, I lost momentum FAST.  I grabbed my brakes and just STOPPED in the middle of the curve.  I am so, so, so grateful I wasn't further over to the right, or had my bars turned when I stopped.  David pulled up beside me, said don't panic, you're ok.  Just start out like you're stopped on a hill.  I got the gear down in first, then re-started.  I'm so thankful that it was just a hiccup; I know I'm not ready for a Chieftan quite yet because that mistake most certainly would have caused me to drop it.  Khaleesi and I stayed shiny side UP, and we completed the Devil's curve.  It couldn't whip me today!

All three new roads completed by noon.  The entire AREA we were riding was new to us, it is quite awesome and beautiful.  Areas reminded me of Tahoe, some other areas it was like Oregon; loved it so much.  Lunch time took us to Hot Springs, NC, a familiar face.  We ate again at the Irish Pub from St. Patty's day, then took the Rattler backwards in it's entirety for the first time.  I led again, and I just took the curves at my own pace without worrying about David being behind me. I did alert him when I was downshifting because he said the challenging thing about riding a road like the Rattler behind me is the inconsistency in my speed; the degree of slowing and setting up for a curve sometimes took him off guard, as he just rolls into the curves with whatever speed he's carrying.

We hit I-40 for a few miles.  I had a wall to my left, and a wall of semis to my right ... 30 mph wind gusts, 75 miles an hour down a tight, twisty, windy 2 lane road = a few tense and jaw clenching moments!  I was happy to get off by the river, where we stopped on the bridge and took a few pics.  Um ... as we made a few turns per the GPS, we both began to wonder.  And yes, the pavement DID end and we ended up yet again on a dirt road.  With uphill right hand switchbacks!  Its saving grace is that most of the gravel was washed away, leaving mostly just DIRT, but it was pretty rutted out.  I began to pray for the dirt to end, and shortly thereafter, it did.  It ended into a Tail of the Dragon, no joke.  Just a LONGER one.  Tight, twisty kiss your butt curves with zero guardrails and lots of debris on the shoulder.  I was exhausted mentally.  Unfortunately, I was burned out and actually ASKED for a straighter road!  This is completely unheard of for me, I'm a total sucker for those twisties!  But State Route 32 at the tail end of a 500 mile trip was just a little too much for me.  I'll do it again in a heartbeat, just at the BEGINNING of a ride.

Why, yes, that is an uphill right hand switchback looming ahead!

We stopped one more time for gas and a stretch then hit 411 home, avoiding downtown Gatlinburg.  So, so, so much fun!  So grateful for the chance to spend some one on one time with my awesome hubby, and had a wonderful experience riding some new, uncharted territory.  Plans to ride with some ladies this coming weekend, and looking forward to warmer weather for MORE epic rides with my hunny!  I give God all the glory for keeping both of us shiny side up this weekend, and lots of prayers for this upcoming week :D

I have SOOO much to say, I must break it into 2 posts! Part 1 ... Devil's Triangle

First of all, I can't believe I forgot a crucial part of my last story!  Where we rode into Waynesville and played on the Rattler.  I HAVE to fill y'all in on that because it was CRAZY!  So we were racing home, trying to beat the rain.  We made it through Townsend and were about 2, 3 miles from home.  The roads were soaked.  I'm usually SUPER cautious and approach traffic lights like I'm pulling a loaded horse trailer; that means as I approach green lights, I back off the throttle, downshift if I'm up in 5th, and just see what happens.  Once I'm past that point of commitment, I go on, regardless if the light changes.  Well.  We were hauling butt and did NOT slow down as we approached the FINAL traffic light before the turn to our neighborhood ... and Murphy's Law, it changed.  I was WAY too far from it to run it, but was going WAY too fast to effectively stop, especially in the rain.  OMG.  As I stepped on both brakes, I told David in the radio, "I'm sliding, I'm sliding, I'm sliding".  My tires were fully locked down, and I was fishtailing all over that road like a snake slithering to food.  I didn't panic; I kept my eyes up, kept my hand and foot on the brake, and finally just slammed my feet down to try and stop the momentum.  FINALLY, I stopped, almost 1/4 out in the intersection.  Fortunately, there were NOT many cars around, so why that stupid thing changed, I have no idea.  S.C.A.R.Y.  Will DEFINITELY be going with ABS brakes next time, don't know what I could have done differently (other than slowing like usual before the light).

Anyways!  BEFORE last week's demo ride, David and I took an impromptu trip to Oliver Springs on Easter Sunday.  I did NOT enjoy my ride at the Devil's Triangle last time we did it.  Quite frankly, it scared me.  I felt uncomfortable, like I couldn't get in a rhythm, and like it was kicking my tail.  So, I thought maybe that had been a case of not enough technical experience to fully conquer all the twists and turns and the undulations of the mountain triangle, so we were just looking for the perfect opportunity to try again.  It's close enough to us that we get a GOOD ride to it and around it, without taking hours and hours.  I've often said, "I wish it was a better ride so we could do it more often".  Well, this time was MUCH better.

CRAZY fog blanked off Foothills this past Tuesday AM

Except for one small detail ... I got the super bright idea to tackle it without my windshield.  I try not to complain about it too much, but I have hated my OEM shield since I rode Khaleesi off the lot.  The ONLY thing it does is keep the wind off my chest.  So, for the first time since I've owned her, I rode shield-less.  Um, BIG mistake!  Speeds above 35 mph got up under my helmet (I was wearing the Marvel one for the good shield it has) and lifted it so high off my head I felt like I was getting clothes lined.  Dang, that was a TERRIBLE experience for me!  I did it because with my Mustang seat, my head was now so far above my OEM shield that the wind was being sent directly into my face/head and the buffeting was nearly unbearable.  Well, no shield is definitely worse, FYI :D

No windshield is NOT how I roll!

SO; we decided to run the Triangle opposite of what consensus says the "good" direction is.  Instead of counter-clockwise, we ran it clockwise.  The ONLY problem with that is it puts the most technical aspect of the ride at the very beginning, and also in the more difficult direction.  When you have 10 mph switchback turns, it's easier to come at them from the left because you have a wider turning radius.  And SOME people think down is easier, but I personally think up is easier, but I digress.  I was actually really enjoying the VIEW with no shield; as we began winding our way up the mountain, the slower speeds wasn't too bad.  David warned me about the switchbacks coming up, and I shook off the butterflies.  First one, I held my outside line close to the yellow line, looked hard up and around the curve, feathered my clutch to keep the RPMS up, and before I knew it, all 4 of the S's were over.  3 right, one left.  I NAILED every single one of them, it was AWESOME.  Didn't cross into oncoming traffic once. 

Little pep talk before tackling the Devil's Triangle on Easter Sunday

The rest of the ride was fun; a usual ride for us of some faster straightaways with slower curvy sections, and winding up, over, and down the mountain.  I had David put Carrie Underwood's "Champion" song set during the switchbacks.  I have literally gotten emotional TWICE now, lol ... it's just such an awesome feeling when you conquer a fear and do something WELL that maybe didn't go so well for you last time.  Here is the video of the first 22ish miles.  The Triangle is 44 miles, we tried to break the videos perfectly in half.

Devil's triangle

Literally once we got home from that ride, David had me order a new windshield ... WHAT?!  Woo hoo!  So I ordered my Freedom Shield and waited with bated breath!!  I tried the first real long ride with it today (just came on Wed) and it is freaking AWESOME!  It has a curve at the top that directs the wind up and over.  My Indian helmet I love/hate even stayed UP with no rubber band today, crazy!  I have NO wind in my face, and the usual higher speed buffeting is so much better! HIGHLY recommend this shield; when we get our Chieftan (lol) we'll get a Freedom Shield for that too.  Details from today's ride to follow soon!

Yep, THIS happened!

Oh, and I SLAYED my 10,000 mile goal!  Hit it Tuesday on the way home from work.  My bike isn't a year old until tomorrow :)

Taller and wider; got it too tall for now to compensate for when I get my longer handle bars.

Winter is coming!

Winter may be coming, but GOT is a year+ away!  Anyway, I digress ...

Quiet few months riding wise for us.  We have managed a minimum of 1 ride per week EVERY week so far, but the temps are dropping colder, and the dark is coming on faster.  3 weeks ago, we finally went more than 60 miles!  Our default ride seems to be 55-70 miles.  We headed west and went through the Big South Fork Rec area, then up into KY for a little.  Dropped back down into TN by way of I-75 and got stuck in HELLISH traffic :( 

We headed out towards Oakridge and went steadily North towards the KY/TN border.  The Big South Fork area is soooo beautiful!  It's a haven for hikers and kayakers, and for motorcyclists! 

I love that ride because it's more country side type riding vs. mountain riding or straightaways.  It's nice, easy curvy roads with not too much elevation.  There are a few wicked turns and twists, and the road was every bit as challenging as I remember it being, but where as I was a little bit intimidated last time, now I felt light years more confident!

Khaleesi is such an amazing machine.  As she has broken in, I love her every bit as much now as I did that first time I sat on her in the church parking lot.  Turns are effortless, the ergonomics are perfect, and there is power to spare.

Surprisingly, we were a few weeks away from peak color; it started out as a brisk morning, but the day warmed up beautifully.  We got a bit of a late start because I wanted to dart into Cycle Gear to get some warmer gloves (which I didn't even need ... my hands started to SWEAT in them).  Normally, we're on the road by 7/8:00.  Today, it was more like 10:00. 

KY was different to ride in ... the particular area we were in actually wasn't that special.  It just happened to be the area we ended up in on David's chosen route, but I still really enjoyed myself.  Not a whole lot of particularly challenging roads; no Snake, or Dragon, or Rattler ... we did hit one or two roads that at the end, we pulled up beside each other and laughed with joy.  To me, that's a perfect ride!

I no longer critique my every move.  Khaleesi and I move as one most of the time.  I don't stall her, I don't have issues or problems turning left or right, and my tight right hand switchbacks?  No longer an issue :)  My back does get tired after about 200 miles; I feel like I'd really like reduced reach handlebars.  My upgrades wish list is floorboards, highway bars, Daymaker headlight, light bar with baby Daymakers, upgraded pipes, a custom seat, and reduced reach handlebars.  Not the kitchen sink!  My total mileage is around 7500 miles ... my goal is 10K+ in my first year.  I've got until April to make that goal!

After about 200ish miles, we were both starting to fade a little.  It was getting late, it was Sunday which means no "day of rest", and even though our track was fun, I knew what was to come, and it was about 3 more hours. That was when we decided to jump on I-75 S ... and hit total roadblock!  I lasted about 20 minutes of sitting there in 2-5 mph traffic, and I was DYING.  Khaleesi was blowing out leg blistering heat, and my left hand was cramping so badly I was reaching over to hold the clutch with my right hand.  I told David I HAD to get off that damn interstate. 

We finally did, found a back road that was decently fun, wound our way back to the interstate, and blasted back home.  I went through my least favorite spaghetti interchange of I-40 through Knoxville, and we pulled into the garage about ... 7:15.  It was a gorgeous day ... cool start, but ended up low 70's.  300 miles total, felt SOOOO good! 

2 60 miler rides, then 100 miles to be detailed soon!

Curves in 5th gear

Had breakfast in Pigeon Forge at my favorite Apple Barn restaurant

One good ride this week.  I rode Wednesday to work and it was a GREAT day, but nothing special :)  I mean, it WAS special, but I didn't go "the long way" or anything like that.

GIANT moth

Awesome pic of Khaleesi and Cheyenne outside of Norris Lake

Saturday we rode 300ish miles up north close to the KY border.  The teenager had to stay behind due to having all 4 wisdom teeth removed the day before!  He's doing good, but definitely didn't need a helmet pressing against his chipmunk cheeks. The road on the map is called "The Copperhead", but it's made up of several state roads.  Hwys 31, 63, and 66.  The first leg of the road was actually a little bit scary.  Lots of sloppy patch work, open cracks (that my front tire caught a few times), tar snakes, and a crumbling shoulder.  We also had the good fortune (sarcasm) of navigating that stretch behind a tractor trailer.  Um, 15 mph switch backs behind a tractor trailer (cue the Tail of the Dragon pics of shame!).  There WAS road construction, so at least they're fixing it, but it was dodgey riding at first!

The mountain leveled out and opened up to 50/55 and we pushed the bikes to about 8 over.  It is flat out EXHILARATING to  sweep through curves at 60+.  A little counter steering goes a LONG way to smooth turns!  The cool air wrapped around our bodies as we leaned and rolled our way towards the next mountain.  I had to rig up a system for my very expensive piece of crap "made in China" Indian helmet.  (that NONE of my local dealers will help me with)  It has a visor that will NOT stay up.  When my speed gets up above 30 mph, the visor SLAMS back down.  I like to have the option of pulling it down while on the higher speed roads, but the rest of the time I like it up so I can feel like I can breathe.  So, I stuck a ... panty liner under the shield to keep it up.  I mean, it worked!  Only problem is then it's in the up position until I pull over and put it back down.  I am completely disappointed in that helmet and I will never purchase another Indian helmet again.  I like my HJC so much better, AND it was cheaper.  Live and learn!

Yep, that's a sanitary napkin!:o

At about the half way point, I had my first OH $HIT moment in a WHILE.  We'd approached an intersection, and I did as I always do and backed off.  It seemed as though David was going to keep going straight, so I rolled back on the throttle and THEN he decided to turn left.  I locked Khaleesi down so bad she fishtailed right then left then right again.  David saw me in his mirrors and rolled on down and pulled over.  I managed to keep it rubber side down and we pulled off to the side.  My heart was pounding and I sort of yelled at him a little bit and the look on his face made me back off.  HE wasn't locked down, so I'm not sure why I did.  I wonder if either my tires had something on them, or if I tried to apply the breaks in a sandy area or something.   Our angels were riding with us b/c we safely executed a U turn and continued on our way.

We found a cute little spot with actual motorcycle parking to eat a light lunch of fried pickles and potato skins, then pulled up and over the final mountain.  THIS mountain road was FRESHLY paved with nice bright white and yellow lines and not a single tar snake or pothole :)  We smoothly took the turns and hills and before we knew it it was back towards home.  The scariest part of the entire ride is the spaghetti junction like curves of the interstate system to twist around and through Knoxville towards home.  Traffic was BAD and David was flying through like he was driving the truck and not his bike.  In fact, he even had to give me the "speed up" motion but DANG.  Those ramps are concrete and I had You Tube videos of motorcycle crashes running through my head.  :o

We made it safely home.  Thanked God like always for a beautiful and great ride with more than perfect weather.  Today almost felt like an early Fall day instead of late summer.  Not sure what next weekend will bring, but I hope it involves 2 wheels!

Appreciating what you have

If I let myself think about it too much, I feel sorry for myself that I had to sell Tiki.  I love that horse, and I always thought I would get to keep him "until his legs fell off".  But I know I made the right decision when I get the pics and emails from his kidlet.  Let me tell y'all; they've competed T, and they're going to do a P CT in Dec or Jan.  WHOA!  I always wondered if the boy had the stuff for more UL, but I was too much of a chicken to find out.  It's beginning to look like he DOES :)  So I look forward to hearing about their T competitions, and the big P move up.  It's a match made in Heaven!

I feel so fortunate to not only have Jade to ride, but also to be sitting on SO many horses at Eventing barn.  I used to keep track of all the horses I'd ridden; I wrote their names on my tack box.  It was a never ending push for me to want to sit on EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING I could.  Then I got old and fat and didn't ride much, and when I finally bought my own horse, I found that ANY motivation to sit on anything else was gone.  Just for fun, I'm going to list the horses I've ridden at Eventing barn.  I'm pretty sure I've been there just under a year at this point.  In no particular order: (updated 11-30-14)
1.  Kiara
2.  Pluto
3.  Rusty
4.  Sky
5.  Jedi
6.  Kimmie
7.  Spellbound
8.  Luna
9.  Belle
10.  Hannah
11.  Partner
12.  Connor
13.  Puffin
14.  Whisper
15.  Ricky Bobby
16.  Patton
17. Puzzle

I think of what each and every one of these horses have taught me, and it makes me so happy to say I've had the opportunity to ride them!  And if Tiki had made the trip w/ me to CA like I'd originally planned, I probably wound not have sat on even half these horses!  I've learned how to FINALLY feel what it's like to have real, true collection.  I've ridden passage and piaffe.  I've felt a perfect flying change just by the shifting of my weight.  It's been amazing!  I hope things work out to where I continue to ride where I'm at for a long, long time.  I absolutely love my horsey life right now!

Visions of Rolex ...

I <3 ponies="" td="">

I sure wish I could FINALLY go to the Rolex 3 Day Event this year.  How ironic would that be?  Never could make it when it was a 5 hour drive, yet could FLY there.  Haha.  Not this year!  Hopefully my awesome new trainer will qualify again next year and I can be part of the crew then.  This year I will be sitting here at my kitchen table watching the live feed via my laptop.  Anyway!  As I sit here typing, I feel the familiar burn in my lower back that says I rode today:)  I rode 2 VERY different horses, but both were great!

The morning was chilly, but in the sun it was positively lovely.  Miss Jade came in from the pasture with a positive attitude and only had one "normal" poop in the washrack.  The barn was quiet, and the mare seemed happy.  Gave her a good grooming, then tacked her up in the same setup as Saturday; running martingale and a single joint Myler D-ring snaffle with no hooks or anything of that sort.  I decided today was going to be a low pressure kind of day, so I was pretty relaxed.  Took her to the roundpen, and she was trying to run off before I even had the reins secured, so I growled at her to knock it off.  Let her run it out until she told me she was done, and when I pulled the mounting block to her she didn't move a single muscle.  Yes!  Got on and walked to the 'scary' upper ring.  Kept as loose a rein as I felt comfortable with, and took a nice leisurely walk around that ring.  She spooked twice, all 4 legs splayed out like a statue, but no spin or anything, phew.  Took her out of the ring after that walk, and down to 'her' lower ring.  Just spent some time walking on a relatively loose rein until I felt her take a deep breath.  I then began to walk a figure 8 around the 2 jumps in the center of the ring, using my leg 95%, hand 5%.  I kept my reins pretty long, and just focused on pushing her into my outside rein.  After that, I went to trot around on the rail ... on a loose rein.  Ya know, I did the SAME thing with Tiki.  He would get SO fast at the trot, then he would freak himself out because he was so unbalanced.  With a horse like Jade, it's easy to hang on her face to keep her slow.  What she then does is balance off your hand, so then you feel like you're always in a pulling match.  You have to allow them to balance THEMSELVES.  She has to learn to regulate her pace without me getting in her face.  Enter the One Rein Stop.  Every time, and I do mean every time she sped up, I spun her.  Eventually, they get tired of that!  But it teaches them to have a little self control and balance.  So I did that both ways until I made it a FULL lap of the ring with no spin ... on a loose rein, yay!

After lots of pats and a short break, I put her on contact.  I went immediately to the trot figure 8 around the jumps (which was different).  I've been doing the figure 8's in the far end of the ring, this time I was smack in the middle of the ring.  Back and forth, gentle contact, and a nice outside rein half halt IF she sped up.  There were quite a few times when she came onto the contact and got SO light and lovely, I really felt the horse she has the potential to be!  I then decided to be brave, and picked up the canter and cantered the 8.  I did a simple change through the walk in between.  I did probably 20 8's, keeping my hands up and together, butt in saddle, outside leg keeping her from dragging me out of the circle.  Again, I was very glad to have the martingale because cantering does bring forth lots of head flinging.  I just kept rinsing and repeating until she took a breath and made a few very nice transitions.

After one more break, I trotted on the rail on contact again, then did a shallow serpentine, tiny circle into the rail, finish serpentine, then trot up over pole.  I did that both ways 3 times each then let her finish.  She just got better and better, again giving me moments of true contact and lightness.  I like her in this bit the best so far; she is behind the kimberwicke, she is WAY too mouthy in the loosering, and in this one she takes the contact and even gets a little heavy in it, which is fine.  Trotting on a loose rein will fix that ;)  With the figure 8, I never feel her get mouthy with the bit, the mouth stays shut (ahem, Tiki never figured that out.  He opened his mouth in a HALTER!).  S just got a waterford, excited to try that!  I will put her back in a regular cavessoon when I try it.  Just trying to get her wants all figured out; she isn't a complicated horse per se, she's just super sensitive.  I really enjoyed her today, what a good girl!

At the other barn, I got to ride a pony!  She is fat and furry and white :)  I loved her.  Her name is Kimi, and she's a connemara.  LAZY!  Good lord, I wore my spurs and carried a dressage whip and still I worked myself to exhaustion;)  Trainer came out and made me get her on the bit like a good little dressage horse.  Had some great moments there.  I had to work for every step, but still had a blast.  I would love to take her out and run her around the xc course, I bet she's super fun.  My position was better on the pony, but I'm still having issues keeping my shoulder blades pressed together.  When I was a dancer, NO trainer EVER had to tell me to open my shoulders, but after so many years of riding alone and riding greenies and spookies, I've developed a bit of a softness to my upper body.  The default position is shoulders open, elbows on top of hips, hands up.  Slightly different from the hunter hand position :)  I'm SO looking forward to integrating myself; right now I still only know a hand full of people, but I'm getting to recognize some of them.  Trainer is slowly beginning to throw some responsibility on me.  I think she's been feeling me out to see what I know, and is starting to understand I do know a lot, so is starting to treat me as one of the crew.

So, I appreciate the ache in my lower back.  It means I got to do what I love today.  It reminds me that anything worth having, is worth working hard for.  It gives me hope that some day I will again stand in the start box and hear that countdown.  Incredibly thankful for my life, and looking forward to what tomorrow brings! :)  Peace and love y'all.

The empty corner

Timbre 1999-2013

As I stare into the empty corner of the room, I feel as though I can't breathe.  Cold and flat, the memories assail my senses one at the time.  It's an innocent thing; a 12"X24" corner of plain white carpet ... what's missing is a teal blue foam bed.  Upon that bed, a piece of my heart slept EVERY night.  Tonight will be the first time since living in my house that the corner is empty.

The first memory to hit me like a shocking, cold wave is that moment when he left me.  Wide eyes, head up, and a piercing keening wail.  Startled, the vet looked right into my eyes and reassured me he didn't feel anything, this was just nerves.  As the wail drifted away like the sound of a far off siren, his mouth closed and he was gone.  The next wave was of him slinking off his bed, head hanging in shame.  Large brown eyes gazed sadly into mine as the scent of his shame filled my nostrils. At that moment, I felt my heart crack.

As reality began to haze over, the waves began to roll in more gently.  That moment when my life was changed inexorably as my brand new husband of 2 months proudly deposited the tri-colored ball of fluff into my lap.  I was so shocked and surprised, my eyes filled with tears of happiness and I knew great things were to come.  Learning how to sit/stay/rollover/play dead/dance/come made the days go by quickly.  The fuzzy little fur ball gradually grew into a 50 pound model of perfection.  Perfectly fluffed double coat, a unique mohawk that lined his nose, and perky ears that simply flopped over and made him so completely and perfectly MINE.  He was my shadow, my protector, and my companion.  Together, we made a life and made memories to last a life time.

Playing fetch on the beach, trail blazing an impossible path at Little River Canyon, straining against his harness at full strength, running down the Silver Comet trail while I wobbled behind him on roller blades ... preening under the admiring stares of people on the crowded streets of Helen, awkwardly attempting to swim at Clark's Hill, and sniffing our newborn son while looking at me with a knowing eye.  Timbre was a piece of my heart, a spirit that completed the entire soul of my being, an unconditional love that never failed me one time.

As the harsh, ragged sound of his breaths gave way to the gentle sounds his lungs used to make, I was reminded of the Christmas my parents bought their first box of dog treats.  Lifelong "cat" people, Timbre was the first "grand dog", and they embraced him with love and compassion.  He showed my parents, my in-laws, and my friends the same unconditional love and respect he showed me.  Timbre won over anyone that spent a moment with him, he was a very special canine.  I believe animals are angels here on earth to protect us, give us unconditional love, and to complete our souls.  Sadly, there will be many of them to fill that role; our lifespan is just so much longer than theirs, but they teach us how to open our OWN hearts, and help us to give that same unconditional love in our own lives.  Timbre was my first, but he isn't my last.  He helped me to think of someone other than myself first, to put his needs before my own.

As I stare into the empty corner of the room, I feel myself begin to breathe again.  I would go on this journey again, 100 times over, even knowing how it all ends.  Because life is all about the journey, and my journey with Timbre was absolutely one of the BEST things about my life to date.  Run in Peace, Timbre.  I hope I get to be with you again when God calls me home to be with Him.

Timbre and Kody, best buds

You fought the good fight, buddy.  Love you forever.