Just a few updates today, as I’m wiped.

That’s one big bison behind us!

Yesterday morning Ms. Betty Page woke us up at 6am. She slept all night on her own, so we weren’t too unhappy with her morning wake up whines.

We’d spent Saturday night in Jamestown, North Dakota. Since it wasn’t quite light out yet, we piled in the jeep, filled up the tank, and found an open Caribou Coffee as we waited for the sunrise, because we wanted to see a special bison.

One of Jamestown’s claims to fame is its giant bison Sculpture, standing 26′ tall and 46 feet long. We decided that before we left town, we’d drive on over to the bison to get a ‘family’ photo. We figured we’d have the bison to ourselves, as who would be crazy enough to get up at day break on a 30 degree Sunday morning to look at a giant fake bison (besides us)?

It turned out, there was a whole frontier town that lined the street leading up to the bison! The cold, quiet morning and some low lying clouds gave the old, empty frontier town an eerie feeling. It was cool.

Here are a few pics.

Just before the Frontier town gates, there was a two story viewing platform (on the left) and a large Prairie Schooner shaped chuckwagon to its right. Both overlook a herd of bison (we couldn’t tell if the bison were there at this time or not).

After driving through a set of gates (which we were surprised to see open), we encountered an old train depot, a few other buildings, then this general store and church.

Just beyond the church was a museum, though it was closed (we didn’t have time for it anyway). After the general store and church was a series of buildings that we had to drive through to get to the bison (the bison is behind me in the below pic).

Here’s another angle with the jeep in the photo:

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On Saturday we made it to Minneapolis to pick up our new family addition, Ms. Betty Page, aka Page, a Shiranian (Pomeranian and Shi Tsu mix).

10 week old Betty Page

Our ten-year-old dog Zollie (also a Shiranian) had been become very needy following the death of his beagle pal “Jelly”. So, Ann began looking around for a companion for him. She had gotten Zollie in 2010 in Omaha when she lived there. So, when she tried to find a Shiranian locally, it proved impossible. In fact, only two locations had Shiranian pups ready for purchase: Minnesota and Kentucky. A third location, Missouri, had a very young litter, which won’t be ready until early May.

Since Ann needed a short break from her mother, and since family was going to be in town this weekend, we decided to “high tail it” to Minneapolis. After all, the weather was perfect for the drive (sun, no snow, and moderate temps). And, it’s only a 22 hour drive (and 1500 miles one way).  Our return trip will take two days (be home Monday at some point), as Page will require a few more potty breaks.

The pic that inspired the name.

Now, why the name Ms. Betty Page? Ann thought Page looked like a diva in the pic we received of her (pic above on the pink blanket). So, she did some research and thought Betty Page a good match for how she imagined Page might be. Sure enough, when we met the pup, she was a rascal. She’s not shy about pushing Zollie or chasing him, not that she can keep up with him yet. And, given the fact that I write, the name “Page” was also a fun fit.

Ann and I both thought that once Zollie passed away in a few years that we’d be dog free. Clearly, that plan is not longer the plan. 

Zollie isn’t quite a Page fan yet. That’s because he’s been a bachelor for most of his life. I haven’t written much about him, but Zollie (his full name is Zoloft) began as Ann’s PTSD dog, acquired a year before Ann acquired me. She’d only had big dogs until she got him, but with her injury issues, she decided a smaller dog made more sense.

He was an energizer bunny when she first got him. Since those early days, he’s become calmer and is now a sweet, smart, and super well-behaved dog. Zollie doesn’t shed (Hypoallergenic) and doesn’t like to get dirty/muddy/wet, so he’s a great inside dog. He can sit through a movie at a movie theatre and not make a peep. He can sit through dinner at a restaurant and not beg.

However, over the years, he’s developed more neuroses than Ann; he’s the one who needs the therapy (he’s afraid of fires, hate’s camping, hates traveling in the motorhome, hates being outside most of the time, hates having to eat out of a bowl, …. the list is a long one).

Anyway, that’s all for now. I need to get to bed. We need to get up early Sunday so we can find the largest Bison in Jamestown, ND, and get a “family” picture with it.