Rascally Rabbit

Do you see him? Alpha didn't until I started stalking him. He's in the upper right hand corner of the picture.

Don't worry ... unfortunately Alpha kept me on a short leash until he bounded away.

Next time, I'll have to be more stealthy around Alpha ;-)

Now that's a cave!

And where else would you find it, but in Cave-in-Rock, Illinois (where do they come up with these names?)

It used to be a hideout for bandits and pirates. Yep. Really.

Now it's just a cool (literally) spot on the Ohio River.

Neat rocks

Hey, check out these neat rocks. We went to see them at Garden of the Gods (in the Shawnee National Forest in Southern Illinois)



In addition to all the cool vistas, I particularly liked all the nooks and crannies to explore.

17 years

See all these holes in the ground? Do you know what they are from?

Once every 17 years! Yep. The cicadas are back!



Well, let's just say you can hear all about it ;-)


Here's what they look like when they emerge from those holes in the ground.


And here's what they soon become. I think they are sooooo cute.

And tasty! Yep, I ate one (hee, hee).

My turn

Well now, Missy, you best be findin' yourself anotha seat.

'Cause I'ma fixin' to ride shotgun this time, ya hear!

Alright Alpha, let's move 'em out! Get 'dem doggies rollin'. Ye haw!

(Now where in tarnation did I put that dog-gone bandana ;-)

Did ya hear?

It's Memorial Day today! I hope you got to spend some time with your family, like I did.

And spare a thought for those that have lost a loved one, or for those still serving in distant lands. Keep safe y'all.

Not-so-Badlands

This is an interesting place. We were driving east through flat, lush fields of green, and then all of a sudden ... we're in these so called Badlands. Only I didn't find them so bad. The sky was blue, with a few puffy clouds, and since it's Spring, there's water here and the temperature is pretty cool.

But I guess things get ugly in the summer. Oh well, the only thing Mom is worried about are cacti. She want's Alpha to keep me on a short leash when we walk through the grass. She saw some hiding there.

Horsethief Lake

Well today we visited Mt. Rushmore. Or should I say my parents visited Mt. Rushmore. I got to stay in the RV since "no pets are allowed in the National Memorial" (blah blah blah).

But here is the good news. Just two miles out of the Memorial, we found this really neat campsite. You could walk around the lake, which I did with Alpha and Mom a total of 3 times. It was fun. And very serene.

Indoor day (aka rain)

Well, today we stayed put. We decided to spend an extra day at the Devil's Tower because it was a nice campground, and it was a beautiful morning.

Then the rain came. But this wasn't so bad either. After all, we are snug as a bug in a rug in Thistle Dew Too. And Alpha got to work on some RV projects. Something about running a new 120V circuit and installing a backup camera.

Can you believe that this was the first real rain we've had since we started our RV adventure (almost a month ago)? So I can't complain. Instead, I just play indoors ;-) But I do feel sorry for all those people camping in tents though.

Such a devil

Well, not me. Just the place I'm visiting.

It's called the Devil's Tower, and it's a national monument in Wyoming (that's it in the background). It's a unique geological formation, formed millions of years ago underground in a process similar to a volcano, and then uncovered by LOTS of erosion.

The real devil, however, is Alpha -- who's been so lax about keeping my blog updated ;-) He keeps mumbling something about limited internet connectivity, whatever the heck that means.

Powder River Pass

It's windy and it's cold up here at 9666 ft on the Powder River Pass. But it sure was a pretty ride.

Then the weather changed and a front came in. Now we need to get off the mountain before it snows!

Let's go already

Come on Alpha, let's get a move-on. Daylight's a burnin'.

I've got miles to go before I sleep, or somethin' like that.

Beauty sleep

Shhhh, be verry, verrry, quiet. We don't want to wake up Mommy.

Alpha says she needs her beauty sleep. Oops. He said I wasn't supposed to tell you all that (hee, hee).

Frito line art

Oh jeez -- he's been at it again.

This time it's "line art". Alpha, won't you give it a rest? ;-)

Yellowstone Falls

Now this is something impressive! A mini-Grand Canyon right here in Yellowstone, and a really cool waterfall.

And look -- you can even see where the park gets its name -- "Yellow" stone on the canyon walls

Welcome to Yellowstone

Great weather for our arrival, but what the heck is that stuff on the ground? It looks like snow!


And what the heck is that over there. Boiling water in the ground? This is one weird place! But cool, no hot, oh forget it ;-)

Craters of the Moon

What a strange place to find in the middle of the Oregon Trail. Can you imagine being a pioneer crossing the country, and running into lava fields?


Well, in any case, it looks really neat out my bedroom window. Which is also my living room window ;-)

This looks like a good spot

Well, this looks like a good place for lunch.

It's cool how every day I have a different place to visit, and walk, and sniff (oh yeah, and eat).

Itsa big country

Boy, you never really appreciate just how big this country is until you start to drive across it. Yowsa.

We are somewhere in Oregon (don't ask me), on the way to Yellowstone.

Crater Lake

It was a little early in the season to go up to Crater Lake National Park, in Oregon. Can you tell?


But Alpha came to rescue me and keep my paws warm.


Man, they sure have a lot of snow up there! And it's the middle of May!

Happy Mom Day!

Well, look who's out exploring on Mother's Day. Mom, you are just the coolest!

Today we took a really nice walk (2 miles each way) to what is known as Rainie Falls on the Rogue River, near Galice, OR. Lots of folks float rafts down this river and take in the rapids and the falls. We even saw one of them go swimming (unintentionally). Really cool.


Here I am with Alpha at the falls.

Comfy snoozin'

Here I am loungin' in the bigger-than-king-size bed that Mom and Alpha make up in the back of the RV. Mom and Alpha brought their down comforters with them, so it is nice and comfy, just like home. This is the life!

Dem dere tall trees

Yowsa! Have you ever seen anything so tall?

I bet not, since these California Redwoods are the tallest living things in the world! Sequoias are bigger in girth, but nothing is as tall. Very impressive.

Mom and I look so tiny by comparison. OMG!

Oregon coast is windy!

Wow. We must have hit it at an unusual time, but the coast was windy and cold! Can you tell that Mom is not amused?


Well, it's not bad in the RV. But here we are at a pretty rest area, and check out those ears. Hold on Alpha, or I may take off!

Oregon coast

We decided to travel down the Oregon coast. Alpha took me out for a run in the morning, and we went to the beach. Wow, was that fun.


Can you see how happy I am, just talking away on this huge jetty?


Here I am demonstrating some of my running prowess. OK, so maybe not ;-) But I am definitely demonstrating my cuteness!!!

Visiting Dan in Portland

After leaving Eugene, OR we took a trip to Portland to once again see my dog God father, Dan.


Since it was a nice day when we arrived, we decided to take a hike on the Marquam trail, a beautiful rain forest-like oasis right in the middle of Portland. Here is one of Dan's hiking buddies B.J.


The next day we walked through the city. Here in the Park Blocks, I got to walk with honest Abe. (Hee, hee.)


Finally, near a local museum, I tried making friends with one of Dan's favorite statues. The fact that it is a coyote and not a dog was not lost on my keen instincts ;-)

We had a good time in Portland. Thanks a lot for showing me a little of your home town, Dan!

Cherry blossom blizzard

While we were staying at the Alton Baker State Park, we took a walk over to the Science Center building, and look what we found. A beautiful entry walkway lined with cherry trees.


Which just happened to be in full bloom. And with the wind a-blowin', the pedals were beginning to fall like snow.

Um, no. More like a cherry blossom blizzard. Yeah, that's it!

Run, Alpha, Run

Guess who just finished his second marathon? Woo-hoo Alpha!

Alpha ran in the 2nd annual Eugene, Oregon marathon, and did pretty good (4:11), and a notable improvement over his first marathon (4:28). He had hoped to do even better (sub-4:00), and ran a very fast (for him) half marathon (1:51), but for anyone that knows distance running, that's a recipe for a crash and burn at the end. Apparently so!

But we're proud of him anyways ;-). And being his training partner, I intend to enforce some discipline in preparation for his 3rd marathon in Lowell, MA this fall.

Perhaps you can see the entry name he used for this race ... "Alpha". And he's wearing his running shirt that Alli gave him with pictures of moi on it, that says "Run, Alpha, Run." Anything I can do to help!


Oh yeah, and it looks like there were lots of people. Well, not like Chicago, New York, or Boston, but still about 5,000 I'm told.

Oh yeah, and do any of you remember Dan, my Dog God Father? He ran the marathon also. He's even faster than Alpha (3:46 for what I believe is his 12th marathon), and not to proud to wear his finisher's medal either, is he? (Hee, hee) I liked seeing Dan!

More than one way to skin a ... oh nevermind

We're in Eugene, Oregon now, and we visited a Saturday morning craft and farmer's market in the city. Really cool.

Except they didn't want dogs in the food area. So Alpha cleverly converted a reusable shopping bag into a handy dog carrier, and no one complained. In fact, being at eye level, I got lots of comments.


Alpha calls me a real chick magnet -- whatever that means ;-)

Sorry Mom. I can't help it. I'm just adorable.

Didya miss me?

So did ya miss me? I've been scolding Alpha regularly, reminding him that this is the Frito-a-Day blog, not the Frito-when-ever-you-get-around-to-it blog (hee, hee).

But here's kisses for you to make up for my absence. Alpha assures me that he's gonna back fill the missing posts el pronto.

p.s., thanks go to Mom for this photo (yeah Mom!)

Electric Frito

Uh oh. It's Alpha-art again. (Sorry everyone ;-)

This is in honor of our visit to AM Solar. We are getting Thistle Dew Too upgrade, and if you are curious, you'll be able to read about that over here.

Anyways, this is a photo of me lounging in their waiting room. Suitably electrified ;-)