October 8, 2014---Alabama Hills, Lone Pine, California

 We had a “stay at home day” today.  Tomorrow, we will move the motorhome in to Lone Pine.  The Film Festival starts Friday morning and we want to be closer to the action.

Usually at the festival, Bill goes one way and I go another.  He likes to see the old movies that were filmed here in the Alabama Hills.  There have been about 400 over the years.  There are still some things produced here, but mostly commercials, documentaries, and things like that.

I like to hear presentations by people in the film industry...actors, stuntmen, and historians.  There are some crafts for sale and books to be signed by the authors from the movies.  

Because we park very close to the activities, Bill and I can come and go as we please.  I’ll fill you in on this year’s festival after it closes on Sunday.

As I promised you yesterday, I will tell you about Joey...

Meredith and Dwaine adopted Joey when he was five months old.  He had freckles on his nose and stole their hearts immediately.  He loves to go on walks and play in the water.  Chasing balls is one of his main sporting events.  He’s very good at it!

Joey is a mix of Australian cattle dog and husky, plus probably several other things.  He has alert eyes, velvet ears, and his tail curls over his back, showing his husky heritage.

When he was young, Dwaine taught him to play hide and seek.  Dwaine would hide a tennis ball in Joey’s blankets and the puppy would find them.  Now he hides his own tennis balls and finds them all by himself.  He is his own playmate when it comes to playing hide and seek.  Early on, he discovered he could carry two tennis balls in his mouth.  You talk about talent!  

He is very aware of people’s emotions.  If Meredith comes home from work really stressed out, he immediately senses it.  When she had surgery, he stayed on the bed beside her for the first two weeks of her recovery.  After that, he was always nearby in case she needed him.  Joey is definitely Meredith’s dog.

Joey is very verbal.  I am sure if I were more intelligent, I could crack the language barrier between us and we could communicate nicely.  He has a lot of different expressions to his barks.  When I talk to him, he will answer in different “Joey barks.”  And his eyebrows show a lot of expression, too.

He is very athletic.  And, of course, that calls for numerous naps every day.

One of Joey's favorite napping positions.