It's been a busy day here in the Malibu. First, the final sunrise of spring fought the nighttime fog. (I didn't even try to get a photo from the bluff, as the coast was socked in until, well, it actually still is.)

Then, the dogs and I went for a morning walk:

Jake heard something in the underbrush:

That something turned out to be a pair of coyotes who had been tracking us.

Jake growled and barked and suddenly chased. His voice gave me chills. An enormous coyote with a gorgeous coat jogged by on the path ahead of us. Around a bend, I could hear a smaller coyote yipping and barking and begging Jake to follow her into the hills.

Maisie the Teacup Lab® had murder in her eyes and, thank god, a leash around her neck. I'm pretty sure she gave me the finger when I refused to let her run.

And then, minutes after we got safely back to the house, men with power tools and really big trucks arrived.

To be continued...