It's interesting how it keeps getting harder to post to a sleeping website. I miss the days of multiple LAO updates - the energy was contagious. Meanwhile, here's a beautiful heron resting in the reeds at the Legacy Park pond the other day. The recent influx of water has brought the place back to life. (And yes, the parallels are glaringly obvious.)

Three days after the baby Labrador got such a severe case of kennel cough that we thought we might lose her, she's doing well. Her human companions, not so much. No sleep and a backlog of work. However the home office is comfortable, and it smells nice, too.

In case you missed it, we're migrating away from dormant LAO to the hereinmalibu.com url soon(ish). Meanwhile, feel free to follow on Instagram.

The wild puppy did very well with her rattlesnake training. Not a guarantee, but a bit of added peace of mind.

These little guys are so buoyant, they bounce and skitter across the water. When one realizes they've fallen too far behind the group, they zig and zag their way back at impressive -- and comical --speed.

When the water returned to the Legacy Park pond, the ducklings followed.

Yes, I know it actually means going public with a new boo, but in this case, it's Here in Malibu just going public. A separate-from-LA Observed blog is on the way, and meanwhile, feel free to follow on Instagram.

It's hard to believe this blog is 15 years old today. It has sputtered along for the last year or so, a tiny hidden heartbeat in the silence of a dormant site. It's tempting to use this milestone anniversary to say a permanent goodbye, but every time I wrote that particular post, it proved impossible to publish. So it's once again time to brave the clutter and chaos of Wordpress, fire up my place-holder instagram, and finally let LA Observed rest in peace.

Meanwhile, a month on San Juan Island has been whittled down to 10 days. It turns out the wild puppy gets wildly car sick. We scrapped the road trip and now the pups will stay with a sitter and the humans will do a bit of flying. It wasn't a complete loss, though. We got to see Sacramento at twilight, had a night in beautiful downtown Stockton, and spent time at all of the best rest stops along the I-5. (Is there a font for sarcasm?) We also got to discover that as much as Teddy can't tolerate road trips, she absolutely loves a good hotel.

Anyway, happy 15-year blogoversary to Here in Malibu. It will be interesting to see what comes next.

Another lull in the blog, but this time for a reasonable reason. Getting ready to drive to Anacortes in Washington where we'll get the ferry to an island. And this is where we're headed, staying for the month of August. Some friends will be at Casa de LOUD! so the gardens are in good hands. Meanwhile, expect updates from the drive north, which may seem like I-5 but is actually a series of dog parks.