Tumbling the best we can

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These are of us recently.   We both are looking chipper.   But our blog's name Tumbleweed Two might not be appropriate just now because one of us is not in the mood to travel much (tumble) or do much else while the other is.   Tom hasn't been feeling very spirited lately.   He's been visiting doctors trying to find why he hasn't had energy to do much.  So far, they've found him fine.  It may just be trying to be with me that has him feeling low:  I find things to do much of the day and he likes things to be a little less busy, more relaxed and less planned.

We still enjoy each other's company and are hoping we can make this work.

In the meantime, Tom says he does not want to plan any travel or participate in anything that is too active or with too many people.   So I am doing some of these things by myself.

One thing we did together last Thursday:  traveled the hour down to Fort Smith to the Arkansas Oklahoma State Fair.  I wanted to go to see the big dogs in an act that I'd seen would be featured there.   While waiting for the show to begin, we visited the animals barns.

Then we got to see the show: eight dogs taken from shelters or worse and settled into this former rodeo clown's act. 

They WERE fun, but not quite as fun as I had anticipated all week.  Trained with praise only and seeming to like their life on the road.

This weekend, I took off on a camping/hiking trip to a place I've been to a couple of times before - the Hurricane Wilderness where the Ozark Highland Trail goes through.    Above is the stream I camped in my van by on Friday night.  On Saturday morning, I walked on rocks across the stream and hiked about 4 miles along the Hurricane River.  This time of year, you don't hear the rush of water and see beautiful white/blue froth, as you do in the spring.

The next night, I drove to a campground along the Buffalo River and found a campsite near the main walk down to the river.   This is what you see there.  Here I hiked the 1.7 miles up to a picnic area along the river and back.   The leaves here that turn red are now turning. Others won't be far behind.   There'll be several weeks now when all the world here will look and feel glorious.  
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When I came home, Tom had kept the recently transplanted shrubs watered and done some other chores.   I think he enjoyed having a couple of days to himself on his own schedule.