Leonberger Life

Sunshine Blogger Award

I’ve been nominated for the Sunshine Blogger Award by Laura, from Black Moon Lilith Thank you for the nomination, Laura! It was a nice birthday gift.

Check out her blog for lots of great posts which feature poetry, short stories, very cool pictures, and other interesting things!

Without further ado, here are the rules which I’ve copied from Lauras’s blog:

Display the award’s official logo somewhere on your blog.
Thank the person who nominated you.
Provide a link to your nominator’s blog.
Answer your nominators’ questions.
Nominate up to 11 bloggers.
Ask your nominees 11 questions.
Notify your nominees by commenting on at least one of their blog posts.

Eleven Questions for Me

Below are my answers to Lauras’s eleven questions. I have not yet learned how to create the kind of pictures that Laura creates. That’s for another time.

Question 1 : What’s your favorite brand of coffee? If you don’t drink coffee, what do you like to drink? (Tea, etc)

I drink Green Mountain Nantucked the most, but I really like Gevalia the best.

Question 2 : What’s the most creative lie you’ve ever told?

I never lie. Well, that’s my most creative lie.

Question 3 : What’s the last dream you had (that you feel comfortable sharing)? If you’re in the “don’t dream” camp, what would you like to dream about?

I dream about traveling a lot. My last very memorable dream was about traveling on a big boat. On the boat I met several people from my youth in Sweden. Then I needed to go to the bathroom, but I could not find it. Every boat should have well-advertised good bathrooms but the boat in my dream didn’t.

Question 4 : What was the most favorite job you’ve held in your lifetime?

I think that was when I was a robotics research assistant at Sandia National Laboratory the summer of 1993. I was new to the United States, I had just received a green card, and I was working at a well-regarded national laboratory located inside a major US Airforce base. Everything was secret. The lab next to us received a Soviet satellite carrying a small nuclear power reactor that summer. The US did not know how to build a mini nuclear reactor at the time so reverse engineering this reactor was a big deal. I would like to point out that I was not part of that. I only heard about it. Another fun job was when I designed the portion of the electronics for a Swedish fighter jet called JAS Gripen.

Humanoid robots and several orange industrial robots. MLP Mechanized industry robot and robotic arms for assembly in factory production. Concept of artificial intelligence for industrial revolution and automation manufacturing process. — Mechanized industry robot and robotic arms for assembly in factory production. Shutterstock Asset id: 2459375613 by Summit Art Creations.

Question 5 : What motivated you to start blogging?

I wanted to start a blog to advertise my upcoming dog book “The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle”. I asked my friend Alex Diaz-Granados for advice, and he helped me get started on WordPress.com. Later on, I continued blogging mostly because it became a hobby and I started a second blog superfactful, which has nothing to do with my book. The goal of this blog is to create a long list of facts that are important, not trivia, and that are known to be true yet are either disputed by large segments of the public or highly surprising or misunderstood by many.

The gold and beige book cover features the face of our Leonberger Bronco and the text "The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle. Stories and Tips from Thirteen Years with a Leonberger." — This is the front cover of the book “The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle”. Click here or on the image to go to the United States Amazon location for the paperback version of the book.

Question 6 : What are you grateful for?

I am grateful for my wife and kids, my whole family, my dog(s) current and past, and what they gave me. I am grateful that I am alive and that I can experience our beautiful nature, the night sky, and everything there is to know and understand.

Question 7 : What’s something nice you did for yourself recently?

We went on a great ski trip to Breckenridge, Colorado. I skied the Imperial Bowl, which is served by the highest ski lift in the western hemisphere. The Imperial Bowl is big and wide and mostly empty and there was a lot of powder snow. We had a very good time together as a family.

Question 8 : If you could partake in any new endeavor, experience, or hobby, regardless of time constraints or money, what would it be?

I would like to get a degree in Astro Physics as a retirement project, but not for a future career. That would be a huge time commitment and probably expensive and maybe weird too, considering my goal is not a career in the field. However, I like to know things about how the world works and I like to know things about the Universe.

Question 9 : What do you like to do to keep your brain active?

When I was still working as a software engineer / robotics engineer I kept my brain active because of my work. Since I took my early retirement, I need to keep my brain busy in other ways. I read a lot of books, I wrote a book, I blog, I am learning French, I am a volunteer for an organization called Citizens Climate Lobby, which focuses a lot on specific legislation that I need to study, I brew beer, and well OK drinking beer may not be keeping my brain active but it is a hobby as well.

Question 10 : What do you like to do to keep your body active?

I jog and I like to swim in my in-law’s pool. My wife and I used to go bicycling a lot. We have not done that for a while, but I think we’ll soon pick that back up again.

Question 11 : What is your favorite thing about spending time out in nature?

I love a lot of things about nature. I cannot pick one specific thing. I love the forest. The quiet, the solitude, the tranquility, the berries, the birds singing, the beautiful trees and the vegetation, the smell, the hills, the scenery, and seeing some animals too. I just don’t like to encounter a bear.

Shafts of sunlight filter through a misty forest, casting a warm, golden glow along a peaceful trail. Ethereal morning atmosphere creates a serene environment, which radiates tranquillity and beauty — Forest in the mist. Shutterstock Asset id: 2525988579 by Flystock

Here are my questions for my nominees:

Question 1 : What’s your favorite movie(s)?

Question 2 : What is something you’ve done or experienced that is unusual?

Question 3 : What’s one thing you’ve always wanted to try but haven’t yet?

Question 4 : What’s something you’re really passionate about?

Question 5 : If you could live anywhere in the world, where would it be and why?

Question 6 : What’s your favorite way to spend a weekend or a day off?

Question 7 : What’s something you wish more people understood about you?

Question 8 : What’s your go-to comfort food or favorite meal?

Question 9 : If you could have dinner with any three people (dead or alive), who would they be?

Question 10 : What’s the best piece of advice you’ve ever received?

Question 11 : What kind of music are you into?

Eleven New Victims

Alex Diaz-Granados from A Certain Point of View, Too

Denise from Reviews of Old and New Stories. Mostly Old

Robbie Cheadle from Robbie’s inspiration

Jacqui Murray from Worddreams

James Viscosi from Viscosity

Dawn Pisturino from Dawn Pisturino’s Blog

Debbie D. from The Doglady’s Den

Miriam Hurdle from The Showers of Blessings

Jeanne from A Jeanne in the Kitchen

Barbara from teleportingweena

da-AL from Happiness Between Tails

Back from Breckenridge

Summit view from Peak 8 at Breckenridge Ski Resort, Colorado. Snowboarder riding down in the mountains. — Summit view from Peak 8 at Breckenridge Ski Resort Asset id: 2135906083 by FashionStock.com

I just wanted to announce that I am back from our family trip to Breckenridge, Colorado. I am now ready to post again, reply to comments and visit other people’s blogs. I had to ignore all blogging for a week because I skied every day and the rest of the time I spent with my family. On the trip it was me, my wife Claudia, our oldest son Jacob and his wife, Ashley, our younger son and his girlfriend, and our daughter. That makes seven people. However, it was really eight of us because Ashley is pregnant. Claudia and I are going to be grandparents. Ashley did not ski. It is not safe when you are pregnant. However, Jacob and she did other things, such as dog sledding, sledding, and snowshoeing. Jacob also did some snowboarding. The rest of us did mostly skiing.

About Breckenridge

Breckenridge and Vail are the two most popular ski resorts in North America with 1.5 million annual visitors each. Keystone comes in third place with 1.4 million annual visitors. Keystone is located nearby Breckenridge, and you can easily see it from Breckenridge. All three ski resorts are located a little less than two hours west of Denver along interstate I-70. The Breckenridge Ski Resort boasts 187 trails spread across five huge peaks, totaling 2,908 acres of ski-able terrain. Breckenridge is also an old gold mining town known for the 13.5-pound gold piece found here in 1887. The piece of gold was named Tom’s baby, which is also the name of one of the ski slopes.

A bullion of gold isolated on white background — Piece of gold Asset id: 133307360 by macrowildlife

One thing that I think is great about Breckenridge is the variety of ski slopes. There are lots of green, lots of blue, lots of black, double black diamonds as well as extreme terrain. It is great for families as well as expert skiers. The town of Breckenridge is small and yet it features 100 restaurants and a brewery as well as a lot of interesting stores, a crepe place, and many great hotels. This was the fifth or sixth time we visited Breckenridge. The first time was twenty years ago (see the photo below).

The photo shows our five-year-old daughter in blue and our son in black as well as a wooden lodge. There is a large mountain in the background. — This photo from Breckenridge in 2004 shows our daughter in the foreground and our younger son in black to the right. The lodge in the background is called Ten Mile Station.

Imperial Express Superchair

Breckenridge is home to the highest chairlift in North America, in fact the highest ski lift in all of the western world, the Imperial Express Superchair, leading to the top of peak 8. It will take you 13,000 feet, or 4,000 meters above sea level. Just like last time we visited Breckenridge I took the Imperial Express Superchair and I skied the Imperial Bowl. The Imperial Bowl lies above the tree line and the view from up there is spectacular. The Imperial Bowl is wide, steep, quiet, peaceful and typically features powder snow. It is not easy skiing, and the air is thin, but the skiing experience is magical.

When it is clear you can see a very large area of Colorado from up there, including several dozen mountain tops, the town of Breckenridge far below, the town of Frisco in the distance, the Keystone ski resort, and around there is lots of bright white powdery snow stretching for several hundreds of yards in all directions. You are on top of the world. I did not take a photo this time because there was a snowstorm when I was there. The photo at the top of this post shows the view to the south-east of the Imperial Bowl taken from what must be the Imperial Bowl. The photo below is taken from another slope on another peak (Devil’s Crotch) and shows the Imperial Express Superchair. It is important to note that what looks like the base of the mountain is not. It is just a forested portion of the mountain.

Breckenridge, Colorado / USA January 27, 2020: Imperial Express Lift and the Devil's Crotch Bowl at the top of Breckenridge Ski Resort with snow and a blue sky day. — Imperial Express Lift in the distance Asset id: 1636898575 by Steve Boice

What About Rollo ?

Our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo is very difficult to leave. It was easier when our Leonberger Bronco and our Pug Daisy were still alive because in addition to a dog sitter, he had friendly dog company when we left. Rollo is not comfortable with people he does not know so it is more difficult nowadays. However, we found a good solution. A veterinary technician at the Royal Veterinary Clinic where we usually take him for veterinary visits does dog sitting on the side, and she is willing to stay overnight with the dog. Rollo knows her and he is comfortable with her, and her fee is reasonable. While we were gone, she sent photos of him every day and below I am sharing a few.

Rollo our black and white mini-Australian Shepherd is looking straight into the camera. — Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd at home with the Veterinary Technician (who took the photo).

The Life and Times of Le Bronco Von Der Lowenhohle

I started this blog three years ago to spread the word about my, at the time, upcoming book “The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle”. To celebrate the three-year anniversary of my blog I decided to have a little promotion for my book. The price for paperback version of the book is normally $19.95 but Amazon lowered the price to $17.95 several months ago and I cannot set it back. My guess is that some store somewhere is selling it for $17.95. They have a lowest price policy. Instead of complaining about that I decided to roll with it and to lower the price of the Kindle version as well, to only $2.99. I will keep that price until April 1^st. The prices in all other countries, Canada, the UK, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Italy, Spain, Australia, etc., are lowered by the same amount.

Before I continue, I would like to highlight a few important facts about my book.

The book is about our late Leonberger dog Bronco von der Löwenhöhle and his crazy and amusing adventures and his heroic deeds.
Bronco saved the lives of other dogs and protected out neighborhood.
In the book there is information about Leonberger dogs, the breed standard(s), history, Leonberger organizations, training and care, and health.
The book has lots of photos, illustrations and it is in color.
All proceeds are donated to the Leonberger Health Foundation International
It is a book for all dog lovers not just Leonberger lovers. It is intended to be both fun and educational.

The back cover in gold and beige features a photo of a Leonberger in a snowy forest and an introduction to the book. — This is the back cover of the book “The Life and Times of Le Bronco von der Löwenhöhle”. Click here or on the image to go to the Amazon.com location for the kindle version of the book.

The endorsements say “A wonderful tribute to the author's beloved Bronco. The stories are heartwarming as well as informative - a true glimpse into life with a Leonberger. D'Nae Wilson, President, Leonberger Health Foundation International.” and “A lovely tribute to Bronco, with lots of resources for general Leonberger information. Julie Schaffert, LCA breeder since 1992.” — These are the endorsements for the book. Click here or on the image to go to the Barnes and Noble location for the book.

Canadian Leonbergers with my Book

A Leonberger is lying on the floor, and my book is leaning against the dog. — Hachi a Canadian Leonberger featured with my book. He was one year old when this photo was taken by Brenda Saito and her husband. Click here or on the photo to visit the paperback version for the book on Canadian Amazon.

Photo of a Leonberger lying on a leather sofa with my book leaning towards his chest. — A Canadian Leonberger called Mak with my book. Photo by Debbie Ireland. Click here<<Link-5>> or on the photo to visit the page for the book on Chapters Indigo.

Getting My Book in Other Places

You can also get my book in many other places including Amazon in every country where Amazon exists, Chapters Indigo, Apple, etc. To see most of the options visit my Book Page by clicking here.

A Leonberger Story

The book features a lot of stories about Bronco as well as other dogs. Below is one short story.

Bronco’s Hamster Search and Rescue

Back when Bronco our Leonberger was young, the kids had pet hamsters—Moldova and Montenegro. The hamsters escaped from their cages sometimes, but Bronco usually helped us find them whenever they did. Claudia would tell him, “Bronco, find the hamsters,” and he would go around the house sniffing until he found them. One time he found them in the linen closet; another time he found them on a shelf in the living room.

On one occasion, a friend of David trusted us with his two hamsters while he and his family went on vacation. A couple of days later, Claudia noticed that the two hamsters were missing from their cage. The next thing she noticed was that Bronco’s cheeks looked puffy, so she said, “Bronco, drop it!” Out came the two hamsters, both unconscious.

An illustration of a Leonbergers face with puffy cheeks. — Cheeks full of hamsters (illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt)

In a panic, Claudia started performing CPR on the unconscious hamsters. She put one hamster at a time in her hand and gently compressed each tiny chest using the finger of the other hand. Fortunately, one hamster revived right away. The CPR didn’t seem to be working on the other hamster, but Claudia put both of them back in their cage, and soon the second hamster also woke up. We decided to keep the incident to ourselves. Hamsters don’t squeal.

Illustration of a hamster lying in woman hand. The hamster is receiving CPR from the finger on the woman’s second hand. — Hamster CPR (illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt)

The question is, Did Bronco try to eat the hamsters? Or did he simply find them and pick them up, intending to alert us to their presence? I’ve asked several people this question, including some who know Leonbergers well. The answer they give is that he tried to save them from whatever danger he thought they might have been in. If he wanted to eat them, they say, he would have tried chewing them. But clearly, he didn’t.

The hamsters may have felt differently about the situation and may have fainted from the shock. Who knows? Bronco was a hero on many occasions, but this time, perhaps, he was a hamster superhero.

Eventually our own hamsters died, but that didn’t end Bronco’s interest in them. When the first hamster died, we held a funeral. We put the hamster in a shoe box, said goodbye, put some flowers in the box, and buried it in the backyard underneath some bushes. But when we turned our backs, Bronco was there, digging under the bushes. Perhaps he thought he could save the hamster. So, we called Bronco off and tried again: this time I dug a deeper hole and put a wide rock over the shoe box before covering it. Now Bronco couldn’t dig up the hamster. When the second hamster died, I had learned my lesson and did the same thing.

Important Note : I am going on a ski vacation early tomorrow morning and I will take a one-week break from blogging as well as a break from reading other people’s blogs. I will try to catch up when I get back.

3 Years Anniversary with 25 Leonbergers

Today is the 3 years anniversary of my Leonberger blog. I am celebrating this anniversary with another post with the “25 Leonberger photos” theme. It is another 25 Leonbergers. The post feature Leonbergers looking into the camera or whose faces you can see, as well as one portrait of our Leonberger Bronco. Most of the photos in this post is of our late Leonberger Bronco but there are a few other Leonberger photos as well. Below is a list of the previous posts using the theme 25 Leonberger photos.

Also don’t forget to check out my new blog if you haven’t done so.

25 Leonberger Faces

A photo of a Leonberger puppy wearing a red scarf. — This is a photo of our Leonberger Bronco when he was three months old. I included this photo in my last Leonberger Faces post too. I am using it a lot, but it is a good photo.

Painting showing our Leonberger Bronco’s face. Like all Leonbergers he has a black mask and fluffy hair. — The portrait of our Leonberger Bronco was drawn by Veniceme at Etsy (Natasha Dall’Ara) and it is based on one of our photos.

A young gangly Leonberger with a bandage on his knee is next to a little Chihuahua. The two owners of the little dog are a lady in blue jeans and a lady in white pants. The lady with white pants is also wearing a bandage on her knee. — Our Leonberger Bronco at the White Rock Lake dog park at about five/six months old. He is wearing a bandage on his knee because at the time he had a condition from growing too fast. The two ladies are the owners of the little dog.

The Day Our Leonberger Was Bad

The illustration below depicts when Bronco had a bad case of squamous cell carcinoma and had to have a front toe amputated. Bronco’s entire leg was put in a cast, to be replaced by a bandage after ten days. We were instructed to keep him inside during those ten days and keep him as still as possible. We were to make sure he wouldn’t bump the cast. This was, of course, almost impossible to do, but we were going to try.

However, Bronco really wanted to go out, which he showed us in various ways, such as scratching at the front door. After a week or so, Claudia suggested that we take him outside a little bit, just in our driveway. I agreed. When I handed her the leash, she said, “He can barely walk; do you think he’s going to run off without it?” We laughed, and I agreed that it didn’t seem like we needed it this time. So Claudia walked out with Bronco slowly limping beside her.

Less than a minute had passed when I heard shouting outside. I opened the door and looked outside to see what was going on. First, I saw our neighbor and his two corgis running down the street as fast as they could. Our neighbor was screaming at the top of his lungs, “Get him off me! Get him off me!” Behind him, Bronco was running with his cast going kabonk-kabonk-kabonk as it hit the sidewalk. Behind Bronco ran Claudia, who was also screaming at the top of her lungs. “Bronco! Sit! Stay! Stop!” Finally, Bronco stopped, and Claudia grabbed him. Holding his collar, she led him back in.

Colorful illustration showing a big dog wearing a cast on his front left leg and running with it. — This is an illustration showing Bronco running down the street while wearing a cast. He was not supposed to bump the cast. Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.

Continuation of 25 Leonberger Faces

The photo shows a Leonberger standing and looking into the camera. — Bronco our Leonberger is standing in front of our hallway. He is pretty old in this photo.

Photo shows our Leonberger Bronco standing in the backyard as a sun ray shines down upon him. — Bronco saved our pug’s life and possibly our Labrador’s life. He is a saint.

Photo shows our Leonberger Bronco standing next to my wife Claudia. She is holding the grey-muzzle award. — Bronco lived very long for a Leonberger. The typical lifespan is 8-9 years. The Leonberger Health Foundation International gives out a grey-muzzle award to Leonbergers who have lived 12 years or longer. Here Bronco is receiving his grey-muzzle award.

The Grey Muzzle Award states “For Leonberger longevity is presented with gratitude by the Leonberger Health Foundation Internation To Bronco for Offering Hope and Potential for longer Lives for Leonbergers throughout the world.”. — The Grey Muzzle Award.

The photo shows our big Leonberger on the left and our little pug Daisy on the right. — Bronco and our pug Daisy.

A Leonberger swimming in lake water — Our Leonberger Bronco swimming in White Rock Lake.

Bronco our Leonberger is standing in lake water — Bronco is standing in the water in White Rock Lake. The water looks muddy, but it is clean.

Leonberger standing in a blue kiddie pool — Young Bronco (maybe one years old) standing in a kiddie pool.

Leonberger dog in lake water. — Bronco in White Rock Lake again.

The photo shows a Leonberger in a bathtub. — The Leonberger in the photo is Digory and he is Jen O’Keefe’s Leonberger. Photo by Jen O’Keefe.

The photo shows a Leonberger standing in water. — Swimming time for Digory Jen O’Keefe’s Leonberger. Photo by Jen O’Keefe.

The photo shows two Leonbergers sitting next to each other. — Digory got bone cancer, had an amputation, and this photo is two years later. He lived long for a Leonberger with this condition. Here is with a Leonberger friend. Photo by Jen O’Keefe.

A Leonberger standing in beach waves. — Leonberger on the beach. Stock Photo ID: 1110805445 by Lolostock

Two Leonbergers swimming next to each other. — Two Leonbergers swimming. Stock Photo ID: 1989806678 by Taibomaus.

Leonberger standing in water. — Leonberger standing in river. Photo by Stephanie Lucero on Unsplash.

A Leonberger puppy standing in the snow. Shutterstock Stock Photo ID: 2390810457 by VeronArt16.

Ten Leonberger puppies sitting on a sofa. They are brown with black face masks. — Ten Leonberger puppies. My guess is that they are about two months old. Shutterstock-ID:561107710 by Akbudak Rimma.

Two sand colored Leonberger puppies playing in the snow. The play seems to be a little bit rough. Like all Leonbergers they have a black facemask. — Two light colored Leonberger puppies playing. My guess is that they are three months old. Shutterstock-ID: 2141564415 by AnetaZabranska.

On the left, our Japanese Chin Ryu and our pug Daisy. On the right is our Leonberger Bronco. — Our Leonberger Bronco with our Japanese Chin Ryu and our pug Daisy.

On the left, our pug Daisy and our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo. They are in a dog bed. On the right is Bronco our Leonberger who is lying on the floor. — Our pug Daisy and our mini-Australian Shepherd puppy Rollo in the little bed and Bronco our Leonberger is lying on the floor.

The photo shows our big Leonberger lying behind our little mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo. There is also a dog toy in the photo. — Bronco and our mini-Australian Shepherd Rollo. Rollo and Bronco loved each other. Unfortunately, Rollo has a hard time with other dogs.

5 Super Facts

With this blog post I wanted to bring attention to my other blog. The goal of this fairly new blog is to generate a list of what I call super facts, which are important facts, not trivia, known to be true and yet are either disputed by large segments of the public or highly surprising or misunderstood by many. Because these facts are fundamental and true and yet there is so much confusion and dispute surrounding them, I consider these facts to be very special. That’s why I call them super facts.

In a sense the blog is a myth busting blog. A myth busting blog that focuses on important information. I call this blog “Superfactful”. I am trying to get more subscribers and visitors to my new blog. This post is essentially a shoutout to my Superfactful blog. I am featuring five selected super facts. To read more about the super facts click on the images or links below.

I can add that about half the posts on “Superfactful” are not super facts but just fun facts or reviews of non-fiction books.

Super Fact #4 : The Speed of Light in Vacuum Is a Universal Constant

The speed of light in vacuum is a universal constant. The speed of light in vacuum is the same for all observers regardless of their speed and the direction in which they are going. It is always c = 299,792,458 meters per second. If you try to catch up to a light beam and try to travel close to the speed of the light beam, you will not be able to catch up. The speed of the light beam will still be c = 299,792,458 meters per second compared to you no matter how fast you go. This is possible because time and space don’t behave like we expect.

Click here or the picture below to visit Super Fact #4

The picture shows two people Alan and Amy. Alan is on the ground. Amy is flying by Alan in a rocket speeding left. Both Alan and Amy are pointing lasers to the left. — In this picture Amy is traveling past Alan in a rocket. Both have a laser. Both measure the speed of both laser beams to be c = 299,792,458 meters per second.

Super Fact #7 : Poverty and child mortality have been sharply reduced worldwide

Extreme poverty as well as child mortality has been sharply reduced the world over. The countries that are the worst-off today are still better off than the countries that were doing the best at the beginning of the 19th century. Over the last 20 years extreme poverty and child mortality have continued to decline sharply.

Click here or the picture below to visit Super Fact #7

The graph shows share living in extreme poverty in brown and share not living in extreme poverty in purple. The graph begins in 1820 at ends in 2018. — This graph from Our World In Data shows a steep decline in extreme poverty over time. Click on the picture to visit the original article.

Super Fact #25 : Global Warming is Happening and is Caused by us

Global warming or if you call it Climate Change or Climate Disruption is happening, and it is happening very fast, and we also know that it is caused by us primarily as a result of our burning of fossil fuels. There is a long-standing scientific consensus on these two facts because the evidence is conclusive. Check the evidence in the post.

In other words, politicians dispute this, political think tanks dispute this, many amongst the public dispute this, but scientists extremely rarely dispute this because the evidence is too strong.

Click here or the picture below to visit Super Fact #25

Hockey stick curve going back 1,000 years. The recent uptick in global temperature is very sharp and very sudden | Global Warming is Happening and is Caused by us. — The so-called hockey stick curve depicting the last 1,000 years. The blue line is the first hockey stick curve ever created (by Michael Mann). He used proxy measurements such as tree rings, green-dots 30-year average, red temperature measurements. Wikimedia commons <<https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/deed.en>>. This graph is taken from this page.

Super Fact #28 : That Earth is round was well known long before Columbus

That Earth is round, or spherical (or closely spherical) had been known for at least a couple of thousand years by the time Columbus set sail. Columbus did not set sail to prove that earth was round, and he knew it was round.

Click here or the picture below to visit Super Fact #28

The earth globe showing the side with the Pacific Ocean. The Pacific Ocean covers most of this side. — Columbus did not use Eratosthenes calculations from 1,800 years earlier and therefore thought that the earth was much smaller than it really was. He did not know about the Pacific Ocean. Earth Pacific Ocean view Stock Illustration ID: 1617553012 by Matis75.

Super Fact #35 : Natural Disasters Kill Less People Now Than 100 Years Ago

Natural disasters kill a lot less people now compared to 100 years ago. That is despite a larger population and despite the fact that climate change has increased the frequency and intensity of many types of natural disasters.

Click here or the picture below to visit Super Fact #35

The graph shows 300 to 400 thousand annual deaths at the beginning of the 20th century, then 971 thousand annual deaths in the 1930’s, then it continuously gets lower until the annual deaths in the 2010 to 2016 period is 72 thousand deaths per year | Natural Disasters Kill Less People Now Than 100 Years Ago — This graph from the Gap Minder article shows the annual deaths from natural disasters in ten-year intervals starting with 1930. The trend is down.

To see the list of Super Facts Click Here

Dog Humor 7

It is time for another Dog Humor post. To see the previous ones see the list below. All the dog comics are Facebook pictures that are being passed around. The original creator is typically noted on the cartoon.

Dogs Own Our Beds

Today’s post has the them dogs taking over our beds and furniture. When Rollo wants to sit in a specific spot on the sofa, but someone happens to be sitting there, he scratches their legs with his paw so that they know that they need to move over.

25 Leonberger Faces

This is another post with the “25 Leonberger photos” theme. This time the theme is Leonberger faces. The post feature close ups of Leonbergers looking into the camera. A lot of the photos are of our late Leonberger Bronco but there are many other Leonberger photos as well. Below is a list of the previous posts using the theme 25 Leonberger photos.

25 Leonberger Photos and Illustrations
Another 25 Leonberger Photos and Illustrations
25 Waterberger Photos (Leonbergers in water or swimming)
25 Leonberger Puppies and Other Puppies for National Puppy Day
25 Photos of Leonbergers with Other Dogs
25 Photos of Leonbergers in Nature
25 Photos of Young Leonbergers
25 Photos of Old Leonbergers
25 Leonberger Puppy Photos

Also don’t forget to check out my new blog if you haven’t done so.

25 Leonberger Faces

About half of the photos of Leonberger faces below are mine, mostly of our Leonberger Bronco. There are also several photos by Jen O’Keefe and Leonberger community friend. There is also a photo by Brenda Seito and one by Debbie Ireland, and the illustration of Bronco’s face was made by Naomi Rosenblatt.

A photo of a Leonberger puppy wearing a scarf. He has his tongue out. — This is a black and white photo of our Leonberger Bronco when he was three months old.

The photo shows an old Leonberger dog lying on green grass. He is looking into the camera. — Bronco our Leonberger dog is taking a rest during a walk. He is twelve and a half years old.

Our Leonberger dog Bronco is standing in front of me and looking straight into the camera. I am sitting in the sofa. — Our Leonberger dog Bronco is coming up to me. He wants my attention.

A photo of our Leonberger lying on our green lawn. There are trees and bushes in the background. — Bronco taking a resting in the grass in our backyard. He is pretty old in this picture. For a Leonberger he lived very long.

A photo of our Leonberger dog wearing a blue party hat. — It is Bronco’s 11^th birthday.

Bronco is standing at the kitchen entrance, and our new little dark brown and white puppy is sitting in front of him. — In this photo our Leonberger dog Bronco is eleven and a half years old and we have acquired a new puppy, a mini-Australian Shepherd by the name Rollo.

A photo of our old Leonberger lying on the sidewalk — Bronco is taking a break during a walk. He is very old for a Leonberger. Leonbergers typically live 8-10 years. This is a common problem with giant breeds. In this picture he is 12 years old and 10 months.

Bronco’s face has puffy cheeks. — Our Leonberger Bronco was great at finding run away hamsters. This illustration depicts Bronco’s with puffy cheeks in which he is holding two run away hamsters. He saved them! Illustration by Naomi Rosenblatt.

The photo shows our pug Daisy on the left and our Leonberger Bronco on the right. They are both looking into the camera. Pieces of the gingerbread house are lying on the floor. — Bronco our Leonberger with Daisy our Pug in the Kitchen. Bronco says, “look what Daisy did to the gingerbread house that stood on the counter”. Actually, what really happened was that Bronco grabbed the gingerbread house and shared it with Daisy.

Two Leonbergers standing next to each other and wearing party headwear typical for a carnival. — Digory and Obi are two Leonbergers. Digory was a very brave Leonberger who fought cancer. He was featured in the Leo-Letter a Leonberger Magazine Photo by Jen O’Keefe. Jen is a friend in the Leonberger community.

Close up of two Leonberger faces. All Leonbergers have a black face mask. — Second photo of Digory and Obi. Photo by Jen O’Keefe.

Five Leonbergers lying in the grass. They are wearing hats showing the American flag. — Five Leonbergers including Digory on 4^th of July 2023. Photo by Jen O’Keefe.

Photo of seven Leonbergers on the sand on a beach. — Digory with Leonbergers friends on the beach. Photo by Jen O’Keefe.

Six Leonbergers with celebration hats are looking straight into the camera. — Six Leonbergers from left to right: Caspian (Obi’s nephew), Austin (Obi’s son), Delfi, Obi, Digory, and Rilian (Obi’s son). Photo by Velvy TheLion.

Amie, a female Leonberger is standing on top of a wooden bench on a mountain top. — Amie was a Leonberger that we met in northern Sweden. We met her and her owner on a mountain top that we had hiked up to. It was a strenuous hike so the Leonberger and her owner must have been in good shape. The name of the mountain is Skule Berget, or in English, Skull Mountain.

Leonberger dog looking into the camera, like a portrait. — Big dog Leonberger portrait in the studio Stock Photo ID: 193024763 by Csanad Kiss.

Fluffy dark faced Leonberger looking into the camera. — Old Leonberger Stock Photo ID: 2342234815 by theimagebooth.

The photo shows the face of Leonberger lying down. — Closeup of old Leonberger Stock Photo ID: 1942925251 by Wirestock Creators.

Old Leonberger lying on the ground. There are snowy mountains in the background. — Leonberger in Norway Stock Photo ID: 1779931691 by Britta Paasch.

Leonberger puppy running through green grass. The puppy has its mouth open, and he is looking straight into the camera. — A Leonberger puppy that is probably around two months old. Shutterstock-ID: 629624396 by TOM KAROLA.

A Leonberger on a white sofa in front of blue and white windows with snow. — A Leonberger puppy Asset id: 763087333 by Liliya Kulianionak

Close up of two months old Leonberger puppy lying on the floor. — Leonberger puppy in front of white background Asset id: 1910154892 by cynoclub

Leonberger Activism

I try to avoid politics on my blogs but considering the circumstances I think this is OK. The picture you see above and below is from Trine Helen Løken. Thank you for letting us use it, Trine. It was passed around in various Leonberger Facebook groups and other Leonberger places back in 2022 and now it is in vogue again. It is to show the Leonberger community’s support for Ukraine. I added a couple of somewhat less artistic photos using a couple of photos of our late Leonberger Bronco and a Ukrainian flag that I got from pexels.com Photo by Engin Akyurt.

The picture is an illustration of a Leonberger running and holding a Ukrainian flag in its mouth. — Art by Trine Helen Løken. This picture is popular in the Leonberger community.

Our Leonberger Bronco is looking into the camera. There is a Ukrainian flag in the picture. — Our Leonberger Bronco

Our Leonberger Bronco is standing in our backyard and looking into the camera. The sun in shining behind and above resulting in sunrays through the picture and on top of Bronco’s head. There is also a Ukrainian flag in the picture. — Our Leonberger Bronco, the hero. He found runaway hamsters, saved our Pug Daisy from an attacking dog, and detected an oncoming insulin shock in our Labrador.

Rollo the Politician

Rollo, our mini–Australian Shepherd is not easy to walk. Sometimes he sits and refuses to walk and sometimes he barks his head off at other dogs. Therefore, we started bribing him, and this works. On several occasions, I asked Claudia, my wife, “should I bribe him?”. So, he ended up learning the word “bribe”. Now when you say the word “bribe” he comes running hoping for a handout. In other words, we accidentally taught him to be a politician. Below are a few photos of Rollo.

Rollo is sitting facing left and there is a toy duck next to him. — Rollo, our mini–Australian Shepherd as a puppy.

Rollo is standing on a grey carpet holding a toy duck in his mouth. — Rollo with his duck toy.

Rollo our mini-Australian Shepherd is lying on our bed in between the pillors. — Rollo loves sleeping in our bed, especially on my side. He is taking over.

Finally, a dog and cat comic

Whimsical Adventures in the Afterlife

In this my Leonberger blog I sometimes post about topics other than Leonbergers, including non-Leonberger books that I like and want to promote, and this is one of those. With this post I would like to promote a very entertaining and thrilling book called Detour on the Eternal Road by John W Howell. He recently visited my blog on his book tour but I want to post about his book one more time. This time the focus is my review of the book. Below I am giving some information about the paperback and Kindle version of the book. I bought the paperback version of the book.

Paperback – Independently published (January 2, 2025), ISBN-10 : 1733573143, ISBN-13 : 978-1733573146, 297 pages, Item Weight : 1 pounds, dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.5 x 0.67 x 8.5 inches, it cost $14.95 on US Amazon. Click here to order it from Amazon.com.
Kindle – Keewaydin Lane Books; 1st edition (February 7, 2025), ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0DT4Q1FBR, 267 pages. It is currently $2.99 on Amazon.com. Click here to order it from Amazon.com.

The front cover features the title and the author, and a road curving through a dark landscape. On the road is an Oldsmobile 1956. — Front cover of Detour on the Eternal Road. Click on the image to go to the Amazon page for the paperback version of the book.

Amazon Description of Detour on the Eternal Road

The third book in the Eternal Road series. Sam and James are dragged into another strange assignment when a couple of souls on The Eternal Road drop off the radar. Archangel Michael gives them specific orders to resolve the issue and get Billy Ray Chitwood, the national race car champion, and Dale Earnhardt, his guide, back on the task of finding Billy’s Eternal Home.

Finally, meeting up with Billy Ray and Dale, the foursome finds themselves in the future where World War III has devastated the country. The team discovers the cause of the start of the war and vows to mitigate that circumstance and save the world from devastation. They encounter their old nemesis, Lucifer, who has in mind trading preventing the war in exchange for Sam accepting his offer to be his queen.

Since Lucifer’s offer is a non-starter, Sam and James must overcome Lucifer’s interference and work to change the course of history, or humankind is doomed.

This is my Amazon review of Detour on the Eternal Road

A Whimsical Adventure in the Mysterious Beyond

When you die there are guides helping you to find your way. When racecar driver Billy Ray Chitwood dies, he gets lost in time and space and his guide, the famous but dead racecar driver Dale Earnhardt, is missing. Upon the orders of Archangel Michael, Sam and James, the expert guides of this series, step in to save the situation. But what is causing this unusual situation? Well, Lucifer is. Lucifer has some nefarious plans that could mean the end for the whole world, a World War III. Can the team, Sam and James, Ray Chitwood, Dale Earnhardt, and the archangel Michael figure out what is going on and prevent doomsday?

This is a whimsical and amusing detective and mystery story. Lucifer appear as a cigar chomping man that reminded me of Loki in Avengers. He is an arrogant, reckless and a rude trickster but also entertaining and he has some charm. The angels appear human, and the team is traveling around the world and back and forth in time in an Oldsmobile 1956. Don’t worry about the time travel, they can’t change the past, just the future. As you can guess the setting isn’t particularly realistic but that is intentional. The important features are the humor, the clever plots, the fast-paced action, the surprising plot twists at the end, and above all the intelligent and entertaining dialogue featuring some interesting philosophical thoughts.

I have not read the first two books in the series yet, but I think this book stands on its own. It did not feel like I missed something important. I was intrigued and thrilled by the various mysteries that cropped up along the way. I wanted to find out who was responsible for the various mishaps and strange things that happened. Was it Lucifer or a greedy and power-hungry human, or both? And who is Lucifer really? I found the dialogue to be amusing and very entertaining. The character development was strong, with likeable main characters, though Lucifer was unkind and untrustworthy, as expected. I highly recommend this entertaining and unique thriller.

Photo of the author, an overview of the author, and a description of the book. There is a city in ruins in the background. — Back cover of Detour on the Eternal Road. Click on the image to go to the Amazon page for the Kindle version of the book.

About the Author of Detour on the Eternal Road

John is an award-winning author who after an extensive business career began writing full time in 2012. His specialty is thriller fiction novels, but John also writes poetry and short stories. He has written Seven other books that are on Amazon in paperback and Kindle editions.

John lives in Lakeway, Texas with his wife and their spoiled rescue pets.

Links For John W Howell

Blog Fiction Favorites

Facebook

Twitter

Goodreads

Amazon Author’s page

BookBub

BlueSky

Universal paper

Universal ebook

Detour on the Eternal Road

I’m very pleased to have John W. Howell here today to celebrate his latest release, “Detour on the Eternal Road.” I bought the paperback version from Amazon. It is 297 pages and cost $14.95. I loved reading this very entertaining book. If you want to read my Amazon review for the book, click here.

I am now handing over the word to John.

It is so nice to be here with you today, Thomas. Your blog has had some amazing entries. I have enjoyed your warm memories of your Leonberger Bronco and Daisy your dear pug. I also enjoy the times when you discuss various kinds of beer. I am an IPA fan and do identify with those times. I want to thank you for offering to host me on this stop on the tour. My latest book Detour on the Eternal Road is book threein the Eternal Road Series. Here is the blurb.

Blurb

Sam and James are dragged into another strange assignment when a couple of souls on The Eternal Road drop off the radar. Archangel Michael gives them specific orders to resolve the issue and get Billy Ray Chitwood, the national race car champion, and Dale Earnhardt, his guide, back on the task of finding Billy’s Eternal Home.

Since Lucifer’s offer is a non-starter, Sam and James must overcome Lucifer’s interference and work to change the course of history, or humankind is doomed.

Excerpt

James and Sam give each other a nervous glance. Sam offers a subtle signal to James and says, “Okay. You remember we convinced you we were from a different time. Well, Billy Ray is from a different time too. We want to help him remember where he’s from and get him back on a road he needs to travel.”

Wyatt frowns. “Back on a road? What does that mean?”

Sam looks up to the sky in frustration when she realizes Wyatt won’t let it go until he gets the whole story. James shrugs, so Sam sighs and says, “James and I are like angels. Our job is to escort people’s souls along the Eternal Road until they find the place they want to spend eternity.”

“Dead people?”

“That’s right.”

With his thumb, Wyatt pushes back his hat. “Why’re you interested in Billy Ray? He’s very much alive.”

Billy Ray leans forward in the seat. “Yeah, I may be old, but I’m still kickin’.”

Sam glances at James, shakes her head, and looks back at Wyatt. Carefully, she drops her voice, “I don’t want to upset Billy Ray, but he is not who he thinks he is.”

Wyatt places his hands on his hips. “Okay, I’ll bite. Who is he?”

“He’s a young man who got in a serious accident and didn’t survive.”

“What’s he doing here?”

Sam brushes a strand of hair out of her eyes. “Someone we don’t want to name interrupted his trip. Billy Ray’s guide came up missing, too.”

“You don’t want to name? What kind of hocus pocus are you talking about?”

James steps forward. “Every time we name this person, they appear. I’ll tell you right out you don’t want that person here.”

Sam frowns. “Wyatt, you believed us when we showed you how we came from another time, right?”

“Sure, and I still believe you.”

“Well, forces of evil have taken our friend Billy Ray and placed him in the same time as you.”