Defensible Space Project Completed!

The Department of Fish, Wildlife and Parks has a program that encourages homeowners to clear away excess combustible material from their rural homes in order to establish a defensible space in the event of wildfire. They reimburse the homeowners for doing it, and, in a triage situation, firefighters will respond to a defensible home before they'll respond to one that is not. So it's a no-brainer good program.

We signed up for the program last spring. Since then, Don has been slaving away at tree-slaying on about six acres surrounding the house. It's partly how he's lost 25 pounds. He's taken out literally thousands of trees by chain saw, tractor, and axe.

The problem was how to dispose of all this material once it was on the ground. He hauled much of it into huge burn piles, which are now reduced to ashes (except for some large stumps that will smolder for months). He also hired a man with a large chipper that sucks in good-sized trees as if they're strings of spaghetti. The chips (about eight dumptruck loads of fragrant fir and pine) are now in the riding arena, waiting to be spread.

This has been a huge task for Don, but the results are unbelievable. Our view of the mountains is greatly enhanced, and we have this feeling of even more spaciousness around a house that used to be surrounded by dense trees. We also gained lots of firewood for this year and next.

"Our friend Maurice"

Over the years you may have heard Don and me refer in conversations to "our friend Maurice." This usually leads to a brief, barely plausible story of a truly incredible man we got to know a few years back through our Greater Swiss Mountain Dog connections.

Maurice has become a cherished member of our extended family. Relationships with "dog people" often evolve that way. Dogs are a common denominator among people who are otherwise very different. They're also a great equalizer because, like kids, all "dog parents" can relate to each other's dog experiences.

In 1997 I hosted a training seminar in Yakima for Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs in the northwest. Two of the attendees were Maurice and Ann Alpert who came over from Big Sky, Montana, with two out-of-control Swissies, Gatsby and Kosmo.

After that, we maintained contact with them. The Alperts liked to travel, and started bringing their boys to "board" with us in Yakima when they were on their extended trips. The boys spent a lot of time with us over the next few years. When Maurice and Ann's lifestyles started changing, they went separate ways and wanted to permanently re-home Gatsby and Kosmo with us. Gatsby died of spinal cancer at age eight, and Kosmo, now 12 years old, is our last remaining Swissy.

Maurice has made several visits to Shorthorse this past year, and we love having him here in our family. He's a gracious "guest" who loves meeting new people and sharing fellowship over food. Maurice does most of the cooking when he's here. It's his passion. Last time he was here, he made a seafood stew that was to die for. We also enjoyed a "Latvian peasant soup" that cooked for three days before we ate it. His idea of the perfect evening: good, wholesome food shared with congenial people, followed by a DVD on the wide-screen.

How did he learn to cook? He simply hung out in the kitchens of some of the world's top chefs. You see, Maurice is a self-made man who made it to the top in the business world. The very top. He's met and worked with several Presidents, various heads of state from foreign companies, and CEOs of the world's largest corporations. He's partied with many a Hollywood celebrity. He's an adventurer, who's hiked the Amazon jungles, sailed the Caribbean, and traversed the Australian outback, and even tried a humble life in Latvia.

Heard of The Omni in Atlanta? Maurice and his partners developed it. He's built hotels around the world, theme parks along the east coast, and downtown renewal projects all over the country.

He is a man with many, many stories to tell, and yet he tells them humbly, almost apologetically. See, he didn't like the view from the top. About 10 years ago he decided to make his way down, in search of something deeper and more fulfilling than fortune. He's finding it, and one of his favorite places to enjoy it is here at Shorthorse.