Following the Sun

and sometimes a dog

Apr 11, 2025

What’s up, y’all!

Today’s photos include some of the dogs of Paraguay.

One of the perks of living in such a warm place is that the sun is a great source of energy. I don't know what it's going to be like this winter, but for now, I'm still able to dry my clothes outside on the line. We did have a dryer growing up, but my mom liked to hang the clothes outside when it was warm. So I do know how to hang clothes on the line, and I brought that very rusty skill back into full time practice when we moved here.

There is no dryer in the house that we have rented, but it hasn't been a problem because it's been very warm since we got here. One thing that I didn't expect to happen, though, was that I now pay way more attention to the sun! I mean, on a theoretical level, I've always known that the earth revolves around the sun, the seasons change, the position of the sun shifts in the sky.

Quite honestly, though, I didn't think about it much. I did realize when we got here that the Southern Hemisphere has a different view of the universe than the Northern Hemisphere. The moon is upside down here. Of course, it's not, really. I only think that because it doesn't match the point of view that's existed in my head for my entire life.

Here's a scientific explanation of that phenomenon, if you're interested.

And of course, we can see different stars here. I even wrote a poem about it, I found it so intriguing.

Still, nothing has affected me quite like my new awareness of the sun. I pay a lot of attention to what it's doing now because my clothes are drying outside. This house came with a small portable clothesline, so I can put it anywhere. Over the course of the day, as the sun moves from east to west (that part's still the same!), I sometimes need to move the clothes out of the shade and back into the sun.

What I wasn't expecting, even though I knew it in the back of my head, was that the angle of the sun would change over the months.

Our backyard faces almost perfectly west. During the heat of summer, the sun shone so hard into the back of the house that we bought some big shades to hang over the windows. Today, though, the sun sets in a more northwesterly direction, so it doesn't have the same effect. Mostly because our neighbor to that side has a giant tree in his yard that casts a shadow over our entire backyard in the late afternoon.

It's not a big deal, I know the sun has always done that. But because I'm paying closer attention to it now, in a way, I feel more in touch with the earth. It's been a shift, focusing on what happens outside in our world instead of what's happening inside on digital screens.

And what is something I have discovered by paying more attention to what's going on outside?

That the dogs here have their own society.

I'm not kidding! The dogs here behave differently than they do in the United States. Though some people do keep their dogs inside their yards, most let their dogs run free in the streets. And still other dogs don't have owners at all. And I can't always tell which is which!

I love that when we go to restaurants, there's usually a dog that lives there. They wander in and out (because every restaurant has its doors wide open), occasionally stopping by to ask for scraps and/or scratches.

they are right to want gnob’s milanesa a la napolitana, it’s the bomb!

Another thing I've learned, if you're out walking and a dog comes up to you, don't pet it or talk to it, don't even look it in the eyes, no matter how cute it is! Not because it's dangerous, but because it will assume that you're now best friends, and it's coming with you, wherever you go, however far you go. The other night, we actually stopped and sat down on a bench in the park for a while, so that the dog following us across town would lose interest and not come all the way home with us!

When I would run in the US, I always worried when I saw a dog. How would it behave? Was it going to chase me or ask for love? You could never tell. Here, though, especially when it's so hot in the summer, the dogs don't even get up from where they're lying. Sometimes, they'll lazily lift their heads and bark, but they don't bother standing. It's too hot for that!

And if the spot where they're lying is in the middle of the road, too bad for you, even if you're driving. You've got to go around the dog, the dog is not moving.

Sometimes they do move, though, so you'll also have to stop when a dog decides to cross the street. I've seen them in a hurry, on some kind of mission, and nothing is distracting them when they are focused. I keep meaning to follow one of them and see what's so important, but I haven't yet.

There's one dog in particular that likes to run with me when she sees me go by. We've run for miles together. Eventually, though, she'll get distracted by another dog and wander away.

Because that's the thing these dogs are interested in most - other dogs. They don't care too much about people walking by, but if another dog comes by, they have to get up and chat with each other. I swear they're having secret meetings all the time.

these three met up and huddled together for a while - what were they plotting?

Though most of the breeds are unknown to me, there are a lot of German Shepherds here. Probably because there are a lot of Germans here! Our dogs (Golden Doodle and Australian Shepherds) are a novelty. Everyone thinks they are adorable - because they are! One of the teenagers who lives on this street thinks it's hilarious that our dogs speak English, not Spanish. Not something I ever thought about until she pointed it out, but it's true!

In other news this week, we had lunch at a friend's house in a neighboring town. Afterwards, we walked down to a park on the river so she could show us a cave. It wasn't much of a cave, but it was a nice day for a walk, and the sketchy suspension bridge over the river made it a little bit exciting.

Overall, another great week here in Paraguay. It has been a little chilly in the evenings, but as I write this, it's 80 degrees Fahrenheit and I just walked to the store in a tank top and sandals. Not too bad for autumn. Hope it's heating up and the flowers are beginning to bloom wherever you are!

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Have a great week!