Filed under: friends, life, love | Tags: friends, grieving, life, love, movies
i have some friends.
some friends who are always there when i need them, even though i don’t know i need them. they somehow know how and when to offer love and support.
today i went to a memorial for one of those friends. a beautiful, compassionate, intellegent friend. the wife of my best friend who is always there for me. as if knowing these two people wasn’t gift enough, i had four other friends who knew…before i did…that i shouldn’t be alone today at the memorial service.
d., a., buzzy and r. they offered to come to the service for me and my pal, to support and love. they gave me heaps of love today. heaps.
i couldn’t have made it through the first part of the day without them. but THEN, more….
me: hello? (into cell phone)
buzzy: what are you doing?
me: limping:
buzzy: what are you doing in 30 minutes?
me: blogging?
buzzy and r wanted to take me to see a fluffy movie. mall cop (despite lindyloo’s warning!)
they knew i needed silly before i knew i did.
here’s a snap of us before the flick:
they’re pretty understanding about my cameraddiction!
saying good bye to lynn was hard. i love her. i love all my friends. now…if these two could just find a way to adopt me before they move in august…
my wish for you dear bloggers: that you know people as special as the folks i know. but reading your comments and your blog posts…i’m pretty sure special loving friends have found you all.
p.s. yes…it was very sunny today!
Filed under: bike, cooking, friends | Tags: bikes, blog, cooking, friends, interview, life, vegetarian
my friend lavenderbay was interviewed on her blog, and, in turn, asked if any of her friends wanted to be interviewed. and being as i’m not in a super creative place this week, i was up for it.
so here goes, the interview barbara and oprah WISH they had gotten their paws on:
1. You volunteer at a wildlife refuge. Briefly, what has been one of your more memorable experiences there?
the answer to this one is not for people with an overly delicate constitution. it happened about 10 years ago in a different city at the first wildlife rehab center i volunteered at. being wild animals, our raptors ate actual whole chickens, not boneless, skinless breasts. feathers and all. we would purchase hundreds of them, keep them in freezers, chop them into chunks with an axe before each feeding shift.
every now and then someone would donate living ones to us, and some of the tougher, more circle-of-life-ish workers would break the chickens necks rapidly, then put them in the freezer. so one saturday a group of volunteers ended the lives of 10 donated hens. sunday morning, when the feeding crew arrived to start prepping food, l. opened the freezer and a chicken jumped out at her. you see, she hadn’t died. she had passed out. she went home as a pet that day, and lived a very happy and privileged life for years.
2. Many of your blogfriends would love to invite you over for supper. Please help them out by supplying one of your favourite vegan recipes.
well, first i would let them know that i’m allergic to carrots, mango, oranges, canteloupe. i love mediterranean food, so i would say something baba ghanouj-y or hummis-ish would be nice. but also, i love thai food, indian food, all that spicy stuff. many of my friends are vegetarians, or vegetarian friendly. i guess i would probably do my spicy pan fried noodle sauce recipe suggestion: 1/4 c. soy sauce, 1/8 c. sesame oil, 1 tbs olive oil, 1 tbs corn starch, 2 tbs chili garlic sauce. goes good with rice, or double pan fried noodles and some fresh veggies!
3. Do you find that blogging has made a positive difference in your life? If so, how?
yes! i love to laugh, and through blogging i get tons more chuckles per day. james/dennis leaves the funniest comments on my posts. and even though checkers hasn’t been blogging in a while, some of his pictures and posts still crack me up when they come to mind. there are so many great blogs that make me laugh, and the comments people leave are sometimes quite genius.
i think i’m less crabby, too. i’ve blog-met some really cool people that try to cheer me up if i’m worried, and they’re always checking in to see how cody bear is feeling. plus, my other blog makes me practice my photography more, which is great.
4. You own a bicycle. What do you use it for? Have you ever made a long-distance bike trip? What do you like about the model you own?
i have two bikes! an old 2 speed kombi lux from norway, and a trek multi-track 720 that really needs a tune up. i used the kombi to get groceries. it has a basket on the front that i’m pretty sure was made specifically for a baguette, daisies and a bottle of wine. i also like to ride around the neighborhood in it. it’s such a goofy little thing and people love it! plus, it is really good for my posture. i use the trek for longer distance rides, or recreational riding with friends. i haven’t ridden much since i got the puppy since you kind-a sort-a have to be more available for a puppy’s…bladder, if you get me.
i’ve never done long bike adventures, and doubt i will. i need to really get back into riding every day…
Filed under: animals, cats, dogs, love, pets | Tags: animals, border chow, cats, dogs, pets, wordless
Filed under: politics
if you’re sick of rush limbaugh…then this is the link for you:
http://www.dccc.org/page/petition/rush
(omitted stupid comment)
Filed under: animals, cats, dogs, pets | Tags: animals, cats, dogs, love, pets, wordless wednesday, ww
Filed under: agility, animals, dogs, friends, life, pets | Tags: agility, animals, dogs, friends, life, pets, support, tools
“do something for yourself.” or “do something that will be fun for you.”
friends at work were saying that today, after hearing my sad news.
“oh, i will! i’m leaving work early to go to home depot.”
“that’s not really what we were thinking.”
“yeah, we were thinking a massage or something.”
let me explain: i’m really enjoying doing agility with pickles. i wish cody bear was feeling better so he could do it again, too. but i’m getting really into it. it’s fun.it’s fast. i get so proud of my dogs seeing them learn and do well.
so i decided a few weeks ago i would amp it up at home. look into getting some jumps at home to go along with our weave poles. i bought one at toys-r-us, and figured i could makes something like that!
so today i went and bought a 10 dollar pvc pipe cutter, some pipe and some pvc connectors. i made 2 jumps and i’m very proud of myself.
they’re not perfect, but…the dogs knew they were jumps. and it only took me ten minutes to make two of them! of course, it took me 20 minutes to find the right connectors!
ANY WAY YOU BLOG FRIENDS! i want to thank you all for leaving such nice words and supportive comments on my recent posts. it has meant so much, both knowing that you care enough to leave comforting words, and that you could tell that i have been sad lately just by reading the posts regularly.
…and for not giving up on us when we weren’t cheery all the time.
and by the way, i’m doing well. so are d. and his sister-in-law. so…thanks.
Filed under: animals, cats, pets | Tags: animals, cats, comfort, grief, love, pets, psychic, strange
i have a cat. many of you didn’t know i have a cat. i rarely mention her because she doesn’t have the exciting life that the dogs have. she has no social life, hiding when friends come over. and she sure as hell would never deign to purr for one of them or sit on their lap. she never even sits on my lap. she only purrs when she wants me to get out of bed and put food in her empty food bowl.
her name is spree. she is twelve years old. and last night she did the weirdest and most fascinating thing.
my best friend came over so we could write his wife’s obituary. it’s something you shouldn’t do alone, if you can help it. i was supposed to go over there, but cody bear was so sick. (different story)
so d.s sitting at com central. (com central is a cushy blue chair in my living room that is always within arm’s reach of my desktop pc, my lap top, two cell phones, my home phone and at least one digital camera)
all of a sudden, miss kittypants walks out into the living room. pads by two sleeping dogs and parks it in front of him. she looks up at him and starts purring.
excuse me?
then miss kittypants jumps up on his lap and starts snuggling and headbutting him and nuzzling him like he’s got herring snacks in his pocket and she hasn’t eaten in weeks.
all i could think was….”she knows!”
now, d. handles his stress and emotions well. he’s stoic. he’s calm.
he was just sitting there. talking. seemingly fine. how did she know?
Filed under: animals, border collies, dogs, pets | Tags: animals, border collies, corgidor, dog play, dogs, pets
Filed under: friends, life, love | Tags: friends, grief, laughter, life, loss, love
i am a crier. and when i cry, i cry hard. but i am also a laugher. and i laugh every day, whether i’m with someone or by myself.
last night i cried with friends. we said good bye to someone we loved at 11:59. this morning i went to breakfast with my best friend and we discussed his plan for moving ahead without her. she’s been sick for over 16 years, the recent years very sick and needing his care.
we talked about her life, her passing, his future, what the week would look like in regards to funerals, obituary, etc. then he spent over 100 dollars at the book store, got toilet paper at target, then we headed home.
and saw this….
he was on the opposite side of the street, slowling rolling along. i couldn’t get my camera in time, plus he was too far away. and wouldn’t you know it, but d. makes a u-turn and heads back after the intersection so i could get a snap. but the jester had turned left. the intersection was full, but d. managed a quick right, then, a couple blocks up, flipped another u-turn as i said, “you’re a blogger at heart.” right as i leaned out to snap the shot, this funny man smiled and waved.
and d. laughed. loudly.
where’s he going? perhaps to see the king. clearly jesting is not an overly lucrative business, as he doesn’t seem to own a car.
but, he’s doing a good job. i didn’t think i would hear such a great sound today; the sound of laughter. we’ve decided that, in the near future, we may do something random that might make someone who is going through a tough time have a big laugh.
cody bear's friends 