Rainy Afternoons

So what do you do on a rainy afternoon?

Well, around here, you take a nap

in a basket ....

Or with a blanket....


Or in a crate .....



Or on a couch .....

Or on a bed ....


Or in a barn .....



Or maybe you just think about taking a nap.....

Unless, of course, you have a stack of marking to do .....

in which case, you go grocery shopping and do the laundry and muck out the barn and scoop the poop and email your friends and write a blog and cut down the bamboo and rake some leaves and tidy the kitchen, and then you drink a ton of coffee so you can pull a very-late-nighter because you absolutely HAVE to give those papers back tomorrow!!! (Have I ever mentioned that I am the world's BEST procrastinator?)

What If.......

In one of the blogs I visit daily, bikesbirdsnbeasts, the author asks readers for their thoughts on “the usefulness and significance of this day set aside for remembrance.” It got me thinking. A lot.

My blog is primarily about my critters, yet also about nature, biodiversity, the environment, life. And what has greater implications for life in all its forms than the impact of war?

I have always been bothered by the glorification of war, and my pacifism leads me to ask "What if...”

• What if the ONLY media image we saw today was the 1972 Nick Ut photo of naked 9 year old Kim Phuc, burned by napalm, fleeing her bombed-out village with other crying, terrifed children?

• What if the men and women of the armed forces marched today with their heads bowed in sorrow instead of held high with pride?

• What if those men and women wore signs around their necks that said: “I killed a little girl’s father”; “I dropped bombs that killed children”; “I saw my best friend’s head blown off” ; “War was a nightmare”; “The trenches were full of sewage” ; “I was so terrified I lost control of my bowels”; "We destroyed the habitat of millions of living creatures" ?

Is that not more honest than the images and stories of war that are served up with ceremony today? Would that not go further in promoting the slogan “Never Again !” than the glorification of war we see all around us all year long?

What if we raised our children to celebrate diversity, to resolve problems without violence, to be compassionate and humane to all living things?

What if we learned to live harmoniously, respecting our differences, and with true regard for the rights of all living things?

What if war was truly UNTHINKABLE?

I believe it is important to remember those who died - not because they "died for my freedom" but because they killed and were killed in horrible, frightening, terrifying circumstances. Civilians of all ages, and soldiers who were often hardly out of childhood themselves, have died needlessly because powerful men in powerful nations lacked the skills to sort out their differences peacefully.

We have to remember the ugliness of war so that we will be inspired to find a better way. All life depends on it.

Unhappy Remembrance Day. Lest We Forget.

The Tale of Daisy the Pig

This is a story, a true story, of a little pig named Daisy. Daisy was purchased from an unethical breeder in eastern BC, who sold her at two months to a young girl in the Okanagon, whose family within a month decided to move and didn’t want to take the piggy with them.

Enter Denise. Denise and I had been in contact several times as she was hoping to adopt two of Scotch and Soda’s family, the piggies I’m fostering for Hearts on Noses. Although currently living in the city in the Okanagon, Denise has some acreage just outside the city that she will be moving to shortly and was in the process of getting it ready for piggies.

One day, Denise saw an ad for Daisy and contacted the owner to find out more. Daisy supposedly slept on the girl’s bed and was crate trained for times she had to be alone. She was friendly, healthy, and a sweet little pig. And she was living nearby.

Meanwhile, Denise and I kept talking piggy talk about what they need and how to house them and what to expect. Suddenly, a week or so after Denise had contacted Daisy’s human, she got a phone call – come and get Daisy or we’re taking her to the SPCA first thing in the morning.

Denise and I talked, we agreed she should take Daisy, and I offered to help guide her through new-pig-itis. The next day she picked up Daisy. (Note: This is not a slam against the SPCA, who have some amazing workers and volunteers, but an acknowledgement that I knew Denise could offer Daisy a wonderful life whereas the end result of going to the SPCA was unknown.)

Denise and I have talked on the phone or via email every few days since Daisy came to live with her. Daisy wasn’t quite what the previous owner had said – her skin was red and sore from mites, her crate was filled with urine-soaked blankets and she was totally unhousetrained and likely had been kept crated virtually all the time. But she was sweet, and she did like to cuddle on the couch, and she won Denise’s heart in no time at all.

Now, just a couple of weeks later, Daisy walks on a harness and leash, lives happily and safely with the family in the house, always does her business outside, jumps in and out of Denise’s Forerunner to go to the acreage every day, still loves to cuddle, and it sounds like she has even won over Denise’s husband. She is scheduled to get spayed next week by a vet with potbellied-pig experience at a clinic where one of the employees also has a piggy and where pigs are known and understood.

Daisy has landed on her feet. What a happy pig and a happy family.

Now if only I could persuade Denise that her acreage would be just perfect for several more piggies who need a place to call home!

Random Acts of Kindness

Today I experienced first hand a random act of kindness, after a simply courtesy was extended on my part. I had picked up my 90 year old mom for a day’s outing which included lunch, attending a live theatre performance of Huckleberry Finn by Gallery 7,and a visit to my place for a light dinner with the dogs.

My mom and I decided to have lunch at Afterthoughts, an amazing dessert bistro which also has a limited but very tasty assortment of entrees. We were standing in front of the display case while I read the options to my (rather indecisive) mother when I noticed a man patiently standing in line behind us. Knowing the process could take a while, I waved him through ahead of us. A few minutes later as the gentleman was paying for his order and we were waiting to place ours, he engaged me in conversation.

"Have you ever had these?" he asked in a voice that positively drooled in anticipation of the experience, showing me the box of Belgian truffles he had just added to his order.

" No, I haven’t. They’re good, eh?" I responded.

"Do you like truffles?" asked he.

" Oooohhhhhhh......do I like truffles??????" I groaned in ecstacy at the thought to which he smiled and said,

"They are yours. Enjoy."

Wow. Even guys that know me, that are maybe even fond of me, don’t give me Belgian chocolate truffles! I gotta admit....I was smiling for the rest of the day.

It was a long day but a good one. The people at Gallery 7 were marvelous, escorting us down the elevator to provide mom (who uses a walker and is visually and hearing impaired) and me with a centre front row seat which they had voluntarily set aside for us before the doors opened; the show was very enjoyable; the dogs were very patient with and adoring of my mom; the rain stayed away so the hour plus drive each way from my place to mom’s was not too arduous; and that one random act of kindness was paid forward as I let speedy drivers pass, backed off to let others into my lane, exercised patience with hearing my mother’s stories for the umpteenth time, and bit my tongue when she offered TOO MUCH INFORMATION as the very elderly seem prone to do.

Amazing how one act of kindness makes the whole day bright.

And now I need to ask for an act of kindness for Janice at Hearts on Noses Sanctuary. This week she ended up with two new pigs....one was dumped on her property while she was at work, the other was abandoned by the owner and arrived today in terrible, terrible shape. She has a house and yard for one, Jack, but not for the other, Penny, who is currently in the carport as she is unable to walk into Janice’s house or use a potty box in the state she is in. Are there any kind souls out there in the lower mainland area of BC who can either build a house and pen for Penny the Pig, or readers able to donate funds for the purchase of one? Donations can be made through paypal by going to the website; volunteers to build a house and pen can reach Janice via email at heartsonnoses [at] shaw.ca or contact me at animalsinrescue [at] hotmail.com.

A not-so-random act of kindness could make your day and Penny the Pig's day too.

Nature's lightshow

I spent three years of my adult life living and working in the Northwest Territories. One of my most memorable sights during my time there was the Northern Lights. The whole sky was awash with multiple colours flashing and racing from horizon to horizon, so vivid and so close that it often seemed like a tall ladder would enable me to reach up and touch them.

We don’t get that type of light show in Canada’s southwest, though sometimes a much smaller version will appear. But this morning’s walk in the pasture provided a different type of lightshow that instilled that same feeling of awe and an incredible sense of wonder.

After feeding the pigs and celebrating with them the possibility of a day without torrential rain, I stepped outside the barn to see a single shaft of light piercing through the trees. The mountains that surround me were obscured by thick fog, yet the light illuminated tall trees on their peaks.

By the time the dogs and I reached the top of our little hill at the back of the pasture, the mist had rolled in, the sunlight had disappeared, and we were plunged back into the blue-grey early morning light of a dusky dawn.

But during our half hour of pasture time, the lighting changed a trillion times as the sun struggled out of bed and then snuggled back under its blankets of cloud and fog, only to return again moments later. The surrounding hills were variously blue, green, grey, gold, silver, red, depending on the precise combination of sun, fog, mist, light, dark.

Trying to balance my personal meditation time with the impelling need to snap a thousand frames in order to share this magic with others was a lost cause – in the blink of an eye a new image would emerge, a new landscape awaken.

Neither my 'needs-to-be-replaced' camera nor the amateur skills of this photographer could adequately capture the beauty of nature’s lightshow, nor can my words adequately describe the reverence, the wonder I experienced in that half hour on the hill. What an amazing way to start the day.

We Just Don't Get It!!

By Charley, Sadie, Oliver and Belle

First she drags us into the pouring rain for a walk. Then she carefully dries us all off. Then she piles us into the car and takes us to Samantha's (Markeyda's Grooming). And then Sam sticks us all in a tub and gets us all WET again!!

Why the heck didn't mom just pour some shampoo on us when she took us for our walk and save herself the bother of going to the groomers??????

Grumble, grumble, grumble.

Here we are in the car, ready to go to Samantha's. Mom says she needs to buy a van so she can fit our crates in there and keep us safe.

And here are the after shots. It was still bucketing rain outside, so mom tried to take our pictures in the kitchen......not the best backdrop, mom. Fall leaves would look so much better!

Charley and Sadie

Oliver and Belle (and Sadie in the back)


Sadie

Oliver


Charley

Belle

Allie inspecting the troops

The closest we'll ever get to a group shot!

A conversation with the dogs

My dogs hate the rain. I’m not that crazy about it either, given the amount of muck four dogs with long fur can drag into the house and across my kitchen floors. But my dogs REALLY hate the rain.

First thing this morning, they run to the back door in eager anticipation of a bathroom break. I open the door for them. Four dogs, sixteen paws, screech to a halt on the mudroom floor.

Charley: I’m not goin’ out there! You goin’ out there?

Sadie: Not me! No Way! That’s wet stuff comin’ down!

Belle: I’m not going out! The Royal Paws will get all muddy!

Oliver: I’m not going out! My ears will get all wet!

Sadie: Didn’t really need to go anyway. I’ll wait. I can hold it. I’ll just lie down right here until the rain stops.

Jean: OUT, dogs! C’mon, time to go OUT!

Belle: Princesses don’t do rain.

Jean: Princesses will do as they are told. OUT!

Oliver: Maybe if I hide behind the big dogs she won’t notice me.

Jean: Oliver, OUT! Charley, OUT! Sadie, OUT! Belle, OUT! Time to go potty!

[Dogs skulk out, heads down, tails down, shoulders hunched. Ever notice how totally dejected a dog can look when she/he doesn’t like something?]

Belle, the gracious one, trots away from the house, does her business and quickly returns.

Charley, the resigned one, goes over to the lawn, does her business, and quickly returns.

Oliver, the compliant one, lifts his leg on the fence post one foot from the back door, does his other business on the gravel right next to my foot, and returns inside.

And Sadie sits there. On the door stoop. In the pouring rain. Doing her best Eeyore impression. Refusing to budge.

Sadie: I don’t gotta go. Really I don’t. I’ll hold it. I’ll go later. I really shouldn’t be treated like this.

Jean: Sadie! I have work to do. Go pee!

Sadie: Oh all right…but don’t expect me to like it.

Sadie stomps (yes, she can stomp!) over to the edge of the grass, squats, lets out a very small stream, turns around and heads back to the house.

Jean: Hold it Sadie, you are NOT done yet. Number two, please. It will be a long day today.

Sadie: Grumble, grumble, grumble, woo-woo-woo-woo-woo. [Clicks teeth together several times in imitation of muttering under her breath]

Off she wanders back to the grass, does her business and stomps back to the house, being sure to brush her very wet, very long coat against my leg as she passes by.

Sadie: There, are ya happy now?

Jean: Good job! Sadie. Good job!

Sigh….how many days until summer returns?

A new day is dawning...

....and I couldn't be happier. Regardless of one's political colours, yesterday was an historic day.

I think, for me, one of the most memorable moments was watching the faces of so many young African Americans who have had little sense of political efficacy until now, to watch their faces and know that they will forever remember this moment in history. I am betting that many of them voted for the first time, and having done so, will be voting for a lifetime. They have been empowered.

Congratulations, Americans. This Canadian looks forward to seeing in what new directions President-Elect Obama will lead your nation.

May the bright sunlight that shines down on my pasture this morning be an omen of a brighter global future.

Smiles like these make life worthwhile!

Cynda, another Turtle Gardens supporter, visted Misty and Jim last night and reports that Misty looks GREAT! Cynda says "she is terrified to go outside but she still has her spunky little personality." Misty was checked out by the vet yesterday; she has lost seven pounds and she got some cream for her poor sore paws, but other than that, she is fine.

Jim asked me to post these picture on the blog - Jim, we are so very glad that Misty is safely home.

In the gloaming

Today was a day of torrential rains and even hail storms. The pigs elected to stay in the barn, the dogs and I cocooned in the house, and Martin took shelter under his favourite tree.

Suddenly in the late afternoon, just as dusk was falling on this first day of the return to Standard Time, the clouds stopped their crying and swept away just in time to allow the sun a brief moment to illuminate the fall colours before slipping below the horizon.

I was heading into the pasture with the dogs when the weak rays of the setting sun broke through, and by the time I raced back to the house for the camera, it was almost gone. But I happen to love stormy dusky pictures and silhouettes of night skies, so I happily clicked away as the dogs explored the soaked ground, rising creek, and recent bear and coyote droppings.

Bare branches against the sky

Straw in the evening light


Sunset

Swirling mist as dark descends

Unfortunately, my camera is on its last legs (last lens?). The auto focus is no longer working, and the flash has to be pried up manually. Of course, the good news is that this gives me an excuse to get a new camera that allows me to snap quicker and better pictures of the dogs and pigs at play. But for now, about half of my shots end up looking a wee bit like "modern art". Strangely, I rather like some of them:

Fall colours through blurry eyes

Nature mimics art

And just to show you that the dogs really were out there in the pasture with me:

Dogs being uncooperative

And a few parting shots as we head back to the house:

Darkness descends

Spectres in the sky

MISTY HAS BEEN FOUND!!!!!!!

After a week on the run, and several sightings and close calls with traffic, Misty has been found. At first I heard that it was late last night by a driver who saw her running along the highway, stopped, called her and she came to the woman. Later that was updated and it looks like she was actually found by someone walking the dikes pretty close to the airport where she went missing - a woman who saw the posters last night walked the dikes again this morning, saw a black speck in the distance, knew it was Misty, called Misty’s name and she came running.
Either way, instead of bolting this time, Misty made the decision to trust and came when she was called. Jim is on his way to pick her up - and what a happy reunion that will be.

I have tears of joy on my face today. Would that every lost dog could have such a happy ending. May the good samaritan who took the time to either stop their vehicle and coax a scared, lost dog to safety, or who took the time to read the posters, call her name and bring her to safety.... may that good samaritan be blessed a thousand fold. You are truly one of the gems of this world.

Thank you Wendi!

Dear Wendi

Our Foster Mama told us what an amazing job you did organizing the Hearts on Noses Fundraiser last night. She sez there waz lots of fun donated prizes to bid on, good food, good games, lots of peoples, an' you raised lots of monies to helps the pigs at the sanctoooary.

What we wants to know is...how come we had to go to bed soooo early an' our Foster Mama waz so late getting hom an' still hazn't fed us our breakfast this mornin? An' how come she didn't bring us none of that good food or prizes or peoples - we likes food an' prizes an' peoples a lot!

We haz an idea. Maybe the next one should be held in OUR BARN!!! That way we could be at the party tooooooooooooo. (I dontz know why our Foster Mama is frowning at us....she doesn't seem to think it's such a good idea, but we think it is a gweat idea!).

Anyway, thank you for helpin' piggies at Hearts on Noses.

Love
Scotch and Soda and Derby, Rickey, RobRoy, Whisper, Tom, Lizzie, Spritzer, Swizzle, Fizzy, and Toddy.

Precious Piggy Parts

Today I was at the produce place and got lucky, getting a carton of lettuce leaves for the piggies for free, plus some eggplant and a large bag of carrots dirt cheap. I also picked up a bag of the peanuts in the shell – their favourite treat.

Toddy: Foster Mama, that’s not our favorite.....we loves icecream best!

Lizzie: Nooooooo...watermewon!

Derby: Uh uh.... I loves cucumbers best!

Whisper: ‘matos! I loves ‘matos!

Fizzy: I agwee wiv foster mama – peanuts is the bestest.

Tom: No way Fizzy, it’s stwaaaberries!!!

Rob Roy: It’s none of those things. It’s punkins!!! I loves punkins!!

Rickey: Popcorn!

Swizzle: Hazelnuts!

Spritzer: LICORICE!

Ten little piggy voices: OHHHHHHHHH! LICORICE!!!!! WE LOVES LICORICE!

A-hem! Piggies!! Who's telling this story??

Well, I picked up a bag of peanuts in the shell – ONE of their obviously MANY favourite treats. Then I trudged though the mud outside their barn door dispensing peanuts left, right, and centre and trying to avoid having twelve starving piggies push me down splat! on my tush in the mud. I was also trying to get pictures of them sitting, begging, raising snouties for the peanuts.

Between the juggling act of camera and peanuts and the herculean efforts to maintain my balance, all I kept getting was piggy parts – noses and snouts and ears and butts and tails. Not a single one of a whole piggy sitting nicely for a peanut.

And then I downloaded the pics and decided to post them anyway.....

There's piggy ears



....and piggy butts



...and more piggy butts (aren't they just the cutest!)



...and piggy bristles



....and piggy faces



....and piggy smiles



....and piggy snouties



....and piggy tails



....and piggy eyes



After all, looking at all these precious piggy parts, you can’t help but ask yourself: what's not to love?????