Working Dogs

I like this picture of the Meeker Sheep Dog trails in early September: the sheep, the border collie, the fence, the mountain.

Origami Haiku

By Carol Valera Jacobson in 2004 while teaching 4th grade students in Fort Collins.

Origami is
fingers, too many thumbs tumbled
in piles of paper.

Juxtaposition,
mountain fold, valley fold, turn
point to delicate bird.

2008 Elections are over, over, over

Wahoo!!

History is made; we elected the first non-white president with a majority of the electoral vote. I'll be curious to see what happens over the next four years.

My writing space

In September, "Poets and Writers" asked readers to submit photos of their writing spaces. They wanted to see each writer's unique approach to writing and how those writers find inspiration, motivation and focus. Some of the spaces on the website were stunningly beautiful and others were austere and barren. My study/studio is a place of organized clutter.



And yes, that is Perry Mason on the small television. I finally have all the episodes and play them over and over. The window on the left looks out at the crab apple tree, the greenhouse and the garden.

What finally happened to Opus?

I've read Berkeley Breathed's comic strip "Opus" for many years. Apparently, Mr. Breathed is retiring and worked out a contest with the Humane Society to find the perfect last episode.

It took me a minute to find the final panel, but it is absolutely wonderful.

The comics said to visit humanesociety.org/opus.

I found the final panel at:

http://www.hsus.org/forms/the_opus_contest.html

Home -grown onions

This is the second group of onions I pulled from the garden in October. I'm learning how to braid them together. Next year, I'll grow a few more.

The Ongoing Story of Charlie-the-cat-who-bites

Yesterday was Halloween. Terry and I woke up to a little crushed kitty. Charlie was probably hit by a car; his pelvis was crushed and his tibia was fractured/broken.

We cried a lot.

We took him to Dr. Wayne who said that the pelvis would heal by itself, and he could splint/pin/amputate the back leg. We opted for the splint because it is the least invasive; it will still be a challenge for Charles--the pelvis is broken on one side and the tibia is broken on the other so there is no pain-free way for him to move. So, soon, we will bring home the little orange kitty who adds so much to our lives. As we said before, our lives would be greatly diminished without Charlie.

It’s that awkward moment when money matters/doesn’t matter and when we, as humans, get to play God. I always dislike these life and death decisions about animals. Through my tears, I threatened Charlie, that if he lived, I would have him declawed and make him live in the house for the rest of his life. Ha! Yeah, right!

Then I swore that after these four pets (three cats and a dog) were gone, we were done with animals! But, a friend pointed out, then I would miss all the joy of having a pet.

Charlie will come home a sore and worn out little fellow. He’ll get better, and we will continue to delight in his antics.

'Until one has loved an animal, part of their soul remains unawakened!