Sammy

Sammy's gone to a better place. No. We did not put him down. I could not have done that.

On Saturday, we brought him back to "Cause for Paws," the place we got him from in the first place. They were able to find an adoptive couple for him by Sunday. That made me happy. Apparently, he is now living with an older couple-a very good match I think. I was honest about his behaviour with the CFP people because I didn't want him being sent to a home with children.

It was hard dropping him off at the foster home. On the drive home, Wes was crying and my eyes were a little wet. We knew we had done the right thing but it was still hard.

So long Sammy.

Happy Birthday John

It's a day late but I want to wish my big brother John a happy birthday. Michele blogged about his cool car. I need to tell a story about him too. One that he has probably forgotten.

I received a VERY COOL pen as a Christmas gift when I was in grade 8. It was orange and had psychadelic dots all over it. It (not I) was the epitome of cool, back in the seventies. I was very careful of that pen-didn't want to loose it or anything because I did have a habit of losing things. (My mom went a little balistic once, when I lost a pair of pants. How can you lose PANTS? You WEAR them. How can you lose something you're wearing?)

Sure enough, one day, the pen went missing. A week or 2 later, I noticed that a boy in my class had my pen and was using it. He didn't even look guilty or try to hide it. Frank was a smallish, wiry kind of guy with a temper so I was not willing to confront him. But I knew someone who would.

I wrote a note and passed it to brother John. I still remember walking over to his side of the room and casually dropping the note on his desk, all the while keeping a close eye on the teacher. Passing notes of any kind was absolutely prohibited. If the teacher got a hold of the note and read it aloud, Frank would be embarrassed and I was a little afraid of what might happen on the playground at recess.

After recess, John walked to my side of the room and dropped the pen on my desk. Although he had denied stealing it, Frank was quite willing to relinquish it to John.

I actually kept that pen until the ink ran out. I think I even bought a new refill for it once. I don't know what ever happened to it but every time I used it, I remembered that even though John and I had some major sibling rivalry going on, I could always count on him to stand up for me.

Thanks John. Have a great 52nd year!

Fountain of Youth

I am half way through my 49th year, my "year of Jubilee." I have been contemplating life, dealing with the inevitability of the empty nest, and finally, I am beginning to accept this aging body.

A few days ago I realized in a new way that for most of my life, I have not appreciated my body. I have felt too tall, too short, too fat, too skinny, my feet were too big, my hair wasn't right, my knees were too knobby, my thighs too big, my arms too long...You get the picture.

For much of my life I have tried to beat this body into submission by doing both good and bad things to it. Dieting (bad), exercise (good).

As I was reading the Free Press today, I finally found the answer to my body woes.

All I need is a body makeover and I will look like this woman. Imagine, after living almost 50 years, married for about 28 of them and having 4 children, I can look like this. Oh joy. No need to diet, exercise or do anything except be willing to "go under the knife."

Recuperation would include me, lying on the couch for several weeks and having those wonderful children of mine at my beck and call. I'd read books, eat grapes, watch bad TV and read trashy magazines. At the end of it all, I'll look great with no effort on my part.

For mother's day, this is all I want. Start saving your pennies kids!

Give Aways

"Free, to a good home: 2 year old cocker spaniel. Shots are up to date. Shy. Would do best in a quiet home." Sammy has to leave our home. We had to make a decision between him and the 4 teenagers living in this house.

Last year, when Alvaro was living with us, Sammy would bark and growl at him. Alvaro was okay with this and he accepted the fact that Sammy didn't like him.

This fall, when Medardo came, and later Nik, the growling and barking increased and he started chasing after them and nipping them. Amanda, who lives in the apartment in the basement has also felt Sammy's teeth on her heels and hands. They have all been very gracious to us while we have tried to deal with this problem. He is also beginning to act aggressively toward Tim and Kristen at times.

We've spoken to dog lovers and dog trainers. I perused books in the library and spent time on- line looking for solutions. Wes and I took him to another obedience class and asked the trainer there for suggestions. We have tried everything but shock therapy and nothing has worked. Sammy's aggressive behaviour is getting worse and for the safety of the people living with us, Sammy has got to go.

Sammy has never growled or barked at me or Wes. I believe that he thinks it's his job to protect us (me especially). His behaviour is worst when I'm home alone and someone comes in. I suppose Sammy is only doing what he thinks he must. When I am home alone with him, we have fun. I really like this dog and he loves me. He has turned me from a dog tolerater into a dog lover.

Giving him up is hard and I'm sure that I will shed a few tears when we send him off to another owner. We will give him away. Trying to sell him seems wrong to me.

Our home is a busy one. We have 2 of our own children living with us as well as Medardo and Leo. (Leo came to our home from Brazil a couple of weeks ago when Nik went off to Argentina.) Wes and I are pretty consistent with our comings and goings but the young people in this home come and go at all hours of the day and night. We frequently have people dropping in too. I think that all of this activity is hard for a sensitive dog to deal with.

I'm feeling a little guilty too. Before Sammy came along, everything I read reminded me that this is a big commitment that can last for many years. I felt I was ready for that. I guess we just weren't ready for Sammy. He would do best in a home where there is less activity and more predictability.

We cannot risk Sammy biting someone. Leo and Medardo spend little time downstairs, partly because of Sammy and that's no good. Amanda gets chased down the stairs when she comes home. That does not make for a very peaceful household. I worry that one day Sammy may bite a younger child who comes here. Nipping at heels and legs is one thing but if he were to harm a young child, I could not forgive myself.
I've posted an ad in the Buy and Sell. If anyone who reads this post knows of someone who might like a loveable, sensitive, eager to please dog, who sits, heels, lies down and is working on staying, let me know.

We will get another dog. Our experience with Sammy has been by and large, a positive one. We'll just have to be a little more careful about breed (no purebred) and temperament (calm and gentle).

Happy Birthday Michele

Okay, I Lied

I decided after my last post that I really should do something for my sweetie on Valentines day. So I did.

For Wes, I put my coat and gloves on, slipped into my wooden shoes and put the garbage cans and recycling boxes away.

Nothing says "I love you" in quite the same way.

Happy Valentines Day?

My 2 nephews Micah and Joey have been staying here for the last week and a half. This morning, Micah asked what the date was. I told him February 14.

"Is this Valentines Day?"

"Yeah."

"We're supposed to bring Valentines cards for the whole class. My mom already bought them but they're at my house so I guess I can't hand them out, eh?"

I guess not.


Valentines ranks right up there with Halloween for me. The great thing about Halloween is the fact that it is my daughter's birthday. In my life, there's nothing good about Valentines. Maybe it has something to do with my tendencies to be rebellious. "They" are telling me that I need to show my Valentine that I love him. Well, you can't tell me what to do. So I won't.

Maybe it has something to do with the emotional baggage I've been carrying around since grade 4. Most elementary school teachers require students to give cards to everyone in the class if they are going to hand them out. That was not something we did at school when I was young. And every year, there'd be a few kids who got nothing, a few who got something from almost everyone and the rest (I was one of them) would fall somewhere in-between. Most years I would get 3 or 4 which would remind me again that I was not one of the more popular kids. And I never got one from a boy.


One year, my best friend wrote a poem for me on a card:
Roses are red
Violets are black
You look better
With a knife in your back. (Just kidding!)

Ha. Ha.

Maybe I don't like Valentines day because it simply reminds people who don't have a special someone that they're missing out. I used to get depressed every time Feb. 14 rolled around.

Or maybe Valentines day is an just opportunity for retailers to guilt consumers (primarily men) into buying stuff that they probably think is a waste of their money but they better otherwise they'll be in big trouble.

Early on in our relationship, Wes would give me the prescribed chocolate and flowers. It wasn't too long into our marriage when I suggested that he didn't have to waste his money. Flowers just add to the clutter on my counter and chocolate, well, I can never eat just one piece. So I'd cram the whole box into my mouth and not share. It was ugly. I did not like the way I acted. And then I had to live with the after effects of a sugar rush and heartburn.

Needless to say, we won't be celebrating Valentines day today. I will tell Wes that I love him (something I do most days) and maybe I'll make something for dessert.

So there. That's all.

Winnipeg Remembers

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2007/02/14/firefighters-memorial.html

Sometimes, the best lessons are taught by the most unlikely people

Last night, as I was reading to Micah, I heard some yelling outside. I ignored it for a while but soon decided to look outside the window to see what was going on. There was someone on the driveway, yelling and acting very strangely. Our neighbour was also out there, speaking to the person in a calm, quiet way, encouraging her to keep walking. I made sure all the doors were locked and then I called 911.

At one point, Tim drove into the driveway and for a brief moment, I was afraid that he'd drive right over her. We have a pretty long driveway and he would not be looking out for a person standing in the way. Fortunately, he saw the woman and was able to avoid her. Tim and the neighbours stayed outside to watch and make sure she wouldn't hurt herself or anyone else. About 30 minutes later, a police cruiser came by and took her away.

Joey, Micah and I were standing by the upstairs window, watching, while all of this took place. The whole situation, while not dangerous for us, was disturbing.

And no teacher, parent or textbook could have taught the lesson about alcohol and drug addictions in a more effective way.

Busted

Did you know that you can edit a web page using "Word?" I learned that today from Micah although I just tried it myself and am unable to do it. I'll have to ask him after school how he did it. This morning, Micah showed me the following item on the CBC Radio website:

"Today, the transpotation said that busses are cancilled because of cold wether ecept st. jhons ravencourt."

I was a little suspicious when I saw that because on the live radio broadcast, it was being reported that all busses were running except for one school in the city. We listened for a little while longer and I was pretty sure that the busses were running.

They are in school today.

Hibernation

Today, I want to stay at home in my jammies, drink tea and let the world go by. Winter in Winnipeg feels like too much.

"Today..Sunny with cloudy periods. 30 percent chance of flurries this morning. Wind becoming north 20 km/h this afternoon. High minus 20. Wind chill minus 34 this afternoon. Tonight..A few clouds. Wind north 20 km/h becoming light this evening. Low minus 32. Extreme wind chill minus 43. Saturday..Sunny. Wind up to 15 km/h. High minus 25. Extreme wind chill minus 44."

Those temperatures are in celcius. For those of you more familiar with fahrenheit, -44 is about -48 F.

Brrrrr.