tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-74559943146953995492024-03-14T05:42:11.376-07:00Panda Pig's Peace Sanctuary: Way of the Guinea Pig!"Who can know what effect our smallest acts of kindness may have on others? Perhaps the most important contribution of Mother Teresa, who serves the most destitute and neglected, is that she instills in those who have been abandoned the realization that they too are loved."
~ Sant Darshan Singh Ji Maharaj ~
Panda Pig's Peace Sanctuary exists so that abandoned, neglected, sick, and dying guinea pigs may experience that they, too, are cherished and loved!Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.comBlogger2063125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-63563578316830744622014-05-05T22:19:00.002-07:002014-11-06T11:23:31.928-08:00I HOPE YOU HAD THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE: WE SURE DID!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">(Please press the PLAY button at bottom left if the red one in the middle doesn't work to hear this stunning song, tonight's</span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> Anthem…dedicated to all of </span><b><i><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">you who have made these the best times of our lives! Thank you…listen…read…feel our gratitude)</span></i></b><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">DEAR FRIENDS,</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"ANOTHER TURNING POINT, A FORK STUCK IN THE ROAD. TIME GRABS YOU BY THE WRIST, DIRECTS YOU WHERE TO GO…"</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Why feature this brilliant song by Green Day on our Guinea Pig blog? Because we wish this for you. Things happen. Life changes. This morning the piggies had such a fun Runabout, almost like old times. </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"TIME GRABS YOU BY THE WRIST, DIRECTS YOU WHERE TO GO…"</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">It took me back to the hospital by ambulance, heart rate dangerously low, spiked a fever, weight plunged to 85 lbs. with literally no muscle mass, caught yet another infection, immune system compromised…the superfood my naturopath gave me is unfortunately also feeding multiple infections which no longer respond to treatment. The doctor at the hospital finally confessed that if we don't get a handle on it...</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"SO TAKE THE PHOTOGRAPHS AND STILL FRAMES IN YOUR MIND…HANG IT ON A SHELF IN GOOD HEALTH AND GOOD TIME…"</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">This is what PandaPigSanctuary Blog means to us, to me.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">We don't know if I will get well or Life will grab us by the wrist, direct us where to go…it's unpredictable, which is why I so love this song, it's so true, so real, raw: And beautiful.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">We have faith that whatever happens is right and meant to be. </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">POI and Sami Cat moved in while I was in hospital to care for the piggies and they're staying on to care for me, too. After a crushingly difficult day at work - and we're many bus rides away now, living up here - the sacrifices POI (my special "<b>P</b>erson <b>o</b>f <b>I</b>nterest" who won't let me use his name yelling out: "I don't want to leave a Cyber Footprint!") the sacrifices he makes day and night for us- God love him! No way anyone who scrolls back a few years will ever guess who this noble soul is, heh-heh! He will remain by our side. As you have.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">He and two other caregivers plus the Transitions to Hospice Team are tiding me over, enabling us to stay in our new home. I am determined to remain here as one family and we'll learn as we go.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">No, we will not be returning to Bellingham, so <i style="font-weight: bold;"><u>will</u> take these photographs and still frames in our mind...from our years there together with you...and we <u>will </u>hang them forever in our hearts in good health and good time…</i>and perhaps return to blog again.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b><i>"FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH, IT WAS WORTH ALL THE WHILE…" Please listen to the lyrics, to understand how we feel.</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><i><b>I am too weak to keep up the blog now...</b></i></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"IT'S SOMETHING UNPREDICTABLE BUT IN THE END IS RIGHT. I HOPE YOU HAD THE TIME OF YOUR LIFE."</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">We sure have!</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Thank you for sharing yours with us, we love you, every single reader, <b><i>you have helped the pigs and I have the time of our life. </i></b></span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com33tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-55560691140413911882014-04-12T20:23:00.001-07:002014-04-12T20:46:51.197-07:00And So We Just Be Ourselves<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Dear Friends, O, how i wish to post photos of the piggies for you and hope to get that figured out, but we all wished to say "HI!" and thank you for thinking about us and your loving prayers: HAPPY SPRING!</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">This month has been full of change and transitions. First, thank you <b><i>again</i></b> to Ms. A, whose blog is linked here for she has been sharing her hard-earned research with me: As many of you already know, her son had a heart transplant and she is the one who originally suggested my getting tested for what he had. Which nobody I've ever met ever heard of before and whose letters, MTHFR, form an acronym for a naughty word. Having tested positive for two genetic mutations, we have also discovered an immune system deficiency and guess what? YO! That's all I really want to say about it because that's not who we are! <i style="font-weight: bold;">Sickness does not define us! Life does. Life is who we are, living is a Gift,</i> we are in such a good place, all things considered: the guineas just received their giant carpet remnant so <i style="font-weight: bold;">finally</i> get to Runabout again: eagerly racing </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">in-between cages (that get pulled apart when they're out to </span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">create a maze!) exciting uninhibited curiosity as they explore, rumblestrut, race, and rejoice upon discovering hidden tidbits of salad veggies while holding more meetings than Congress, </span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">rubbing noses while boasting competitively to see who had the Best Runabout! They GET THINGS DONE: Maybe we should nominate Guinea Pigs to represent us in Congress? Won't even <b><i>start...</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Since my futon is beside them I get to fall asleep to the soothing, contented munching of hay each night, which makes me wonder: am I'm sleeping in a manger? They play and eat with enthusiasm, live in the moment, worry about nothing, and are grateful for whatever they receive: I envy the guinea pigs and wish I was more like <i style="font-weight: bold;">them.</i> </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><b><i>(</i></b>Those Little Buddhas: How wise they truly are.<b><i><u>)</u></i></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Just above and out my window, what I so desperately longed for all those months we were incarcerated in downtown Seattle: AT LONG LAST: Evergreen Tree-Tops; Puffy, White Clouds, and within & without that Never-ending Canopy of Sky fly that pair of bald eagles whose nest is, no doubt, near Puget Sound. Waking up and from bed beholding their broad-winged, aerial Sky-Dance, (sometimes choreographed by crows!) - and soaring circles which only broaden and relax as they warm outstretched wings beneath the sun we are finally receiving…i fly with them, letting go of bodily things and just living in Spirit, Freedom. Eagles.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">There's a fine line between acceptance and giving up. Acceptance for what one cannot change, like in the Serenity Prayer. And that would define April. I fought like a pit bull to get well for a year now. The good part is finally being able to nest in our new apartment and the Seattle area's tremendous resources for "living-in-place" with a few amazing caregivers (Yes, It really <i style="font-weight: bold;">does take a Village!</i>) all of whom are uniquely wonderful. A year. Now to accept, have the courage to share that I feel terribly vulnerable not being able to care for myself, that I am - at times - unbearably homesick and that I do grieve, yes, not just for Bellingham but for having felt that everything was exactly as it should be: That wilderness still exists and to have enjoyed the strength to embrace it - and Life - so wholeheartedly with unbridled passion! Yes, i miss feeling <i style="font-weight: bold;">that alive.</i> I have been reprimanded for grieving by being reminded how much worse things could be, but you know what, as true as that is, it does not mean we are not entitled to our own pain…My God! I have tried not to expose myself to too much media about the recent tragic landslide yet still wake up having nightmares about it having heard the extraordinary stories of survivors! Grieving for ourselves can also open our hearts to the pain of those around us whom we do not know. Suppressing my own sadness would not allow me to feel theirs. Life is not a competition of suffering, it's an opportunity to unfold our capacity for the courage to feel and empathize with unimaginable pain being borne by those we've never met, never will, yet feel so agonizingly close to!</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Life flows like a river, it cannot remain stagnant and neither could the happiness and joy we experienced before remain that way forever. It was counter-intuitive to expect we could come here, get well, pick up where we left off, and - what? Get well, find LIFE where we left off, just on a different mountain, replacing Mt. Baker with Mt. Rainer?</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">We arrived a year ago, albeit reluctantly, with<i> a Plan, dubbed ingeniously: "The Plan"! I was encouraged to use Creative Visualization for health and imagine life as I wanted it to Be OOPSY! I mistook snowshoeing the glaciers of Mt. Rainier for Reality…boy was </i><b style="font-style: italic;">that dumb! Hope and Positive Thinking</b><i><b>…</b>can</i> be a good thing. And are. They have the value of taking one out of a moment which feels unendurable and replacing it with a moment which does feel endurable. Only problem, if it doesn't come true, <i style="font-weight: bold;">the original unendurable moment only feels </i><u style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">more unendurable.</u> Renowned Tibetan Buddhist nun, Pema Chodron, has a lot to say about this kind of hope and since I don't want you to shoot the messenger (in this case, me) I won't admit to agreeing with her, just pretend you didn't read this. There's also something to be said for accepting "what is." Breathing in. Breathing out. Forgetting the past, not worrying about the future, breathing in and breathing out without fleeing what feels unendurable, breathing <b><i>into</i></b> endurance through Being Quiet and opening to gratitude for What Is. Simply That.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">From this place, this very real bed which is not a glacier it is a bed and i am not snowshoeing i am lying in this very real bed because that is how - for now - Things Are in this very real moment, I can drop all pretenses of the Amazon Warrior i once was and concede: LOST. Though painful, breathing from a place that feels like Defeat is also liberating: sunshine streaming in through our adorable west-facing window and, at last, <i>finally </i>letting go those too-tightly-held imaginary reigns I never <i style="font-weight: bold;">really</i> held in the first place, just made it all up cuz it was so warm and fuzzy: ("YO! Yeah, <b><i>You - from "Grey's Anatomy"</i></b> in your starched, bleached-white lab coat, <i style="font-weight: bold;">yeah, I'm talkin' to you! </i>We left Paradise and moved here to see <b><i>you</i></b>, <b><i>so> MAKETH ME WELL</i></b> <b><i>AND MAKE HASTE while you're at it, you Slayers of Disease, you Healers of…?"</i></b>) Idiots? Cuz I be an idiot! Astonishly, the earth did not stop turning just to accommodate my expection for wellness. Considering how many people with terminal illnesses face staggering odds with courage and grace, and gratitude: from them we have much to learn. I want to learn it. And live it. And share it. If I can't or don't get well, how then, to live above the fray of fear and in the Light of Faith, Courage, Love, Gratitude, and empathy for those also struggling, which, realistically, would be practically everyone for we do not know the inner pain a smiling face may mask…but we can become willing to. </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Today is beautiful. </span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">D</span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">iscovered an elegance in Life's tiniest details, in the flower that - against all odds - somehow, some way pushed its tiny self through an even tinier crack in the concrete sidewalk because it was determined to Greet the Sun, Open and Blossom to Life higher then it ever imagined it could go. But it did imagine. And it endured and pushed and survived doubt, clawing its way faithfully until it DID BLOSSOM; not to be seen, noticed, or admired, but simply because it chose to bask in the Light of Life instead of beneath the darkness of a man-made sidewalk, concrete. Who notices this Opus of Virtue, this quiet embodiment of courage and determination? Probably few, if any. In fact, people will probably step on this flower without even noticing that this tiny delicacy defied the odds of ever blooming to find its way without a map to the Sun, its only ambition to feel warmth, experience Light, and not be imprisoned forever underground. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">Maybe that's what illness gifts, </span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">discovering eloquence in smallness. Getting from bed to the kitchen sink a conquest no less significant than summiting Mt. Rainier. Caring for guinea pigs the only difference one can make in the world bringing meaning enough to the Transition from a life outside to a quiet Inwardness. Four guinea pigs: My life matters to them. So keep living! </span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">We don't come with a script, no one does. We all have our - as one MOD so wonderfully put it (yes, you know who you are) - our </span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: large;">"left turns." I love that expression.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">What I hope? That this left turn brings inner peace and deepens appreciation for those things once taken for granted. As we used to say at Passover with my immigrant grandparents when I was a little girl and the extended family all got together to celebrate our freedom, then our exile, then our Return to the Land of Milk and Honey: "Dayenu!" meaning - "It would have been enough." What we were given at each turn in our Exodus, whatever God bestowed upon us: Every single thing we needed wandering helplessly through that desert, "Dayenu!" we say at Passover. I am not observant. But I feel an Exile. And, inspired by the flowers that grow through cracks in sidewalks only to get stepped on, inspired by guinea pigs no one wanted yet who truly want me, Dayenu!</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Happy Easter, Happy Passover, Welcome Spring!</span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-70583881642405705222014-03-26T21:01:00.000-07:002014-03-26T21:02:42.770-07:00Our Hearts Go Out to Mudslide Families Here in Washington State<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">We cannot include a photograph, nor any video in this post and know you understand why.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">I am writing because we have been asked, since we just moved North of Seattle, whether or not we were involved in the catastrophic mudslide that took place here last weekend. Fortunately, we are safe and sound, though not so far away. It's been a struggle whether or not to post anything here about it, to include any footage of Buddy the dog being pulled alive from the rubble, but it is just too heartbreaking.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">We know the area well from summers spent camping and hiking, and frozen winters spent snowshoeing beneath a full moon amidst the Silence of Trees. We have so many happy memories of a place that no longer exists.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">Along with continuing human losses, there have been a few miracles, some family pets found still alive even though their own families perished. I don't know what to say. We <b><i>just</i></b> moved north, out of Seattle last month, to be closer to nature. Nearly every morning looking out my window a pair of bald eagles, wings outspread long and broad, ride thermals higher and higher in broadening loops above land and sea. It is quiet except for the sound of rain, wind, rustling of trees, and snow-covered peaks of the Olympic Mountain Range just smiling back at us from above evergreen tree-tops.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">Although we were not there in the mudslide, we were all there and remain so because…how can anyone not feel affected by such catastrophic, tragic losses; even First Responders and volunteers now showing signs of Post Traumatic Stress Disorder…so friends, although we are O.K. please send love, prayers, and whatever feels comforting to those who have lost so much and still await news of the many missing. We have seen stories of three rescued dogs and the guinea pigs and I rejoice when a miracle family pet is discovered alive amidst the tragic rubble, yes they <b><i>are</i></b> being found, and there's always hope more will be...</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">A few weeks ago my heart stopped beating. I was fortunate to already be at the hospital, received CPR, and now we have some clues: two rare genetic mutations that attack the heart and many functions of the body and brain plus a possible auto-immune disease. Thank you, Ms. A, for recognizing in my symptoms this rare disease which neither I nor my physician <i>had ever even heard of before!</i> My weight now hovers at 100 lbs. even though with pain medication I am now able to eat, but physical therapists refuse to come anymore because there simply is not enough muscle mass to work with as weight and strength continue their downward spiral. I remain in the excellent Transitions-to-Hospice Program.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">Good news is hoping we find an expert or expert team with extensive experience treating this rare defect…a dear friend has been caring for me and is training to become one of my two "official caregivers" and the guinea pigs love her kids! I am no longer snowshoeing beneath full moons, now nearly bed-bound or in a wheelchair, too weak much of the time to even stand up on my own. But, at least we are all together, the piggies and I, we finally have a real home, are loved and cared for by many, and POI cleans their homes on weekends. We are slowly adjusting, living simply, grateful for all we have, and grieving for those who have lost <i>everything and nearly everyone:</i> It's too close to home, but then, the entire world is our home so let's celebrate life: L'Chaim, and offer what comfort we can to those who grieve.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">Thank you for asking if we are O.K.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">love,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Courier New, Courier, monospace; font-size: large;">chana and the PigZ</span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-79866261785839776962014-02-24T00:31:00.000-08:002014-02-24T00:42:52.988-08:00Emma the Wonderpig<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">Emma the Wonderpig is no ordinary "therapy animal" and neither are Peter-Peanut, Bhindi, Vinny-Guinea, and - of course - Squirrel!</span></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">We actually have a new home, a real home, to move into on Feb. 27th, <b><i>our first in a year</i></b>…and to ensure the Piggies stay in it if management ever changes their current "pets included" policy we are getting a note from our doctor describing them as "THERAPY PIGS" so it'll never be an issue. It came up back in Bellingham so we see it as a "pre-emptive strike" since the apartments aren't even finished, yet our favorite leasing agent is already moving on to another job. Guinea Pig Magazine did a beautiful job in 2012 with their article on guinea pigs as Therapy Animals (as they are more appreciated in the U.K.) but increasingly, here in the U. S., they're proving themselves loveful, particularly with hospice patients too weak to handle even a small cat or dog. </span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">We hope to become well enough to get the computer repaired (or learn how to use it!) and provide photographs of the wee lads again <b><i>soon</i></b> and are happy to report that Peter-Peanut has responded beautifully to the heart medications he'll be taking for the rest of his life.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">For the moment, I am too weak to get out of bed (thank you friends who are paying for professional movers: we couldn't do it without you!) and the move is Feb. 27th, so - until I get my strength back - the herd and Sami the cat, who has treated them like her own kittens since "her" Chai passed away, will all live together with POI. Since so many memories of Chai remain at POI's, it will be especially comforting having the piggies along when they move back in to brighten things up, transforming the herd into "<b><i>grief</i></b> <b><i>therapy animals</i></b>" in that respect.</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"> I am not currently strong enough to give them all the care they deserve and medication treatments, but their brand new "habitats" with <b><i>all</i></b> the bells and whistles arrive any day now, and soon our new apartment will belong to them again: As it should! We <b><i>so</i></b> look forward to that time…we've never been apart quite like this before but they've bonded so beautifully with POI that I'm the one feeling most left out! Despite surgery and post-op treatment, the infections have not yet cleared but soon I'll regain my strength - <i style="font-weight: bold;">AND with it, THE PIGGIES </i>- SO MUCH TO BE GRATEFUL FOR!</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">Hope you enjoyed this unusual news report because the extraordinary dispositions and personalities of guinea pigs is rarely appreciated in the U.S. but that perception <i style="font-weight: bold;">is beginning to change</i>, one pig at at time!</span></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;">Thanks all of you for your prayers, love, cards, emails, and support. It's a New Beginning and we expect our reunion in our New Home in a wooded, quiet little hamlet just north of Seattle (but not <b><i>IN</i></b> SEATTLE) to be absolutely <b><i>JOYOUS! So, here's to New Beginnings and HOPE! And gratitude for the unique healing power of guinea pigs: gentle, affectionate, kind, forever forgiving, and their very own unique brand of</i></b></span><b><i> Wonderfulness!</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><span style="background-color: white;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b><i>God Bless ~</i></b></span></div>
Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-50575281071103278742014-02-12T19:44:00.001-08:002014-02-12T20:07:41.208-08:00The Thrill of Victory - Team USA - Winter Olympics - Motivation<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"I Can. </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">I Will. I Must."</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Hope you find some inspiration in the struggle our Olympic athletes endure for their minutes - or perhaps, seconds - </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">to bring Glory not only to themselves, their country, NO, to The World, to Humanity! Because every athlete has a story. Every athlete has been told he or she was not good enough, not fast enough, not strong enough, not courageous enough: didn't have what it took…just like Life isn't it? Maybe a person doesn't say it, maybe Life just keeps knocking you down and the worst possible thing in the world happens: You start thinking - then saying - then believing - these things about yourself.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">That happened to us this year. The pigs and me. </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">I was a short-track speed skater training with a Special Olympics coach with aspirations of someday perhaps, perhaps…that first winter, someone I loved dearly passed away and the ice was where my tears fell, froze, I skated away from them, then back around the rink I skated over them as new ones fell. It's how I got over that particular loss. Sports, wilderness, wildlife and animal rescue, friendship, art…there's no one "magic Bullet" it Takes A Village to endure what Life throws at us. But on the ice <b><i>man</i></b>, there's a rhythm, a flow…you catch it and have to be SO <i style="font-weight: bold;">In The Moment</i> nothing else exists. Or you fall. Same with cleaning out 6 guinea pig cages late at night when you <i>know</i> you don't have the energy so you listen to kd lang or Rufus Wainwright singing Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah" and instead of face planting in the middle of pig poo, everyone wheeks with joy and a clean cage full of fresh hay. YOU GET THROUGH IT. We always did. Then hit the ice, the slopes, the sea…smell the salty breeze of rain coming in from the West, or the icy wind of an Arctic Windstorm bringing in snowy owls, yeah, that was life less than two years ago. </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">And it was Good. We lost pigs. You do in an animal rescue because they don't often enter with solid, healthy bodies but they come with open hearts every darn one of them.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">And even the pain of grief, there would be snow to cry on if not ice…or rain…and another pig to rescue, another night to hear "Hallelujah" another hike on Mt. Baker with ravens to see God's pinkish alpenGLOW above 5,000 feet and know: It is Good!</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">We lost that. Somehow, slowly at first still in Bellingham and then moving to Seattle…at first I <i style="font-weight: bold;">did know "I can. I will. I must."</i> </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Yet, I didn't. The Piggies still do. They wrote a letter to our favorite magazine editor, Alison Byford, of Guinea Pig Magazine about life, they just wanted her to know how much the magazine means to guinea pigs and those of us who love them and those of us who will love them…and they didn't know it but there was a <b><i>Letter Writing Contest and they won it! Their letter will be featured in the next issue of Guinea Pig Magazine, now published internationally online and in hard copy, and they'll ALSO receive a big bag of special pellets from across that big Pond!</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>Before we move.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Weighed in at 105 lbs. today, can barely stand, eat, sleep…don't know positively if all the paperwork will be ready in too short a time for us to move into our new apartment although miracles have been happening and we have no reason to believe they will stop now…</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">I haven't owned a T.V. in countless years. POI just <b><i>walked into the last Olympics since they were right across the border from Bellingham, before we moved here. We aren't really paying much attention except to long-track speed skater Shani Davis hoping he wins his third Gold Medal, setting an Olympic record. He got told HE COULDN'T. So, he DID IT! Twice, maybe three times? GO, Shani, GO!</i></b></span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><b><i>We actually skated with short-track Olympian J. R. Celski when he was still a little boy on the same ice Apolo Anton Ohno first trained on when HE was still a kid, and we've met them both - well, POI has not only met them but hung out with them, Ohno autographed POI's skates, and they had a good time.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">POI has been noble. His caregiving has been Olympic Gold. We don't talk anymore about "feelings" because as I grow sicker in a place that feels like we got thrown in a garbage can last May there's nothing to say.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><br />Breathe In. Breathe Out. Then do it again. Be in the moment. In. Then out. Just Breathe.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">POI will care - as he has been - for the piggies until I get my strength back since Peter-Peanut has two heart conditions which are responding beautifully to the three medications he must take for the rest of his life. I dream of us having a place where we smell rain, feel incoming storms, with enough space for the piggies to dominate the floor like we hope Shani will on ice. </span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">What's changed from all this? Well, things seem impossible right now, I've been struggling with keeping my spirits. Because no matter how hard we try, Life has a Life of its own and I no longer see a Gold Medal snowshoeing Mt. Rainier's breathtaking glacial flanks…we don't even want to use the word "breathtaking" anymore…</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"God can. God will. God must." I did my best. From this moment on, I will live this Thin Line the way we used to train, as an adventure! An adventure in Faith: It's the only Hallelujah left.</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Thanks <b><i>all of you</i></b> who care so much for us. We are grateful...you give us that little <i style="font-weight: bold;">extra "Umph!"</i> to keep fighting. Because we are really tired, man. And face-planting into a pile of pig poo might be the funniest, most healing thing that could possibly happen at this point: Hallelujah!</span></div>
Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-43732618819728909112014-02-03T09:51:00.004-08:002014-02-03T17:39:27.361-08:00LIFE: On a Wing and a Prayer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">WE <u>DID</u><b><i> IT OH! HOW! WE! DID! IT!</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">{Out of respect for what you're about to read, this video is a subdued, "SINATRA-like" spin-off on our <b><i>favorite video and place: "Bellingham State of Mind"... but with a special twist - it's actually <u>IN</u> NEW YORK & SEATTLE!} </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="color: blue;"> ~</span><span style="color: red;">*</span><span style="color: blue;">~</span></i></b></span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i>AND now to</i></b> <b><i><span style="color: red;">LIFE: Those of you who follow the "Sarcastic Granny" blog listed on the right side of our blog here - GREAT NEWS! A HEART ARRIVED FOR HER SON so today would all readers and loved ones, friends, guinea pig slaves, one and all please send LOVE TO MICHAEL and his family, surgeons, and his new heart as the transplant is today…we'll let you know how it goes as soon as <u>we</u> find out - meanwhile: </span><span style="color: blue;">SEAHAWKS WON ON A WING, LET MICHAEL LIVE ON A PRAYER!</span></i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="color: blue;">GOD BLESS YOU, MICHAEL, Here's to <span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>WINNING THE BIGGEST GAME OF ALL!</u></span></span></i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u><br /></u></span></span></i></b></span>
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><b><i><span style="color: blue;"><span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;"><u>"L'CHAIM: TO LIFE!"</u></span></span></i></b></span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-25847897899313472512014-01-31T12:13:00.005-08:002014-01-31T20:10:57.275-08:0012th Pig: THE CITY CAN'T HOLD US! Seahawks, Macklemore, Superbowl Sunday: OH WHAT A FEELING!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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CHECK <b><i>THIS YOUTUBE <u>OUT</u> (<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif;">full screen!) </span>to understand what you are about to read:)</i></b><br />
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Heya from next to Seahawk Stadium two days before the Superbowl,<br />
<br />
I just opened my eyes from meditation when a plane flew by waving a 12th Man flag through the Heavens and I <b><i>felt</i></b> something, we all feel something here we've <b><i>never</i></b> felt before. Why write about the Super Bowl…it's Spiritual, actually.<br />
<br />
The guinea pigs and I live so close to "The Clink" (Seattle-speak for <b>C</b>entury <b>Link</b> Field) that we can see all the way to where the stands meet the field! Yeah, <b><i>that close. And, UNLESS YOU LIVE ON MARS, you know</i></b> Seattle fans are so loud that on one run by Marshawn Lynch in FULL BEAST MODE the seismic lab at University of Washington was stunned to see the fans' cheering BLASTED a <b><i>measurable</i></b> earthquake!<br />
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YO, <b><i>that's</i></b> what we're talking about. (Now they got at least 3 seismic sensors in the stadium cuz 12th Man cheers so loud it not only registers on the richter scale but set the Guinness Book of World Records for "Loudest Fans <b>EVAH </b>at a Sporting Event") and the play-off game last Sunday only got louder…a local hospital gives out free earplugs so people don't go deaf, yeah, it <b><i>that</i></b> loud.<br />
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You all know I been sick, the guineas been sick, and now we <b><i><u>FINALLY</u></i></b> moving out Feb. 27, but there's some hold-up so wunnerful POI gonna take the guineas when <i>he</i> moves back home to his apartment and WOW! - under POI's care, Peter-Peanut, 12th Pig, has gone from heart disease into his OWN "Beast Mode" runnin' with Squirrel for the first time in <i>months</i> without rapid heartbeat or collapsing after: the meds ARE WORKING! And I got surgery next Friday and have done everything I can to find us a home (and found 2) but because disabled housing got so much bureaucracy involved nothing guaranteed, like what I am trying to say is a moving van pulling' up here on Feb. 27th, but where it taking us? I don't know! Piggies going with POI for a little while; will help him and Sami adjust and grieve in an apartment without Chai, where POI has to deal with an array of Chai's toys, food bowls, stuff he marked, scratched up, pieces of his long, wonderful life still waiting.. it gonna be hard, but the guineas gonna help 'em cuz Sami now lives with them, standing where Chai used to, crying, then lying down…it's hard. We meditate, we try to be the best we can be, but at the end of some days we struggle, we do.<br />
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The city can't hold us! Nobody wanted these guinea pigs. Nobody wanted most of the players on the Seahwawks team, either; second, third draft choices - <b><i>undesirable leftovers -</i></b> including our coach who got fired from his last job, wondered "What did I do wrong?" then decided - when he got <b><i>this</i></b> job - to <b><i>love</i></b> his motley crew of "nobodies" like the father figure most of 'em never grew up with <u style="color: red; font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">AND </u>- READY? Yoga, Meditation, Positive Visualization, and <i>INSPIRATION INSTEAD OF BERATING THEM. Seahawks coaches</i> don't yell at the players like in the rest of the League, one coach confessed: "If I find myself yelling at a player who's wrong? It's <b><i>me whose wrong because I have just undermined his confidence in himself. I am the one who needs to change!"</i></b> ESPN magazine ran a front cover of quarterback Russell Wilson in his Seahawks uniform <b><i>meditating in full lotus</i></b> position - and what a <u style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">STORM DID THAT CAUSE IN "MACHO-MAN" NFL?!</u> Meditation? Mentorship? Loving the players like each one your own son? Finding their strengths and maximizing them, finding their weaknesses and minimizing them, encouraging and inspiring them until they get so good they <b><i>inspire each other! Say <u>WHAT?!</u></i></b><br />
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Ten days ago, preparing for the Playoffs against our nemesis, the San Fransisco 49'ers, Blackhawk helicopters circled, hovered, took surveillance with cameras attached to their noses and the lights at the Clink were on 24/7 <i>for three days</i> preparing for <b><i>that</i></b> Big game. I never went to one. Never. But we made a pilgrimage, POI and I did, and we listened on the radio trying to find a T.V. near the Clink while Lynch in BeastMode scored a touchdown and you know how in cartoons things happen like, the wind can blow somebody away Cuz it's a cartoon? Well, standing just in front of The CLINK that cheering nearly knock me OFF. MY. WALKER! A SIDEWAYS EARTHQUAKE, WALL O'SOUND FOR REAL, yeah, the 12th Man and Seahawks…the City Can't Hold 'Em!<br />
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What's all this discursive rambling <b><i>really</i></b> all about? This: I get scared sometimes. Gonna get well? Gonna have a place to live when that moving van comes? How surgery gonna go in the midst of a growing list of "Things to Do"? How i gonna be ready? Things I got no control over. Deepen faith or enjoy a panic attack, it's a choice, I'm told. Russell Wilson's <b>first</b> play last week was a fumble!<br />
FIRST PLAY OF THE GAME <b><i>HERE</i></b> AND HE FUMBLES AND THE 49'ers get the ball and are ahead of us at halftime. Macklemore (local awesome rappin' Grammy Winner) was the LIVE halftime show you didn't get to see cuz all those talking heads gotta blabber about who did what, but Macklemore got the 12th man SO PSYCHED that when we stormed back onto the field fans were <b><i>so there</i></b> for them and they came back with some <b><i> calls so courageous I call 'em "faith based" AND WE SCORED on those crazy</i></b> calls, made <b><i>spectacularly astonishing plays,</i></b> and unless you live on the Moon we all know what happened with five seconds left…think even Martians on their red rock know who Richard Sherman is by now!<br />
Is there a Point? She won't shut up. Stop writing or get <b><i>to it, girl! FINE!</i></b><br />
<b><i>I FEEL LIKE RUSSELL WILSON</i></b> when he just fumbled and the Seahawks lost possession <b><i><u>on the first play of THE GAME!</u></i></b>…who can know what went on inside his head but people "in the know" said the way they train with all their yoga and meditation, by the time they got back into the huddle he had already forgotten about it, focusing only on making a first down. Ten yards. One first down.<br />
Then another: 60 minutes of first downs. What fumble? <i style="font-weight: bold;">Fuggetaboutit! </i><br />
<i style="font-weight: bold;"><br /></i>
<i style="font-weight: bold;">Our own unknown? Yours? We all have them: How we <span style="color: red;">respond</span> to them is what makes us who we are, whatever the outcome, can we BRING OUR BEST GAME TO EVERY PLAY? Uh-HUH!</i><br />
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The 12 Pigs are in the moment! They forgot being sick. They don't worry. Remember that Bobby McFerrin song "Don't Worry? Be Happy?" That's them 12th Pigs motto! They way ahead o' me!<br />
I don't have control over the housing, surgery, and when I tried being positive, excitedly commenting to the surgeon, "Wow, am I gonna feel BETTER AFTER THIS, huh?!" she looked at me with her same ole poker face remarking, "Not necessarily." But I <b><i>gotta</i></b> get better, we <b><i>gotta</i></b> have a new home, things <i>gotta</i> change for the better, it's a New Year and must remember: Only ten yards to go. Touchdowns are offspring of first downs. and forget the fumble, forget the fear, forget the past, get in the moment, Pigz shouting' "Ma, get into BEAST MODE ALREADY AND STOP WORRYING, JUST - MA, SEE THE GOALPOSTS? JUST KEEP ON RUNNIN <i style="font-weight: bold;">THAT WAY, ONE YARD AT A TIME AND FOR EVERY TACKLE, FOR EVERY SINGLE SET-BACK PUSH IT OFF, MA, PUSH IT OFF AND FUGGETABOUTIT, KEEP ON RUNNING, ONE YARD AT A TIME, YOU PLAYED FOOTBALL AND WAS SO GOOD AT IT WHEN YOU WAS A LITTLE TOMBOY KEEP IT IN THE MOMENT, TACKLE DOWN THOSE THOUGHTS OF DOOM - JUST PUSH 'EM AWAY, RISE UP AND REMEMBER, one yard at a time. One first down. Then touchdown! Then do it all over again. That's just how life IS. </i>Courage. Confidence. Faith. Keep the goalposts in view and never let 'em touch you, those thoughts, those doubts, just go BEAST MODE!<br />
NA-NA-NANA-NA-NA-NA-NA!<br />
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The City's on Fire! Nobody wanted those players: Russell Wilson's too short. One of 'em's deaf, They calling' Richard Sherman "a thug" instead of using "the <b>N Word"</b> (with a 3.9 GPA from Stanford University he smarter than maybe everybody else out there! Thug? Don't <b><i>Think So!</i></b>), Macklemore cancelled a concert in India so he could go with 'em to the Super Bowl; Yesterday Boeing unveiled and flew a new plane painted like a Seahawk, 12th Man flags waving <u style="font-style: italic; font-weight: bold;">EVERYWHERE from everyTHING</u>…i gotta a lot to learn about perseverance, faith, and never giving up, never losing hope from this rag-tag team of nobodies who fumbled their first play yet dramatically went on to triumph. Next door.<br />
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We can hardly wait for the game. Now that I've done pretty much everything I can for health and home, nothing left but keep the faith. Seattle did. Pete Carroll did. Every single guy who was told he wasn't good for nothin' did (and other players, broadcasters, and sportswriters <b><i>still talking smack about us? newsFLASH, y'all: Gonna be SURPRISED!) </i></b><br />
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The 12th Pigs want me in <b><i>full </i></b>"Beast Mode" from now on with a smile and open palm overflowing with fresh salad, knowing everything gonna be all right. What have we learned living next to the CLINK instead of what we SO miss "back home" in Bellingham: that quiet, monastic, natural setting perfect for meditation, yoga, prayer, mountain bike riding, hiking, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing through fresh alpine powder in the alpenglow of the setting sun, fragrance of incoming storms, symphonies of birdsong?<br />
<span style="color: lime;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span>
<span style="color: lime;"><b><i><u>A much needed LESSON IN FAITH, actually: we got EXACTLY WHAT WE NEEDED. </u></i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: lime;"><b><i><u>WHO KNEW?</u></i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: lime;"><b><i><u><br /></u></i></b></span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">Go every single one of <b><i>YOU</i></b> facing gut-wrenching adversity and uncertainty right now, and so many of you <b><i>are</i></b>…let's DO THIS THING! Thank you for being here for me. In sickness and in health. In courage and in fear.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, 'Times New Roman', serif; font-size: x-large;">You are here. Your prayers so near!</span></div>
Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-26442240333029377872014-01-17T10:39:00.002-08:002014-01-17T12:13:22.401-08:00HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: red; font-size: large;">(So sorry, Vinny-Guinea, left your pic out - EEK!)</span><br />
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<span style="color: cyan; font-size: large;">~*~</span><br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Dear Friends, Happy New Year to each and<br />
every one of you! We know that some of you<br />
are facing the toughest challenges of your lives<br />
at this time and we are praying for you.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">For some reason, BLOGGER does not work.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">So here's an update on The Kidz since a few of</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">you have lovingly asked how we're doing, should</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I tell the truth? I will.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">While in hospital the Pigz became so ill we</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">thought we would lose them all, but today</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">they are happily running about the floor,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">enjoying life, and only Peter-Peanut remains</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">ill with heart disease for which he is on much</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">medication but no longer has to be wrapped up</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">in a "Guinea Burrito" since his meds <b><i>TASTE</i></b> so darn</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">good POI just squirts 'em right into his mouth</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">through his habitat hoping for "rapid extraction" (trying to </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">retract it) before The Pea<b><i>NUT</i></b> chomps down, </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">actually</span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> </span><b style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><i>snatching</i></b><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> the thin, </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">plastic syringe - wanting to </span><b style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><i>eat it!</i></b><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Today Peter-Peanut <b><i>feels</i></b> healthy again, and happy, </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">what a fat, funny, fine boy-pig he is!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I took photos (that i can't figure out how to post, sorry)</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> of The "Guinea Burritos" (maybe we don't <b><i>want to remember</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">those dark days?) but wish we <b><i>could show you</i></b> </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Squirrel's Red Castle, wherein he hoards</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">so many toys and mini-hay bales and what-nots</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">we can't figure out how he sleeps in it, particularly</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">since he daily knocks it askew at the funniest</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">angle before lying down on "his treasures" for</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">naps…he and all the piggies individually </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">redecorate their habitat areas so hysterically </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">funny I really hoped to share pics but my 'puter</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">needs to get in the shop first, so just imagine </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> pigs every morning setting out to undo their</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">organized, clean homes into completely <b><i>JOYOUS</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b><i>CHAOS!!! They keep me laughing.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">The truth? The post following this one is my </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">favorite song, our anthem, Beyonce singing</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> at a very special event hosted by the United Nations, </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"I Was Here,"</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">because I've gotten sicker and being </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"shut-in" - so <b><i>not me</i></b> - makes me wonder…do i matter?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Yes, I<b><i> am</i></b> struggling</span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> to find</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">hope and meaning in a life i no longer understand.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">We hope to move into a "real apartment" in a </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b><i>nice, residential, </i></b></span><b style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><i>quiet, safe, tree-filled</i></b><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">neighborhood in about 6 weeks and my friend</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">already there says it'll really boost our spirits!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> My immune </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">system broke and the doctors aren't sure </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">yet </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">how to treat four refractory infections and a</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">minor surgery scheduled, I am down to 107 lbs.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">and losing about a pound a day, in a lot of pain,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">then start counting our blessings and none of</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">it matters! Many of <b><i>YOU</i></b> have a son, brother, wife,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">friend you may lose and </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">are yourselves dealing with hardships,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> so </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I can't complain just wanted to be honest:</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">As strength wanes, how can Life Be Meaningful?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">How to make a difference?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I felt Beyonce's performance at the United Nations</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">answered this yearning for Purpose: It's the Little Things.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Do a Little Thing. It isn't Little to the creature,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">friend, or stranger who receives it.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Leave footprints in the sand.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Please try to enjoy it full screen, it's simply remarkable.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">(P.S. Rashmi in India, you knew this was our anthem</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">and we love you for it! But, <b><i>how - of all the songs in</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b><i>the Universe - you knew ours was THIS ONE?!</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b><i>YOU AMAZE.)</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">~*~</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Chai's kitty </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">gal-pal, Sami, now sleeps where <b><i>he</i></b></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">used to with the piggies and cries </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">every day for him, her grief continuing -</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">but the piggies cheer her up! Especially</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">watching Squirrel's hilarious daily obsessive-compulsive "EVERYTHING MUST BE EXACTLY PERFECT IN MY CAGE BUT NOT HOW MOM PUT IT, IT HAS TO BE ASKEW AND ODD, AND MY WAY, THE BEST WAY, SQUIRREL'S WAY!"AND BE NEAT (his version of it)</span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> every day as he rearranges everything entirely with his top-notchy-snout</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">and fluffy soft Squirrel-rump!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">We are Here. Blogger Broke. So, it may be awhile before we can post again. Hope we're back better than ever real soon. Meanwhile, If a guinea pig smiles being skritchy-scratched in <b><i>just the right spot, scampers about on a Happy Runabout, or eagerly snatches the soft round cardboard from an old roll of toilet paper before (How'd ya guess Squirrel?) pounding it up and down with all his might in a Guinea-Frenzy </i></b></span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><b><i>of JOY,</i></b> </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">then We Were Here. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">(And we need a new roll of toilet paper. See, don't get out much!)</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> What I love about Beyonce's</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">song in the presentation you are about to</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">enjoy on the next post is that we can find ways</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">to matter, and we can make a difference, and</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">our lives will mean something, no matter how</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">large or small, if we Give, if we Hope,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">if we Smile, if we can make someone laugh;</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">if a guinea pig who never knew love enjoys tons of</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">love now, and even comforts a grieving kitty </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">who just lost </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">her best friend,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">We Were Here.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Don't know when we'll be back.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Soooo…..</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">To each and every one of <b><i>you</i></b> who cares about</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">all of <b><i>us</i></b> and have given so much of <b><i>yourselves</i></b>,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"> we will keep fighting the good fight!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">In </span><span style="color: lime; font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">BEAST MODE:</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Thanks, Marshawn Lynch, you</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">inspire us.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Go Seahawks!</span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-71190169502842907692014-01-17T10:11:00.002-08:002014-01-17T10:11:53.081-08:00I Was Here (United Nations World Humanitarian Day Perform...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-63100540604374004322013-11-25T19:37:00.003-08:002013-11-25T20:35:38.630-08:00The Byrds - Turn! Turn! Turn! In Memory of Chai<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<iframe allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" height="344" src="//www.youtube.com/embed/nLC9ErSYSnA" width="459"></iframe><span style="font-size: large;">To Chai…</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Our Beloved Bengal: There was a Season…<b><i>And a time to every purpose Under Heaven…"</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">"A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing…"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Today, we let you Go Home.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">And the guinea pigs…coming home from the hospital three of four were terminally ill: Peter-Peanut had pneumonia, bronchitis, droopy, red eyes, and congestive heart failure. Poppity-Squirrel had pneumonia and his lymph nodes so swollen the vet thinks he has lymphoma. Bhindi had pneumonia and droopy eyes. Only Vinny was well…but pneumonia so contagious we feared losing them all. An extraordinary "exotics" vet (who was so sure we would lose Peter-Peanut she asked if we wanted to "put him down" - mortifying me!)…we have been treating them with lots of medication, diligently administering it by wrapping them up in a </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"Guinea Burrito" towel which I don't have a photo of. They get fresh wheat grass, take their meds, and are not out of the woods yet but they have become "Poppity" again and the vet was <b><i>astonished how well Peter was doing - his coat all glossy - when she saw him Saturday!</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>"A time to be born and a time to die."</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>It feels like a slice of me just calved off like the glaciers are doing in the warmer waters of the Polar Ice caps, never to cleave to me again…all I knew was of no value. Only Love. Only the "uninhibited brain" willing to be vulnerable and reply to those who asked how we were: "We are suffering." We have been grieving.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>"A time to tear down and a time to heal,"</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>This - this, then has been "A time to tear down" and we welcome it as Healing is sure to follow as the dawn is never far from Night's Darkness.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Today we let go of Chai. We do have faith that all the guinea pigs will heal. And so will we. But, that chunk from the Past that calved off in our grief has changed us, recreated the geography of our hearts, and we feel, as one of our favorite mystic poets, Jalaludden Rumi wrote: </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"The wound is the place the Light enters."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">So, in the Heart of Darkness, in the agony of our broken hearted wound, we await Light.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Chai…you were amazing. Oh God, you were so amazing! </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>"A time to be silent and a time to speak…" </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>Now, Boyo, we shall fall silent and speak no more.</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i> </i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i> ~*~</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span>
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>{Special thanks to "our family" at the Phinney Ridge Animal Hospital for holding us so tenderly while Chai slipped away.}</i></b></span></div>
Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-42051804459305871122013-09-25T11:59:00.001-07:002013-09-25T13:16:10.805-07:00A MOD REMEMBERS: We Will Remember You Barbaro - A Tribute (+playlist)<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
O.K. FAIR WARNING - This is a true story, <span style="color: red;">a real heartbreaker...</span> and an<br />
inspiration. Keep tissues handy if you watch.<br />
<br />
THE OTHER DAY I opened my mailbox and discovered a cream colored<br />
envelope from The Dean and Faculty of the University of Pennsylvania<br />
School of Veterinary Medicine. Baffled, I wheeled back up in Black Beauty,<br />
set myself in the big, blue stuffed chair overlooking Elliott Bay and the<br />
Olympic Mountains, and just stared at it. Who do I know there? Did someone<br />
make a mistake sending this to me? So, I stared at it because the envelope was<br />
so beautiful.<br />
<br />
Then I opened it.<br />
<br />
Inside was a card with deep blue edges, a prominent seal on top, and the following<br />
message:<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
"<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif;">The Dean and Faculty</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">of the</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">University of Pennsylvania</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">School of Veterinary Medicine</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">wish to inform you that</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">a generous gift has been made to the</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Bararo Fund</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">in your honor </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">by </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">(a MOD we all know and love)</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br />
<br />
New Bolton Center<br />
~*~<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I just wept. (Yes, I have turned into a big crybaby.)</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I couldn't believe my eyes.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I couldn't believe my eyes when Barbaro fell...</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">the horse with the Mightiest Heart!</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">We <strong><em>all wept then. We weep now; remembering </em></strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">just as we do and did with each owlet</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">who passed away...</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">A MOD made a generous gift to the Barbaro Fund</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">in my honor.</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Yes, I <em>was</em> one of those little girls but not the kind who wanted a pony,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I wanted a racehorse! I voraciously consumed <strong><em>every single horse</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>book written that I could find</em></strong> as </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">as child; </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">took riding lessons & competed in a </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">horse show or two...</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>BUT</em></strong> what I <em>really, really </em>wanted, as Yahoo Rose knows, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">was to sit atop <strong><em>my very own</em></strong></span><span style="font-family: Georgia;"> racehorse and run proud, run free: </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>GALLOP!</em></strong>...<strong><em>FLY!</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Barbaro Flew.</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">And then he didn't.</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">And a little bit of a nation died with him.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">And no one will ever forget.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So, I wept. But not because of Barbaro, exactly,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I wept because of the Large-Heartedness of such a Gift!</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">And how many will benefit from it.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">and...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Because, having told no one, I fell, too. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">So, this was <em> personal. As every one of</em></span><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">you feel personal.</span></em><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">And so exactly, perfectly touching my Heart,</span></em><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">the way Squirrel does from his portrait on the wall, </span></em><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">the way every eCard, email, phone message, get well card,</span></em><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">every prayer, and every star wrap me up and tell me</span></em><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">to keep on fighting, that I am not alone even though </span></em><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">...it just feels that way a lot. </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Because I am afraid to share.</span></em></strong><br />
<br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Whether it's temporary and treatable</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">or degenerative remains to be seen, but I've begun </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">experiencing </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">temporary partial to full paralysis events. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Not just falling.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">It's new. There's not a top sheet on my bed because when</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I woke up paralyzed at 1 a.m. just to get up and go to</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">the bathroom I wasn't wearing my riding gear so POI got</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">me into a gown and the First Responders, who could not</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">fit a gurney into the bedroom, simply ripped off the top</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">sheet, wrapped me up in it like a mummy, and off we hurled</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">back to the hospital. "Flaccid Paralysis" (possible electrical</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">nerve conduction thingy) </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">and more new, fun stuff.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"> "Secret Agent" POI & I have entered</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">an even more distant Galaxy we never noticed flickering</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">in the broad expanse of the Night Sky...</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Barbaro fell with such courage.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span><br />
You<span style="font-family: Georgia;"> MOD who made this completely unexpected, generous gift -</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">and <strong><em>every single one of you</em></strong> MODS who have sent cards, prayers, </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">thoughts of love,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">phone calls, emails, ecards, given <strong><em>so generously</em></strong> to the Guinea Pig Sanctuary </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">that </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">they now enjoy warmth, coziness, fun, soft homes of their own here.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">~*~</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">... all my near and dear ones</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">in India and stateside...and now Barbaro:</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Courage.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Barbaro!</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Fearlessly this horse galloped with full-hearted</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">determination to win...</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">until he couldn't run any more.</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></em></strong> ~*~</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Thank you for making a generous donation</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">to the Barbaro Fund in my honor.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Now you have given meaning to this illness for it is</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">going to help other animals. But you've also raised</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">the bar for the kind of courage I require.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I can't give up now, for love of a racehorse.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Thank you for this donation. And thank you on behalf</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">of those who cannot but whinny, stamp their feet with glee,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">ask for an apple or lump of sugar...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Thank you for taking time to think, to reflect, and truly</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">introspect about what kind of Gift would make me </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">happy. Every card, every prayer received has come</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">with so much attention to detail, so much love.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">There is a saying: "God hears the cry of an ant before</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">the trumpet of an elephant."</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"> We endure amongst giants: guinea pigs who struggled</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">to live when - upon entering the Sanctuary dying, had</span><span style="font-family: Georgia;"> been given up on. </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">They not </span><span style="font-family: Georgia;">only lived, they <strong><em>forgave</em></strong>, survived, thrived,</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">they loved. And love. </span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">Thank you.</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">I always wanted to ride "Black Beauty." Didn't expect her</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;">to be a wheelchair. Perhaps I will have to rename her:</span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<span style="font-family: Georgia;"><strong><em>Barbaro!</em></strong></span></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;"></span></em></strong> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia;">Thank you.</span></em></strong></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
</div>
</div>
Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-16333092122360821242013-09-20T17:56:00.001-07:002013-09-20T18:02:15.566-07:00FRIENDSHIP<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">FRIENDSHIP...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Yesterday was one of those days.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">We all have them. The ones that</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">make you come home and wonder,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">"God, did you <strong><em>NOT GET MY MEMO?"</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Because we all have a plan.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">And life is supposed to follow that plan.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">But it never does, does it?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">So, yesterday slayed me.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">POI brought me home and we wearily </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">went to the mailbox and inside was a key,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">a package had been sent.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">An unexpected package arrived on one of</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">those days when what you really hope is</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">inside is a <strong><em>good friend into whose </em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">embrace you can just sob until her</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">sleeve is soaked with your tears,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">the kind of friend who would</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">never even notice. I needed THAT</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">KIND OF FRIEND to come out of</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><strong><em>the surprise box...</em></strong>because it was </span><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">just one of those days.</span></em><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span></em><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I placed the package in a special place,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">too upset to open it because on <em>those days</em></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">when our capacity for joy is in short supply,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I prefer waiting so I can enjoy opening</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">surprise packages. We slept.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Not really.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">The next morning all I wanted to do was</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">play with the guinea pigs. So we did lots</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">of treats and snacks, and Squirrel,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">God Bless <strong><em>that PIG! He gets happy</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">over any small thing, just being</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">skritchy-scratched got him </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">popcorning ALL OVER HISSELF!</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">He's such a happy pig that in Bellingham,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I had a large color photograph of him</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">on the wall because you couldn't look</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">at it without bursting out laughing,</span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">SQUIRREL and that HAIR OF HIS,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">his attitude that Life is for Popcorning</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">and Being Happy and yet I gave the</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">photograph away to a dear neighbor,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">one with five girl piggies of her own,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">because she and her kids had been</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><strong><em>so incredibly kind to us...</em></strong>if you remember</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">a few springs back the photographs of the </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">little boy with Down Syndrome sitting</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">in their habitats with watermelon and</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">pigs on his lap, a beautifully-ribboned</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">box of cupcakes nearby, piggies just</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">giving that boy a smile that went on forever,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">remember that? So, my favorite and only</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">framed photograph of Squirrel was our</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">"Good-Bye" and thank you gift to them.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I opened the box.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><strong><em>READY?</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">INSIDE...before the wrapping paper,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">before the ribbons, before the card,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I knew...</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">not exactly but enough to start</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">crying because I knew SOMETHING...</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">A DEAR FRIEND, the kind of friend </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">whose embrace you could fall into and</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">cry your heart out on and she would</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">never complain how wet you got her </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">sleeves or shoulder...</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">HAD COMMISSIONED AN ARTIST</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">TO CREATE A PORTRAIT OF SQUIRREL</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">AND IT WAS FROM THE EXACT SAME</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">PHOTOGRAPH I HAD GIVEN</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">(and later missed terribly) TO OUR</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">WONDERFUL NEIGHBORS AND </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">THEIR FIVE PIGGIES THE NIGHT</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">BEFORE LEAVING HOME...</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><strong><em>My friend, a MOD, </em></strong>an iconic MOD,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">one with whom I have never even spoken</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">to on the phone, actually contacted an</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">artist and commissioned a portrait of</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Squirrel which you see above...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">and...it hangs on the wall while</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Squirrel and the boys gather</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">for their next round of snacks,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">and I realized...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">God <strong><em>did </em></strong>get my memo.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I cried.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Tears of...well, how it feels</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">to open a box and have your friend</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">come out and fall into her embrace</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">and...</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">This is the portrait of Squirrel she commissioned.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">The artist sent a note that she really enjoyed </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">doing this portrait and the blog...who would've </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">thought? Guinea pigs. Barn Owls.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Friendship.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Thank you...<strong><em>we are so happy,</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">we feel so loved,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">we don't feel sad anymore,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">and we will never feel alone.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Thank you...</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">(POI doesn't have a computer and often</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">asks, exasperated: "What are you<strong><em> doing</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">on that thing? You don't really</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">know those people...why do you</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">spend so much time with them?")</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">This morning when I opened the box,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I said to him: "This is from </span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">one of <em><strong>those people!</strong>"</em></span><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span></em><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">And you know what? I think he <strong>finally gets it!</strong></span></em><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Thank you.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Thank you,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">it's so beautiful...how DID YOU KNOW?</span></em></strong><br />
<em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"><strong>(((MODS)))</strong></span></em><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">love you...good tears. Happy tears.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">~*~</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-3863004495655066852013-09-17T11:09:00.001-07:002013-09-17T11:09:23.069-07:00PIGGIES<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oNsQsqG1z6w/UjiaRdX1EjI/AAAAAAAAgNo/DGLR2ol9H-E/s1600/Squirrel%2BPortraits%2BSeattle%2B20131.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" height="400" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-oNsQsqG1z6w/UjiaRdX1EjI/AAAAAAAAgNo/DGLR2ol9H-E/s400/Squirrel%2BPortraits%2BSeattle%2B20131.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">"If I spent enough time</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">with the tiniest creature -</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">even a caterpillar -</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I would never have to</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">prepare a sermon.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">So full of God </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">is every creature."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">~ Meister Eckhart</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: purple; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">~*~</span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-83411708995491656972013-09-17T09:24:00.001-07:002013-09-17T10:59:17.586-07:00 PRAYER...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iequDJ1Pc9o/Ujh2p3VHbbI/AAAAAAAAgNA/NjA1-PDKQqM/s1600/Squirrel%2BPortraits%2BSeattle%2B2013.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" height="250" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-iequDJ1Pc9o/Ujh2p3VHbbI/AAAAAAAAgNA/NjA1-PDKQqM/s400/Squirrel%2BPortraits%2BSeattle%2B2013.jpg" width="400" /></a> </div>
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<span style="background-color: purple; color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">"He prayeth best, who loveth </span><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">best</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">All things both great and small;</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">For the dear God who loveth us,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">He made and loveth all."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">~Samuel Taylor Coleridge</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Dear Near and Dear Ones,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Thank you for loving <strong><em>us</em></strong>,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">one and all.</span><br />
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(if this poem is a repeat, i forgot; just really love it and<br />
Vinny-Guinea, left your pic out by accident, oops, Sorry!!!}<br />
<span style="color: magenta; font-family: Verdana, sans-serif;">~*~</span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-76618564461131355812013-09-16T15:24:00.002-07:002013-09-17T10:57:10.143-07:00SUSTAINABILITY: A Different Definition...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-P2cnx80HNN8/UjdrnZBfeWI/AAAAAAAAgMw/fCDaIZK-CXM/s1600/IMAG0289-1-1%2B%25281%2529.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" height="377" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-P2cnx80HNN8/UjdrnZBfeWI/AAAAAAAAgMw/fCDaIZK-CXM/s640/IMAG0289-1-1%2B%25281%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a> </div>
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{Drawing during Migraine.}<br />
<br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><strong>SUSTAINABILITY </strong>always meant a species could not survive if its ecosystem was destroyed, so we needed to create sustainability to enable that threatened species to not only survive, but thrive.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And it was always someone, something <strong><em>else, </em></strong>a prairie, wetland, arctic tundra, and all wildlife who depended upon that ecosystem for survival. That was my life's work. Giving "Voice" to those who could not speak on behalf of themselves.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And the work is more important now than ever, particularly with the exploitation of the Arctic now that climate change is melting the polar ice caps and countries are clamoring for earth's riches: <strong>OIL.</strong> Who will save the baby belugas?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Today, my new physical therapist arrived for her first assessment.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">And <strong>"sustainability" applied <em>to me.</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I have been asked by all care workers now coming for </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">"In-Home Assessments" what my goals are: </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Simple: to live independently,</span><span style="font-size: large;"> to walk...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> Is that asking too much? </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It may be. The temporary, partial paralysis I have been adapting to in my lower body is spreading to my upper body. My speech is becoming slurred. We now use the floor for a bed whereas we never had to before. We now do not get up whereas <em>before </em>we always did. POI & me, we always got back up.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I always responded to physical therapy whereas now...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I may not. After this morning's assessment. It was different.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This may <strong><em>not</em></strong> be only a G.I. issue, it may also be what so many doctors insisted before pissing me off to the point where I looked directly into their eyes, announcing with <strong><em>authority:</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> "This is absolutely<strong><em> not a neurological disease, why on EARTH would you jump ship now before we have ruled out things I DO have symptoms of, like </em></strong></span><strong><em><span style="font-size: large;">pancreatic cancer? Use common sense, this isn't ROCKET SCIENCE: I fall because I've gotten weak.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: large;">I am weak because my body hasn't absorbed nutrition from food for nearly a year. Who <u>wouldn't</u> fall? Not rocket science."</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: large;">(Inside: "I hate you and want another doctor who will think and say and do exactly what I want to hear: Give me that doctor.")</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The one who says I can safely pick up my guinea pigs without fear of falling or dropping one. Because now I am afraid to.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I want <strong><em>that doctor. For the guinea pigs. They need more love.</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">We will soon have that full G.I. workup. Nearly a year later</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">than I hoped, but have it we will! Thank you, "Transitions" Team!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I want to GIVE my AmeriCorps volunteer </span><span style="font-size: large;">hiker-girl the snowshoes she tried on last week. They aren't allowed to accept gifts...but who else can I bequeath a lifetime of really awesome gear to? </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Why isn't she <strong><em>my real daughter? I want a real daughter like her.</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">This week? Mandatory neuro consult; <em>another</em> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">stupid hoop to jump through.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Until this past weekend...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Falling isn't new. Not getting back up <em>is.</em></span><br />
<em><span style="font-size: large;">New.</span></em><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Slurred speech? </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><em>New.</em></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Slumping forward from <strong><em>sitting</em></strong> position to "Blackhawk Down!" </span><br />
<em><span style="font-size: large;">New.</span></em><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Lungs too weak to breathe properly; shallow, labored breath?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><em>New.</em></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Muscles behind the eyes not strong enough to hold them in place to focus, read, draw, see clearly?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Not <strong><em>brand </em></strong>new, exactly; </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><em>but new.</em></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The physical therapist after an initial eval which I thought went swimmingly announced that "This is not sustainable, you falling so much. This is not safe. Carry a phone with you at all times."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><em>new.</em></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Which I interpreted as "Oh GOODY! I get to shop online for a pair of hiking trousers with a cell phone pocket, <strong>FUN</strong>!"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">followed by...Or...uh-oh...how long will I be able to continue living here</span><span style="font-size: large;"> as "whatever is happening" happens <em>faster and faster?</em></span><br />
<em><span style="font-size: large;"></span></em><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Before we can trick out the apartment with grab bars resembling an indoor climbing gym; shoving XC skis, poles, snowshoes, speedskates, backpacks, tents, hiking boots, and gear into storage? </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Except all the grab bars in the world won't work without enough strength to grasp, hold, & pull up.</span><br />
<em><span style="font-size: large;">new.</span></em><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I called the Housing Authority early last week, <em>just in case, ya know, just in case, and asked: </em>"Hey, now this is <strong><em>totally a hypothetical question, seriously, HYPOTHETICAL, but...</em></strong>how long could I be out of my apartment oh...I dunno, let's just say - what if I had to live for a little while in a convalescent facility or something, <strong><em>H.Y.P.O.T.H.E.T.I.C.A.L.L.Y...HOW long could I do that before I would lose my apartment, how long could I be away before losing my home?</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Hypothetically, of course. He told me. I didn't like the answer.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">So I made up a different story. Didn't like that answer either.</span><br />
<em><span style="font-size: large;">new.</span></em><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Need one cup of Zen tea accompanied by <strong>deep, calming</strong> breaths.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Don't press "PUBLISH" and risk having a panic attack.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Or press "PUBLISH" not knowing how much longer </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I will have the luxury of writing. Then later regret </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">not having had the guts to press "PUBLISH."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Deeeeeeep breath...three, two, one, PRESS! </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">No panic. Pet guinea pigs. Meditate. Inhale. Exhale.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Good tea.</span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-18170159359331591472013-09-15T09:07:00.000-07:002013-09-15T09:17:36.791-07:00DREAM A LITTLE DREAM<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: large;">This Sunday morning I picked up my mail and</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">enclosed was a stunning, glossy, inviting catalog </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">of Adventure Trips to the "Arctic Kingdom"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">so I needed to get out of the building.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Since I cannot get out of the building, I went to </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">the roof. This is the first summer I am happy</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">to see leave us. Having the windows open to</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">the unending <strong><em>roar of a big city</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">was hell. Next spring, if feasible, I am </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">definitely moving to a flat, quieter place.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Close to nature.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">DREAMS...the Arctic...last night I began to </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">remember how it felt to be a wildlife photographer,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">how it felt to wake up in the morning knowing that</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">if God asked: "Good morning, Chana, today you</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">can do anything in the whole world that you want!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I will give you your heart's desire, what would you</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">like today?" The answer? I wanted to be a wildlife</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">photographer, an outdoor writer, an environmental</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">educator, an activist...and I <strong><em>was!!!</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Outdoor adventure, awesome people, sacred moments</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">communing with wildlife in Cathedrals carved by God,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">tallgrass prairies, marshes, swamps, mountain peaks who</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">beckon the soul like Towering Sentinels...and wildlife</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">who...if you learn to be quiet, not move, and just listen,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">whisper secrets and reveal Gorgeousness that was too</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">breathtaking to photograph. My best photographs </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">never got taken because I could not place a viewfinder</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">between myself and them in those Holy Moments, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">which - if I can learn to scan Kodachrome into digital</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">images, I hope to share...the most indelible memories</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">live on in my heart & soul, not Kodachrome.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Did I want to adventure in the Arctic?</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">It made me need to sit on the roof.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Life has been the most extraordinary Gift bringing</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">friendships, adventure, solitude, introspection...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Communion.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">There is nothing to regret.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The question now is how to accept the "unlived life"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"> finding out within the next few weeks whether a </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">diagnosis and treatment mean it will be lived.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The hospital is going to admit me, thanks to the</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Transitions to Hospice Team. And the AmeriCorps</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Volunteer who comes to visit...she could be my</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">daughter...a cowgirl from Montana she is an avid</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">hiker and we went up to the roof while I showed </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">her how to strap on snowshoes, what gear she needed,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">and how to learn about avalanche danger for</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">safe, wintering, unforgettable </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Adventures in our </span><span style="font-size: large;">North Cascades.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">For hours we sat on the roof and talked only</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">of Mountain Adventure and horseback riding.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">The day after that was the first day I didn't wake up</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">at 5:30 a.m. crying. Because Life woke up instead.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Then the brochure arrived about the Arctic.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Beluga whales actually have facial expressions</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">and if you dunk your head into the water (if you </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">can stand to) they are curious and will come</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">up to you and they will smile.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">I always wanted to smile at a Beluga Whale.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Who wouldn't?</span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-41355059244906460652013-09-14T08:42:00.001-07:002013-09-14T10:23:05.950-07:00 Squirrel Opens Shop!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Please see my expertise on Mom in</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">the blog post below.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Available by appointment only.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">"Have Wheatgrass, Will Travel"</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Mom: "No you won't."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Squirrel: "Oops, O.K. Bring wheatgrass <b><i>here!</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">if you want to be as gorgeous as mom in the</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">blogpost below."</span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;">Mom: "Oh...no...no...not good, <i>not good...</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>Stop HERE...read no more...you've been</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>warned. We assume no liability, none."</i></span><br />
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i><br /></i></span>
<span style="font-family: Georgia, Times New Roman, serif; font-size: large;"><i>help.</i></span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-70543849390642927742013-09-14T08:22:00.000-07:002013-09-14T08:46:46.822-07:00<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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{Hair Courtesy of "Squirrel's Coiffure"}<br />
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Disgusted with me sleeping on his pillow,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Chai gives me a bath, licking me clean.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Cuz, after all, it is <strong><em>his pillow!</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">The post below (explaining <em>why</em>) was written on 9/11,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">after looking out the window to flags flying at half-mast.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">My posts are becoming "stream of consciousness"</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">rambles and not narratives because the experiences</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">we are living I have no vocabulary for,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">save than to just write from the Heart</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">knowing you all love enough to forgive</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">the ramblin' life Within.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Thank You & God Bless.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Your prayers <strong><em>are making a difference!</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">For that what thanks can be offered </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">than to share, and keep you in my life?</span></em></strong></div>
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-57248850014475672722013-09-11T19:13:00.002-07:002013-09-14T09:20:39.725-07:00BLACKHAWK DOWN: Confessions of A Dirty Shirt<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="font-size: large;">Hey y'all, it got hot today, yeah, we didn't escape the record-breaking "last gasp of summer" and are roasting in Seattle.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">My shirt hasn't been washed in a month. I use it for a napkin. Who has energy to go get one? All the meals I've had are wiped on it. It resembles a Jackson Pollock painting...a volunteer may come Friday to help. I've never been this filthy before, outside of backpacking trips...and even then we could always find high country lakes to splash about in...i really stink but am too weak to shower or bathe and the place hasn't been retrofitted with grab bars and stuff yet. I'm disgusting. Laundry room is way down in the parking garage. For the entire building, three old washers, two dryers, none of them accessible. Guinea pig cages are cleaner. (And always will be, if we have to make a choice with precious little energy.)</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">There's no photos with this post, just felt like rambling about tiny things...little losses and amusements, the cultural vocabulary POI and I are developing...he's a Veteran of the U.S. Military, so whenever i fall down in the apartment and he hears a </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Ka-<b><i>LUMP! it's usually followed by a puny: </i></b></span><b style="font-size: x-large;"><i>"Blackhawk Down."</i></b><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">(In reference to the 1993, tragedy in Mogadishu, Somalia, in which 2 Blackhawk helicopters were shot down...) POI and I watch lots of documentaries and military films together because he explains, too often first-person, the nuances and subtleties sacrificed by our Service men and women: those who served and those serving now...his co-worker pitches for the "Wounded Warriors" softball team and is the only amputee on the team who made his own prosthetic leg. They received a standing ovation after playing First Responders of Boston following the Boston Marathon Bombing once children amputees joined them on the field at historic Fenway Park...it was amazing - and he <b><i>totally </i></b>had the coolest leg out there! We are so proud of him. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">It's still 9/11, isn't it? Are we at war in Syria yet? I checked "The Daily Show" from last night, but am afraid of The Nightly News. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Thing is: this is such a great country! I just have problems knowing that some of the men and women sleeping beneath the roaring Interstate <b><i>are wounded warriors...do not, <u>have not</u> received the care they deserve and are entitled to...yes, POI reminds me how fortunate I am to have an apartment, but it isn't a home until THEY HAVE HOMES, TOO! Food doesn't taste good when <u>they</u> are hungry two blocks away. It's agonizing, falling through gaping cracks in our severely flawed medical system living in housing not conforming to the "Americans With Disabilities Act" or "Fair Housing" laws but by the Grace of God, at least i HAVE HOUSING AND FOOD!</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span><span style="font-size: large;"><i style="font-weight: bold;">POI told me to quit calling my doctor "Barbie." </i>He's a very respectful person. He's a better person than <i>I am. </i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><i>(Would it be wrong just to say "I have Tourettes Syndrome and don't mean every snarky thing that comes out of my mouth...and, yes, I can tell by the expression on your face <b>I DID SAY THAT OUT LOUD, DIDN'T I?") </b></i></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">So many have no doctors at all. So many too proud to admit they need help. So many who served and are serving, both here and overseas...our flags at half mast, our country still at war, wounded warriors walk invisibly amongst us, unrecognized for their valor.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">POI just walked in so now it's safe to get out of bed and cash in frequent flyer miles for a flight to the bathroom...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span><span style="font-size: large;">Outside flags still fly half-mast and as sad as I feel at 5 a.m. every morning when I wake up realizing <i>"This is NOT A DREAM? For REAL?"</i> I feel sadder for our veterans. POI makes legs for them.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Their stories put my situation into perspective. A very <b><i>different</i></b> perspective. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Every time I fall and eek out "Blackhawk Down," POI wakes up and picks me up or at least gets me comfortable on the floor until we can get me back into bed: How many <b><i>never</i></b> get picked up? Have no beds? What happened to <strong>LEAVE NO MAN BEHIND?</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">Our warriors are proud. They served and serve with dignity and courage; they <b><i>and their families, our families</i></b> sacrifice lives to preserve freedoms we take for granted.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
<span style="font-size: large;">It's still 9/11: America, "<b><i>BLACKHAWK DOWN!" Please...</i></b></span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i>pick us up. </i></b></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">{Update - since this writing, "Blackhawk Down" events are increasingly becoming "sheltering in place" events. We were taught by the Transitions to Hospice Team how to get cozy with the floor. TRANSITIONS folks are indescribably </span><span style="font-size: large;"><strong><em>AMAZING! </em></strong> Moving from "Blackhawk Down" moments which end up getting lovingly tucked back into bed to "Sheltering-in-Place" events in which the floor <strong><em>becomes the bed </em></strong>are details, such tiny losses, yet - taken together - represent a gradual disintegration of life that comes out easier in tears, cannot be spoken of, requiring so much vulnerability to reveal, explaining why I write, re-write, remove, delete, even replace posts like a real <strong><em>Whack! Because this <u>IS</u> WHACK!</em></strong> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">Such intense vulnerability frightens me initially until it becomes part of the warp-and-woof of life and we pay no mind.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;">But, it's a <em>process. </em>Thank you <em>sincerely</em>, readers all, for your profound forbearance...}</span><span style="font-size: large;"> </span><br />
<span style="font-size: large;"><b><i><br /></i></b></span> </div>
Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-6774810578657641872013-09-11T09:18:00.000-07:002013-09-11T10:49:48.208-07:00EPHEMERA: Early Morning<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"You cannot simultaneously</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">prevent and prepare for war."</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">~ Albert Einstein</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Which begs the question:</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"How to simultaneously prevent</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">and prepare for death?"</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QKrZf-YQ7rY/UjCLYo6tICI/AAAAAAAAgKk/nH61yYWi9yI/s1600/DSC01290.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QKrZf-YQ7rY/UjCLYo6tICI/AAAAAAAAgKk/nH61yYWi9yI/s400/DSC01290.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue; font-size: x-large;">The Hebrew Wall hanging is</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">from "Song of Solomon" 6:3,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">and translates:</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"I am my Beloved's and</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">my Beloved is mine."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">My POI (Person of Interest)</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">gifted it to me nearly</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">20 years ago. It isn't up</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">because we are observing</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">the Jewish High Holy Days</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">because I am not observant;</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">if anything, more of a Sufi...</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">It is up because the </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><strong><em>whole thing</em></strong> is just so damn </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">breathtakingly beautiful!</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JkNKgOBmQ8U/UjCLZVmAyvI/AAAAAAAAgKs/w6aKiQ04Tqs/s1600/DSC01293.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-JkNKgOBmQ8U/UjCLZVmAyvI/AAAAAAAAgKs/w6aKiQ04Tqs/s400/DSC01293.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Seattle wakes up to predicted </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">record-breaking high temperatures,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Summer's final "Farewell!"</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Fortunately, the breeze from</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Elliott Bay spares us the swelter</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">and no piggies will need wrapping</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">up in cool, moist towels today.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">We see flags flying at half-mast.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Yes, it is 9/11. Again.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">It always will be now.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Nothing can take it back and we</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">have been inexorably changed,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">each in our own ways.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">For me, its ensuing wars are </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">taking another casualty: health care.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Budget cuts diverted to military ops</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">overseas and here in America</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"> prevent my </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">receiving health care. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">I </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">returned to Seattle unaware just how much </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">had changed since last living here. </span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">BUDGET CUTS!</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">We live amongst Bill Gates, Microsoft,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">AMAZON, Boeing...some of the world's</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">wealthiest! A block away, people sleep</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">beneath the freeway. I am fortunate to</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">even have a home...Just not healthcare.</span><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fw5e4LBDutI/UjCLZlvxvSI/AAAAAAAAgK4/Z9LeCzy-yLU/s1600/DSC01283.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-fw5e4LBDutI/UjCLZlvxvSI/AAAAAAAAgK4/Z9LeCzy-yLU/s400/DSC01283.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">So, Seattle wakes up, that's Century Link</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Stadium to the left from my window,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">yes, we can actually see <strong><em>into it down to the </em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><strong><em>field</em></strong> while the roar of the crowd during</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Sounders soccer games and Seattle Seahawks</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">games celebrate with marching bands,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">cannons that explode with each point scored,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">accompanied by fireworks and cheers that</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">would pierce the silence of what is not </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">a sanctuary here, because there never <strong><em><u>IS</u></em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><em>Blessed Silence</em> </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">inside the apartment amidst</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">the bustle of downtown Seattle. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Silence <em>only</em> inside what St. Teresa of Avila calls </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"The Interior Castle." (Within, during meditation, prayer, contemplative introspection.)</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">She guides:</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"Let us leave it to the Lord. (For He knows us</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">better than we do ourselves. And true humility</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">is content with what is received.)"</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">~ from Saint Teresa of Avila</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">translated by Mirabai Starr</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Ephemera...questions...how does one keep hope</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">alive while preparing for a "Do It Yourself"</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">end of life? Not a fast one. A slow one.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"Why can't you <strong><em>DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT?"</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU ASKS...</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Because, for whatever reasons, over 20 doctors</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">at 4 hospitals have botched things up into a muddle and Medicare will not cover inpatient</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">care without a diagnosis and I am too sick to</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">endure some of the most important, necessary</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">diagnostic procedures as an outpatient.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">It's that simple. And emergency rooms, First</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Responders...ephemera...no longer work.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">No diagnosis, no treatment. No treatment,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">then it's in the Hands of the Beloved, is it not?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"I am my Beloved's,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">and my Beloved is mine."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">So, I comb, snuggle, and cuddle guinea pigs </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">with a </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">DO NOT RESUSCITATE sign hanging</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">on the bedroom door. There is nothing to </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">resuscitate. I am slowly starving due to</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">as-yet-and-maybe-never undiagnosed</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">G.I. and Neurological illnesses...</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">details, details.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Transitions to Hospice Care workers</span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">ARE ABSOLUTELY AWESOME, Y'ALL!</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">THEY ARE FUNDED SOLELY THROUGH</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">DONATIONS, their services free, and they</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">are doggedly trying to get the hospital to </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">admit, diagnose, treat, or at the <u>very least,</u></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">provide Palliative Care. The Fire Department</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">has a key to my door because we seem to have</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">a lot of fires...my dear, precious 95-year-old</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">neighbor loves to cook. She AMAZES! Every single day she dresses to the nines, and goes</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">out on town with her walker: astonishing!</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: red; font-size: x-large;">INSPIRING!</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Errrr...but the <u>cooking part...?</u></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Not so good given she is going blind.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Further, we <strong><em>also have</em></strong> residing amongst</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">us a serial "fire-alarm" puller!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Yes, living amongst seniors is an</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">enlightening experience. My neighbors</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">here are <strong><em>extraordinary</em></strong>, though, and</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">take care of one another, strangers</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">in the beginning, yet they will "adopt"</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">each other and voluntarily find meaning</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">in caregiving...it's quite touching.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">They all clamor to help me. But I do</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">not know them very well, yet, how much</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">do I ask, what is reasonable to expect?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">You have all asked me to have a positive</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">attitude and be hopeful.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">I am doing my best. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">It is difficult to simultaneously hope for </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">a bright, beautiful future while preparing</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">for death. Sometimes funny things happen.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">And I will try to write about them.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Sometimes hopes get dashed. And I do </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">not want to write about that. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">But one thing that has never ceased is a</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Parade of Unending Miracles: a few months</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">ago The Times of India published a letter I</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">wrote thanking the editor for all I received</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">reading and writing on their Speaking Tree</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">(Spirituality) Pages...so many Indians,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">people I may never meet, will never know,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">all began praying, doing whatever religious</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">rituals exist to heal those they love, the</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">outpouring was a Tsunami that actually</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">stopped all the pain that was keeping me</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">from eating! All the pain VANISHED.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">And, to this day, it has <strong><em>never</em></strong> but once</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">or twice been severe!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Last month, my POI, </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><strong>(P</strong>erson <strong>o</strong>f <strong>I</strong>nterest/Soulmate/Caregiver who</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"> has <strong><em>forbidden me to use</em></strong> his name, identity, or any photos of him: righteously exclaiming: </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"I DO NOT WANT A CYBER FOOTPRINT!") </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">heh-heh, yeah, right...so... </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"O.K. lang" </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">(Tagalog for "fine!!!")</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"> </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"><strong><em>Anyway, POI</em></strong> was</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">losing control of the walker on our <strong><em>VERY</em></strong> steep sidewalk before we got a wheelchair and instead</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">of rolling down into the middle of the street during</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">rush hour traffic (or all the way down into Elliott Bay, depending...) a delivery van immediately appeared <strong><em><u>OUT OF NOWHERE</u></em></strong>, the driver leapt</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">out of the cab faster than superman could spin in his telephone booth from Clark Kent into his cape, and grabbed the walker, helping POI safely navigate it into the building! We thanked him profusely and this is what he replied:</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"That's what I am here for."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Delivery man? Or Angel?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"That's what I am here for."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">We bought a wheelchair so the angels don't </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">have to work quite so hard, but they still do.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Yesterday, a gift came in the mail from a </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">friend I have never met. It was "loveful."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">I just burst into tears, sitting in my wheelchair,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">uncontrollably sobbing at how beautiful, how</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">generous, how kind, how full of Grace Life is.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">And in those tears, the Fight I have been losing...</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">fighting for basic human rights which are allegedly guaranteed by law yet not guaranteed by bureaucrats...I stopped. Fighting. The anger I felt about the injustice of it all melted in her loveful gesture, in her generosity, then a <strong><em>flood of tears remembering ALL OF YOUR LOVE, ALL OF YOUR PRAYERS, ALL OF YOUR GENEROSITY</em></strong> and the anger, indignation, humiliation, the desire to retaliate against those bullying, those making the choice to deny medical treatment because Medicare pays so little...the fight melted. I texted POI "Should I let go?"</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">POI texted back "Yes, you'll feel lighter."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">I do feel lighter. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Hope is in the hands of my Beloved.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">(God.)</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">I cannot read His Mind.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">(Nor would I want to, what with everything</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">happening in the world, There by The Grace of God go we.)</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Life <strong><em>is</em></strong> Loveful.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">~*~</span><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-5628880121180709172013-09-07T13:08:00.000-07:002013-09-09T14:11:58.243-07:00THEY RESCUE ME!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Today, it is the Little Ones who are saving <strong><em>me!</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Even Brave Chai with his brain tumor remains</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">on my pillow, while Squirrel cozies under</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">the blanket...</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">You wonder why I haven't told you about this? </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I never thought it would happen. We always expected</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">to get well, so why say anything? We moved to </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Seattle with Hope on a Wing & a Prayer.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">THAT we still have.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Now you know the truth.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">And from your comments below, you are not</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">abandoning us: so I have to resort to the roll</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">of Bounty paper towels because you still love me.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Do you know how much you all mean to me?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Ask the roll of Bounty Paper Towels...the tears</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">it holds speak of how much you all mean to me.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Dear Friends in India, I PREM YOU LIKE CRAZY!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Dear MODS: "Who <strong><em>lurves ya, baby?"</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Dear Friends in Iraq, Pakistan, Andorra, Russia, Latvia,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Australia, Great Britain, Germany, Scandinavia, Israel,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">and the many numerous countries my STATS</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">say you are reading this from...I do not know all</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">of your languages so let's speak in the one</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">language we <strong><em>do all know: Thank you,</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I love you. Your prayers have taken the</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">heaviness of pain from me, they have!</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">You friends in India know that.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Friends in America, please know that.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Friends all over the world whose names</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">and faces are inscribed indelibly upon</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">my heart in your own language,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">please know that...there by the Grace of God Go We.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">The doctors have, after nearly one year, done nothing.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Next week will decide, for my window is narrowing rapidly.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">But, for the first time, I am experiencing your Love and </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Inner Peace comforted at home with my little ones.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">L'Shana Tova, here's to a Sweet New Year!</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">love & gratitude,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Pranams Infinite,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">chana&family</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"Gone out...</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Bisy Backson."</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">~*~</span></em></strong><br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-71177123653642236892013-09-06T06:09:00.000-07:002013-09-06T06:20:48.957-07:00DYING TO THE BEAT OF A DIFFERENT DRUMMER...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">{Photo taken by the Wee-est Kestra,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Experience Music Project Museum</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Recording Studio, April, 2013}</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Hiya Everybody,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">My name is Chana Meddin. I have been told I have a </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"sick & twisted" sense of Humor! Seriously?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">And I'm dying.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">With my beloved cat, Chai.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">He has a brain tumor.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">We aren't sure yet what I am dying of, </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">unless it's my sick and twisted sense of humor!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">SO! DISCLAIMER:</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Those of you near and dear ones who are offended</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">that I am going to die with my sick & twisted humor</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">firmly intact, PLEASE LET THIS BE THE LAST</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">POST YOU READ: I LOVE YOU, DEATH ISN'T</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">EASY, AND I UNDERSTAND MANY PEOPLE</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">JUST DON'T LIKE IT. <strong><em>Hey, I don't!</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">But this is my blog and I'm not going down without</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">a fighting good laugh about it, so please do not</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">read me any more if you find it too painful.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I understand and love you and am grateful</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">you are my friend. It's O.K.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Honest!</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">That said, it's my death and I'll do what I want to!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Which is to have the best party possible, the most</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">fun, as many laughs as we can squeeze out of my</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">crazy life, and I'll cue you when you may need</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">a hanky. (I use a roll of Bounty super-absorbent</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">paper towels myself, but this is not and endorsement.)</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I am a drummer and when Kestra and the Wee Kestras visited</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">me this year for my birthday, we rocked & rolled at what was</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">formerly known as "The Jimi Hendrix Museum," now known</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">as "The Experience Music Project" Or, for us locals: "EMP."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Days later, we all took a ferry to Bainbridge Island and enjoyed a birthday </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">afternoon I will never forget. Throughout the day, </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Wee-est Kestra announced: "I smell horses." Cracked us <strong><em>UP!</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">So, Kestra and you two (not quite so) Wee Kestras:</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">THANK YOU! I HAD THE TIME OF MY LIFE!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">So, here's the deal. Lots of crazy shit is going down.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">It's surreal, but some of it is <strong><em>so absolutely ridiculous</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">(and tragic, yes, but ridiculous) that it's just funny!</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">This won't be no morbid party, y'all!</span></em><br />
<em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span></em><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">My dear friend and Tai Chi teacher, R. is my </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"official Death Doula."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">A doula is a nonmedical person who assists a woman</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">before, during, and after childbirth. I have hired him,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">without pay, to assist me before and during dying</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">because he makes me laugh and laughter is the</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">best medicine. The guinea pigs help, too!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Just so's ya know, I have finally been guided via a sloth</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">bear (remind me to tell you that story, too, I just have</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">limited energy so blogs may be shorter) to a pre-Hospice</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"Transitions" program and the women in it are </span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">kicking some medical ass to get me treated humanely!</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Love kicking medical ass. They'll also be providing the</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">support that my Person-of-Interest <strong><em>(NO PICURES,</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"><strong><em>NO NAME: </em></strong>"I don't want to leave a cyber-footprint!!!)</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">of 22 + years require for me to die "at home" -</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">(the place I live in Seattle now, for which the word "home" </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">is a </span><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">bit of a stretch, but it is what it is)...I will stay here with</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">the piggies, dying Chai the Brave Bengal Cat, and our other</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">cat. We lived in Bellingham and <strong><em>HAD THE TIMES OF</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">OUR LIVES, CHAI AND I DID! WITH THE PIGGIES.</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">After my traumatic brain injury a few years ago Chai had</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">to come back to live with my POI (person of interest) so</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">now we are all re-united together, all of us:</span><br />
<strong><span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">And it is GOOD.</span></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">The possibility always exists that I could get well.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Right now, many loved ones are keeping HOPE alive</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">and well in their hearts for us. I don't have a helluva</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">lot of it, but am happy for those who do.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Anyway, the whole journey is new, surreal, tragic, funny,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">uncomfortable, and feels like a dream. When I wake up</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">in the morning only to realize that I am in Seattle, I usually</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">try to wait until after I've had a little instant, watered-down,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">filthy disgusting Starbucks Via instant coffee before I cry.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">My stomach hurts too much to drink lattes anymore.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">I'm not sure whether I'm crying because I can't drink lattes</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">or because...oh bloody HORK: <strong><em>INSTANT COFFEE IN SEATTLE?! WHAT AN INSULT!</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Anyway, remember that Fleetwood Mac song from their</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">hit album "Rumors" (I think?) </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">"You Make Loving Fun"?</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">Well, my Death Doula makes dying fun, he really cracks me up.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">SO! If you think death isn't a laughing matter, </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">READ NO MORE, <strong><em>PLEASE!!!</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Because I deserve to laugh. And this is my blog and I'll laugh if I want to. And I want to.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">You are invited to step off the train at <strong><em>this station</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">with hugs, kisses, and gratitude for having</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">been part of this Wonderful Life.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Or...you can read the posts that I hope to have the strength to write, because funny things do</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">happen. And these are what I choose to share</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">and these are how I lived such a wonderful </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">life and humor is how I choose a wonderful...</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">ya know! Like I said, there's always room</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">for a Miracle! Hope remains!</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Meanwhile, me and my cat, we be dying.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">All together, with the ones I love and who love us.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">With the <strong><em>EXTRAORDINARY support of the</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"Transitions" team. It's gonna be a jolly good</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">show because it's been a JOLLY GREAT LIFE!</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">And I got to record a DVD with the Wee Kestras</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">back in April! Thank you, Kestra! Thank you,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Wee Kestras!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Thank you <strong><em>all! I love you. You make living wonderful. And, in my heart, you are helping</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">me through this transition with love, gratitude, peace, and my sick & twisted sense of humor.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Remember "Winnie the Pooh" and that famous</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">sign Christopher Robin used to put up when he</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">left home to go Wandering through</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">The Hundred Acre Wood:</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">"Gon out.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Backson.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">Bisy. Backson."</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-size: x-large;">C.R.</span></em></strong><br />
<br />
...going out. See ya soon!<br />
love,<br />
chana<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-82331034671602752712013-09-03T18:13:00.000-07:002013-09-03T18:13:30.302-07:00PETER-PEANUT<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">It's Peter-Peanut doin' what Peter-Peanut does best!</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">(Can you figure out what it is? We haven't...</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-size: large;">We just loves it.)</span><br />
<br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-76605225688134024952013-08-31T13:11:00.000-07:002013-08-31T13:15:46.232-07:00LITTLE BEAUTIFULS...<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;"><br /><br />"But ask the animals and they will teach you..."<br />
Job 12:7</span><br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GkSEmnvO4zo/UiJJ6lhSCiI/AAAAAAAAgAU/kCjwLgN_gOM/s1600/DSC00881.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-GkSEmnvO4zo/UiJJ6lhSCiI/AAAAAAAAgAU/kCjwLgN_gOM/s400/DSC00881.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">Squirrel...the newest "Little Buddha"</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">on finding Joy ineffable in the </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">simplest gestures of kindness...</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OK6M9zMrnBA/UiJJ7B8ymfI/AAAAAAAAgAc/CLoizZpbqH4/s1600/DSC00885.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-OK6M9zMrnBA/UiJJ7B8ymfI/AAAAAAAAgAc/CLoizZpbqH4/s400/DSC00885.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">Squirrel knows things aren't going well...</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">all the Little Buddhas do. They want</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">to cheer me up, so we have</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">"cuddle time" together on my bed.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6dsxCs7A4YI/UiJJ7tw51KI/AAAAAAAAgAo/PNvRJ2Tf8XA/s1600/DSC00893.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-6dsxCs7A4YI/UiJJ7tw51KI/AAAAAAAAgAo/PNvRJ2Tf8XA/s400/DSC00893.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">After a particularly difficult day,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Squirrel did one thing, one thing</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">that might seem tiny to many,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">yet was monumental to me...He</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">came to my open palm at one</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">point and placed his paw right</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">into the middle of it, as if</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">holding my hand to say,<br />"Everything is going to be</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">all right, mom. We love you."</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">He placed his tiny paw on mine...</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iJG98SzGdCs/UiJJ8ANNMhI/AAAAAAAAgA0/Lhl50zEQzhQ/s1600/DSC00917.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-iJG98SzGdCs/UiJJ8ANNMhI/AAAAAAAAgA0/Lhl50zEQzhQ/s400/DSC00917.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">And, in that moment,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">everything <strong><em>was better</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">than O.K. it was</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Beautiful!</span></em></strong><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x9AL-a4ArvI/UiJJ8jbAT-I/AAAAAAAAgBA/xaqxLGLA25Q/s1600/DSC00957.JPG"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-x9AL-a4ArvI/UiJJ8jbAT-I/AAAAAAAAgBA/xaqxLGLA25Q/s400/DSC00957.JPG" /></a> </div>
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<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">Then he stretched himself out on my</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">pillow atop one of the many fleece pads</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">which you (know who you are) Gifted the </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Guinea Pig Sanctuary, and he stayed </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">with me, soothing and comforting me.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tuKYgOT_RD0/UiJJ8xgA9wI/AAAAAAAAgBM/6iNY5GTPBRA/s1600/IMAG0322-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tuKYgOT_RD0/UiJJ8xgA9wI/AAAAAAAAgBM/6iNY5GTPBRA/s400/IMAG0322-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: blue; font-family: Georgia, "Times New Roman", serif; font-size: large;">Because these are not hiking boots,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">snowshoes, cross-country skis,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">speedskates; they are my Nordic</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">hiking Poles, they are not any of</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">the things I am accustomed to...</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">two days ago a wheelchair came </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">and not to rent, but to remain.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">And they know I am...not quite</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">O.K. with it. So they comfort me</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">in tiny ways which, my friends,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">are not tiny at all. </span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;"></span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Here in our home, the meek <strong><em>have</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">inherited my life, given it meaning,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">and bring me joy...they are too </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">precious to remain sad around,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">too funny for me to become morbid </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">around:</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">they do not allow thoughts of</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">anything but Wonder: that such</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">tiny creatures know so much,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">feel the pain I feel, never complain,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">ask for so little, yet<u> always</u> give their all!</span></em></strong><br />
<br />
<strong><em><span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">~*~</span></em></strong><br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">So many of you have supported the</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Guinea Pig Sanctuary throughout the years</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">and you have also <strong><em>sent </em></strong>me many gifts...</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">these humble acts may seem small to</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">you but please know that they are not</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">now, nor shall they ever be small to me!</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">I look around from bed and all I see are</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Gifts. And all I feel is Loved.</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">How can that ever be a small thing?</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">Thank you, my dear friends...</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">love,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">chana</span><br />
<br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">(P.S. At long last we finally have a medical team</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">doing their very best to diagnose then, hopefully,</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">treat whatever is causing my body to shut down.</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">We have struggled 10 months for this, so have</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">hope. At least we have their reassurance they</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">will leave no stone unturned. That is all we</span><br />
<span style="color: blue; font-family: Georgia; font-size: large;">have asked for. And We have Hope.)</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://picasa.google.com/blogger/" target="ext"><strong><em><img align="middle" alt="Posted by Picasa" border="0" src="http://photos1.blogger.com/pbp.gif" style="-moz-background-clip: initial; -moz-background-inline-policy: initial; -moz-background-origin: initial; background: transparent none repeat scroll 0% 50%; border: 0px none; padding: 0px;" /></em></strong></a></div>
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7455994314695399549.post-37705613525141135702013-08-19T19:27:00.000-07:002013-08-19T19:33:40.394-07:00WHADDA-WHADDA-WHADDA HAPPENED?!<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Hi Everybody! It's me, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Squirrel. Did you see me in</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">this month's Guinea Pig</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Magazine? If not, you <strong><em>should!</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">You should see me in EVERY</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><strong><em>issue, actually. I'm </em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">too modest to say more...</span></em></strong><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KsJf62t5hNc/UhLJzllZGXI/AAAAAAAAf2c/2T6riRtoVdA/s1600/IMAG0202-1%2B%25281%2529.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-KsJf62t5hNc/UhLJzllZGXI/AAAAAAAAf2c/2T6riRtoVdA/s400/IMAG0202-1%2B%25281%2529.jpg" /></a> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Just too adorable. </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">But, life in Seattle</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">is very different from anything</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">we could have possibly imagined.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E_aKBTZboT0/UhLJz_wg5qI/AAAAAAAAf2o/2Dj0W4zu4zA/s1600/IMAG1831-1-1-1-1-1-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-E_aKBTZboT0/UhLJz_wg5qI/AAAAAAAAf2o/2Dj0W4zu4zA/s400/IMAG1831-1-1-1-1-1-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">We live in Chinatown, actually</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">now called "The I.D." or</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">International District. Mom</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">spent lots of time here before</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">moving to Bellingham, taking</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">photographs for various small </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">newspapers which later got published </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"> in a book called </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">"Pacific Voices," </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">published through</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">U of Washington's Burke </span><span style="font-size: x-large;">Museum.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">(Shameless plug, we <strong><em>bad!)</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Studying martial arts</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">with Bruce Lee's first-ever student,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Jesse Glover, and playing in a</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Japanese Taiko performance group, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Chinatown once felt like a second home.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">But, see, that was before Bellingham...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Way before.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iEY3j1PlMjE/UhLJ0n7YFKI/AAAAAAAAf20/9hE-0fYh9FY/s1600/IMAG1802-2.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-iEY3j1PlMjE/UhLJ0n7YFKI/AAAAAAAAf20/9hE-0fYh9FY/s400/IMAG1802-2.jpg" /></a> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">We tried to make the best of it,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">truly we <strong><em>have! Exotic food shopping,</em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">just a walker (and STEEP HILL)</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">away, lots of yummy treats-for-all!</span></em></strong><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nV2RFjFgAmk/UhLJ1KE__lI/AAAAAAAAf3A/6DgY6H7c6WU/s1600/IMAG0031-1-1-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nV2RFjFgAmk/UhLJ1KE__lI/AAAAAAAAf3A/6DgY6H7c6WU/s400/IMAG0031-1-1-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
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<span style="font-size: x-large;">Eaten in bed...see, that is just</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">one part of the Big...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Homesickness.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rnbWWvTBBeg/UhLJ1rI8RqI/AAAAAAAAf3M/qMmfZ4P8LZM/s1600/IMAG0290-1-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-rnbWWvTBBeg/UhLJ1rI8RqI/AAAAAAAAf3M/qMmfZ4P8LZM/s400/IMAG0290-1-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
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<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Tried drawing. At least you don't</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">have to move around much to do <strong><em>that!</em></strong></span><br />
<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qcu_zbtj9no/UhLJ2Kh94zI/AAAAAAAAf3Y/3Tv6AaI2HJ0/s1600/IMAG0288-1-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qcu_zbtj9no/UhLJ2Kh94zI/AAAAAAAAf3Y/3Tv6AaI2HJ0/s400/IMAG0288-1-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
<br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">But here, things went from living</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">color in our Wilderness Town to</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Black & White...no one has</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">adjusted. Mom got sicker.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">And skinnier and skinnier.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">When our friend said, like from</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">the "personal columns"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"Well, you're HWP =</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Height-Weight-Proportional"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">and mom asked, </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"Soooo...if I hear this correctly,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">I was a <strong><em>heifer before getting sick?"</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Our friend is Asian. It wasn't his </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">fault that he didn't know what a </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">heifer was and said "Yeah!" </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">In his defense, he was just trying</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">to cheer her up. I shan't whisper</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">what happened next.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">O.K. I <strong><em>will: He KNOWS WHAT</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"><strong><em>A HEIFER IS NOW!!!</em></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">(it wasn't pretty.)</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BdflRsUtXNI/UhLJ2gHwzhI/AAAAAAAAf3k/5lybhBKiJfg/s1600/IMAG0295.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-BdflRsUtXNI/UhLJ2gHwzhI/AAAAAAAAf3k/5lybhBKiJfg/s400/IMAG0295.jpg" /></a> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Nothing beats radioactive </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"Creamy Vanilla Smoothies!"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">You couldn't do this in Bellingham</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">without getting an official note from</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">the hospital explaining the "radioactive</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">isotope part" because up there you</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">could be detected from all the Security</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Thingies they got during the 2010 </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Winter Olympics in Vancouver...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">And you'd glow green and they'd</span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">wonder why...and so you needed</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">a letter because the first time they</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">detected radioactive isotopes, it was </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">this </span></em></strong><strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">poor man driving and they all </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">pounced on him and couldn't </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">figure out where he was hiding</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">the "dangerous thing" and it</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">was really, really embarrassing...</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">NOT FOR THE MAN! But,</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">because his cat had just come </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">from chemotherapy at the vet</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">and really WAS RADIOCTIVE!</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">The "Security" faux pas made</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">national news...LOL! </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">They saw a "glowing green threat!"</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">It was a cat!</span></em></strong><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qLPGUO3PERk/UhLJ3C5Q_WI/AAAAAAAAf3w/8CYVtXymEcg/s1600/IMAG0301-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-qLPGUO3PERk/UhLJ3C5Q_WI/AAAAAAAAf3w/8CYVtXymEcg/s400/IMAG0301-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Practicing hand gestures from</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">the "Learn to Bollywood"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">dance DVD, yeah, gonna</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">get this one <strong><em>DOWN,</em></strong> baby!</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Get it <strong><em>DOWN!</em></strong></span><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QoGwDLU1e_Q/UhLJ3h-8gHI/AAAAAAAAf38/6VZn4PWA1qI/s1600/IMAG1865-1-1-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-QoGwDLU1e_Q/UhLJ3h-8gHI/AAAAAAAAf38/6VZn4PWA1qI/s400/IMAG1865-1-1-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">But not dancing...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">just being quiet.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p5wfjX3xLac/UhLJ4TWjOPI/AAAAAAAAf4M/Yhh2UQN2Tdk/s1600/IMAG1856-1-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p5wfjX3xLac/UhLJ4TWjOPI/AAAAAAAAf4M/Yhh2UQN2Tdk/s400/IMAG1856-1-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Homesick.</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EA9lh-aDI2Y/UhLJ5X-eEbI/AAAAAAAAf4Y/ILLvvMSAT4M/s1600/IMAG0287-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EA9lh-aDI2Y/UhLJ5X-eEbI/AAAAAAAAf4Y/ILLvvMSAT4M/s400/IMAG0287-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
<div style="margin: 0px auto 10px; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Dreaming of being a "Whale</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Rider" like in this drawing</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">from when we were still</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">living in Bellingham...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">and felt "rooted" and life</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">was full of Wonder and</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">Mystery, inspired by such</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">a wild, wonderful landscape</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">of wilderness from Mt. Baker</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">to the San Juan Islands.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">We just isn't "city people"</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">...or...</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"City Pigs."</span><br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ae63_FgkeSM/UhLJ5-CpbSI/AAAAAAAAf4g/yoO7I-zvLII/s1600/IMAG0127-1-1-1-1.jpg"><img alt="" border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-ae63_FgkeSM/UhLJ5-CpbSI/AAAAAAAAf4g/yoO7I-zvLII/s400/IMAG0127-1-1-1-1.jpg" /></a> </div>
<div style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: x-large;">So it's my job to bring joy and</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">make a smile come out like</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">the sun. It's all our jobs, us piggies,</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">and we are doing our very best.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;"></span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">But we would be lying to say we</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">aren't <strong><em>all homesick. </em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">(At least ain't got no heifers livin'</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">here no more: LOL!!!)</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">OH! WE DISCOVERED THAT</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">VINNY-GUINEA CAN CHIRP </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">LIKE A BIRD!</span></em></strong><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">It's rare in guinea pigs, but Taj Mahal</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">used to do it when we watched </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">"Molly the Owl" over the Internet </span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">all the time, the other night after we</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">got our habitats switched so's we could</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">all touch noses and nuzzle, mom woke</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">up and had to turn on the light since we</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">got no birds living in here and Vinny just</span><br />
<span style="font-size: x-large;">grinned! Life is still <strong><em>beautiful, and </em></strong></span><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">full of wonder, surprises, with more to </span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;">come! We love you all.</span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<strong><em><span style="font-size: x-large;"></span></em></strong><br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
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Chana Meddinhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10300515972811499457noreply@blogger.com4