OBOE, OUR FRIEND NEXT DOOR!

Gentle Readers,
We would be remiss not to introduce you to one of the most special neighbors in our world: Oboe (aka "Meowl" or "Arctic Fox" and other meaningful names too numerous to mention.) She is am's cat and since am is mom's art/spiritual friend, that makes
Oboe OUR art/spiritual friend! When am calls mom and leaves messages, (this is true) Oboe says hello by making a sound like "Chana" (mom's name) or "Hello" and she seems to know to whom her mom is speaking. It's a laugh-riot!

Oboe has many moods and can be mystical, zen-like, meditative, playful, artistic, but mainly she is her mom's muse, best friend, and always-companion. She helps am with everything from playing the piano to working on her computer keyboard to gardening. And she has her very own special paisley pillow, just like we have our own secret hidey-holes or, in Bear's case, he has a "platform" upon which he enjoys lounging: a box covered with thick fleece covered by flannel to cushion his "soft parts." We all enjoy our own, unique special places and we think, from this photograph, that Oboe's "special place" is in the arms of her beloved mom, am.

We love Oboe and know you will, too! This is She!

BEAR PLAYS "I SPY"

I SPY WITH MY LITTLE PIG'S EYE

RAYS OF LIGHT

PASSING THROUGH THE SKY:

THEY SHINE ON ME

THEY SHINE ON YOU

WE BASK IN SUNSHINE

WE THREE AND MOM, TOO!
-Bear's first Poem composed upon his special "platform."

TIME FOR A SPRING 'DO

Mom announced at breakfast this morning, "Well, my little PandaPig, it's about time for you to get a haircut, don't you think?"

I didn't think, just snatched the organic romaine lettuce out of her hand and ran into my house, eating it while pondering
A New Look. Actually, I'm not a lover of being frequently groomed, which a long Peruvian coif does require. And when my hair is shorter I can feel mom and her friends petting me more comfortably since their gentle fingers don't get stuck in my "rasta fur."

O.K. I guess it's getting in my way, too. So, dear readers, you may soon see a new, stunningly handsome edition of PandaPig, ready to inhale Spring, feeling the promise of New Life emerging as days grow longer and temps grow warm enough for us to enjoy the fresh marsh air! Like this morning, deck door open, red-winged blackbirds scurrying about the suet cakes, and the scent of blooming trees wafting through the air, into the condo, through our cages...yes, maybe it is time to throw off the old and invite in the New! Maybe I will say yes.

(Plus, mom has learned the SECRET of giving me good haircuts: FEEDING ME MY FAVORITE DELICACIES, SNUGGLING ME SOUNDLY INTO HER LAP, AND TRIMMING MY HAIR SO GENTLY I DON'T EVEN FEEL IT BECAUSE I AM SAVORING THE YUMMIEST FLAVORS OF EDIBLE SPRING.)

When I next emerge, you will be see a lighter, happier pig; and on our next Runabout I will pop madly across the kitchen floor, joyous in the Unbearable Lightness of SPRING PANDA EMERGING!

PANDA OUT! LOVE TO YOU ALL, DEAR READERS!

NO LONGER WINTER, NOT YET SPRING

POPCORNING PIGGIE-STYLE!

Believe it or not, this is a photograph of Yum-Yum running top-speed around the big, blue chair with glee, popcorning and jumping in between sprints. He requested we show this photograph to demonstrate his athletic prowess and kung-fu lightning reflexes. Even mom's camera couldn't capture his speed! If you wonder what "popcorning" is, when guinea pigs are beyond happiness and become overly-ecstatic with joy, our little bodies cannot contain it and we begin "flying" in the air (seriously) often with all four of our tiny feet leaving the ground! Then, upon landing, we abruptly change directions, running as fast as our tiny toes will take us until "popping" again. It's the funniest thing in the world for humans to watch.  Mom laughs so hard that even she rolls over, giggling uncontrollably! No other animal in the animal kingdom popcorns like us!

Many cavy-owner newbies think we are having seizures since we may also roll over on our sides, kick out our legs (with glee) then roll back into a full sprint, flying into the air, dropping down as abruptly as we popped, and sprint, roll, or simply run so fast not even the camera can capture the action. Since we resemble little kernels of corn in a corn-popper, this mystical ecstasy was given the moniker: popcorning, popping, etc.

In reality, we are having a mystical experience and are out of our speedy little bodies, our spirits soaring through spiritual realms while our bodies try their best to keep up. Which, of course, they cannot.

So, new piggie owners, this is a GOOD THING, and it means you have the happiest possible piggie at that moment!  And if someone asks you, "Does your pig pop?" we hope you say, like mom, "OH, YEAH!"

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LINDA!

February 28th was mom's friend, Linda's birthday! Linda is the artist in San Francisco who first introduced mom to book and paper arts through the magical, hand-crafted cards, books, and gifts she has created and given to mom over the decades! Recently, Linda's art transcended style into an entirely new dimension of personal expression: mom was the beneficiary of a heartbreakingly beautiful collage which we will feature once a studio is set up to photograph art. Mom cried the first time she laid eyes on it, she was so deeply moved.

We guinea pigs make art everyday, especially YumYum, who rearranges his cage continually, changing it's shape, the placement of his toys, and moving things about to customize his play area. It's not a book, but it does express the story of his life! And how valuable PLAY is to him!

Meantime, we don't know what an ESPRESSO BOOK MACHINE is, but Village Books in Fairhaven now has one.

So, to celebrate Linda the book artist's birthday, we honor her with this ESPRESSO BOOK MACHINE and hope she can tell us what it does because...

We like espresso but are not allowed to drink it.

And we love books but are not allowed to eat them or chew off the pages.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, LINDA! We wish you a new year full of creative, artistic inspiration drawing you whimsically into New, Unexplored PlacesWithin, inspiring you to express your visions in exciting, imaginative, unexpected ways! Isn't that what birthdays are for?!

WE BID GOODBYE TO OLYMPICS

Video | Neil Young performs | NBC Olympics

Mom waved Edwin off at the bus station this morning, a bus full of Olympic fans traveling back South of the border; each with their own special memories. Clad in Canadian hockey jerseys, accents from all over the world, the travelers now include Edwin and his travels include us.

Long may you run!

BEAR THE BEAVER PIG

Bear bonded with Edwin during the Olympic traveler's stops at the Guinea Pig Hilton.  He loved cuddling up in Edwin's lap and just stretching out before telling Edwin what it is like to live with his two "little brothers," YumYum and me.

He also instructed Edwin in the fine art of vegetarian delicacies preferred by the Herd that Hears and Edwin complied.

Now we are all spoiled: WheeeK:happy!

PANDA OFFERS THANKS

thank you, am, for inspiring a new way to see everyday beauty with wonder,
an artist's eye
and encouraging me to write poetry
love,
PandaPig

I SPY WITH A LITTLE PIG'S EYE

i spy with a little pig's eye
spring sculptures reaching
with wings toward the sky.

I SPY WITH A LITTLE PIG'S EYE

i spy with a little pig's eye
color just floating
like wood ducks
nearby

MY LITTLE PIG'S EYE

i spy with a little pig's eye
dreams dance like cloud beams
across a blue sky