IS IT ART YET?

Mom found this nifty drafting table at a local thrift shop and brought it home to create our first-ever "Guinea Pig Nation" art studio! We are known in elite art circles as "The 3 Creative Cavies" so she indulged us. Kind of like "The Three Tenors" but Renaissance guinea pigs, see?

Shortly thereafter, YumYum bit her (he was after Bear but her hand got in the way) and the wound not only became severely infected, but there appears to be nerve damage. She still has difficulty writing by hand and drawing is quite painful.

But, she quickly healed and the hand surgeon deemed her well enough to begin physical therapy. Yeah!

Shortly thereafter, Bear the BeaverPig bit her (he was after YumYum but her hand got in the way) and the wound was in exactly the same place as the first one. (Friends have suggested wearing oven mitts or simply keeping the two apart: DUH.)

Again, mom healed quickly and, barring any unforseen catastrophes like being caught in a meteor shower, she is finally ready to begin physical therapy and start drawing with us again! We can hardly wait to start chewing on our own masterpieces and tear them to shreds...like the monks from Tibet did when they were here. They spent an entire week creating a stunning mandala out of sand, only to erase it once it was complete to demonstrate the Impermanence of Life. That is how we justify eating mom's art: We teach her The Guinea Pig Way, Detachment, and then we give the "What, me?!" look. Works every time!

"THE GUINEA PIG WAY" OF PEACE

When mom first adopted me, I was a mess! My fur was long, matted, and smelly. I was terrified and so traumatized from whatever happened before my adoption that I spent the entire first night without even moving once in my cage. Mom gave me 24 hours to be frozen, then it was time to begin the thawing process. The first step was Trust. Was being touched going to hurt me again, or...

Mom let me show her what I needed to feel safe and loved, especially while being held. She let me teach her "The Guinea Pig Way" and I became her Sifu! Now that she has learned so much from me, the other piggies got it easy!

But, today, I remembered (as did mom) it wasn't always so. She didn't know if I would bite her. I didn't know if she would bite me. We've come a long way together, and now YumYum and Bear, the Beaver Pig, are the beneficiaries of what mom and I have learned from one another about Second Chances at Love.

It's All Good: Starting a new life with a loving family is what mom initially gave us, not realizing at the time that - in the end- we have given her the loving family she never had either! Win-Win, eh?

This is why she encouraged me to start and maintain this blog: to share to power of love squared by Guinea Pigs! It's "The Guinea Pig Way."

YUM-YUM GIVING RAVES TO EDWIN

Yum-Yum taught Edwin how to hold him in the grey flannel blanket and pet him and make him purr and pop, even while being held! Edwin, in turn, shared the "SOCHI IN 2014" pins given to him by the Russian friends he made at the Olympics
in Vancouver. YumYum asked if he could eat them, or at least chew on them. When Edwin said no, YumYum found them
unimpressive and said so. Edwin wore them anyway but gave YumYum organic baby peppers, red, yellow, and green to make up for the Sochi pins' inedibility. And that made everybody happy because Edwin gave us some, too!
WWWWWHHHHHeeeeeeeeeeeeeaaaaaaaaaaaaKKKKKKKKK! Sochi GO!

TO LOVE...

"To love is to be loved forever."
         -Sant Rajinder Singh

Bear finds simple joy this morning
in a warm, soft blanket and gentle
embrace. (Cold outside!)

Lap time is part of our daily
ritual. We love being petted and
held by mom and her friends.

And we love being affectionate.

HAPPY! WHEEEEeeeeeeeK!

SNOW PREDICTED?!

YouTube - Here Comes The Sun - George Harrison

Yesterday we basked in the warm spring sun and mom even left the deck door open so we could see the birds at the feeder while they sang and told us stories about flying! How great is that for guinea pigs?

Today mom told us a snow alert has been issued and that we all need to bundle up tonight.

What's up with that?

So, we bring George to give us sanity in an insane world.

We miss you, gh! You were loved by guinea pigs, too.

ANN GIVES THE FUNNIEST PRESENTS!

We love Ann! She and Sir Dom, the Italian Greyhound, came to visit us
recently and we hope they return soon! Ann's a hoot and gave mom the
blue shirt about guinea pig zombies along with lots of loot that makes us
laugh.

A few days ago, the two of them formed a pact to help each other improve the
challenges they both face living with incurable, chronic, debilitating illnesses. Ann lives in Seattle, so we got to hear their phone conversation and the first area they chose to improve in their lives is "sleep hygiene" so they made careful plans then said they'd get back to one another with a
progress report.

Mom likes to start getting us ready for bed by 7 p.m. (lots of work, we are!) and then be in bed by 9 p.m. to read spiritual books, meditate, then sleep as peacefully as possible.

YumYum and Bear don't know what got into me because it's a known fact that I am the best behaved pig in the herd, not to mention the most erudite, literary, humble...

Yeah, so, back to the story. As recently posted, mom thought I should get a haircut for spring. And last night she was in a good mood, letting me run around the house while she cleaned my cage. She never does that because she's always afraid I'll run under the trundle bed and she won't be able to get me back out. Last time
I did that it took her over two hours because she's afraid of moving the trundle for fear of hurting me (I know just where to hide to keep her from finding and capturing me.)

My bad: ran under the trundle bed and on her second night of "Sleep Hygiene" practice with Ann, mom didn't get to bed until 2 a.m. All because of PandaTheGeniusPig's "JUST SAY NO TO HAIRCUTS" campaign.

Today Mom wore Ann's blue "guinea pig zombies" t-shirt and gave me quite a haircut, trimmed my toenails, then naively asked me never, never to do that AGAIN!

"O.K. PandaPig? Please? Promise?" I just gave her my sweetest guinea pig smile...(heh, heh, heh)

"And what do you expect me to tell Ann?" she asked. "PandaPig, I think YOU should tell her!" Yeah, whatever.

One thing is for sure. Given the opportunity, I'm going to run as fast as my little piggie feet will take me right back to that bed.

Ann, looks like you're gonna win the "Sleep Hygiene" part of your little plan. Happy to help.

PANDA PROUD. PANDA OUT!

WE'RE GOOD LITTLE ZOMBIES!

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!"