SPCA Update

Stopped in yesterday to drop donation to SPCA. Asked about the Crystal/Sugar thing blogged here. Actually, just below. Crystal and Sugar are not the same dog. Just two remarkably similar critters. But there are still many dogs left from Hurricane Katrina, and many orphans locally, and sooooo many cats.

For God's sake, spay your girlies and fix your boyos! It's unconscionable to let them breed. Irresponsible and cruel. Definitely shows a lack of intelligence. Such a simple, one-time thing prevents generations of misery.

Absolutely infuriates me.

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Little Pond

Remember Us?

Update: It's worse than I thought: Lots of pets are still waiting for reunion with owners or new homes. The SPCA needs our help so much now. Go to their site and click on the middle button to see all the sad, little storm orphans. Or don't, because if you can't help, it may ruin your day, week, or more.

Do you remember little Crystal? She was one of the rescues from Hurricane Katrina and was featured in this blog here. Well, the SPCA is featuring a remarkable lookalike in our own Elmira Star-Gazette, but with a different name. I think she's the same dog, but now is called Sugar, which is a more appropriate name for a sweet Southern belle.

Point is, I'm a little, no a lot, saddened that this poor baby still has no home. See, Elmira, New York is totally glutted with pit bulls, and some have given them a bad rap. Look the only breeder I know is not a pro, and frankly, spoils the little darlings into being sweethearts. And the mixed pits I find around here are lovely, well-socialized critters. Ellie and I were "attacked" once by a local pit named Simba, and the only problem I had was all the slobber.

I know, I know: we should adopt her ourselves, if we feel this way. Only, WE don't. I do. Can't have her. Three cats, a hedgehog, a fish and, of course, the HuggaMutt are more than we need.

Here's hoping a local reader will love her as I do and adopt the baby. Meantime, I donate cash and supplies and pray for St. Francis to send an angel to take her.

Before you move on, check out Five on Friday. It's all about forcing the liquids, so appropriate for the cold and flu season.
Me?1) decaf coffee, with creamer--bought anywhere, hot, few calories; 2) druthers--hot cocoa 3) decaf iced tea--no lemon, no sugar 4) nasty sweet drink in Spain called horchata 5) bottled

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Little Pond
(Star-Gazette photo taken by Jeff Richards)

Witnessing an Execution

If you've ever seen your cat playing with a doomed mouse, then you've witnessed the Hugh Hewitt interview with Joel Stein. It made me cringe for Stein, forever stained by a stupid column.

As an editor myself (admittedly not for the paper), I became angry at Stein's editor for not sending up a flag to the poor man. As a newspaper employee, however, I understand the feeling the editor must have had: "BONANZA!!!" It is what sells. Creates cancellations, too, but the initial splash will fade in memory.

One can only hope that Stein will eventually be able to recover from the awful mess he created.

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Little Pond

I'd Rather be Blogging

But the pondscum's getting obvious. HuggaMutt returned to Da Glow yesterday, and left a wake of destruction and despair. Will I ever get it clean?

The sun's brightly reflecting off yesterday's dusting of hoarfrost! Pretty!

So naturally the windows look filthy. Can't do much about that, but I can clear away the puppy-nose prints. The outdoor crud will have to wait until summer. For Mother's Day, I want the window-cleaners to visit.

Cheat, cheat, cheat. A quick dusting, light mopping, and spot-clean the carpet. Again. Wipe the puppy-snot and call it good.

After all, the three cats are tearing up the place while Ellie's away. Literally. Tearing. It. Up.

Oh well, everythings all new and sparkly at the MS Companion, thanks to my Blogsister Karen. Come visit.

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Little Pond

Those Left Behind

I've spotted few references to the anniversary of Roe v. Wade. One notable: LaShawn Barber's post. Additionally the Little Pond lies amid mostly pro-abortion ground. It was not always so.

My first adult membership in a church was in Annapolis. St. Mary's was a generous, welcoming community. The ProLife Committee was full of chatty, fun, and human individuals. VeggieGirl was named for one of their nicest members. Indeed one of the loveliest persons I've ever met. St. Mary's is always in my heart.

This anniversary recalls the pain I felt for the girls who came to Birthright in Annapolis. Still do, always will. It prevented me from continuing in that important work. Instead I direct my prayers for their healing.

Abortion will not end in my lifetime. But there should always be someone, somewhere praying for the desperate women in those most unfortunate circumstances. Perhaps they think abortion will end their pain. It won't, and may become the beginning of nightmares and regret.

Guess I'll just be that person, praying for them. That they will find peace. And compassionate aid.

If an unplanned pregancy is tearing you apart, call Birthright. If you've lost your child to abortion and are still hurting, please contact Project Rachel. They can help.

And someone who cares is praying for you. Always. I promise.

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Little Pond

Midwinter Doldrums

Not much happening in the Little Pond. Beginning to feel the itch to redecorate. Too bad I haven't the energy. Bubba has clawed the living daylights out of my wallpaper, and I need to make repairs to the bath surround. Repairs! I really want to replace it, but we have neither the cash nor the energy for the teardown-putup job.

The whole place is dark and stuffy this time of year. But look what my Blogsister sent me! I sent a photo from my WalkElmira winter shots. I fear, however, that someone from International Falls, or Watertown, NY, or some such will surely top my pic with a truly snowy horror. Can't help but think about becoming a "snowbird" when I contemplate the lovely weather in Scottsdale, though.

What a crybaby! We just had two lovely days where the temps soared up to 50 degrees F, and here I am complaining. They say rain or rainy-mix tomorrow, and that'll teach me...

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Little Pond

Will Rome Do the Right Thing?

Thank God for our hardworking, holy priests. The Catholic church needs them all. The Little Pond will continue to feature links such as this, to create a bank of stories that I hope will have happy endings.

Meantime, I've been tagged by my Blogsister Karen at The View:

Four Jobs I've Had in My Life:
Bartender - Teacher - Soda Bottling Line Worker - Computer Technician/programmer

Four Movies I Could Watch Over and Over, and Have:
Princess Bride - Labyrinthe - Rocky Horror Picture Show, West Side Story

Four Places I Have Lived:
Worcester, MA - Arlington, VA - Annapolis, MD - Elmira, NY

Four TV Shows I Love to Watch:
What Not to Wear - South Park - NBC Nightly News - Storm Stories on the Weather Channel

Four Places I Have Been on Vacation:
St. Thomas, VI - Watkins Glen, NY - Quebec, QC - Fontana Village, NC

Four Web Sites I Visit Daily:
SISU - Indepundit - Winds of Change - LILEKS

Four Favorite Foods:
Guacamole - Subgum Chow Mein - Quiznos Veggie Sub - Chocolate

Four Places I Would Rather Be Right Now:
St. Thomas - Kennebunkport, ME - Alicante, Spain - Bermuda

Four People I Am Tagging With This Meme:
Sissy Willis - Darlene - Shelley at Burning Bird - Jenny at Prodigal Path

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Little Pond

Midwinter in the Little Pond

Take a walk to the MS Companion to see Ellie. Her face, anyway.

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Little Pond

Midwinter at Burning Bird

...is not so different from ours in Upstate. It's the musings that make it memorable.

Poetic prose and perfect pics here. Amazing as ever.

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Little Pond

Can we play? Should we?

Patches is very interested in our newest family member. Kiwi is not the least cowed. Actually we had a lovely evening, Kiwi and the cats, while I slowly introduced a very jealous HuggaMutt to the hedgehog.

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Little Pond

Tiny is quite a bit better,

According to my Everloving Blogmother, Sissy. Thank heavens, because I worried constantly about the little purrball. The update is here, and we can all rest a little more easily now.

So, naturally it's time for Five on Friday. This one's a puzzler for me, because I rarely imagine myself as evil, but I am willing to give it a try:

--I wouldn't have a name, not a public one. Unnamed evil is sooooo much scarier. I'd wait for my enemies to name me.
--Wouldn't waste my time with an alias, either. If I'm all-powerful, I may as well go full-time, nights and weekends.
--My powers would all be defensive, but with a force field that could be turned against an aggressor.
--Why? Just plain sick of the status quo. Little people with little problems, little minds making big splashes. I'm a huge ego that simply wants everyone's attention.
--That's my downfall: I'm a huge ego that want's everyone's attention. Pride always goeth before a fall.

Your turn.

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Little Pond

A prayer to St. Francis

for my Blogmother's cat Tiny, please. What a terrible thing not to know what's next! Please pay a visit and send her some Commenter's Comfort. We are watching and praying (to St. Francis, patron of pets, of course) for a full recovery.

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Little Pond

Free World Imperialism!

I am sick to death of the argument between doves and hawks over Iraq.

We are an Empire. We are Imperialists. Not only do I not argue this, I am personally glad we are. Democracy is good, it works, and those who may be unready for it still need our help to win it. More is better.

Yes, war kills people. But war is not only a necessary evil, it is an art. A very difficult art that must be pursued with the greatest caution, with respect not only for the lives of those involved but also for their profession. The professionals are called warriors: they do their job at our behest and many take great pride in being the best. They return to war when their wounds have healed, because, well, that is what they do.

Don't get me wrong. My heart absolutely aches for those accidental "warriors" and their families. They did not know that they could possibly go to war? That they could possibly die? How did it happen that we have raised a huge lot of people who do not know that soldiers go to war? My prayers are with them, since their mistake is very likely to be not only fatal, but unutterably tragic. What could be more tragic than an accidental soldier's grieving spouse and children?

To the warriors, the real ones, and their families: Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. There are not thanks enough.

I believe in what you are doing, and I am glad you are fighting the tyranny of theocratic terrorism. Fanatical Islamicists have no business running nations and ruining the lives of millions of innocents. Murderous despots should be brought down, and Free World Imperialists should bring them down.

None of our business? Nonsense! If democracy isn't our business, it should be. Our wealth should be shared, not hoarded. Democracy, Freedom, Prosperity. We have them in abundance. It is our obligation to share them.

Imperialism? If so, then I am proud of it. Period.

Update: Damn! You've got to go here. More than enough said!

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Little Pond

Post Christmas Post

A surprise in church today: The Christmas season is over. If you are not Roman Catholic, the proper response is "Duh!" But cradle Catholics celebrate Christmas for weeks and weeks until Mardi Gras. The new liturgical word is that after the Baptism of Our Lord, on Monday this week, the Ordinary time will replace the rest of the octave of Christmas.

Guess the tree will have to come down, as will the lights, the manger, etc. Change is good. Right?

Another sign of change is what's happening in Afghanistan. The citizens are ready to move on. They want the signs of war out. Visit with Afghan Warrior to hear the latest. Is it too early to take down the anti-terror barricades? They think so. If the Afghanis feel ready, then let's find out.

Finally, winter in Upstate New York is changeable. Rather than a hard, frozen earth until Spring, we experience at least one thaw. Even after the worst freezes. Passing over the Walnut Street Bridge, I noticed the high, flowing Chemung was no longer ice. So I grabbed the HuggaMutt and initiated RiverFest2006. A real taste of January in the Southern Tier.

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Little Pond

A different point of view...

Our redesign has me hankering for more, so the Multiple Sclerosis Companion gets it next. It's all about color. There are fewer photos on the MSC, so the background is more important. Fired an email to Blogsister Karen of Scottsdale, sticking her with the earworm "It isn't Easy Being Green." But the redesign will be up to her; that's why we pay designers. This also has the delightful side-effect of producing something entirely different from what I may be mentally formulating. I am verbally oriented. Karen is visually oriented.

Analogously (Is that a real word? Should be.) my daily crossword caused musings about my friend GolferGirl. She's moving up the ranks in Sudoku. To me, that is just so much work; to her, it is bliss. She tells me that daily crosswords are so much work, and they get harder as the week progresses. And they surely do, but I'd never noticed. I am verbally oriented. GolferGirl is mathematical. Mentally, she's already quantified the crosswords. Fascinating.

My WalkElmira blogs show things, and they, to me, have stories. Those stories are more important than the photos of the things telling them. My Everloving Blogmother at Sisu dances the "Light Fantastic" in hers. Her artistic photos are all about Impressionism, leaving mine lightyears behind. Perhaps because of my job, I am into Realism. Sissy is Impressionistic.

I could go on and on. Already have. But DeeDee is shifting in my lap, begging for some lovings. And we are itching to head outdoors with the GrandDog, as she's visiting for a sunny (we hope) weekend, and will need to be walked.

Hope all your winters are sunny and bright, like ours (today, anyway!). My Blogmother says that blogging makes every day bright, and she's right.

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Little Pond

Back to the Mundane!

Five on Friday is submitted for your approval:

FYI (should you care):

1) I compose on a five-year-old Compac Presario with Windows ME.

2) Bought in Spring of 2001 from Radio Shack. The fellows there transferred all our information and files from the old machine to a virtual hard drive. Hangs up a lot now that we have MacAfee with firewall. We are so ready for a new one.

3) One in this house and one in Da Glow. (Does that one count?--We sometimes use it.)

4) Is there something else besides blogging?

5) Always, the next one being developed. Bells and whistles mean nothing to me. Speed is all.

My new-computer lust is piqued anew! How about you?

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Little Pond

Christmas draws to a close.

On the twelfth day of Christmas, we put away the Advent wreath. It was still lit and twinkling, all without flame and smoke. A minor miracle for those of us with respiratory illness.

Tomorrow is the feast of the Epiphany. The day-to-day reality sinks in. Gold, frankincense and myrrh: royalty, divinity, mortality. Not just for Jesus, but for all of us. And not just for us and our neighbors, but also for those we do not love.

We don't choose who is saved. But we will be satisfied beyond all imagining. God loves all mankind, without limit whatsoever. The Answer was given us in Christmas: God loves us and is with us.

What was the question?

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Little Pond

Happy New Year 2006

The mess that will soon be stowed for next year. Only the creche will remain until January 6, for the Feast of the Three Kings. Note DeeDee's glowing eyes on the kitty tower. And yes, the candles are still flickering on the table wreath.

All the best wishes for a healthful and happy year to my blogging friends and readers.

And hey, did you notice the redesign? Look for Karen of Scottsdale's button in the sidebar.

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Little Pond