By leelanau2010 ( October 26, 2008 at 2:32 pm) · Filed under Pets, cats, KD, Pooh
Today will be the last time I write about my cats KD and Pooh. A long time friend of the family has come forward and offered to adopt Pooh as a barn cat, KD on the other hand will likely find a different fate in the hands of my veterinarian. As you all know this has been a long time coming. About a month ago I reached the decision that the cats could no longer remain in this house. Nothing I had tried to fix their problems was successful and their issues were continuing to get worse as time went on. Couple that with the fact that since I moved in here, cats were not and were never supposed to be permitted in this condo. I’ve kept them in hopes that I could resolve their problems successfully and they could live here with me without destroying the place. That has not turned out to be the case and I must do the right thing and the most humane thing with each of them. Pooh will leave on Thursday to join 3 other cats, 2 calves (yes, baby cows) and a couple of dogs at Lucy’s farm here in Traverse City. With multiple families living on the farm and lots of kids, Pooh will be well taken care of, will have lots of food and attention, and will finally get to play outside which is something he has been dying to do since my former roommate introduced him to the outdoors against my wishes last year. I don’t yet know what KD’s fate will be but I will be consulting with my vet on Thursday to learn what my options are for her. She is sick again and while she is not losing weight, she is urinating everywhere. I suspect she has another bladder infection which I am told can be a chronic illness in cats and quite often an irreversible condition. Regardless of the outcomes for both, each cat has lived a long life. Jirar and I adopted them when we first began our relationship. KD was just a kitten under a year old and Pooh was about 3 years old. That makes them today about 9 and 12 years old which by many standards is old for a cats since most don’t live longer than 15 years to begin with. I’m sad to see them both go, they have been wonderful companions, lap cats, and guard cats. They are the first pets I obtained in my adult life and they certainly won’ t be the last to be sure. Anyhow, they will be missed.
I’ve not written much about the upcoming election lately on this blog. I’ve already stated my support for Obama. I’ve kept my mouth shut for a number of reasons but deep down you all know I’m a liberal with some libertarian streaks. I’ve been keeping up on some of the election coverage through a blog called Pam’s House Blend. Without question a partisan blog but she does a nice job of collecting information about current events and she covers the ‘gay’ angle well.
I’ve been watching in horror about the truly pathetic anger and violence that continues to erupt within the republican campaign. The McCain/Palin camp has truly inspired the wingnuts to crawl out from under their stones and then use those stones to hurt others. I’m posting below several links that I feel has reflected the tone of his campaign for the past several weeks and months and I’m doing so becuase I feel it is important to create as much distance as possible between rational thinking people and the lunatics on the right. WARNING: if you are a sensible republican (and there are a few left out there, don’t get me wrong) view these links with caution. You WILL question your party affiliation after you read about what your buddies are doing. These links are in many cases disturbing, racist, sexist and generally horrific tales of “red blooded republican Americans”. These people are sick. Read and view at your own risk. This is ripped right from Pam’s blog (credit where credit is due)
So, there you have it. Plenty of reasons why I will not associate with a party of bigots who have NO MORAL COMPUS. Say what you will about my own values and lifestyle but I will refuse to support or be a part of any party that allows or encourages this sort of behavior EVEN in the heat of an election. There is ABSOLUTLY no excuse for this sort of behavior and rhetoric in fucking 2008!
Alright then. I’ve settled on a new theme for my blog and at least for the time being I’m going to keep it. It’s a little simpler than the previous one and maybe a little easier to read now that it’s on a white background. I have added A TON of new links on the sidebars that you can feel free to check out. I’ll be adding lots more in the future as I continue to expand this blog to make it useful not just to keep up with what I’m doing but also to keep up with what is going on in the world etc. Now I’m off to bed, tomorrow brings another day of work, god I hope traffic starts to pick up a little bit…it’s going to be a LONG winter up here.
By leelanau2010 ( October 21, 2008 at 5:32 pm) · Filed under Hacks, themes
OK, my ADD is acting up again and I’m getting tired of this blog ‘theme’ that I have. I’m going to be playing around with new designs for a while tonight and will eventually settle on something new. Just warning you!
I’ve long been a fan of Sting even going back to his days in The Police (which was nearly before my time). I think he is an incredible writer, lyricist, and singer. On my lunch hour this past weekend I was listening to a program on public radio and was introduced to Eva Cassidy singing one of Sting’s greatest songs “Fields of Gold“. Just turn it up loud and close your eyes.
I hate people sometimes. Actually I hate people who make assumptions and judgments about you before you even open your mouth to say something. In sales, I’ve been trained not to make judgment calls about people based on their demeanor or appearance…or even their tone. Quite often, the dirtiest, most foul individual on the planet can be your most valued customer who spends the most money. Apparently those who work at the Cherryland Humane Society have never had training in how to deal with the public.
As you all know, the cats are done. It was an agonizing decision to make and certainly one that I did not want to make however nothing I have done to correct their problem behaviors has helped and I can no longer afford to continue letting them destroy this house. Whatever their issue is, it is too costly for me to fix and I must resolve this problem as quickly and efficiently as possible. In an attempt to do the right thing, I contacted the Cherryland Humane Society in Traverse City today to ask them what my options were for my cats. The immediate response I got on the phone was intimidating, condescending and really horribly inappropriate. As has been reported on the news, I understand that these folks have been inundated with pets since the economy went down the toilet. People can’t afford them, their shelters are overcrowded and there are a LOT more animals today that need homes than there were even just 6 months ago. That however is not my concern with this post. I was asked the ages of the cats and becuase I’m an honest person, I informed them that they were 8 and 10 years old. “Sorry can’t help you” was the response in short bitchy tones. Apparently the Humane Society is not in the business of helping people whose pets are older than 5 years old. They refused to consider them at all which tells me a lot about their primary focus (money). The conversation continued and at this point I felt I was being treated as some sort of criminal for having the audacity to even consider giving up my pets. Look, the issue is very simple here. I have 2 cats that must vacate this house immediately. There are 2 ways for this to happen. Way #1 involves adoption through an animal shelter or adoption agency like the Humane Society who IS IN THE BUSINESS of treating animals with respect and dignity. Way #2 involves leaving them in the woods somewhere. NEITHER of those ways involve the cats STAYING in this home! Now, do you really think as an animal lover and someone who has had pets all his life is going to choose way #2? I think not but that seems to be the only option anyone is willing to give me.
The humane society has made it perfectly clear that change can not and should not ever occur in a human’s life and circumstances could never possibly change. They are intent on making what is truly one of the most difficult decisions I’ve had to make in a LONG time that much more difficult and in the process they’ve managed to piss off a potential donor or contributor to their cause. There are very few non-profits out there that I would ever consider making a random donation to. I support the Humane Society’s mission but they’ve been removed from my list due to the lack of professionalism exhibited by their employees. YOU LOSE.
At the end of the conversation, I was given the name of AC Paws which is a pet adoption agency in Traverse City that works out of Pet Smart. I sent them an email tonight explaining my situation and asking for their help in placing these cats in a new home while clearly stating that they can not stay here. For now and until I able able to find some sort of support or help in this community, the cats will remain with me while I try to save up enough money to repair the damage they have already caused me both to my house and emotionally.
It’s too bad I am not yet able to afford my own house. I’m OK with cats fucking up my own house, I’m NOT OK with cats fucking up someone else’s; ESPECIALLY when I can not afford to successfully repair the damage. I’m off work tomorrow, likely will head out to Leelanau at some point. I’ve not been in the mood lately for much writing. I’ve been somewhat emotional I think due to the change in the weather. I’m just not ready for winter this year..I hate winter to begin with. I’m sure my mood will change soon.
Today I finally had a day off and while I spent most of it running errands with mom and dad, I was able to get out in the late afternoon for one last ride around Leelanau before things start to turn shitty up here for the winter. I’ve uploaded a bunch of new pictures to The Color Of Fall album on leelanauphotography.com so be sure to check them out. I had an interesting experience out walking around. I came upon a ruin that I had never previously seen before. Not far off the road there was an old wooden home that was hidden quite well. I walked right by it the first time. On the way back, I noticed a roof line and decided to check it out. Clearly it was unsafe so I didn’t venture inside, the walls were falling in, the floor was gone in many spots, there was graffiti on the walls and lots of broken glass. It would be interesting to know the history of the structure. It was obviously a home…but who did it belong to?
I was on public land under the control of the National Park Service so they’ve apparently decided to just let this home turn into dirt. Pretty neat really. I like ruins like this because it’s a glimpse into the past that you normally just don’t get to see up close. There are some great web sites out there about local ruins, one (which I can’t remember the name of right now) even goes into great detail about the Asylum in Traverse City when it was abandoned.
Tonight I’m going to relax and watch a movie. I recently acquired the first 5 Harry Potter films and I’m up to number 3 The Prisoner of Azkaban. Jirar never liked these sorts of films or at least he wouldn’t watch them with me so I’m revisiting them now several years after they have been out and I’m really enjoying them. I never read the books (although I am tempted to) but I would liken these films to the Star Wars Films that I grew up with as a kid. What I like about Harry Potter is that the story line is simple enough for a child but complex enough at the same time to capture an adults interest and keep it. I’ve always liked this sort of genre…the wizards and magic, and spells etc. The trouble with that genre is that it tends to be made up of really awful B movies with horrible actors and pathetic plots. Anyhow, if you’ve not seen these films, you really should rent them.
I took the picture below today and it’s in the leelanauphotography.com album. Look at the reflection of the clouds in the stream. Quite amazing that I’m able to capture that sort of thing with my camera.
By leelanau2010 ( October 15, 2008 at 8:47 pm) · Filed under Activism, Video, debate
I was going to watch the debate tonight but ended up turning it off. I’ve already made up my mind about who I am voting for, I didn’t feel like listening to these two go at each other. So, rather than being serious, how about you watch the clip below.
If you watch Family Guy on TV, you’ll understand what a Leafer is. It’s a little like a fudgie… pretty much a non-local who invades the area only during certain times of the year. My God there are a lot of people up here this weekend.
This is THE weekend to be in Northern Michigan. According to the news about 60-80% peak color right now and it’s going to be in the 70’s all weekend. Amazing that I happened to have this weekend off from work. I’ve uploaded a new album to leelanauphotography.com, LOTS of color tour pictures. I spent today out with Gavin hiking the Bay View Trail again. I did the longer hike this time, about 6 miles. I remembered to take the backpack today with water. Good thing I did too, it was freaking hot when we weren’t in the woods. I got some great pictures this year with my new camera. This is the first fall that I’ve had this camera and the thing has more than paid for itself. Now I just have to narrow down the choices of pictures to order for my new frames.
Gavin is exhausted again (which is good) and he’s snoring loudly on my bed right now. I’ve still got the cats as of this writing, as much as I hate saying it, their days are numbered at this point. I’ve made the decision to remove them from my house and have asked around at work if anyone wanted to adopt them…no takers yet. I would much rather find them a home than give them to the humane society. I know what will happen to them there, especially considering the recent news paper articles about the huge number of cats and dogs that have been left at local shelters due mainly to people not being able to afford to take care of them any more. I feel bad but again, while I treat them like family, they are pets not people. They are specifically bread to do what I want them to do and if they are unable to do it, they can’t live here.
We have another state that has now legalized gay marriage. Connecticut now joins Massachusetts and California as places I could go to get married legally if I actually were in a relationship. The anti-gay right wingers are foaming at the mouth over the ‘activist judges’, what they fail to see is that on EVERY court that has decided this, most of the majority opinion in each court were appointed by REPUBLICAN leaders. They are of course labeled as activist judges becuase the right doesn’t agree with the outcome. This is an area of politics that pisses me off. People don’t even realize what hypocrites they are being half the time. EVERYONE has a political agenda. Some (the right) are just sore losers. These rulings really bring out the worse in people. It just blows me away to see the hate and fear that oozes from the eyeballs of these zealots.
On a happier note, I’ll leave you with another wallpaper size picture. Be sure to check out leelanauphotography.com for the rest of the set.
Well, as expected, I didn’t walk out of the casino with any cash. I didn’t spend a whole lot either and was able to play for about 2 hours but I never won anything worth reporting. That’s pretty much par for the course. My logic on casinos is that had I not gone there and spent money, I would have likely spent the exact same amount on dinner and a movie. The trade off for me is that casino’s keep my attention and most movies these days put me to sleep. I’d rather be awake and enjoying myself than sleeping in a theater.
Jirar has now left for the day, not sure when he will be back up north. Our friendship is still fairly strong, we enjoy spending time together but it is difficult for me to see him go each time. I miss him a lot, Gavin does too and so do the cats. I know that at some point I’ll have to move on in my life, honestly I think both of us are kind of stagnating, not really knowing what to do or how to do it. He wants the freedom to experience life on his own but struggles with the inherent uncertainties of life that go with that freedom and I want the security of a relationship because I’ve already experienced those uncertainties and really don’t want to do it again. As I get older, life has become much less about adventure and much more about comfort and security.
So those of you who were not able to guess, the music in the previous post was from Monty Python. I watched Monty Python and the Holy Grail last night. I had not seen the film in years. The slap-stick British humor is quite amusing to me, much more so than a spoof of Sarah Palin is on SNL.
Anyhow, tonight I may watch another film or I may try to clean the house. I haven’t decided. Somewhere I have to figure out dinner too. Later for now.
