Ban the Bullfights – Be the Change
INNOCENCE LOST
Flying to Sevilla in 1985 with a pack of fellow 9th graders, the school system’s hope was to teach the Spanish language while immersing us in rich and colorful culture. We learned a new and colorful vocabulary all right, the locals were happy to give lessons, but it was not in the curriculum and we would not receive extra credit.
We also experienced a tradition that had young, rabble-rousing boys reveling in real-life bloody violence and girls upchucking their Chorizo. I’m not referring to our stealth acquisition of sangria. I’m referring to our first (and my last) bull fight.
2012 Pet Blogger Challenge
Edie Jarolim of Will My Dog Hate Me and Amy Burkert of GoPetFriendly.com are co-hosting the 2nd Annual Pet Blogger Challenge today, inviting all pet bloggers to answer eight questions about their blogs.
I’ve anxiously awaited this day, planning to use the PBC’s questions as a tool to redefine why I blog and what I’d like to either accomplish or abandon here. Please pardon my taking a few liberties in prose form to better explain 2011′s situation.
GOALS: THEN AND NOW
The 2011 Pet Blogger Challenge (my previous post) aimed to explore “how and why” I blog about animals and how that’s working for us as a group. I quote myself as saying then, in reference to goals from my start in 2009, “This One Wild Life still celebrates relationships with all things animal, vegetable and mineral.” I go on to say, “I wanted a way to record and remember favorite moments with these magnificent beings, exploring and sharing the human emotion attached to my animal relationships.” That goal of keeping the human/animal connection at the forefront has held fast, but I feel the execution – or my vision of it – has essentially failed.
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Sharing Her Love for Animals – My Inspiration
When it comes to compassionate living and my love for animals, I credit my grandmother, Helen, for encouraging me to respect all living beings at an early age, never by telling me to do so, but because she led by example. My father had a significant influence as well, but since he too learned from her, today I remember the source of that love – in celebration of Helen’s birthday.
Alzheimer’s ruthlessly robbed valuable pieces of Helen’s memory over the years, and I have long missed my connection with sweetest woman I have ever known. Now that her beautiful soul has flown, I believe her spirit has been set free to soar through the ethos, no longer bound by earthly separation and limitation. And I am free to remember the woman who was and who is now whole again, not the still-darling but deteriorating woman who no longer knew me.
Memory. Relationships depend upon it. And so I remember.
A Few of My Favorite Things
Ah, a reprieve from home construction, decorating, wrapping, shredding paper, deconstructing decorations and all that eating! It’s now time to sit back, appreciate everything that transpired all too quickly with fond memories, and share with you a few of our favorite things.
HAND-PAINTED MINIATURE PET PORTRAITS
Each year, Tim and I add another ornament to the tree. This year was no exception – although these tiny portraits won’t be relegated to holiday storage. Oh, no. These beautifully hand-painted gifts will be treasured long after the holiday season for their longevity and versatility. Truly perfect for any occasion, they are too adorable to hide away. I can’t even part with the hand-painted boxes.
This talented Chicago artist’s name is Becky Sorrentino and I can’t rave about her enough. It’s one thing to find her paintings of other people’s pets lovely. It’s quite another to see the souls of the animals I know inside-and-out shine through. She did a fabulous job.
Third and Final Way to Win Cash for You AND an Animal Charity!
UPDATE: Congratulations to winner Kristie Wright and her charity of choice, The Leon County Humane Society, a membership – supported, no-kill organization!
Welcome to the final round of our holiday raffle! ‘Tis the season to be jolly, and generous, and even a bit broke. But, with some luck, you could feel jolly for generously helping needy animals and even earn a few bucks for yourself – just by making new friends!
Enter to become the one lucky winner who receives:
$112 cash delivered to your PayPal account and
$213 sent directly to the non-profit animal charity of your choice!
Last Minute, Meaningful Gifts for Pet Lovers: Custom Body Pillows
This isn’t exactly a Christmas story, but I’ve been so moved by this gift from my friend Art that I have to share.
Art’s company, Custom Body Pillows, provides a unique, hands-on way to cherish your favorite photograph, whether of the love of your life, your child, grandchild, your beloved soldier overseas, or a treasured pet like my Newfoundland, Shamus. My pillow now resides between the pets and the portraits, embodying a bit of both.
Gift Hint: It’s not too late to give one this holiday season. Wrap some literature from the website offering to print the photo of your recipient’s choice on this beautiful, huggable pillow!
WHY THIS MEANS SO MUCH TO ME
Freshly adopting Shamus in March 2009, visions of training Shamus to be a therapy dog danced through my head. I often fantasized about us working as a team to make a real difference in the lives of others and blogging about the journey. As it turns out, the person who Shamus became the greatest therapy dog for is me.
12 Dogs of Christmas
A little cheer for the holidays, dog style…
This 12 dogs of Christmas graphic was produced by Pet365 – a UK stockist of brands like Hurtta and Hamish McBeth.
Holiday Raffle: Win Cash for You AND an Animal Charity!
UPDATE: Congratulations to winner Kristie Wright and her charity of choice, The Leon County Humane Society, a membership – supported, no-kill organization!
Welcome to round two of our holiday raffle! ‘Tis the season to be jolly, and generous, and even a bit broke. But, with some luck, you could feel jolly for generously helping needy animals and even earn a few bucks for yourself!
Enter to become the one lucky winner who receives:
$112 cash delivered to your PayPal account and
$213 sent directly to the non-profit animal charity of your choice!
WIN! WIN! Raffle – Cash for You AND an Animal Charity!
UPDATE: Congratulations to winner Kristie Wright and her charity of choice, The Leon County Humane Society, a membership – supported, no-kill organization!
‘Tis the season to be jolly, and generous, and even a bit broke. But, with some luck, you could feel jolly for generously helping needy animals and even earn a few bucks for yourself!
Enter to become the one lucky winner who receives:
$112 cash delivered to your PayPal account and
$213 sent directly to the non-profit animal charity of your choice!
The Honest Kitchen: A Gift of Change for Senior Pets
GIVING THE GIFT OF GOOD HEALTH
Retaining good health has been a challenge in this household and is something we’ve grown to appreciate. This is strongly influencing our gift giving this holiday season – for people and for pets.
For this reason, The Honest Kitchen’s limited-edition, all-natural Holiday Treat Pack is gracing our favorite dog-loving friends’ cupboard.
THE QUEEN OF INSPIRATION
We had a special visitor recently, a lovely rescue dog named Quinn. Around these parts, we call her the Queen. You might recognize her eyes from the Be the Change for Animals logo. When founding BTC4animals, Amy and I chose Quinn as our mascot because her story embodied everything we wanted BTC to be about. Quinn is now a symbol of hope for abandoned pets everywhere and a celebration of local rescue.
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