Two Months Gone

Today marks two months since Hubby officially left home on his journey to the sandbox. What has happened and changed over the past month?

- Number of meals cooked this month: 0 
   Running total for deployment: 0 
   (Note that I do not count frozen pizzas, chicken nuggets or baking a hamburger 
   in the oven as cooking.)

- Scrapalooza continues! 70 more pages brings me through July 2003, and to the end of my third and final book-bound album. I've reached a bit of a stopping point until I start getting paid at my new job and have a bit of extra money to order more prints from Shutterfly so that I can let the scrapping continue. In the mean time, I'll be scouting supplies (black 12x12 cardstock and suitable 3 ring binders) so that I have them on hand when I can get more pictures.

- Went on a hay ride through a beautiful neighborhood to look at Christmas lights. It was put on by a girl at work, and was lots of fun. Made me wish that Hubby was here to go, too.

- Keeping my new job a secret from my current employer was killing me! Finally got concrete confirmation on the new job - my background check came back squeaky clean (not surprising!) and I started on Jan 2. Gave my current boss clearance to announce my impending departure, which was met with a healthy balance of congratulations and "we're sorry to see you go." Made me feel really good. I work with some great people, and I'll miss them.

- Got a chance to visit with a cousin of mine that I haven't seen in something like 8 years! She was visiting a friend out this way and they drove down to Fresno to visit. It was lots of fun, even if she was only here for an evening. It was nice to catch up and share stories about our crazy family. Especially since I haven't really spent much time around them in so many years and hardly know anyone back there anymore.

- Did a victory dance when that silly tree out front finally lost its last leaves. I can see a love-hate relationship forming here.

- Freezing weather has claimed my coleus. L I'll get more in the spring. My red rose bush has allowed a branch to topple over, meaning a bit of a loss there. The cold weather has taken a toll on my heat loving marigolds. My Mexican Heather is gone, too. Guess they really do prefer the warmer weather of Mexico! I'll buy more and plant in a pot in the spring. And, oddly, one of my pots of tulips has sprouted shoots, and my freesia is starting to emerge. Isn't it a bit early for that?!?

- Finished all of my Christmas shopping super early and got what needed to be mailed off done so in a very timely manner. All I have left to buy is Hubby's gift, and I've got time for that. I'll need the extra income from my new job to get him what's on his list, anyhoo.

- Have discovered the Christmas Music channel on cable. In an attempt to be all Christmassy, listened to it non-stop through Christmas. I now have Christmas tunes stuck in my head whenever I go anywhere. It borders on both annoying and quaint.

- Survived Christmas! Revisited the grocery store for another yummy pre-cooked turkey breast and sides. Fred and I can definitely get used to this lifestyle. Was invited to spend the holiday with various friends, but faced with the prospect of spending the day with a bunch of strangers, I opted for spending the holiday at home with Fred and the fatties.

- Survived the office Christmas party. Had to attend stag, due to Fred not having mastered "party manners." Can't have him running around randomly sniffing crotches, knocking drinks over with his tail or helping himself to the buffet without using utensils.And now for your moment of awkwardness…was consistently introduced to people as, "This is Brenda, her husband is in Iraq." Yes…there it is…the look of shock and awe on the other person's face. Conversation ensues where the other party feels the need to go on about (1) their time in the military, eons ago (2) Vietnam/Iraq similarities (3) What a mess, and our poor troops having to endure all of this. After assuring them that Hubby is indeed there as a civilian which changes the "rules of engagement" to "non engagement" for him, I politely smile and nod through the excruciating conversation that follows, looking for an out. Would excuse myself for a drink, except that I have to drive myself home. Damn Fred for not being able to come along! If I could train him in "party manners" and how to drive, I'd be set! I remain convinced that it is his lack of opposable thumbs that is holding him back.

- Mechanical Emergency Number 2. My car's brake light came on and started dinging like crazy. The brakes seem to be working fine, so Hubby's suggestion was to top off the brake fluid. (MyJody diagnosed the same thing. I have mechanical masterminds at my disposal!) Disaster averted. No new car for me…darn. Mechanical Emergency Number 1 Update - Hubby's car is leaking something black and gunky from under the steering column. Could it be the Power Steering Fluid? That would explain the annoying "Hicas" light always being on. Hmmm…

- Speaking of extra income and new cars, I have declared 2008 to be my year for a new vehicle! Hubby got his Z, now it's my turn. I'm finally going to get the Jeep that I've been lusting after since the days of the Summer of '97 (such a great summer!) It'll be brand-spanking new and fully loaded…including butt warmers!  2008 - The Year of the Jeep!!  Woohoo!!

- Mailing Hubby his footlocker full of tools turned into more of an ordeal than either of us anticipated. I'm not going to name names, but somebody's failure to leave an inventory of contents lead to having to break the metal bandings securing the footlocker in order to list contents on the appropriate customs form.  With the ends of the footlocker now "securely" duct-taped shut, I attempt to attach the lock that Hubby provided me, only to find that the lock has a plastic ridge on it that won't allow it to fit through the hole in the footlocker. GARRR! So the footlocker has now been deposited back with the guys at the National Guard to have the ends banded again, and they're going to try to ship the darned thing for me so that I don't have to pick it back up and go through this ordeal again. I just know that the phone will ring at any minute…it'll be them asking me to pick the footlocker back up and ship it…

- FOUND A MOUSE IN MY GARAGE!! Holy yikes! Immediately purchased sonic blasters to keep the hairy little rodents away and called Terminix. They're a wily bunch (the mice/rats, not Terminix) and I'm constantly changing my tactics to stay on top of things. I lump mice with spiders…can't take it!!!

- Survived the marching in of the New Year. I genuinely wanted to sleep through it, but was awoken at 11:30pm New Year's Eve by Fred…nervously pacing the floor. He does this at the sound of firecrackers, and that is what set him off. I felt really bad for him - he was literally trembling in fear at the noises outside! Rather than kick him out mercilessly as I have done in the past, I tried to comfort him as best as I could, considering the whole language-barrier thing. (His grasp of English seems to be limited to a handful of commands. My grasp of Dog remains at feverishly attempting to decipher the meaning behind various forms of pacing, licking, grunting, barking and wimpering. Throw in the occasional dog-stare and you can see why I'm so baffled half the time.)Fortunately, it was all over by 12:30am and normalcy was restored to the Sullivan household. Sleep came again, and I was able to sleep in on New Year's Day.

- LOVE the new job! Day one was all about information overload - this goes here, this is how these get processed, input this in the computer, etc etc etc. Also signed about a gazillion different employment forms - as is always the case when starting a new job. But this place is going to keep me busy, and I really think I'll be happy here! (Also think that I made friends with the police chief's secretary when I confessed that I am the sort of person that sorts my paperclips by size…)

R.I.P.

Today, I live in a mouse-free house.

Yes, it was a mouse that we had. 

Had.

Yesterday, Terminix came by to set new traps for my little rodenty friend.  He was outsmarting us on the glue boards.  I learned where he would go in the garage to eat, and moved all the glue boards into that area.  I set one on top of the bag of grass seed that he was feasting on.  I put two around the bag.  I found the hole that he would use to shimmy under the fence and into my yard, and I lined that hole with glue boards.  I would find them moved, but they wouldn't catch him.  He managed to move one of them more than a foot!

I showed my collection of evidence to Richard (my weekend Terminix guy.)  He's the same guy that put down the glue boards.  I told him that there probably wasn't much we could do in the back yard because of my dog.  But I had been keeping the dog out of the garage, so that area was fair game.  If he wanted to put down snap traps, I was all for it.  So he put two down and baited them with grass seed.  After I cleaned up all of the grass seed shells, he put one in the area that the rodent had been feasting, and another one near what the two of us had surmised was his point of entry...the door to the side yard.

Last night, I was in the garage taking care of laundry.  As I closed the dryer door, I heard a commotion on the other side of the garage...near the garage door.  I turned just in time to see something rodenty fall from about three quarters of the way up my garage door onto the floor.  Ah ha!  The point of entry!  No wonder he was cleverly avoiding the glue traps on the ground!  The little bastard was climbing the bamboo plant outside and squeezing in the door at the height of the bush!

This morning, I tentatively peered into the garage.  I checked trap number one...the one that was set near the side door.  No signs of activity.  I tippy toed to the area tht housed trap number two...near the site of the feasts.  I noticed that the trap had been triggered, but was empty!  I was aghast! How wiley is this little guy!   It took me a minute to get over the shock.  He managed to set off the trap and get away!!

Almost.

It was then that I noticed the trail of blood.  There were little spots of red that lead from the trap across the floor.  I looked and saw that the trail went under the lawn mower, but didn't appear to come out anywhere.  Tentatively, I leaned down and shined the beam of my flashlight under the lawn mower.  That's when I saw his tail.  I shuffled the lawn mower backwards to see if there would be any movement of the tail.  There was none.

We got our guy.

I called Terminix, and they're coming to remove him tomorrow.  Tonight, I took a second look under the lawn mower, just to make sure that he really was dead and hadn't crawled off somewhere else.  That was when I actually saw him...a little gray and white field mouse.  Not the rat that I had envisioned in my head.

When he's gone, I'll clean up the blood and remaining evidence of his visits.  I'll go ahead and approve the re-setting of the snap traps and bait them with food, just in case more mice know about my house. 

But we finally won.  He put up a good fight, but victory is finally mine.

An Eye Opening Article

Anyone that knows me from long ago knows that I wanted to go into journalism at one point. That all changed when I started taking note of how journalism really works. Intrusions into other people's lives. Lack of privacy. Untruths. Slanted stories.

That last one is particularly true today. And it is one of the major reasons that I do not like to engage in discussions on the war in Iraq. My view tends to differ from what is reported by news and media outlets as the "Typical American View." I'm not going to go into what that is, because unless you've been living under a rock for the past five years, you should be well aware of what it is.

Here is my view. I understand why we went there. It's a shame that it happened the way that it did, but we're there now, and we're taking responsibility and working to clean up the mess. I understand what we're trying to accomplish, I just think that it is disgusting that the people over there are unwilling to work to make lives better for themselves. The average citizen just wants life to get better, but is unwilling to stand up against the few that terrorize and bully them into submission. I'm pretty much disgusted with the whole country because of that, and wish that I could hop on a plane, land there and start grabbing people by the shoulders and shaking sense into them. I want to scream that they just need to stop all the crap that's happening, put down their weapons and work together to create better lives for themselves and their future generations. I want to scream that they could have great wealth, riches and stability if only they would stop being so damned petty and quit all the squabbling. If I were their mother, I would make them kiss and make up, and if I heard any other bickering, they'd be grounded indefinitely. Period.

My heart just breaks when I think of the average citizen that is afraid to set foot out of their house because they might get caught in crossfire, or kidnapped and killed…just because of their belief. Or their name. Or their tribe. It is just so sad. And I am truly blessed to be living the life that I live, because I don't have to worry about stupid shit like that.

I am disgusted with the media - because they realize that stories of bombings and killings and kidnappings and beheadings get better ratings than stories of children being able to attend schools. Families getting help. Friendships being formed. They'd rather report that all of the police over there are corrupt (and quite a few of them are) and that people cannot even go to a café without fearing an attack. They're feeding the fires, and slanting the story in favor of what sells. Nobody ever gets to hear about all of the good stuff.

Good things happen over there every day. It's just that all the reporters are too busy covering the tragedies. There is nobody left to look around and see what good is going on and think to themselves, "Hey…that just might be newsworthy!"

I happened across one of the rare stories of good in today's Stars and Stripes newspaper. For those of you that might not know what that is, it's the newspaper that is put out to the military members serving overseas. I read it almost every day when we lived in Germany. It covers stories in the States, as well as what is happening locally for those of us that are in different locales. Of course, since it is put out for the military, there will be views in its pages that differ from what you might find in another paper. C'mon…even Fox News claims to be "fair and balanced." Riiiiight.

What really appealed to me in this story is that it reports on the good. It also shows that the tribal leaders in areas of Iraq are finally waking up and looking around. They're seeing what is happening to their people and their villages, and they're getting sick of it. They're finally ready to take a stand against the bullies that terrorize them and keep them from living a normal life.

I genuinely hope that this attitude catches on among the citizens over there, and they all start doing something about the sad state of their lives.

Here is the link. There's some pictures there, too.

http://stripes.com/article.asp?section=104&article=42769

Battling violence in the heart of darkness 
Tribal leaders in Jazeera join with U.S. forces to fight insurgents, form police station 

By Megan McCloskey, Stars and Stripes
Mideast edition, Sunday, January 14, 2007

HAMDIYAH, Iraq — His left arm in a sling as a result of being shot by insurgents a couple of weeks ago, Sheik Jabbar Al Fahad, dressed in a gray pinstripe suit and accompanied by the commander of U.S. forces in Ramadi, walks down a dirt road in his neighborhood.

U.S. soldiers and Iraqi police escort him, their Bradley fighting vehicles and armored Humvees left behind. Their steps rouse only the occasional baritone "moo" from one of the many cows grazing nearby, and for Anbar Province, the pace feels almost like strolling.

Local men come out from their homes and businesses to enthusiastically greet the sheik with kisses and hugs, and to shake the hands of the soldiers.

At one point, Lt. Col. John Tien stops and calls over a stone wall into the backyard of a house, waving a father and his young children to him. As the man lifts his kids one by one, Tien hands each a stuffed animal.

"A month ago we couldn't even come in this neighborhood," Tien, commanding officer of 2nd Battalion, 37th Armor Regiment out of Friedberg, Germany, said after giving out the toys.

"Then the local men said they were ready to take responsibility. Now we can walk this entire road."

Hamdiyah is one of eight tribal neighborhoods in Jazeera, a sweeping area just north of Ramadi city that soldiers refer to in part as the heart of darkness — one of the outposts there is named OP Forsaken. Before al-Qaida leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi was killed, Jazeera was his playground, a place where he moved freely and preached violence.

Running along the northern side of the Euphrates, Jazeera stretches beyond Ramadi's western border, and to the east abuts the outskirts of Habbaniyah, which has been transferred from coalition forces to the Iraqi army.

Until recently, Hamdiyah was "in the enemy's hands, and they were clearly intimidating the population," Tien said.

But in early November, the tribes' leader, Sheik Jabbar Al Fahad, reached out to Tien's Task Force 2-37. He said he had a list of volunteers and was ready to stand up a police station and needed support, according to Maj. Michael Wawrzyniak, operations officer for the task force.

Within a week there was a large-scale clearing operation, and shortly thereafter Iraqi police were patrolling the area.

That has been the pattern in the heart of darkness over the last four to five months. Much like how dominoes fall, tribes from west to east have turned in rapid succession from hostile to friendly and joined coalition forces in the fight against the insurgency.

Much of the fighting has shifted to the insurgents' home bases where they once thought they were safe, said Col. Sean MacFarland, the top commander in Ramadi and in charge of the 1st Brigade Combat Team, 1st Armored Division.

Though much of the surrounding province remains insecure and an insurgent stronghold, things started changing in Jazeera in late August when the insurgents killed a revered and influential sheik. His followers couldn't find the body for four days.

"That's really where the insurgents went wrong," Wawrzyniak said.

Murder intimidation was a regular part of the insurgents' repertoire, but "al-Qaida overplayed their hand," MacFarland added.

The sheiks, who according to Tien "had been to some extent neutered by insurgents," banded together, forming a group called the Anbar Awakening. They decided they had had enough and essentially started to switch sides.

The locals followed their lead.

"The people are tired of al-Qaida. They want another way out," Iraqi border police Col. Yousef Tariq, who introduced Sheik Jabbar to the task force, said through an interpreter.

"This is what al-Qaida has done for the community: They've created widows, stopped colleges and education, stopped the normal machine of life. [The police] are trying to start that engine again."

Tribal borders are as defined in Anbar as state boundaries are in the United States, so when one sheik would come forward to work with coalition forces, any security developed would literally stop at the line of the next tribe.

But success begets success, Tien said. Once sheiks saw security improving to their west, they extended their hands. When Wawrzyniak went to meet with Sheik Jabbar, he was introduced to Sheik Mohammed, Jabbar's neighbor to the east in Albu Obaid.

"Sheik Mohammed was staring from the other side, standing on the outside looking in and saying 'I want some of that too,' " Tien said of the security that was rapidly growing in Hamdiyah.

The first Iraqi police station opened in Albu Obaid on Jan. 6 in an abandoned house across from a U.S. patrol base. Until that day, there had been zero Iraqi police presence in the area.

As Tien toured the outside of the station the day it opened, he excitedly whipped out his digital camera to take a photo of two Iraqi police trucks pulling up with their telltale blue doors on an otherwise white pickup.

"This is a first," he said, grinning.

Police officers from Hamdiyah, barely experienced themselves, came to help out the newest startup station, handing out weapons. They fastidiously recorded the serial number of each AK-47 before turning it over to its new owner, who was also given a blue button-down shirt as a uniform.

Tien met with some of the new officers, giving them what amounted to a pep talk.

"This is the last day terrorists ever come to Albu Obaid, right?" he said to about seven officers lined up across from him. They nodded in stoic agreement.

The officers will be backed by coalition forces as at the other stations in Jazeera, but Tien, like many commanders, stresses the importance of Iraqis providing security for Iraqis.

"There's a saying that all politics is local. Well, I have a saying here that all security is local," he said.

Back in Hamdiyah, as the visit between Sheik Jabbar and MacFarland winded down and the soldiers headed back to their Bradleys and Humvees, a siren wailed.

To an American ear it's a signal that something is going down, but in Iraq — in Anbar, in Jazeera — it's a comforting symbol.

"That's a good sound, police sirens," said MacFarland, turning to the sheik. "It means law and order is returning."

Anticipation

So Hubby tells me today to get the week of Christmas and New Year's off of work. He's planning a trip for our anniversary/Christmas. Of course, he's not going to tell me what the trip is. That just makes it more fun for him. I get eleven months to stew over it. He gets eleven months to remind me that he knows where we're going and I don't.

Eleven months.

I do love surprises. And he can pull them off really well. I guess it's because I don't expect grand overtures from my Hubby. He's such a down-to-earth guy. Every now and then, he'll throw something at me out of left field, and it hits me when I least expect it. Like the beautiful necklace he sent me for our five year anniversary. Or the flowers I got for number seven. Totally not in the realm of what I expect from my Hubby. But I love it when he does these things. And I love him whether he does them or not.

But where can we go for a whole week??

A week seems a bit long to spend at Disney Land. Disney World, maybe. But he told me that the trip isn't Florida, so that eliminates that.

Vegas? Ooohhh…that might be fun, but I would think of that as more of a long weekend type of trip. A full week of bright lights, big city might get old.

Maybe we'll go somewhere warm? Mexico? Hawaii?

A cruise?

Or maybe we'll go explore the Pacific Northwest. See some rugged scenery up that way.

I'm almost inclined to think that a National Park will be involved. We both enjoy visiting them so much, and he's hell-bent on visiting all of them.

Hmmm…

I generally plan the bulk of our trips. The last major trip that I can think of that he planned without any input from me turned out really well. We went to Chiemsee, saw a palace, had one of the best days skiing and also visited Munich. I was impressed. Smaller trips that he's done on a whim include the National Parks in our area. He may not take the helm of our travels very often, but when he does, it blows me away. So I have absolute faith that this trip will turn out really great.

Besides…in December we'll still be in the honeymoon phase of our reunion. He could drag me off to Timbuktu and I'd probably be amenable.(Note to Hubby…I still draw the line at Alabama. So very much not interested in setting foot there again.)

Eleven months away.

What could it be??

This Just In...

From CNN...

Gators make it look easy

The Florida Gators tonight obliterated the Ohio State Buckeyes to win the BCS Championship Game. "Upset" doesn't quite measure up in describing the No. 2 Gators' victory over the undefeated No. 1 Buckeyes. In winning the title game in Glendale, Arizona, the Gators became the first Division I school to hold football and basketball titles at the same time.

You know that I don't "do" sports, but I love my Gators!!  GO TEAM!!

How Bizarre

Destination unknown, as we pull in for some gas 
Freshly pasted poster reveals a smile from the past

I decided to take a step into my past tonight and go to the mall. No purpose in mind…just an excuse to get out of the house for a couple of hours and wander about idly.

It used to be that the mall was a wonderland of opportunity. Shops and bargains galore. Favored stores, fashions, shoes, accessories and other endless opportunities to spend money. I was a mall rat in my late teens and early twenties. Days spent working at the mall, earning my money and spending it all in one place.

I had so many clothes. CDs. Shoes. Stuff.

If boredom hit, I could easily blast it away at the mall.

These days, I feel out of place in a mall. I've been so far removed from the lifestyle of consumerism that it's like I'm on a foreign planet when I set foot in the mall. In the past year, I can probably count on one hand the number of times I've ventured into the mall.

I've lived so long in a setting devoid of major crowds and in an environment not centered on the ideals of consumerism. After the culture shock wore off, the slower pace was so nice…it suited me.

Ring master steps out and says "the elephants left town" 
People jump and jive, but the clowns have stuck around

I've spent the past year trying to get a feel for the blaring lifestyle that has come with reintegrating ourselves back into the motherland. Bright lights, crowds, speed, maneuvering through throngs of people. Even with all the opportunities available to me in the recent past, I've avoided so much. Part of it was to resist the temptations of evil. Part of it is because I don't want to deal with the hassle. I miss the simpler lifestyle that we've left behind.

Tonight, I chose the mall that I knew would be least crowded. In a way this mall, like me, is stuck in a time warp. It was so quiet…as I wandered down the main corridor, surrounded by the neon and glaring lights, it almost didn't seem so bad. I meandered in the bookstore. I perused some old favorites of mine. I looked at clothing, but nothing really appealed to me. I checked out a couple of kitschy stores and marveled at the gaudiness adorning the walls. Stores that I used to spend all of my time and money in seem so foreign to me now.

My perspectives have changed. I don't feel the satisfaction that I used to in spending my time fighting crowds and throwing my money at the vendors in the mall. I'd so much rather spend my time with my family, in our home. Or out together, exploring the area that surrounds us.

And somewhere, the credit card companies weep, as my Hubby breathes a sigh of relief.

I've changed into a creature of practicality. I feel more at home in a hardware store than I do in Victoria's Secret.

In the end, I walked out with a bag full of greeting cards, a key chain declaring that "I heart my dog" (for my work keys) and a hot chocolate from Starbucks. My, how things have changed.

How bizarre 
How bizarre, how bizarre

Have You Hugged Your Pet Today?

I've completed my first week at my new job. I really like the job, and the people are great. I think that I'll be able to thrive in this environment.

I work 99% in the administration building. I'm manning the phones, completing call reports, dispatching field officers to calls and keeping the office in order. More duties will come as I settle into the position and get oriented. Gotta find my feet.

We have three other buildings that I will pass through occasionally. There is the stray building…that's where the "intake" occurs. People bring us strays that they have found, and we deposit animals that we have picked up there. The public can come to look for their animals six days a week.

We have a quarantine building. This is where we put animals that might be on their way to the adoption center or to a rescue organization, provided that they are healthy.

We have an adoption center. This is where the magic happens. Families meet and fall in love with cats and dogs and arrangements are made to add the furry ones to their family.

I'll be assigned to temporary duty in each of the buildings, so that I can get a feel for how the total operation works. I'll get the opportunity to walk in the shoes of everyone that works there, so I truly understand what happens in each facility.

I pop into the stray building a couple of times each day…to pick up reports, licenses, citations and update case numbers. This building breaks my heart because it is full of frightened animals. They're separated from their families, and I can only hope that their families have enough sense to come look for them. Some of these animals are strays. Cats and kittens sit huddled in strange cages…some are very friendly, some are too frightened to attempt sociability. Dogs and puppies whine at you - they want your attention and can they please go home with you? Sadly, some owners bring their animals here to voluntarily surrender them, hoping that their furry one will find happiness with another family.

I haven't been in the adoption center yet. I look forward to checking it out and seeing families come in and meet the animals. I want to see the connection when it happens. I would love to see an animal walk out the door with a new family.

In the administrative building, I get to hear the calls. Someone is worried about an animal that is home alone while the family is on vacation. People call in that they have found an animal and want to know how to find its family. A family has lost their beloved pet and want to file a report…have we found it yet? Can we please call if we do? Dogs are running loose downtown and are in danger of being hit by a car…can we please send someone out to catch them? Our neighbor's dog is barking…again…at three in the morning. Someone in the neighborhood has a Pit Bull and their fence looks too rickety…would we mind sending someone out to check on that? So-and-so isn't picking up after their dog and the yard next door is a mess because of it, can someone come out and cite them?

That's a small sampling.

Sadly, euthanasia is a fact of life here. I view it as a sad side effect of incompetent humans. Breeders that can't get rid of their merchandise, people that allow their cats to run the neighborhood without spaying or neutering them, owners that are too stubborn to take care of matters for their dogs, and now they've got a litter to tend to. The staff tries every avenue to avoid putting animals down…driving thousands of miles to deliver animals to volunteer and rescue organizations that can take in some animals to find new homes for them. Screening animals that might be a good fit as working dogs. Contacting local agencies that handle specific breeds and might take in a few from us. Some animals are sick when they arrive, and nothing can be done for them. Mercy comes through the tip of a needle, and they can move on to a better place.

I'm making it a policy not to ask what happened to a specific animal when I don't see him or her anymore. I don't want to know the truth, and I'd rather just imagine that they went up front to the adoption center and then right out the door with a loving and caring family and on to a better life. I can't help it…I'm a optimist.

Have you done your part for your furry companion? Have you shown you true love for them? Are they spayed or neutered? Have you taken steps to make sure they can get back home to you if something happens - are they vaccinated, licensed and micro chipped?  Have you taken the time and committed yourself to training your dog, ensuring a better companionship experience?

I come home at night and wonder if my furry ones know how lucky they are. Kismet and Taboo have a steady supply of food (and it shows) and a lot of warm and comfortable spots to lay and sleep. Fred is spoiled rotten…he spends his days inside and he has plenty of opportunities to spend time outside when we are home. He has a safe yard all his own. Toys are strewn around the house. Heck…he's even taken over the guest room, so he has his own bedroom in the house.

When my kittens hop up in my lap while I'm tick-tacking at the keyboard, I spend a minute to give them a hug and pet them until they lay down. Fred cuddles with me on the couch and I gladly scratch behind his ears, his back and the middle of his chest.

Having furry companions takes work.  I certainly don't enjoy poo patrol...seven years of litter box duty has gotten old, and picking up after Fred has never fallen high on my list of enjoyable activities.  But for all the work that it takes to provide for them and give them a comfortable, safe and sanitary environment, it is worth it. They truly are sweet animals, and I can't imagine our home or our lives without them.