...across the room to defend my love of animals...

I LOVE animals. I like dogs, cats, horses, deer, squirrels, and rabbits to mention a few. Mostly I enjoy animals at a distance although I will pet them, sometimes hold them, and feed them. I respect that they are animals, and not humans and am very aware that I do not know how their minds work. So I give them space to be animals. They are interesting creatures to me and I could watch them for hours and in the case of small animals, play with them for long periods of time. I just simply enjoy them. I love the smell of horses and I also love the different sounds animals make. Two summers ago an enormous brown bear came bounding out of the woods as I was riding my motorbike down the road. I had no time to be afraid because I was so mesmerized by how shiny his fur coat was as the sun shone down on him! Later, when I realized how close we had been to him I thought about the danger aspect of this huge animal. He was absolutely STUNNING! I do not own a pet but have in the past. I soon realized that if I did not train this dog he would run my life, destroy not only my property but other people's as well and terrorize everyone that came to my door. As much as I loved him I did not have the time I needed to train my dog properly or spend the time I needed to spend with him so I gave him to a family who could and would. This is really just an introduction to what I really wanted to talk about but it is a very honest rendition of how I feel about animals.

I have a few friends in my life who enjoy walking as a way of getting some exercise, fresh air, social interaction, and the parks in our city. We enjoy a walk in a different park each day of the week. Our city has created some areas of some of our parks as off-leash areas where people can take their dogs for walks and consequently we often meet up with them on the trails. It is nice to see people enjoying the outdoors with their pets and exercising them. So what is my problem? My problem is that although I love animals like I mentioned earlier, I do not want them jumping on me, slobbering on my clothes, barking or growling at me or any of the friends I am with. As I said before, I don't know what these animals are thinking, what their past history is or what they are capable of. Our city bylaws state that owners of pets are in violation of the bylaws if their dog bites or chases a person, if they bark or howl in such a fashion that it disturbs a person, or causes a person to fear for their physical safety. What I find extremely frustrating is that when a big dog runs at me, jumps on me, barking and growling so that I feel threatened enough to ask the owner to please call off their dog their response is FIRST "maybe you shouldn't be walking in the off leash area if you don't like dogs!" Is there not even ONE owner of a dog smart enough to realize that their pet is capable of terrifying people and that just because someone is afraid does not mean they hate animals? It seems like every person I have met that is not in control of their dog will always blame ME for being in the wrong place and being a dog hater. They will defend their dog in the most ridiculous ways. For instance, this week a dog tall enough to lick my elbow was barking and jumping up on us and the owner told us "he's just a puppy!" So now we're supposed to be OK with all his drool on our clothes and scratches on our hands, not to mention the barking and growling!! Of course we are forever being told not to use the parks as well! I have NEVER experienced an incident like the above with the owner apologizing for their pet's behaviour. NEVER! NOT EVEN ONCE! Isn't that sad? REALLY! I am about ready to start carrying a club! It will not be used on the dog because I believe that the owner is responsible for their animals behaviour and I would use the club on the owner, not the animal! LOL! Thanks for letting me vent! Wonder whose "puppy" I'll have to fight off next week?! Oh, by the way, my jacket is in the washer as I write this!

....across the room to share.....

Unbelievable how low some people will stoop for a REAL bike ride!  This guy was so desperate to try my bike he even went to buy a new helmet and boots.  Seems to me he had new gloves as well.  

I don't allow just anyone to ride my bike though.  I am very particular about that and fiercely protective of my Harley but must admit I have a tough time dealing with grovelling.  And grovelling is what was happening here!

Honestly!  What do you do with this kind of desperation?  I just made sure he promised much before I handed those keys over and then watched him ride away.  I have no idea where in the world he was going when he took off so when he left I was on my knees as close to the ground as possible praying for safety.  He appeared to be heading towards the embankment when he suddenly veered right and disappeared down the street to the bottom of the hill.  Slow down my racing heart!  

(in all honesty, it was my pleasure to allow my brother-in-law Larry to enjoy an afternoon of riding on my Harley and must thank him for the posing!)

...across the room to protest....

"I don't plan to grow old gracefully. I plan to have face-lifts until my ears meet."   Rita Rudner

I went for a walk in one of our parks recently and just as I was about to start walking a lady drove up in a very fancy sporty car and parked right beside mine.  When I go for my morning walk I don't wear any make-up, simply run my fingers through my hair, and dress in some sort of comfortable work out clothes and shoes.  You can imagine my surprise when this women got out of her car dressed in three inch heels, tight skirt, hair and make-up perfectly arranged and applied to spend some time in the park exercising her dog!  Each to his/her own though, right?  I couldn't help but take a closer look at her and realized that I knew this person but had not seen her for probably ten years or more.  At her age I would expect to see some changes after ten years but not the kind I saw that day.  I'm sure her lips are twice the size they were at one time and honestly I don't think her face moved at all when she smiled at me other than her lips looked even bigger!!

"We are in this awful youth-driven thing where everybody needs to look 30 at 60, but I'm not fiddling about with myself." British actress Emma Thompson

 

Later that day I was amazed again as I did some business with a young lady who had obviously been distressed by her bra size and now had two extremely firm, unmovable breasts spilling out of her top and pointing directly at me!  I noticed them before I saw her face.  She probably spent all her money on her breasts and had nothing left over for her lips so she just simply decided to enlarge the circumference with a $7.95 lip pencil.  A brown lip pencil.  It was all I could do to control my impulse to take the used tissue in my purse and start rubbing it off! Honestly!  Could it be that she looked in the mirror after applying that dark circle under her nose and say "THAT'S perfect, and just the way I like me to look today!"  How can it be?!

"Where lipstick is concerned, the important thing is not color, but to accept God's final word on where your lips end." Jerry Seinfeld

I like to experiment with make-up and hair like most women but I feel sad that men and especially women take such drastic measures to change their appearances.  Who are we listening to and why?  Who is to say that my lips are too small, my nose too big, my breasts too small?  And do I have to redecorate my house every year because this year the colours are orange, purple and putty and last years monochromatic greys are old and tired looking?  Who says everybody should wear the same hair style; the same heel height; the same skirt length?When do we just simply say "This is what I like" and be happy and confident with our own preferences and ability to choose what is suitable for us.

After all that, I think just for today I shall leave my face completely NAKED in honour of Elayne's Day of Protest!! 

...across the room for coffee with you.....

Time for a little break!  This morning was such a flurry of activity I hardly had time to breathe.  I snapped awake at 6:50 AM, hurried off to the kitchen to put together a yummy bag lunch for my hubby, including the usual peeled, sectioned orange (I can do this with my eyes closed by now!).  As soon as he was out the door I cooked my bowl of delicious oatmeal with a cut up apple and lots of cinnamon in it.  I'm out of maple syrup so I added a little brown sugar.  Not bad but not as good as the syrup.  After that I made sure the kitchen, TV room, and bathroom were

spotless for the photographer who was coming to take pictures for a website for the company that did our house reno.  The sun and a few friends were waiting for me at the park at 9 AM for our one hour walk and after that I made a quick stop (well I thought it would be quick!) at the storage unit to pay our fee.  I rushed home to vacuum the house which left me with twenty minutes to take a shower, do my hair and make-up before the photographer showed up!  By the time he arrived my coffee was brewing and the need to sit was overwhelming!  That brings me to my blog!! 

I don't usually read the NLT version of the Bible but this morning I did and this is the verse I read "Have I looked at the sun shining in the skies, or the moon walking down its silver pathway, and been secretly enticed to worship them?  If so, I should be punished by the judges, for it would mean I had denied the God of heaven."  Job 31:26-28

As we walked in the sunshine this morning, the snow sparkling like diamonds, I just couldn't help but thank God for reminding me to worship HIM, the One who created all this awesome beauty we take for granted every day.  What a masterpiece this universe is!

The unwearied sun, from day to day

Does His Creator's power display,

And publishes to every land

The work of an Almighty hand.

                                                            Joseph Addison 

Thanks for coffee-ing with me today!!

(The picture is my sisters and I enjoying a good cup of coffee and bonding in Toronto!)