Trying to move on

It's been a hard week. I wasn't sure I could post here for awhile, but feel the need for some distraction, so here I go. I joined a pet loss group at Ravelry and hopefully can find some comfort posting there.

I have a strong urge to get another dog as I can't tolerate getting used to the space Shane left behind. However, Lyn grieves differently and I'm going to respect that. I'm also contemplating fostering dogs for the humane society or a rescue group, or applying to Guide Dogs for the Blind as a puppy trainer instead of acquiring another pet.

There's also Aidan who needs to go to dog training. Today I checked out Everything in the Ark and was excited about classes and training methods. I signed Aidan up for a class that starts in early October. The facility will be expanding soon to include agility training, search and rescue, and other dog-related activities that Cairns enjoy. I met 2 Catahoula Leopard dogs and fell in love with them. They're huge! I mistook them for Great Danes at first.

Aidan and I also went to the dog park and he played with another Cairn named Max and a Boston Terrier named Milo. Max looks so much like Aidan and I believe came from the same breeder. Both were initially bought from the mall pet store who usually get their Cairn terriers from the same breeder. I acquired Aidan from a coworker who had bought Aidan at the pet store. She and her husband had decided that they were not meant to be Cairn owners so they let me buy him from them. We got him when he was 4 months old. It had been my intent to train Aidan to do agility or some terrier-related sport, but Shane's medical needs pretty much ate up our dog budget. I don't think it's too late to start training a dog at any age, so I'll start now. I'm hoping that we learn a lot and get involved in some new activities. It seems to be a good plan for distraction anyway as we work our way through grief.

Tomorrow is Flock and Fiber Festival. I'm looking forward to that and will post pictures tomorrow.

Goodbye, Sweet Shane

Shane's condition deteriorated today to the point that I didn't think he could make it through the night. I promised him he would not suffer, so we took him to the vet this evening, and lying on a comfortable couch, surrounded by pillows and by us petting him and telling him how much we loved him, he received 2 injections that ended his suffering. I'll miss him so much!

My Big Red Dog

Three years ago our sweet Cairn Ronan died from a horrific endocrine disease. About a month after his death I just sort of sauntered into the humane society to look at dogs, just in case I could imagine getting another one. I practically stumbled over this gorgeous big red shepherd who was sitting out in the lobby with a volunteer so he could get some public exposure and hopefully get adopted. This dog had been let go by his previous home and had had 2 unsuccessful placements in a very short period of time. He was older and at age 7 many dogs just aren't adopted. I pet him for a long time, and forced myself to go home. He haunted me. I knew his chances for survival were not good, so I talked my husband into adopting him. I got him for a "bargain," as the humane society was letting older dogs go for a minimum price. Shane had had his shots, was socialized, got along with other dogs, loved cats and was said to love riding in cars. There as a catch, however. He was limping and would need some medical attention. Since I had successfully helped one of my dogs with a torn ligament, I assumed this is what Shane had and imagined the long walks we would take to strengthen his leg and the great company he would be lying at my feet as I worked.

So, I took him home where he proceeded to practically howl from fright riding in the car (never has outgrown this) and he refused to climb stairs so I had to carry him up to get a bath to get the kennel stink off him. I did take him to the vet the next day and found out Shane had not 1, but 2 bad knees and would need surgery on both of them. I got a second opinion from a second vet (who ended up being our permanent vet) who proclaimed Shane's stifle (name of the condition) as the worst she had ever seen. My bargain dog became quite an expense. We were able to avoid surgery but went through water therapy and Shane started taking medication. About half a year later, Shane was walking comfortably, even chasing squirrels and our new puppy Aidan. His personality blossomed and we've all become very attached to him. Shane does love cats and will protect them from terror Aidan, will shepherd small dogs at the dog park and avoid big dogs like the plague, is afraid of thunderstorms and practically sits in my lap when they occur; in fact, the ONLY time in Shane's life that he climbed stairs was when we had a thunderstorm. He loves to chase squirrels, loves to have barking spats with the dogs living behind us, and loves his treats. He greets me when I come in with bags wagging his tail and loves it when there is something in the bag for him.

Last week Shane wasn't feeling well. We took him to the vet thinking maybe he had a virus, but just in case we wanted to have him checked out. He had lost a lot of weight and the vet found multiple enlarged lymph nodes all over his body. I'm waiting for the official word from biopsies but my vet feels Shane has an aggressive and advanced lymphoma and that his prognosis is very poor. He's on prednisone for palliative treatment, but she estimates that Shane only has about a month or so to live. We're heartbroken. I have some slim hope that the lymphoma isn't as advanced as she thinks and that perhaps we can afford chemotherapy, but I'm bracing myself for the inevitable and am going to spend as much quality time with Shane as I can. I have a vacation coming up in 2 weeks and I'm canceling the spinning retreat.

My brother Dave once howled with laughter when I told him the story of how I acquired Shane the bargain dog. He may have been expensive, but I am so glad that we adopted him and gave him 3 years in a loving home. I would do it again in a heartbeat. He's been the best dog I've ever had!

Miniature Posts Series: Tiny House Blog

There's something attractive about the idea of cutting down your possessions and moving the essentials into a 15" x 15" space. That being said, there is also something terrifying about it. While most of us will never do this - outside of an apartment building, that is - we can still read about those who do on Tiny House Blog. We thought it would be a good idea to buy three of these tiny houses to constitute one normal-sized house, with a garden between the three. That would never be inconvenient!

Never mind

Guess there will be no contest.

I joined Shelfari today and started loading books I have read and books that I own. I also added a shelf of favorites that I've read. I'm not done, but I've done all I'm going to do today.

Honoring community organizers

Last week was a circus. I didn't especially enjoy the bits of the GOP convention that I watched. I admit I got some comic relief from the Daily Show, especially this clip on Senators Foghorn Leghorn Thompson and Droopy Dog Lieberman

I don't know about everyone, but I was a little (an understatement) unnerved by the woman I spent way too much time reading about last week, GOP vice president candidate, Sarah Palin. My disdain towards her grew the more I read.

While the media praised her and the convention became alive after her speech, there were quite a number of disgruntled people who took exception to her disparaging and snarky comment about community organizers. I joined a group at Ravelry called "Sarah Palin must be stopped" and I clicked on a site that offers people Community organizer icons that many are putting in as avatar pictures. There are a lot of them, and I'm going to be featuring Zainab Salbi this week. I think I'll feature a community organizer a week for the months of September and October. Where would we be without such people?

Hooray! It's September!

I love this time of year! I know it's technically not Fall yet, but the weather has been very fall-like and my mind and body are there already!

I got some great news this week - I'm back on day shift. It may be temporary, until March, but it's a step. We'll reevaluate in February whether to make it permanent, but I have 6 months and I'm happy with that. I no longer hate my job.

I have some works in progress. I've been taking a toe-up class and finally finished the toe. I'm almost to the point of starting the heel, which is another point of anxiety, but I'm sure I'll get it right eventually. Here's the sock and I decided to do the Garter Rib pattern from one of the Charlene Schurch books I have.



I'll be finishing the heel in class tomorrow. Leah is also going to be teaching the Magic cast-on technique for starting the toe and I'm excited about that because it means I won't have to use a provisional cast on.

This is one of a pair of socks I'm knitting out of Crystal Palace wool-bamboo sock yarn. The pattern is one of theirs and is in the Bamboo stitch. I made this into an ankle sock and it feels wonderful. I want more of this yarn! Yes, I have started sock #2.



I've joined swaps, 2 that just started, 1 that starts next week. I'm in the Autumn sock or scarf swap and a lace swap. Both are Ravelry swaps and are lots of fun. I don't have to make anything and can concentrate on spoiling everyone. Flock and Fiber is at the end of the month, and the swap packages need to be sent in early October, so I'm hoping to buy everything at F&F.

I've bought lots of sock yarn and I've taken pictures. I'll be making a separate show and tell post.

I started this blog around this time of year last year. I think I'm coming up on an anniversary!

Hello, Wedding Toppers!

What is the most important part of a wedding? The dress? The flowers? The stationary (well...)? The bride and/or groom? Or is it the one thing that the wedding couldn't be considered a proper wedding without... the cake toppers? Those little representations of you and your beloved are, in some worlds, the most vital of all wedding components (This is probably not true, but let's pretend for the sake of this epic blog post). While it is all fine and good to go the traditional route and stick two plastic people on top of your cake, we at Flora and Fauna would like to encourage a more enlightened approach. An approach which includes animals, zombies, complete strangers and robots. 

A custom topper might be the most exciting, but you shouldn't limit yourself to the traditional looks-like-us toppers. Instead, why not get a custom looks-like-us-craving-brains Zombie topper from Bear Eats Bunny, or a looks-like-us-if-we-were-an-endearingly-molded-godzilla-and-cat topper from Zebra 1684 Creations? (Seriously, is this the best thing ever? If not, it certainly sits high in the ranks.)

If you prefer something cleaner and more collected, why not employ the services of CornflakeGirl and get a custom bird couple? And even if you have perfect eyesight, why not have bird-you wear those awesome glasses?

If nerd-chic appeals to you, perhaps these Elegant Robot toppers from Builders Studio are right for you. There's something very Art Deco and recollective of Metropolis about them.

If nothing here strikes your fancy, perhaps you would find excitement in my favorite option: wedding toppers that are not you. If you don't have the budget to go custom, this option is the easiest, and if you do have the ability to send away for your dream toppers, this option could be the most creative. The idea is, in a nutshell, to attempt to find or make a couple that is so distant from your own physical appearance that it becomes something entirely memorable. For example, you could order this custom wedding topper from Sophia's Workshop, which depicts two happy strangers dressed as Mickey and Minnie Mouse. Are you a nice, dark-haired Armenian couple that would never, in a million years, flounce around in Disney garb? Then this topper is perfect for you. It will not go forgotten.

We're going to be at Felt Club!

This November (the 16th, to be exact) we'll be at the Felt Club event at the Shrine Auditorium Center here in Los Angeles! This is the mecca of Southern Californian craft fairs, and anyone would be a fool to miss it. More updates will come as the event nears, but mark your calendars!