Red Friday

Well, my cousin didn't come through with any funnies this week, so I will end the week with the request that you click the logo above, and buy a red shirt to wear on Fridays. I have my "Rolling Thunder" on, and feel rather sporty...

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Thursday - another Not A Roundup

I will be spending today working on my family website, Yes, Cartter With two T's. I highly recommend you looking over my blogroll, as there are several worthy additions, and be sure to tell them I sent you. You may also notice that I have removed my rating system, be aware that if one of the blogs you click on offends you, then you should close it; you will be returned to my blog. I am not responsible for the content of other's blogs, no matter how much I agree with them.

Most notable additions, in the past few days:
TJ's Anti-Contrarian Blog
Old Soldier
Some Things Just Need To Be Said
Dad of the Doodsters
Think Passion
Right Turn - Your Turn

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

The Goracle Has Saved Us!

Found this at The Anti-Contrarian after being pointed there by GuyK.

No, it couldn't possibly be A NATURALLY OCCURRING WEATHER CYCLE - it must be GLOBAL WARMING!!!!

"According to the NCDC, the average temperature in January "was -0.3 F cooler than the 1901-2000 (20th century) average.

China is surviving its most brutal winter in a century. Temperatures in the normally balmy south were so low for so long that some middle-sized cities went days and even weeks without electricity because once power lines had toppled it was too cold or too icy to repair them.

In just the first two weeks of February, Toronto received 70 cm of snow, smashing the record of 66.6 cm for the entire month set back in the pre-SUV, pre-Kyoto, pre-carbon footprint days of 1950. (i love that part about 'pre-suv, pre-kyoto, pre-carbon footprint'. heh heh heh)

And remember the Arctic Sea ice? The ice we were told so hysterically last fall had melted to its "lowest levels on record? Never mind that those records only date back as far as 1972 and that there is anthropological and geological evidence of much greater melts ... the Arctic winter has been so severe the ice has not only recovered, it is actually 10 to 20 cm thicker in many places than at this time last year.

I agree, one cold winter does not mean we are headed into an ice age. But several warmer-than-normal summers does not mean we are having an affect on the global climate, either. I remember winters so cold it would hurt to breathe, and winters so mild you could play outside in shirtsleeves. I also remember summers that the snow wouldn't melt on the high peaks until June, and snow would reappear in September; other summers where the snow wouldn't appear at all for an entire CYCLE.

Last month, Oleg Sorokhtin, a fellow of the Russian Academy of Natural Sciences, shrugged off manmade climate change as "a drop in the bucket." Showing that solar activity has entered an inactive phase, Prof. Sorokhtin advised people to "stock up on fur coats."

I've still got my parka. People here in Phoenix laugh when they see it hanging in my front hall closet. I just smile, and repeat the Boy Scout motto to them.

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Tuesday Stuff

I really didn't know what to post about today, but thankfully I ran across a warning, provided by a fellow conservative, Ozark Guru, over on the American Conservative Forum. (are you a member yet?)

Here's the warning:

A "heads up" for those men who may be regular Home Depot customers. Over the last month I became a victim of a clever scam while out shopping. Simply going out to get supplies has turned out to be quite traumatic. Don't be naive enough to think it couldn't happen to you or your friends. Here's how the scam works:

Two seriously good-looking 21 to 25 year-old girls come over to your car as you are packing your shopping into the trunk. They both start wiping your windshield with a rag and Windex, with their breasts almost falling out of their skimpy T-shirts. It is impossible not to look.When you thank them and offer them a tip, they say "No" and instead ask you for a ride to another store.

You agree and they get in the backseat. On the way, they start undressing. Then one of them climbs over into the front seat and starts crawling all over you, while the other one steals your wallet.

I had my wallet stolen January 4th, 9th, 10th, twice on the 15th, 20th, & 24th. Also February 1st, 4th, twice on the 8th, 15th, three times last Saturday and very likely again this upcoming weekend.

So tell your friends to be careful.
P.S. Walmart has wallets on sale for $ 1.99

No no, don't thank me - this is a public service announcement.

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Give Me A Break

Oh, my aching head. (link may require a bit of information from you. tell them you are male, born in 1932, and live in 86001. that should throw them off...)

At 2000 hours, on March 28th, 2008, we are told that the city of Phoenix and all Valley residents "who care to join in" will turn off their lights for one hour.

Give me a freakin' break. The "organizers" are saying this is mostly a "symbolic gesture" meant to show that "each person" can "contribute" to "reducing" their "carbon-dioxide" "emissions".

So will not breathing for an hour. And, if you buy into this whole "man has caused the earth to become overheated" claptrap, perhaps you, too, should join in the "not breathing" crowd. That way, the seeohtwo emissions will be GREATLY reduced, and the rest of us can continue to live on this earth without being bombarded by the media panic-du-jour. (early 1970's - global cooling and the ice age; mid 1970's - population boom and an overpowering of earth's resources, which lead to 1970's - "energy crisis" - etc., etc., ad nauseum ...)

Look, I'm not saying you shouldn't do your part to reduce your energy consumption, but for crying out loud, let's have some common sense here. Turn off your lights when there is sufficient outdoor light to illuminate your area. Turn off lights that aren't being used (you know, like in the room you just left). Unplug electrical zombies that aren't being used - like the microwave, the stereo, the TV, your cell phone wall charger, your electric rechargeable razor after it's charged - they suck power even when you aren't actively "using" them, and that would certainly reduce energy consumption.

(nuh uh, cary - my tv doesn't use any power when it's "off" - that's why it's called "off"!)

(really? how does it know when the remote tells it to turn on? it's called a "wait state", when it's just sitting there, "waiting" for a signal from the remote)

*sigh*

So, Cary - (you ask, hoping i don't drop back into snark mode) how do you save energy?

I've outlined several ways above. Mostly, I try to avoid using electricity where and when possible. But, there are times when I have to use it - like on the computer, or when I'm working in the shop, or when the sun goes down. Other than that, I try to keep my use to a minimum. I do leave my DISH receiver plugged in all the time, though - otherwise the schedule doesn't get updated, and I can't find my favorite races...

I think the number one thing that we, as a people, can do to reduce energy consumption (notice I didn't say anything about impacting the globe here...) is to unplug the "convenience" appliances - the chargers - that come with the mobile technology that is our life now. Just doing that will make a bigger impact than turning your lights off and sitting in the dark for an hour.

clarification: leaving your phone plugged into the charger after it is fully charged is when the electricity is vampired. any electronic item that can be controlled by a remote control device sits in a "wait" state; that is, it uses electricity while scanning for the signal that tells it to turn on. while I have some cfl bulbs in use, i have been reading nasty things about these bulbs - it can take up to ten minutes to reach the brightness of the incandescent it replaced, they contain amounts of mercury so if they break you have a hazmat situation on your hands (according to federal regs, anyway - i remember playing with mercury in science class), also when they break they can send shards farther than an incandescent will, simply because instead of the vacuum in the incandescent the cfl bulbs are pressurized. just thought i'd clear a few things up. thanks for listening.

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

NASCAR and DVR

UPDATE: Both races will run today, 2/25. starting at 1100 MST. Still, no mention anywhere of which network might be carrying the races... I think NASCAR and their broadcast partners need to work on this aspect of the show.

I have Dish Network. The only reason I am paying for this premium service is to be able to watch all of the NASCAR races - the Cup series, the National series, and the Truck series.

Normally, I have no problem at all, no matter when the races are scheduled. I have timers set up to catch the races on FOX, ABC, SPEED, ESPN, ESPN2, the Alternates, and wherever else NASCAR tries to hide them. The timers I have set up start 3 minutes before posted race time, and run an hour (the maximum allowable) past the scheduled end of the race. Like I said, normally it's not a problem.

Tonight I am a little perturbed. Through no fault of NASCAR, I will most likely miss the Cup race, and will be highly likely to miss the National race. The National race was postponed from Saturday due to the rains southern California is getting right now. The original plan was to run the National race an hour after the Cup race completed. That's not going to happen now, because the Cup race was first rain delayed, and then after it got started a crash involving Casey Mears, Dale Jr, Sam Hornish, and one or two others caused the race to be stopped (red-flagged) when Mears' car ended up on it's side with Hornish's car tucked under it and on fire. After and hour and ten minutes or so, the race resumed, and about forty laps later the rain stopped the race again.
I just checked NASCAR.com and they are saying the race will run tonight, with a restart at 0100 EST. That's about 11:00 here, but they failed to mention which channel the race will be run on. There is still no mention. I did find out that the National race will be run on Monday, but again, no mention of the channel.

DISH DVR does not do schedule updates often enough to catch the timers and the new times - so I can either stay up until I find it, and manually record the Cup race, or read about it in the paper tomorrow. Or not, since it's not basketball and there is no way the Arizona Birdcage Liner will hold the delivery for an auto race.

*sigh*

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Red Friday

My cousin, the one who sent me last Friday's funny, sent me this one this week:

=+=+=+=

What? Too many shakes?

UPS - 1, FedEx - 0

Just one - that's all I ask - just let me touch one of them...

Hmmm, let's try spelling first, and then move on to more complicated subjects...

I think it was the FedEx driver:

This wouldn't happen to be by the school that teaches Arithetic, would it?

Sometimes, a name change would be a good idea...

Hey, take me to the cleaners!

Don't rush me - this is a very important decision...

Turns out I can't there from here, anyway.

Little known fact: CMT's new series, My Redneck Wedding, was inspired by this sign:

Oh, the Joys! Oh, the Blessings! Oh, the College Tuition!

Uhm, logic check, lane one ...

Actually, kind of a relief, wouldn't you say?

Take two languages, both with idiosyncrasies, idioms, and a tricky sentence structure, and mix goodly:

The cow jumped over the what?

Hay, Martha! Feed 'em some burritos, and let's go!

I think I know what happened to Mr. FedEx here...

Oh, the shame of not knowing how to react...

I - I - I just don't know what to say here...

Grass? What grass? Oh, I get it - it's one of those preachy, "artsy-fartsy" anti-drug messages, man...

Now, I don't feel so bad for failing physics...

Now hiring for what? Short term employment?

Don't drink and make road signs, you mean...

It must have been the FedEx driver!


=+=+=+=
Have a safe weekend, and come back soon!

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Thursday -not a roundup

My good friend Gawfer and I were chatting on Yahoomessenger (and I will get my sound fixed, so I can enjoy the audibles, Gawf...) when he pointed me to this entry by Cap'n Ed.

Have you gone and read it yet?

If you haven't, the following will make no sense, since I will be referring to it occasionally.

The point being made, and in a limited framework, is valid. Obama is a socialist-taught, -thinking, and -acting person. While the candidate Clinton(s) are trying desperately to make it appear that she has the all-around appeal for everyone AND the experience needed to be President (although Article 2 clearly does not layout any 'requirements' for 'experience' for the office of 'President'), the Obamanation is clamoring to follow the Promising One to a land of Change - although he has never really stated what, exactly, he plans on changing.

His wife, Michelle, seems to have let slip that little secret - he's planning on changing how we, as a nation, will operate. Under his command, of course. Because he knows best.

It really amazes me that all the proponents of socialism never take into consideration that there is not one nation under socialist rule that has successfully remained under socialist rule it's entire existence.

If you read down into the comments, the liberals and leftists take the topic way the heck off into strawman land, but the comment from "Michael_Smith", about the third one into the discussion, makes a very valid and sobering point: (my comments are in parentheses) (<--like these-->)

"Remember that the complete name of the Nazi party was the “National Socialist Worker’s Party of Germany”. Here is a portion of the Nazi party platform:

“We ask that the government undertake the obligation above all of providing citizens with adequate opportunity for employment and earning a living.” (this used to be called government interference with the free market, but I'm just a dumb ol' cowboy, and what could I possible know?)

“The activities of the individual must not be allowed to clash with the interests of the community, but must take place within its confines and be for the good of all. Therefore, we demand: ... an end to the power of the financial interests.” (can you say 'political correctness carried to its logical conclusion?' i knew you could...)

“We demand profit sharing in big business.” (i think Billary has proposed this too..)

“We demand a broad extension of care for the aged.” (*cough*socialized medicine*cough*)

“In order to make possible to every capable and industrious [citizen] the attainment of higher education and thus the achievement of a post of leadership, the government must provide an all-around enlargement of our entire system of public education ....“ ("And when everyone is super, then no one will be" - Syndrome)

“We demand the education at government expense of gifted children of poor parents.” (and this will be paid for by ... ?)

“The government must undertake the improvement of public health—by protecting mother and child, by prohibiting child labor.... by the greatest possible support for all clubs concerned with the physical education of youth.” (whatever happened to personal responsibility and self-accountability?)

“[We] combat the... materialistic spirit within and without us, and are convinced that a permanent recovery of our people can only proceed from within on the foundation of The Common Good Before the Individual Good.” (sounds religious, without any mention of God, since man is the highest power in this scenario)

Modern liberalism advocates all of this.

I think he said it just about as well as anything I've read lately.

Oh, I'm sorry - for the lefties reading this, a point was made - Modern Liberalism = Socialism.

Socialism is a failed economic theoretical model. (For my lurking economist reader, please bring proof that it works before you go spouting that I don't know what I'm talking about on this subject. "Proof" would mean actual concrete evidence that a country can support a socialistic economy (what's mine is everyone's and what's everyone's is mine) for more than, let's say, ten years. By that time, the people who have a work ethic are working harder than ever and getting less and less in return, because the people who DON'T have a work ethic have figured out that the government is going to take care of them whether they work or not.)

Less workers = less stuff produced = less stuff to share. (hey, libs - that's another lesson. write that one down, it'll be on the quiz later.)

All that to say this: The two-party system has screwed us, people. We have the unenviable position of choosing for President a liberal, socialist, career politician. None of these traits is admirable, in the context of a representative republic, and the second one could be the straw.

(think about it, libbies. you'll get it sooner or later.)

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Tuesday Stuff

TMBWitW had some vacation days she used on Thursday and Friday - and she had yesterday off, so I wasn't very active on the 'net. Deal with it. No offense, but I would rather spend time with her than ya'll. We even went to the Wildlife World Zoo in Litchfield Park on Sunday with our friends.

I'm attempting to offload some stuff that seems to be gathering dust around here. Craigslist seems to be the best bet for me, since PayPal and eBay can't seem to find my bank in order to verify my account. (for the record, I still bank with a rather unknown, hard-to-find place called "Bank of America")

What am I offering, you ask?

A piano (George Steck, upright or console, depending on how pianophile-ish you are):


An electric cement mixer:

An electric lawn mower:


A Grumpy shirt, with the namepatch mis-applied:



If you are interested, drop me a comment or e-mail (top of left column is the contact info). Otherwise, I'm going to have to fight with PayPal about whether or not Bank of America is a real bank.

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Red Friday

I am looking very stylin' in my "Patriot" shirt today.

With a few errands to run while TMBWitW is enjoying her vacation time, I came home to this e-mail from my cousin:

=+=+=+=
"I ran over my brother because the voices told me to."


Pick the month you were born:

January-------I kicked
February------I loved
March---------I karate chopped
April---------I licked
May-----------I jumped on
June----------I smelled
July----------I did the Macarena with
August--------I had lunch with
September-----I danced with
October-------I sang to
November------I yelled at
December------I ran over

Pick the day (number) you were born on:
01-------a birdbath
02-------a monster
03-------a phone
04-------a fork
05-------a snowman
06-------a gangster
07-------my mobile phone
08-------my dog
09-------my best friends' boyfriend
10-------my neighbor
11-------my science teacher
12-------a banana
13-------a fireman
14-------a stuffed animal
15-------a goat
16-------a pickle
17-------your mom
18-------a spoon
19-------a smurf
20-------a baseball bat
21-------a ninja
22-------Chuck Norris
23-------a noodle
24-------a squirrel
25-------a football player
26-------my sister
27-------my brother
28-------an iPod
29-------a surfer
30-------a llama
31-------A homeless guy

Pick the color of shirt you are wearing:

White---------because I'm cool like that
Black---------because that's how I roll.
Pink----------because I'm NOT crazy.
Red-----------because the voices told me to.
Blue----------because I'm sexy and I do what I want
Green---------because I think I need some serious help.
Purple--------because I'm AWESOME!
Gray----------because Big Bird said to and he's my leader.
Yellow--------because someone offered me 1,000,000 dollars
Orange--------because my family thinks I'm stupid anyway.
Brown---------because I can.
Other---------because I'm a Ninja!
None----------because I can't control myself!

Now type out the sentence you ended up with. Leave it here in a comment for me, and/or send it on to everyone you wish to annoy.

=+=+=+=

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Happy Valentine's Day

To each and every one of you kind souls that visit my little corner, I wish you a happy Valentine's day - and all the chocolate you can stomach.

Please take the time to peruse my usual reads on my blogroll - I know I will!

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Just a Word From A Conservative

I got this in e-mail today, from this guy, who posted about it and forwarded it on from this guy:

February 12, 2008

Dear Fellow Conservative;

As an American Conservative, I have some sad news to tell you today. I also have some good news that I will share with you.

You have probably noticed that your only choice for president, in this election, is a liberal. I know, some will try to claim some modest level of conservatism but a careful look under the cloak of half truths you will find a liberal standing before you. Recognizing this fact and preparing for the inevitable, barring some miracle, will only help us to rise to the challenge. Now is not the time to turn away or blindly thrust your head in the sand. There is work to be done.

Our congress is another disaster. It cannot accomplish a single task and has stalled our nation. This may too fall to the liberals who are so eager for power. They will quickly remind you of their superior intellect and their determination to save the world through the failed philosophy of socialism. They may strive to make some dramatic changes to our great nation and if we sit back and do nothing, they will succeed.

The good news is that there is a chink in the armor of liberalism. Liberalism demands power and dominance and our constitution puts us in charge. Oh, they will try and put you at ease and say they got it all under control. They may even try to silence the critiques of their grand schemes, but as long as we stick together they will remain impotent.

Keeping power is more important to the liberal then their ideals. They will sacrifice any and all who stand in the way of power. They must come back to "we the people" to retain that brass ring. If we turn our backs and walk away from the right to vote that so many have died for, we have let them win.

Now is our finest hour. We the Moral Conservative Majority have the ultimate trump card in our hand. We have the capacity to dethrone them and there is nothing they can do to keep us from it. We have the election process and the impeachment process at our disposal. All we need to do is stay organized and informed.

We have the ability to feed and support each other knowing that, no one of us has all the answers. The liberals in their superior then thou throne rooms have only themselves. It has been measured that conservatives make up more than three-fourths of our great nation. We come in every political bent; Republican, Democrat, Independent, Libertarian, Constitutional, Green, and so many more.

Set aside your political affiliation and take a moment to focus on your core conservative beliefs. We are the people of the United States of America and we can set the agenda. Let us start by unifying in conservative locations, both in body and on the Internet. Each of us has unique talents and knowledge that can help all of us keep our government in check. If each of us does three things we can make a difference and save this nation. All three of these things are in everyone's reach no matter your race religion or financial standing.

1. Stay informed of what is going on around you.

2. Share and interpret this information with everyone and anyone you can.

3. Write letters and hold your representatives feet to the fire, from the neighborhood watch to the President of the United States.

The first one should be a breeze; you live and work where you are. You know those around you and what goes on where you live. You don't need to stretch much to make a difference.

The second one will require you to actually act on what you believe and know. No matter your specialty, interpret and report to fellow conservatives what you see and hear. The liberal media isn't going to help us stay informed. We will have to blog and spend time on forums to pass information along. We will have to spend a few minutes each day getting the word out and taking in what is going on elsewhere that may affect us. Use the knowledge and skill of fellow conservatives to keep you informed.

The third one will be our shining star, reminding the pandering power mongers who is really in charge. They won't make a move against a unified body of conservatives bent on taking away the only thing that really matters to them, power. They will follow lock step as a bull firmly grasped by the ring in his nose, if we stay engaged.

I would like to take this moment to recommend a place to share and build conservative unity, the
American Conservative Forum. This is not just a fun hang out, but a place for serious conservatives who want to take America back and hold our leaders accountable. A place for people who are willing to do their part and use their God given talents and skills to keep our government in check, by informing the rest of us so we can act in mass.

Many of us have become disenfranchised from our government and we have cast our one vote away. It is no longer about one vote. It is about all of us, as one, casting a vote for conservative principals totaling epic proportions of conservative presence in American Politics. We have failed to unify for almost one hundred years and we have been given the government we deserve.

Are YOU ready to take it back?

Take your first step. Post, print or email this message to everyone you know. Join the
American Conservative Forum and let's start restoring America.

Sincerely,

ablur

Links:

American Conservative Forum -- http://amcon.proboards99.com/index.cgi

My Web Home – http://ablursspot.blogspot.com

Folks, this is a request for all CONSERVATIVES, no matter their voting preference, to band together and take back the reigns of power from those who would strangle this country with them.

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Monday? *blink* *blink* Really?

I have misplaced most of the weekend. Actually, I know where I was, I just don't know what happened to the time. I've been fighting this cold, and Tylenol makes a really good medicine that knocks me out and lets my body heal on it's own. So, I was sleeping most of the weekend. I go see the Doctor today. I sure hope he has something good for me.

While I shave, I have time to think about things. Mostly, I am concentrating on not slicing my own throat, but there are stretches where I am not near my throat, and I can think - and this weekend, due to all the sleeping being done in the name of physical health, I was thinking about Newton's Law. You know, the one that says "A body at rest remains at rest unless acted upon by an unbalanced force?" Well, I came up with Cary's Theorem: A body, resting, attracts other bodies that want to rest, usually canine in form.

We have five dogs, and four of them are able to get on the bed under their own power. Logan has polyneuropathy, and is unable to jump up on the bed, but the rest sure like to join me when I'm trying to nap. And, when the smallest dog is 35 pounds, and the largest is 105, that doesn't leave a lot of room for me. At night, we have to strictly enforce the two dog rule - only two dogs allowed, and then only at the foot of the bed. Otherwise, there's no room for humans.

How was your weekend?

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Red Friday

You know what to do.

Don't let the liberals talk you out of it!

Thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Thursday Roundup

I know I usually have a nice roundup of my usual reads, but between my sinuses acting way the heck up and Little Miss not feeling well, I'm not spending a lot of time on the 'puter today.

Please do me a favor and visit the fine folks in the blogroll in the left margin - no, down a little further - a little further... there. No fancy borders around it or anything, just Blogrolling's basic list of my reads and whether or not they've been updated lately.

Thank you for understanding, thank you for stopping by, God bless you all, Wear Red on Fridays, and support Warriors for Innocence!

Buddy Went Home

Last night (2/4/08) about 2100, my sister-in-law called, saying that V's dog, Buddy, was having problems. They had called their friend, M, who is a vet in another town, and M told them to get Buddy to a vet right away. Buddy couldn't urinate, and hadn't been able to for a couple of days.

V ended up taking Buddy to the Emergency Animal Clinic, where an x-ray revealed the presence of a mass, about the size of a softball, around his small intestine. It was large enough in his body that his colon was moved to the other side from where it should have been.

Sister-in-law called me about 0215 and said that V was still there, and relayed the above information to me in an emotional garble. I offered to go up and be there for her, and Sis agreed. I told TMBWitW where I was headed, and I could feel my wife's emotions welling up, even in the dark.

I arrived at the EAC and walked into the exam room where V was. She was crying, and I reached out and hugged her. She said I didn't have to be there, and I told her I sure wasn't leaving now. The doctor walked in right after me, and laid out the options. First, prednazone to reduce the swelling would allow Buddy to urinate, but the doctor said his quality of life would not be improved; Buddy was in pain - and this would only delay the inevitable for about a week. The second option was to euthanize him. V made the tough call - she didn't want him to be in any more pain. This doesn't mean the decision was easy - far from it.

Buddy was her puppy. He had grown from a gangly, separation-anxiety ball of terror into the most loving and devoted dog any person could wish for. Anytime we would visit, Buddy would try to climb in my lap and give me big, slobbery kisses. He loved to just sit next to you so you could casually scratch behind his ears, or just rub his head. He loved to play fetch. Buddy (a retriever mix) and his best bud Cooper (a dachshund) were also inseparable. When Buddy went to the groomers, Cooper would fret until he got back. When Buddy and V went for a walk, Cooper would watch for their return.

Buddy came into the room, and the vet tech laid down a sheet. V and I loved on Buddy as much as we could. V finally looked at me and asked, "How do you tell someone you're ready to let him go?" I told her I didn't know. I went to the door, and signaled to the tech that V was ready.

Buddy laid down, like the good boy he is, on V's command. The vet inserted the needle, and Buddy gently slipped away. It was 0308. The world seemed a lot emptier all of a sudden.

Just this side of heaven is a place called Rainbow Bridge.

When an animal dies that has been especially close to someone here, that pet goes to Rainbow Bridge. There are meadows and hills for all of our special friends so they can run and play together. There is plenty of food, water and sunshine, and our friends are warm and comfortable.

All the animals who had been ill and old are restored to health and vigor. Those who were hurt or maimed are made whole and strong again, just as we remember them in our dreams of days and times gone by. The animals are happy and content, except for one small thing; they each miss someone very special to them, who had to be left behind.

They all run and play together, but the day comes when one suddenly stops and looks into the distance. His bright eyes are intent. His eager body quivers. Suddenly he begins to run from the group, flying over the green grass, his legs carrying him faster and faster.

You have been spotted, and when you and your special friend finally meet, you cling together in joyous reunion, never to be parted again. The happy kisses rain upon your face; your hands again caress the beloved head, and you look once more into the trusting eyes of your pet, so long gone from your life but never absent from your heart.

Then you cross Rainbow Bridge together....

(Author unknown)





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