"You can never get enough of what you don't need to make you happy." - Eric Hoffer

Only seven more no-shopping days remaining...

It was about ten years ago that I completely stopped shopping for anything related to Christmas, except perhaps a box of cards at the dollar store and a few extra ingredients for Christmas cookies or a special dinner some years.

What a relief. Besides saving a lot of money, there is no need to go wade into the grotesque annual orgy of hyper-consumption with no idea what kind of crap to buy for people who most likely needed nothing that I might provide as a gift. I also appreciate the halt to receiving unwanted items that increase the already intolerable clutter of my own life.

Check out Buy Nothing Christmas on the web, and consider trying this out. It can really improve the holidays for everyone...

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Here is the current craigslist ad for current foster Foxie, discussed in the previous post:

Foxie is about a one year old small (20 lbs or so) girl who might be a Queensland Heeler/Border Collie/Fox Terrier mix. She was rescued from an out-of-state where she was at risk for being euthanized due to overcapacity conditions. She has been in foster care here in Fort Collins, where she has been an absolute delight for her temporary guardian family.

Foxie learned in one day how to use a dog door to the back yard, and has learned to sit for treats. She enjoys spending time in her crate when she tires of playing. She's always ready to romp in the back yard or go for a walk around the neighborhood. Her foster people have been taking her on two half-mile walks a day, and she is very easy to handle on a leash. She appears to be in good health, and is current on her vaccinations.

Foxie is not a very shy dog, she is only slightly hesitant with new people, and so far has not showed any signs of agression to people or other animals. When an unrecognized person walks in the front door unexpectedly she may growl or bark a bit (as you would expect from any dog) but that passes quickly. She quickly bonded with her foster caregivers, and seems to enjoy greeting new people, including small children. So far has been observed to be a very energetic, playful, and loving dog. She has seen a cat a foot away through a glass storm door, and only seemed mildly interested - we did not observe any predator behavior. Other than that she is still untested with cats. Foxie is house-trained and has had no accidents in foster care. As with any young dog new to an environment, she should be supervised closely and shown where she should go for a while at first. She would do best with a yard to play in, as she enjoys running around free and this burns up some of her pent-up energy.

Foxie is a pretty quiet dog - she rarely barks. She has been well behaved in the house, where she chews on toys and rawhides that are provided for her. She seems intelligent and eager to please, and loves affection.

If you would like more information on Foxie, or if you would like to meet her to see if this sweet adorable little dog might be a good match for your home and family, please call/text Ashley at 973-452-5127 or email apuppysvoicefc@gmail.com. A Puppy's Voice has a website at http://apuppysvoice.com. You can learn about adopting at the web site, and even download and complete the foster or adoption application.

Foxie is a wonderful, good-natured girl who deserves a great forever home. She will certainly be missed a lot by her foster family.

Thanks for taking an interest in Foxie!

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We took the current foster dog for a walk in a nature preserve a few days ago. Someone had installed a bench as a memorial there, with an inscription you can mostly make out in the accompanying photo - it's repeated below...

"A dragonfly lights beside us like a sunbeam, and for a moment its glory and beauty belong to the world. But then it flies again, and though we wish it could have stayed, we feel lucky to have seen it".

This certainly applies to my current feelings about most of the fosters I've had converting to a lifetime adoption. This little dog 'Foxie' especially is so great, I was stuggling with the idea of her leaving for an adoption family. The same struggle has occured with several past dogs, and each time I have to consider how great it is to share some time with them, then let them go. I also need to consider the value I might continue to provide for future foster animals. There are never enough foster homes to meet the needs, and the rescue people are often overextended.

As I've sorted this out, I have to acknowledge that I'm still not prepared to begin another lifetime commitment to a dog, no matter how great a short-term companion they are. After numerous 5-10 day visits I still probably need to try a longer period of living in Mexico to see how I feel about eventually living there as an expat. It's so hard for me to get to the point where I even attempt a month(s)-long visit that adopting a dog would probably disrupt the process entirely. I have a low tolerance for complexity and hassles, and I need to minimize complications to facilitate moving on to whatever lies ahead as life here in the house in Fort Collins winds down. It has occured to me that intolerance of hassles and complications in everyday life might be a disqualifying temperment for Mexican life to begin with, given that things don't always unfold smoothly there.

It also occurs to me that my foster dog relationships are probably not unlike that that of a grandparent who adores their grandchildren - it's great to have a weeks-long visit with the little darlings, but if the parents were to expire in a freeway encounter with a semi on the way to pick them up, there might be some altered feelings...

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As I listen to the screeching and braying of the candidates positioning themselves for the election of 2012, forgive me if I disassociate and imagine an alternate reality...



This is the climactic scene in Chaplin's scathing indictment of fascism, which he wrote, produced, directed, and starred in. He played two parts - the dictator (modeled after you-know-who), and a simple barber. In this scene, the barber is mistaken for and stands in for the dictator, and delivers what appears to have been an impassioned and personal appeal to reason and decency by Chaplin.

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I put a new Craigslist ad up today for our little foster dog Annie. She has been doing great here, and I think she could do well any time now in the right 'forever home'...

Annie is a very shy but loving and adorable adult (maybe 2-4 years old) Australian Shepherd mix who was rescued from an out-of-state high-kill shelter in an undernourished state, with a litter of puppies. When her puppies were weaned, another litter of two-week-old puppies was rescued after losing their mother, and Annie accepted and nursed them too. Now they are also weaned, and Annie is in a new foster home to prepare for her turn at adoption.

It seems obvious that Annie didn't have a very secure life until now - she was at first extremely shy and fearful of new people and situations. This has always been demonstrated by very submissive behavior, and we have never seen her show any aggression toward her rescue or foster folks. Fortunately, we have also seen Annie learn very rapidly that there are good people she can trust, and she is making wonderful progress in foster care, gaining confidence every day. She is learning how enjoyable it can be to be walked on a leash, and she is going on several walks a day, experiencing all sorts of new things while learning there isn't much to be afraid of. Her health appears to be good, and she is up to date with her vaccinations. Her current weight of around 40 pounds is probably close to her nominal weight - she is not a very large girl, although we're not sure we want to encourage her tryouts as a lap dog!

Annie has been observed to be energetic and playful, and has done well with other dogs, although she did show a little guarding behavior toword other dogs when fed with them nearby. We haven't observed her yet with many children, but except for being a little mouthy at times while playing, she has been very gentle with people in general. She is untested with cats so far, but hasn't shown anuy interest in the squirrels that share her foster home yard. Annie is housetrained, and behaves well in her foster home. She does occasionally 'counter surf', so we are careful not to tempt her with things left out until she learns this is not OK. She has not chewed anything except the big rolled rawhides she enjoys. Annie seems quite intelligent and eager to please. She has a delightful personality and as she has learned quickly that her foster people are not to be feared, she spends much of her time offering and seeking affection. If you are a patient, gentle, and compassionate dog lover, Annie could be a wonderful companion for you. After only a few days, her new foster people know they will really miss her when she finds her forever home.

If you would like more information on Annie, or if you would like to meet her to see if you might be a good match for a long-term foster or forever home for this sweet little girl, please call/text Ashley at 973-452-5127 or email apuppysvoicefc@gmail.com. A Puppy's Voice has a website at http://apuppysvoice.org. You can learn about adopting at the web site, and even download and complete the foster or adoption application.

Thanks for taking an interest in little Annie!

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As the Occupy Wall Street folks step up their ideological (so far) assault on the oligarchy, our esteemed fellow citizens on the right seem to be scornfully submissive of this effort. I would have thought they would see some common ground with the TP'ers, but then the 1%ers have always been fabulously successful in motivating a bunch of the other 99% to work feverishly against their own self-interest.

I will just submit the following multi-purpose thought from dear Albert Einstein...""The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything."

I also wonder if it is time to franchise my idea of a chain of Pitchforks n' Torches retail stores...

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After the last foster dog Riley, I thought we would decline any further responsibilities for some time, as she was a difficult case and I feared we would not see her successfully adopted out - the outcome we always strive for. Fortunately, she was adopted by a great family in Denver, and reports are that things are going well there.

Well, after a few weeks we received an inquiry from the rescue director about a timid Australian shepherd mix named Annie that was momma to two litters. Her own litter was just weaned, when they rescued another two-week old litter from a kennel where the momma was put down. Annie accepted them and nursed them to the point where they too were weaned, and now it is time for her to be socialized and made ready for adoption.

We accepted the responsibility, and arranged for Annie to be brought to our house today. When she arrived with the rescue director, I was surprised to see how extremely timid she was.

She stayed glued to her rescue lady (who fostered her with the puppies) in our yard, and avoided any contact with us. After a while, the rescue lady had to leave, and she was in the yard with us trying to make friends. For now, it was the best we could do to get her to creep up and snatch a bit of cheese from our outstretched hand.

It will be an interesting week (the length of our original commitment), seeing if we can win her over a bit, and gain her confidence...

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