Our Little Zoo

 
But it's such a lively little zoo,

and always something to do.

The entertainment is fierce, 

and the barking can pierce.

What was I thinking , my dear!!!

Yes, it's true. We are up to 3 dogs, a cat and some strays that hang nearby for sympathy feedings. How did this happen? Well let me introduce them while I explain.

ANNIE, a Black Mouth Cur was adopted in Florida and has been a faithful companion. She is currently 9 years old with a reported life span of 12-16 years. Rescued at age 1, Annie had a rough start in life. It's obvious she was either shot at, lived through a hurricane on the street or just treated badly by humans, but our loving home has healed her heart for humans, ... storms, fireworks and gun fire, ... not so much. She is in fact a fierce opponent to animals that run. She is fond of chasing anything that will climb a tree and she will sit at the bottom until the cows come home. 

We didn't know she was a Black Mouth Cur until a couple years ago, when a visiting Floridian identified her breed. After researching the characteristics of that breed (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blackmouth_Cur) it all began to make sense. 

Bless her heart, all this time, she has been treeing prey and waiting for her hunter to come & kill it for her, but since we didn't know that's what she was doing she has lived a very frustrating life. 

She has learned not to attack "select" indoor cats. Wifi taught her that. No, Wifi belongs to a friend of ours in Hopkins and she has her own story, but we'll save that for another time.

KHAN, as in Genghis Khan. Yes this big boy is a Rotterman (Rottweiler- Doberman Mix). A local boy brought him to us when he was 4 mos old. He couldn't afford to feed him. We indeed had been looking for a large breed guard dog so Charles became his master. He is currently almost 3 years old. The first year he grew in height & length, the second year in girth and this coming year is when his head will widen and more closely match the size of the rest of him. WHAT A POWERHOUSE!! He is still a puppy and has no idea how big & powerful he is. 

He loves the water and if allowed will spend hours stalking and chasing fish. Our front gate is 5 feet tall and from a standing position he can jump straight up til his head and part of his chest clears the the top of the gate. Needless to say, we don't have trouble with strangers approaching the gate.Good thing he can't get a running start!! His musculature is massive and I wouldn't want to be caught in the grip of his jaws. 

As protective and loyal as he is, he has his loving side. Every night he wants his "puppy massage". It starts with the muscle on top of his head and the back of his neck (we spend a lot of time there), then down his spine. By the time I get to his hips, his knees get weak and he slithers to the floor. He has the softest most expressive eyes. He's a talker too, in a variety of sounds he will carry on full sentences. Usually pertaining to, "But why can't I come on the porch?" and "I just need one minute alone with the white fur ball, just one minute, P-L-E-A-S-E!!!"

BRUCE LEE - Yeah, he's just a big dog in a little Toy Poodle body!! Bruce belongs to some friends of ours that left Belize (but promise to come back for him). We consider him our canine house guest. His papers say he's a Toy Poodle, but I think he's got a wee bit of Terrier in him. OH, & he speaks Spanish. That's right, his female human owner taught him all his commands in Spanish, so to stop his barking, jumping, licking & pestering, the command is "THAT"S ENOUGH" In Spanish it's "YA" (pronounced JA)!! Works most of the time. "AFUERA" means OUT. That's about all you need really. We taught the others SIT, STAY & DOWN. Bruce doesn't know any of those commands, but he's only a house guest, right??  

He does get his biweekly bath and grooming, courtesy of moi. Such a tolerant dog, it really is a pleasure and he smells so nice afterward. I wish there was a real groomer around here. I would love to see him trimmed like a REAL POODLE.  Bruce thinks he can take on Khan, which is hysterical, growling & showing teeth, running to hide or getting caught by Khan and being bulldozed into the bushes. Khan doesn't hurt him, just puts him in his place from time to time. Annie has no patience with Bruce, he's way to high energy of a dog and she's an old broad that doesn't like to be disturbed!!

SIMON - Our most recent acquisition. Simon is a stray, Siamese mix Belizean kitten, probably no more than about 3 months old. He was rescued by Charles from the bushes outside our gate where he was starving and scared. In the week that we have had him, he has doubled his weight and looks like he will survive, so off to the vet we will go to get shots, etc next week.We have needed a mouser for a while now and Simon will serve well in that respect.

In the mean time he has Charles & I perfectly trained already. His cries usually mean, "feed me" or "help me find my litter pan because you moved it again, stupid human!!" Well, in my own defense it's usually only in one of two places. On the porch or inside the sliding glass door (because Khan is on the porch). Simon's advantage is being small enough to fit into a mouse hole, or other similar small space and his ability to jump to high places. This is particularly helpful when Simon is tired of playing with Bruce Lee. It's true!! 

Bruce Lee & Simon have a great ol time playing Chase, Stalk & Pounce. Most of the time Simon has the upper hand. It's quite entertaining! None of this escapes Khan's watchful eye though. Through the screen doors he watches as they run through the house and just doesn't understand why he can't join the fun. 

Actually, he did on one occasion and I thought he was going to devour poor Simon. It was all I could do to pull him off and drag him out the door with a stern punishment for attacking what is mine. I told him, "NO Khan this is MINE! Of course since then he has made it his life mission to "EAT THE FUR BALL" the first chance he gets.

The others,..... well there have been several stray and locally owned (but not well cared for) dogs that know they can find safe harbor and a cup of food from time to time. In gratitude they assist with guarding the outside of the gate. 

Two at the moment have started collecting frequent visitor points. Red (the local hotel dog) and Lela (don't know who's dog she is these days). They are not any trouble but we will certainly be happy when the pack of 10 dogs hanging out with a female in heat breaks up. It's loud and upsetting to everyone, including Our Little Zoo!!

Never Forget or Always Remember?

Never forget for most of us is an individual action so it truly only applies to people born prior to 1999. I include the 2 year old's born to the families of anyone that was lost that day because they will be taught to never forget. Never forgetting is also directly proportional to the effect it had on you personally. What exactly is it that we will never forget? Mostly, every emotion that was seared into our memories & hearts.

SHOCK and disbelief that something so horrible was happening. It's that slow motion break down that occurs when your mind says, "What is happening? An accident, a horrible accident, .... No, it seems more than that."This can't be happening, not here, not to us!"  "WHY is this happening?"  

The people around you start to react as well. Maybe you are in a location with people you need to keep calm. You go into control mode. Keep people calm, hysteria will only complicate what needs to happen. Information, you need more information, distraction, provide distraction with a promise of more information as it is available. But that only last a very short while, because the additional information strikes at the core of all that you know and took for granted about living in a free and protected nation.

FEAR sets in because you see or hear the events unfolding not just in New York, but in Washington, D.C. and Pennsylvania. "Where else is this going to happen?" "Where are my children, parents, family, friends?" "Are they there, will it happen here? For maybe the first time in your life you feel uncertain of the security of the land you live in."Am I safe where I am, should I be someplace else?" You start calling everyone you know, your family first, within an hour the phone lines can not support the load.

ISOLATION in a crowd of people because the people you need & want to be with are your family and you know that's not possible in the immediate future. You immediately start to pray (actually you started an hour ago in whispers only God could hear, but hear he did).

HOW could this happen?  We live in the UNITED STATES of AMERICA. Land of the FREE, .... and very soon the phrase "Home of the Brave" is real, being played out before your eyes that seep tears for the tragedy of it all. Every word of what you have just read was also true for the almost 3,000 people who died that day and the millions that were there, physically, mentally and spiritually. It was true for the people in the planes as they came to the realization of what was occurring. It was true for the people in the buildings and people on the streets. It was true for the people in their homes, at thier work places, in schools, in stores, at the post office, in cars, buses, trains & airports. The uncertainty of continued life, liberty and pursuit of happiness was at the doorstep of this nation.

So what YOU will "Never forget" is one thing. What YOU remember is another thing. One catch phrase I saw was, "Never Forget means  Never Let it Happen Again"  There are countries in other parts of the world that have experienced war in their homeland for centuries, ongoing loss of life and destruction of homes, businesses & lives. Political Wars, Territorial wars,  Drug wars, Mafia wars, Religious wars, Civil wars, Family Wars.

The aftermath of what happened on September 11, 2001 showed America to be what it is at it's best; Patriotic, Unified, and Willing to Protect the very essence of what our founding fathers wrote about in The Declaration of Independence and our Constitution. 

Fourteen years later and our country is more divided than ever and its sad, very sad. I pray unity for our country, I pray for the families of those lives lost in the September 11th attack on America and I pray that every American REMEMBERS and prays with me. 

What is the purpose of history if not to learn by? How do you teach patriotism?  What has 9-11 taught us and why are we not dedicated to passing on to the next generation a better world than was handed to us?

Now I Understand: Simplicity and OCD

As the sun crest the horizon, the only part of my body awake is my bladder. That's usually anywhere between 4:30am and 6am. Once my feet hit the floor, our little canine house guest contributes to  my awareness with a bounty of energy, tail wagging and soft kisses. On occasion I disappoint him by going back to sleep, but the majority of time I am up for the day. Glasses go on my face and flip flops on my feet. Turn off outside lights, let the small jumping, tail wagging beast out & get a tall glass of water and on to the front porch.

The front porch is one of my favorite places. Concrete half way up & screen on 3 sides to the ceiling. Two layers of screen go on porches: Mesh & the heavier square wire for reinforcement. This double layer puts me in stealth mode while on the porch. People walking by can't really see if you are on the porch or not. I like that. I can watch Corozal wake up without being disturbed. It's my quiet time.

While the little energetic canine beast is having his outside time, the other two enjoy a couple hours sleeping heavily on the porch, a reward for having been on watch all nite outside.

There is a stillness that early. It's relaxing yet invigorating as the sun continues to rise, the breeze starts to massage the leaves & branches of the foliage and the sounds of town start to creep in. Tennis shoes hitting the pavement as the early morning runners & walkers course the bay front road, voices in conversation sharing thoughts while exercising their legs & heart. Roosters start to rouse the neighborhood and the waves wash up on the rocks in a rhythmic cadence. In the distance you can hear the bus terminal awaken as the buses start their daily runs, transporting a large part of the population to destinations north and south.

A sound from inside the house and the alert ears plus wagging tails of all the canine family  members, indicates that "Mister" is awake. Treats are issued and the coffee grinder announces that the aroma of fresh brewed Belize coffee is on it's way. The bed gets made, an outdoor alarm buzzes as Mister opens the storage unit (Khan's favorite hang out during the day) and the sound of the Thunderbolt fast water taxi tells me it's 7am.

Mr. Gilharry rides by on his bike to his workplace where he picks up fresh made meat pies that he sells throughout town and the night watchman from Help Age returns to his home. School children will start to fill the streets, walking or riding their bike, backpacks full of knowledge they have learned, are learning or will soon be learning. Mom's, dad's, aunts and uncles escort them safely to the school yard and proceed to jobs or home to start their day.

This existence is simple, but consistent. Seems I like it that way now more than ever. In years gone past, I struggled with the lack of spontaneity in my parents lives and wondered where I got it from, for truly there was a time I lived a life full of spontaneity. The truth is they had it at some point and settled into a reliable routine that gave them a sense of security, purpose & fulfillment. I know this thing, as I have found it for myself. List are made & checked off, chores get done early while it's cool, errands get run and then it's lunchtime. The day has a better outcome when a nap follows lunch and the most productive part of my day is over. Afternoon brings activities I enjoy, be it club meetings or visiting with friends. 

The vast range of pinks, reds, oranges, purples & blues in the sky says it's time to think about dinner and by the time the street lights come on, I am safely settled in, as is most of the town. Weekends have a different flavor and set of sounds, but we'll save that for another blog. 

Suffice it to say, NOW I UNDERSTAND, but even in my OCD driven routine, I generally stop & smell the roses, then pick them and bring them in the house!

Note of credit to Dave Rider who took the sunrise picture.