Hail the new year, lads and lasses.
This is the usual time when we all sit around scratching our heads and asking, "Where has the time gone?" and as always, getting no real answer. Time comes and goes of its own accord, no matter how we set the clocks, but that, as we say in the South, is a whole nother story.
So. 2011. I lost several friends to cancer, including my dog. I lost my job, making me unemployed for the first time ever in my adult life. Presidential campaigning is going on and people are kvetching about the same things they kvetch about every election: jobs, the economy, civil rights, etc. You'd think by now we'd have figured out how to elect people who could solve some of these problems, but I digress.
All the fuss over Happy Holidays vs. Merry Christmas has worn me slap out. Really, people? I'm sure you have something better to do with your time than fuss about how someone wants to wish you well. It's a courtesy that we wish each other well at all; why complain about it? Smile and say Thank You and get on with it. I've said before, if it's important to you to keep Christ in Christmas, then do something Christ would have done instead of getting your knickers in a twist about greetings. That cashier at the MegaLoMart who wished you Season's Greetings may be working three jobs because her husband got laid off and hers is the only income they have to provide even a tiny bit of Christmas joy to their kids. You never know what someone's story is, so why not keep Christ in Christmas by showing a little compassion to people? It neither picks your pocket nor breaks your leg. And to go one step further, as Ebenezer Scrooge once said, why not keep Christmas in your heart all year long? Why wait till December to be nice to folks? Compassion and generosity know no season, because there is always someone in need somewhere, even if all they need is a friendly smile and a sincere "Thank you."
That's enough of that, so let's change the subject to PUPPIES! As you know, Mister and I were heartbroken when our pal Sampson died suddenly in October. It was the first time in 20 years we didn't have a dog in our house. I hated it. I could have gone out the next week and brought home a puppy, but Mister wasn't quite ready, and fall really is our busiest time of the year, so we waited. On December 10, the day of a full moon and a lunar eclipse, we brought a puppy home from Metro Animal Control and named her Luna. I was so happy I started crying right there in the Animal Control lobby, and the front desk lady asked, "Are y'all okay?" Yes ma'am, we are absolutely, unequivocally fine. Do not be alarmed.
One week later, Luna started vomiting pretty badly. I took her to the vet the next morning, and to my great horror and disappointment, she tested positive for parvo, in spite of already having two rounds of vaccine. Turns out, young pups aren't really immune until they've had the whole series of vaccines and given their little pup bodies time to build up antibodies to the virus. I was devastated. I thought, surely we did not bring this little sassy puppy home with us just so she could die from a horrible virus.
Mister and I were on pins and needles for a week while Luna was at the vet, getting IV fluids and lots of attention. I have to give some big props to the staff at PetMed in Antioch, where we've taken all our pets for the last 20 years. They really stepped up to the plate and took great care of Luna. She came home just a couple days before Christmas and while she's still recovering, she's eating well and acting like a normal puppy - zooming all around the yard, trying to put everything in her mouth, then taking a huge nap. The cats still aren't sure what to think, but they seem to be coming around.
I am ready to put 2011 in the rearview mirror and drive on to 2012. I wish all of you happiness and prosperity in the new year, and I'll leave you with this little rhyme I've always found most inspirational:
May you always have a reason to dance,
And never find frogs in your underpants.
Till next time ---
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