ASBO-BEAR? (Oh, No; I Hope NOT!)

This could be subtitled "Things I Learned from British Bloggers." This is a bit old, and a bit odd, but I wanted to publish it anyhow. Peculiar creatures, these Bears.

While I'm of British stock, our family is multi-generational Canadian. I know lots of British history (like the fact that the Tudors were Welsh, and that 1066 was the last successful invasion of Britain). I know something about British politics (oh dear, poor Mr. Brown — no, we're NOT related!). I know what people mean when they talk about articulated lorries, lifts, spanners, the loo, and office buildings were the main floor isn't the first floor.

I've also learned about lots of people who have sheep, and utterly amazing gardens, and that courgettes are really zucchinis.

And on your blogs, I've met all kinds of non-human characters. Charlie, Cheyenne, Little Chip, Loyal Hound, Poppy & Misty, and Sparky. And then there's ASBO Jack. Interesting name, I thought. All in capitals. The polar opposite of the non-capitalizing e.e. cummings. Must be a "Wonder Dog," I concluded. Jack as in Jack Russell Terrier (I think).

And at Purple Coo, they even had an ASBO hour (or day), in honour of said Terrier, I'm told. "Wow," I thought, "impressive dog."

Then Zoe, bless her heart, had to straighten me out.

"Here on this side the pond, it is a method to impose curfew, or restrict the activities and places an individual may go when they have been found guilty of anti-social behaviour within their community. The restriction is called an Anti-Social Behaviour Order, hence ASBO."

Well that brings a new meaning to Wonder Dog. More like Anti-Social Wonder Dog. And here I had all these expectations!

As long as I don't get the designation "ASBO Bear," I think I'll be OK. But knowing me, I'm never sure. I have these "defects of character," you see. Or, more appropriately, have seen.

Oh well, a non-musical ditty for the dog days of summer.

IN WHICH BEAR "OVERDOES" IT, AND SUFFERS THE CONSEQUENCES

Her Ladyship, Miss Sadie, and the Bear are polar opposites, in some ways.

What we have in common is that we don't understand our own strength.

Miss Sadie, I think, underestimates hers. At four feet tall (or more, when standing on her back legs — something I really discourage), with 50 pounds of energy and enthusiasm, she really could knock you down. After which she would lick you to death.

Bear, on the other hand, overestimates his.

Case in point.

Yesterday was cool and breezy in the evening. We hadn't received any rain. (A day without rain is a "novel" experience this year; one is not quite sure how to handle that.) And as our front and back grass were both in need of cutting, Bear got out the lawnmower.

(You've probably guessed the rest already.)

The land on our "micro-holding" is not level, and is broken up by trees, and gardens, and other sorts of spaces and obstacles. So cutting the grass in a straight line really doesn't happen for more than a couple of metres/yards. One has to do a great deal of maneuvering around in the process of "mowing the hay." (And I have to carry the lawnmower part way from front to back because of the new stepping stones we put in this year.)

Anyhow, I did the mowing last night. And when I was finished, it looked quite good. I was happy with that. Plus, I got the grass cut before the next rain shower (scheduled for tonight). YES!!!

But after a bit, I wasn't feeling so good. I have an old injury in my back that I keep re-injuring. By bed time I was in quite a bit of pain. So I took some medication (fairly strong stuff, actually), and went to bed about 9:30. By then I was feeling extremely tired, and a bit dopey from the medication.

I slept through the night (something I rarely do), and woke up at 7:00 this morning, not quite sure who or where I was. I was able to look after Her Sadieship and get my own breakfast. Then I thought I would lie down and have a rest.

I woke up at 11:30. It is now just after noon. The effect of the medication has worn off — meaning that I'm not dopey, but in pain. I'm going to make lunch and try to figure out what to do next. Miss Sadie needs to be walked. I need to do some shopping. There are parts of the yard which need to be trimmed, weeded, and otherwise tidied up. I have several books I want to read. Currently is it 26°C (that's 79F), too hot a day for Bear's liking.

— — —

Footnote: We did indeed go shopping, but not as expected. We went to our favourite bakery (where we haven't been for a while), and picked up some things. They're baking a lot of different things there now — major focus on Italian — so we picked up some goods as an experiment. What we've tried thusfar has been really good.

After lunch, J and I talked for a while, and I finally took Sadie for a walk. It's 27°C (81F) outside, but with the humidity feels like 33C (91F). We're going to stay inside, and stay cool (er).

OH GIVE ME A HOME …

It doesn't have to be a "home on the range." It just needs to be a nice home —  reasonably clean, where taps, and lights, and things like that work properly. 

Sadly, there are a lot of people who don't have decent housing. 

So I put some thoughts together on my Bears Noting blog. It's a bit heavier thinking than I normally do here. But if you're concerned about how some of us live, take a peek. 

(And if you would care to comment, please leave your comment there.)

Hmmmm. . . . did somebody say something about unpopular beliefs and ideas?

TAKING RISKS — HOPEFULLY SURVIVING

Sonia (over at Gutsy Writer) got me thinking about this topic a few days ago. I had some questions for myself. 
  
What does it mean do take risks?
Why should I take risks?
What kinds of risks could/should/would I take?

I've taken a lot of risks in my life. Changing jobs; changing careers; moving across a country for work; walking into burning buildings with nothing more than an inch and a half (diameter) fire hose; getting married; having children; writing, broadcasting and blogging; upholding unpopular beliefs and ideas. In each case, these were things I did because I thought they were the right thing to do. A couple of those proved to be really bad (two were health destroying); the vast majority were good, and I'd do them again.

Even though I'm hitting retirement, I don't expect my attitude will change much. I'm probably a bit old for walking into burning buildings and having more children. I'll probably spend more time upholding unpopular ideas, in a time when democracy, human rights, co-operation, citizen action, and faith are all under attack, particularly in North America.
   
I'd love to have you come along. And if you're coming along, I really hope you will chat with me about what you and I are thinking.

Do we have a deal?

MISS SADIE'S MISS-ADVENTURE

Her Ladyship, Miss Sadie, spend Monday night and much of Tuesday in the Intensive Care Unit of our University's Veterinary Teaching Hospital.

Monday after supper, she began to show a whole bunch of problems, involving several of her systems. A quick call to the hospital and a chat with a clinician, and I took her in. The initial suspicion was an early onset of Addison's disease, a chronic condition of the adrenal glands. She was also dehydrated.

So after some IV fluids, lots of tests, and rest, Sadie was discharged. It is not Addison's, fortunately. The doctors still don't know what was wrong with her, but suspect she may have eaten something toxic in our back yard.  (Which is, in some ways, peculiar, as we use no chemicals in our gardening.) I guess this means that I won't be letting Miss Sadie out as freely as in the past. Which is sad for her. 

In the meantime, she is getting back to her "normal" self. A bit more rest, and no recurring symptoms, and she'll be just fine. My wallet, on the other hand. . . .

RACHEL'S BEAR POETRY CONTEST

In response to questions about finding the various poems in the Bear poetry contest, you need to go to Rachel Westfall's blog, The Waxing Moon. The contributions are spread over several postings; check the attached comments to the posts. I've put in the links for all four of the key posts on Rachel's blog

 
Happy reading! There's great stuff for those who like poetry.
 
http://thewaxingmoon.blogspot.com/2010/06/bear-haiku-challenge-prizes.html

http://thewaxingmoon.blogspot.com/2010/06/one-more-week-bear-haiku-challenge.html 
 
http://thewaxingmoon.blogspot.com/2010/07/bear-poetry.html
  
http://thewaxingmoon.blogspot.com/2010/07/beautiful-bear-poetry-and-announcing.html

SOME KIND GIFTS

As I mentioned earlier, I won a poetry contest. (Still can't really believe it — has something to do with my self-image about not being a poet.)

  
My prizes arrived today. Wow! Excitement!
  
First, a beautiful Bear picture — a fitting award for a contest related to Bears. This, from Rachel Westfall, of Whitehorse, in Canada's Yukon Territory, who sponsored the contest. (My picture of her picture doesn't do justice to her work —you'll see much better on her blog.)

 

The other two items are also part of the "prize package." 
  

The pinkish bear is carved from Jade (technically "Rhodonite") at the Cassiar Mountain Jade Store in Jade City, British Columbia.  It's also from Rachel. The "Bear Paw" is from another contestant, S. L. Corusa, an amazing poet (like Rachel) who lives in Manilla, in the Philippines. (There are no boundaries to the world wide web!) 

So to Rachel and S. L., thank you, and many thanks again. These are cherished items.