EDITION OF THURSDAY/FRIDAY NOV. 11-12, 2021 [PetPowellPress] Once upon a time we were steamrolling through time and hit the brakes to take a quick look at assorted challenges in the first two weeks of November. None of these challenges are in Washington, D.C., of course. I’m content to be a mere taxpayer in the national process. I mean, geez, look at the chunk they take out of ya for that — no telling what the fee is to get a spot in the big clubs in D.C. Might have to keep paying your taxes, too.
The only person in our house with any experience in “the big game” is this fellow, The Senator, our senior advisor. We were having a wide-ranging conversation that reached a point of
agreement: He should eat a snack and I should not. He is wise and he has a pink nose.
I have hazel eyes — only around 5 percent of the people on the planet have hazel eyes. And I am, perhaps, the only person in the world with hazel eyes AND a pink-nosed cat named The Senator. [LATER IN THIS EDITION, we cite kittens from two food groups: Tator and Walnut. Which one is "Walnut"? Can you tell at first glance? By the way, “Tator” is the male spelling for “Tater” — if I remember my native Northeast Texan patois correctly.]
CAN MONEY SOLVE
ANIMAL PROBLEMS?
Well, you like to think that money is the perfect addition to the animal rescue recipe: Take one or more animals in need, introduce the big heart of a rescuer, sweeten with cold cash and mix to celebratory taste.
I hope this situation is remedied before you can even read this item, Dear Readers.
Seems so simple.
But then there was this note from the folks with 4-Legged Helpers — it cited 3 dogs (Chloe, Paisley and Tyler) and reported that they had donations pushing $400 each to help get them out of the low-human foot traffic Lancaster Animal Shelter. To ask about being the 401c3 that is going to save the lives of these dogs, get in touch with 4-Legged helpers by calling or texting 214-949-2726 or email [email protected]
These are 3 “long-term dogs” — they’ve been waiting a while at the shelter.
Tyler is a young, male Border Collie/lab Mix who is “just as cute and loving as can be,” the Helpers bio reads. Smallish — just 51 pounds. And he’s probably no more than a year old. So he’s in that age where he can learn and he can love. He is “always sweet.”
Chloe is the “young, spayed Shepherd mix” in the Lancaster shelter. She and Paisley (below) are probably siblings caught out straying together, the shelter says. The 50-pound Chloe is “just darling,” her bio reads. She is a “very happy and friendly young girl.” And she and Paisley “adore each other and get along perfectly.”
Paisley weighs in at 45 pounds and like her sis, is “super cute and very young, so the perfect age,” her bio reads. The bio reads, “Paisley is a very sweet and friendly young girl. She adores Chloe…”
[LARRY ASIDE: Maybe they’d be perfect together in one loving home. Kind of a dream adoption. But, as home with multiple pups can tell you, the human love is the glue that holds it all together. The dogs, it turns out, can be velcro!]
Keep up with 4-Legged Helpers’ efforts to save more and more animals by monitoring these dedicated animal advocates on their FACEBOOK PAGE HERE.
NOW WE TURN TO TATOR
AND HIS PAL WALNUT
We’ve cited the rescue work of Cheryl Morse-Stephenson before. On her Facebook page she is described as a “volunteer, photographer and promoter at Mount Pleasant Animal Services and Shelter."
So, you know she’s got some emotion invested in the efforts to save animals that have entered the care of the city shelter in the little Northeast Texas town of Mount Pleasant, about 2 hours northeast of Dallas on I-30. [LARRY ASIDE: I mention that so you’ll know the roads are paved and you’ll enjoy the drive when you go up there to get Walnut and Tator.]
I’ve attempted to lighten the mood, but I hope you’ll still feel the fire in Cheryl’s Facebook comment described as “feeling angry.”
She wrote, “Are you FLEEPING kidding me? Two more returned adoptions. They are 5-month-old kittens and they were returned for being too active! WHAT? WHAT in the h*** did you expect? If you want calm, adopt an older cat. It’s THAT SIMPLE.”
Cheryl told us Walnut “is the one with white; Tator is the Tabby.”
Both were born a little over 5 months ago. Tator is #A48774122. Walnut is #A48774112.
Cheryl says the shelter’s hours are 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday through Saturday. Here’s a link to the info for Tator and Walnut. There’s even a video of the “too active” little rascals.
You can follow Cheryl’s work with saving animals by going to HER FACEBOOK PAGE HERE.
[LARRY ASIDE: The cure for “too active” kittens is time, though, of course, I find “too active kittens” quite adorable and absolutely entertaining. Our experience has been that kittens eventually become nappers who will, for fun, surprise you with a sprint through the house or a bounce off a wall or harmless climb up a curtain. Sometimes after they get through the kitten stage, their most active events are dining, litter-boxing and purring. Of course, if you have the good fortune to live with a mature cat such as The Senator (clearly he respects time), you may find yourself engaged in campaigning, kissing babies and lecturing to poly-sci classes at major universities. All we are saying is give Walnut and Tator a chance to mature — for your own sake.]
CONTEMPLATIONS
WEATHER, RADIO AND THE ROCK
OK, let’s all get back to worrying about winter and the Texas power grid. I think I heard a power official virtually guarantee on Spectrum Cable TV news channel that Texas is going to be just fine this winter. There, Ladies & Gents, is what you call your “challenge to fate.” Keep the winter coats handy and the car gassed up so you can flee to Oklahoma and "hunker down" in a casino. …
Sometimes I listen to British radio on my phone which, as you Baby Boomers know, replaced the pocket-sized transistor radio we’d embraced during the British Invasion. That’s a rock ’n’ roll term, kids....
The British invaded via radio and records — ah, those were the days. Right, Mary Hopkin?
—- Offer high notes and happy tunes by clicking on ‘Comment’ below or by emailing [email protected] and put “GET A HAIRCUT” in the subject line for ol’ time’s sake. —-