Connect The Dots

Connect the dots, as in Dippin’ Dots.

Here are some words to live by:

 

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She Was A Good Dog

I’m saddened to report that one of our “cousin” dogs died tonight.

“Teagan” showed up at our friend’s farm one day a few years ago as a puppy. She was discovered, curled up, covered in fleas and who knows what else. No one knows how she got there.  She was rescued in the truest sense of the word.  Teagan was well cared for and joined a family that had more dogs than humans.

A Vizsla mix, she was extremely protective of my wife’s friend Laurie, and it took almost two years before I could even pet her, (The dog, not Laurie). The best I could hope for was a growl and a watchful eye. Then, one day, she came up to me and we were buddies. In a house/farm with more dogs than I can count right now, she was my favorite.

Her estimated age at the time of her death was only five years. She had been treated for some serious medical issues, but I thought they were under control. While we are all upset and heartbroken, it is not a complete surprise.

But it was a complete surprise.

Teagan was a sweetheart and I’m honored to have been asked to help arrange for her cremation with people who care about dogs/pets as much as we do.

Laurie and some of her grown children took Teagan from the animal hospital in Augusta, GA to the crematory, arriving around 9pm tonight.  Thank you to John and Pam at Plum Tree Pet Services for being willing to be there waiting. You are special people who have been serving the Aiken area for at least the 20 years I have been here. I  trust our dogs to no one else.

If you are born, someday you will die.  So it goes.

She was a good dog.

Wednesday Wisdom (Sort of)

“You can’t have a light without a dark to stick it in”

Arlo Guthrie.

More wit, wisdom, and music from Arlo’s “Alice’s Restaurant” record (I am the proud owner of a vinyl copy)

Any aging hippies out there?

On Stress

A   Great Lesson on Stress, courtesy of Carla

 

A young lady confidently walked around the room with a raised glass of water while leading a seminar and explaining stress management to her audience.  Everyone knew she was going to ask the ultimate question, ‘Half empty or half full?’  She fooled them all. “How heavy is this glass of water?” she inquired with a smile.   Answers called out ranged from 8 oz. To 20 oz.

 

She replied, “The absolute weight doesn’t matter  It depends on how long I hold it.     If I hold it for a minute, that’s not a problem.  If I hold it for an hour, I’ll have an ache in my right arm.  

No Stress. Be like Martha

 

If I hold it for a day, you’ll have to call an ambulance.  In each case, it’s the same weight, but the longer I hold it, the heavier it becomes.

 

And that’s the way it is with stress.  If we carry our burdens all the time, sooner or later, as the burden becomes increasingly heavy, we won’t be able to carry on.

 

As with the glass of water, you have to put it down for a while and rest before holding it again.  When we’re refreshed, we can carry on with the burden – holding stress longer and better each time practiced.

 

So, as early in the evening as you can, put all your burdens down. Don’t carry them through the evening and into the night.  Pick them up again tomorrow if you must.

 

1.  Accept the fact that some days you’re the pigeon, and some days you’re the statue!

 

2.  Always keep your words soft and sweet, just in case you have to eat them.

 

3.  Always read stuff that will make you look good if you die in the middle of it.

 

4.  Drive carefully. It’s not only cars that can be recalled by their Maker.

 

5.  If you can’t be kind, at least have the decency to be vague.

 

6.  If you lend someone $20 and never see that person again, it was probably worth it.

 

7.  It may be that your sole purpose in life is simply to serve as a warning to others.

 

8.  Never buy a car you can’t push.

 

9.  Never put both feet in your mouth at the same time, because then you won’t have a leg to stand on.

 

10.  Nobody cares if you can’t dance well.  Just get up and dance.

 

11.  Since it’s the early worm that gets eaten by the bird, sleep late.

 

12.  The second mouse gets the cheese.

 

13.  When everything’s coming your way, you’re in the wrong lane.

 

14.  Birthdays are good for you. The more you have, the longer you live.

 

16.  Some mistakes are too much fun to make only once.

 

17.  We could learn a lot from crayons.  Some are sharp, some are pretty and some are dull.  Some have weird names and all are different colors, but they all live in the same box.

 

18.  A truly happy person is one who can enjoy the scenery on a detour.

 

19.  Have an awesome day and know that someone has thought about you today.

 

20. Save the earth. It’s the only planet with chocolate!“

It Was Only 1,987 Miles

I said that I would never do it again, but I did.

I’m referring to driving 15 hours from Aiken, SC to Houston, TX in one day, staying a day and then driving back in one day with an extra dog and a few suitcases. The purpose of the trip was to bring some of Megan’s belongings and her dog back to SC for a few weeks. She will drive them back when it’s time.

 

Selby getting a frontal view

 

This journey, however, I had help.

It was a fun road trip, with Elissa and Selby as my co-pilots. While I still provided most of the driving, it was great to have company and Elissa and I took turns finding songs to play from Pandora and YouTube, (Thankful for unlimited data)

We got to spend the day with Megan, meeting several of her friends and getting a quick tour of her part of Houston, including taking the dogs to the #1 rated Millie Bush Dog Park.  Thank’s George and Barbara.

On the return trip, we made a short detour off US 10 and stopped at a Baton Rouge, LA institution, Coffee Call for a bag of  Beignets for the ride home.

Mission accomplished and completed with no speeding tickets, no traffic jams, no doggie “accidents” and with lots of fun.

 

 

 

 

Girls and their dogs

 

 

 

Famous for a very good reason (photo by Elissa Creech)

 

 

 

Enjoyed the ride and never asked, “Are we there yet?”

 

 

Sunday Pipes, #34

A quick post while on the road in  Houston, TX

 

The Canzona in D minor, BWV 588, played at the Detlef Kleuker organ of the First Greek Evangelical Church of Athens – Greece, at the Bach Festival 2007.

Chris Paraskevopoulos is the organist.

A Long Day

We (Elissa, Selby and me) left Aiken, SC  at 0500 and arrived in Houston, TX just over fifteen hours later.

There was very little LE presence on the highways and byways, which maybe explains the relative lack of attention to posted speed limits, especially on US 10.  (not by me, of course, but by others)

Spending today with “Megan & Co.” and heading back to Aiken tomorrow, with Martha added to the passenger manifest.

Selby helping with the navigation, reading the WAZE app.

 

 

I Swore I’d Never Do It Again, But . . .

Just about a year ago I went on a road trip, summed up by a story on the old blog called:

 “Mission Accomplished”

 There are several related stories before and after that post.

That was a long weekend and I swore I’d never do it again.

But, I am. This time, however, I have some help.  

Early Friday morning, Elissa, her dog Selby and I will begin our drive to Houston, TX.

Mission: to pick up Martha and bring her back to Aiken with some of Megan’s belongings. Megan will fly back home later in the month later to spend a few weeks back in SC after some surgery.

Drive to Houston on Friday, enjoy Saturday in Houston and then drive back with one daughter and two dogs on Sunday.

 

Selby

Martha

What are 2,000 miles when your daughter and her dog needs you?

We will be #MakingMemories and we will be sharing the journey on Instagram. You can follow us,  @rayvisotski,  @coupleofcreeches, and @mvisotski001

 

 

Once Upon A Time

Once upon a time, I was a little boy learning to drive from

my grandfather in our dining room in Hillside, NJ

(Photo may have been my 3rd birthday party)

 

 

Then fifty-five years later. . .

My, how time flies.

 

You can “throw it back”

But you can’t stop the clock

and you can’t go back.

Call Me Cautious, But . . .

A photo from today’s edition of our local paper:

This photograph was taken during a felony traffic stop yesterday afternoon in our fair (usually) city. Our Public Safety Department takes these situations very seriously as we had two officers shot and killed within 60 days back in December 2011 – January 2012 while affecting traffic stops.

Yes, very seriously.

The story about yesterday can be found here.

I’m all for getting action pictures, but I’d be more than a little hesitant to be down-range of those officers who just pulled over a car that was reported to have been involved in a shooting a few minutes earlier.

I would think the officers weren’t all that happy about looking down their sights and seeing a photographer down the street.

Just sayin’