You Can Love Your Pets...

Just don't LOVE your pets!!

It's true.  I married the crazy cat man.  Anyone who goes back to look at this blog will notice that over the past 14 years, we've slowly (sometimes not so slowly) accumulated a house full of little four legged furry faces.  We love these little dudes - even when they fight with one another, or puke in a shoe, or otherwise cause mild amounts of chaos.  They are our family.  When people look at me like I'm nuts over the fact that I don't have kids (normal sized human being children), I realize that they don't see these little balls of fluff as we do.  They ARE our kids.

To understand why people can throw away their animals (literally, in some cases) is an effort in futility for us.  Which is why we've been volunteering with the local shelter for the past few years.  In many ways, this further enhances our kitten hoarding instinct, as we sometimes foster pets.  One of those fosters never left our home and is now our youngest and sweetest and most adorably annoying Harvey. She's my absolute doll and I can't imagine not having her as part of the brood.  Most of the time, though... we foster for a couple of days or weeks and then send the little one off to a new family.

We've gotten better at just helping at the shelter and not bringing any home with us, Mom... just so you know!!

For Thanksgiving, we went over to help walk the dogs, play with the kittens and cats, and take some photos for an upcoming art project fundraiser that is in the works.

If you're looking for a new family member this holiday.  A little pup to keep your feet warm on chilly days, or a sweet chocolate-colored kitten to plop on your lap and purr to his little heart's content, here are a few kids looking for furever homes at the Almost Home Animal Shelter!

 This is Rex.  He is one of the sweetest boys you'll ever meet.  He's a strong boy, but he's an absolute lover.  He's got beautiful coloration, his brown coat is infused with gray brindling.  Very handsome.

These photos are of the puppy Clara!  She's a husky-shepherd mix who came into the shelter with her mom.  Her mom has already been adopted, but Clara is still waiting to go to her new home.  

Oh, Benji... This little Shiba Inu is a sweet guy.  And, he's inquisitive and fun-loving and a real foxy looker!

This is Noel.  She came in to the shelter with some pups.  Her puppies have all been adopted, and Noel is hoping that her holiday themed name will inspire someone to take her home with them this Christmas!

KITTENS!!  Who doesn't love kittens!  These little guys are part of a HUGE influx of kittens and cats at the shelter in the past few days due to hoarding situations and just the standard seasonal load of animals.  They are siamese breed mixes - as you can tell.   

This is one of two "office dogs" at the shelter.  Office dogs are typically those that need a little special attention while they're at the shelter.  In Allie's case, it's that she has alopecia!  This means, she has some trouble with hair loss and itching.  She's improved leaps and bounds since arriving at the shelter, and just needs a bit of extra care to keep her itching and hair loss under control.   

Mr. Booger...the other office dog came in to the shelter with a fractured leg and pelvis - very likely from being hit by a car.  He's an adorably scruffy little Shitzu mix with a very sweet disposition.  He loves to be scratched while sitting square between your feet.  With a little grooming and continued care, Booger will be up and running with the best of them!  

This is Crunch.  Crunchy is a very large lab/pit mix.  When I say large, I really do mean that he's a BIG guy.  But, if you have room in your heart, your house, and your yard for Crunchy, he's also got a big and wonderfully awesome personality!  He LOVES to jump - and boy, can he jump!  

This is Raven.  My best model for the day, Raven is a super sweet pit mix.  She's quite well trained and sits and stays (sorta!) on command.  She's a very smart and beautiful girl who would make a wonderful companion!  Plus, look at those EARS!!

These two sweet kittens are the most gorgeous chocolate colored kittens I've ever seen!!  The little girl up top is a beautiful chocolate tortoiseshell cat.  She's apparently got some siamese in her, she's very tall and thin with a pointed face.  Her coloration is stunning and she's a favorite around the shelter.  The boy in the bottom photo is entirely chocolate brown.  His fur feels like velvet and just to make sure that he's got a little extra something-something for all the folks looking for a beautiful and unique kitty, he's also polydactyl!  We tried to get a shot here of his extra toes, but it didn't work very well!  

So, this holiday, when your heart starts to whisper that it wants a little fuzzy companion to love and squeeze and dote on for the rest of that little pup or kitten's life, stop by Almost Home.  These animals need and want to be loved.  

This has been a public service announcement from The Porkchop household to yours!  

Happy Holidays!

Phew... a long weekend

So, the semester is nearing its conclusion.  I can tell.  My snark level is at an all time high.

Mind you, I'm not snarky with my classes or students.  At this time of the semester, I'm actually getting all misty eyed about our time together coming to an end.  I'm happy about the progress that I've seen in so many of them and getting excited by their own end of the year ennui.  Turns out, a lot of them actually think I'm not so awful!

But, with other things... I find myself stepping back from major snark attacks.  In fact, I just stepped back from my biggest snark attack of the day... a scathing blog post!  LOL!

Nope, not gonna do it.

Instead, I will listen to some Michael Jackson, moon walk across my office, and pack my stuff for a long weekend of food and fun!

Happy Thanksgiving, Folks!!

Change is Good?

I've been hearing an interesting response lately.  It's a response to the following acknowledgment and comes across as an odd mixture between a statement and a question.  The conversation generally goes something like this...

"So, I hear that you're going to be Department Chair in January."

"Yep."

"Congratulations...?"

There's always that little question mark at the end.  It's rather cute, and I totally understand where it's coming from.  But, yes, it's true.  I'm going to be Department Chair for the next two years.  I'm excited about it.  And nervous.  And excited.  But, mostly just anxious.  I want to do a good job.  I want to make the department proud.  I want to do right by my colleagues, by my institution, and by me.  It's important that I remain ME throughout this process.

I knew that this would come my way eventually.  After the completion of my degree and the current chair's embarkation upon his own PhD journey, I knew that it was time for him to step down.  I imagined that it was likely to be my turn to step up.

So, here we are.  At the start of the new year, I'll be moving to a new office, taking on a new set of responsibilities, and, hopefully, do the best job that I can do.

A Silent Film

No, not this type of silent film...

THIS type of A Silent Film.

On Friday evening, just prior to walking up to the show from a lovely dinner in Chinatown (to be further discussed at a later date, perhaps), I was informed that I was going to see a hipster band.  I was unsure how that was supposed to work.  Did that mean that I was a hipster and was unaware of the fact?  Did it mean I would be surrounded by hipsters at the show?  Did it mean that the members of the band were, in fact, hipsters themselves?  It was all very confusing.

Nonetheless, JeanneMarie and I went to the show and thoroughly enjoyed it!  The band was great.  They didn't play a very long set, and I left wishing that I had heard a few more of my favs, but all in all, it was a fine show for an up and coming band.

And, just to be clear, I did attempt to make judgments upon my fellow concert goers as to what social category they might best fit (hipster, Gen X'ers, punks, neo-punks, etc.) and I was again at a loss.  I wasn't able to count more tight pant wearing men than usual, there were the standard handful of post-middle-aged folks, and the two blondes who stood behind us screaming about new boots or something during the majority of the show.

So, I don't know... you tell me... am I an unconscious hipster?

And So It Goes...

T-minus 37 days and counting.

37 days.

That sounds like a long time. 

It's really not.

I know that it will be here before I know it.

What's in 37 days, you ask?  My surgery.

Yep, that's right.  Decision made.  I have tried everything possible to fix this issue in a way that gives me back my life - hell, I'd be willing to get back just a portion of it, if I thought a conservative method was going to work - but it's just not working.  I REFUSE to be on any kind of meds or painkillers, therapy isn't doing any real good, and the only thing that relieves the pain is if I sit around inactively for a few days.  Now, if my goal in life included never exercising another day in my life, I guess I'd be content to just let it go.

But, y'all know me way better than that. 

So, it's in the surgeon's hands.  I'm putting my faith in my future as an athlete and as a healthy woman in the capable hands of one of the regions best spinal surgeons.  I trust him.  Completely. 

I feel REALLY good about this decision.  Despite the few individuals who still feel the need to tell me horror stories about their experiences (or those of their wives, cousins, brothers, dogs, etc.), I KNOW that this is the right choice. 

So, for anyone tempted to inform me of the massive mistake I am making and scold me for being "so hasty" in considering this evil option.... just can it.  I'm not interested. 

If you want to talk to me about the situation and find out more about why I'm choosing this, let me know. 

A HUGE thank you to my amazing husband, family, and dear, dear friends who are standing by me in this.  I cannot say how important it is to know that there are so many people out there rooting for me and believing in this with me. 

37 days... 

...And counting.