Have You Watched Your Best Friend Die? RIP Mercedez

I crawled under the examining table in the veterinarian's office to be closer to Mercedez.  The clinic had provided a blanket for her to lie on.  Any other time I would have been repulsed by the germs and filth that was lingering on the floor but not this time.

I wanted to be close to her - one last time.  I wanted to rub her velvety ears - one last time.  I wanted to kiss her soft furry face - one last time.

She was too little to climb the stairs - 15 years ago

 "I love you Sades" I whispered into her ear. "Go to sleep, my precious little girl."

Do You Think All Dogs Go To Heaven?

Do dogs strategize?  I think they know EXACTLY what they are doing and they have agendas. It was early in the morning when the phone rang "Mom, please get in your car and go to the auto mechanic shop on the highway.  The dogs are there."

"WHAT?"

"Please mom, GO!"

Still in my nightie I grabbed my purse and ran out the door, praying all the way.  That shop was over a mile away and the highway was extremely busy with high-speed traffic.  I put the pedal to the metal and was there in a minute.

I saw them.  Nayla and Charlie.  They have eleven acres to romp through at home but apparently that is not enough.  They had found a means of escape and decided to go exploring.  Charlie was in heat and I was freaking about that as I knew my daughter wanted to breed her.  Thank goodness the man found Rochelle's phone number on Charlie's collar.

Don't be fooled by the innocent after-bath look!

World's Greatest Con Job - Week 4 - It Gets Scarier

Does it really matter how old or how young we are?  Shouldn't each of us be concerned about our health?  Don't we all want to live fuller, healthier lives?

This is week four of my series on how we are being conned by numerous vitamin and pharmaceutical companies that their products are the best; the safest.  There are a few simple questions you can ask about your brand to determine if you are being conned.  That is the purpose of these posts.

Week One:  Are your vitamins synthetic, natural altered or natural unaltered?  Click here.

Week Two:  Does your brand produce vitamins with the life factor intact?  Or are they over processed and of little value?  Click here

Week Three:  Does the company produce any products on the Dirty Dozen list?  Click here.

How do I Love You? A Grateful Husband's Letter

Babe:

I watch you and I wonder what I ever did to deserve you.  I wonder why you have never left me. I wonder....

When I met you, I wasn't too impressed.  You were beautiful but had far more electrical energy than I was used to - nor necessarily wanted to be around.  I wanted kids and you didn't seem the type; much more interested in your career.  Yet still...... I watched you.

We often double dated and I began to enjoy your company from afar. Although it shocked me, I soon realized I was liking you more - no, I was liking you a lot!

I'm a quiet guy who thinks seriously before speaking and usually has all possible scenarios figured out before approaching a challenging situation.  But I felt it was in the stars and as alien as it was to me, I knew what I had to do.

It was a Tuesday afternoon.  You would be home from work around 5:30.  Knowing you would recognize my car; I parked down the street and walked to the back door of your house.  Was it because I wanted to escape in case I changed my mind?   For some reason, I wanted this to be a surprise.   I heard music inside and tried the doorknob. It was open.  Perky started barking but quickly settled onto my lap. What was only minutes felt like hours.  My hands were sweaty.  I was nervously tapping my foot to the music wondering if I was absolutely crazy for doing this.  What if you got angry?  Should I leave or should I go?

It was too late; I heard your car pull into the driveway.  You walked in with grocery bags in tow and uneasily said "Hi?"

That day was the beginning of something wonderful but also something that I could never have survived without you.  The full heart-warming story of Love at First Sight is here.

Later......

After almost half a century together, you have been and continue to be my tower of strength, my encourager, my support.

I convinced you to leave your roots, your home, your family and move 3,000 miles away so I could live by the ocean.  I loved the water and needed to be close to it.  I knew you would grow to love it as well.

When we found out we could never have children but were able to adopt our son, you were there to convince me we would survive his loss, one year later.  You stood behind the airport pillar, watching me with tears running down your cheeks as I handed our son to a stranger.  After loving our son for a full year, the mother who tossed him aside now wanted him back. We had no choice.  We had to let him go.  You stayed strong believing we would have another child to love.  That tear jerking story here.

How to Get that Dream Job

When I was a little girl, I preferred to make believe I was a secretary rather than playing with dolls as most girls did.  I chose secretary because I loved to organize, keep notes and pretend to work for someone 'important.'

In the 1950s-60s, career choices for women were generally limited by occupations in nursing, teaching, secretarial or as an airline stewardess. 

After high school graduation, every job I applied for I got and quickly realized I could start to write my own ticket.  My first job was for the Veterans Administration, but I found it tedious.  Although my next two jobs for prestigious law firms were exciting, my goal was to be my own boss.

Then I saw it.  The newspaper ad said "Wanted:  Gal Friday/Office Manager.  Must be able to work independently and have excellent skills."  I applied.  I got it.  

The job was an office manager for a construction company and it was located in a lumberyard.  My boss never had a secretary before and he wanted me to set up the offices and run all aspects of the business while he worked in the field. He was a commercial builder of huge projects; apartment complexes, hotels, and office buildings.

I ordered the necessary equipment and set up the office.  When we were ready to move into the new office space, I asked for his previous office records.  He opened the trunk of his big, shiny new Cadillac and showed me several boxes overflowing with receipts and invoices.

Sorting through it all, I came to realize that a lot of people owed him a lot of money!  When I confronted him with this he said he didn't have the time to worry about it.  This was in the 1960s and $60,000 in past due debt was a small fortune.  I told him that I was willing to collect on these and he said I could keep half of whatever I collected.

I knew that I would be dealing with some 'rough around the edges' characters. Then I had a brilliant idea.  I found the biggest and burliest man I could find and offered him $20 a day.  All he had to do was go with me to the various businesses that owed my boss money. He didn't have to say a word. He was just to stand behind me with his arms crossed.  

Do I really have to tell you what happened?  I collected on every single one. My boss was so impressed he told me to give myself a raise whenever and for whatever amount I wanted.  I stayed with him for several years and loved my job immensely.  

I was able to move into any unit I wanted to live in whenever I felt like upgrading.  He gave me a car to drive and an expense account.  My husband and I spent weekends at his cottage or on his boat.  

I stayed with him until he retired and we both cried.  Ours was a great relationship and I had the best secretarial job anyone could have ever hoped for.  

In later years, I started a business teaching office organization to corporation's secretarial pools.  It was not the challenge I needed and extremely boring. These secretaries were only interested in getting a paycheck and not improving their skills. 

I continue to run a tight ship in my office and manage a few businesses.  I have never tired of playing secretary!

If you have a dream, pursue it.  Never let it go.

What was your dream job?  Did you ever get it or better yet.....create it?