Meet Anna

I’ve been remiss in introducing the newest member of our family.

You met Anna in a previous post about the five puppies we found abandoned beside our town’s railway tracks. She was the shyest of the litter and, unfortunately, was in greatest need of constant medical attention. She had the most ticks, more nettles than the others, the most stubborn fleas, a system full of roundworms and now, it appears, she has a system full of tapeworms as well.

It’s been fun.

But she’s a sweet girl, and when it came down to it, after spending a week and a half with us, it was impossible to let her go. So she’s now a full fledged member of the Ramshaw brood.

Having a scratch.

She’s adjusting fairly well (worms aside), and we are slowly getting the hang of walks and potty training. She idolizes her older sister Emma, so it was surprisingly easy to kennel train her. The moment she saw Emma run into her kennel, Anna wanted one too.

Abernathy and Alex P. Kitten, however, are less than impressed. They’ll play with the pup from time to time, but spend most of their energy expressing their dissatisfaction with the whole enterprise. Kitten apparently finds puppy pads offensive.

Alex P. Kitten wondering when this interloper will be escorted off the premises.

And a quick update on the other little ones – Rory was adopted by perhaps the best family a dog could join. She’s ecstatic, and doing really well. The boys – Frederick von Pup, Milo and Cairo, were admitted to the Greenville Humane Society (a no kill shelter) and were neutered and adopted into new homes almost immediately. All are in loving, safe homes – and above all, they’re all wanted and safe. That makes me happy.

This experience also served as a valuable lesson. If we find another litter of puppies, they are going immediately to a shelter. We simply can’t keep accumulating pets (for those of you who’ve lost count, Anna is number four), but it’s impossible not to fall in love with little furry creatures that take up residence in your house for longer than a few days. So this is the last time we’ll be doing that.

Instead, we’re focusing our energy on finding a house that can accommodate us all. Wish us luck.

Puppy mayhem

UPDATED (JUNE 15): The pups were all taken to the vet yesterday to receive their Parvo shots, and they were all also dewormed (a process that ends on Friday morning). I’ve also updated the post with more information about the personality of each baby pup. If you’d like to consider adopting one of these little ones, please email me at shawnacass@ymail.com.

Saturday morning, I was driving to the post office when I saw two little pups playing on the side of the road. Naturally, I pulled over to help – and although one was easy to catch, the other ran away. I thought he was frightened of me, but when Greg came by to help me catch him, we discovered he was leading us to the rest of a litter of five abandoned puppies.

We fished them all out and brought them home, and they’ve taken up temporary residence in our guest bathroom. None of the shelters or other forms of intake are open on the weekends, so we’ve given them all baths, spent hours getting nettles and fleas out, and have generally focused on getting them fed and watered.

Meet the pups:

Frederick von Pup - he's very energetic and playful, and loves his sister Rory. We think he has some German Shepherd in him (given the coloring).

Little Rory Calhoun - the other possible German Shepherd mix. She's already found a home, and is going there this weekend. YAY!

Cairo - one of our two Collie mix boys. Cairo has tons of energy, but also spends a lot of time cuddling on our laps. He's very affectionate and outgoing, and is closest to his brother Milo (they're two peas in a pod).

Anna, a female Collie mix, was originally the shyest of the bunch. It turns out she had a large tick on her and the worst case of the worms. Poor thing. She now has tons of energy and is really outgoing and happy. She's also willing to settle down mid-play for a cuddle. She loves her ears and belly scratched.

Milo is the most active boy of the bunch. He's outgoing, adventurous, and has an absolutely infectious grin. He's the first two try everything (closely followed by Cairo, his partner in crime).

All are sweet-tempered, easy going dogs. They’ve sniffed at our existing dogs and cat, and there was absolutely no aggression on either side, which means they’d likely be good with other pets.

As you can see, our bathroom is a mess. On Friday, we’re trying to get them into a no-kill shelter nearby. Fingers crossed. Otherwise, they’re heading to the pound.

We’re in love with all of them (even after a sleepless night). It’s going to be hard to see them go.

The Bone-E-Fit

We’d been planning for so long it was almost a surprise when May 5, the date of our Bone-E-Fit, hit.

This event is a great example of what I love most about the area we live in. Set up started at 1 p.m. and by mid-afternoon, there were close to 30 people on-site, volunteering their time to help out. We had people volunteering to clean bathrooms, empty garbage cans, and basically doing whatever needed to get done.

Busy like bees, trying to figure out which tablecloth goes where.

Getting the silent auction table ready to go.

Unfortunately, I don’t have any photos of the actual event, as I lost track of my camera. About 140 people showed up, and everyone I spoke to said they’d had a great time. The food was fantastic (catered by David Dunford at Plates Upon Request, with supplemental food being provided by restaurants throughout the tri-county area) and the band was great (Spartanburg’s Back 9 Band).

However, I did get a shot of the event’s largest donor, Diamonds-n-Gold Direct (they’re located just across the street from the Anderson Mall). They donated $2,500 in total, including a lovely $1,000 necklace for our silent auction. They’re absolutely lovely people, and they have our thanks.

The Diamonds-n-Gold Direct team (l to r): Jim Sitzman, Maureen Sitzman, Ashely Richey, Kristen Taylor and Michael Nemeth.

Ralph Hayes Toyota, Boulevard Lanes and First Citizens Bank also made significant contributions to the event. Be sure to stop in and thank all of these businesses for their support!

Although final amounts are still being tallied, a significant amount of money was raised to help animals in need. And that makes me a happy girl.

Rudy can’t fail

Quick caveat before I begin…there’s really no connection between my headline and blog post, except that I’ll be sharing pictures of a pup named Rudy. But I love that song, so couldn’t resist the headline.

Moving on.

As many of you know, lately I’ve been working as part of a committee to plan and promote a fundraising event called the Bone-E-Fit. For $50, guests in the tri-county will be treated to dinner, drinks, a silent auction, the musical stylings of the Back 9 Band and a tour of the first floor of Woodburn Historic House. If you’re interested, the event’s on Thursday, May 5 from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m. All dollars raised will benefit affordable spay/neuter and animal rescue programs in Anderson County.

The event is led by Anderson Voices for Animals – many of you will recall this is the group that saved our very own Alex P. Kitten.

The Pendleton Historic Foundation (for which I am also a volunteer) is donating the use of Woodburn for the event, which is fantastic. And this weekend, we learned that Anderson’s Mayor, Terence Roberts, will be attending.

We managed to pull together a quick photo opportunity on Monday afternoon with the Mayor, Anderson Voices for Animals reps and Rudy, a former shelter dog who’s now thriving in a new home (as evidenced by his girth). We tied a Bone-E-Fit ticket around Rudy’s collar so he could “present” it to the Mayor.

We got one camera (thanks WYFF 4!), which was impressive, considering our release went out on the Easter weekend and we were competing with someone who crashed a local wedding in a bunny suit (no kidding). Apparently, three people joined him dressed as carrots.

Rhonda Sims (Rudy's Mom), Rudy, Mayor Roberts, Sommer Hammett and Jenny O'Barr at the ticket presentation.

When she’s not tending to Rudy’s every need, Rhonda is also the lead contact for Freedom Train Animal Rescue Transports, which transfers dogs from shelters in the Anderson area to screened and approved rescue organizations and forever homes.

Couldn't resist another Rudy photo. He and the Mayor really hit it off.

The animal overpopulation issue here is absolutely overwhelming, with 15,000 animals being placed in the local shelter each year. More than 10,000 of these animals are euthanized – again, this is each year. By way of comparison, we’re basically euthanizing one animal per household in the City of Anderson (last estimated at 10,641 in 2000). It’s unfathomable.

The only way to address this problem effectively is through affordable spay and neuter programs. And this service is available. For example, the Anderson County Fix-A-Pet Fund provides financial assistance to low-income pet owners to help them get their pets fixed at a low cost Spay/Neuter Clinic at 407 Pearman Dairy Rd (367-7220). Pet owners are asked to make a co-pay that is not a hardship for them and the Fix-A-Pet Fund pays the remainder of the fee.

I have so much admiration for the people who dedicate so much of their time, energy and money to finding a solution. If you live in the tri-county and want to spend a fun evening at one of our area’s most lovely antebellum homes, your ticket price will go a long way.

If the ticket price is out of your price range, consider making a donation to your local animal shelter or to Anderson Voices for Animals instead. Every little bit helps.

Exploring with Mumsie

Mumsie’s in town for a few days, so we’ve been showing her the local sites.

Spring’s in bloom here in upstate South Carolina, so we’ve been rather obsessed with the flora and fauna.

Flowers in the garden at Granny Zuercher's (pronounced "zookers") - a popular bakery in Pendleton, SC. It's only open on Thursdays and Fridays.

A heron hanging out at the South Carolina Botanical Garden's duck pond.

More of the duck pond.

We went looking for turtles last night, but they all seemed to be resting (and in hiding) during our visit. We were there pretty late though, as it was getting close to dusk. Our fault, I suppose.

However, we did see plenty of squirrels.

Emma watching a squirrel scurry up a tree, and out of her clutches.

Abernathy, however, soon wearied of all of the exercise, and insisted on being carried home, and to bed.

Tired puppy, giving me his best sad look for a pick up. He's quite peeved that I chose to take a picture instead.

Making puzzles

This is a partial guest post by my nephew, T.

I’m in Edmonton for about 10 days, which is very exciting (this is me, not my guest poster yet, in case you were wondering). Last night, T had a sleepover, which is a great way to start any visit home. We spent the night putting together a holographic Star Wars puzzle.

Now this is T’s section.

“I like Flake bars. And I like the Fudge ones. I don’t really like the Curly Wurlys.”

(editor’s note: right now, we’re discussing British chocolate. My sister bought me a massive bag of it, and we sampled several chocolate options last night).

“The puzzle was very puzzling, but loads of fun.”

(editor’s note again: that was actually Grandpa. T decided to move onto a new puzzle instead of guest posting).

Now that the guest post is over, here are photos of our work last night.

Grandma, T and Grandpa putting the puzzle together (note the Tim Horton's product placement).

T with the finished product.

Tonight I’m a special guest at the Whimsie’s, an annual celebration of movies hosted by my good friends Magharita, Bryn and Auggie. But right now I need to start helping T build his next puzzle.

Happy birthday, Mom

Today, my Mom turns (cough, cough).

Mom is funny, warm and always there for her kids – no matter what ridiculous schemes we dream up or inevitable trouble ensues. She’s a woman who manages to strike fear into the hearts of those who cross her (or anyone she cares about), while simultaneously seeming like the most warm and inviting person you ever met.

Part of the family celebrated her big day over the weekend, and I have it on good authority that she was treated like a queen. Tonight, I’ve heard she’s getting a visit from two of my nephews (with their parents tagging along for the ride), so the party continues.

Happy day, Mom! Wish we could be there to help celebrate you.

 

Our brush with (hockey) celebrity

Some of you already know that Greg and I are season ticket holders for the Atlanta Thrashers. We bought them this year, after attending a bunch of games last season and really enjoying the team’s spirit.

Actually, if I’m going to be entirely honest, at first I went simply to keep Greg company. But over time, I’ve become a fan too. We drive in when we can, and when we can’t make it, Greg donates our tickets to Big Brothers, Big Sisters of Atlanta.

The Thrashers treat their season ticket holders really well. If we decide at the last minute we can’t make it to a game, they’ll exchange our tickets, which has allowed us to take some of Greg’s coworkers to games with us for free.

We also get perks from time to time. For example, we’ve had our seats upgraded at least twice so far this year, and the Thrashers hold special sales and other events throughout the season.

And (most exciting of all, in my opinion) last night we were treated to some time in the broadcasting booth with the play-by-play announcer for the Thrashers – a guy named Dan Kamal. Here we are in the broadcasting booth, with Kamal doing his thing:

When the Thrashers win, which isn’t often these days, I’ll grant you – we listen to Kamal on the post-game show on the way home. So he’s a bit of a celebrity, as far as we’re concerned.

We weren’t there for long – we were walked up to the booth just before the second period started, and were in the booth for only a few minutes – but it gave us a chance to see the media view of the game, and shake hands with the voice of the Atlanta Thrashers.

As an added bonus, Kamal also introduced us on-air (twice), and read our favourite Thrashers moment (in case you were wondering, it was the game against Pittsburgh last season in which Evander Kane knocked out Matt Cooke with one punch). I’m not a Cooke fan, obviously.

Brian, our sales rep, is going to be sending us an audio file. Once we get it, I’ll try to post it on the blog – but only if I can figure out how to do that.

Anyway, it was over in a flash, but was good fun, and helped create a sense of excitement in a terrible game the Thrashers wound up losing 4-2. And to the Calgary Flames, no less. That hurt.

PS – and yes, we’re still Edmonton Oilers fans. We have a habit of cheering for the underdogs.

Snow Day!

This morning, we woke up to the snow blanketing the south. We had an Edmonton-style dump – with a ton of snow resting on some rather slippy ice. Clemson University called it a few hours ago – today’s our first official snow day!

Greg's car at 9 a.m. The snow's still coming down.

Alex P Kitten wondering what on earth could have happened to our back patio area overnight.

Snow isn’t unheard of in the south. In fact, in the 1820s, Nathaniel Gibbs, a local plantation-owner’s son, wrote in his diary about walking outside with the snow up to his knees. Nearby rivers and streams also regularly froze during the winter in the 1800s. It’s only in recent years (historically speaking, of course) that we’ve seen warmer, snow-free winters here.

How people prepare for snow or other looming disaster here is a bit short-sighted, with our grocery stores seeing a rush of people buying bread, eggs and milk. You’d think canned or dried items would make a bit more sense, but who am I to judge?

Our dogs are fully outfitted and prepared for the cold weather and snow.

Abernathy modeling his jersey from the Oilers' canine collection.

Emma's more of a Clemson football fan.

As Clemson’s shut down until further notice, Greg’s spending the day at home prepping for his classes, which start later this week. And after I’m done writing this blog post, I’ll be staying out of his way so he can actually get something done – though it’s awfully tempting to try to coax him out for some tobogganing instead.

 

The Regal is dead. Long live the Civic.

One of the benefits of having a father-in-law who loves buying new cars is being able to buy his cast-offs from him for next to nothing. Our latest inheritance (purchased a few years ago by putting a new transmission into it) was a 1999 Buick Regal.

At first, I hated driving it. I’ve always driven small cars – a Plymouth Colt, Kia Rio, and a Subaru Justy hatchback – so wasn’t really used to needing lots of room to park. I felt like a teeny tiny person in a massive boat, which you’d think would make me feel safer, but instead made me feel like I was floating. For me, driving a small car is like having your sheets tucked in around you at night.

So suffice to say, the Buick and I had a difficult introduction, evidenced by the many nicks and dents around every side of it. I didn’t typically run into other cars, but fences, garbage cans, underground parking lot pillars and lamp posts were my foes. And they always won.

So you don’t think my time with this car was all doom and gloom, the Buick does have a turbo engine – and we did have a great deal of fun with that (which also, come to think of it, may have had something to do with the problems noted in the paragraph above). We drove this car down here in the summer of 2009, which bonded me to it for life, or so I thought at the time.

The aforementioned Buick.

Last week, the car decided it was done with us. We were driving home after a day out, and it began to shudder. Luckily, we were almost home. But having invested well over $5,000 into a 12-year old vehicle over 3-1/2 years, we knew we couldn’t spend a penny  more. We went car shopping instead.

Car shopping is my least favourite experience in the world. I worked as a part-time receptionist at a car dealership while I was in college, and I can still smell the desperation in the air at month end. I can also usually tell at a glance how the salesperson we’re talking to is doing that month, so I wind up wanting to buy something – anything, really – from that person to help them make ends meet.

Greg kept me in check (though it was close), and we wound up buying a 2011 Honda Civic LX. Here is our splashy new car:

So shiny and new (and dent-free, for the time being).

I would have been happy with either a Honda or a Toyota, but what sold this car for us was the fact that the dealership was willing to give us $2,000 as a trade-in for the Buick. And they offered to send the tow truck. That, combined with some negotiating in price and interest rate, sealed the deal.

Only problem? Buyer’s regret. Not that I don’t love our new car, but I hate that our Buick needs to see the car usurping its position for a full weekend before it’s towed away. And to make matters worse, it’s being towed directly to auction. I don’t really know what I was expecting the Honda dealership to do with our car, but the thought of it being put on display and bid on (especially in the condition it’s in) is heartbreaking for me.

Yes, I understand I sound like an IKEA commercial. “You feel sorry for this car. That’s because you are crazy,” but at the same time, I feel like I’ve let our old car down. It’s getting a thorough cleaning this afternoon to make sure it looks its tattered best when it’s put on display tomorrow.

I hope it finds a good home.