Summer Reruns: Being Sick

Florence never got sick. 

That sneeze was a fluke. The COPD was just allergies. And broken rib? What broken rib?

I learned at the broken ribs of a master.  Knowing that I am sick takes others telling me to shut up, go home, lie down. Well, it takes a lot to admit defeat to something that doesn't have a face or a pair of fists. But so be it. 

A May Day Post of 2011 commemorating sick days.



Juggling a soup bowl or a cup of tea, Florence would point her finger at me and say, "Well, you know it's all your fault."

After that statement of fact, the rest of the day would be spent curled with a pile of my favorite books and the radio tuned to the New York City radio station that broadcast children shows for all the sick kids stuck at home. On special days, I even got to spend the day in my parents' bed. Naps would sneak up on me and when the radio was tuned to WABC AM, music like 'These Boots Are Made For Walking' would transform my dreams to music videos before video had even been invented.

These days, books and a mini-tv and the cat keep me company as I drift in and out of naps. Every once in a while I tell myself "Well, you know it's all your fault."

Sunday Memories - An Encore: Even The Cat Was Found On The Street

The idea that you can actually pick what you like rather than what is there is the height of luxury. So, an encore after five hours of dragging the Mariner through Ikea and another six hours of weaving new things into a house found on the street.  

Ok, so I always start at the "As -Is" section, but still….

Originally posted December 12, 2009.


You left things on the street. You picked things up from the street. It was the New York Ikea when Ikea was still just in Sweden and New Jersey.

Beds, chairs, mattresses, bureaus, shelves, knick-knacks, desks, cupboards, plates, cups, coats, even shoes. Florence had many, many chairs gotten from departing neighbors, Coney Island vendors and street corner garbage heaps. I had many many chairs and surprisingly many many tables from departing roommates, stoop sales and street corner garbage heaps.

But now even if the items are left to be taken on sidewalks or by trash cans, even if there is a note that says TAKE ME, I feel a hesitancy, an embarrassment as it were that thirty years after furnishing my first and only home from the remnants of other people's lives, I am still too broke to buy things new.

In the final sweep of emptying Florence's apartment, things have come in and things now wait to go out, this time maybe to a friend, or neighbors.

Or if left on the street corner, maybe to someone still brave enough to pick it up and take it home.

The cat of course stays.

**
Related Posts:

Sunday Memories Of Days Like This That Didn't Include Food Poisoning

Sunday Memories Encore: Days Of Frostbite

Getting Adopted

Friday's Child Is BIG Loving And BIG Giving. Seriously.

REGULUS -  150 pound of love

Regulus is a real, honest-to-God Tibetan Mastiff.  Four years old.  Very low key, GREAT with dogs and people, but not fond of cats.

He's also a cuddle-bunny.  One thing is for sure, taking this boy on a stroll will give you ALL the attention you can imagine PLUS some more (AKA CHICK-DUDE MAGNET!!!!)

Social Tees is looking for a short-term foster home. Who of you big dog lovers can help this big baby out?  They do NOT want to have to put him in a kennel.  If you can help, please email:

dimitra@socialteesnyc.org

Got Cat?

Adoption events at Social Tees!!!!  Kittens, cats, all sizes, shapes, colors…..

SOCIAL TEES IN THE EAST VILLAGE!!!

JOIN THE LOVE!!!!!  ADOPT!!  FOSTER!!!! SUPPORT!!!

Come Volunteer!!! 

Come Visit!!!!

 Come On In!!!!! 

 Social Tees   
325 East 5th Street, NY, NY 10003  
socialteesnyc.org 
www.facebook.com/SocialTeesAnimalRescue 

Skating On Thick Ice

They were like dolphins, whooshing around me.

A woman I probably saw at a dance or a demonstration or some revolutionary act maybe thirty years ago walked up to me as they zoomed by and said, "It's like the invasion of the skate boards!"

I laughed.  "I was thinking, gee, I'd like to learn how to do that."

"Well, you know where to find them." She was laughing as she walked away.

One of the kids stopped, skate board propped on his sneaker.  I snapped a picture.

"I think she just took your picture," another said under his breath.

"Yes.  I did."  I showed it to them.

"Are you going to post it somewhere?"

"Yeah."

"Like Instagram?"

"I'm old.  I don't know what Instagram is."  I started taking another picture and all the boys posed, gangsta-style.  "Oh please, cut the bullshit."  It was funny but not a picture.

"I always wanted to learn how to skate board but when I was growing up, girls didn't.  Now girls do.  It's really cool."

"Yeah," said one, all of them nodding like what's the big deal some of the best skaters they knew were girls.  That revolution was normal to them.

I lifted the phone to take another picture and one gaves me a peace sign.

"What's that mean to you?"

"Peace," he said.

Crash noise that could only come from wood plank and metal wheels not going where they were intended interrupted us.

"#&*)$&#)*&@@#(*&$&%)*&@##)&*) AND THEN)&*#$&)&#", followed.

"Real peaceful," I say.

"He's not with us," the kid said.

In Comes Company

The guy from the hospital down the street had joined me last week on his way home after work.  We both watched the geese children sitting on a rock in full view.

"Something is wrong," I told him.  "The parents aren't there.  The parents are always there and now they are not."

"Nah, they're fine," he assured me.  "A guy from the New York Times went up on the roof to take a picture of them," he said.

But checking later, there was no article, no picture, no nothing.

Just the other day, rushing down after work and searching the tall grass of the First Avenue Serengeti, there they were.  The whole family.

Mom and Dad standing guard on either side of their brood pecking at the garbage, the junk food, the bugs and anything else lying about.  All was well.

But today, again rushing down after to work and searching the tall grass of the First Avenue Serengeti, there were no geese to be seen.

"Hey!"  It was the guy from the hospital, on his way home.

"I'm looking for them.  They were all there a couple of days ago.  But now, I can't find them."

"They're Ok.  They'll be back." he said as he headed uptown.  "This is prime real estate."


**
Related Posts:

Waiting For Company

The Company They Keep

Company Returns

Company

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 1-Pigeons

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 2-Squirrels

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 3-Horses

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 4-Cats

Sunday Memories: Those Shoes Were Made For Talking

Any attempt to take a picture went by the wayside.  The chair was his and the shoes had to share.

I had interrupted his attempts to woo the Little Girl.  She cried when he tackled her and that was going too far.

So losing at love, he did what many do.  He conquered.  In this case, a chair set aside for a pair of old shoes.

Those shoes were my first pair of high heels.  Bought at the 14th Street Synagogue's bazaar in 1970 or so, they were old then, too.  But they fit and the heel wasn't too high.  No one would notice an eleven-year old wearing shoes beyond her years.

Years, later, the first office job in customer service for a fabric company had been found after cleaning houses, caring for children, and being a bike messenger.  It was the height of luxury, sitting in a chair while earning money and being paid for 15-minute breaks for coffee and smokes.

It also came with a gang of girls from the other four boroughs in full 1970's fashion, sashaying high waisted pants with pronounced panty-lines and striding thick, clunky platform shoes, their shags wind-swept, each part of their beings swathed in the right stuff that promised of love.

I wore baggy shirts and pants that hid nights of drinking and a round-the-clock junk food diet.  After several suggestions, reprimands and then final warnings about dressing more professional, which only meant dressing more lady-like, I knew I had to do something . So one day I pulled out out the shoes, and with a skirt found somewhere cheap, maybe Klein's or Alexander's or Korvette's, I showed up to work.

There's a particular kind of office-silence that rises from whisper-hissing from furious girls, who one by one stormed into the break room to stare in horror and contempt at an old pair of kitten heel, black suede shoes bought second-hand years before.  It defied their many hours of effort, making sure from head-to-toe they were the right thing to be loved.

I may have given up the chair tonight to a pissed off hissing cat.  But that day, I stayed seated, giving up nothing.

Friday's Child Is Loving And GivingAnd About To BeA Mother

THIS TINY PREGNANT CHI NEEDS 

A FOSTER OR FOREVER HOME!!

Social Tees recently saved this girl from the euthanasia list. 

Do you know an experienced foster or adoptive family willing and able to give her the care she needs for the next 10 weeks starting immediately?

She's about two years old and is only 7 pounds. She's great with other dogs and cats and is VERY friendly. She absolutely loves snuggling and wants nothing more than belly rubs from everyone she meets. 

If it's a foster place, Social Tees can help with supplies etc. Please email samantha@socialteesnyc.org asap if you can foster this mama!!

HAPPY ENDINGS!!!!!!!!  
THE LEGAL KIND!!!!

This one is particularly dear to both Social Tees and Her New York's hearts for a few reasons. 

One, it's about black cats... 

We LOVE black cats.   Black cats get euthanized in higher numbers than any other color cat, so the more black rescues, the better!

Two,  it's about Star, a Social Tees favorite, the handsome boy on the right. 

A dear friend of Social Tees regularly took Star to the hospice he works at so Star could provide affection and therapy to a cat-loving resident who was slowly passing away. Star was... well... a star there.  When it came time for him to find a forever home, he found exactly the right one where he could continue doing what he does best -- giving love with a twist of mischief. 

His mom says: "I adopted Star last December as a companion for my cat Macallan, whose brother had died suddenly around Thanksgiving. Star (now Oliver) was a tough nut to crack but has turned into a loving, playful, chubby friend. Oliver seems very content in his new home and enjoys keeping Macallan on his toes. Thanks for allowing him to become a part of our family."

JOIN THE LOVE!!!!!  ADOPT!!  FOSTER!!!!  SUPPORT!!!

SOCIAL TEES IN THE EAST VILLAGE!!!

Come Volunteer!!! 

Come Visit!!!!

 Come On In!!!!! 

 Social Tees   
325 East 5th Street, NY, NY 10003  
socialteesnyc.org 
www.facebook.com/SocialTeesAnimalRescue

Waiting For Company

Four hundred geese had just been killed in Prospect Park. Air control safety they said.

Here, in the the First Avenue Serengeti the kids sat on a patch waiting, those vigilant parents no where in sight.


**
Related Posts:

The Company They Keep

Company Returns

Company

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 1-Pigeons

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 2-Squirrels

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 3-Horses

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 4-Cats

Summer Reruns: Hyman

Originally posted October 28, 2008




He was already living across the hall from Florence the day we moved in in 1961. He never spoke to us kids and us kids never spoke to him but we knew to be respectful and silent as he came and went.

Later when Florence got sick, I bumped into him more.  We started giving each other a slight nod at some point, but mostly it was still the Lower East Side gaze we all do from the corner of our eye, letting the person know “I-see-you-I-still-don’t-talk-to-you."

I was spending yet another sunny day unburying Florence’s life from all the papers she kept.  Hit a wall, took a break, got a cafe con leche from the Dominican place that used to be the Giorgianni Brother's market. I needed to cry and caffeine makes it go faster.

There he was, pushing his shopping cart full of laundry to the lobby door.  He pointed to a newly-posted death notice. 

And then, for the first time, after not a word in fifty years - not a single word - we talked.

“Hannah’s brother?” he asked. 

No it was Shia on the third floor who died.

“How old?”

Well, Shia had to be late 70's because he and his wife were younger than my parents.

"70's? That's young. I'm 91."

And after fifty years, and after our very first words, I finally got to meet Hyman.

He takes care of himself. Sure, his nephew out on Long Island keeps an eye on him. And sure, the Vet Administration gave him home aides but what for. He has LifeLine. "Just like having a person there." Still, the Vet Administration's been great to him. Full disability. 

World War II I asked?

”Yeah. I got captured in France. Was a POW in Germany.  Stalag 11B." After the war, all the guys would get together.  He doesn’t go to the reunions anymore. "Most of these guys have checked out,” he said.

I reached down to help him get his cart up the five scattered steps to the lobby door - the same steps we needed two maintenance guys to get Florence in and out of the building.

"Nah. I got a system. I'm still pretty strong!" and before I knew it, he had bump-bump-bumped the big cart up each step.

The blond mommy and her little blond boy, dressed like Robin Hood, were coming out of the building. When I was growing up I could count on three fingers all the blond people in the neighborhood. Now it's normal.

Seeing the kid, Hyman lit up like a Ferris Wheel at night. “Whatcha got there, huh!?"

And then in the time honored Lower East Side act of loving family, he pulled out a $1 bill (25 cents in my day) and stuffed it in the little boy's hand. "Here! For Halloween!"

The mommy turned to her boy “What do you say?"

"Thank you!" Robin Hood answered promptly and he and Hyman grinned at each other before the kid and the mommy headed out to Sherwood Forest or maybe the Avenue A bus.

Hyman turned back to me.  "I'm going on a cruise." 

The nephew out on Long Island taking you some place warm? I asked.

“Nah.” A mischievous twinkle in his eye. "Guess where?!  Europe! I'm flying into Rome and then taking a cruise all over Europe. Athens."

With your nephew? I asked.

"No. By myself."

I looked so shocked he got this big grin and I saw the young soldier who got grit and guts and verve and survived a POW camp.

"People see an old man alone, they're very helpful,” he said with a shrug but still with that wicked fun twinkle "I told them, don't give me no 6-months-from-now-deal because I don't know if I'm going to be around then. Gimme something now."

Both of us waiting for the old elevator, the day whirled around me with light and sun and crisp air and coffee and old newspapers and piles of paper and death notices and scattered steps and little boys in Robin Hood outfits and dollar bills appearing out of nowhere and a person’s life I had lived next to for years and years and years and finally met.

The elevator arrived.  The old doors took their usual time to open. 

"Gotta do this. This trip is my last hurrah. Then I'll go quietly,” Hyman said.  And with that, he bump-bump-bumped his big laundry cart into the elevator.

Related Posts:

The Exhaustion of Diaspora: Part Four - Hyman Comes To Visit

Summer Reruns: Sunday Memories Of Letters From The Deep

As forty years of file boxes filled with letters and stabs at writing are culled through and shredded, a post of letters, originally posted November 11, 2008.



The family tradition of writing one another letters:

Dear Mom,
Louise said a curs word and so did I. Louise said a-s-s and and I said f-u-c-k. I'm sorry I said it. (Do not show daddy this note.) You'll find my homework in my note book. Please put back the books and do not forget any of the book. My homework (spelling and math) are the first ones in the first section. Do not mess up my paper. I changed my pantty.
Claire

TO MOM
Please do not throw this paper away!!!!!

Dear Claire
Don't say I never wrote to you at camp
 Love, Louise
PS Whe you come home, I shall have a guest. You'll sleep on the couch Wed.
Love, Louise

"Lend me your ears."
Dear Mother,
Please say to me that you "love me." Don't rip this up.
Love + xxxx
Claire

Dear Claire-
When you are stirred, out there in that beautiful country, to great heights of aspiring, or being inspired, cast your yearning thought to improving your spelling....
Florence

Dear Claire,
Wish you were here. Glad you are there.
Dad

Friday's Child Is Loving And Giving And Just Had Puppies!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!!!

The pregnant chi rescued from the euthanasia list during Social Tees' Los Angeles Rescue Mission just gave birth!!

Four brand new gorgeous little babies puppies!!!!! 

Welcome to the world, rescue puppies!!!!

Thank you to everyone who donated supplies for this little family via our Amazon wish list!!!

More stupidly cute pics to come for the next two months!

CAN ANYONE FOSTER THIS BIG HANDSOME GUY?

Snoop was surrendered to Social Tees last night.

This gorgeous boy is 12 years old.  He's not very happy in his cage.

Because he's a very mature adult he would do better in a home than in a cage while he waits for his forever family to find him.

Email samantha@socialteesnyc.org if you can foster this stud!  He would all be eternally grateful!

And A Little Reminder of Social Tees' 

Successful Matchmaking!

 

GOLDIE!!!

She came to live with us almost a year ago, thin like a piece of paper.  She'd cringe if we moved too fast around her and she ate the way panicked, hungry street cats do, hoping to get enough before something or one attacked.

Now, with a body like Sophie Loren, she romps around, lobbing herself into willing hands that scratch favorite spots.  She still eats fast but often saunters away because she knows it will still be there, no matter what.  

 Well, that is of course if the big boy doesn't eat it.

And sometimes we find her sleeping near or next to us.  Knowing she belongs here and she is safe here.

JOIN THE LOVE!!!!!  ADOPT!!  FOSTER!!!!  SUPPORT!!!

SOCIAL TEES IN THE EAST VILLAGE!!!

Come Volunteer!!! 

Come Visit!!!!

 Come On In!!!!! 

Social Tees  
325 East 5th Street, 
NY, NY 10003  
socialteesnyc.org
www.facebook.com/SocialTeesAnimalRescue

Summer Reruns Of Dana: Old School High Tech Revisited

Originally posted July 14, 2009

I couldn't get a signal on the computer to find the number of the theater to find out the times of the movie on Friday. "When I get home I'll go on their website and call them," I grumbled.

"I do have a phone book," she said. "It's white and it has numbers in it. I'm even in it."

Later, she read aloud from her hand written stories.   I typed them into my computer. "Wouldn't it be faster to xerox it?" she asked.

"Who's old tech now?" I answered.

**
Related Posts:

"Draw!" Dana Commanded and Art Burst Onto The Wall

Old School, High Tech

Summer Reruns Remember Peace: On The Street That You Live*

Originally posted on March 17, 2009

Nights walking home from Gramma's once-a-week-TV-watching with her...


...these nooks and crannies, as intimate as her small apartment....

... the purring of the bridge...


...if I had my way I'd live right here.



People stop and stare. They don't bother me.
For there's no where else on earth that I would rather be.
Let the time go by, I won't care if I
Can be here on the street where you live.
*My Fair Lady

Sunday Memories: The Sorrow And The Pity

Florescent lights have nothing to do with French collaborators or a four and a half hour documentary about them. 

But on a walk home, looking up at the lone kitchen light in a quiet dark building...

... the sorrow and the pity...

Our house silenced by late hours and defeat, the lone florescent light would be left on in the kitchen, just in case someone needed to get up in the middle of the night and, surrounded by kitchen appliances, stand there, wondering if it was worth trying again when the sun came up.

We weren't the only ones who had those lights.  Everyone had them.  They were plentiful, affordable and functional and came with the apartments we all lived in.  Apartments that were plentiful, affordable and functional.

Those lights and the apartments they used to be in have all but disappeared. 

But, here or there, on a dark street, look up.  What once always was, might still remain.  An empty night kitchen with cold blue light beckoning another leap of faith.

Perhaps all those old lights in those old kitchens so many years ago was the sorrow.  And perhaps their disappearance is the pity.

**
Related Posts:

Sunday Memories: Part Nine - A View From A Kitchen

Part Eight - A View From A Kitchen

Part Seven - A View From A Kitchen

Sunday Memories:  Part Six - A View From A Kitchen

Part Five - A View From A Kitchen

Part Four - A View From A Kitchen

Sunday Memories: Part Three - A View From A Kitchen

Part Two - A View From A Kitchen

Part One - A View From A Kitchen

Friday's Child Is Loving And GivingAnd If You Give You Will Receive

SOCIAL TEES TO THE RESCUE!!!!!

ONLY ONE DAY LEFT!!!!

On top of its New York rescue operations, Social Tees also rescues small dogs from Los Angeles!

They are trying to bring 20 death row dogs that are in a high kill shelter to NY and their fundraising campaign is coming to a close and they are SO CLOSE to meeting their goal -- $185 left to raise!!! The deadline is NOW- FRIDAY!

DONATE HERE: (https://fundrazr.com/campaigns/aohJd/ab/615Sw0?)

Don't have much in your pocket? THAT'S OK! FOSTER HOMES ARE NEEDED TOO!!!

Email samantha@socialteesnyc.org if you can foster for 2 to 4 weeks starting this Friday and PLEASE SHARE!!

CAUGHT BY THE PUP-ARAZZI

LEONA IS UP FOR ADOPTION!!

She's a 4-month-old Treeing Walker Coonhound mix, 25 lbs.

Very well socialized with other dogs and gets along great with every person she meets. She's wee pad trained and well on her way to being housebroken! She's super playful and will grow to be a medium sized, active girl.

Her foster mom says: "Leona (we call her Fiona) has been a love. She is the sweetest, most fun loving puppy ever. She loves to snuggle and sleeps through the night. She is amazing with both our pitbull and our little pekingese. She is not a big barker, is very friendly on walks, and is in the midst of being house broken. She would make a great pet for anyone."

Liked the photo???

A big thank you to our newest volunteer photographer, Alan Perlman of Chey Dog Photography, for taking and sharing these incredibly gorgeous pics of our rescue dogs!!!!

Swooning over this stuff and want to see more? Visit his dog photography collection at www.cheydogphotography.com and/or shoot him an email at alan@cheydogphotography.com. He'd be psyched to hear form you!

JOIN THE LOVE!!!!! 
ADOPT!! 
FOSTER!!!! 
SUPPORT!!!

SOCIAL TEES IN THE EAST VILLAGE!!!

Come Volunteer!!! 

Come Visit!!!!

 Come On In!!!!! 

Social Tees   
325 East 5th Street, NY, NY 10003  
socialteesnyc.org 
www.facebook.com/SocialTeesAnimalRescue

With Company Time Flies

At the end of a long day, I saw them again. 

All the way on the other side of the First Avenue Serengeti.  Right by the highway.  

It had only been a couple of weeks but those babies now looked huge, almost the size of their parents as they wandered about a patch.

I had been worried.  First there had been no rain and the puddle I often saw them in dried up.  Then there were all those NYC Environment trucks, which could have meant construction was going to start soon.  Then there was just the wilds of New York, with possible idiots slipping down into the unintended wild life reserve and going after them. 

Anything could go wrong. 

On top of all that, there were a couple of weeks of taking the bus.  But, each time it flew by the lot, I craned on tippy toes trying to see if anyone was still there.

Now, on foot, headed home, I had time to walk down to the highway and take another look at the family. 

Two cab drivers strolling back to their cabs saw me leaning into the fence snapping pictures.  They stopped.  One whipped out his phone and joined me.  We all grinned. 

And then... perhaps without warning or maybe just spooked by all these snapping bodies leaning against the chain-linked fence...

... what had been just puffballs only a little while ago now stretched big, strong wings and began beating them as if to take flight.

Me and the two cab drivers all gasped and laughed and took more pictures as we watched them finish their unique pre-flight checks and then wander deeper into the grass after their folks. 

Company would be leaving soon.


**
Related Posts:

The Company They Keep

Company Returns

Company

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 1-Pigeons

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 2-Squirrels

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 3-Horses

Pets Of Our Lives: Part 4-Cats

Neutral This

What is Net Neutrality?

Click here and have it all laid out, including information about coyote urine.  

Funny, wasn't it? But, I bet you're a bit worried now.  

Me, too. 

Chairman Wheeler of the FCC, having received thousands and thousands (yes the site crashed several times) of emails, wanted to hear PERSONAL reasons why Net Neutrality is so fundamental to our freedom of speech being protected, preserved and kept democratic ( you know, like what that Constitution and Bill of Rights says).

So, I wrote him a letter: 

Dear Mr. Wheeler: 

I understand that you wanted PERSONAL stories from all us little non-corporate people about why Net Neutrality is so important to us.  OK.  

I'm a great writer - not mainstream.  Don't do romance novels that both Republicans and Democrats can read.  I write brief moments of New York City through the prism of the heart.  And people all over the world read my little moments and get a sense of a human being living in a city in a country that isn't always very nice.  It's how world peace starts: person to person.  Oh this Jew-girl from NYC is just like me, someone living in Sudan, Iran, Turkey, Egypt, China...

Now, I don't have a lot of money or power but I have a great voice.  The way the internet works now allows me equal play and opportunity just like the folks who get to have a staff.  You know, like democracy and how I was always told as a kid that everyone has the chance to become their dreams in America and anyone can become a president in the United States stuff.

NO, NOT anyone can become president.  You got to be a Bush for that.  But with how the internet works now, I'm equally seen and heard. And quite frankly, I am really good and my work deserves that level playing field. 

BTW if money wasn't involved, the big guys wouldn't be so gung-ho. And I don't think you asked THEM for personal stories about why they want to be paid to go fast while the rest of us will go slow and please do not give me that bull#$* about fast and faster.  It will be slow-free and fast-expensive.

BTW again:  myprivateconey.blogspot.com

I'm good. And undoing the internet's democracy is barely America.  So do your job and uphold America where everyone can make their dreams come true because the playing field is actually level.

C.O. Moed

**


So.  Write your own letter and send it here.  

Feel free to tell Mr. Wheeler you agree with me (especially about my writing).  

Remind him about the Constitution and the Bill of Rights.   

Tell him how, perhaps with a staff, or with barely a nickel in your pocket, the internet allows you to get to know everybody in the world, if you so choose and have the time, by reading their stories and telling your own.  

Remind him that world peace begins that way.  

And if you only visit cat videos and my blog, inform him that poor folks do just as good cat videos as people with endorsement deals.  Net Neutrality will make sure Simon the cat has just as good a chance as Henri. 

Here's the petition, again:
http://campaigns.dailykos.com/p/dia/action3/c

**
Related Posts:

John Oliver explains Net Neutrality

The Constitution and the Bill of Rights

Net Neutrality (Again)

Simon the Cat 

Henri

Summer Reruns Of Sunday Memories: "Not Coney. Coney Island."

Originally posted July 20, 2008


Florence is 62 in this picture from the mid-1980s.

Now, 83, she is not only refusing to get out of bed, she is refusing visitors anything but her back.

K., the recreational therapist managed to get Florence to turn to her by playing a sonatina badly on her portable electric keyboard. Annoyed by sloppy playing, Florence rolled over to K., corrected her mistakes and then rolled back into her little corner. K. didn't give up. She began mispronouncing composers' names. It worked. Florence faced her and thus began a lesson in how one is required to speak.

A couple of days later, finished with my swimming lesson which actually went... swimmingly (in other words, I did not drown), I looked down from the glass balcony at the gym's pool filled with bodies going back and forth, and recalled a recent conversation with her former girlfriend who had loved her since they were teenagers ("Your mother was a great swimmer, your mother could swim anywhere, your mother....").

Years ago before we knew her memory had begun step behind closed doors to hide her accidents and mistakes, I got her to talk into a microphone about the place she loved more than her piano.

(See Daughter Of Coney at myprivateconey.com/audio )

Perhaps wondering if I too could coax Florence to roll back into life, I called.

"Hello Florence, I just finished another swimming lesson!"

"I used to go swimming. I swim," Florence said.

"I know. In the ocean." (I had to shout this because she had forgotten how to hold the phone up to her ear and my cell phone in a cavernous gym wasn't helping.)

"Right. And then you sit on the boardwalk, watch the people and they see you alone and they try to strike up a conversation."

"Get out of bed and I'll take you to Coney."

"NOT Coney. It's Coney Island. Coney ISLAND."

"Get out of bed and I'll take you to Coney ISLAND."

"OK. Maybe tomorrow. Don't eat too much. And lie down."

And with that she clicked off to roll back into her resting spot.

Friday's Child Is Loving And Giving And Saves Hearts

There's a reason Friday's Child is now a part of Her New York, if only to say thank you.

A two-month old Jupiter, then called Jimmy, when he was brought into the shelter with his five brothers and sisters. So sick, they were slotted to be put to death when a friend showed up 45 minutes before it was scheduled, brought them home and nursed them back to health.




Some folks say their pet saved their life. At least a guy on a PBS show said that.

I don't think Jupiter saved my life.



I think he saved me from frostbite seeping into my life and killing off bits and pieces. If it hadn't been for him, I probably would have lived on just fine for years, never noticing that parts of my heart no longer felt.

The Book of Jupiter

How's Your Heart Doing?

 

Baily 

STUDHUNK!!!  This one-year-old lab/shepherd mix is about 60 lbs, and his handsomeness gets him swells of attention everywhere he goes.  [TRANSLATION: BABE MAGNET!!]

He's very playful, and super sweet with everyone he meets. He's good with other dogs, loves long walks, and would make a good jogging partner.  And if you have a great family, he'd be a great family dog. 

His foster mom says: "Bailey is a playful and incredibly sweet mutt. He's a very quick learner! He walks along without pulling and only stops for other dogs when they are persistent. He's currently learning basic commands (sit, lay down, and stay) and is showing great enthusiasm. 

He absolutely loves belly rubs and kisses, and is an expert snuggle buddy! He would do really well in an active home. He has gotten along well with all dogs and people he has met, but he may be a little too playful for most cats. Bailey will make a wonderful and loyal companion!"

What, You're A Cat Person?

 

Mochila

Dashingly debonair cat seeks affectionate, low key human companion. Mochila is a big boy with whiskers for miles! He's four years old and a little shy at firs.  But once you break the ice (HINT: CHICKEN), he'll be your companion for life. 

Come meet him! 325 East 5th Street, NY, NY 10003; 5-7pm weeknights; 12-4pm weekends; 

SOCIAL TEES SUCCESS STORY!!!!!

Spot, the little dude on the right, was adopted a few months ago shortly after traveling across the country to find his forever home via a recent LA Rescue Mission. He's an East Coast boy now, living it up with an extremely loving family and an extremely fluffy brother.

His mom says: "Spot is a great little dog and we love him madly. He and Buddy and my grand dogs get along so well, which is a blessing. He is the happiest little guy and is such fun. He loves his toys, which are numerous, and steals Buddy's, but he doesn't mind -- he just steals them back.

Spot is a fabulous little guy and the relationship between him and our Buddy is a match made in doggie heaven. They do everything together and there is no jealousy. Spot is so well behaved because he follows Buddy's behavior. We love him so much and he gives that love back. Buddy is 14 and acts like he's 2 when they play, Spot has made him a puppy again.

This is a success story and as good as it gets when matching two dogs and a family together. Thank you for what you do. So glad he is in our lives. Our precious little boy, love him to death. He's happy, healthy and loves his furever home. Thanks for saving our little guy. -- Dottie & Mike & Buddy & Spotty Boy

JOIN THE LOVE!!!!! 
ADOPT!! 
FOSTER!!!! 
SUPPORT!!!

SOCIAL TEES IN THE EAST VILLAGE!!!

Come Volunteer!!! 

Come Visit!!!!

 Come On In!!!!! 

  Social Tees   
325 East 5th Street, NY, NY 10003  
socialteesnyc.org 
www.facebook.com/SocialTeesAnimalRescue

Encore After A Hard Day's Night: Back To Work

Originally posted October 19, 2010



The old buildings are being scraped clean of poisonous particles and in the new building, the weather's unknown unless you are outside. Still in temporary walls and airport gray carpet, the idea of peace is attempted in between dreams of windows.