Plea from A Small Dog

Hi everyone,
You probably don't know me, but you may have noticed my picture in the corner of this blog. Yes, that's me. In a tangled mass of yarn. I promise, I didn't do it. And why I had my picture taken in the middle of it is beyond me. Someone's completely unwound — not gonna say who ...

So, my momma (she's the one who usually writes here) told me about this guy who lives with a sheep named Dolores and balls of sock yarn that sometimes write his blog for him. So I figured, if a chain-smoking sheep can write, why can't I? And besides there's something I have to say.

I don't get this whole yarn and knitting obsession. I mean, I've tried. I really have.

Of the needles I've chewed, I haven't found any that are particularly tasty. They all have a tendency to give me splinters and leave a wooden aftertaste. I haven't tried chewing any of the carbon ones yet. (I wonder where she's got those hidden.)

And yarn? Man that woman gets cranky when I want to play with it. It's not like I'm eating it — I'm just dragging it around the house and teasing the cats. I run with it, they pounce. Momma says we all need more exercise, but I'm not sure she means it. I think running and pouncing are exercise and I think it shows a level of cooperation between the furry people in the house. That didn't seem to persuade her either.

Don't even get me started on her knitting book collection. Not one has patterns that I find of interest. Seriously, aren't there books on how to knit sweaters for adorable little dogs who freeze in the winter? Why am I condemned to store bought fleece hoodies? I've seen how much yarn she has. She could knit me a sweater ... a lot of them! I promise that I probably won't run, dragging it through the house, the way I do my hoodies. Probably. And you know whatever she knits, I'm gonna make look good, even if it has bobbles! (I'm not sure I heard right, but I think she said something about finding a book that would show her how to make yarn with my fur — that's going a bit far, don't you think? I make a cute dog, not a cute sweater.)

There's this writer momma likes, the Yarn Harlot I think. Ms. Harlot wrote a piece, in her book, All Wound Up: The Yarn Harlot Writes for a Spin, comparing knitting to addiction. If I remember correctly, the conclusion was that knitters are near to being addicts. I find this disturbing. I realize we all have our vices. That big fat cat, Sam, seems to like his toys covered in catnip, and I will admit that if my slimy, stuffing-less caterpillar goes missing, I freak out a bit. But I think it's time momma just says NO to yarn before she ends up in rehab and is forced to knit with coffee stirrers and string she's spun out of lint from the dryer.

And the final straw? She leaves me so she can hang out with other knitting addicts who, instead of helping her on the road to recovery, only feed her habit. She thinks I don't know, but I see her sneak out of the house with her knitting paraphernalia. I know where she's going. And I don't like it one bit. If only I could make her see that the cure is staying home and playing with me. But the more I nag the faster she seems to leave the house. She keeps trying that trick of making me want to be quiet, but I'm on to her. It's going to take more than a milkbone to bribe me into silence.

I guess that's all I have to say now ... her needles have stopped clacking, so I'm guessing she'll be looking for me shortly. She gets all kinds of cranky when she catches me on the computer.

Please join me in the fight to save my momma from the merino lined rabbit hole she's headed down. There's a milkbone in it for you and I may let you play with my caterpillar.

Thanks for your support,
La Bella Luna 
(aka Luna, or if Mike's talking about me to momma, YOUR dog. I like Luna better.)

It's October and Time to Break Out the Pink?

Well, for most people ... not for me. I've come to hate this time of year and the overwhelm of "in your face" breast cancer awareness.

I am aware.

I am a survivor.

But, here's the thing — I believe breast cancer awareness should be year round and not just October. I hate being reminded, throughout the month of October, that I 'belong to the club'. There are some that seem to base their identity on this disease — I'm not one of them. Every year I sit in the waiting room of the mammography center, and every year I hear women proclaim, almost proudly "well, I have to go through special screenings because I'm a breast cancer survivor." I am too, I just don't think it's any one's business but my own when I'm sitting there.

Truthfully, I don't think it's any one's business even when I'm not sitting there. (and yet here I sit writing a public post about it) I'm still surprised when someone learns I had breast cancer and they hadn't known at the time. Why would they? I didn't declare it from the rooftops or take out an ad in the post. I did what I needed to do. I researched, I found the best care I could, I kept a positive attitude (even when I wasn't feeling particularly positive) and through it all, I was thankful that I decided to schedule a mammogram for my 50 year/50,000 mile check up and it was caught early.

After nearly five years I don't notice the scars and, except for doctor appointments, I have finally hit a point where I forget that I belong to the group labled breast cancer survivors.

So while I won't wear pink ribbons, buy pink appliances (Tell me, what does a pink mixer have to do with breast cancer research anyway? And who has a kitchen a pink mixer would look good in?), or put a pink ribbon magnet on my car, here's what I will do:

• I will support the organizations that are trying to make a difference.
• I will encourage women not to ignore their mammograms and extol the benefits of early detection.
• I will be there for another woman who is dealing with the news that something "suspicious" was found in the images.
• I will donate to groups that I believe are truly committed to women's health issues. (One major organization lost my support several years ago for what, I thought, was a short-sighted decision that has since been reversed. I'm sure they continue to do good things, just not with my money.)
• I will Make Strides when I can, and support others when I can't.
• I will remember that breast cancer is only one type of cancer and that daily people are in a fight for their lives.
• I will continue to donate to the American Cancer Society because of that.
• And finally, I will ask you to respect the right, of survivors, to view October as the month between September and November, and not assume they don't care about the cause. We do care, just not publicly, and not just in October.

Of course, I have no control over Luna... 
She's half terrier and has a mind of her own

Now, back to our regularly scheduled, less preachy, more sassy and smart-assy, blog.