Temple Grandin

The woman is a lot of things. Inventor, writer, livestock consultant, animal scientist, and a lecturer. All of those things while being a highly functional Autistic. She’s quite simply, amazing.

I do take offence to those who call her an *animal activist* though. On one hand she claims to love bovines and declares she shares a bond with them. For myself, who is empathetic towards animals, and has been owned by a multitude of species she confuses me with those statements. How can one share a bond, and love them, if you create something that assists them in being led to slaughter?

Jim Sinclair, who is also a highly functioning Autistic, says the following in part of his response to Temple Grandin “If you love something, you don’t kill it”. Beautiful and succinct. The link for Jim Sinclair’s web site and the article can be found here: JIM SINCLAIR . A wee bit more about Jim HERE

There are also videos with Ms Grandin titled “The Woman Who Thinks Like a Cow” and “Humane Animal Slaughter*. Totally absurd. How many beef cattle are standing around thinking of ways to be *humanely* slaughtered. There is no such thing as *humane* slaughter. Slaughter is slaughter. Slaughter is quite simply, murder. Now, I don’t want anyone to take offence to the word murder, but, if you recognize that animals, along with the human animal, are sentient beings, it is indeed murder.

Sentience is the ability to feel or perceive. All animals feel pain, all animals feel stress, all animals are worthy of not being disregarded and disrespected. All animals, no matter the system they are being led to slaughter, know something is horrifically coming their way.

While some hail her as being someone who may bring people to the realization that animals are sentient beings, I do not. It’s incomprehensible. And I would gamble that bovines do not either.

Let’s bring animal rescues into the equation. How can a rescue go to a stockyard, buy animals, bring them home, proclaim to the *world* they rescued them, and then go to McDonalds/The Keg/wherever, buy milk ( only calves need milk for cripes sake )  and eat the same species. How the fuck do they work that in their minds?

Why is it okay to fawn over the delicate gorgeous creatures in their pastures they are tending to, but more than assist in the disgusting murders of their species?

Oh my lord, the excuses they come up with.

Now, I’m pretty damn sure I’m going to alienate some people by saying these things, but I really don’t care. These are my thoughts, my ideals, and that’s it. What you do and what you treasure is yours. I truly respect yours, and I would hope you would respect mine. If not, c’est la vie.

I would encourage everyone to watch the films "Earthlings" and "Food Inc" as well as  read the book by Michael Pollan "The Omnivore's Dilemma". Links to watch the films below.

Earthlings

Food Inc.   This link will take you to youtube where you can watch the film. Because youtube only allows 10 minute films you will have to click on part 2, part 3 etc.

Sidenote: the films are what they are...I'm not trying to persuade anyone to become a Vegan/Vegetarian, I simply want you to see and take away with it what you will.

Frustration and old Films

I do believe I have reached my peak of frustration. As far as things go at least.

The furnace crapped out and went to furnace hell a couple of weeks ago. Replacing a whack of parts cost more than I can speak about without wincing. Borrowed money to fix it. Oh freaking lovely. More money to pay back. 2 days ago it blew cold air…called the same repair guy, he came and said a wire was loose. Fixed it, at no charge of course. It blew me hot air wonderfully until last night. Called the guy, he is mystified and will try and get out this evening. Say whaaaat??? You’ll try and get out this evening?? Buddy…we are in the minus’ here! Thankfully I have small portable heaters or I would be livid. Well, more livid than I already am. When he does show up I might just tell him to take out the parts and return them.

What with the cost of the propane ( including the cost of the rental for the 300 lb tank ) and these screw ups, I might do better with a larger portable heater. It would bloody cost less than this damn thing has.

I watched Tom Sawyer, circa 1938 the other night. Except for the whipping on the heads a couple of cows received, the embarrassing 'Massa this and Massa that from Aunt Polly's slave and the also embarrassing portrayal of the Aboriginal, Injun Joe, it was pretty good! My favourite line was “One thing about being a pirate, ain’t no one gonna make you wash your feet”.

Tonight’s film will be Citizen Kane. I’m becoming hooked on these older films I have never seen!

Hope you’re having a fantastic Wednesday!

Photos are Taking Over my Computer!

I remember when I bought my first digital camera. I was overjoyed that I no longer had to trudge down to the store, hand the rolls in and extremely impatiently wait for them to be developed to see them. Life was easy peasy…all I had to do was insert the card in my computer and voila!. there they all were.

Well, the problem became in deciding which should stay, and which to delete. Last year I didn’t need to make that decision as my computer crashed and all of them were *poof* gone. I cried. Seriously wept because a lot of those photos and videos were of Jack. My heart dog. I cursed myself for not taking the precaution and putting them on dvd’s to sort out at a later date.

In between the weeping and wailing, I visited a friend’s blog and was ogling her gorgeous German Shepherds and realized that I was an idiot of the largest magnitude. I had put most of my favourite photos and a few videos of Jack right here, on my blog! And the remainder on Fliker and Photobucket. Yay! Oh I did lose some but those are forever implanted in my memory, they’re not going anywhere.

So if you have some favourite photos you want to hang onto, go put them on some dvd’s. Because I take so many photos I do that weekly, without fail. And still upload them to photo sites, just in case of whatever.That way there will be no weeping and wailing.

Anyway, as I was going through the videos on Photobucket I came across this one. It’s of my dogs at the time Watcher, Ticket, Frankie, a friends dog Bella ( the black Rotti X ) and Fargo ( my sisters dog a Lab X, ). I filmed a lot of videos that day but this one I remember distinctly because I was dog sitting Fargo for my sister for a month and boy did we have fun with her! Sweet sweet baby girl…I miss her!

Good times!

And because it’s so bitchin’ cold today I watched this one over and over! This was at Texas Lake, a super duper excellent swimming spot for the dogs…and humans! It’s about 20 minutes from home and I have absolutely no idea why but in the many many times we’ve gone, I’ve only ever seen 1 other party of people there. Weird!

K, I’m going to put a whack of this weeks photos on a dvd and watch The Adventures Of Tom Sawyer from 1938. Enjoy your evening!

Exhilarating Snow

 

"Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us, snow is exhilarating; there is no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather." — John Ruskin

Peeked out my bedroom window when I woke this morning and saw…

If you know me, you know how much I absolutely love snow. I could list many adjectives that describe it for me but the best word I can think of is peacefulness. The stillness it brings is exhilarating to me. I suppose that is because I abhor noise. Not nature noise like birds chattering or dogs barking. It’s the human interference noise that makes me crazed. Horns honking, sirens blaring, people yakking etc. Not that I hear much of the latter where I live, but when I do hear it, it sounds magnified.

When it snows, I rarely hear those sounds as everyone else wants to stay tucked inside. Good!

Snow brings a serene beauty to everything it lands on as well.  The driveway….

Had to take a couple of photos of this little bird…willing it turn around so I could see it’s face…

 

Will this become someone's Christmas tree laden with crap? Oh I hope not!

I took the dogs out for a romp in the snow today but was too much of a wimp to haul out the camera for fear of it getting wet. On the way there….

Frankie in the van silently killing me with his eyes. I was taking much much too long to get to the lake….

Tomorrow it is not suppose to snow. Booooooo! But at least I can take photos of the dogs running around in it! Hopefully we can get down to the lake again. It was so incredibly still and quiet there today. If not, there is always the rail yard behind the sardine can, that’s always a good run.

Nutty Notion and Ack!, I can’t see!

A sadist friend has challenged me to post every day for a year.

Whoa.

He said I’ll love him for it at the end. We’ll see if he lives to the end. But, I accept his challenge.

What the eff? How can I have normal vision ( well, normal for a near sighted person who wears glasses ) when I go to sleep, wake up and need, not almost need, but need a serious magnifying glass? What happened?

Normal progression of age…I despise you.

It’s supposed to snow a measly 10-15 cm.’s today/night. Seriously, what’s the point? I hope the snow gods foul up and it blizzards down 100 times that.

But it leaves by Tuesday when I have to drive to the concrete jungle.

I don’t normally feed the birds, but with the snow on the ground it makes it really hard for them to get the food in them that they so desperately need to survive. So I made a batch of winter bird food. Equal parts of seed, either black oil sunflower seeds or just the mixed seed, peanut butter, lard or shortening and any other kind of protein you have at hand. I’ve used finely crushed high protein dog kibble, raisins, chopped apple and oatmeal. It should be the consistency of chocolate chip cookie dough…..either scrape it into pine cones, in the crook of a branch, smeared on a twig or just plop it on the ground.

Uh oh, now I want chocolate chip cookie dough.

Here’s a couple of little buddies enjoying their snack…

And one of a crow. Not sure what’s up with this guy but he/she’s been hanging around since September of last year. He hangs with the murder of crows that live behind my home during the day, but at night, when the rest go to their rookery, he stays behind in the top thickness of a Fir tree a few metres away.

Hope you all are enjoying your Saturday!

Good Things

The first 2 cups of tea are supped from....

( That's as girly as I ever get. The rest of the day I chug back my tea from a big 'ol coffee mug. But dang it, I adore my cup and saucer! )


My mountains...they never fail to make my head swoon. 

Seasons change...

Sometimes attitudes....

never change.

If you go down this side road on the left, where there is rarely any traffic, don't think you can just get out and pee and nobody will come around the corner. Just sayin'.

Heart rocks...are everywhere you want to find them...

 Awww, and my canine good things.....

Uh oh....a puppy. This is a dangerous thing for me to see. I might want it.

Good thing I already have it!

Old friends....stay old friends. Good thing!

New good friends....always a good thing!

But this is the best damn good thing thing evah!