Rainy Pete's Unbalanced World

Be kind indeed

Give that this week (May 4th to May 10th) was "Be Kind To Animals Week" I figured what better way to see things than through the eyes of a pet.

I was listening to the radio one day and heard the most amazing and heartbreaking story issue forth from my car speakers. The station I had on was a talk radio station and the host was one Charles Adler. Those who aren't familiar with Charles' style, he can be quite gruff and very callous and while he can get pretty worked up over stuff he seems to be a bit of hard case. This is not a true representation however as I heard the softer side of Charles that day. This is going back a while as this was in response to a story in the press about a man who dragged a dog behind his car. The resulting tale he told was enough for me.

You can listen to it here or if you're not having any luck getting through it then read it all here.

HNT #104

Days come and days go but the hassle remains.

Have you ever had one of those days where nothing seems to go right for you?

Sure we all have, but what happens when they start to stack up together?

This is when I turn to whatever I can to make my brain work again.

For me this is often photography.

Being a bit of an odd duck I love dark things. Dark movies, dark music, dark humor so it's only natural that this should tie to my photography too.

I know what you're thinking......"Don't you need light to take pictures?"

The answer is yes, but when it's dark you get to bring your own and have some fun.

The result is light painting and the results can be fun and silly or dark and dramatic

To see a range of what may be accomplished (which is really just a sampling of the myriad of possibilities anyhow) check out these.

Sometimes we need to smile

Things like this give me hope that the world isn't all the way lost just yet. (p.s. - If you're a dog person, brace yourself). This email was in the stack of emails that usually greets you after neglecting it for a day, recounting a wonderful tale of human kindness.

There is a God in the Post Office

This is one of the kindest things I've ever experienced. I have no way to know who sent it, but there is a beautiful soul working in the dead letter office of the US postal service.

Our 14 year old dog, Abbey, died last month.The day after she died, my 4 year old daughter Meredith

was crying and talking about ho w much she missed Abbey. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to heaven, God would recognize her. I told her that I thought we could, so she dictated these words:

Dear God,

Will you please take care of my dog? She died yesterday and is with you in heaven. I miss her very much. I am happy that you let me have her as my dog even though she got sick.

I hope you will play with her. She likes to play with balls and to swim. I am sending a picture of her so when you see her you will know that she is my dog. I really miss her.

Love, Meredith.

We put the letter in an envelope with a picture of Abbey and Meredith and addressed it to God/Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith pasted several stamps on the front of the envelope because she said it would take lots of stamps to get the letter all the way to heaven.

That afternoon she dropped it into the letter box at the post office. A few days later, she asked if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had.

Yesterday, there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch addressed, 'To Meredith , in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers called, 'When a Pet Dies.' Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God in its opened envelope. On the opposite page was the picture of Abbey & Meredith and this note:

Dear Meredith,
Abbey arrived safely in heaven.

Having the picture was a big help. I recognized Abbey right away.

Abbey isn't sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me just like it stays in your heart. Abbey loved being your dog. Since we don't need our bodies in heaven, I don't have any pockets to keep your picture in, so I am sending it back to you in this little book for you to keep and have something to remember Abbey by.

Thank you for the beautiful letter and thank your mother for helping you write it and sending it to me. What a wonderful mother you have. I picked her especially for you.

I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much.

By the way, I'm easy to find; I am wherever there is love.

Love,
God

HNT #103

Well here we go again.

Thursdays come and go and the last few came and went right along with out me here.

HNT time is a time to kick back and relax. To take in the sights and the thoughts of the fellow blog folks and revel in the world.

Given the joys of being exhausted, busy, plus dealing with a soul sucking job, a dying car, a leaky basement and other assorted fun, I figured it's time to fight back.

I was eating a KitKat bar and remembered their ad line that said "You deserve a break today".

So today I decided that come lunch time I'm taking a well deserved break at work. Not that the lunch break is long enough to take a really good break so I'm improvising.

Meet my "F&%# it all" lunch!

All in all today should go pretty well after lunch. I'll even drink a toast to the almighty Os as it's his birthday and all this week!

If the beer doesn't work then I guess I'll have to call my doctor and get me some of this.

You Might be a Leprechaun if.......

You Might be a Leprechaun if.......

You snicker uncontrollably all the way through "Darby O'Gill And The Little People."

Your record collection is stocked only with very short artists, Paula Abdul, Sheena Easton, Prince, Phil Collins.

When you see a rainbow, you get a greedy little look in your eye. (Arrrr, there's me pot o' gold!)

In your cupboard there is nothing but Lucky Charms cereal.

Every time you get your paycheck, you convert it into gold coins and bury it somewhere.

You insist on dancing a jig on your way to work each morning to the embarrassment of all your friends.

You've been under a rock for the past few years.

You just despise fairies. ("Wing Envy" if you ask me!)

You try to pick up women by saying "Ah, lassie, you have dazzling kneecaps, you do."

When you eat good food, you say it is "magically delicious,".

And the number one way you can tell you might be a Leprechaun:

You're three feet tall, Irish, have red hair, cuss, drink and wear green a lot!