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Nostalgia Day in Yofi's Blog[/align]
Here are some pics, though most aren't of the wabbity kind. Just thought I'd post some older photos for fun (with bits of background info here and there):
First, a couple of photos of my mom. I have no idea when the first one was taken, but she was probably still living at home with her parents at the time. I was told that this was a b&w photo that she later retouched herself, to make it look like a color shot. The second one is her holding me as we visited a neighbour a few houses down.
About my mom: She loved cats. Loved to paint - scenic, mostly. She had 4 children who she raised mostly on her own when my dad was in the navy. She sold products door-to-door parttime (I don't recall the company line, but it was similar to Avon). She was quiet, shy, unassuming...and everyone loved her. I barely remember her (losing her when I was 10, it seems I've suppressed my childhood memories). But among the small snippets that I do remember, I recall these...Watching her bake cakes in the kitchen, and waiting eagerly for that chance to lick the icing from the mixer's beaters, and clean out the sides of the mixing bowl; Helping her do the washing (which involved using an old scrub board first, then a wringer washer that was rolled into the center of the kitchen, and then finally, hanging the clothes outside to dry...in wintertime they froze stiff as boards in the frigid air; Fascinated as she changed my newborn sister's diapers (and I recall the jealousy I harboured over that little sqealing baby too!); I also recall the scent of the body lotion she used...part of the product line she used to sell, to help bring in extra money, and the tiny bottles of perfume she kept on her dresser, their caps shaped like small, petaled roses; The giant chocolate Easter bunny that my dad had given her one year - it must have been 2 feet tall(!) - and wondering how she could ever have kept it for so long without giving in to the temptation to eat it; Her love of Peter, her cat...he was a huge, ebony black feline whose devotion was to her alone; And the small black and white television that was later put in my parents' bedroom, so she could still watch tv when she was too ill to come downstairs. Oh, and her garden...her love of flowers, of lilac bushes, and of all things that grew. My mom died when she was 42. She would have been 85 years old now, had she lived...something that's almost too hard to imagine, yet something I truly wish had.
Now, onto some animals...
Fritz, my cat. At 16 years old, he snores when he sleeps, he yowls when he doesn't get his way, but he's still the same adorable cat who came to me when he was just under a year old. The first picture was taken after some major surgery to his abdominal area...he had belonged to tenants who'd lived downstairs from my son and myself, and one day after they'd let him outside, he was seriously injured (putting together the clues, we believe he was hit by a car). When Fritz's owners decided they were going to drop him off at the Humane Society "as a stray", rather than take him to the vet for treatment, I offered to take him to my vet, on the condition that they relinquish ownership to me. So they did, and two surgeries (and $1000 (begged and borrowed) later), he was finally healed. The second picture shows one of the things Fritz used to love to do...play tug-of-war, just like a dog. And the third pic is, well, just Fritz.
Here's a series of pictures of Kaya (aka, "The Dog"). The first are some random shots of her taken during the first year or so that I had her; the last are of her rummaging through her toybox a couple of weeks ago, and that of being a camera ham. At 14 years old she's still going strong, even despite her constant attempts to elude the crazed, long-eared rabbit who resides with us. Kaya was also a pet who came to me through some hard circumstances in her early life...just about everyone seemed to be giving up on her because of issues she'd developed. My heart went out to her; after all, who wouldn't have some issues develop after wandering the streets for who knows how long, without food or a home? So she came home with me from the animal shelter, and - after relentless hours, training, and tears, we prevailed. I think both of us somehow knew that we found one another, and - just as Snooch, Raph, Yofi, and so many other animals I've known have done - Kaya has served not just as a friend, but also as a mentor and guide.
(LOL...this photo was taken a split second after she'd let go of one of her favorite toys, an empty plastic bottle.)
And a few final, quick bunny photos:
This was a rabbit I'd purchased many many years ago...she was a Mini lop who had originally come from a breeder in California. Then a breeder in British Columbia purchased her, and a few years later I purchased her from that breeder. I was living in NS at the time, so she was flown all the way across the country to come live with me. Her official name was Forstinger's Sweet, but I shortened it to 'Sweet'...and she truly was as her name described. One of the nicest rabbits I've ever crossed paths with, she was docile, friendly, and loved to be snuggled. I can't recall now how long I did have her, but I bred her a couple of times and she proved to also be an absolutely wonderful mom, and she had beautiful babies. Then in 1987, when I decided that my son and I would move to Ontario, I had to make a heartbreaking decision...my rabbits couldn't go with me. At the time I still had 4 or 5 bunnies left from my days of showing rabbits, but the one I had the hardest time letting go of was Sweet. She went to live with my friend who lived a few houses away, and for the next year I received updates on how Sweet was doing. And then came the news I hadn't wanted to hear: Sweet was gone. She'd died in her sleep one late summer's evening, found stretched out in her hutch. Lynn told me that Sweet had looked peaceful, and that she never seemed to suffer, as she had showed no signs of illness; she'd simply lived her life and then decided to let go. A piece of her remains with me forever.
Raph, my spiritual bunny guide...
And a whimsical little shot of Anna, taken a couple of weeks ago
I don't have any new ones of Yofi at the moment, but am sure that the next time I drag the camera out, he will be first in line to stick his furry little face right into the lens. Stay tooned....
:biggrin2:
