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4:13am
February 2, 2015
This is Flame, our new cat. Consensus seems to be that she is a torbie - a tortoiseshell tabby.
Flame is seven years old and had a rough start in life. She was hand-raised by a woman after being rejected by her mother and litter-mates. At some point she lived with a man who treated her really badly, so she is shy of men. She spent the last two years living with one of my friends (from NaNoWriMo), whose other two cats didn’t like her either.
We are really glad to be able to provide her with a home where she won’t be attacked by other cats for literally no reason.
She was named Flame because there is a small orange patch right on the tip of her tail. She is small due to the rough start. She is really snuggly and purry, and as long as my husband is sitting down she likes to sit with him. She has some kind of food allergy that we will get totally sorted out, but it looks to be a grain allergy. It causes her to overgroom her belly and her legs. Hopefully our home is calm enough for her and we can feed her safe enough food that all of her fur grows back.
We are also hoping that she turns out to be a good mouser. :)
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10:11pm
September 24, 2014
I added photos to the poem “Visiting Your Grave” on my other blog.
Content warning for death and graveyards, obviously, but the pictures don’t even look like a graveyard unless you look closely, it’s tiny and overgrown:
http://ameliabaggs.wordpress.com/2014/09/24/visiting-your-grave/
The photos are of the actual grave site he picked out, which I think is wonderful that he’s been able to do that, and choose his coffin. A lot of people don’t get that chance, and I think being buried in a tiny graveyard in the woods in the mountains suits him so perfectly it makes me cry.
12:43pm
August 23, 2014
Disapproving guinea pig has perfectly manicured paws
10:38am
August 21, 2014
STAFF AND CLIENT
That has always been my title for this photograph, and it’s the only reason I have kept the photograph for so long over the years. I don’t even remember who she was. I just remember she was a staff person in an afterschool program I went to, for kids who were in the system. And that this photo is the perfect embodiment of the difference between staff and clients – in power, in body language, in facial expression, in everything.
I swear I’ve seen dozens of photos like this. With staff smiling radiantly at the camera, trying to look happy and pleasing and helpful. And the client just kind of sitting there maybe trying to look at the camera but not a whole lot else.
I don’t know how many of you know the body language differences I’m describing here. I don’t know how many of you can pick up on the social dynamic I’m trying to describe. But I’m hoping that some people will, because this is one of those things I’ve seen over and over – I’ve seen entire walls at agencies plastered with this kind of picture – but I’ve never seen anyone say “Hey this is kind of weird” or “Don’t you find that a bit unsettling?”
I’m the “client” in this picture, if that’s not obvious. The one with the long dark hair and the light brown dress. The staff person has impossibly light blonde hair and a white shirt.
I really, really hope other people can see what I see in this picture, because so often I get blank looks when I try to show people offline what I mean. Then again most of the people I show offline are staff…
I wish staff wouldn’t do this, in pictures, but I don’t know how to tell them what they should be doing. Other than not putting on an artificially cheery facade that says “look how well I take care of these people” without ever saying it.
8:22pm
August 20, 2014
The unexplained death of a Kamloops First Nation woman has led to another call for a public inquiry into missing and murdered aboriginal women.
On June 1, ATV riders found a skull in a remote area near Campbell Lake and White Lake, approximately 20 kilometres southeast of Kamloops, B.C. A further search of the area uncovered more skeletal remains from the same person. That person was identified last week as 25-year-old Samantha Paul, who was reported missing in September 2013.
The RCMP haven’t confirmed foul play in her death, but her family and community are convinced she was murdered. This week, Paul’s family and local chiefs held an emotional press conference at the Kamloops Indian Band office, calling for an inquiry into her death.
Tk’emlups Indian Band Chief Shane Gottfriedson, appearing visibly shaken, said he believes Paul was killed and that women and girls in the community are not safe. ”Our community is small and it is heart-wrenching and appalling to know that a killer walks amongst us free today,” he said. ”It is very difficult for her family and our people to accept.” The chief said it is tragic that, in the end, Paul’s life has been reduced to a number.“It is my understanding that the homicide rate for indigenous woman in Canada is seven times higher than for non-indigenous women,” he said. “Samantha Paul is another woman who is now only a statistic.”
Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, President of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, said the government must take action and hold an inquiry looking into not only Paul’s fate, but also the larger question of why so many aboriginal women are going missing and turning up murdered in Canada. ”It’s a national tragedy but, more importantly, it’s a national disgrace,” he said. “We are absolutely outraged that the Harper government refuses to agree to a national inquiry.”
10:03am
August 20, 2014
Meet Eugene. Apparently shoulders are the best place to sleep :)
