While we were trailing after my daughter Jessica during her graduation events last weekend, I was charmed to see so many animals had infiltrated the ultra-geeky world of Carnegie Mellon University. I don’t just refer to the CMU Scottish Terrier official mascot – although Scottie was there – but wild animals too. From the early morning robin and bunny to the sparrows in the grass during the commencement service, CMU creatures joined our celebrations.
Images Copyright 2012 by Katy Dickinson
Filed under Home & Family, News & Reviews
Saturday, John, my mother, and I spent another day of sorting and packing my parents’ San Francisco home. As my daughter Jessica wrote, this is about Dirt, Dust, and Duty. I shipped five boxes of my father’s clothes to my older brother, put five more boxes of family quilts, lace, and linens into the car, then packed in two small tables, two mirrors, some art, and a shower chair. Everything but the shower chair goes into storage. My uncle came over to pack some of his stuff. Then I did a walk through with the mover in preparation for his crew returning next weekend.
Today was my day off. After church, I worked in my poor neglected and dog-pounded garden. Then, John and Paul and I spent several hours reviewing the construction proposal for the new addition to our home in Willow Glen. Comparing the proposal to the architect’s drawings, we discussed flooring, counter tops, lighting, electrical outlets, TV cables, and all of the other minutiae which are so expensive if you don’t get them right the first time.
Our house addition will initially be for my 80-year-old mother, so we are making it wheelchair accessible, just in case. This means more than just a roll-in shower and wider doorways. Can she get into the pantry? Should the doors open in or out? So much to consider!
Image Copyright 2012 by Katy Dickinson
Filed under Church, Home & Family, News & Reviews
Over a year ago, my husband John and I donated a brunch in WP668, our backyard caboose, to the SAMA auction, to benefit the medical charity of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church (Saratoga, California). Today, we fed six guests who left very happy with their meal aboard our historic railroad car. The menu included:
The dogs were happy to play with new friends in their yard and were sure that the whole event had been planned for doggy entertainment.
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Images Copyright 2011 by Katy Dickinson
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Growing up in San Francisco, my brothers and I had far more pets than you might think. From time to time, we had a rescued baby crow in the breakfast room, toads and frogs in the tub, iguanas and bunnies in the basement, a boa constrictor in the bathroom, and cats wherever they pleased to go. My mother’s motto about all of this was from the Dr. Seuss book One Fish Two Fish Red Fish Blue Fish:
Look what we found in the park in the dark.
We will take him home, we will call him Clark.
He will live at our house, he will grow and grow.
Will our mother like this? We don’t know.
At my home in San Jose, we have a more modest menagerie (2 dogs, 2 birds, and a cat) but since we live on the Guadalupe River, we are often invaded by hoards of squirrels, flocks of finches and other songbirds, geese, ducks, and hawks, weird horsehair worms, opossums, raccoons, lizards, and Jerusalem crickets, among others. Our new puppy Gilroy is delighting in all of it during his first week with us. His adopted-big-sister Redda is bored with squirrels but Gilroy still barks at them joyously.
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Images Copyright 2011 by Katy Dickinson
Filed under Home & Family, News & Reviews
Our old dog Juliet died this week. She was our beloved pet for about 15 years, after her stray mother had her among a litter of puppies born under the garage. Juliet’s brother Romeo died last year. When Romeo was failing, we adopted Redda, who is now a bouncy eighty-pound two-year-old collie-pit mix. The whole family misses Juliet very much. We have been looking for a good companion rescue dog for Redda so that she will not be so lonely.
Today, we adopted Gilroy. He is a 1-year-old corgi mix, about half Redda’s size, but when they met at the dog run of the Santa Clara County Animal Shelter in San Martin, California, it was love at first sight. They have been licking and chasing and playing non-stop since they met. She has been showing him all over the yard. Redda and Gilroy are both smiling a lot. Tino the cat is ignoring both dogs, as usual.
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Images Copyright 2011 by Katy Dickinson
Filed under Home & Family, News & Reviews
The animals in our family include two 8 year old birds, a 15 year old cat, a 14 year old dog, and a large wiggly 1-1/2 year old puppy. They are all rescue animals or adopted strays. The birds are cockatiels; the others are mutts. From time to time, I take photos of everybody. I recently attempted the near-impossible task of getting both dogs and the cat in one picture. A fast camera and much patience is required. I have a Canon S90 PowerShot, which is not fast enough. A dog’s tail can wag faster than almost any camera. Also, our dogs and cat like each other fine but each is watchfully jealous that someone else might get more attention than they.
I tried first to get the dogs to pose outside of the screen door of John’s office but finally had to enlist John to get everyone in one place. I ended up with several great portraits of each animal but never all three looking good in the same shot. At least everyone had fun.
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Images Copyright 2010 by Katy Dickinson
Filed under Home & Family, News & Reviews
Last week at St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church (Saratoga, CA), we had our annual blessing of the animals for St. Francis’ day. We sang hymns appropriate to the day:
- All things bright and beautiful…
- For the beauty of the earth…
- All creatures of our God and King…
We said the prayer attributed to St. Francis:
Lord, make me an instrument of your peace;
where there is hatred, let me sow love;
where there is injury, pardon:
where there is doubt, faith;
where there is despair, hope
where there is darkness, light
where there is sadness, joy
O Divine Master,
grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console;
to be understood, as to understand;
to be loved, as to love;
for it is in giving that we receive,
it is in pardoning that we are pardoned,
and it is in dying that we are born to Eternal Life. Amen.
We said the Collect for the Feast of St. Francis:
Most high, omnipotent, good Lord, grant your people grace to renounce gladly the vanities of this world; that, following the way of blessed Francis, we may for love of you delight in your whole creation with perfectness of joy; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.
John and I brought our cockatiel birds Guapo and Sparky in their domed cage. They were very interested and flirted amiably with many children. The biggest animals to be blessed were a team of draft horses; the smallest was a red betta fish. The congregation loves to bring their dogs and cats and rabbits and other pets to church this one day. Running the service around animals’ needs and noises is challenging but it is a joyous day for all.
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Images by Katy Dickinson, Copyright 2010
Filed under Church, Home & Family
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