Meanderings today, just all over the place with my thoughts…

Evil or illness, or a combination of both? The big news in the Twin Cities is the trial of Aaron Schaffhausen, who last year killed his three young daughters, and is now claiming he was insane at the time. This past weekend, just a couple of miles from my home, a mother drowned her 6 and 7 year old children and then killed herself. In my thinking, mental illness can cause self-harm, but it’s pure and simple evil that incites a parent to kill a child. Again, in my thinking, denying the existence of Satan (or evil) is opening a door for him. What’s the saying, ‘know thine enemy?’

On much less tragic news, my puppy, Pyr, had to go to the vet. He was limping and I was really concerned about hip dysplasia, since he’s a big dog. They took x-rays, and thank goodness his hips are just fine, but he has a ruptured ACL (the injury that’s so common in football players), aggravated by congenital patellar luxation or knee dislocation, which is more commonly seen amongst the small breeds like Chihuahuas, pugs, poms, etc. He weighs in at 95 lbs!! So he’s on anti-inflammatory meds for two weeks, with lots of rest and no tearing around. Well, we just have to keep Suka from playing with him, since Suka’s favorite way of inciting Pyr is to grab a back leg and pull it out from under him. You can tell when Pyr is really excited and wants to play, he wags his tail and butt and looks at you. Yup, he’s a very excitable dog. Here he is enjoying the last of the snow:

I have lots of flowers right now, with lots of orchids blooming, and a couple of amaryllis too. This one is much deeper red than the picture shows,

And this is what my desk looks like right now, LOVE IT!!

Reading the news this a.m., had to shake my head at the headline, Ryan Gosling joins forces with PETA to call for ban on calf dehorning

“The American Veterinary Medical Association, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and third-party animal welfare auditing groups recognize the benefits of polled genetics for the dairy industry, so there is absolutely no reason - and no excuse - for the cruel, unnecessary practice of dehorning to continue.” http://www.kjrh.com/dpp/entertainment/celebrity/Ryan-Gosling-joins-forces-with-PETA-to-call-for-ban-on-calf-dehorning_67797128#ixzz2PVKfWFna

Yes, well, that’s fine if you’re supporting the factory farms and their limited genetic stock, but if you look at the wide diversity of heritage breeds, they aren’t all naturally polled (hornless). Both of my milk cows have horns, so when Heidi was born, we de-horned her. It’s not that the cows are mean or anything, it’s just that they are big animals, and their instinct is to use their heads to push things out of the way.

Spring is very slow this year, but at least the birds are coming back. We’ve had a bald eagle swooping down to grab hunks of old hay in the pasture. That is so cool to see. I’m sure it’s the same one as last year, since they return to the same nest year after year.

I’m still waiting for it to warm up enough to get back into beads again. It’s just been too cold to sit at the computer to do photos and listing, so I’ve been spending a lot of time in my recliner by the wood stove. The snow is slowly melting, though, and it’s going to be in the 40s for the next week. Spring is coming!!

Some beads I listed: