Holiday Update

Christmas was nice. Got to visit with mom and grandma and had a nice dinner. It just didn't feel like Christmas though, in a lot of different ways. It was 80F here. In December. Up where Mike is in the mountains in NJ, they have always had snow by this time of year, but not this year. It was around 50F and Mike said he had the windows open. It's so warm there were tornadoes in Texas, in winter (bless those poor people ). I distinctly remember Decembers down in the 20F range with freeze warnings and wearing heavy coats as a kid even in Louisiana. I don't understand how people can keep denying global warming or climate shift. Anyway, hope everyone had a wonderful holiday.

Christmas 2015

Bright and blessed Christmas / Yule to everyone.

​Canine Partners Client Interview

(TLDR Version) I went and met with trainers and staff at Canine Partners. I had a chance to work with some of their dogs in the special mobility harnesses they use. They think I'm a good candidate for a service dog through them. I have been added to their waiting list.  They're going to start looking for a dog partner that matches my needs. So excited!   Now I just need someone who can come with me and stay during the month of team training.



If you'd like to help, please consider donating to the fundraiser and share it:

http://www.youcaring.com/brittney-steptoe-428674

= = = = =

 
The hotel we stayed at. Funny enough the decor was almost identical to the one we stayed at years ago for training when we worked for Verizon. We had our geek-on with Fallout 4 111 hoodie and Pipboy bag, and Firefox bag. Ember completes the set as Dogmeat ( her nickname ).

Ember laying in her famous "dogball" position at the hotel the morning of the CPL visit.  She was minding her own business idly watching us. Then I said "Watch me" to her.

 Creek behind the hotel.  It was dark when we arrived, but we swore we heard water. Past the parking lot was vast pitch blackness. We found a rock and threw it, to moments later be rewarded with ther ker-SPLOSH sound of water. This is what we found the following morning.

The drive over wasn't too bad. I was playing with my new phone and a holder I got for extended range for photos and video. Maybe pictures with me in them will be less rare now that I can more easily take them myself.  Ember sits weirdly and cutely when riding in vehicles.

Sitting at the CPL office waiting to be called over for the client interview. We were a little early. Taz the office cat kept us company and the staff was friendly.  I didn't want to be rude by aiming my phone at everything, plus they have privacy policies like doctor's offices do. So behold, Ember and my braces.

We met with the trainers for my client interview.  They had 6 or 7 of their own dogs present between the different rooms, and you'd have never known it without seeing them. We settled in and they asked me a lot of questions and we went over various details about their dogs and program.  I got a chance to meet and work with two of the dogs directly, whose names were Amber and Moose.  This allowed the trainers to see how we moved together, and let me try out their special mobility harness.  I basically need a dog around Moose's size that moves at Amber's speed. I asked them if it was okay to snap this picture while we waited for them to get their dogs ready.


Ember was uncertain what to make of all those labs and a doodle present. She was a little concerned when I handed her over to Mike and stepped across the room to work the other dogs, not understanding why it wasn't her helping me. My body was acting up, and Ember alerted during the interview and again when I started to get up to work with the CPL dogs. My meds hadn't quite kicked in so I was hurting and my neurocardio quirks had me riding my personal roller coaster. Thankfully I managed not to fall or run into anything and my joints didn't give out on me in any embarrassing ways, so I think I did pretty good.  All the dogs got treats at the end and everyone was happy.


Next we went over to the kennel area for a quick tour and to meet some of the other dogs on site.  I decided it was best to leave Ember in the car and use my cane, so she wouldn't get over stimulated by having to ignore the 20 or so dogs in the kennel run and they wouldn't be overly excited by her presence. I didn't get a chance to take any pictures in there as I was too busy keeping myself in an upright position and listening to the trainer showing us around.  I had a chance to do some interacting with the dogs, and play the "whoever stays quiet gets a yum" game. Many of them were fresh from their puppy raiser homes. The kennel was actually more empty than normal because a lot of the dogs had gone home with volunteers for the upcoming holiday. So we only got to see a small fraction of the dogs they normally have coming and going at any given time.  Overall a very nice facility and the dogs are obviously well cared for.

It was a really nice experience. I'm thankful that CPL was able to accommodate me and schedule a visit early since I was already in the area, and that we found out with enough time to change my flight home. It all fell into place just when it needed to.  Huge thanks again to CPL trainers and staff for helping make it happen!

They are having a graduate support class in March that also lines up perfectly with a trade show we want to go to, so we're making plans for me to fly out for both.

Overall, they think that I am a good candidate to receive a service dog from them.  I have been added to their waiting list. They're going to start looking for a dog partner that matches my needs. So excited!   Now I just need someone who can come with me and stay during the month of team training.

Back In Louisiana

Apologies for the delay updating this past month. I ended up staying in NJ longer than expected because I went to meet with a service dog organization for a client interview for a new dog.  I was sick while I was there with a flareup, and came home sick with a sinus infection turned into bronchitis and upper respiratory infection. Went to the doctor and got antibiotics and an inhaler. It's been pretty miserable but I am starting to feel a little better.  That said, I am getting back to work on the projects I left off with and will be sharing progress along the way on Patreon.

Christmas / Yule cards are also on the way, for those who asked or sent them last year, since my whole plot of silly "Christmas in July" sort of got botched, they are actually on time for this year's holiday haha.  I think I'll send another batch randomly at some point too just to make up for it. Because we all need cheer year round!  Hope everyone is doing well.

Ember In Manhattan, Canine Partners Client Interview Upcoming

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I'm in New Jersey visiting Mike. Was sort of a last minute trip. He had time to take for vacation and we decided to do it now, because his time was limited and flight prices skyrocket for the holidays. I'm thankful we have a chance to spend time together. Had a chance to go see Jen and Girlie cat and visit with them and have dinner.  Was so nice being able to see them again and love on Girlie.  Went to my first Rangers hockey game at Madison Square Garden in Manhattan. It was an amazing game to see in person. Had a ton of fun.

Took Ember along with us into Manhattan.  She did flawlessly well for such a loud and overstimulating place as the big city and a sports arena can be.  MSG staff were awesome about Ember being along. She got an official MSG ID card and everything.  I have been taking her out with me since I got here, each time we went anywhere to get her re-accustomed to working in public and to see how she'd do with it, before deciding to take her into Manhattan and MSG.  Ember went back to her solid work ethic as if nothing ever changed, even after not working for almost a year. She alerted me during the game when I got distracted by the intense beginning and forgot to take my medicine.  She also woke me at one point when we overslept ( alarm didn't go off ) and I was late taking my meds. Woke up with my heart racing ( yay tachycardia ) from a dead sleep to her on the edge of the bed trying to get my attention. After she woke me and I showed her I took my meds, she went back to doing her own thing.

Ember will probably end up going home with me and be put on an anti-inflammatory to help keep her comfortable while working.  Mike has been pretty unhappy about it because she keeps him company and keeps him sane around here, which I can't blame him for feeling that way.  I wouldn't take her if it wasn't as much of a medical necessity as it is.  Hopefully it will only have to be for a few months.

I was originally supposed to fly home Nov 16th, but plans suddenly changed last minute when I heard back from Canine Partners hours before my flight. Originally I was supposed to contact them when I got home to set up details for me going to their facility for a tour and an interview with the training staff.  But that would have been more money spent to travel there to not even know until after April if I was being accepted as a client.

I told them I could stay if they could somehow work me in, that I'd change my flight home. With the holidays and other things going on, it didn't seem like it would be possible.  The woman who has been helping me got in contact with the training director and they approved it!  I have a client interview with them on December 3rd and will get to work with some of the dogs so they can see what might be a good fit.  I really, really hope that means being partnered with a successor dog is right around the corner.  Maybe I will get lucky enough to be in this coming Spring team training group.

Spanning Horizons

Very exciting changes will be happening over the next year or so, thanks to my aunt believing in me and wanting to help with an investment that she saw the value and potential in.  I can't talk about it too much just yet, but this is opening limitless opportunities for us and for our future.  So insanely happy and feeling so fortunate my aunt has the ability to help with this.  As everything falls into place and comes together, I'll be able to share more details.

Found Journey A Home

We found an amazing new forever home for Journey.  He'll be with a wonderful couple who have had Shepherds all their lives.  They lost their last Shepherd not long ago to old age, and the gentleman couldn't go long without getting another. They have promised to love him and spoil him. We are invited to come out and visit anytime.  They live down by Houma on the bayou, real Cajun country! Journey has his neuter surgery Tuesday ( managed to get a sooner appointment ), he'll recover a few days so I can make sure he's okay, and then he'll move in with his new family.  Already teary thinking about it. I'm going to miss this dog so much.  On the way home from meeting this couple, it was rainy, and then the sun shined through.  There was a beautiful rainbow.  I took it as a sign to mean things were as they should be, falling into place as needed.

Jaw Dislocations

So however long ago it was that my jaw got stuck open that one night where I couldn't close it, and had to pop it back in place, apparently my jaw has been dislocated all this time since!

Which must be why the grinding/popping stuff got so much worse, and was hurting more, I could hardly chew or open my mouth fully.  It started bothering me real bad the past week or so.  I tried flexing and massaging and pushing at the area for some relief.  I popped it the other night and had a sharp pain at the hinge area the past few days. Been taking Gaba, and the nerve pain in the jaw hinge finally let up and I noticed today I could chew mostly normal. I was just able to eat a hamburger for dinner mostly normally for the first time in goodness knows how long!!  There is still popping sensations like I had prior to the dislocation, but not nearly as frequent or as painful. Trying to be extra careful with it.  Fingers crossed it behaves itself.

Service Dog Applications Update

As of Friday I heard back from CPL about my application for a new assistance dog.

"Your application is with the trainers.  I want to let you know that Fall Team Training will start Saturday so we are in hyper drive here so the trainers might not get a chance to review the application until after team training.  - Carol"

Fingers crossed this puts me one step closer to being accepted!



http://www.youcaring.com/brittney-steptoe-428674

Disability App Preparations

Apologies for the lapse in presence on and off recently. I have been busy for a little while working on putting together all of this information for my disability application process. Digging through old paperwork to find things to use ( thank goodness I kept it ), collecting and sorting documents from providers.  Just waiting on responses from two doctors and that should do it.  I wrote a ton of things with medical jargon and ICD-10 codes to throw at them. 10+ pages to tell them how all this affects my daily life and ability to function. Hoping "doing the work for them" will strengthen my case some, but not holding my breathe.  I expect I will be denied the first go-round, as that seems like the popular thing for them to do. Will probably be submitting everything before the end of the month.  Anyone interested in reading any of it and giving their input?   Also on that note, would anyone like to write anything on my behalf for me to submit to them?  On why you feel I should be able to finally get this help I needed ( and probably should have asked for ) years ago and why it is more important I have it going forward?  I mean, lets face it. My body is self destructing itself one collagen molecule at a time.  That isn't going to change anytime soon!

Snarky body

My body has been throwing a fit ever since I stopped working Journey.  The more time passes without the help of a dog, the worse I feel.  I haven't really been out anywhere in nearly two weeks but I finally had to go pick up a few groceries. So sore and exhausted afterwards. My hips, knees, back, and ankles are seriously on the warpath and my normal exercises are not helping. Soaking in a warm bath or TENS is only temporary. Gaba helps for breakthrough, but I am having to take it more frequently to control things during the flairs which increases fatigue and cognitive difficulties.  Changes in weather probably aren't helping either.  Migraine keeps coming and going.  I hope one of these organizations will accept me to receive a new assistance dog. Otherwise I am not sure what I am going to do. One day at a time.

Sparklies were had

We did end up going to the gem and jewelry show earlier this month.  Went for two days, covered half the show floor each day so I could get a better look at things they had.  It's changed a lot since the last time I went, a different company is managing this show group. Sooo many pretty sparklies and shinies. Mom and aunt and Mike each gave me some money so I could pick stuff up and replenish much needed supplies. I was on my feet all day both days, with Journey helping. He'd keep trying to keep me moving and the vendors all thought it was the funniest thing when I'd excuse myself and say I'd be back after I walked off the symptoms ( I trigger if I stand in one place for too long without moving ). Everyone loved him and was sad to hear about his hip dysplasia and that he'd be career changing.  I joked with some of them the first day that we might be back the next and they joked about "torturing the poor dog" and how they were sure he'd be thrilled.  Then the next day more joking when they saw us back and I joked "Should have seen the look on his face when he realized we were back for more!"  It was warm but tolerable. Wish I had my neck fan, but it killed over.  Met some awesome people, got some beautiful sparklies I will share at some point.  My body was soooo angry after all the activity, it took the full week after just to get un-sore enough to move around without back, legs, and feet hurting badly.  Then I ended up with a migraine from hell that wouldn't go away and kept coming back for days. Today is the first day the pain has dulled enough to really think clearly so I can try and be a little productive.

Migraines suck

Of course it figures that tonight when I decide to try and do things, since I gave myself time off to recover from the jewelry show outing last week, my body doesn't agree.  Migraines suck.  Felt it starting earlier and tried to fight it off, but it's gotten to eye socket stabbing proportions. I will take more Gaba, sniff tiger balm, and hope it will ease up so I can do a few more productive things tonight. If not, there's always tomorrow... or the next day.... or the next day.

I have amazing friends

Caine decided to send me a surprise package with some unexpected trinkets.  One thing was a beautiful wall hanging I knew he'd managed to get for me. It's a beautiful color with Celtic design and little Japanese magatama all over it.  Which is really symbolic and special.

What I wasn't expecting was a hand formed ceramic dish with a magatama design swirled in the surface, a hematite ring, and a little sculpture of me!  He also included a beautiful card with a dragonfly on it, knowing how special they are to me. And a beautiful hand written letter with a little wax seal. It all smelled like patchouli or sandalwood.

It made me cry happy tears when I opened the package and saw everything, and read over the card and letter.  How thoughtful and perfect it all was, and couldn't have had better timing with everything that is going on right now.

Thank you so much Caine, you sly Kitsune you.  I wondered what you were up to!

As a side note, you are seriously making me want to get one of those markers to make my own wax seals on stuff I send!  I have seen them in stores before, but never seen any I really like ( most of them seem to be initials or generic stuff ).





Eternal thanks again goes to Arikla, who helped cover Journey's recent medical bills so we could get a diagnosis.

We wouldn't have been able to afford to get these answers as soon as we did without your generosity.  Thank you for caring and for helping so we could have that peace of mind to have a better idea of what is going on with him.

Thanks also for your participation in the "art experiments" as well. :D  So many good laughs to be had with all of these things. Can't wait till we can show off the finished products!





I received even more of a surprise in the mail from Amie the other day, in the form of a very generous donation toward the fundraiser for me to acquire a new assistance dog.  I cried happy tears of disbelief when I saw it. One raindrop raises the sea.

Even while her and her family are going through a very difficult time right now and she has had a lot more pressing things on her mind to worry about, she was still as compassionate as always and trying to help a friend.  It means a lot to me and your selflessness is an inspiration.




I just wanted to take the time to really thank you guys more than I already have, and let you know how much your love and support means to me.

Journey Update, Search For Sparklies

Past week has been crazy. Computer problems. Desktop formatted ( finally! ugh ) and Win7 Pro installed. Been fighting with plethora of updates and reinstalling all of my programs and sorting through files.  Stuff with Journey's medical diagnostic still sinking in.  Tried to do some shopping runs without him.  So insanely exhausted afterwards I could hardly move and hurt worse than normal. Him pulling the cart helps so much.  Horribly tempted to keep working with him at least until I get approved for a new dog.  Maybe doing so infrequently would be okay, on days I really need it.

Like tomorrow. I had plans to go to the gem and jewelry show.  I haven't been in over 10yrs (since we weren't living here), and so I made plans before learning about Journey, to go.  My mom and aunt gave me a little spending money and Mike is giving me a little also, so I can pick up some much needed supplies at far cheaper prices than I would pay anywhere else.  I was hoping someone would come along with me, but everyone has to work or is otherwise indisposed. I know my limits, and I know I couldn't walk around the crowded convention center alone for that long, without risk of triggering a neurocardio attack.

So Journey is going with me tomorrow. He's been off duty for a week and can't understand why I keep going places without him.  It's normally better to ease them into retirement anyway, like I did with Ember.  As long as I don't do any full heavy weight bearing things with him ( which I never, ever have ) then it should be safe for us both on a limited basis.  Fingers crossed I hear back on these applications soon.

Anything special anyone wants me to look for at the gem and jewelry show?  Any specific gems, stones or colors or materials you'd like to see me work with?

Off to a great start

Wow!  You guys are awesome!  Since the first post, we have already raised $80 and have more on the way for the fundraiser.  Please consider donating.  Even a $1 goes a long way, because if 50 people donate a $1, that is another $50!    If you can find it in you to pass on that Starbucks for one day, toss that $5 our way!

Share and encourage people to check it out and share as well.  Remember, you guys are helping me keep my independence and safety by doing this!

Thank you so much!

PayPal is leopardwolf@gmail.com

or

http://www.youcaring.com/brittney-steptoe-428674

or



http://www.gofundme.com/steptoe-sdfund

Help Me Get A New Medical / Mobility Service Dog

This fundraiser is to help me acquire a new service dog for mobility assist and medical alert purposes.



I suffer from chronic medical conditions, including a genetic connective tissue disorder known as Ehlers-Danlos, and conditions that affect my autonomic nervous system, my own causing neurocardiogenic issues with my heart and blood flow.



My service dogs are life savers.  They have been trained to sense certain chemical changes and alert me to them, to keep me out of danger. They help me navigate daily life safely.



Journey, my current service dog, has hip dysplasia. Which basically ends his short career as a mobility assist and medical alert service dog. Losing him as my lifeline and partner is a huge loss of freedom for me in my daily life.



I now need to apply through an organization for a new assistance dog.  I need to come up with money for the applications fees, which are $25 to $50 per organization.  Then wait to be approved and matched with a dog.  I need to start a huge fund raising effort to help me get the assistance dog I need, which in the end will likely cost over $5,000.





I don't have the financial ability to owner-trainer another dog myself like I did with Ember (my first dog) and Journey. It took me a year just to find Journey ( after reviewing countless candidates ). It's the risk of owner-training, you might think you find the perfect dog, but something unexpected could always happen.



I can't keep going through dog after dog after dog covering expenses for vet work, training, etc. just to have them not work out and have to start all over again.  Which is why I am making the hard decision to turn toward an organization for an already trained dog.  Getting one through an organization also means if I have problems in the future, or when the dog is ready to retire, I can get a successor dog through the program.





I will most likely end up approved going through Canine Partners For Life, which is located in Pennsylvania.



I need to travel to their facility for team training, which is a 3 week program. All expenses for travel to get there, hotel, plus transportation while there, cost for food and for admission to places for field trips during team training are my responsibility.



Here is info they give about related expenses coming out of my own pocket:



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To purchase basic supplies for the dog - cost approximately $300-$400.





To travel, at your expense, to CPL for a 3-week, mandatory team training session.





To arrange for your accommodations for the 3-week training session.  Cost for hotel and meals are approximately $2000. Free housing with volunteers may be available but not guaranteed.





To arrange and pay for your daily transportation to and from CPL and on field trips for the 3-week training session.







To provide your own meals (breakfast, lunches & dinners) including some field trips out for meals (and for your aide if one accompanies you).







To provide your admission costs for field trips during 3-week training session – approximately $100 to $200 per person (and for aide if one accompanies you).







A requested donation (to be determined by a sliding scale – ranging from $1,000 - $3,000) should be sent to CPL before the start of team training.





Medical Alert students must be accompanied by another person during the entire 3-week team training session.  ( *** This applies to me, which means I also need someone to go with me and cover their expenses too )





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This same sort of thing holds true for the other programs I qualify for. I have to travel to their facilities and pay for everything in the process, plus the money for the dog itself.  Some organizations are able to offer dogs at no charge to their clients, but none that do service my area, or they do not train dogs to assist with the things I need help with or have other specific requirements for clients that I don't fall under.







I basically have to come up with over $5,000 to get a new service dog, before I can even get the dog.







I am starting that fund raising campaign now, in hopes I will have enough saved by the time I am approved and matched with a dog through one of these programs.







If you want to donate directly to me, my PayPal is leopardwolf@gmail.com

Here are links to fundraisers set both on YouCaring and GoFundMe:


http://www.youcaring.com/brittney-steptoe-428674


http://www.gofundme.com/steptoe-sdfund

You can share those links, this post directly, or both.

I also plan to try to reach out to local charities and businesses for assistance.  Either in hopes of sponsorship or that they'd be willing to let me put up donation flyers and collection jars or something similar to help spread awareness and raise the needed funds.





If you are interested in reaching out to businesses or charities in your own area who may be willing to help, if you own a business and would like to help raise funds, or if you would like to help with fund raising through some other means, please contact me at leopardwolf@gmail.com so I can provide you with information on how to do so.





There is no donation too small. We are grateful for any and all financial help in reaching our goal.





Even if you cannot help financially, you can help by spreading word about this and posting it for more people to see. Share it with your family, your friends, and anyone else you think might be interested in helping. Encourage them to pass it along as well.



Feel free to post it to your LJ, FA, Facebook, Twitter, DevArt, Tumblr, blogs, and anywhere else such a post would be allowed.





Thank you for taking the time to read this. Thank you in advance for you consideration, your thoughts, your time and your donations.




Love and light,

Brittney

Journey Diagnosis: Hip Dysplasia

Heard back from the vet.  The doctor is out of town, but left info for his tech to give me.  Journey does have hip dysplasia. :(    The doc wants to refer us to an orthopedic specialist for something else he thinks may be happening, will get more info on that later.  I have no choice but to wash Journey from training and stop working him.  It's going to be a big adjustment for us both, and I have nothing to fall back on for help in the meantime.

I feel very alone because when I conveyed these things and mentioned now needing to apply to the service dog organizations anyway, my family's response was less than supportive and more feeling like them questioning why I even need one and maybe believing that I don't need one.  Which hurt.  A lot.

So, I am on my own.  I need to somehow come up with money for the applications fees, which are $25 to $50 per organization.  Then wait and hope.

Journey Update - Not Good News

******UPDATE:  Thank you again SOOOOOO much to Emily/Arikla!!!  She has generously offered to help cover the expenses for Journey's xrays and testing. Professional curiosity she claims. ;)   Geeks will be geeks.******


Took Journey to the vet today.  Seems like it might be the worst case scenario.  Most likely hip dysplasia or something similar or something else effecting back end.  They need to sedate for xrays. Bloodwork also needed to rule out any endocrine/pancreatic issue or any other problems or possible infections.

Got estimate papers from vet and discussed things. Going to be upwards of $720 for everything.

We just don't have that kind of money.  I was supposed to bring him back tomorrow, provided we could pull some of the money out of thin air for at least the xrays.  But now just thinking of not bothering.

Just assume he's screwed ( if not physically then from behavior quirks he's developed ) and wash him from training and service dog work.

Fundraising to get a service dog through an organization in PA isn't even likely an option either, because of expenses related to actually getting there and hotel to stay if volunteers can't let me stay with them.  That would cost anywhere from $3,000 to $5,000 to make a reality.  It's really shitty we were forced to move away from Can Do Canines service area and they can't help me.

Save everyone the money and trouble.  I'll just carry a cane, blood pressure monitor, and hand grabber around with me from now on and hope for the best.

Froggy

Awwrrmmaaahhgaaawds. I just saw the most adorable little spring peeper out on the porch when I went to take Journ out.  It's raining, and it crawled up from under the deck between the boards in a wet spot and was hopping along, got a drink and looked like it was playing with raindrops, then hopped to the edge and went back under.  Loooove frogs.

10 Years After Hurricane Katrina

10 years ago my life changed forever when Hurricane Katrina made landfall along the Gulf Coast of Louisiana and Mississippi.  I lost my lifelong home and everything in it, as did many others in the effected regions.

"Get over it" some people say as they sneer at those of us living here because "the region is known for flooding and hurricanes".  I want to point out that the areas that were most drastically effected by the hurricane, were areas that actually *NEVER* had problems on the scale we saw in Katrina.  Slidell ( where I lived ) was north of the Lake Pontchartrain and in the 22 years I lived there, we never, *ever* flooded or had severe hurricane damage at our house.... until Katrina.

We were far enough (about 6 miles ) inland and above sea level to where it had never been an issue.  Same can be said for the hardest hit areas in Mississippi, from Gulfport, to Waveland, on through Biloxi. Unless you lived right on the lakefront or beachfront or in a low area, the worst you had to worry about was wind damage as opposed to severe flooding. Even many places that did get water, it was normally only a few inches to at most 2ft or so depending on where you lived.

To those people who would still sneer, I point toward New York and Hurricane Sandy.  They weren't expecting a hurricane to bring severe flooding and damage either, and like many of us across Louisiana and Mississippi, they lived in an area where it wouldn't normally have been a problem.  Should they have "gotten over it" because "they chose to live there"?  Those same harsh words sound vastly different when applied to a similar situation, don't they?  Katrina was a far larger, more powerful, and far more destructive storm. Not just New Orleans suffered, where most damage was done because the levees/seawalls failed, and water rushed in - in most cases hours after the worst of the storm had already passed.  Slidell didn't have levees/seawalls or need them, and neither did cities in Mississippi that were destroyed. It was likely tornadoes spawned from the storm, as well as the storm surge itself that at times was pushed 6 to 12 miles inland ( carrying boats and everything else it swept away with it mind you), that caused the most destruction across multiple cities and across multiple states.




It's very difficult to talk about what I went through during that time, and what I witnessed others go through.  It's been 10 years since it happened, but it still feels as raw as if it were yesterday.


I've been living out of boxes for the past 10 years because I don't have a home of my own anymore.

I have been living by the good grace of others a majority of that time.  It leaves one with intense mixed emotions. Full of thanks and gratitude. Yet never feeling like you really belong. Never feeling settled.  You know it is only temporary. You'll collect all your boxes and go somewhere else soon enough, so why bother to unpack anything?

Or worse now that I am living in New Orleans again. I dread the warmer months now and the storms they might bring. Having to pick and choose what to take if we have to run from a storm. You can't take it all when you run from a storm. Knowing you might lose everything all over again.  I can't describe how gut wrenching it is.

I would rather live anywhere but here. Further inland, maybe up toward Baton Rouge.  But family and their livelihoods are here and their support is here.  None of them have ever talked about wanting to move elsewhere, and I don't have the luxury to choose since I am currently not able to hold work and support myself with my health problems.

I never had a chance to really properly grieve.  Never had a chance to really properly recover and heal the damage done.

You learn to let go as much as you can and move on.

Tried So Hard, Got So Far

I'm feeling like an absolute failure with Journey. I have been avoiding talking about this for months.  Not having other advanced dog training savvy people around to help me train him hasn't helped at all. But the rest is all on me. I feel like a shitty trainer.  Its not fair to him to try and force him to be something he isn't.



Mike has been doing his best to make me feel better about the whole situation, trying to remind me of the successes I have had over years of training my dogs and others:

"Sometimes it's just the dog.  Look how you did with Ember.  You can't say that was a shitty job...and all things considered, for as thickheaded as Journey can be, he behaves better than most any other dog.

He just may be the wrong fit for what you need him to do.  You know it's just as much the dog's personality as it is the training in those cases.  Look at your success-to-failure record....and even in the end, look how well trained he is anyway.  He IS trained.  He just might not like doing what it is you want him to do."



I guess I keep hoping if I work a little harder or a little longer he'll come around. I've worked with shepherds before.  I know they can be willful because they are so smart and need solid handling and guidance. I thought I was doing a good job with it because he was better behaved than any young GSD I ever worked with or saw worked with aside dogs bred for it.  These quirks aren't even barring any physical issues ( GI or structural ) he may have that will disqualify him as a mobility assist dog.  He hasn't had his OFA evaluation yet. He needed to be 2yrs+ to be sure his growth plates closed first.  I guess I breathed a sigh of relief too early thinking I had won the owner-trainer lotto and found the perfect candidate dog on the first shot.  But I have to listen to what he's telling me, and it feels more and more like he doesn't want to do the work anymore.

As a trainer, I have always abhorred people who would blame it all on the dog instead of looking at the other end of the leash. In most situations problems with training were because the dog didn't understand what was asked of it, etc.  And the person blamed the dog rather than their ability to teach it what they wanted.



I don't know what to do.  Maybe he'll make a good sport dog for someone or search and rescue or something, or just an all around amazingly trained companion dog.  But that's the other thing killing me right now.  I don't know what I am going to do with him.  I won't be able to keep him at this point as much as I hate saying that.  Most of these organizations don't want you having another dog in the house (I don't think it would be an issue but whatever ).  And even if they allowed it, that would mean when we got back on our feet we'd have 3 large dogs. It would be more of a financial strain and likely impossible to find a place to live.

But now try and explain all that to my family. Explain now I need to go apply to these service dog organizations afterall. $40 for an application fee here. $50 for another application fee there.  And they may not even accept me.

If they do, it will be over $5,000 for the cost of the dog and travel to their training centers, plus food, hotel, gas, additional team training expenses, etc.  Unless I get insanely lucky and they have some sort of financial aid or volunteers that could help cut down on the travel expenses. But that is not guaranteed, and I am treating everything as a worst-case scenario right now, because lets face it, it has become one.


I'd rather train my own dog because I have the ability to do so and was hoping to make a career out of it somehow. But I feel like I am only fooling myself because then it rolls right back around to money.  To try and find another dog ( it took me over a year to find Journey ), the starter costs of everything with vet and training for that dog, and the time and energy to raise it back up to the level I have Journey at... only to have it not work out again. And have to start all over, again. It's a risk I literally can't afford to take.


Getting a dog through a program is really my only option to have long term support come time for a successor, especially when I can no longer train my own dog. There is no disposable income available to invest in dog after dog to "find the right one" like programs are able to.  That's what makes owner-training so hard for individuals like me.


Look at all the dogs these organizations, and other things like police departments, military, and anything else that works with trained dogs, take in, versus how many of them actually make it through to the end of those training programs.


I try and look at it realistically and not be so hard on myself.  But it's something I take some pride in, one of the things I can actually still do and do well and better than most other people.  Which is why I feel like a failure with it anyway and keep thinking maybe it's something wrong with the way I am trying to train it... so I change it and try something else. But it just isn't working.

I feel like its more on my ability to teach him or motivate him.  I don't want to give up on him.  But how long do I keep trying?  Especially when I am already fairly certain the outcome will not change no matter what we do. I have already tried for months.

I feel like I have failed my dog.  Not every dog is cut out to be an assistance dog, regardless of the best training.  That doesn't make it any easier for me to accept.

Computers and smartphone on the fritz

Experiencing some ongoing technical difficulties with my computers and (notso)smartphone.  Will be soooooooo happy when I can finally swap this thing out and get a new phone. Tired of missing messages, calls, etc and lag so bad I can't do anything even after factory reset. Worst model in the series, ever.  Anyway, may have sporadic activity over the next week as I finish the tedious task of backing everything up ( I need another external HDD but that's another story ). Then test run of Win10 to see if I like it enough to blow out and replace Win7 Pro on my primary.  Hated Win8 with a passion, so laptop is getting Win10 without question unless I get another OEM of Win7 Pro.  Apologies if I miss anything. Just poke at me and point me toward it, email is probably best right now just in case.

Girlie ( Ash ) Cat Needs Prayers

Please send your love, positive thoughts, prayers, and healing energy to one of my sweet cats, and her mom Jen. Girlie ( formerly Ash ) was just diagnosed with cancer of the mammary gland (like breast cancer in cats). She will have x-rays and ultrasound done to see if the cancer has spread. Then we'll know what sort of surgery options and other treatments like chemo are available. We'll likely be setting up crowdfunding and accepting donations to help cover costs of surgery and treatments.  I will post an update when I know more.  So much love for our little floof. Bast keep her safe.

Ember - Dog of the Day

Yaaay Ember! She is the Dog of the Day today!


Spreading awareness for assistance dogs and invisible disabilities.



http://dogoftheday.com/archive/2015/August/11.html

Icky Sick

Ended up getting a sinus infection that's turned into an upper respiratory infection as it creeps down into my chest. Hacking up lungs is no fun, especially when your coughing/choking fits lead to ribs trying to migrate to places ribs should not be and my good ol friend costochondritis stops by for a visit. My everything hurts from all the coughing and nasal eww.  Thanks to a metric ton of chicken soup, OJ, and cold meds ( with some airborne and Ricola ) and the sacrifice of 4 boxes of tissues over the past few days, I think I caught it early enough to avoid it being bad enough to go to the doctor for. Will see how it is come Monday.

I still need to finish and post my belated AnthroCon report and post about the trip, which was delayed on account of still being in NJ after con and then coming home to the major big genetics appointment, and now feeling like death on death. So just a little note to say I am catching up and posts will be made and answered sporadically between fits of spontaneous coughing and combustion.

Thanks to everyone for their shared support and relief over the whole Ehlers-Danlos post ( still responding to all those comments! ).  We'll share a virtual cake and sparkling cider in celebration!

I have Ehlers-Danlos

Today was a good day. I finally got the answer I have been waiting so long for.  I have Ehlers-Danlos.

The missing link to my medical mystery and what is likely the root cause of the many years of medical problems in my life, from the more current to those reaching back to my childhood.

It was confirmed by a leading geneticist from Tulane Medical's genetics department after a thorough and extensive evaluation by him and his colleagues.

For those not familiar with it, Ehlers-Danlos (EDS) is a genetic disorder that effects collagen. Collagen is the main structural protein found in connective tissues of animals. Literally the "glue" that holds everything in our bodies together. It is found in everything in our bodies; Organs, ligaments, tendons, bones, cartilage, blood vessels, teeth, eyes, skin, everything.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ehlers%E2%80%93Danlos_syndrome


There are various types of Ehlers-Danlos, some worse and rarer than others. Ehlers-Danlos is caused by a defect in the structure, production, or processing of collagen or proteins that interact with collagen.  Some forms can be identified by genetic markers, and some have not yet been identified.  It's a lifelong, painful condition with no cure.

Yet I cannot express how relieved I feel to know it is indeed the missing link.

Having leading experts in the genetics field acknowledge my concerns and confirm what I suspected (and questioned years ago to other doctors only to be dismissed)... to finally have some kind of closure and explanation to why it never got better when doctors promised it would.

Going in expecting the worst... to be seen by another doctor who wouldn't listen and would just blame Fibromyalgia despite my clear clinical history. That scenario happened so many times over the years I lost count.

These doctors not only got my medical record ( you'd be surprised how many doctors I have seen who never did or never looked at it fully even when offered ).... and read it. All of it.

I mention something I wanted to be sure they knew ( and wouldn't know unless they read my history) and they responded not only saying they "read that in my file" but then made another random comment based on something else they read (that I had not brought up).... I almost broke down crying right there because it's been so long since I had a medical professional do that.  Know me and my full medical history.  Which is really sad to say it is not more common.

I knew in that moment it was all worth the fight to get this far.

They listened. We thanked them more than we have ever thanked any medical professional.

Now the battle for disability and Medicare really begins.

Designing All The Things

Making dog bandanas. I can't believe I didn't invest in a rotary cutter much sooner!  Also working on a huge overhaul of my website with new coding and updated layout. So much to do, and almost travel time!

Jail time now possible if you have a fake service animal

Service dog fakers better stop faking. This is spreading like wildfire. You will go to jail.

http://www.baynews9.com/content/news/baynews9/news/article.html/content/news/articles/cfn/2015/7/1/service_dogs_law.html

Airports And Dog Training Geekery

Decided to go to the airport today to reintroduce Journey to the scents and the hustle and bustle so we're ready for our flight out on Wednesday. They had a live band playing New Orleans style music, which was awesome.  While we sat there, several people stopped to say hello and thought Journey was awesome. One of them said her neighbor works for the sheriff's office and trains their cadaver dogs, which I thought was really neat.  Later an officer wandered over and I grinned when I saw K-9 on his uniform and he complimented on Journey and we started chatting about Shepherds and Malinois and other dog training geekery, which is awesome because there aren't as many really dog geek people down here as there were in Minnesota!  Turns out he's the K-9 Commander for the JPSD. I had to try really hard not to die from uber respect happy and ask him a ton of questions.

Many people know that tactical and law enforcement K-9 training has always been a huge interest to me since I was a kid and grew up watching Rin Tin Tin, and movies like K-9 with James Belushi and Turner & Hooch with Tom Hanks.  Back in elementary school the D.A.R.E officer I was friends with even got one of the local department's K-9 units to come to my house and do a demo with his dog partner, which is one of the huge things that inspired me to work with and train animals ( and why I trained my amazing childhood dog Norton with German commands! ). For a long time I have wanted to get involved in that area of professional training, but things got mixed up and dreams put on hold when Katrina turned everything upside down and in the years that followed things were so rough I never had the opportunity to pursue it further.

I almost didn't go today and decided at the last minute to swing by the airport while waiting for my prescriptions.  So that inner voice and gut feeling kicked in, telling me it was meant to be that I met this awesome gentleman today and got to share stories and dog training humor.  Funnier, he made a comment about almost getting the cadaver dog job and it just wasn't his thing, and I laughed and told him about the lady who said her neighbor was that trainer, and he laughed too and said it had to be the same person because she was the only one in the area.  Small world.  Huzzah for meeting awesome people!

Dental Dead End

Nothing like going to the dentist for fillings and to discuss increase in TMJ issues and such, to basically be told you'll need to pay around $12,000+ to get it all fixed in a way that won't fail like all other methods have for you for years.  I need implants.  Anything else will just fall apart and be a waste of money.  The longer I wait, the worse my jaw bones and connective tissue gets, to where it will be bone grinding bone. Even now I am having a hard time eating/chewing and talking, and my jaw has started locking/dislocating.  If I don't get it done soon, I'll likely be needing corrective jaw bone surgery in the next few years. I really don't know what I'm going to do. I can't even bring myself to smile anymore.  Sometimes I just feel like giving up because things just get more and more broken and there is nothing I can do about it.

Happy Father's Day

Happy Father's Day to all the awesome dads out there.

PAWS Paperwork

Yaaaaay!  We got the application paperwork for PAWS With A Cause.  If they approve us, we may be able to have a field trainer travel to help us with training, similar to what Ember and I did with Can Do Canines. Either way, being approved through their program will mean I will have the option to get a successor dog through them when needed in the future.

Teen Bronte Doyne dies of rare cancer after doctors tell her to ‘stop Googling’ her symptoms

A sad story shared in one of the chronic illness support groups I watch.  This is the reason why it is so important to be your own advocate. You know your body best. Doctors don't always know everything. This sort of thing is what worries me and so many others dealing with chronic medical conditions that are not fully understood. Something gets missed or brushed off or misdiagnosed, and you can pay for it dearly in the long run. If something had been done sooner, this poor girl may not have suffered near as much as she did.


"A hospital has been forced to apologize to the family of a teenager who died after doctors dismissed her suspicions and told her to get off Google. Her and mothers pleas for her symptoms to be reviewed fell on death ears."



http://www.ntnews.com.au/news/world/teen-bronte-doyne-dies-of-rare-cancer-after-doctors-tell-her-to-stop-googling-her-symptoms/story-fnjbobed-1227402045732

TMI Tuesday

Having Raynaud's Syndrome / Vasospasm in your chest HURTS. A lot. That is all.

Jurassic Park / Jurassic World

Even after over 20 years, seeing this opening scene from Jurassic Park still sends a shiver down my spine.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://youtu.be/PJlmYh27MHg



20yrs ago I stood in line for almost two hours in front of Movies 8 to see Jurassic Park on it's opening day.  Tomorrow I am totally doing the same for Jurassic World if I have to.

Checking In / Memorials

I wanted to take a few minutes to thank everyone for their patience the past few months and for the happy birthday wishes recently. I went through a few spells of being really sick with flareups and migraines, then my wrist tendon issues deciding to get snarky, making it difficult for me to create as much as I wanted to and get pictures taken, processed, and posted. May was filled with good and sad, my birthday month and springtime inspiration everywhere.  But also a year since my grandfather passed away. Recently the world also lost a beautiful soul to cancer. We all knew she wouldn't be with us as long as we hoped. But we all hoped it'd be as long as possible.

Teresa was a wonderful woman, who changed the lives of so many people and animals for the better, and then some. I will never forget that day I walked in to Rochester PetSmart and ran into her for the first time.  I was looking for information about getting involved with local animal rescues since we had recently moved to Minnesota. Her warm and infectious smile which turned into a huge grin as she said "You've come to the right place". She introduced me to Camp Companion and told me all about the rescue group and their efforts. Through Teresa I met so many wonderful people and formed so many friendships. I have worked with many rescue groups over the years, but Camp Companion is special, more than a rescue group - we're a family. Michele and Teresa, and so many others, have made Camp Companion a beautiful example of what animal rescue with strong community involvement really should be. Teresa even talked me into taking the plunge to adopt Raven after my little Smokey cat passed away.  I will be eternally grateful for knowing Teresa and all the love and optimism she shared with all of us.

Birthday Wish

My birthday is coming up on May 21st ( two weeks from now).

I have one big wish I am asking for this year, and hope to somehow make possible.

I want to go visit my dad.

I haven't seen my dad since I was about 3 years old. We recently reconnected with each other this past December, when he found me online.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

He stayed in touch long distance throughout my life. We lost contact and track of each other after Katrina. I searched for him online for years and never managed to find anything solid and all the contact info he ever knew for us changed when we lost our house. The one address I did find and send a letter to, was returned by the post office as "undeliverable, address not found".  I was worried I may never find him.

Then he found me. I have been so overjoyed with being able to catch up after all these years and have a chance to get to know him better and share stories and memories of childhood.

Our only form of contact has been via phone calls, texting, and online chat sessions when he can get online through the local library for a few hours at a time. He is a telecommunications contractor and having a hard time finding large steady jobs, so his money is extremely limited or else he'd happily be paying part of the expenses to have me come visit.

It would mean so much to me ( and him ) to be able to go see him and would hope to spend a week or so visiting. He's not getting any younger ( no offense dad ), and I want to have an opportunity to visit with him in person while I still can.  Many people never get that opportunity. I don't want to be one of them.

We'll need around $1,600 USD for this to happen.

My PayPal:  leopardwolf@gmail.com

I am estimating for round trip travel expenses, for having someone take care of my marine aquarium while I am gone, fuel, possible need for lodging (not sure I can make the full drive in a single day with my health issues ), food expenses for the trip and while I am there, and some extra spending money to be able to take my dad to do some nice things and for any unseen circumstances.

I'll be documenting the trip along the way, so you'll get to share in the adventure and the reunion through pictures and video.

If you have a few dollars to spare, I would be eternally grateful if you'd consider contributing to giving the gift of spending time with my dad in person after so long apart.



I'd create a crowdfunding thing for this, but didn't have a lot of success with them in the past outside of friends helping ( thanks again you guys! ).  I'm not sure if it's the kind of thing people would care about enough to help, since it's not a medical necessity ( sure it is! ) and I really don't have a lot to offer in return besides art and creative things or my supplies and materials for such things. I could do dog and cat training and behavior consults in exchange. Website and graphics stuff too.

While this doesn't have to happen by May 21st, I am hoping to make the trip within the next month if I can raise the funds.

Thank you for taking the time to read.

You have permission to share / repost / reblog this to help spread the word so more people might see it and want to help.

Closer To Answers?

A followup on my last posts with somewhat good news about the visit with my Rheumatologist. The appointment went better than expected when I mentioned suspecting EDS as the underlying cause for my Fibromyalgia, Dysautonomia, and years of other issues. It still panned out how I thought it might with him wanting to refer me to see a genetic specialist. The problem standing in the way is affording the genetic testing and related expenses since I don't have insurance and the city care I have isn't accepted at most places.

His clinic is going to call around and try and find a genetic clinic to refer me to that is either covered by the city care I have, or see if they can find some sort of charity or grant thing to help cover expenses of genetic testing and seeing the geneticist. In the meantime he's ready to go to bat for me for the disability application and even noted his feelings in favor of it for me in my record officially after we sat and discussed everything with him in more detail.

It's more frustrating because as I tried to explain to him, the hypermobility type of EDS doesn't show on genetic testing. He kept saying that EDS does. But everything I have read, and people have commented saying the testing isn't as important if you suspect EDS-H because testing can't confirm you have it as there is no identified genetic marker.  So I am not sure if he misunderstood me, or if he is not fully informed and not wanting to admit it, which is why he'd rather refer me out than give the physical criteria tests.

I'm just very worried about having to go spend $300+ for new patient fees and office visits and either end up getting blown off like in previous experience because "the genetic test didn't show anything/came back normal" ( keep in mind this test costs thousands and I don't have insurance), after spending so much money for years on other crazy medical tests and procedures of everything in and on my body.

The one thing giving me some shred of hope is people have said a good geneticist shouldn't waste time or suggest wasting money if they don't suspect vascular EDS ( which thank the gods doesn't seem as likely in my situation ).  So it'll just turn into another round of going and spending another $300+ to have a doctor look at me and say "Yep, you have it".

Now I just need to find an EDS specialist locally, in case whatever the Rheuma's office is trying to set up falls through.

Spoon Theory

Because I "look okay" on the outside, it is hard for people to understand what I deal with on a daily basis with my medical conditions.  This is a little something that passes around the various communities and through friends who also struggle with their own problems, that helps describe it pretty accurately.

================
"I explained that the difference in being sick and being healthy is having to make choices or to consciously think about things when the rest of the world doesn’t have to. The healthy have the luxury of a life without choices, a gift most people take for granted.

Most people start the day with unlimited amount of possibilities, and energy to do whatever they desire, especially young people. For the most part, they do not need to worry about the effects of their actions. So for my explanation, I used spoons to convey this point. I wanted something for her to actually hold, for me to then take away, since most people who get sick feel a “loss” of a life they once knew. If I was in control of taking away the spoons, then she would know what it feels like to have someone or something else, in this case Lupus, being in control.


Its hard, the hardest thing I ever had to learn is to slow down, and not do everything. I fight this to this day. I hate feeling left out, having to choose to stay home, or to not get things done that I want to. I wanted her to feel that frustration. I wanted her to understand, that everything everyone else does comes so easy, but for me it is one hundred little jobs in one. I need to think about the weather, my temperature that day, and the whole day’s plans before I can attack any one given thing. When other people can simply do things, I have to attack it and make a plan like I am strategizing a war. It is in that lifestyle, the difference between being sick and healthy. It is the beautiful ability to not think and just do. I miss that freedom. I miss never having to count “spoons”


================

http://www.butyoudontlooksick.com/articles/written-by-christine/the-spoon-theory

Body, behave

Having a real snarky flareup since last month that won't stop. Starts off like a sinus infection with migraines and feeling fatigued like having a constant flu, but it's not bacterial or viral in nature ( at least to the point of being contagious to others ). Sore throat, "raw" feeling tongue and inner mouth with ulcerations. One moment nasal drip choking me, the next so stuffy I can't breath except through mouth and my Sjögren's makes it worse because I dry out so easy. Weak body and balance disturbances leave me running into walls/door frames and random objects and bumping things because I feel detached from my body when its this bad. Riding my personal roller coaster dizzily swaying about. Everything hurts, esp lower back/hips. Swelling in legs and puffy small joints, sore glands. So bad the other day I had to resort to using cane and I *hate* doing that. It starts to let up a little for a few days so I try to get things done that I couldn't do while I was worse off and being mindful not to overdo. I thought I had kicked it, but then it comes back strong. Body can't decide if insomnia or hypersomnia is better. This is the worst I have ever been since I got Journey and he is beside himself, not sure how to respond. He's been extra pushy and bothersome, acting out repeatedly. Still trying to fine tune his responses and how fast he moves ( normal, he's still learning ), he gets a little carried away when he is particularly worried or senses I am not doing well, which has been worse the past week or so. Haven't gotten as much done as I have wanted on account of being sick and lacking the coherency and energy to do most of it. Don't mind me while I blob about.

Contest Winners

I'd like to thank everyone who participated in the contest!  The following people are the lucky winners:

1st Place -  Melissa Ko

2nd Place - Ellen Million

3rd Place - Jeremy Unitt / Croatoan

http://www.leopardwolf.com/temp/contestwinners1.jpg

Congratulations!  Drop me an email at leopardwolf@gmail.com to claim your prizes!

For those who didn't win, don't worry. There may be other opportunities in the future.

I hold monthly drawings for free stuff for anyone who pledges/donates $5.00 USD or more to me monthly via Patreon or other means ( some don't have bank accounts or don't like using PayPal, etc. so they send concealed donations via mail ).

To learn more about Patreon ( or email me for alternate methods ):

http://www.patreon.com/leopardwolf

Your support is deeply appreciated. It helps me work toward making a living doing what I love, and allows me to create neat things and share them with you.

Anemone repairs

Trying to repair the footing of a tiny anemone that is less than 0.5mm in size is insanely difficult even with steady hands. Hoping it survives.

Contest Ends Tomorrow

Thanks to everyone who has participated so far!


http://leopardwolf.deviantart.com/journal/Let-The-Contest-Begin-510064088


Just a reminder, the contest ends tomorrow, March 15th at 11:59pm CST.


Winners will be announced the following week.


Click on the link above for more information.

Working with awesome people and their animals

Today was the second dog training session with a new client I am working with. The family is awesome. The dog is awesome. Their cat is awesome. All around full of awesome and fun to work with. :)

Contest Deadline - 10 More Days

A reminder: 10 more days to participate in the contest.


http://leopardwolf.deviantart.com/journal/Let-The-Contest-Begin-510064088



Contest ends at 11:59pm CST March 15th, 2015.

Winners will be announced the following week.


Click on the link above for more information.

Fog

I wish the weather would make up its mind. Flip flopping from 80F to 40F within two days, repeatedly, makes my body grumpy.

On the positive side, it has brought in some wickedly awesome "Silent Hill" style dense fog. Last night it was so thick, it was like stepping out into the clouds.


It was still and quiet. All you could hear was the dripping dew.

The Final Frontier

This makes me cry so much. I grew up with images of him in my life as early as I can remember. Wonderful man who inspired many generations and brought life to many different worlds.

I'm going to really miss seeing him in new Sci-Fi stuff and chuckling at how appropriate it always was to have the trio of old-timer Sci-Fi guys showing everyone how to have a wonderful time.

Live long, and prosper he did, and will always live on in our hearts and memories. Hope it's wonderful wherever you and Scotty are.



"A life is like a garden. Perfect moments can be had, but not preserved, except in memory. LLAP" - Leonard Nimoy

En Fuego

When you are in Walmart and get an overhead all store page *repeatedly* telling you if you own this specific vehicle, you need to return to your car *IMMEDIATELY*, it's probably because your car's on fire.

In this case "gotta run, car's on fire!" would have been a valid excuse.

Got to Walmart, parked, and was unloading Journey, and one of the cart-getters was walking by and joked about how big and mean he looked, and I joked back, and he glanced back behind us and went "whoa man that's weird".

Yellowish brown cloud, almost looked like a smoke bomb or something.  I thought "joy mustard gas!" and we laughed about it for a sec.

But it just kept smoking.. and we're like... ummm... and I said it looked weird from the color like a chemical fire, so he says he's going to go check it out and I joke "I'm gonna run the other way!" and he laughs. Wanders over there and comes running back saying he thinks he saw flame on the smoking vehicle, so we run inside and tell someone.  Within a few mins, that announcement, repeated like, 10 times before they stopped.

The place was crawling with the fire department by the time we were leaving about 20mins later.

Soooo glad we weren't parked anywhere near it.  Feel sorry for whoever it belonged to and anyone who was parked beside them.

Quick Update

Time for a quick update. Been real busy since my last post. Going places and talking to people, potential business prospects in the making. Dealing with some technical difficulties. Dealing with some unnecessary drama.  My body has had angry fits on and off, the usual.

Working on art and creative related stuff. Have new things I will be posting. Exciting new projects in the making. Maybe I'll share a teaser at some point.

A reminder for everyone to check out the contest I have going on.

Wishing everyone well!

Negativity In New Budweiser Commercial

Really not liking the new Budweiser commercial with the puppy and Clydesdale made for the Super Bowl this year. The original commercial of the series was nice and uplifting. This one is just poor taste. It once again makes wolves and coyotes out to be the stereotypical "bad guys". Not cool at all.

Let The Contest Begin

I'm holding a contest that is pretty easy to win, and multiple prizes will be available.  Interested?  Then read on!

You have many chances of winning, in many different ways. Each option is listed below, with the amount of entries into the contest that each option will get you. You can do one of these things, or you can do all of them. The more you participate, the better your chances of winning!

=======================================


Step 1 :  Comment on this post . - 1 Entry

Just make a comment on this post letting me know you saw it, and you get 1 chance at winning the contest. It's that easy!

***Simply "Like"/Fav-ing the post does *NOT* count. You have to leave a comment.

Step 2:  Like / Follow my Facebook page. - 5  Entries

http://www.facebook.com/leopardwolfsdesigns

Like and follow my LeopardWolf's Designs Facebook page if you haven't already. Everyone who likes and follows my page ( including those currently liked/following ) between now and March 15th will get 5 chances at winning the contest!

***Don't forget to add me to your news feed so you don't miss updates!

 

Step 3:  Share this post on your timeline/status update/journal/etc. - 10 Entries

Share this post and tell everyone about this awesome contest and get 10 chances to win. The more people who participate, the better the prizes will be!  Nothing to lose and everything to gain.

***Make sure and comment here when you share this post and link to the share, so that I can verify and add your entries!

 

Step 4:  Become a Patreon. - 20 Entries

http://www.patreon.com/leopardwolf

All of my Patreon subscribers with current pledges get 20 chances at winning the contest, even at the $1 pledge goal!  It's that simple, and puts you way ahead of the game for your generous support!

You must keep your Patreon pledge active through March's payment cycle to qualify for this ( normally completed in the first week of the month to middle of month, you'll get a confirmation for it ).


============================

This contest will run from now until 11:59pm CST March 15th, 2015.

For each entry you will get a slip with your name on it. So if you get 10 entries, you get 10 slips and thus 10 chances to win.  At the end those slips will be placed into a container and violently tossed about to mix them up good and proper! 

A blind drawing will then be held to determine winners. Winners will be announced the following week.  Winners will have 2 weeks to contact me to claim their prizes, otherwise those prizes are forfeit.

1st Prize: Value Of $100

2nd Prize: Value Of $50

3rd Prize: Value Of $25


Winners will need to share a physical mailing address for me to send prizes to.  I will not ask for your address unless you are one of the winners.

No purchase necessary, void where prohibited, and all that silly jazz.

Art Stuff / Upcoming Contest

With the support of people through Patreon and other contributing sources, I am excited to say that I have started investing money into new supplies and have several works in progress underway and more planned in the near future.


In celebration, I plan to hold a contest with prizes for those who participate. Stay tuned for details!


Jewelry and wearable art wise, I have new designs and materials on the way.  For a long time I have tried to stay as close to natural materials as I could. They are typically more durable and look nicer in my experience. Natural stones, bones, wooden elements and metals have been a primary focus, occasionally including glass and acrylic elements.


I normally try and stay away from plastic beads overall unless it is specifically requested for a design. In some cases I have such elements from jewelry that was assimilated and repurposed for materials.  So I figure I might as well use what I have, try random designs and see what happens. Enough people seem to like that sort of jewelry that it remains popular.

Painting and sculpture wise I have a ton of new stuff I hope to finish and share soon. I'd like to invest in some new mediums and materials, but I can only do that with your help. A small pledge of $1 goes a long way when everyone gives a little. Please consider supporting my artwork and creative projects through Patreon so I can keep sharing them with you!

Sneak peeks at materials and WIPs are on there. Finished items will be posted for Patreon subscribers before they are available on Etsy or elsewhere to the general public.

Like and share my page and check back frequently so you don't miss anything!


http://www.patreon.com/leopardwolf

Creativity Flow

I am inspired by many things in the world around me, especially by animals and the natural world. Besides my cats and dogs, one thing that has always had a special place in my heart is water and aquatic life. I grew up exploring the creeks, marshes, and swamps near my home along the Gulf Coast. I love going to the aquarium, or even just to the local pet store, to watch the fish and other creatures. I've almost always had an aquarium or at least a betta fish on my desk. I enjoy sitting listening to the flowing water, its soothing and helps in meditation and daydreaming. I love watching the fish as they glide along effortlessly. The colors, the way light flickers through the water and the plants sway with the current, it all inspires my creativity.

When we moved from Minnesota, I had to leave my 29gal aquarium and all my supplies and fish behind. It made me very sad and I figured it would probably be a long time before I could have an aquarium again because of our living arrangements. Recently I thought about getting a betta, inspired by a nice little desktop setup a friend had. That idea evolved thanks to Mike's help in funding the "fish fund" so I could have that little slice of happy back.

I ended up finding a beautiful 13gal slim profile wide view tank kit for the same price I would have paid for the 5gal. Just the right size to sit next to me on the dresser, and large enough that I could get the other fish I really wanted.

Community tank inhabitants currently include: School of neon tetras, school of emerald green corydoras catfish, one happy male betta, one mystery snail, and some ghost shrimp.

Aqua-scaping counts as a form of artwork, right?  I created the environment. It is aesthetically pleasing. The fish are happy. They make me happy.

What inspires you?

Art Snark

It's hard to watch someone else take your original creative ideas, modify them, and then proceed to profit successfully off of them. Meanwhile you struggle in the mud just to make ends meet and never seem to be able to keep your head above water. Especially when you are in a position where you *really* need the source of income, because you have health issues that limit you from keeping a "normal job". And because they are well known and successful, you'd just be seen as "imitating" them, rather than the other way around. Story of my life.

I'm Not Allergic To Death!

In relation to my previous post about zoanthids / palythoa and palytoxins in saltwater aquariums.  Conversation between me and Mike.

Me:

    Did your mother or Frank ever say anything about that saltwater tank thing with the zoanthids?

 Mike:

    Mom sent it to Frank, I think Frank just shrugged it off.

 Me:

    Of course he did, because he knows everything.

 Mike:

    Indeed.

Me:

    Well, if he ever decides to boil stuff from his tank to remove those things, take yourself, Ember, and Ranger, and leave. Haha.

 Mike:

    Yeah

    He was like, it's only if you're allergic to them, and I was like, no, it's not.

    What part of 'Second deadliest poison in the world' did you not comprehend?

 Me:

    Ughghg yeah. It can happen to anyone. Allergies or not.

    Allergies will just make it worse.

 Mike:

    Yeah, cyanide will only kill you if you're allergic to it.

 Me:

    LOL!  You totally should have said that to him.

 Mike:

    It's time to release the deadly neurotoxin.

    But it's okay, you're safe if you're not allergic.

 Me:

    ::Giggles hard::

 Mike:

    Sarin gas?  I'm not allergic, I'm good.

    I'm pretty sure everyone is allergic to death.

 Me:

    Ahhh GLaDOS would be sad to find out Chell was not allergic, in that case.

 Mike:

    That's how she lived.

 Me:

    Truth!

 Mike:

    Radiation will only hurt you if you're allergic.

    Ask the Twins.

 Me:

    That stuff literally inhibits stuff on a cellular level, with sodium-potassium ATPase pumps and causing a disruption of the flow in and out of cell to where it free flows both ways which = no neuron or muscle function. Which in worst case means your lungs and your heart don't function like they should. So unless you are not allergic to that...yeah. :-P

 Mike:

    I'm not allergic to cellular-level failure.

 Me:

    Ignorance is bliss?

    Until you die. Then it sucks.

Mike:

    I'm not allergic to death!

 Me:

    So either you are a vampire, or a zombie?

Mike:

    I think I'd rather be a zombie.