Guilty Shoes

Hershey Park flooded Here in the Eastern part of the U.S. there's been rain and flooding in nearly Biblical proportions. The amount of water falling from the skies is breaking records and ruining people's fun--vacations, travel, weddings, jobs, etc. It's gotten so bad people are actually praying for the rain to stop! Recovering tomato plant  I feel as though I need to apologize. In the beginning of the summer, I purchased tomato and pepper plants that were basically dying. I planted them and thought of the 44, only a dozen or so would make it. I prayed they wouldn't die--whatever it took, I asked, make it happen. So about a month and a half, crazy humidity, and 8 inches of rain later, every single plant survived. Even the ones that were stunted recovered and sprouted new leaves. Happy tomatoes While someone is praying for sun, someone else is praying for rain.  Now, after rained-out beach days and soggy weddings, I'm offering my apologies

I'm not scared, are you? Like most of the world I'll be watching the amazing footage of sharks starting July 22. It's an annual thing--Shark Week. Can you believe SW is now celebrating 30 years? Three decades of scaring the pants off of us with footage of feeding frenzies, human-shark close calls and a lot of very unlucky seals. I'd like to also think of shark week as a great learning experience. Each year, thanks to the shark love-hate, we humans learn more about the fish, the ocean and our impact on both. It's daunting and humbling. love sharks + love shoes = 24 style Some businesses capitalize on scare tactics (can you say: Jaws?), some companies are trying to do good for sharks and the world in general. 24 Style makes shoes and clothing with designs that focus on endangered and misunderstood animals. The positive side of things is always the way to go. And oh yeah, they also make sneakers with donut designs. Talk about positive!  24-style.com

hold a hand With all the political animus seeping into every corner of our society, I felt the need to tell everyone to calm down. And look around... Somewhere today a woman just discovered she has cancer. Somewhere today a man's son died in a car accident. Somewhere today a child lost a sibling due to an overdose. There is always suffering. There is pain. There is grief. What can you do? You can't undo cancer, bring someone back from the dead or be a replacement sister. But you (and I) can start by being grateful for what you have right now--a job, health, friends. Then reach out and hold someone's hand, donate blood, write a note, make a call, bake a casserole, do something positive and giving. It doesn't have to be bold, just sincere. Gratitude is something desperately needed. You are desperately needed.

Loveable slobber-face Dogs are expensive. Food, toys, grooming, boarding and vet visits. Especially vet visits. Like an old lady taking my jalopy to a sketchy mechanic, I’m easily taken advantage of. Scenario: It looked as though our otherwise healthy, 2-year-old, slobber-face Lab lost 15 pounds since his last visit less than a year ago. Sudden weight loss makes pet owners panic. It makes vets panic. Rather than re-weighing or waiting to come back after two weeks of smorgasbord eating, I spent $250 to rule out everything—heartworm, Lyme, parasites. Everything turned out negative; slobber-face was okay—it was just too hot to eat like a Lab. I knew this, I knew he was fine. But there’s always that doubt, my need for absolutely certainty. The weight mistake was theirs, it’s hard to get him to sit still on the vet’s scale. This was an expensive lesson to do 2 things: insist on a do-over and not to rely on panic and worry to determine my actions.              Only a