March Madness!

First I want to say thank you to everyone who made my birthday such a special day for me (and weekend!). You know who you are, from cards to texts to phone calls.  Thank you!

Brady - rescued from Short Street - he was a mess

Yes, it snowed a couple of inches on Saturday!  March 28th!  I am also losing on my basketball bracket at work - last year, I think I won it.  Oh well!  You win some, you lose some.  $5.  That's all.  Although after this crazy weekend I had, $5 is a lot of money to some. 

Midnight - rescued from Grand Avenue - barefoot and pregnant

I had a chance to see what 'skid row' looked like on Saturday, after helping a friend that needed someone to go with her to pay a visit to an old friend who was down and out due to schizophrenia and drug abuse.  This woman was our age - but looked 20 years older, she had gone to high school with my friend, but turned the wrong corner at that point, going into prostitution and getting heavily addicted to drugs.  She had  a baby 25 years ago, who apparently just received her masters degree, and has been brought up by her grandparents, who have not allowed her to see her mother in 20 years now.  I don't think I would want to see my mother if I were here either, it would cause so much pain and heartache.   My friend brought her some food, as the woman requested.  She lives in a place for indigents, I am not sure how they pay for their rooms there, but boy was this ever an eye opener.   What is that saying?  There but for the grace of God go I?

Vanessa - rescued from Pennsylvania Ave. - along with her two kids, Magic and Pumpkin

I think about the cats that way, strangely enough, being indigent also, and trying to get any scrap of food they can find out there.  Such is the case of this little black and white cat I've been seeing on Parsells, near where Crazy Lisa used to (or still does?) live.  Saturday morning it was eating something out of a bag on a road.  Sunday, it was there again, and I placed food (again) under a bush.  This time, she allowed me closer to her and I was able to determine that she is a girl, and not eartipped.  So now, I need a plan.  She was not around this morning, even though I pulled over and cat called.  This is not one of my spots, its about a block away.  I do not need to add another spot to my repertoire.  I will continue to keep an eye out for her, and pray that someone reading this will offer to foster this little girl.  And lets not forget Jelly and Elvis, who are still waiting for homes.  The problem with their situation is they are being fostered in Leroy, a good distance from Rochester, and are not getting their pictures updated.  I need to be a bit proactive with this. I did receive this update today:  "After 2 months(?), jelly finally decided it was ok to pet her.  She's let me pet her twice, when I give her food in the a.m. - so she's hungry.  She ate in front of me- usually she waits til I leave.  When I came back in the room with dry food, she ran under the desk.  Baby steps, but progress.  She really seems to count on Elvis - the two of them stand at the glass door, watching the cats and dogs on the other side.  Elvis is very upset when he sees one of the dogs - he's shy.   They both are eating well and they are safe."

They deserve a home.  Their foster mom is a wonderful mom to many furry beasts, but we've got to find these guys homes, and a foster for this little girl I still need to rescue.

I also met up with a friend this weekend and I had expressed my frustration with my blog as of late, and as I say all the time, I should stop this blog (but don't really mean it).  She nodded her head and said I should - most likely said due to the controversy recently.  Its bothered me since.  I don't she reads the posts daily, enough to see the positive things that have come out of this blog.

I don't have one friend in my life that has a mean bone in their body.  They all love animals, and any one that doesn't love animals passionately shouldn't be reading this blog, and I can't see why they would want to anyway.  I was raised to respect and abide by the rules, which I do.  The only way I don't respect is if an animal will be in harms way, or you do something unkind to upset a homeless animal.  Then I write about it, and I won't respect you.  Abide by the rules, of course, but not if it means an animal will be in jeopardy for it s safety.  I will do what I have to do.

With this blog, I've been able to rescue so many cats, and get help by so many wonderful people that have donated their money, cat food, and even time for these animals in the Beechwood section of Rochester.  This blog has also drawn attention to the problem this city, and all cities across the country are dealing with. 

So for now, I will continue to speak my mind in this forum, and any other forum that will listen to me.  So, thanks again for listening to me, and reading. 

Please spread the word about our homeless population out there.  They need our help.

Finally, there is a girl out there that was a big part of helping animals in Rochester, who I just found out is losing her battle with cancer.  Her last ditch at chemo did not work.  I knew her from years ago - she helped me out with getting cats spayed and neutered in the early days of my 'cat career' - she introduced me to her cats, her home - she had an outdoor cat enclosure for her own babies, and she fed ferals in their own little village in her back yard.  We shared cocktails and laughs on her back deck, I met her loving partner, she was a vital part of the animal community.  My point for this is to remember that everyone is fighting a battle that we do not know about.  Lets be kind to one another.  And please keep her in your prayers.

Have a nice day!