11:50 a.m. - 2008-03-05
Is it lucky to have a pet?
Here are the latest challenges from Kween of the Queens....on Xanga.com
1. Luck 'O the Irish
Are you lucky? In love? Financially? Just how does your luck run? Great? Bad? Do we make our own luck or does fate have a hand in it? Tell us what you think about "LUCK".
2. Greatest Pet Ever
Tell us about the best pet you ever had. . . whether as a kid or an adult. Do you have a great pet story? Precious pet pictures? We'd like to see them!
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LUCK OF THE IRISH....
There are many definitions of being lucky....happening by chance; producing or resulting good by chance, the occasion, by chance, in bringing about a favorable result.
I don't entirely commit to the "by chance" aspect. I think there is also a lot of hard work, planning, integrity and determination involved as well. I agree that you do need some chance to be lucky but I think we can have more control in what happens in our lives by taking charge of ourselves and working with determination to bring about some of the choices we may consider to be successful.
I haven't won fame or fortune. I don't win the lottery or even get huge bonuses on the penny slot machines....although Goodness knows, I have tried over and over! I don't live in a mansion or wear designer clothes. I don't travel the world and I couldn't live on my savings for the rest of my life without some supplemental income. So have I been lucky? I THINK SO.
I feel lucky. I feel grateful for the life I have lived. I feel fortunate to have met my husband when we were in high school, developed a solid and meaningful friendship with him and then falling in love. We are coming up on our 43rd wedding anniversary in April of this year. We have one son who has found a career that gives him satisfaction. He feels useful and productive and is working very hard to do a good job. He has married a wonderful woman and we love her as much as we would if she were our own daughter. Because of his marriage, we have two step-grand daughters. We own our own home. We each have a vehicle to drive. We are comfortable in our environment. We are in relatively good health and life is good.
I found a great career during my lifetime. I would still be working there if all the things I loved about it were still in place. I had a second "family" with the group of coworkers I met during that career. We shared a great pride in doing a good job and we worked well together within the company requirements. It was a sad day when the company was bought out by another company who did not appreciate our sincere efforts to provide a real service to our customers.
But now what really matters to me is my family. We have some material comforts but more importantly, we have love and commitment to our family.
so Yes, I am lucky!
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GREATEST PET EVER.....
We have had a few dogs and cats as pets throughout our married life. I can remember one of the first dogs we got when we were married about a year. Baron was a white German Shepherd. We got him as a young dog and he adapted to us very quickly. My husband was working nights at the time and I worked days. It was a time, years ago, when all of us were much more secure in our surroundings. Bad things didn't seem to happen as often as they do now.
I was home alone in the evening when there was a knock on our back door. When I opened the door, a man was standing there. He said he was from the phone or gas company and needed to come in to check something. I would have let him in without any further thought but Baron, who had been sitting by my side, started growling and getting upset. I tried to make Baron stop but he started to stand up and advance towards the man. I told the man that the dog would not hurt him.
About the same time; it suddenly occurred to me that the man was not dressed in a uniform shirt and did not show me any ID. At that moment, the man suddenly turned and ran down the driveway. When I checked the front window, there was no truck. I think Baron knew the man was up to no good and possibly saved me from rape or murder. A few months later, we decided to move to Florida and gave the dog to a young family who had two little girls who were toddlers. I often wondered if Baron became their protectors too.
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When our son was about 8 years old; we got him a kitten. We already had a dog but our son wanted a kitten that would sleep with him and he could carry around. They became great companions. Chessie often was carried by our son. She would put her hind legs around his waist and her front paws on his chest. He would support her back and off they went. She slept with him....or rather, she slept ON him every night. She watched him play with his cars and train set. She laid by his side when he was reading.
She comforted me when I was sick in bed with a migraine. She greeted my husband every afternoon when he came home by "chattering" to him when he came in the door or while he changed from his police uniform into his casual clothes. She often jumped on my husband's lap and got in his face if he was scolding our son. She even pulled our son's hair when he got too loud when he was playing. She was like a nanny! She got along with our dog and they played with each other every day. Sometimes she hung onto him by digging her claws into his fur as they ran around. She was a very good cat and lived a long life in our family.
I will end this blog entry by saying that between our many wonderful pets and our family, friends and our lives; I feel very lucky to have the good fortune....and maybe it was LUCK..... to have lived the life I have. I have learned from mistakes, taken the good from the bad and live a very good life.
