Goodbye Old Lady

Tonight we said goodbye to my old lady Ramona. It has been a tearful month and day at the H.C. Quimby Brew Company. It was a really hard decision to make, but we worked with a wonderful vet at Angell Memorial who guided us through our decision making process. As many of you know, her health has been deteriorating for the better part of a year. It was important to us that we made the decision at the right time and wanted to remember her as a happy dog- which she was to the last day. She got bacon and a run in the park with a tennis ball.

Most of the people in my life who know me have known Ramona. She has been with me since she was 8 weeks old and in a couple of weeks she would have been 14 years old. She has been my constant companion throughout all these years and as I joke my longest relationship with a lady. She was loyal, happy, crazy, and co-dependent. She saw me through 5 major relationships, the death of my father and graduate school. If you knew her she probably has either licked you, barked at you, head butted you, slept on the bed with you, or farted by you. She was a sweet dog who was never as happy as when she was:

Chasing tennis balls

Swimming

Rolling in the snow

Cuddling on the bed

or playing with her friends:

Stella Louise, one of her best dog park pals

Finn, who was in love with her

Her roommate Izzy, who I still miss to this day

Bear (or as I like to call her, Bacon)

Miggs and Rosie, the best Cockers ever

and of course Henry, who I think will miss her too

I really got lucky with Ramona, she was a great dog who loved being around people, especially babies, whose heads she especially liked to lick.

Even though saying goodbye is really hard and we never think about these things when we get pets, the sadness is worth the unconditional love you always receive and the great stories you get to tell about them. One of my favorites is when we were walking with a bunch of our friends at Peter's Hill, it was pitch black. We decided it was a good idea to put those flashing red bike lights on the dog's collars to keep track of them. Well, my roommate Gayle's dog Stutz came back to the group missing his light. About 5-10 minutes later we saw this bouncing red light coming over the hill and were like, "What the hell is that?" As it got closer we saw that Ramona picked up the light and brought it back to us. It was one of her best true Lab moments.

I want to thank all my friends and family for all the support they have shown Mel and I these last couple of weeks. We really appreciate knowing that you understand how hard it is to say goodbye to a beloved pet. You all are the best. I will miss my girl, but I know it was the right time and that she in a better place probably chasing an unending supply of felt covered green spheres in and out of the water.

Goodbye my beautiful lab, you were the best, and on this Thanksgiving Eve, I am most thankful you were part of my life the last 14 years.

Cancer can eat my Poo!

Yes, you read correctly. In the witty words of Tina Fey, Cancer can eat my poo!!!

Over the weekend my friend Amanda's sister, Allison, succumbed to Breast Cancer, she was 32 years old. Anyone who has been touched by this disease or lost a family member understands how difficult this can be. Though I lost my Dad to Pancreatic Cancer 9 years ago, I think about him each and every day and I imagine that will never go away.

I only met Allison a couple of times but based on all the work and fundraising her and Amanda did for cancer awareness a tireless voice was lost for a very important cause. I can only offer my sympathies and support to Amanda her partner Maia and their family. I have watched my two friends support Allison through some rough times these last few years. Amanda is a tireless caregiver and fundraiser and I hope she can find some peace now that Allison is in a better place. Allison was lucky to have such a wonderful sister by her side, and I know Allison's spirit will live on through Amanda always.

You can read more about Allison Bladt Fawcett here:
http://www.thereporteronline.com/articles/2010/10/05/news/doc4caaf456c80a3502894560.txt

and

Here, Amanda is quoted in this article:
http://www.phillyburbs.com/news/news_details/article/113/2010/october/06/death-comes-spirit-lingers.html

To support Amanda in the 2010 Susan G. Komen Philadelphia 3-Day for the Cure you can donate here:
https://secure3.convio.net/npt/site/Donation2?idb=608893643&df_id=2300&FR_ID=1468&2300.donation=form1&PROXY_ID=2612522&PROXY_TYPE=20&JServSessionIdr004=2azu5gs891.app321b

Take Care Maia and Amanda, my two travel buddies.

City Pedaling

I love commuting on my bike. I get to ride through the city, get some exercise, and it relieves stress. There are so many benefits. 90% of the time I have a smooth ride to and from work. This morning did not fall into that 90%. There are some mornings and afternoons that I have a ride where one thing after another happens. Unlike many bikers I see I wear a helmet, never listen to headphones and follow the rules of the road. I think it is these things that keep me safe on my bike. It takes time and practice to hone your bike instincts while riding through the city. However, there are just some days that are so aggravating it is just really scary.

Today was a dozy:
1. Roslindale- barely a mile into my commute. School bus van on Washington Street in Roslindale decided even though there were plenty of spots to pull into she parks in the bike lane forcing me to weave into the traffic behind me to get around her. She got out of the van with children and proceed to cross the busy street. I was like,"You could not pull into a spot?", her response, "No!". Nice....and people trust you with their kids. UGH.

2. Brookline Village- about 4 miles into my commute. I am riding with traffic through a green light and I see this woman trying to pull out of a parking spot in front of the Post Office. She has her window open and is looking out the window behind her to see when she is clear. I am riding with the cars and they all pass me. She looks right at me and pulls out right in front of me anyway. This caused me to weave around her to avoid her. Since her window is open I say, "REALLY, you are going to pull out in front of me anyway?", she yelled something and drove beside me yelling at me then pulled in front of me again to pull into a parking spot. I was so angry. I yelled something about if she kills someone it will affect her the rest of her life. What a jerk. I would not mind if she did not see me or was just looking in her mirror, but she had her head out the window and saw me coming.

3. Harvard and Comm Ave.-about 6 miles into my commute. I am riding through a green light, this guy decides he wants to take a right and cannot wait the 1 second it will take me to get past the street he wants to take a right on(Comm. Ave.). So he swerves around me to beat me to the right turn, thus cutting me off. This happens a lot while I am riding. People do not realize how fast I am going and try to get ahead of me thus completely cutting me off. Not be morbid but I knew a young women in Western Ma. who was killed this way. Really sad.

This was certainly an unusual morning for incidents. After hearing about a biker getting killed the other day one would think both drivers and bikers would be more careful. I see so many egregious driving and biking violations it is surprising there are not more deaths on the road. I think many drivers do not realize how much damage they can do with their car, they drive like it is a weapon. But why should anyone care, I never see police doing anything about it. Until that starts to happen things will not really change. All I can do is follow the rules of the road and enjoy each bike ride while I can.