Animals Left Behind

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My heart is breaking. I know the human devastation from Katrina is overwhelming, but my heart feels like it is ripped out of my chest every time I hear the stories about the animals suffering.

On Oprah today they were doing live coverage of the hurricane.  I lost all control when Nate spoke to a 24-year-old man who'd been with his dog for 14 years and was being told he'd have to leave the dog behind to get on the helicopter to safety. Actually, the man never said a word.  It was an older man next to him who explained to Nate that the man and the dog had rescued him from his house.

What most struck me was the young man's pose. He had pressed his forehead to the animal's forehead and they clung to each other--emotionally, physically, and spiritually. I burst into tears and even momentarily changed the channel thinking, "I can't watch, I can't watch." I made myself turn back thinking, "I must watch. I must watch." 

Neither man was going to get on the helicopter without the dog.  And yet, that meant they would most likely starve, the dog along with them. No options.

Nate stepped in on this one and saved the dog, reuniting him a day later with the two men.  But that's just one.   I can't bear to think about all the other animals, scared and starving and separated from their owners, and their owners just as frantic for their welfare in return.

I believe we all must act on our passions. My heart goes out to the people, but it overflows for those with animals, trying to feed them, to save them. I will be focusing my energy and money on getting needed food, supplies and transport to animals. The human toll is immense, but I know if I were separated from my cats, I'd give everything I owned if I knew someone was taking care of them and feeding them and being kind.

I'm going to be posting some places where donations may be made.  I understand people perhaps first wanting to focus on human lives.  But so many of us out there have had pets and animals who have touched our lives, asking little in return.  If you're one of them, I hope you'll consider making a donation to help all the volunteers who are working night and day to help all the abandoned, lost, and scared animals in need.

Cat Talk: How to Keep Your Owner Happy

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Notes From A Cat: How to Keep Your Owner Happy

Copyright 2005, Dena Harris

  1. Resist the urge to show them your backside every time they enter a room
  2. Remind yourself the suitcase is not for peeing in
  3. Hop in their laps while they're watching TV and start purring. Humans need to be reminded real life is more interesting than sit-coms
  4. Do not jump from behind closed doors to attack the dog (or at least limit yourself to no more than twice a day)
  5. Twine yourself between your owner's legs no matter what they're doing.  Bonus points apply if they're carrying something heavy
  6. Allow them to think it's their idea that all the comfy chairs in the house are reserved for you
  7. Rub your head on all available surfaces to mark what's yours.  Owners will appreciate this clear delineation of who owns what.
  8. Every once in a while, allow them to pet your belly.  It feeds their soul.
  9. Sleep with them at night. They feel safer knowing you're nearby.
  10. Insist on being groomed at least twice daily. It's good for your owners blood pressure and overall health.

Amazon.Com Orders

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Good news / Bad News.  The good news is I received 2 orders off Amazon.com for Lessons In Stalking.  The bad news is, the books are still at the printers so I have no way to fulfill the orders.

I'm not quite sure how it works.  I think Amazon alerts the customers and then just holds on to the orders until I have the book to ship to them (Amazon).  I need to catch up with my printer.  She was supposed to fax me the final corrections on Friday but I didn't receive them.  Once I approve the corrections, my understanding is that it's 20 days from that time that I will have the book in hand. 

I am so behind on pre-publicity for the book it gives me a headache to even think about it.  I have done nothing--zip, zero, nada--in terms of even thinking about arranging a launch party.  Luckily, my good friend and PR goddess Pamela Cable has offered to help me.  I just need to get it scheduled on my calendar. 

The cat book is very close to done, although I have no idea if or to what extent I'd be involved in any rewrites or reorganization of materials.  I'm going to spend the rest of today on it and I should have the final three chapters ready to submit tomorrow.  One thing I don't know is when they plan to release it.  It would obviously be a great gift book for Christmas but that's a really fast turnaround, considering they still have to find photos, obtain permissions, complete layout, etc. 

The remainder of my week will be spent writing bankruptcy articles and organizing myself for a magazine writing class I'm teaching this Saturday through UNC-G.  Never a dull moment.