Susie Duncan Sexton's Blog, page 22
August 14, 2013
Other Nations: "Pig wrestling - Small injustices enable larger ones"
I cannot begin to tell you how honored I am to be included in Kathleen Stachowski's incredible "Other Nations" blog.
You can read it by clicking here.
Here's an excerpt...
So, to Susie and to all of you who speak out, put your name on the line, and break the silence–even when you’re likely to be the only one taking a stand–I repeat the words of appreciation I found in her message: “Thank goodness for you people!”
THANK YOU, Kathleen…I wander about — all day long — having fun with and taking care of my household “pets”, and I prowl Facebook to help virtual nonhumans (I love THAT term!). At last, I do feel validated reading through this beautiful piece of writing which I shall always treasure.
More thrilling for me, though, is that the sentient beings (and a host of others “who” came to mind as I read) mentioned by Kathleen are featured in a perfect message any reader can understand. Of course, I delight that countless folks will be subsequently recruited to this noble cause, i.e. joining those of us who are fostering true respect for and reverence for all beings who inhabit this planet Earth!
I am honored to be included with those exceptional sentient souls mentioned in this magnificent article! For the moment I have felt the pleasure of having landed in heaven itself!
neat comments!
Donald O'Donovan: "I'd like to see this event and others like it cancelled, but if that's not possible then I hope the pig wins."
Christy Fearn: "Thanks for sharing this. It's all about ego. Overpowering animals is regarded by many cultures as proof of (masculine) strength and therefore ego. Real men don't need to dominate."
Karrie Ann Rose: "n a similar topic, I wrote an email and called a local radio station that decided that airing youtube videos of pig wrestling was funny and entertaining. It made me sick to my stomach ... they were not even decent enough to reply ... good for Susie."
Kelly Huddleston: "Congrats to Susie! Shared!"
Shuree Hessler: "So sad! ...the pig's eyes make me sooooo sad."
Ashley Humphrey: "What the h*ll? Do people know they have the intelligence of a three-year-old? The USA needs to make a law called, 'A citizen can not earn money using wildlife as entertainment.' It's just as bad as kidnapping and using a human for trafficking."
Marian Patience Harvey: "We will banish in Indiana by 2015. If we did it in Putnam County in three years, we can stop it in the rest of the state in two years....Thanks Susie.....all the Sextons! Keep at it...."
Suzanne: "This made me cry. And it makes me feel like I make a difference. Please thank your mom for me. Bravo. She's amazing. And the apple doesn't fall far..."
Cindy Ducey: "Yes -Thank God for people like Susie. So sad that people think this is 'great fun' for the whole family."
Florence Windfall: "Gadz! All the ways to dominate, abuse, and kill captive animals!"
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
You can read it by clicking here.
Here's an excerpt...
So, to Susie and to all of you who speak out, put your name on the line, and break the silence–even when you’re likely to be the only one taking a stand–I repeat the words of appreciation I found in her message: “Thank goodness for you people!”
THANK YOU, Kathleen…I wander about — all day long — having fun with and taking care of my household “pets”, and I prowl Facebook to help virtual nonhumans (I love THAT term!). At last, I do feel validated reading through this beautiful piece of writing which I shall always treasure.
More thrilling for me, though, is that the sentient beings (and a host of others “who” came to mind as I read) mentioned by Kathleen are featured in a perfect message any reader can understand. Of course, I delight that countless folks will be subsequently recruited to this noble cause, i.e. joining those of us who are fostering true respect for and reverence for all beings who inhabit this planet Earth!
I am honored to be included with those exceptional sentient souls mentioned in this magnificent article! For the moment I have felt the pleasure of having landed in heaven itself!
neat comments!
Donald O'Donovan: "I'd like to see this event and others like it cancelled, but if that's not possible then I hope the pig wins."
Christy Fearn: "Thanks for sharing this. It's all about ego. Overpowering animals is regarded by many cultures as proof of (masculine) strength and therefore ego. Real men don't need to dominate."
Karrie Ann Rose: "n a similar topic, I wrote an email and called a local radio station that decided that airing youtube videos of pig wrestling was funny and entertaining. It made me sick to my stomach ... they were not even decent enough to reply ... good for Susie."
Kelly Huddleston: "Congrats to Susie! Shared!"
Shuree Hessler: "So sad! ...the pig's eyes make me sooooo sad."
Ashley Humphrey: "What the h*ll? Do people know they have the intelligence of a three-year-old? The USA needs to make a law called, 'A citizen can not earn money using wildlife as entertainment.' It's just as bad as kidnapping and using a human for trafficking."
Marian Patience Harvey: "We will banish in Indiana by 2015. If we did it in Putnam County in three years, we can stop it in the rest of the state in two years....Thanks Susie.....all the Sextons! Keep at it...."
Suzanne: "This made me cry. And it makes me feel like I make a difference. Please thank your mom for me. Bravo. She's amazing. And the apple doesn't fall far..."
Cindy Ducey: "Yes -Thank God for people like Susie. So sad that people think this is 'great fun' for the whole family."
Florence Windfall: "Gadz! All the ways to dominate, abuse, and kill captive animals!"
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
August 8, 2013
Homeward Angle: JUNK FOOD ADDICTIONS & GOURMET PRETENSIONS
My latest Homeward Angle column: “JUNK FOOD ADDICTIONS & GOURMET PRETENSIONS" ... a post-PaulaDeenGate critique on our society’s obsession with Food Network “stars” through the context of a Baby Boomer’s youthful awareness of the mid-century food habits of parents and their friends… (view more photos here)
(And don’t forget I will be in Ann Arbor on 9/15 reading from her book “Secrets of an Old Typewriter” as part of the Arts and Culture Series – all info can be found in this BroadwayWorld article covering the event - click here.)
JUNK FOOD ADDICTIONS & GOURMET PRETENSIONS
Yes Ma'am and Yes Sir! Immersed in the Old South for longer than a half century, I applauded a steady stream of what I perceived to be genuine sweetness and the spirit of both uninhibited jocularity and spontaneous fun. Lately, I figure my approval of Southerners ended at my own front door…through an accident of birth I landed into a transplanted Southern household located in Hoosierland. My deduction? Happiness hinges on WHOM you know and not WHAT or WHERE you know. I got blessed with parents whom I regarded, after a significant passage of time, as real people, not sugar-coated phonies but genuinely loving souls. Southern hospitality flowed naturally through their veins because they literally possessed hearts which not only kept their blood pumping but those figurative hearts, open and generous, that allowed absolutely everybody into their bloodstreams. Prejudices? They had none of those. The societal stumbling of Food Connoisseur and Southerner Paula Deen would have appalled them. My mom and dad defied classification -- as well as… "location, location, location". Roy and Edna, always individuals, would have been just as dear had they hailed from France or Outer Mongolia.
Each August for as long as I can remember, my textile plant manager dad ordered, during the very early morning hours of his birthday, a couple dozen banana splits from our local Dairy Queen located on "Old Highway 30" back in the day. The owners referred to as the Goodman Sisters, sporting their jaunty little vendor caps and pristine white uniforms, scooped together a collection of boat-like ice-cream confections drizzled with pineapple, strawberry, and chocolate syrups -- finally topped with dollops of astutely aimed curlicued Reddi-Wip! Summer after summer, Daddy loaded cardboard box-lids positively over-flowing with those sundaes, throughout the years, into assorted vintage models of station wagons and then balanced the special delivery parcels across his forearms as he climbed the front staircase --two steps at a time-- of the Blue Bell/ Wrangler Jeans factory. Once inside, he positioned a succulent surprise onto each desk of all of the "girls in the office" starting with the switchboard ladies and on and on all the way up and down the tiled hallways of the front office area. His astroLOGICAL sign being LEO, he fit that horoscopic bill to the Nth degree…bigger than Life, a roaringly happy and regal soul who always meant business … even while having a ball and inviting others to join in his merriment!
I recently googled a few of the delightful folks I remember from my past…most of whom enjoyed an affiliation with the Blue Bell Manufacturing Company… just to see where some of those loyal employees disappeared to or what successes they might have achieved as the years passed. Sadly, most had died…never in my heart though. Blue Bell psychologist and Iowa native Dr. Roy Standahl was father to two fabulous, fun-loving sons named Jon and Jerry, with whom I played board games and cards and drank oodles of Pepsi and devoured endless packages of pretzels and potato chips twice per summer as the family tooled through Columbia City on their way from North Carolina to their Minnesota lake cottage and back home again. Both "boys" earned Ph.Ds. in psychology, just like their pop. Sadly, Dr. Jon Standahl is now gone -- yet, according to his obituary, once wrote a quirkily instructive children's book outlining his own imaginative version of the origin of Santa Claus! I ordered a copy immediately, and as I read his account of Father Christmas, I recalled Jon's intelligence. I recaptured a glimpse of that hilarious, unpretentious, lanky fellow I grew up alongside.
Martin Wimbs, one of the more sparkling "engineers" -- who eventually transferred to our small town from the Greensboro, North Carolina headquarters of Blue Bell, Incorporated (and then back again) -- left an enduring impression upon me during my junior high school days because each time he visited Columbia City, he would insist upon dropping by our house to teach me advanced Cribbage skills. Martin and Nelle, with their children Lee, Donnie (whom my dad kept supplied with stuffed toy monkeys), and baby Shauna, moved to Columbia City at the close of the 50s and lived contentedly for several seasons in that cute house facing the Kleespie family's parsonage and immediately behind Mrs. Salesman's "bed-and-breakfast" GUEST HOUSE. Nelle's down-home cooking -- somehow incorporating slivered almonds and water chestnuts perpetually into every innovative casserole-- coupled with Martin's winsomely witty personality remain unforgettable. A Facebook participant well into his 80s, Martin died this spring of 2013. Remarkable accomplishments during a colorful lifetime-- revealed in his obituary -- never ever got detailed by this modest gentleman, such as his "Merchant Marine" days or the piloting of private planes around and about 54 countries, but I shall always remember this unique person as a charmer possessing an air of intriguing mystery and a thirst for adventure.
Martin's grandson Michael and I, now Facebook buddies for three years, enjoy exchanging stories of his family and mine. Among many impressive tributes on his site, to his grandfather Martin, I noticed a blog entry by James A. Martin, a "Southerner in San Francisco" (click here to read). James typically writes about Dixie-Carter-and-Governor-Ann-Richards-types, restaurants, beaches, political leanings, human rights, diversity, Free Thinkers, expansive and inclusive ideals, and various other notable and noble topics. Mr. Martin, a contributor to the "New York Times" and "Entertainment Weekly", co-authored "Getting Organized in the Google Era" with Dr. Douglas C. Merrill, former chief information officer of Google and a Princeton graduate; that beguiling textbook is currently stacked among several "must-read" titles upon our kitchen table. (Click here for Amazon link.)
Shauna (Wimbs) Gamble shared a loving last moment memory of her father Martin Wimbs with James, her former school-days classmate. The topic involved "A First and Last Sip of Cheerwine", a cherry-flavored soft drink brewed in the Tar Heel state. "Shauna's sister Pam is a Cheerwine devotee. She nearly always carries a can of it… On the last afternoon of her father's life, Pam goes to visit him in his hospice room, Cheerwine in hand. Her father notices the red soft drink can. Though he'd never tried the fizzy drink before in his 86 years, he was curious about it. He asks Pam for a taste…'That's pretty good,' he says afterwards. And other than perhaps a sip or two of water, that swig of Cheerwine was his last drink."
Folksy Hoosier comic and big band conductor/singer Phil Harris, raised in Tennessee, achieved fame in the mid 30s with a tune entitled "That's What I Like about the South!" I discovered that what I like about the Southland is that I have developed a fondness for a few kindred souls who, like myself, have emerged with Southern bloodlines intact but a fresh new world view…no longer steeped in fundamentalism, rigid conservatism, racism, barbecues, fried chicken, hog roasts, mint juleps swigged at country clubs, RC Colas, MoonPies, "Matlock" hot dogs, bull-headedness, and unwarranted senses of entitlement. Facebook, in all of its glory, allows reasonable and properly evolved children of the South to locate one another at our sundry stations scattered around the globe and to continue to respect precious Dixieland traditions which sometimes fall between the cracks -- easy graciousness, spirited fun, soft hearts, cordial adaptability and culinary open-mindedness. James and I are wide-eyed, wild-eyed, wise-eyed newly minted Vegans/Vegetarians striving to make sense of a new epoch recently dubbed "Anthropocene" by an ecologist named Eugene F. Stoermer and publicized widely by Nobel Prize-winning scientist Paul Crutzen. As the late comedian Tar Heel Andy Griffith might have described this newly-named era, "What it is…is a lengthy football field of a timeline during which manKIND has messed up this 'cow pasture' of a planet 'from one end to the other' and sorely needs to clean up its act without either spilling our 'big orange drinks' or 'gettin' knocked down or steppin' in somethin.' " (A Tip of My Paraphrased Hat to Griffith's popular monologue "What It Was, Was Football!")
appreciate this feedback!
Helen Cochrane: "I can just hear Susie talking! What a wonderful author she's turned out to be."
James A. Martin: "Thanks for letting me know, Roy! Awesome!"
Paul Clifford Schrade: "SUSIE: We are terribly addicted to junk food and it's growing worse. We are disciples of our taste buds only and that seems to be the test....no tests too stringent, heaven forbid! If it tastes good, hell...it must be good! We put nothing but the bests into our cars so we can have a safe ride, but as for our bodies...hell, shovel anything into them...a regular garbage pit! Giants like Monsanto are always poised to strike like a rattlesnake and exacerbate the situation. We're trapped in between 'the devil and the deep blue sea!'"
Kat Kelly-Heinzelman: "Love your article, Susie, but then again I always do. You are a wonderful writer, and we are all blessed for you to share your beautiful talent with the rest of us. Love you, Susie, and you, too, Roy. Keep up the good work, Roy, and thanks for being there for the rest of us."
Barb Nicholson: "Love the way your mom goes back in time and writes up all these wonderful memories! I have told you many times 'I love the way she writes' and I truly mean it!!"
Shearin Wimbs: "Saw this last night and it's a beautiful piece. I'd like to meet this lady. I've been in the family 44 years and 'grew up' hearing stories and memories of the Duncans."
Christopher Jordan: "Hi, Roy and Susie!!! Just wanted to let you know I called and have my tickets on reserve. So, looking forward to finally meeting the Grand Dame Susie in person and hearing you sing Roy. Will be coming with my Mom, Dad, Younger Brother Michael, Younger Sister Theresa. Will also be bringing my camera so I can at least get a couple of pictures with us together."
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
Getting Organized in the Google Era: How to Get Stuff out of Your Head, Find It When You Need It, and Get It Done Right
(And don’t forget I will be in Ann Arbor on 9/15 reading from her book “Secrets of an Old Typewriter” as part of the Arts and Culture Series – all info can be found in this BroadwayWorld article covering the event - click here.)
JUNK FOOD ADDICTIONS & GOURMET PRETENSIONS
Yes Ma'am and Yes Sir! Immersed in the Old South for longer than a half century, I applauded a steady stream of what I perceived to be genuine sweetness and the spirit of both uninhibited jocularity and spontaneous fun. Lately, I figure my approval of Southerners ended at my own front door…through an accident of birth I landed into a transplanted Southern household located in Hoosierland. My deduction? Happiness hinges on WHOM you know and not WHAT or WHERE you know. I got blessed with parents whom I regarded, after a significant passage of time, as real people, not sugar-coated phonies but genuinely loving souls. Southern hospitality flowed naturally through their veins because they literally possessed hearts which not only kept their blood pumping but those figurative hearts, open and generous, that allowed absolutely everybody into their bloodstreams. Prejudices? They had none of those. The societal stumbling of Food Connoisseur and Southerner Paula Deen would have appalled them. My mom and dad defied classification -- as well as… "location, location, location". Roy and Edna, always individuals, would have been just as dear had they hailed from France or Outer Mongolia.
Each August for as long as I can remember, my textile plant manager dad ordered, during the very early morning hours of his birthday, a couple dozen banana splits from our local Dairy Queen located on "Old Highway 30" back in the day. The owners referred to as the Goodman Sisters, sporting their jaunty little vendor caps and pristine white uniforms, scooped together a collection of boat-like ice-cream confections drizzled with pineapple, strawberry, and chocolate syrups -- finally topped with dollops of astutely aimed curlicued Reddi-Wip! Summer after summer, Daddy loaded cardboard box-lids positively over-flowing with those sundaes, throughout the years, into assorted vintage models of station wagons and then balanced the special delivery parcels across his forearms as he climbed the front staircase --two steps at a time-- of the Blue Bell/ Wrangler Jeans factory. Once inside, he positioned a succulent surprise onto each desk of all of the "girls in the office" starting with the switchboard ladies and on and on all the way up and down the tiled hallways of the front office area. His astroLOGICAL sign being LEO, he fit that horoscopic bill to the Nth degree…bigger than Life, a roaringly happy and regal soul who always meant business … even while having a ball and inviting others to join in his merriment!
I recently googled a few of the delightful folks I remember from my past…most of whom enjoyed an affiliation with the Blue Bell Manufacturing Company… just to see where some of those loyal employees disappeared to or what successes they might have achieved as the years passed. Sadly, most had died…never in my heart though. Blue Bell psychologist and Iowa native Dr. Roy Standahl was father to two fabulous, fun-loving sons named Jon and Jerry, with whom I played board games and cards and drank oodles of Pepsi and devoured endless packages of pretzels and potato chips twice per summer as the family tooled through Columbia City on their way from North Carolina to their Minnesota lake cottage and back home again. Both "boys" earned Ph.Ds. in psychology, just like their pop. Sadly, Dr. Jon Standahl is now gone -- yet, according to his obituary, once wrote a quirkily instructive children's book outlining his own imaginative version of the origin of Santa Claus! I ordered a copy immediately, and as I read his account of Father Christmas, I recalled Jon's intelligence. I recaptured a glimpse of that hilarious, unpretentious, lanky fellow I grew up alongside.
Martin Wimbs, one of the more sparkling "engineers" -- who eventually transferred to our small town from the Greensboro, North Carolina headquarters of Blue Bell, Incorporated (and then back again) -- left an enduring impression upon me during my junior high school days because each time he visited Columbia City, he would insist upon dropping by our house to teach me advanced Cribbage skills. Martin and Nelle, with their children Lee, Donnie (whom my dad kept supplied with stuffed toy monkeys), and baby Shauna, moved to Columbia City at the close of the 50s and lived contentedly for several seasons in that cute house facing the Kleespie family's parsonage and immediately behind Mrs. Salesman's "bed-and-breakfast" GUEST HOUSE. Nelle's down-home cooking -- somehow incorporating slivered almonds and water chestnuts perpetually into every innovative casserole-- coupled with Martin's winsomely witty personality remain unforgettable. A Facebook participant well into his 80s, Martin died this spring of 2013. Remarkable accomplishments during a colorful lifetime-- revealed in his obituary -- never ever got detailed by this modest gentleman, such as his "Merchant Marine" days or the piloting of private planes around and about 54 countries, but I shall always remember this unique person as a charmer possessing an air of intriguing mystery and a thirst for adventure.
Martin's grandson Michael and I, now Facebook buddies for three years, enjoy exchanging stories of his family and mine. Among many impressive tributes on his site, to his grandfather Martin, I noticed a blog entry by James A. Martin, a "Southerner in San Francisco" (click here to read). James typically writes about Dixie-Carter-and-Governor-Ann-Richards-types, restaurants, beaches, political leanings, human rights, diversity, Free Thinkers, expansive and inclusive ideals, and various other notable and noble topics. Mr. Martin, a contributor to the "New York Times" and "Entertainment Weekly", co-authored "Getting Organized in the Google Era" with Dr. Douglas C. Merrill, former chief information officer of Google and a Princeton graduate; that beguiling textbook is currently stacked among several "must-read" titles upon our kitchen table. (Click here for Amazon link.)
Shauna (Wimbs) Gamble shared a loving last moment memory of her father Martin Wimbs with James, her former school-days classmate. The topic involved "A First and Last Sip of Cheerwine", a cherry-flavored soft drink brewed in the Tar Heel state. "Shauna's sister Pam is a Cheerwine devotee. She nearly always carries a can of it… On the last afternoon of her father's life, Pam goes to visit him in his hospice room, Cheerwine in hand. Her father notices the red soft drink can. Though he'd never tried the fizzy drink before in his 86 years, he was curious about it. He asks Pam for a taste…'That's pretty good,' he says afterwards. And other than perhaps a sip or two of water, that swig of Cheerwine was his last drink."
Folksy Hoosier comic and big band conductor/singer Phil Harris, raised in Tennessee, achieved fame in the mid 30s with a tune entitled "That's What I Like about the South!" I discovered that what I like about the Southland is that I have developed a fondness for a few kindred souls who, like myself, have emerged with Southern bloodlines intact but a fresh new world view…no longer steeped in fundamentalism, rigid conservatism, racism, barbecues, fried chicken, hog roasts, mint juleps swigged at country clubs, RC Colas, MoonPies, "Matlock" hot dogs, bull-headedness, and unwarranted senses of entitlement. Facebook, in all of its glory, allows reasonable and properly evolved children of the South to locate one another at our sundry stations scattered around the globe and to continue to respect precious Dixieland traditions which sometimes fall between the cracks -- easy graciousness, spirited fun, soft hearts, cordial adaptability and culinary open-mindedness. James and I are wide-eyed, wild-eyed, wise-eyed newly minted Vegans/Vegetarians striving to make sense of a new epoch recently dubbed "Anthropocene" by an ecologist named Eugene F. Stoermer and publicized widely by Nobel Prize-winning scientist Paul Crutzen. As the late comedian Tar Heel Andy Griffith might have described this newly-named era, "What it is…is a lengthy football field of a timeline during which manKIND has messed up this 'cow pasture' of a planet 'from one end to the other' and sorely needs to clean up its act without either spilling our 'big orange drinks' or 'gettin' knocked down or steppin' in somethin.' " (A Tip of My Paraphrased Hat to Griffith's popular monologue "What It Was, Was Football!")
POSTSCRIPT: "In the South, some restaurants still list french fries as a vegetable. This wonderfully creative view of vegetables should come in handy -- as I flirt with vegetarianism. And so, in advance of my next cholesterol test…I decided to take my efforts to a new level. Nearly every morning, I'm eating steel-cut oatmeal with flax seed and slivered almonds. I'm swallowing supplements throughout the day: Metamucil capsules, CholestOff, Niacin... I've already learned something valuable. I'm not as wedded to my old Southern-by-way-of-San-Francisco diet as I assumed. This old dawg can learn new tricks--and perhaps even prefer them to the old ones. Who knows? In any event, it's comforting to know that french fries are a vegetable." ~ My new friend and fellow blogger James A. Martin, inventive creator of "A First, and Last, Sip of Cheerwine" & "Confessions of a Southern-Fried Quasi Vegetarian" - click here to read
appreciate this feedback!
Helen Cochrane: "I can just hear Susie talking! What a wonderful author she's turned out to be."
James A. Martin: "Thanks for letting me know, Roy! Awesome!"
Paul Clifford Schrade: "SUSIE: We are terribly addicted to junk food and it's growing worse. We are disciples of our taste buds only and that seems to be the test....no tests too stringent, heaven forbid! If it tastes good, hell...it must be good! We put nothing but the bests into our cars so we can have a safe ride, but as for our bodies...hell, shovel anything into them...a regular garbage pit! Giants like Monsanto are always poised to strike like a rattlesnake and exacerbate the situation. We're trapped in between 'the devil and the deep blue sea!'"
Kat Kelly-Heinzelman: "Love your article, Susie, but then again I always do. You are a wonderful writer, and we are all blessed for you to share your beautiful talent with the rest of us. Love you, Susie, and you, too, Roy. Keep up the good work, Roy, and thanks for being there for the rest of us."
Barb Nicholson: "Love the way your mom goes back in time and writes up all these wonderful memories! I have told you many times 'I love the way she writes' and I truly mean it!!"
Shearin Wimbs: "Saw this last night and it's a beautiful piece. I'd like to meet this lady. I've been in the family 44 years and 'grew up' hearing stories and memories of the Duncans."
Christopher Jordan: "Hi, Roy and Susie!!! Just wanted to let you know I called and have my tickets on reserve. So, looking forward to finally meeting the Grand Dame Susie in person and hearing you sing Roy. Will be coming with my Mom, Dad, Younger Brother Michael, Younger Sister Theresa. Will also be bringing my camera so I can at least get a couple of pictures with us together."
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
Getting Organized in the Google Era: How to Get Stuff out of Your Head, Find It When You Need It, and Get It Done Right
August 2, 2013
Save the Date: Susie Duncan Sexton & Roy Sexton present Secrets of an Old Typewriter for Ann Arbor Arts & Culture Series
On Sunday, September 15, from 1:00 to 2:30 p.m., I will be reading from my book “Secrets of an Old Typewriter” as part of the Ann Arbor Arts and Culture Series.
Accompanied by pianist Rebecca Biber, my son Roy will sing a short set-list of my favorite show tunes. This presentation will be held at the Ann Arbor Senior Center at 1320 Baldwin Avenue, $5 general admission or $4 for guests 60 years and older. To reserve your tickets, please call 734-794-6250. Hope to see you there!
You can read more about the event by clicking here or here or here.
Quote...
"My husband and I ADORE Ann Arbor. I am so jealous that my son gets to live here. This town with its progressive sensibility, thoughtful approach to life, and love of nature and animals is my ideal, so I can't begin to describe how honored it is for this Hoosier to be invited to participate in this Arts and Culture program,” observes Susie.
“My son has lived in Michigan since 1999 and in the Ann Arbor area since 2007, and, while we always wanted him to live with us forever, now I want to come live with him! I want to thank Pam Simmons and the whole team there for their support and encouragement. I can't wait to meet up with my Michigan friends, to share anecdotes and some 'secrets' from my book, to hear my son sing, and to help spread the word about a cause near and dear to my heart...the welfare of our animal friends."
_________________
below scanned article from Columbia City Post & Mail newspaper...
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
Accompanied by pianist Rebecca Biber, my son Roy will sing a short set-list of my favorite show tunes. This presentation will be held at the Ann Arbor Senior Center at 1320 Baldwin Avenue, $5 general admission or $4 for guests 60 years and older. To reserve your tickets, please call 734-794-6250. Hope to see you there!
You can read more about the event by clicking here or here or here.
Quote...
"My husband and I ADORE Ann Arbor. I am so jealous that my son gets to live here. This town with its progressive sensibility, thoughtful approach to life, and love of nature and animals is my ideal, so I can't begin to describe how honored it is for this Hoosier to be invited to participate in this Arts and Culture program,” observes Susie.
“My son has lived in Michigan since 1999 and in the Ann Arbor area since 2007, and, while we always wanted him to live with us forever, now I want to come live with him! I want to thank Pam Simmons and the whole team there for their support and encouragement. I can't wait to meet up with my Michigan friends, to share anecdotes and some 'secrets' from my book, to hear my son sing, and to help spread the word about a cause near and dear to my heart...the welfare of our animal friends."
_________________
below scanned article from Columbia City Post & Mail newspaper...
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
July 18, 2013
Letter to the editor: Pig wrestling, anyone? No, we will opt out
Letter to the editor from me to the Fort Wayne News-Sentinel - click here to view the original post...
In spite of reading three glowing articles in our local newspaper this week, so far, emphasizing the joys of pig wrestling, we decided not to wrestle pigs in the mud on July 16 in Whitley County no matter how fun and wholesome that event may be for spectators (children, too?)
Even though, evidently, conveniently provided hand sanitizer dispensers will prevent swine flu after the pursuit of one traumatized pig after the other, will the pigs wait patiently until the cleansing of human hands is over and then the grabbing and squeezing and chasing and guffawing and dumping of the pig onto a throne or into a trash receptacle can continue?
It seems that just staring face-to-face, one-on-one, not to mention four-on-one, is not wise either as far as the transmission of viruses. We wonder what the animals could catch from us wrestlers. Nightmares? Torso damage? Broken limbs? Aborted piglets?
Yep, we opt out — in every way. Doesn’t sound fun at all. Sounds abusive and cruel. Watch some videos to see if you agree. Google and weep.
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
In spite of reading three glowing articles in our local newspaper this week, so far, emphasizing the joys of pig wrestling, we decided not to wrestle pigs in the mud on July 16 in Whitley County no matter how fun and wholesome that event may be for spectators (children, too?)
Even though, evidently, conveniently provided hand sanitizer dispensers will prevent swine flu after the pursuit of one traumatized pig after the other, will the pigs wait patiently until the cleansing of human hands is over and then the grabbing and squeezing and chasing and guffawing and dumping of the pig onto a throne or into a trash receptacle can continue?
It seems that just staring face-to-face, one-on-one, not to mention four-on-one, is not wise either as far as the transmission of viruses. We wonder what the animals could catch from us wrestlers. Nightmares? Torso damage? Broken limbs? Aborted piglets?
Yep, we opt out — in every way. Doesn’t sound fun at all. Sounds abusive and cruel. Watch some videos to see if you agree. Google and weep.
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
July 17, 2013
From the Old Type Writer: "AN EVENT WORTH CELEBRATING!"
What was I thinking on a hot summer day confined to a moving car headed toward the art capital of the Midwest, culture-cluster Ann Arbor in Michigan?
"My hair is frizzy and my shorts are too tight and my feet are swelling and am I dressed up enough and will my dog Jack not peewee for about 12 hours until I return all exhausted from enduring hectic traffic and from sitting in the setting sun watching a 90 minute musical?" That's what I was thinking. I clue you!
What I should have been daydreaming about is this: "My heavens, Cy Coleman composed this musical called 'Little Me' and he is responsible for the glorious 'Sweet Charity'! My heavens, Patrick Dennis wrote the naughty novel itself, and he is responsible for the divine 'Auntie Mame'! My heavens, Neil Simon adapted the book into the zaniest, most fast-moving, wittiest bit of shtick ever, and he is responsible for 'Barefoot in the Park', 'The Odd Couple', 'The Good-Bye Girl' , 'Come Blow Your Horn', and 'Your Show of Shows' starring my favorite television comedian in the whole wide world, the heretofore inimitable SID CAESAR (Later revived by funny, nutty maniac Martin Short)! My heavens, the 95 roles that Roy fills to a "T", and then some, got originated by the Caesar-King of Comedy himself!" [View more photos by clicking here.}
I WAS NOT PREPARED for the tour de force provided by one ROY EDWARD SEXTON who seldom leaves the stage as he 150% convincingly out-SIDS SID! Roy first appears as a charmingly obnoxiously conceited over-achieving teenager named Noble Eggleston and right before our stunned eyes morphs into impossibly wealthy curmudgeon Mr. Pinchley, Frenchman Val Du Val, World War I soldier boy Fred Poitrine, film director Otto Schnitzler, Prince Cherney and Noble Junior -- never breathless, always poised and consistently hilarious, costume and dialect and character intact. Pictures attached! Oh, yeah! The entire cast is terrific and "gets" the satire and "gets" the dry wit and happily, physically engages in slap-stick extraordinaire. I'd seen this "show" live in Indianapolis in the early 60s featuring movie star Donald O'Connor of "Francis the Talking Mule" and "Singing in the Rain" and "There's No Business Like Show Business" and "Beau Geste" and oh, my oh, my! I do not even remember Donald…I can never forget Roy! He amazed even his own proud mom and pop!
Grab a ticket for Little Me (Thursday-Saturday, July 18-20, 7 pm and Thursday-Saturday, July 25-27, 7 pm) at http://www.pennyseats.org/. Enjoy your road trip! The rewards are great…even a delicious picnic basket for you and yours! You'll run into Mr. & Ms. Sexton both of the next week-ends. We would not miss an opportunity to revel in this musical romp again and again! I ain't never seen nuttin' to compare in my nearly seven decades on Mama Earth! Trust me on this one!
_________________
[bookcover:Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl|12465699]
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
"My hair is frizzy and my shorts are too tight and my feet are swelling and am I dressed up enough and will my dog Jack not peewee for about 12 hours until I return all exhausted from enduring hectic traffic and from sitting in the setting sun watching a 90 minute musical?" That's what I was thinking. I clue you!
What I should have been daydreaming about is this: "My heavens, Cy Coleman composed this musical called 'Little Me' and he is responsible for the glorious 'Sweet Charity'! My heavens, Patrick Dennis wrote the naughty novel itself, and he is responsible for the divine 'Auntie Mame'! My heavens, Neil Simon adapted the book into the zaniest, most fast-moving, wittiest bit of shtick ever, and he is responsible for 'Barefoot in the Park', 'The Odd Couple', 'The Good-Bye Girl' , 'Come Blow Your Horn', and 'Your Show of Shows' starring my favorite television comedian in the whole wide world, the heretofore inimitable SID CAESAR (Later revived by funny, nutty maniac Martin Short)! My heavens, the 95 roles that Roy fills to a "T", and then some, got originated by the Caesar-King of Comedy himself!" [View more photos by clicking here.}
I WAS NOT PREPARED for the tour de force provided by one ROY EDWARD SEXTON who seldom leaves the stage as he 150% convincingly out-SIDS SID! Roy first appears as a charmingly obnoxiously conceited over-achieving teenager named Noble Eggleston and right before our stunned eyes morphs into impossibly wealthy curmudgeon Mr. Pinchley, Frenchman Val Du Val, World War I soldier boy Fred Poitrine, film director Otto Schnitzler, Prince Cherney and Noble Junior -- never breathless, always poised and consistently hilarious, costume and dialect and character intact. Pictures attached! Oh, yeah! The entire cast is terrific and "gets" the satire and "gets" the dry wit and happily, physically engages in slap-stick extraordinaire. I'd seen this "show" live in Indianapolis in the early 60s featuring movie star Donald O'Connor of "Francis the Talking Mule" and "Singing in the Rain" and "There's No Business Like Show Business" and "Beau Geste" and oh, my oh, my! I do not even remember Donald…I can never forget Roy! He amazed even his own proud mom and pop!
Grab a ticket for Little Me (Thursday-Saturday, July 18-20, 7 pm and Thursday-Saturday, July 25-27, 7 pm) at http://www.pennyseats.org/. Enjoy your road trip! The rewards are great…even a delicious picnic basket for you and yours! You'll run into Mr. & Ms. Sexton both of the next week-ends. We would not miss an opportunity to revel in this musical romp again and again! I ain't never seen nuttin' to compare in my nearly seven decades on Mama Earth! Trust me on this one!
_________________
[bookcover:Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl|12465699]
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
July 10, 2013
Homeward Angle: Who Knew? Ricky Gervais and I on the Same Page!
My latest Homeward Angle column from The Columbia City Post and Mail. This piece celebrates the “inner child” and how the pure spark of creativity is channeled through youthful exuberance. View the original scanned article and additional photos by clicking here.
Homeward Angle: Who Knew? Ricky Gervais and I on the Same Page!
By Susie Duncan Sexton (www.susieduncansexton.com)
"Hey, now you're acting like…Jesus!" A younger than young feminine voice registered in the highest decibels from the backyard trampoline immediately on the other side of our fence. The "Jesus" impersonator -- also a very young girl person -- shouted back in a snarly fashion, "Yeah, so what of it?" Such a remarkable exchange ensued among a gaggle of playmates engaged in bandying about unwelcome advice and upon which one can only superimpose those long-forgotten miraculous forms of childhood communication and then guess what the motivation might have been? C'mon, we can all relate -- we grown-ups once understood raw honesty, cutting to the chase, telling it like it is and then continuing to play well with others, especially during unsupervised, unregimented frolicking where our own satisfactory rules eventually manifested themselves and life progressed on its significantly merry way…
My little nephew, not unlike Beaver Cleaver, and I, his ever so slightly older "aunt", eternally scrambled to grab the comic pages of the Sunday paper from one another. As I, the victor, relaxed upon my tummy with the newspaper beneath my inky elbows, breathless Jimmy landed upon my backside declaring, "I got here first!" The cutest little boy, he deserved honors as one of the most quotable children in the history of the universe. Our resident Columbia City physician Dr. Otto Lehmberg, who excelled in those enviable "bedside manners" of yesteryear during events we once referred to as "house calls", resembled a water-colored illustration of a physician in storybooks --white mane of hair, profile of an American eagle, and requisite spectacles. Jimmy's eyes enlarged to the size of saucers merely at the mention of the doc's name -- whom he called "Dr. Hankaburger"-- or whenever in the presence of any slightly older male whosoever wore glasses and might possibly inoculate him. My favorite memorable statement from my rosy-cheeked nephew, however, besides being called a "bastard" at which time my mom sat us down on the steps and explained the complicated yet titillating definition of that ugly word to us, would be his calm assurance that movie Indians were not at all frightening because, "They are just cowboys…with feathers!"
Jimmy who insisted upon assuming the more masculine name "Jim" at age eight, which provoked my prankster dad to agree to dub him "Stinky" instead, shared his talent to "say the darndest things" (which should have earned him a spot on the Art Linkletter "House Party" Show) with his baby sister Cheryl Ann who once grabbed her mom's padded brassiere off the outdoor clothesline and skipped into the house while exclaiming proudly, "Mommy, Mommy, your lungs is dry!" Our own kid, Roy, kept us in stitches with his early love of, respect for and attempts to master the English language, confidently expressing his reverence for those glittery "silos" hovering atop the heads of angels. Years ago, a little neighbor girl received my award for most hilarious repeatable innocent response ever, delivered to some elderly ladies, watching a parade, who remarked that the next time they met up with her she would probably have grown to be "this tall"-- as they swished their hands approximately five feet into the air. Cute Monica smiled sweetly and in a similarly lady-like spirit countered with, "And the next time I see all of you, you'll probably be dead."
My mom adored a story of the Langohr children enduring that "spelling in front of the kids" jazz -- which adults perform to protect their own highly guarded secrets -- on a casual automobile trip in the 1950s. As the family tooled along the roadways, one of the kids, peering out the rear window, noticed a problem with their moving vehicle --a suddenly opened, flapping trunk -- and warned, "Uh, pardon me, but…A, B, C, your back-end's up!" And somebody young and confused somewhere sometime asked parents for an explanation of the Biblical phrase, "From dust thou art and to dust thou shalt returneth." Upon simplifying the concept of birth and death by downplaying the antiquated florid language , the puzzled parents concluded with, "Why do you ask?" The child, simply reporting on discovered dust bunnies, tentatively answered, "Well there's someBODY under the bed, and whoever it is -- is either coming or going…"
In June, I met a boy I grew up with, and we conversed nearly an hour while standing in Smith & Sons Funeral Home's parking lot -- patiently chaperoned by his gorgeous wife and adoring daughter and my handsome husband. Harry Staley and I discussed quite a lot about our past together in this quaint town where our dads worked side by side at the Blue Bell factory. We recalled teachers whom we really appreciated, childhood parties attended, neighborhoods and buildings we frequented -- and our mutual friend Susy (Alberty) Kauffman who died this past winter. When the three of us --Harry, Susy and Susie -- were short people with few aspirations or hang-ups, we would have thought nothing of riding bikes together, re-enacting movies, playing pitch and catch or even, God-forbid, dressing and re-dressing paper dolls! I could not stop viewing, in my mind's eye, the intriguing, unique kid Harry always was, even as this very tall, sophisticated, earnest, poised, renowned Indianapolis-based rheumatologist stood in front of me quite concerned with my psoriatic arthritis and the aggravation it's causing me. I continued behaving in a self-consciously silly manner, as if we still might be seven years old and only pretending. Truly a wonder that he didn't place his hand over my mouth! My compliment to Harry is that he has not changed, not a whit…he'll remain forever that intelligent and chivalrous lad who lived lands away on Jefferson Street yet just around the corner from Susy on Whitley Street. "When Harry met Susy … and Susie"!
My Southern cousin Krisan spent countless hours after school cursively writing 100 times, at the behest of her strict teacher, "I shall never talk out of turn." Brilliant and resourceful, in order to endlessly "talk out of turn" -- and furthermore whenever the little pupil felt the impulse to do so -- my "cuz" prepared several sheets of yellow lined paper containing the repetitive "sentence" in advance. That youngster had the penalty for free self-expression covered! I remember with great fondness super-star Mary Martin portraying Peter Pan as she soared up, down and across the Broadway stage singing, "I won't grow up….I don't wanna go to school!" Even though I still find it disturbing that an actress provided the quintessential embodiment of the quirkiest juvenile delinquent male in all of literature, I 'll never forget her or that tune's impact and influence upon me. British comedian Ricky Gervais extolled the potential instructiveness of this playground called Life which he described recently in "Huffington Post":
thanks for the neat feedback!
Drex Morton: "Thanks for reminding me, Susie, that this past weekend when the tykes took over the children's message with their perspective on fireworks, it was sublime, particularly when my four year old theologian, Marin, said she liked the 'sprinklers' best... Thanks for taking us homeward once again. And tell Roy & Co. For me to 'break a leg.'"
Shannon Wright: "Thanks for the tag, Roy! Susie, I love reading your articles. So witty and insightful."
Neil Simon: "This is all GREAT for HER! What a success story!!!"
Shannon Basner: "If we could only hold onto that sense of creativity and sense of freedom..... it would last a lifetime and we could do much more good on this earth. Thanks, Roy and Susie!"
M. Clark: "Fabulous pictures!"
Carole Craft: "Roy, Good luck tonight! I will be thinking about you as always. I read Susie’s latest and enjoyed it. How she remembers so much about the past, I will never know! Love, Carole"
Lucy Langohr Grant: "A wonderful column and full of the wonderful play that continues to make your mother an artist with first rank creativity!"
Kelly Huddleston: "Lovely article!"
Carrie Tomasko: "Brilliant! I would love to meet your mom someday, maybe I’ll make it to her reading. Thanks for sharing with me. The quote especially, it struck a chord with me. Thanks again! Hope you have a wonderful weekend and good luck with your play."
Barbara Nicholson: "As the old saying goes, 'out of the mouth of babes'! Love the old photos!!!! Break a leg with 'Little Me.'”
Mary Shaull: "Just re-reread Susie's column on playing. (Loved the photos, too. Her parents obviously adored and appreciated her; those photos prove it.) Susie points out the sad truth that children nowadays don't engage in the energetic unsupervised play that taught us the gives-and-takes of social behaviors. Worrisome. My childhood was so like Susie's, as I too grew up in a small town. Hastings, Michigan. It's still HOME to me, though unfortunately I left it in the early 60s. Speaking of children's sage comments. Our daughter Jan at about age 5, exclaimed, 'God just took our picture!' as we drove through a lightning storm in the Smoky Mountains. That helped calm our adult nerves. Glorious evenings for your performances Roy. Happy for you."
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
Homeward Angle: Who Knew? Ricky Gervais and I on the Same Page!
By Susie Duncan Sexton (www.susieduncansexton.com)
"The creative adult is the child who has survived…" - Ursula K. Le Guin (borrowed from my Marshall Memorial Middle School Language Arts student circa 1968, Robin Zeigler Walker)
"Hey, now you're acting like…Jesus!" A younger than young feminine voice registered in the highest decibels from the backyard trampoline immediately on the other side of our fence. The "Jesus" impersonator -- also a very young girl person -- shouted back in a snarly fashion, "Yeah, so what of it?" Such a remarkable exchange ensued among a gaggle of playmates engaged in bandying about unwelcome advice and upon which one can only superimpose those long-forgotten miraculous forms of childhood communication and then guess what the motivation might have been? C'mon, we can all relate -- we grown-ups once understood raw honesty, cutting to the chase, telling it like it is and then continuing to play well with others, especially during unsupervised, unregimented frolicking where our own satisfactory rules eventually manifested themselves and life progressed on its significantly merry way…
My little nephew, not unlike Beaver Cleaver, and I, his ever so slightly older "aunt", eternally scrambled to grab the comic pages of the Sunday paper from one another. As I, the victor, relaxed upon my tummy with the newspaper beneath my inky elbows, breathless Jimmy landed upon my backside declaring, "I got here first!" The cutest little boy, he deserved honors as one of the most quotable children in the history of the universe. Our resident Columbia City physician Dr. Otto Lehmberg, who excelled in those enviable "bedside manners" of yesteryear during events we once referred to as "house calls", resembled a water-colored illustration of a physician in storybooks --white mane of hair, profile of an American eagle, and requisite spectacles. Jimmy's eyes enlarged to the size of saucers merely at the mention of the doc's name -- whom he called "Dr. Hankaburger"-- or whenever in the presence of any slightly older male whosoever wore glasses and might possibly inoculate him. My favorite memorable statement from my rosy-cheeked nephew, however, besides being called a "bastard" at which time my mom sat us down on the steps and explained the complicated yet titillating definition of that ugly word to us, would be his calm assurance that movie Indians were not at all frightening because, "They are just cowboys…with feathers!"
Jimmy who insisted upon assuming the more masculine name "Jim" at age eight, which provoked my prankster dad to agree to dub him "Stinky" instead, shared his talent to "say the darndest things" (which should have earned him a spot on the Art Linkletter "House Party" Show) with his baby sister Cheryl Ann who once grabbed her mom's padded brassiere off the outdoor clothesline and skipped into the house while exclaiming proudly, "Mommy, Mommy, your lungs is dry!" Our own kid, Roy, kept us in stitches with his early love of, respect for and attempts to master the English language, confidently expressing his reverence for those glittery "silos" hovering atop the heads of angels. Years ago, a little neighbor girl received my award for most hilarious repeatable innocent response ever, delivered to some elderly ladies, watching a parade, who remarked that the next time they met up with her she would probably have grown to be "this tall"-- as they swished their hands approximately five feet into the air. Cute Monica smiled sweetly and in a similarly lady-like spirit countered with, "And the next time I see all of you, you'll probably be dead."
My mom adored a story of the Langohr children enduring that "spelling in front of the kids" jazz -- which adults perform to protect their own highly guarded secrets -- on a casual automobile trip in the 1950s. As the family tooled along the roadways, one of the kids, peering out the rear window, noticed a problem with their moving vehicle --a suddenly opened, flapping trunk -- and warned, "Uh, pardon me, but…A, B, C, your back-end's up!" And somebody young and confused somewhere sometime asked parents for an explanation of the Biblical phrase, "From dust thou art and to dust thou shalt returneth." Upon simplifying the concept of birth and death by downplaying the antiquated florid language , the puzzled parents concluded with, "Why do you ask?" The child, simply reporting on discovered dust bunnies, tentatively answered, "Well there's someBODY under the bed, and whoever it is -- is either coming or going…"
In June, I met a boy I grew up with, and we conversed nearly an hour while standing in Smith & Sons Funeral Home's parking lot -- patiently chaperoned by his gorgeous wife and adoring daughter and my handsome husband. Harry Staley and I discussed quite a lot about our past together in this quaint town where our dads worked side by side at the Blue Bell factory. We recalled teachers whom we really appreciated, childhood parties attended, neighborhoods and buildings we frequented -- and our mutual friend Susy (Alberty) Kauffman who died this past winter. When the three of us --Harry, Susy and Susie -- were short people with few aspirations or hang-ups, we would have thought nothing of riding bikes together, re-enacting movies, playing pitch and catch or even, God-forbid, dressing and re-dressing paper dolls! I could not stop viewing, in my mind's eye, the intriguing, unique kid Harry always was, even as this very tall, sophisticated, earnest, poised, renowned Indianapolis-based rheumatologist stood in front of me quite concerned with my psoriatic arthritis and the aggravation it's causing me. I continued behaving in a self-consciously silly manner, as if we still might be seven years old and only pretending. Truly a wonder that he didn't place his hand over my mouth! My compliment to Harry is that he has not changed, not a whit…he'll remain forever that intelligent and chivalrous lad who lived lands away on Jefferson Street yet just around the corner from Susy on Whitley Street. "When Harry met Susy … and Susie"!
My Southern cousin Krisan spent countless hours after school cursively writing 100 times, at the behest of her strict teacher, "I shall never talk out of turn." Brilliant and resourceful, in order to endlessly "talk out of turn" -- and furthermore whenever the little pupil felt the impulse to do so -- my "cuz" prepared several sheets of yellow lined paper containing the repetitive "sentence" in advance. That youngster had the penalty for free self-expression covered! I remember with great fondness super-star Mary Martin portraying Peter Pan as she soared up, down and across the Broadway stage singing, "I won't grow up….I don't wanna go to school!" Even though I still find it disturbing that an actress provided the quintessential embodiment of the quirkiest juvenile delinquent male in all of literature, I 'll never forget her or that tune's impact and influence upon me. British comedian Ricky Gervais extolled the potential instructiveness of this playground called Life which he described recently in "Huffington Post":
"Scientific studies of creativity have basically concluded that it can't be taught, as it is a 'facility' rather than a learned skill. Putting it very crudely, creativity is the ability to PLAY. And to be able to turn that facility on and off when necessary. This makes perfect sense to me. Everything I've ever written, created or discovered artistically has come out of PLAYING. You have to let yourself go to be creative. Children possess this quality but then seem to lose it as they are told, 'It's not the done thing.' Pablo Picasso summed it up well: 'Every child is an artist. The problem is how to remain an artist upon growing up.' The answer is simple. Never grow up. I don't mean don't become an adult with responsibility and the weight of the world on your shoulders. I simply mean...give yourself enough time to play. Play the fool. Goad. Shock. Laugh. Trip over something that isn't there. Try something. And never be afraid to fail. That failure is useful, too. It's just another building block."
thanks for the neat feedback!
Drex Morton: "Thanks for reminding me, Susie, that this past weekend when the tykes took over the children's message with their perspective on fireworks, it was sublime, particularly when my four year old theologian, Marin, said she liked the 'sprinklers' best... Thanks for taking us homeward once again. And tell Roy & Co. For me to 'break a leg.'"
Shannon Wright: "Thanks for the tag, Roy! Susie, I love reading your articles. So witty and insightful."
Neil Simon: "This is all GREAT for HER! What a success story!!!"
Shannon Basner: "If we could only hold onto that sense of creativity and sense of freedom..... it would last a lifetime and we could do much more good on this earth. Thanks, Roy and Susie!"
M. Clark: "Fabulous pictures!"
Carole Craft: "Roy, Good luck tonight! I will be thinking about you as always. I read Susie’s latest and enjoyed it. How she remembers so much about the past, I will never know! Love, Carole"
Lucy Langohr Grant: "A wonderful column and full of the wonderful play that continues to make your mother an artist with first rank creativity!"
Kelly Huddleston: "Lovely article!"
Carrie Tomasko: "Brilliant! I would love to meet your mom someday, maybe I’ll make it to her reading. Thanks for sharing with me. The quote especially, it struck a chord with me. Thanks again! Hope you have a wonderful weekend and good luck with your play."
Barbara Nicholson: "As the old saying goes, 'out of the mouth of babes'! Love the old photos!!!! Break a leg with 'Little Me.'”
Mary Shaull: "Just re-reread Susie's column on playing. (Loved the photos, too. Her parents obviously adored and appreciated her; those photos prove it.) Susie points out the sad truth that children nowadays don't engage in the energetic unsupervised play that taught us the gives-and-takes of social behaviors. Worrisome. My childhood was so like Susie's, as I too grew up in a small town. Hastings, Michigan. It's still HOME to me, though unfortunately I left it in the early 60s. Speaking of children's sage comments. Our daughter Jan at about age 5, exclaimed, 'God just took our picture!' as we drove through a lightning storm in the Smoky Mountains. That helped calm our adult nerves. Glorious evenings for your performances Roy. Happy for you."
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
July 5, 2013
...I use it as motivation.
the problem with our current state legislature is that too many conservative (hardly!) republicans are in the pocket of corporate America which includes the farming INDUSTRY...and that they always vote along party lines...check their voting records...
the majority in the house and senate cares not about animals...animals do not have country club memberships or provide perks or travel opportunities to these people except by the circuitous route of brown-nosing republicans voting against their welfare and getting brownie points to see I. U. ball games and fly planes and hob-nob here and there...it is a given.
my husband and I attended humane lobby day and waited for hours for our senator to acknowledge that we were even standing in the hallway...and 5 paper messages were handed to him as we watched and he still "acted" surprised...to this moment he appears to be brown-nosing the people who can get him even farther up the chain than state senator status...vote for progressives...until the democrats are the majority, the kow-towing "conservative" opportunistic faction will never be sympathetic to animals...not good for their "careers" in politics.
the irony is that you and I are paying their salaries...time to speak up about what truly ails this state/country. ...campaign for a change in legislators so that our state is no longer the provincial embarrassment that it currently is. recruit democrats to run against these fat cats...(and I love real cats...)
now, to the core of the greed problem...pigs/hogs are feeling, intelligent, gentle living beings...and they are discussed in terms of "pork", "ham", and "bacon" and being bred and harvested and grown...evil incarnate...now they are written about as CASH COWS...now there's ANOTHER issue...except all of these "issues" are the same...one species (homo sapiens) over-producing and murdering living beings and putting human hands out for plenty of cash to grasp. totally tragic for all concerned. elanco-eli lilly are pursuing this cash trail BTW!
(as for pharmaceutical companies, no, the "benefits do not always outweigh the risks"...especially when the actual "risks" involve quickly produced, expensive "combo" drugs "tested" on helpless, throw-away victims and those "tests" occur not only during the RESEARCH - "experimental" phase but also during the PROFIT-making - "experimental" phase. Pharmaceutical drugs are RISKY business.)
I am not nor have I ever been a fan of "Corporate America"; why should some folks enjoy country club memberships and all the perks of big cash stashes while the rest of us are being poisoned by their "products"?
a greased pig wrestling contest here in about a week...so diseases can be transferred to the people who are planning this? hmmmmm. swine flu could happen...I cannot believe how provincial and embarrassing and cruel this activity is...wishing god would visit the planners in a dream and advise them to stop because this is the 21st century...
a rodeo held in this small town last summer for 4-H attendees...a calf was injured and dragged off to be put into a truck and children were so dismayed...such a bad idea. no rodeo this year...hoping the greased pig wrestling will be called off. how insensitive and cruel...for "entertainment"?
...and then we are regaled with lots of photographs in case folks are too civil and horrified to attend...and the people look barbaric and gleeful at the same time. How can this be protested I wonder? Just so sad to anyone who has a brain and a heart. Is it illegal?
"Swine Flu Cases in Indiana Increase to 12" A local headline tonight. This greased pig wrestling contest is planned for July 16th just on the edge of our community, basically in town. Recommendation: handling pigs is unwise and could lead to an outbreak of illness. Indianapolis official and friend spoke with me concerning the dangers posed not only to pigs during these wrestling events but to humans as well...she spoke of swine flu. She was so correct.
wondering why such an "event" exists...certainly now this would be even more foolish than the concept is already in the 21st century...and actually right in town for all intents and purposes. why risk an outbreak? maybe the health of humans resonates if not the humane treatment of animals? after all, empathy seems never to factor in.
especially in a Christian community with a church on every corner back in the days when Sunday School and Bible School were a vital part of any kid's summer childhood -- I do not recall such an event years ago...wondering who originated it and why?
BTW, indiana gov. pence could not even manage to give our regiment the time of day during our humane lobby day...he wishes to be president one day...animals do not matter to the powers that be in my home state. that must change. we are barking up the wrong tree. we are laughed at as tree-huggers...I know this for a fact. tired of mincing words. time for a change in what is so loosely referred to as leadership...we have no leaders...we have a bunch of toadies interested in political "careers"!
even goof-balls are pursuing the greener grass on the other side of the fence...weary of them all. ayn rand... whom the republicans claim to have read but have not? well, she was right...people should wear the dollar sign on necklaces and in their lapels...that is THE OBJECT OF WORSHIP...and IF the word "god" needs to be bandied about, in most instances HE is being used to kiss the RIGHT butts...I see that on FB all the time. which church to network at in order to feather the nests? so flagrant it's embarrassing. as a matter of fact, in small town America, the pole barn churches are the country clubs for the climbing masses.
I admire those who face the truth and make this a better world...depression is actually a super attribute. I don't take happy pills for it...I use it as motivation.
_________________
postscript
and if we stop the over-reproduction and artificial insemination of farm animals, there will be enough grain and wheat remaining (and not imported by us to perpetuate our pork and beef industries) in the third world countries to feed the sweet children there...we are causing children to starve with our voracious fast-food desires and our gourmet affectations. stop eating beef and pork and chicken...and fish... and stop consuming dairy products NOW...for the animals...for your health...FOR THE STARVING CHILDREN (in other lands) whom we ourselves are starving literally to death.
clashes among humans? animals are victimized by such petulance time and again. utterly ridiculous! of all the -isms, species-ism is the most volatile to find common ground for...I do not believe we can be anything but determined though...both the apathy and the ignorant hatefulness block what we wish to accomplish for the animal kingdom...half-way goes nowhere...just a sigh of relief that we have veered on to some other topic which sometimes I wish to do...but THEY PULL ME BACK IN...it is a roller coaster ride that will become smooth one day...but persistence and an iron will are crucial. I cannot be moved on that score. I do realize it is a chess game...too bad because lives get lost due to human vanity and pride and absolute stupidity and game-playing....speaking of religious mindsets! ;) I truly believe that animals are politicized in the current philosophical climate...as in only "liberals" hug trees and stand up for animal "rights"....and conservatives love teaching their multi-babies to hunt and to eat moose soup and the only rights available are for tea partiers. sorry, but it is the idiotic truth. and it needs to be told. I voted for Reagan...so I am free of bias!
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
the majority in the house and senate cares not about animals...animals do not have country club memberships or provide perks or travel opportunities to these people except by the circuitous route of brown-nosing republicans voting against their welfare and getting brownie points to see I. U. ball games and fly planes and hob-nob here and there...it is a given.
my husband and I attended humane lobby day and waited for hours for our senator to acknowledge that we were even standing in the hallway...and 5 paper messages were handed to him as we watched and he still "acted" surprised...to this moment he appears to be brown-nosing the people who can get him even farther up the chain than state senator status...vote for progressives...until the democrats are the majority, the kow-towing "conservative" opportunistic faction will never be sympathetic to animals...not good for their "careers" in politics.
the irony is that you and I are paying their salaries...time to speak up about what truly ails this state/country. ...campaign for a change in legislators so that our state is no longer the provincial embarrassment that it currently is. recruit democrats to run against these fat cats...(and I love real cats...)
now, to the core of the greed problem...pigs/hogs are feeling, intelligent, gentle living beings...and they are discussed in terms of "pork", "ham", and "bacon" and being bred and harvested and grown...evil incarnate...now they are written about as CASH COWS...now there's ANOTHER issue...except all of these "issues" are the same...one species (homo sapiens) over-producing and murdering living beings and putting human hands out for plenty of cash to grasp. totally tragic for all concerned. elanco-eli lilly are pursuing this cash trail BTW!
(as for pharmaceutical companies, no, the "benefits do not always outweigh the risks"...especially when the actual "risks" involve quickly produced, expensive "combo" drugs "tested" on helpless, throw-away victims and those "tests" occur not only during the RESEARCH - "experimental" phase but also during the PROFIT-making - "experimental" phase. Pharmaceutical drugs are RISKY business.)
I am not nor have I ever been a fan of "Corporate America"; why should some folks enjoy country club memberships and all the perks of big cash stashes while the rest of us are being poisoned by their "products"?
a greased pig wrestling contest here in about a week...so diseases can be transferred to the people who are planning this? hmmmmm. swine flu could happen...I cannot believe how provincial and embarrassing and cruel this activity is...wishing god would visit the planners in a dream and advise them to stop because this is the 21st century...
a rodeo held in this small town last summer for 4-H attendees...a calf was injured and dragged off to be put into a truck and children were so dismayed...such a bad idea. no rodeo this year...hoping the greased pig wrestling will be called off. how insensitive and cruel...for "entertainment"?
...and then we are regaled with lots of photographs in case folks are too civil and horrified to attend...and the people look barbaric and gleeful at the same time. How can this be protested I wonder? Just so sad to anyone who has a brain and a heart. Is it illegal?
"Swine Flu Cases in Indiana Increase to 12" A local headline tonight. This greased pig wrestling contest is planned for July 16th just on the edge of our community, basically in town. Recommendation: handling pigs is unwise and could lead to an outbreak of illness. Indianapolis official and friend spoke with me concerning the dangers posed not only to pigs during these wrestling events but to humans as well...she spoke of swine flu. She was so correct.
wondering why such an "event" exists...certainly now this would be even more foolish than the concept is already in the 21st century...and actually right in town for all intents and purposes. why risk an outbreak? maybe the health of humans resonates if not the humane treatment of animals? after all, empathy seems never to factor in.
especially in a Christian community with a church on every corner back in the days when Sunday School and Bible School were a vital part of any kid's summer childhood -- I do not recall such an event years ago...wondering who originated it and why?
BTW, indiana gov. pence could not even manage to give our regiment the time of day during our humane lobby day...he wishes to be president one day...animals do not matter to the powers that be in my home state. that must change. we are barking up the wrong tree. we are laughed at as tree-huggers...I know this for a fact. tired of mincing words. time for a change in what is so loosely referred to as leadership...we have no leaders...we have a bunch of toadies interested in political "careers"!
even goof-balls are pursuing the greener grass on the other side of the fence...weary of them all. ayn rand... whom the republicans claim to have read but have not? well, she was right...people should wear the dollar sign on necklaces and in their lapels...that is THE OBJECT OF WORSHIP...and IF the word "god" needs to be bandied about, in most instances HE is being used to kiss the RIGHT butts...I see that on FB all the time. which church to network at in order to feather the nests? so flagrant it's embarrassing. as a matter of fact, in small town America, the pole barn churches are the country clubs for the climbing masses.
I admire those who face the truth and make this a better world...depression is actually a super attribute. I don't take happy pills for it...I use it as motivation.
_________________
postscript
"Love animals: God has given them the rudiments of thought and joy untroubled. Do not trouble their joy, don't harass them, don't deprive them of their happiness, don't work against God's intent. Man, do not pride yourself on superiority to... animals; they are without sin, and you, with your greatness, defile the earth by your appearance on it, and leave the traces of your foulness after you--alas, it is true of almost every one of us!" - Fyodor Dostoyevsky (novelist)
and if we stop the over-reproduction and artificial insemination of farm animals, there will be enough grain and wheat remaining (and not imported by us to perpetuate our pork and beef industries) in the third world countries to feed the sweet children there...we are causing children to starve with our voracious fast-food desires and our gourmet affectations. stop eating beef and pork and chicken...and fish... and stop consuming dairy products NOW...for the animals...for your health...FOR THE STARVING CHILDREN (in other lands) whom we ourselves are starving literally to death.
clashes among humans? animals are victimized by such petulance time and again. utterly ridiculous! of all the -isms, species-ism is the most volatile to find common ground for...I do not believe we can be anything but determined though...both the apathy and the ignorant hatefulness block what we wish to accomplish for the animal kingdom...half-way goes nowhere...just a sigh of relief that we have veered on to some other topic which sometimes I wish to do...but THEY PULL ME BACK IN...it is a roller coaster ride that will become smooth one day...but persistence and an iron will are crucial. I cannot be moved on that score. I do realize it is a chess game...too bad because lives get lost due to human vanity and pride and absolute stupidity and game-playing....speaking of religious mindsets! ;) I truly believe that animals are politicized in the current philosophical climate...as in only "liberals" hug trees and stand up for animal "rights"....and conservatives love teaching their multi-babies to hunt and to eat moose soup and the only rights available are for tea partiers. sorry, but it is the idiotic truth. and it needs to be told. I voted for Reagan...so I am free of bias!
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
July 1, 2013
Word of warning to pet owners: Trifexis
i offer this info just as a service to my fellow animal lovers. came across this page in my exploring on facebook last night about the medication trifexis - again, not making any claims necessarily but reporting this news. Please click here to check out the group "Trifexis Kills Dogs."
Here is a description from the group:
i will say this...just called the vet's office, recommending they look into trifexis and notify the FDA...read that message on facebook a zillion times...to get vets to report this development to the FDA. this is a very big deal...like when the pet food was recalled several times in the past. wondering why SENTINEL was out of production...used that for years with no problem...next time I see that splashy ad for trifexis to be given to the little beagle in the transparent tube...(seen it?), I am going to throw my shoe through the television set...I have wondered WHY an ad for heartworm is on tv...very odd. VERY odd.
started the pills in april of 2012...Zelda suddenly could barely walk on a july day...and the next day was euthanized...heartbeat fine, color fine...but barely able to stand...old age? so the recommendation was PTS...then buckeye in February did the same thing...the only indication of anything prior to that was in their case weight LOSS...and loss of appetite with bucky...then diarrhea...she was 10...Zelda was 13 plus...then in april, billy bob, who had survived heartworm and had been a shelter dog...we loved him for 8 years. he did the same exact thing as the girls...we brought him home to see if he rebounded after visiting the vet...he died within two days at home...I feel so stupid. as much as I am on the computer, why didn't I google this stuff a year ago?
our animal friends are the greatest teachers in the world...in 1976, my first shelter pet died of heartworm right on the cusp of the discovery of that disease...and now this after all of these years from a heartworm preventative? not too certain about science on this day...and all of the experimental animals that die so that we are sold pricey drugs that often seem far worse than what nature has in mind for all of us! there better had better be a heaven!
we are just devastated...
Phoenix Foxx: "Thanks, Roy - every time we spread the word, other dogs' lives will be saved. Bravo!"
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
Here is a description from the group:
We had a sweet little 6 year old mixed breed dog named Peaches. Peaches was very healthy until she took the heartworm drug Trifexis. Suddenly she became very anemic, her blood was only at 10 percent. Over the next month, all her organs started failing and she had internal bleeding. Peaches died on Monday, July 30, 2012. Let's get together and stop the makers of this nightmare from hurting everyone's pets! This drug is known as Panoramis outside the US.
i will say this...just called the vet's office, recommending they look into trifexis and notify the FDA...read that message on facebook a zillion times...to get vets to report this development to the FDA. this is a very big deal...like when the pet food was recalled several times in the past. wondering why SENTINEL was out of production...used that for years with no problem...next time I see that splashy ad for trifexis to be given to the little beagle in the transparent tube...(seen it?), I am going to throw my shoe through the television set...I have wondered WHY an ad for heartworm is on tv...very odd. VERY odd.
started the pills in april of 2012...Zelda suddenly could barely walk on a july day...and the next day was euthanized...heartbeat fine, color fine...but barely able to stand...old age? so the recommendation was PTS...then buckeye in February did the same thing...the only indication of anything prior to that was in their case weight LOSS...and loss of appetite with bucky...then diarrhea...she was 10...Zelda was 13 plus...then in april, billy bob, who had survived heartworm and had been a shelter dog...we loved him for 8 years. he did the same exact thing as the girls...we brought him home to see if he rebounded after visiting the vet...he died within two days at home...I feel so stupid. as much as I am on the computer, why didn't I google this stuff a year ago?
our animal friends are the greatest teachers in the world...in 1976, my first shelter pet died of heartworm right on the cusp of the discovery of that disease...and now this after all of these years from a heartworm preventative? not too certain about science on this day...and all of the experimental animals that die so that we are sold pricey drugs that often seem far worse than what nature has in mind for all of us! there better had better be a heaven!
we are just devastated...
Here are some additional resources:
YouTube here...
Video here...
Q&A here...
Max video here...
Phoenix Foxx: "Thanks, Roy - every time we spread the word, other dogs' lives will be saved. Bravo!"
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
June 26, 2013
Latest Old Type Writer: A Love Story...starring Jack and Zelda
In my latest "Old Type Writer" column for Jennifer Zartman Romano's popular "Talk of the Town" newsblog, I write about a beloved pair of rescues, the canine couple Jack and Zelda.
Unfortunately, Zelda passed away recently, and this piece is a tribute to the kindness and affection these pooches brought each other and to our family. Here's a quote:
"Whenever rain falls upon our roof, or thunder rumbles, lonely Jack paces the length of the back porch, quietly whines, paws at the door alerting us that Zelda may still be outside in the dark…that we forgot to bring her inside to sleep alongside her companion of so many years, her playmate, her best friend. I pat his head and offer him a soft blanket and a pillow and speak to him with assurance that Zelda sent me to spend some time with him and to make sure he is comfortable. Her name on my lips calms him. Now, how about that?"
You can read the rest by clicking here...
_______________
thanks for this feedback!
Laurie LaRue Bills: "Oh my Goodness..... Grab a tissue, Dear Friends.... Hugs again to Susie, Don and Roy!"
Tammy Wilson: "Love never ends."
Debbie Giansanti: "Holy crap, crying at 7 am. But if every tear I shed get Logan's Law passed then they are worth it."
J. Rock Short: "wow - I really like this a lot!"
Sherry Cloud McCarver: "made me cry. i love animals ... all of mine i spoil dearly ... thanks!"
Ingrid Japp-Du Preez: "Tears! I read this to Glenn. THANK YOU Susie. xx :)"
Mary Shaull: "There are lots of people our there who share your feelings about animals. BUT ---- you express it amazingly the most heartfelt and dynamic."
Drex Morton: "Susie, your paragraph and subsequent reflection regarding your consolation of Jack may be one of the finest examples of evocative writing I've read in recent memory. Thank you."
Pat Repka: "Great read! ♥"
Shannon Allen: "Thanks so much, Susie! xoxo"
Emma Schumann: "Thank you...shared!"
M. Clark: "Oh, that made me tear up! ... A beautiful tribute .. she's gifted."
Yvonne Biedermann-Ridder: "I love it ♥"
Ruy Lara: "Such a beautiful story."
Mona McBrayer Benson: "Such a lovely tribute to a beloved pet."
Gina Robertson: "wonderful read."
Barbara Nicholson: "Love, love, love this article!!! I truly don’t know how we as humans could exist without pets from our past to our present!"
Sue McCollam: "Having shed tears after reading about Jack and Zelda, it brings to mind my experience. We had a beautiful Golden Retriever, Max. Got him at 7 weeks old and he was indeed a bundle of joy and wonderment at how much a dog is more like family than almost family. Max turned about 11 years old and we got another Golden, Sam. The two had great times together, and then Max became quite ill and we had to put him down. Sam was lost, so we went through a Golden Retriever Rescue and got Daisy. She and Sam are inseparable. Helping animals in need is definitely something I would do over and over again. Our Goldens are totally awesome!"
incredible piece on yahoo today about this very topic - click here to read about how animals grieve...
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
Unfortunately, Zelda passed away recently, and this piece is a tribute to the kindness and affection these pooches brought each other and to our family. Here's a quote:
"Whenever rain falls upon our roof, or thunder rumbles, lonely Jack paces the length of the back porch, quietly whines, paws at the door alerting us that Zelda may still be outside in the dark…that we forgot to bring her inside to sleep alongside her companion of so many years, her playmate, her best friend. I pat his head and offer him a soft blanket and a pillow and speak to him with assurance that Zelda sent me to spend some time with him and to make sure he is comfortable. Her name on my lips calms him. Now, how about that?"
You can read the rest by clicking here...
_______________
thanks for this feedback!
Laurie LaRue Bills: "Oh my Goodness..... Grab a tissue, Dear Friends.... Hugs again to Susie, Don and Roy!"
Tammy Wilson: "Love never ends."
Debbie Giansanti: "Holy crap, crying at 7 am. But if every tear I shed get Logan's Law passed then they are worth it."
J. Rock Short: "wow - I really like this a lot!"
Sherry Cloud McCarver: "made me cry. i love animals ... all of mine i spoil dearly ... thanks!"
Ingrid Japp-Du Preez: "Tears! I read this to Glenn. THANK YOU Susie. xx :)"
Mary Shaull: "There are lots of people our there who share your feelings about animals. BUT ---- you express it amazingly the most heartfelt and dynamic."
Drex Morton: "Susie, your paragraph and subsequent reflection regarding your consolation of Jack may be one of the finest examples of evocative writing I've read in recent memory. Thank you."
Pat Repka: "Great read! ♥"
Shannon Allen: "Thanks so much, Susie! xoxo"
Emma Schumann: "Thank you...shared!"
M. Clark: "Oh, that made me tear up! ... A beautiful tribute .. she's gifted."
Yvonne Biedermann-Ridder: "I love it ♥"
Ruy Lara: "Such a beautiful story."
Mona McBrayer Benson: "Such a lovely tribute to a beloved pet."
Gina Robertson: "wonderful read."
Barbara Nicholson: "Love, love, love this article!!! I truly don’t know how we as humans could exist without pets from our past to our present!"
Sue McCollam: "Having shed tears after reading about Jack and Zelda, it brings to mind my experience. We had a beautiful Golden Retriever, Max. Got him at 7 weeks old and he was indeed a bundle of joy and wonderment at how much a dog is more like family than almost family. Max turned about 11 years old and we got another Golden, Sam. The two had great times together, and then Max became quite ill and we had to put him down. Sam was lost, so we went through a Golden Retriever Rescue and got Daisy. She and Sam are inseparable. Helping animals in need is definitely something I would do over and over again. Our Goldens are totally awesome!"
incredible piece on yahoo today about this very topic - click here to read about how animals grieve...
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
June 22, 2013
we are angels with stomach aches who cry a lot
I am upset allllll of the time...but it is the right kind of turmoil we feel. we are angels with stomach aches who cry a lot, but we are doing what needs to be done.
I could just put a hex on all of the bad people if I was so equipped. too many monsters in this world. I detest monsters...human beings suck way too often! and if they are not mean sons of bitches, they are apathetic which is just as evil in my book!
we understand nightmarish times...can completely identify...I die inside when sadness happens to those about whom I care...I do not pray...I think really hard about stuff and try to figure out solutions...I surmise if there are gods, they appreciate us trying to figure out how to get through life on our own.
what would have really helped me during dark times would have been for other human beings to have given a damn...which has never happened for us...that is why I love animals...they DO give a damn because they are constantly fearful in this crazy life with humans calling the "shots." animals empathize unlike any person I ever met except for friends like edward levine and roy and don and a handful of others ... usually never relatives ... not usually, actually, not ever.
as an aside, I believe some journalists cater to the conservative element in our country and they seldom support efforts for animals...believe me, I know. for eight plus years, I have had a devil of a time when I have had my animal philosophy published, someone republican or red-necky marches forth to retort...even getting awards from these rags... I feel like said opposition is contrived by some anti-animal groups out there in space.
so stand up for yourself and what you have to say...and exclaim that you are willing to take the heat IF someone responds negatively to your advocacy.
when we speak up, we win over more hearts than you might ever guess...people are just shy about these issues ... that reticence is tragic! ...human beings who stand in the way of animal welfare or social progress are lame and naughty and self-involved and trying to impress the wrong crowd.
I have nearly gotten sick over animal advocacy and human rights, but what a way to go. persist...hold your ground.
I hope my candidness helps some way...I am not a Mel Gibson fan (at all!!!) but that film title "braveheart" sums it up...true and rugged love works...one for another...and it is circular...and it works! I know this...and I have died in my heart many many times...but that means I have a heart so I try not to worry that way too often I feel like I am being eaten up alive.
_________________
thanks to Pamela Simmons and the City of Ann Arbor for inviting me to speak on September 15 as part of their "Arts and Culture Series" - find out more here...
wonderful feedback! thank you!
from Mary Shaull: "Oh Susie, You are so beautiful! You tug at my heartstrings in an overwhelming way. God bless you and your advocacies. You DO make a huge difference....You are beautiful people."
from Drex Morton: "Maybe your analysis explains why many of us have guts that ache..."
from Sandy Laycock: "Thank you for sharing this. I felt her love and passion. It is so true that we need to speak and stand up for what we know is true. I have started speaking more and have been surprised at the number of people that thank me for my posts. I know I am not pleasing everyone but I do not care. I love my vegan life and I want more people to know the joy of loving all life."
_________________
Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
I could just put a hex on all of the bad people if I was so equipped. too many monsters in this world. I detest monsters...human beings suck way too often! and if they are not mean sons of bitches, they are apathetic which is just as evil in my book!
we understand nightmarish times...can completely identify...I die inside when sadness happens to those about whom I care...I do not pray...I think really hard about stuff and try to figure out solutions...I surmise if there are gods, they appreciate us trying to figure out how to get through life on our own.
what would have really helped me during dark times would have been for other human beings to have given a damn...which has never happened for us...that is why I love animals...they DO give a damn because they are constantly fearful in this crazy life with humans calling the "shots." animals empathize unlike any person I ever met except for friends like edward levine and roy and don and a handful of others ... usually never relatives ... not usually, actually, not ever.
as an aside, I believe some journalists cater to the conservative element in our country and they seldom support efforts for animals...believe me, I know. for eight plus years, I have had a devil of a time when I have had my animal philosophy published, someone republican or red-necky marches forth to retort...even getting awards from these rags... I feel like said opposition is contrived by some anti-animal groups out there in space.
so stand up for yourself and what you have to say...and exclaim that you are willing to take the heat IF someone responds negatively to your advocacy.
when we speak up, we win over more hearts than you might ever guess...people are just shy about these issues ... that reticence is tragic! ...human beings who stand in the way of animal welfare or social progress are lame and naughty and self-involved and trying to impress the wrong crowd.
I have nearly gotten sick over animal advocacy and human rights, but what a way to go. persist...hold your ground.
I hope my candidness helps some way...I am not a Mel Gibson fan (at all!!!) but that film title "braveheart" sums it up...true and rugged love works...one for another...and it is circular...and it works! I know this...and I have died in my heart many many times...but that means I have a heart so I try not to worry that way too often I feel like I am being eaten up alive.
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thanks to Pamela Simmons and the City of Ann Arbor for inviting me to speak on September 15 as part of their "Arts and Culture Series" - find out more here...
wonderful feedback! thank you!
from Mary Shaull: "Oh Susie, You are so beautiful! You tug at my heartstrings in an overwhelming way. God bless you and your advocacies. You DO make a huge difference....You are beautiful people."
from Drex Morton: "Maybe your analysis explains why many of us have guts that ache..."
from Sandy Laycock: "Thank you for sharing this. I felt her love and passion. It is so true that we need to speak and stand up for what we know is true. I have started speaking more and have been surprised at the number of people that thank me for my posts. I know I am not pleasing everyone but I do not care. I love my vegan life and I want more people to know the joy of loving all life."
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Read about movies and nostalgia, animal issues and sociopolitical concerns all discussed in my book Secrets of an Old Typewriter - print and ebook versions available (click the title to order from publisher Open Books' website). Also available in both formats at Amazon.com, or download from iTunes
Meet other like-minded souls at my facebook fan page
Visit my author website at www.susieduncansexton.com
Join a great group of animal advocates Squawk Back: Helping animals when others can't ... Or won't
Secrets of an Old Typewriter: Stories from a Smart and Sassy Small Town Girl
