Dogs in the car

I took a break this morning outside with a co-worker. We heard a dog barking and looked to see where it was coming from. We saw it in a car directly in front of us barking frantically with all of the windows of the car closed. Completely closed! We waited about 5 minutes and I decided to call the local police (yes, I used the non-emergency number). We waited another 10 minutes and before the cops showed up, the guy came out of the salon right next to us and got in the car and left. I still can't grasp that this man actually did this. There have been tons of psa's done by tons of different animal welfare groups regarding leaving animals in cars. You just DON'T do it!

Here are some facts from 2 articles I quickly found on www.humanesociety.org :

• on an 85 degree day, the temp in a car can increase to 102 degrees in just 10 minutes
• after 30 minutes on said day it can increase to 120 degrees
• on hot & humid days in direct sunlight, temperatures can increase 30 degrees PER MINUTE!
• on mild days, at 72 degrees the temp can increase more than 40 degrees per hour with 80% of that increase occurring within the first 30 minutes
• 110 degrees poses a danger of heatstroke in dogs
• cracked windows provide a minuscule benefit

Interestingly enough, some auto manufacturers are understanding the fact that some people are just stupid and need some type of alarm system in their vehicles for purposes such as this. General Motors has been working on a low-energy radar system since 2001 that will be able to detect motion as subtle as a baby breathing. The sensor will then trigger a unique horn alarm if the temp inside the vehicle registers at a dangerous level. The article from 2003 mentioned that GM hoped to introduce this mid-decade but I couldn't find any mention of it on GM's website. Perhaps they have turned their focus more to fuel efficiency and other forms of safety alarms.

To all of my friends, family, aquantances, and such - please do not leave your pets in your cars!

Who has been reading this?

I figured that Denise was the one reading my blog, but as her comment states below, she only just discovered it. So, who has been reading it? Please comment! I would love to know!

Seriously?

I admit that I have been on the crew of the green patrol for a few months now and have made a few simple, yet environmentally friendly, changes in our household. I have been getting better at remembering my cloth shopping bags when going to the store, have been diligent in using the mounds of plastic bags that we had under the sink for other purposes, have switched laundry and household cleaners, and have been trying to purchase less packaged foods to reduce our garbage (and wastelines!). However, this is where I absolutely, 100%, draw the line...

No, these are not cat toys, but are crocheted and/or knitted tampons! There was an article in the PG regarding a woman who has taken steps to reduce paper waste in the home. This lovely woman sews their own menstrual pads, paper towels, tissues, etc. Yes, even toilet paper!

http://http//www.post-gazette.com/pg/08197/897011-113.stm

http://http//www.eapoos.com/

Sorry, but no amount of environmental thinking is going to make me think about going this route.

Dear Fellow Chip Chewers and other crunchy things,

I am writing today to beg you to please close your mouth when eating chips or other crunchy items. It is pretty easy - all you have to do is close your lips after placing the crunchiness in your mouth and THEN start chewing. It isn't necessary to start the chewing process immediately. If it is, then you are shoving too much into your gaping hole!

Sincerely yours,
Bonnie

Fireworks Festival

On Saturday we went up to New Castle to partake in their annual Fireworks Festival. The day was beautiful and the weatherman said to enjoy the sun and lack of rain. He was wrong because it started to pour when we were trying to find our perfect sitting place from last year. It stopped so we took a walk to get some food and enjoy the festivities. When we got back to the car we got our chairs set up and started to eat. About 10 minutes after that it started to rain again. The show was to begin at 9:30.... then it got pushed back to 10.... and then pushed back again to 10:30. The downpours kept ending as quickly as they started. Thank God for umbrella's! We ended up keeping the chairs in the trunk while we stood with the umbrella and enjoyed the fireworks. I don't have any pictures to share because I forgot our camera but believe me when I say they were awesome. http://www.ncnewsonline.com/local/local_story_185093518.html

Some quick history on the "Fireworks Capital of the World". http://activerain.com/blogsview/577022/How-did-New-Castle (why re-write something that someone already took the time to do?)

Anyway, the festival is the weekend after 4th of July weekend, so if you are ever looking for some great fireworks, head on up to New Castle!

Update on Buddy

Buddy is doing much better. He ended up having a blockage caused by struvite crystals and with the help of some meds he will make a full recovery. We have noticed a steady improvement in him as he is starting to get back into trouble and seems to be eating constantly. As I am posting this, he is sleeping in his kitty bed with Abby close by. Thank you for the prayers!

A "Happy 4th of July" it was!

We headed down for Pittsburgh's fireworks on Friday night. Trying to find the best ever parking space was actually much easier than anticipated. Thanks to my eagle eyes we parked at Station Square and literally had a front row view of the magnificant display. We got there around 6:15 and encountered a lovely parking attendant who informed us of the parking charge.



We found an ATM close by (cash, cash, cash), got our parking pass, and then proceeded back to our original location.

Here is the gigantic hill that we had to climb in order to get our eagle-eye view.



Here is a picture of the folks beside us under the exit ramp for West Carson Street. They have obviously been doing this for years because they had all of the right beer, drinks, and most importantly... food! We were starving! We had every intention of finding a vendor or something, but since we were on the other side of the river that didn't happen. Some nice guy offered us a cold beer though and I took him up on that offer. :)




These kind people were also the ones that warned of us a very harsh reality that was close to us:




To the right of us and up was the entrance to the Fort Pitt tunnel.


Across the river are all of the people sitting on the grass on the North Shore. If you look behind the orange balls in the water you will see the barge that was being positioned with the fireworks on it.



And here is a video of the last 3 minutes of the fireworks display. Oh, you may want to tilt your head to the right for better viewing :)




We had a great time! This is going to become a regular tradition in the "D" household for sure.

Our poor little guy...

Buddy is in the hospital. He has a UTI and he is having a very difficult time urinating. The doctors are afraid that he is going to develop a complete blockage (he has a partial blockage now) so he is spending a few days with them. So far, everyone at the vet hospital has been very nice and has taken the time to explain everything that is going on with him.

Please do us a favor and pray for our little guy. To some he is "just a cat" but not to me or Jeremy.