Watered Garden

FLUFFERBUTT! dAG NAB IT, Flutterbutt sounds like a flatulation problem! WG

My 14-year-old labrador retriever, Sophie, is failing. She has really bad arthritis, which we can medicate with moderate success, but what bothers me even more is that toward the evening, she seems to get a little weird, lying and barking ferociously at nothing. She will do this for a while, then about 9-10 PM calm down and sleep through the night. The other evening, she actually snapped at my grandson, pinching his cheek. He had been pushing on her sore back, though, and she didn't break the skin, but it bothers me. He's been told not to do that to her, but he forgets. She is also more aggressive toward our other dog, 16-year-old Maxx, who is blind and deaf, than she used to be, but not always. People who work in nursing homes are familiar with sundowner syndrome, in which the elderly became agitated and combative or fearful in the evening hours when the sun goes down. I'm wondering if anyone has ever noticed similar behavior in an elderly pet. WG

We don't even know for sure what happened to the little nipper. I don't remember seeing it after we got married in 1977. I'll have to ask my husband if he remembers anything about it. He will undoubtedly think it's a weird question. As I recall it had a puppy cut, little ringlets all over. It was as cute as could be but looked out of place. And it's Flufferbutt not flutterbut. A term I learned from 2Life a long time ago in a galaxy far, far away. Incidentally, my husband once had the privilege of having a WOW burger stolen right out of his hand by The First Dog of The Way International. This heinous crime was witnessed by the dog's owner, who ordered up a freebee for my hungry and shocked future spouse. WG

Well, lessee, you know time kinda blurs together for us retirees, but I think my husband got involved in 1971 or so. I myself took PFAL in 1973, and we both would've been around HQ in the early 1970s, which is the time frame when I recall seeing the little flufferbutt. We met in FL of Ohio in 1975 and I recall seeing it with him during that time frame, which is when he related to me DocVic's opinion of the pup. So early to mid 1970's. I was just surprised to see it, because drooling Tick was always in evidence, especially after the ROA moved to HQ and thus the food tent made grazing and begging for scraps more available. I think that was in 1976???? I remember a friend referring to the hovering, drooling hound as "First Dog of The Way International." Don't recall the poodle ever begging in the meal tent ever.l WG

Waysider, The Rome City adventure was during PFAL 77, because the WC were at that event and those of us who didn't go to it were conscripted to weed the never-ending Rome City gardens. Once again, we were fed inedible food (that I was informed was "Extremely Healthful and Highly Nourishing", to which I replied, "Still tastes like crap.") Your 15th bowl of familia was better than whatever that was. The garden was awful compared to ours. The potato bugs looked like cherry tomatoes. Hard narrow cot, small amounts of lousy foods, and the mother of all migraines - again. Hot sun, worked like a horse, no aspirin. It's a miracle I made it through that second year. The best thing about it was FL Night when my future husband would show up for that event and we'd sit together. I don't think I went to Karrie's wedding. However, her twins are real good friends of my son. They are both college grads and have good jobs. Nice young men. Oh, and pull the chard up with the weeds - it's the devil's dinner! :unsure: WG

For the record.... Mrs. Wierwille did indeed have a little miniature poodle named Cocoa - but it was white, so maybe it was Coco, like Coco Chanel. And my husband, a truly truthful man, told me that once while at summer camp as a youth, he heard Dr. Wierwille tell someone, "That ****dog is a worthless piece of c***." Whether it follows that he initiated the poor creature's demise, I do not know, but I actually saw the little critter once or twice with my own eyes while at HQ. It was indeed a little white fluffball. Some dogs exist to bestow love upon their humans, not hurt, herd, or guard. I think Coco was one of those dogs. I sure hope he/she/it died of old age. WG

What were you thinking? After that experience, probably not "Lucky ME!" There was also a time the second year when we had to go serve as gofers, cleaners and generalized slavery for some "do" in Muncie, Indiana on a college campus. We went over on a Friday night after work and slaved away, I forget at what, and were treated like dirt by R**k P**yar* and fed one small hamburger and some salad or chips for supper about 9:00. We slept on cots in a third floor room in a building on campus that had been a mansion. One bathroom for 30 or so people. I remember the lim coordinator, J** M*lne, was livid, so we all chipped in money and Pe*** J** and J*** Gil**** went out into the wilds of Indiana to find a pizza joint that was open, bringing back pizza and pop for all. If not, we would have been starved to death in our little narrow cots the next morning. The next day I remember so well because I had a screaming beyotch of a migraine and the future MOGFODAT saw me and told me to get some more fellowlaborers and sweep the steps leading up to the auditorium. I suggested maybe some WC could do it and received the displeasure of several folks for that remark. I said "I have a migraine and I'm lying down someplace." Of course no one had or offered to find for me any medicine - obviously I wasn't believing God for perfect health that day and deserved every bit of pain. But at least through the haze of suffering I have the sweet memory of having smarted off to the future Man Of God For This Day and For This Time And For This Hour Unto The Entire World. WG

As I recall, the King's reasoning (or un-reasoning) was that it was a FAMILY fellowship so all the family should be there. There was also some talk that the children should learn from the Bible just as adults do, no watered-down word for them. Now my grandson watches Veggie Tales and learns a lot about the Bible, just not the thee's, thou's and thy's. It was incredibly hard on kids. I remember we had this TC when my son was about 12 and had to get up early to go to school the next morning, and this guy would just go on and on and on. One evening, about 9:15, after droning on for nearly two hours, this guy sounds like he's winding it up, then says "Oh, there's one more verse I want to share with you!" My son threw his head back in his chair and sighed the loudest sigh I've ever heard. I had to stifle myself, because everyone else in the room felt the same way. Surprisingly, none of us got screamed at for that one. Back in the day, the 70's and early 80's when my husband and I had a fellowship, we always made a point of never going much past an hour during the week, especially if there were little kiddies in our fellowship. But that was before the exceeding great and the glorious wonders of the present truth were revealed unto the reverend Mr. Martindale. I guess one of those wonders was how to torture children with da present fruff, huh? WG

Waysider, Gee whiz, that was right after I got married. Look what I missed out on!!! WG

I hear ya, Belle. There were several custody battles between divorced parents over who got the kids, and should the involved parent, if not the custodial parent, be allowed to influence the children regarding the custodial but not involved parent. I think more than one spot has posted about that sort of thing, even including TWI trying to influence children against their parents. Such wicked behavior! WG

LCM abolished childrens' fellowships during twig (home fellowships to you young'ns) because the meetings were supposed to be for the whole family. However, to my observation, no changes were made to adjust for the fact that you now had children from birth to teens in the fellowship with the adults. Fellowships were still in the same format and some were interminably long and boring. My first encounter with this was a fellowship in NC where the WC fellowship coordinator's toddler took advantage of prayer and manifestations to march up and down the coffee table, or kick the daylights out of the other kids, and generally provide as much distraction as possible. His parents thought this was fine. Second HFC in NC had entirely different ideas and three kids who were older, about 9-12 as I recall. The children were to sit quietly, participate in everything, including the songs, and not twitch. Mine had ADHD so that was a problem. Also, them being Southerners, the children were all required to address adults as Miss First Name or Mr. First Name. Now that reminded me of Gone With the Wind, where the unforgettable Prissy exclaims "Lawdy, Miss Scarlett, I don't know nuthin' about birthin' babies!" so I taught my son Mrs, Miss, Mr. Last Name, and requested children address me the same way. Of course we all especially myself got soundly reproved. On to the early 90's and the upper left corner of America: More of the same, fellowship from 7=9:30, children sit in, listen silently and unmoving. Eyes on Bible or face of teacher. Mouth shut except to sing. We were expected to vigously discipline our son for any slight infraction. We were forbidden to put him back on Ritalin (we'd had to take him off it in the FWC) because, as the perfect little Beyotch TC told me: "There is no such thing as ADHD. You need to discipiline your son vigorously every time he disobeys." One of the reasons the poor guy is so messed up today is that he was always falling far short of the mark of excellence set by these people, who had no problem telling him themselves what a loser he was in spite of our best efforts at reassurance to the contrary. My deepest regret for him is allowing this to go on for as long as it did, instead of calling a screaming halt to it years before we went in the FWC. WG

Hmmm....sounds like The Law of Believing reborn....scary! WG

Our last few weeks in the FC 20 we were on a short hallway with a kitchen at one end. There were about 6-8 rooms, including a room for 4 boys, one of which was ours. There was 1 unisex bathroom on this hall. It contained 2 toilets, 2 sinks, and 1 bath/shower stall with that opaque glass around it in addition to a shower door. So it was not transparent but could be somewhat seen through. The first time I cringingly took a shower there (we were strictly forbidden from sneaking down to the main hall and using our own gender's larger bathroom), some 19th FWC guy I had known in Charlotte came in, sat down in a stall and spent about 5 minutes talking to me! I was trapped! There was no way I was grabbing for my towel and robe with him in the room. My son, almost 12 and in the throes of puberty, LOVED it. He would spend hours in the bathroom, to my amazement as he'd never been too interested in cleanliness, until an embarrassed 19th WC woman told me she thought he was spying on her. What in he11 were they thinking? I can't believe I went along with any of that crap for a single minute. I should have marched down to WC's office and told him NO WAY am I or my son going in there again. I should have said exactly what I thought - that it was provocative, voyeuristic, and an open door for all kinds of trouble. Not what I wanted my troubled child to see or be tempted by. Good grief! WG

Mr. Ham...Michael's Smart Maxwell, a 16-year-old red and white cocker spaniel, resents your implication - he is way smarter than the last 3 leadership we had, all in the left upper corner of the USA. The last BL was a vicious, obnoxious, ambitious, dishonest little LCM wannabe. He aped the Great Man's speech, mannerisms, and hatefulness. He was sarcastic and biting. He believed we should all serve him. One time his wife actually invited my husband and me over for dinner. I had to bring all the food, cook it at her house, and help her clean up. All this time her husband, The Man of God for the City of Everett Washington for That Day and for That Time and for That Hour, sat and watched a sports game on TV, utterly ignoring my husband. He was quite surprised that the meal I had cooked was so tasty. He was an utter a$$. I did realize his wife had invited us without asking permission from him first, and he was trying to gather evidence sufficient to M&A us, as we had been around a long time and were "old wineskins." But still, once someone is in my home, I would be courteous even I were the great and mighty man of God and those guests were unworthy of the privilege of my illustrious presence. I was just steaming the whole bitter evening, especially for the way D.M. shrugged off my husband as if he weren't even there. This was not the guy who wanted my son executed, but he gave us the choice of the kid or the "ministry." I think we made the right choice. WG

I remember a story my WOW sister, who was in the 4th WC, told about this gentleman when he coordinated the WC. They lived in house trailers at that time, and the first week they were there, there was a scrap of carpet or throw rug or something hanging off the roof of the thing in front of the door, such that each girl had to duck a bit to get in or out without it brushing their heads. After a few days, the residents of that trailer were called together by Rev. F. for a screamfest. Seemed their leaving the rug in place showed a great lack of spirituality and what the hell was wrong with them and he oughta dismiss the whole bunch. They were terrified and crying. Actually they were terrified for quite some time. I remember thinking when she told me, "How stupid of him. How did that teach them the Bible?" Honestly, I would have been terrified to touch the damn thing, pull it down, wash it, throw it away or anything. And their first couple of weeks there, they were probably afraid to breathe. WG

So they are really just getting an ultrasound and if the fetus, the thing, the Skeletor, is a female thing, it's aborted? That's murder in my book. And as far as certain groups being permitted more than one child, that should be a personal choice, not a govermental decree. The whole thing, from dogs to babies, just sucks. WG

I think I read not too long ago that in rural areas of China, newborn baby girls are still exposed - i.e. left out in the woods for the animals to eat. The law is one child per couple and culturally they all want that one child they are permitted to keep to be a boy. They do allow more overseas adoptions nowadays, but the abortion rate is high, and infanticide by neglect is not unknown. The Red Tide or whatever that program was called in the 1950's when Chairman Mao was alive and in charge virtually stamped out Christianity, so there's not a lot of respect for human life, or by extension, any other life that does not serve the omnipotent and omniscient State. Sad. Thank God that hasn't happened in America......yet. WG

Unfortunately, it is against the law in China to own a pet dog, due to the overpopulation of people, and sanitation and disease issues. They have warned recalcitrant pet owners many times, and made sweeping raids and killed the illegal dogs they found a few times before. The dog owners are criminals according to Chinese law, and are probably fortunate they too weren't clubbed to death. In fact, I kinda remember reading somewhere that if a citizen is caught a third time with a pet dog, that individual is in fact guilty of a capital crime. It is amazing to me that a government has such power, to break into one's home, seize one's pet and kill it. Those individuals who are American citizens and yet hate their own country should read this and reconsider their thinking patterns. Are you listening, Katie, Charles, Brian? WG

Tom, No offense taken. I was quoting the Statie who came to the accident. I've been run into by males, females, young, old, everyone and everywhere. The person responsible for the ultimate demise of the Civic was a young white male with a shaved head and an anxious expression. Oh, and our latest automotive mishap was caused by.....me! Waysider, The motto is "To heck with the diet, tonight we dine!" Bun's was arsoned to the ground in March 2002. If you look at the website for The Delaware Gazette in the bottom left hand corner you can click on a link to some of the pictures. My husband was doing his student teaching at that time and working there part time. The owner kept him on the payroll most of the summer, and he helped with cleanup. The owner was under-insured, and it took until January 2004 to get back opened up. If you are ever up that way, I suggest the 1 lb sirlion or on Friday and Saturday nights the shrimp Santorini. The Ceasar salad with grilled chicken is always a very nice choice. Oh - German or Victorian? They are both lovely and eclectic. Haven't spent much time in either area, though, basically because we lived so far away. Johnny - posting those pictures gave Alaska an unfair advantage! WG

Alas, Americans have more than anyone has ever had per capita, and find more to bytch about, probably in the same proportion. Perhaps it is because we are no longer thankful, or have nothing really important to strive for, other than the latest CD for our MP3 or whatever. Thus, when a really good immigration wave happens, e.g., the Irish, or much later the Vietnamese, we complain loudly, then they and their culture and especially their hard hard work ethic, combine to flavor, color, and better America. When I worked at the hospital in Columbus, there was a Wendy's in the ground floor. Their service and food were quite lackluster, until a little flock of young Mexican women got hired. Suddenly, food was hot, fast, and handed over with a shy smile. Or the Greek guy, came over here at age 12 with his family, who bought a historic restaurant in the town where we used to live (Waysider will know where and maybe which one). Immediately, the place was cleaner and the service was better. Then the food was better, too. He knows the value of hard work and customer service, and has become quite an asset to the entire community. I love the melting pot, I just think it needs a good stir sometimes, and not to be abused by thugs in the name of diversity. WG

Dot, I just went back and read some of the previous posts on this thread, and I am astounded at the vituperation thrown at you. I thought one of the great things about America was that as long as you don't harm anyone else, you can pretty much be who you want and live where you want and associate with people you want to associate with. I certainly would not want to live where there were gangs roaming the streets, property and sanitation were endangered, and I couldn't take my dog for a walk whenever we felt like it. In Salisbury, I would take Maxx out for a walk at 10:00 PM in the little neighborhood where we bought a very cute, slightly older home for a song. No problem. I I don't care if the gangbang boys speak English, Spanish, Somali, or Martian. Everyone has a right to peace and quiet and safety. I think some of that may even be in the Constitution, life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness? The attitude that minorities rule has plagued this country for years. If I were to decide to emigrate to France, for example, I would first be expected to learn to speak relatively flawless French, or be held in contempt by the native-born French. I would be expected to absorb and adhere to French culture. In America, however, I could insist that laws be passed that I could continue to speak my native language, and people who don't understand my language will have to learn it to convenience me. I would not have to get a job because I could expect the government to support me with food and housing on the taxpayer's dime. I then could simply steal whatever else I wanted, and the big stores like Wal-Mart would simply have to raise the prices the cover the cost of my theft. A few winters back, we had an icy morning and my husband got a snow day, so he drove me to Columbus to work. As he was driving back on a two lane road, he stopped behind a line of cars as the car at the front of the line was making a left turn. Along came four gentlemen from another country and started to pass the line of cars, realized their error and pulled back into their lane. Unfortunately, instead of pulling in behind my husband, they pulled in beside my husband, taking out the left rear quarter panel, trunk and part of the left rear bumped of our car. They did $6000 worth of damage to my Honda Civic. When the police came, they found that not one of the four gentlemen had a "green" card or a driver's license. One of them spoke a tiny bit of English. The driver had already been cited for not having a driver's license and being in a traffic accident, as well as having no auto insurance, a requirement in Ohio. Their car was totalled and their employer came in a ratty looking van to pick them up. The driver of that car received several citations, but the state highway patrolman told my husband not to bother going to court because the guy didn't show up the first time and undoubtedly wouldn't show up for court this time, either. He said there are so many similar incidents to this one that if all the offenders were to be arrested, there wouldn't be a jail in the state that could hold them all. Of course our auto insurance rates went up even though we weren't at fault. We were paying something like $1800 a year for comprehensive on two vehicles. Incidents such as this one are costing honest citizens, including those who have recently arrived in this country, millions of dollars a year. The fellows in the other car can thumb their noses at us, at law enforcement, and at America as a whole because we are so darn eager to please them, we GIVE THEM OUR RIGHTS AT THE COST OF OUR OWN. Sorry for the rant. Just part of the problem as I see it. WG

Having lived just about everywhere, I can recommend Salisbury NC, population last I knew about 30,000 more or less, one hour from Charlotte, less than one hour from Concord NC for those who like NASCAR (Charlotte Motor Speedway is actually in Concord). I can also attest that the Seattle area is quite lovely, though expensive. We could never have owned a home even in Everett, a fairly large suburb. You drive a lot if you live there. I loved Charleston, SC but haven't been back for years. The humidity in the summertime is awesome, but so are the gardens. They had a police chief who kept crime to a minimum when we lived there, but he retired a few years back. Right now, we live in the country, just south of a very small town in Ohio and 8 miles north of another, slightly larger. We are an hour from Columbus, which is swiftly becoming Crime Central, but I doubt if there is anything to offer the miscreants this far away. The winters are variable, from mild to will-this-never-end, summers are warm and August as you remember is humid in Ohio. Housing is inexpensive, relatively speaking, but not so much as Salisbury NC. Hope this helps. If I were 30 or so years younger, I might think of Alaska. These old bones don't like much cold nowadays. WG

We don't call that cocker spaniel Maxx the Wonder Dog for nuthin'! He has learned to navigate by following the walls, inside and out. Any trip to the middle of the room can net him a banged nose as he collides with furniture. He sleeps on the bed every night, to my husband's dismay, but does a great job of keeping my feet warm. Now that I'm retired, when I run errands or go shopping, I take him with me in the car. He has a little crib comforter with baby Mickey and Minnie all over it that I cover him up with so he'll keep warm. We have his leash in case he needs to go potty. He can find is way from the back seat to the front with relative ease. It's amazing how easily dogs become a part of our lives. As irritating as Maxx can be sometimes (he's easy to trip over), that sigh of comfort he makes when he plunks his head in my lap as we watch TV at night says it all. WG

I think Nico will be fine. She's still a young dog! Our blind, deaf, 16-year-old cocker spaniel wandered under a truck tire last summer while my husband was backing out of the garage and got a broke leg and dislocated ankle out of it. He was in a cast most of the summer, but is fine now. He learned to hate (a) his crate, (b) the baby gate I keep both dogs penned in the laundry room with, and © going outside for more than a few necessary minutes. He actually learned to climb the baby gate while he had his cast on, much to the vet's dismay and mine. Hence, the hated crate. But he doesn't even limp. Bless Nico's heart and yours. My guess is she's probably lying around because she's smart and knows that is what's best. WG

Yeah, it was amazing. Sometimes it seemed to me like the worse LCM screamed at some of these hapless souls, the more tenacious they were. There was also a couple in F19 that had several children - his, hers, and theirs. They got pregnant again their practicum year and caused LCM to express exceeding great rage and fury regarding their "Catholic" mentality. I don't remember if they were allowed to stay WC or not, but this all happened not too long before the Great Forehead's downfall. Sorry for the but it just popped into my mind. WG