WELCOME BACK, GRACIE!

WELCOME BACK, GRACIE!

 Gracie, Gracie! You are a troublemaker! You showed up two years ago to do "Just Checking", if Cheerios is good for your Daddy’s heart. What happened then? No one cared about your Daddy’s heart. The conservative people jumped on you, because your Daddy was African - American and your Mommy was white. You almost crashed the Hatred & Racist Co. web site. But, you did not do anything wrong... You did not choose what color your parents should be!? You just wanted to be loved. The smart girl that you are, you also wanted Daddy to eat healthy. But some people did not like that Mommy and daddy looked different in color. So some people started fighting on YouTube and TV, throwing bad words at each other. It was ugly. You were sitting and watching them… The company which protected you – General Mills, was the one that makes the good cereal for your Daddy’s heart. They cuddled you and saved you from those who think you should not be the way you are. They were WRONG. Because, here you are. You are just as cute as the first time we saw you. You are even at the SUPER BOWL 2014! We already know: Gracie will have a little brother and a puppy.

To be honest, Gracie, I can see you reading all the debates surrounding this commercial when you get older and wondering why people back then were so dumb. You will be laughing from ear to ear!

If someone still tries to spoil your excitement now, tell them to start reading more, not to watch TV on the couch. In a second, they can find articles with data from the US Census Bureau about the growing number of interracial marriages in USA.

Have fun at the Super Bowl, Gracie!

SUPER BOWL's PUPPY LOVE

THE SUPER BOWL’s PUPPY LOVE

 

Is it here yet? On Sunday, February 2, 2014, Americans of all ages will leave what they are doing and get together to watch the event, considered THE FOOTBALL EVENT OF THE YEAR. Everything else will come second. Work will stay behind; all your problems will stay behind. This is the time for getting together with family and friends to watch some sports; drink some beer, eat as much unhealthy as possible; scream for your team and just plain simple -- be happy, because you make 'happy' come to you.

The Super Bowl will have, as always, its commercial side and entertainment side. Companies have already spent their money for the commercials, dropping $4 million for a 30-second ad. It may be worth it; it may be not worth it. 

There is one company which never misses the Super Bowl -- Anheuser-Busch. Their Budweiser brand sticks in your head and heart with their animal commercials, like the ketchup on your hot dog. Who has not seen Budweiser’s Clydesdale beautiful horses and the Puppy Adoption Center at the Warm Springs Ranch from the commercial? 

These horses and the Lab Retriever puppy are BestBuds. What is new in the video Puppy Love? When you watch it, you may easily get carried away and forget about the beer, in exchange for LOVE – love for horses, for dogs, for the farm you have left behind to live in the city. Everyone remembers at least one pet story s/he repeatedly tells his best buddies every time you get together.

Something else will come to mind, too. It is the animals' love for YOU (supposedly the smarter one)
and their love for OTHERS- animals or humans. Here, we need to sit down and take notes. The way the animals “talk” to each other, the way they look after each other…

The scene with the puppy returning home to his best buddy horse, the other horses and the human buddies is very effective and victorious. There is just one more extra point the commercial is delivering. This is The Puppy Adoption Center. Animals need to be adopted and taken good care of. 

There is also a beautiful acoustic guitar music playing on the background. You hear:

”Only know you love her,
when you let her go

and you let her go.”  (Passenger’s “Let Her Go”)

From the beginning to the end of the commercial you are led to think about LOVE, not so much about beer. The cold-hearted will say, “Here they go again, my wife will be crying until the end of the game! I am tired of these animal stories…” I have an answer to you, too. “GO GET YOUR BEER NOW! On Sunday, your children will start bugging you to get a puppy and even a horse. That will cost you more than a beer, Bud!

PRINCESS

PRINCESS

Twenty two years ago my daughter and I immigrated to USA. Our survival depended on the graciousness of good American families. There were 2 suitcases and a bleak desire to really make it in the foreign land. My former husband had arrived before us. He was accepted in graduate school. The big question mark was how we all can survive on very slim resources.

It was our first American summer; school had not started yet. I was helping a nice family with babysitting in exchange for room and board. For some time, we were staying in a house in Washington, D.C. One day, a couple living close by, came with a request to have us house-sit and dog-sit, while they were on vacation. They knew us vaguely; they had already helped us with linens and other necessities, which we needed badly at this time.

The request came as a big surprise to us. Not only they trusted us to stay at a fantastically decorated old style Georgetown house; they left a family member behind, a Lab Retriever, named Princess.

The first day we spent walking gingerly though the house, making sure we do not leave any signs on the carpet. The house looked like a museum to me with its antique furniture,
paintings, décor… It was a completely new world – one, not seen on the little TV we had acquired from another good American. We knew – we can watch everything surrounding us, but we cannot touch or move anything. All I wanted was to remember all I can see… I was not sure I was ever going to see a place that beautiful…

Princess was not following us during the tour. She gave us time to get to know her house. When dinner time came, we knew the fridge was packed with food for us. Princess had her special food in a big bag, with special instructions, left by the owners, along with the amount we need to give her. She was not a young dog, but was eating well. She did not need long walks, just enough to get outside and take care of ‘her business.’

Our first day house-sitting and dog-sitting went smooth. Playing with Princess, enjoying her beauty was something we had never done before in our lives. We never had a dog or a cat.

The problems started later. Coming from a poor Eastern European country, where many dogs and cats wander on the streets and eat scraps, it was hard to comprehend one simple truth: when a bag of food carries a label “Dog Food”, this is what a dog is supposed to eat. Crispy fried bacon is not a gourmet meal for an old posh Princess, although the smell is tempting. Her belly cannot handle it. Well, I wish I knew that back then…

One evening, while everyone was having dinner, Princess looked so pitiful; she was sitting next to the table looking up at us. We decided to share everything with her. One piece of food lead to another, it was not her regular dry food dinner. It was our type of dinner – with fried food and quite a lot of fat.

Then, Princess went quite reluctantly for an evening walk. In the morning, she was laying down close to the front door. She was not barking, not eager to go out, not eager to eat… She made it clumsily outside. My daughter and I walked her out. She was looking at the other dogs. I can almost hear her saying “good bye” to them. When we got home, she lay down close to the front door again. No reaction to toys, bones… She was just staring at the front door… We were certain we have killed her because of our stupidity.  Big, unforgivable, unforgettable stupidity. Crying, my daughter took her for an extra walk. A very long walk… Whatever they did, they both came back ‘smiling.’

I am sure Princess did not tell anyone about the crispy bacon. When the owners came back they thank us for the good care we took of her. We did, we just did not know that even dogs are different in the world we have arrived in.

Maybe, this is not entirely correct. They may eat different food, but they are the friend you want to have in every country around the word. They will not forget you, no matter how old, or fat you have become. To them, it is the HUMAN they know.  

DISCLAIMER: Any resemblance to real persons living or dead is purely coincidental. All
characters appearing in this story are fictitious.

IN THE ELEVATOR

                                                   IN THE ELEVATOR

Imagine you are in a big hospital elevator. It was a warm weekend. Families and friends have come to see their sick ones in the hospital. Gary was pushing my wheelchair towards the elevator. There was so much fun ahead of me. People everywhere… When the elevator stopped, Gary wheeled me in very cautiously. There were many people already in – some looked like patients, some were visitors. Everyone moved to the back to create enough space for my wheelchair. Rules are pretty clear on how to position the wheelchair. It has to face the elevator door. Gary was not entirely prepared to move the chair. In his defense, he did not expect such a crowd. He swirled so that I was facing the door. 

All of a sudden, I was given the leading position. Being a leader carries its responsibilities. No one but me was close enough to push the button for the floor we were all getting off – the first floor.

Gary did not leave this important decision in my hands. He said, “Push the first floor button.” I already had my mind set on pushing not just the first floor, but all the available buttons. I heard people hustling behind me, whispering something.

Honestly, I wanted to put them at ease. So, I said, “Don’t mind me, I am a mental patient!” It did not take long for everyone to make a decision. On the first stop of the elevator, everyone rushed out as quickly as they could. I may have used the wrong word.

THE BRACELET

THE BRACELET

Eight years ago, I was lying in a hospital bed fighting for a new chance at life after a brain infection tried to take it away. As every woman, I love presents. However, there isn’t much you can bring to someone who cannot walk, talk, or eat normal food.  The present they need is life.

I was getting better and better day by day. As time was approaching for me to be released from the hospital, my husband appeared with a little present. My head was not working right, but the neurons connected strongly enough to draw the conclusion that this was, in deed, a present. My head started spinning. What could it be? He was going to work before coming to see me. It was taking him two hours to come back from work to the hospital. He was too worried for my life; shopping was the last thing on his mind. But, every hospital  has a little gift shop. When I opened the box, I saw an elegant bracelet. He put it on my wrist. It was the most exquisite diamond look-alike/cubic zirconia bracelet. He was trying to cheer me up. And it worked.

For many years now, for various occasions, I have been getting jewelry for a present. I keep it neatly organized in my bedroom. There is a special drawer with costume jewelry, which no one can identify as 'costume'. Such a good copycat!

When I dress up for a special occasion and time comes for the accessories, I somehow always reach for the box with the diamond look-alike bracelet. No diamonds, no gold, no precious stones, no custom-made 50 year-old designs can measure up to the 5 dollar cubic zirconia bracelet from the hospital gift shop. I don’t know what I will wear, if I can't find this bracelet in the drawer.