Last week, Robin Starr, the CEO of the Richmond, Virginia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA), accidentally left her 16-year-old blind and deaf dog in her sweltering car for four hours when she headed in to work.

She claims she didn’t realize that Louie, who often went with her to work, was in the car with her since her husband had put the dog in that morning while Starr was getting ready for work. However, she says her husband had forgotten to tell her he had done so.
Louie, who was suffering from heat stroke, was initially treated …read more

In November 2008, Washington State became the second state in the United States to allow for doctor-assisted suicide. The first was Oregon, which has had this law since 1997. Currently, a third state, Montana, has such a law as well, but it’s before the Montana Supreme Court for final judgment.
According to this article, Washington state to enact assisted suicide law , written earlier this year, this law allows for “aided dying,” not “euthanasia” or “assisted suicide”:
“Aided dying is neither euthanasia nor suicide,” said Terry Barnett, president of the Washington branch of Compassion & Choices advocacy group.
“It’s not euthanasia because …read more

I knew when I heard the phone ring that my mother was dead. No one calls at 4:30 a.m. I was sleeping in my parents’ house because, though the doctors had thought she had months longer to live, my sister just had a feeling. And so the phone rang and I let it ring and ring until I heard my father’s voice answer from the other room and then I picked up. The woman on the other end said, “Dr. Walker. This is the hospital. I’m am sorry to inform you, but your wife, Mary Walker, has passed away.” …read more

Recently, there was a discussion on one of my online children’s author groups  (I’m a children’s author, as well as blogger) about children’s chapter books dealing with death.  Most of them are slated for young readers,  6-9 years old.
I thought I’d pass this information along in case parents, grandparents and others would find this list of interest for reference.  Some books deal with death of a family member or friend; others are about the death of a pet.

Remembering Mrs. Rossi by Amy Hest
Love You, Soldier by Amy Hest
Because of Winn Dixie
Each Little Bird That Sings
Sarah Plain and Tall
The Higher Power …read more

I have my mother’s hands. They are a woman’s hands, creased and well used. Nearly 10 years to the day my mother passed away, I still remember holding hers, stroking her long fingers, telling her it was OK to die.
There are reminders of her everywhere, pushing out from mounds of pansies in my garden or in passages of a thick Pat Conroy novel. At times I can feel her with an intensity that startles me. Browsing hosta in a garden shop or scraping wallpaper from the bathroom walls, I am doing what she did. I am becoming her.
Nine months after …read more

I believe with all my heart that what I’m about to say to you is important, for me, to let you know about me
I believe in what I’m doing on this Blog and I am extremely grateful to the folks at b5 media for allowing me to be a part of b5.
Thanks to the Second Step of recovery, today I have a different belief system than when I was drinking. That belief system has, as it’s basis, a loving God. For me. Hopefully, I am not, will not, try to force that God down your throat. I was …read more

SCRAM = Secure, Continuous Alcohol-Monitoring Technology
Suffolk gets high-tech leg up on DWI
“Drunken drivers in Suffolk County will be fitted for alcohol-monitoring ankle bracelets, the latest tool of Suffolk County parole officers, county lawmakers announced yesterday.
These high-tech gadgets enable authorities to track blood alcohol levels through the wearer’s perspiration.
The mechanism is enough to have previous DWI offenders sweating their next court date.
“These bracelets have been proven effective in deterring repeat drunk driving in over 30 states,” Suffolk County Legislator Dan Losquadro (R-Shoreham) said, kicking off the pilot program.
The plan would strap bracelets on 20 of the county’s high risk or repeat …read more