Farewell Flopsy

Farewell Flopsy.  Flopsy died last Monday.  Here’s a picture of Yaneth holding Flopsy earlier this year.  He has been my constant companion since he came to live with us.  Several years ago, while still living in Ciudad Colon, Animal Rescue friends asked if I would adopt some dogs that had been tortured by a very sick man.  He had already killed several dogs and, finally, the neighbors had had enough of hearing the pitiful yelps of dogs getting beaten.  Flopsy came to us with broken ribs, a broken jaw, missing teeth and lesions all over him.  He could barely breathe without whimpering in pain.  I swore the day he came to us that he would never suffer again, if I could help it.  It took a long time for his injuries to heal, and years longer before he would even let us pick him up without yelping in terror.  But time heals all wounds, and we were so glad when he trusted us enough to finally let us pick him up and hold him. 

And, thus, he lived at the farm and went with me everywhere.   We took the most recent pictures of Flopsy, while hiking with Armando and the other dogs down to the waterfalls this past August.  He kept up just fine with all the other dogs, despite having lots of white whiskers – showing his age.  But he remained healthy and active until just a few weeks ago, when I noticed that he was losing steam, couldn’t keep on weight, and began showing signs of kidney failure – an ailment that had already taken his companions, Chispa and Spotty.  Thus, we sadly recognized the same symptoms.  I suspect the cause of the kidney failure but am not sure – we have taken preventive measures. 

The last week, we knew that, soon, Flopsy was going to die and that there was nothing we could do but support him and keep him comfortable – and let him rest peacefully at home.  We have learned that if we take a dog with kidney failure to the vet, the dog does not come back home alive.  In no way do I want to denigrate our very fine and compassionate small animal vet, Dr. Rojas, in Ciudad Colon.  But he would be the first to agree that, sometimes, it’s best to keep the patient comfortable at home and not subject a dying animal to more stress, like IV drips and caged confinement, closed up with other sick animals.  Flopsy had a very good life after his rescue.  He brought smiles to us all with his very conversational…waoo wuoo wao wuoo and was much loved.   Farewell Flopsy.

m’a sa-laam-a Dr. Mahmoud El Zain Hamid

We were shocked and saddened to learn that Dr. Mahmoud El Zain Hamid died on Monday, September 19, 2011, while teaching at the University for Peace.  Mahmoud lived to teach – and inspired so many people in so many ways, that the University for Peace plans a special Memorial for him, so that people can give voice to how he touched their lives.

Yesterday, the University for Peace held a very nice remembrance service for Dr. Hamid, prior to celebrating planned activities for the International Day of Peace.  One of the students chanted a passage from the Koran, which was deeply felt by everyone.  Many tears flowed for this very kind and good man who left this planet far too early. 

We want to say to the world what Gerry said to Mahmoud when we last saw him:  “Thank you”!  Mahmoud inspired Gerry to go out and buy the publication:  ‘Climate Change 2007 - The Physical Science Basis’; the Working Group I Contribution to the Fourth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.  This massive document includes all the data and evidence pointing to the fact that the planet has, indeed, entered another period of global warming.  Gerry carefully read the book, studied all the data and analyses, and is now now more convinced of it (although not at the pace, nor with the certain catastrophic outcomes that some non-objective politicians and activists with their own personal agendas will have us believe).  The world must, therefore, brace for future change and mankind must adapt.  Mahmoud understood this; he came from Sudan to bring his message to the world at the University for Peace.  He passionately cared about the impact of climatic change on the peoples of the world.  He will be deeply missed.

After the remembrance service for Dr. Hamid, the students formed a large ‘circle of gratitude’ as part of the International Peace Day.  People from all over the world joined hands and, for many moments, we shared a collective sense of warmth and goodwill.  For me, it was a very deep and satisfying feeling to share with so many people.  I remain optimistic for the human species.           

Box Fight in Pricemart

So what’s life been like since Gerry retired?  Well, I’ll give you the latest little episode.  I usually enter the Membership Warehouse Store, Pricemart, with a list and a mission:  to get in and out of there as fast as possible.  When Gerry retired, I eventually talked him into going with me to help haul out the big, wholesale-sized packages, even though he really dislikes shopping in general and these ‘Big-Box’ places in particular (“I abhor these appalling bloody abysses, with their retarded zombie staff”).  He tries to avoid it like the plague – but, over the years, Gerry has learned that it’s sometimes best to take the path of least resistance…  Still, from day one, he made it clear that he only entered that store under great duress.  And that I owed him.  This trip last Friday was no exception but his mood was even more foul than usual - and I was irritable too.  So we walked in there with the list, quickly piled up the supplies in the shopping cart and went to the check-out counter.  While Gerry was unloading the items onto the conveyor belt and the clerk was scanning the items, I quickly moved to the end of the counter and packed them neatly back into another cart.  Every action was designed to expedite the process, in order to get out of the store as quickly as possible and with the minimum of fuss.

So, I had just finished stacking the items and was ready to sign the credit card receipt, when Gerry storms through the crowd, takes one look at our neatly stacked shopping cart, and does not like what he sees!  Suddenly, he demands of a ‘packer’ more boxes to pack up the merchandise the way he wants to do it!  He needs lots of boxes – and he wants them “ya” (right now, for non-Spanish speakers)!  So now boxes are flying, clerks are running to get more boxes - and I am burning with fury; I just want to…

…grab a box and whack Gerry up-side the head with it!  So he grabs a box and throws it at me – and now boxes are really flying.  And now everybody is throwing boxes…  Boxes are flying everywhere…  It’s a Box Fight at Pricemart!  And now everybody is laughing – because it is all so ridiculous – and everybody now gets a couple of boxes to take home. 

Wait a minute!  Did that really happen?  Well, some of it did.  As Gerry demanded boxes and more boxes, I ended up just paying for the bill, my face blazing hot with rage and embarrassment.  But I remained silent, keeping in mind that the mission was to just get out of there; Gerry gave the harassed ‘packer’ a good tip and we left the store – and we didn’t really start to laugh about it until later.  Did that really happen?  Did we just behave that way?  The main thing to remember in situations like that is to keep laughing and loving, no matter how much you want to pick up that box and…

What is this Caterpillar? Answer: Frangipani Hawk Moth Larva

Can anyone identify this caterpillar?  Thank you Kathryn Kostka de Tanzi and Barry Biesanz and Mark Plotkin for the feedback!  This is a Frangipani Hawk Moth Larva called Pseudo sphinx tetrio - a sphinx moth- that loves Plumeria trees - and also Oleander trees.  We had about 15 of these colorful creatures living on the Plumeria rubra (Frangipani) trees during most of August.  They chomped down on the leaves and soon nearly doubled in size, each caterpillar claiming his own branch, and eventually they ate all the leaves.   I need not have worried, the leaves quickly started growing back and no lasting damage was apparent.  What would they morph into next?  One day I decided to take these pictures.  And it’s a good thing I did, because the very next day all the caterpillars were gone.  Sometime during the night, they all came down from the Frangipani trees and went somewhere else! 

Every year around this time, we see these caterpillars - Tetrio Sphinx-  during this particular phase of their life-cycle.  They are so colorful as larva but morph into a rather dull, grey moth.  Robin came over and saw one thrashing about - why?  It was trying to avoid a pair of bees trying to sting it!  Not sure if Robin got the shot. 

Actually, right now is high season for butterflies in the El Rodeo forest; there is an astounding variety of them, which would dazzle any collector, or even any non-collector for that matter.  And there is much to learn from them.  Our neighbor has even observed moths that mimic wasps.  Nature never fails to astonish and fascinate, offering lessons to those who want to observe and study it, and producing a state of wonder for those who just want to walk within it.

So what’s this big white bird running about with our hens?  We now have a turkey out at the stable!  Until recently it belonged to a neighbor, who bought a pair of them with the idea to breed them.  But her dog had a different idea…  That big bird was just too tempting.  So, after the female became Thanksgiving doggie-dinner, she asked us to adopt the male, and he has adapted surprisingly well.  He seems to get on with the hens – he doesn’t bully them and they don’t peck him. 

He’s a gentle giant in a hen house where, yes indeed, there is a pecking order…  We let them out into their garden during the day but they all go back inside at night, along with the turkey.  We have learned that the forest can very easily make quick meals out of ‘free-range’ hens.  But Jose has accomplished the next to impossible – he has created conditions so that the hens can thrive in a ‘free-range’environment yet survive. We breed criollo hens for their eggs. Criollos, like all natives, can resist illnesses and are adapted to the tropical climate – and they produce incredibly delicious eggs with very bright yellow yolks!