Bison and Bears, the connection~

Wood Bison in Wood Buffalo National Park in Alberta, Canada
Picture credit:  Laura Kaupas.

 

As you may have noticed, there has been a two month gap in postings here.

The reason is that my heart has been broken over the imminent approval of Hunting our beautiful Florida Black Bear.

The final, fateful decision is expected in a very short time.

But this morning, a story on our news, brought for the first time in over two months, a reason to smile and cause for joy.

Another creature which has occupied a huge place in my heart for over 30 years, has just been given a new lease on life.

The Wild Wood Bison, which has been gone here in America, for over one hundred years, is being brought back to Alaska.

The differences between them and our American Bison are in the links below.

This reintroduction of the Wild Wood Bison, is courtesy of the people of Canada, who did not completely decimate theirs, as we did.

This cooperation between our two countries, is but one more example of the good that Humans can do for wild animals, when they chose to do so.

By appearances, it would seem that the people of Canada care and respect their wildlife more than we do here.

An example, the history of our concern for our most  “at risk”  wild things in this country, has been, far too often at best, woefully neglectful.

Ask any resident of California, when they last saw a wild animal, no, not a deer, or a raccoon, but a true large wild animal.

They have been hunted, killed and chased out of not only California, but many, if not most, of the other lower 48 states for over a Century.

The joyful news today about the Wood Bison, is bittersweet, as we who live here in Florida await the final decision to come for our magnificent Florida Black Bear.

Once this is done and they kill or hunt too many of them, it will be too late to say,  sorry!

Like the stunning, Ivory Billed Woodpecker that once ranged freely all over the South East, and have now been hunted to extinction to adorn a ladies’ hat, come Fall, will our Black Bears also be no more?

Perhaps, we could learn a bit about wildlife compassion from our neighbors to the North?

There was one reference story of a Wildlife Park in Canada, where the Wood Bison and the Black Bear live together in apparent harmony.

Are you listening in Tallahassee?

There just may be a connection between the Black Bear and the Wood Bison.

 

Places to learn more:

Wood Bison Free in Alaska

Wood Buffalo National Park

Alaska wood bison being held at village to be released soon

Wood Bison set for release

Wood bison leave Portage for release in Alaska wild after an absence of more than 100 years

Phenotypic Differences Between the Bison Subspecies

Wood Bison Curriculum

 

Double Entendre or Controlled Florida Bear Hunting

And coming soon to Florida!
Picture credit: William A. Troyer – US Fish and Wildlife Service

 

In the little publicized, poorly defined FFWS meeting in Jacksonville yesterday, not much was really accomplished or confirmed about the plan to renew Black Bear hunting in this state.

We still do not really know exactly how, when, where or what is going to  happen to our Black Bears.

Another meeting is set for April in Tallahassee.

A sparse few showed up to object to hunting them, but so many more came to support the plan to begin once again hunting/killing our Florida Black Bears.

FFWS said that they are going to become much more aggressive in the way Bears are handled or controlled from now on.

Two things in the various news stories reporting this meeting stood out to me.

One was that if the hunt is approved, the hunters will not be killing bears in the conflict/troubled areas, but, they will instead be deep in the woods killing Bears that may have never even seen a Human, let alone caused any sort of problems.

And second, the news that of the 41 states where black bears live, 32 already do allow hunting.

This to me, seems to be used as a form of excuse by the Hunting groups to renew the killings.

I wonder if any of these hunting supporters have ever been to California?

I lived there for over 30 years and never saw a Bear or any other kind of wild animal, except for raccoons and deer, until I went to Yellowstone and then again when I came here to Florida nearly ten years ago.

You see, they had already hunted most of them, to extinction, long before I ever moved there.

What was missing from this Bear Meeting yesterday, was what happened to the bear populations in those states, after the hunting began.

This animal was, just a short time ago very scarce in Florida.

In this state, Bears are not the problem, people are the problem.

They refuse to do what will keep bears away from their neighborhoods and out of their yards and garages.

They leave food outside in their yards, and in open garages, they do not have bear proof trash cans, in fact some of them even outright feed the bears.

Dumpsters all over Central Florida are left open and uncovered.

For Bears, who always follow the food, this entire area is one big Bear Buffet.

Dinner is served, and they all know where to find it.

It all here for them to enjoy.

All that is, except for the ones who have already been killed by FFWS.

These bears were labeled as bad or aggressive bears, too aggressive to be allowed to live.

The idea of a resumption in Bear hunting gives me fits of terror.

Here is why.

In 1998, the year that my parents moved to this area in Central Florida in the Ocala Forest, from South Florida, the Forestry Service began what is supposed to be a safe normal process, it is called a “controlled burn.”

Well, that year the controlled burn nearly wiped out most of Central Florida.

To say it got out of hand fast, is an understatement.

So, what happens when FFWS gives Hunters, these same ones we now see out on our local roads, standing on their roofs and in the beds of their pickup trucks firing into the woods, using rifles now also armed with silencers?

This is the reason that I am very worried right now, not just for the Bears, but for all of us.

These Hunters, who continuously show that they care little for the safety of others, or their own hunting dogs, are completely  “over the moon” at the idea of finally legally being able to shoot and kill bears.

Since moving here ten years ago, we have witnessed already, some cruel and sick behavior towards Black Bears.

They have found bears dead on the sides of the roads, with their paws and feet cut off.

Now FFWS wants to give these people permission to do it legally.

Where will it all end?

I keep remembering the controlled burn in 1998 and the complete devastation that it caused to Humans and Animals alike.

But things just got out of hand.

Will controlled Florida Bear Hunting be any different?

 

Places to learn more:

No decision made on whether to allow bear hunting in Florida

Florida bear hunt likely to happen this fall

Bear policy protests

Black bears could soon be fair game for Florida hunters

Florida Mulls Return Of Bear Hunts After Increase In Urban Attacks

With black bear population on rise, Florida may allow hunts

 

No, No, No!

A magnificent Florida Black Bear

 

Update:
The FFWS Meeting will be tomorrow at 8:30 AM at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in Jacksonville,
225 East Coastline Drive on the Third floor. Phone number is 904 588-1234

Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission • Farris Bryant Building
620 S. Meridian St. • Tallahassee, FL  32399-1600 • (850) 488-4676

 

Dear Readers.

I know how very tired you must be of  seeing and hearing this, but by this time tomorrow, it may all be over for our magnificent Florida Black Bears.

The meeting will be in Jacksonville

We all knew this, it has been talked about everywhere.

But the stories have been quite remiss on every channel, as to when and where, this meeting will actually take place.

Was/is this intentional to keep those of us who are outraged by this away?

The idea that it can and will, soon be OPEN season on our Bears is inconceivable.

One of the most beautiful and majestic beings to ever live in this state will, if this is passed and I am positive it will be, hunted down, shot and killed like any of the other wild animals here, that are already being murdered for SPORT.

The idea that I/we may soon have to drive past the gruesome scene on the side of our county roads here in Lake County with these maniacs with guns and silencers will NOW be killing Black Bears, legally.

It was only one short year ago that I called and spoke with the man at the top here and he promised me that this would NEVER happen.

If you have a phone, a computer or any form of communication at hand right now,

please do what ever you can to tell FFWS that this is complete insanity.

Just a short time ago this animal was listed as Endangered and now it is about to be hunted.

Below is the Bear Petition with more information.

Please think of one of the most beautiful creatures that God has ever made,  lying dead on a road, only  to be hauled off  and dismembered, by someone who cares nothing for the beauty that it was/is, only the bragging rights for ending its life.

 

Here is the Bear Petition, please sign it and share it:   Bear Petition

https://environmental-action.webaction.org/p/dia/action3/common/public/?action_KEY=9748

 

Microbeads Petition

This toothpaste has harmful and nasty microbeads in it

 

My Dear Readers, this will be short and sweet.

A petition was just sent to me and not only did I sign and share it,  I also wrote about it a few months ago on one of my other Blogs:   What Do 7 UP, Micro Beads and Lithium All Have in Common?

This petition lists many of the harmful  and deleterious effects that these nasty little micro beads are having on our planet, especially our oceans and their fragile sea life.

Won’t you please consider signing and sharing it as well?

Please go here to sign the  Ban Microbeads petition

As always, thank you in advance, for your support of this planet’s animal life~

 

Not Extinct~

             
A Galapagos Tortoise  Picture credit: Matthew Field        A Sierra Nevada Red Fox  Picture credit: NPS

 

Extinction is a dirty, ugly word and usually we, the two-leggeds are to blame, but this week is a time to celebrate, for two rare and exciting sightings have caused great joy around the Globe.

This post is about two extremely rare and endangered creatures who have just shown up after many years, a very, very rare Sierra Nevada Red Fox in Yosemite National Park and also some very rare Tortoises in the Galapagos Islands.

Neither of these creatures had been seen in these particular places in about a hundred years.

So the fact that they have both made public appearances nearly in the same week, gives those of us who take such great delight in their very being, a reason to cheer.

My personal only sight of a Red Fox was in the West, just this side of the South Dakota border in Wyoming nearly twenty years ago.

It was a truly beautiful creature, and it made me sad to know how very few of them are still here for us to see in America.

In both of these instances, we disturbed and/or destroyed their habitats, their food sources, their air, their water, everything in the Environment of these critically Endangered animals, making their lives so unbearable, that they finally just disappeared for a century or more.

But, now, once more, we have been given, like with the American Bald Eagle, the majestic, magnificent National Symbol of our Country, a second chance to say we are truly sorry and promise to make things right.

Yes, DDT has been banished forever from this Country and the Bald Eagle finally did recover.
But there are new toxins, some even worse than DDT, like  ” Round Up “  to take its place and we must have the courage to tell those who make and sell them, and the others like them, we will not tolerate it, not never again.

We must promise to never take these precious creatures for granted, or abuse them again.

We may never get another chance if we mess this up, can we please, for their sakes, show them the dignity and respect that they deserve?

No, we  don’t deserve it, but maybe this time, we can say  “no, not for these two,”  we will not allow them to become extinct!

 

Places to learn more:

Baby Tortoises Found On Galapagos Island For First Time In Over 100 Years

Galápagos tortoise

Rare fox seen in Yosemite

Sierra Nevada Red Fox

One of North America’s rarest mammals spotted in Yosemite for first time in nearly 100 years

MRSA and Melanomas, Good News?

 
MRSA picture credit: National Institutes of Health                        Publix Organic Breakfast Blend Coffee

 

By now you all know about my years as a Nurse and my recent battles with Melanomas, so today I wish to share two positive and potentially hopeful stories about them.

The first story is about MRSA, the serious bacterial infection and its link to the campus of USF in Tampa.

Two brilliant young microbiologists, Lindsey N. Shaw and Whittney Burda, and a very talented group of their colleagues at USF are causing the medical community and the world to take notice of their achievements and the promise that their work may very soon deliver, to stop one of the deadliest, most contagious infections, in its tracks.

Only a short time ago, a MRSA outbreak made local news here, as several Tampa Bucs players were announced to have become infected with it.

MRSA is not new to football and the repeated use and overuse of antibiotics may have enabled it to become nearly immune to them now.

This is also not new.

Antibiotic abuse has been a long time concern to me and many others in the Nursing field.

MRSA has over the years, affected both College and NFL players, who by the very nature of their sport and the conditions that surround it, can provide a nearly perfect breeding ground for it.

The NFL and American Schools have learned to deal with it quickly, as it is so highly contagious and can spread rapidly through Teams.

If left untreated, MRSA can be deadly, at the very least, it can be crippling, so this possible breakthrough at USF in Tampa, is welcome news and hopefully their discoveries will take down one of the most insidious infections mankind has ever known.

The second story is about Melanomas and the bright light that has just been shown on what may be of help to those who now, or in the future may possibly develop them.

Although the evidence is not fully conclusive, it is being said that drinking 2 or more cups of caffeinated coffee daily, may lower the risk of getting Melanomas.

As one who has, on a regular basis, consumed at least 2 cups of  Organic coffee daily for many years, this comes as very good news.

The stories linked below show the negative and positive thinking on this, but personally I am more than happy to believe that my passion for coffee may have a secondary plus side in my case.

Keep in mind, that the coffee must be regular, not decaffeinated and you should drink at least 2 cups daily or more, to have the believed beneficial effects.

As always, please do check with your Doctor before doing anything new, just in case you have always been a tea drinker~

I write this to you while sipping my delicious Publix Organic Breakfast Blend Coffee.

Could my passion turn out to be my protector?

Here’s to more good news to follow about MRSA and Melanomas~

 

Places to learn more:

Coffee & melanoma: add to annals of abused translation of observational research

Regular coffee drinking may block the worst skin cancer, a study shows

Coffee consumption linked with reduced melanoma risk

Pro Football Players Pass Staph Infections

USF team gets patent on promising MRSA treatment

USF Researchers Discover Potential Antibiotic Cure for MRSA

USF seeks licensing for potential MRSA treatment

 

Floridian Lab Rats

A female aedes-albopictus
Picture credit: CDC

 

If you are coming to Florida any time soon, you may wish to avoid our lovely lower Keys.

But, why you may ask?

They are the most breathtaking place in this state, so what could possibly make you want to avoid them?

Well, how do you feel about millions of Frankenstein mosquitoes that could be turned loose there, if the FDA approves it?

It seems that the years of overuse of pesticides has made local insects nearly immune to most of them now.

So, enter Oxitec and their cuddly little GMO mosquitoes…

The thinking is that they will breed with and then wipe out the locals who cause two vicious viruses, that are presently, without cure or vaccines, and quite well spread throughout the Caribbean area.

These viruses are,  chikungunya and dengue and yes, the affected  area does include parts of Southern Florida.

The FDA is the same organization that has never seemed to be able to say no to Monsanto, or their kinfolk, who rule the chemical world.

So, my guess is that they will get an instant approval to plow ahead.

As one who has opposed GMO’s since their inception and eats organic as much as possible, I find this all quite disturbing, as we simply have no idea of the danger or consequences posed by this insect, if we are bitten by one of  them.

It is odd that we could not do this in America, we had to go to the British for these adorable little GMO mosquitoes.

They, Oxitec, has already taken 70 million of these cute little guys on the road in the recent past to the Cayman Islands and elsewhere.

So why should you/we fear these tiny, little blood suckers?

Could it be the toxic soup that they originate from, like herpes simplex and E. coli?

These new mosquitoes will breed with the locals and cause massive extinction, they say, they hope.

Aye, but there’s the rub, dear readers.

What happens to the warm-blooded humans, pets and others, in the release areas, if they are bitten by a GMO insect?

Hmmm….

They are not talking much about that.

My question, only one of many, what do the local Floridians think about this?

Better yet, how many were at a recent meeting, if they even knew about it?

A petition at Change.org has collected 130,000 signatures against this potential madness and I would truly love to hear what those in the drop zone have to say about what could be released into their back yards this spring.

Unless this British bug invasion is stopped in its tracks, we Floridians will soon become the first US mosquito lab rats.

 

Places to learn more:

Aedes albopictus

The Change.org Petition:  Say No

Millions of GMO insects could be released in Florida Keys

Action Alert: Keep Genetically Modified (GM) Mosquitoes Out of Key Haven FL

Genetically Engineered Mosquitoes Coming to Florida

Genetically Modified Mosquitoes to be Released in the US for the First Time

Millions of GMO mosquitoes may be released in Florida neighborhood

Ishi, et al.

Our baby Ishi, so far, the only child of our sweet Harriet

 

Not wishing to put you all to sleep or bore you yesterday with a excruciatingly long post, I decided to split it in half, this then, is part two.

All the news today is not  bad, some of it is actually wonderful.

To begin…

A group of investors on the Gulf Coast here have donated over 200 acres of pristine land to be used for the benefit of Florida wildlife like the Florida Panther, red-cockaded woodpecker and Florida Black Bear.

This was an unexpected and generous thing and the animals say “thank you”

My only objections are, that hunting will be allowed on the land perhaps reducing the primary  food source for the highly Endangered Panther that calls this area home and secondly, the donors built a golf course in 2001, adding to the hundreds that are already here.

Next…

At a meeting in Tallahassee yesterday, the FFWCC laid out their plans for spending the millions that have been allocated to the state for the purpose of improving, expanding and maintaining prime and pristine wildlife areas.

One of the beneficiaries of this money and these new proposals, will be a personal favorite that we love and admire on our property here in the Ocala Forest, the long leaf pine.

This magnificent tree at one time covered most of the south-east of this country and supported many species of birds, including the nearly extinct red-cockaded woodpecker and the already gone, ivory billed woodpecker.

Another species of bird to benefit from all of this, is the now teetering on extinction, Florida Grasshopper Sparrow.

The details of the meeting will be here as they are revealed.

You can read more about the long leaf pine and Endangered birds here: Walking With the Alligators

Now for the two sad stories…

The magnificent Monarch butterfly may soon be listed as Endangered.

DUH!

We have personally watched in horror here in the Forest, as their numbers in the past few years have dropped to nearly zero.

When we first moved here in 2006, they were all over our yard, but in the past two years they have nearly completely disappeared, along with other fragile species, like our green treefrogs and green lizards, which by the way is the only lizard native to Florida.

These species are the “canary in the coal mine,” but for that to matter, someone has to ask why?

The blame for the Monarch decimation, lies squarely on the shoulders of companies like Monsanto, who know and care little, about the negative impact that their number one selling pesticide Round Up has had on the Global Environment and can I mention it doesn’t do much for people either.

Monsanto is a very powerful company and their long arms reach way into our Government and the agencies that should be harnessing them.

With the Monarch now approaching the same fate as the millions of Bison that once roamed this country, will our Government finally rein them in?

I guess that depends on whether or not we force them to, by boycotts, picketing and shunning both the company and those who choose to support them.

When I began writing this Blog, I was not convinced that anything done on Blogs had an impact on the real world, but after seeing what a Blogger did to Subway and their “rubber mat bread,” I now believe that we can and do make a difference.

We have the power to create change and we must use it for the good it can do.

This final story is the most painful for us personally.

If you have been here for a bit, you know about our baby Ishi, pictured above the day we found her.

She was the sole survivor of our resident dear Gopher Tortoise, Harriet.

We were so very grateful to have found her and are praying that she makes it to adulthood, unlike her siblings, which did not.

So, seeing this story about the kidnapping and planned murder of 170 precious, rare and Endangered ones like her, from the island of Madagascar where they live, makes our blood boil.

The idea that these monsters can take these beautiful creatures, murder them to make, God knows what, jewelry, or  ???, is simply beyond our comprehension.

Any one of them might have been our baby Ishi, so this post today is dedicated to Ishi, et al.

 

Places to learn more:

Investors donate land for wildlife habitat to DEP:

Florida funds to restore long leaf pine, endangered species habitat

Monarch Butterfly May Join Endangered Species List

Endangered tortoises found at Paris airport

Baby tortoises found at airport

Baby Tortoises

 

We Are Their Only Hope

         

Brown Pelican, Black Bear cub and Rhinos

 

It has been entirely too long since I have been able to share any news about wildlife with all of you, so today’s posting will address several issues, I apologize and hope that you have a big pot of coffee nearby~

To begin this morning,  and it is with great sadness that I share this, the state of Florida is entertaining the idea of allowing Black Bear Hunts.

Yes,  you did hear that correctly.

After I was promised by the “man at the top” only a year ago that this could and would NEVER happen, it was on our local news last night and again this morning.

They claim that since bears are no longer in severe shortage here in central Florida and have become a more or less, ” invasive species,”  something must be done to correct this problem, before someone gets killed.

They forget to mention the fact that over the past two years, MANY bears have been killed for being proved of, or suspected of, being “problem” bears.

What is seldom mentioned, is that for nearly a century, no one here, was ever killed by a Black Bear, it is only just recently that these ugly situations started happening.

May we please say why?

People, Humans, are, in record numbers, moving into all parts of the suburbs and shoving bears out of their ancestral habitats, they are keeping food available that tempts the bears, even though they are repeatedly warned that doing this will only cause many more problems.

Of course the bears are always the ones to pay for the indiscriminate, stupid and thoughtless behaviors of the Humans who live in Orlando’s Black Bear areas.

The news is constantly showing pictures of people feeding the bears, leaving pet food outside, leaving garage doors open with filled and open trash containers in them.

These behaviors have cost many bears their lives, but not a single human theirs.

So, now with another “incident”, the answer in their minds, is that an “open season” on the bears, will surely end the problem.

Stay tuned for the follow-up on this…

Next story

Brown  Pelicans are being butchered here.

When I left California in 1999, I had hoped that I would never have to hear about this ugly behavior again.

Well, it is happening here right now.

Once again,  people who are yet unnamed, are attacking and maiming innocent Brown Pelicans, local fishermen may be prime suspects.

In South Florida and the Keys, Brown Pelicans are being found that have been brutally attacked.

As always, more when it is learned, will be found here.

Next, a Florida Auction President in Boynton Beach has pleaded guilty in Miami to Wildlife trafficking.

His truly ugly, disturbing  and disgusting story is below.

And finally, for today, the League of Women Voters has had their request to stop the use of silencers on Florida hunting guns, rejected by a Judge.

Is anyone surprised about this?

It has been a pretty tough week for animals here in Florida.

But, the year is young and I refuse to give up hope.

As always, “we must speak for those with no voice, we are their only hope.”

 

Places to learn more:

Black Bears to be hunted

Brown Pelicans being attacked

FWC seeks information on Pelicans

U.S. Auction House President Guilty of Rhino Horn & Ivory Trafficking

Judge dismisses request by League of Women Voters to stop suppressor hunting in Florida

 

Hacked and Back!

Breanna and me at Flagler Beach.

 

Yes, I have been away.

But the reason was entirely out of my hands.

Dealing since October with biopsies, surgeries and weekly trips to Gainesville for melanomas was a piece of cake compared to the past five weeks.

This time it is all mental stress.

If you are here, it is likely because you care about animals, wildlife to be exact.

And so do I, BIG TIME.

In 2008, my passion for their well-being led me to create a website to address the countless Issues about them and it was called, Gator-Woman.com.

The reason for this unique name is a long story for another time.

This website has been a source of comfort to work on all of these years, believing, perhaps in vain, that it mattered and might be of use to others.

The website was also the reason that I initially came to WordPress, looking for a broader audience for the Issues and the animals, as well as a chance to interact with the readers, that I found just wonderful.

It was how I came to know and love all of you.

But, for the past two years it became  apparent that some group was doing dastardly deeds to it and the Navy website that I had made for Walkingfox.

I reported these unknown hackers and their ads on our sites, on numerous occasions to Network Solutions, the company  that is/was hosing them to deaf ears, being blamed each and every time, for using Front Page to build them.

Then about the first week of December, with no warning, Gator-Woman just left the building.

It was gone.

A Google search showed the entire world, that it had been “HACKED”.

At the place where Gator-Woman should be, was now advertising for Air Jordan shoes!

It and the Navy site were both paid for until May 2016.

My calls to complain were futile, once again it was all my fault, I was told.

So, I chose a new host and had it put back up on their servers but, with a new name.

The new site is:   Walking with the Alligators

Then a week later, my one year old Sony Vaio laptop just died.

This was the one bought to replace the ones that has been stolen from us last Fall on Vacation.

I was understandably freaking out.

Best Buy did their best to try to save the data, but the external hardrive soon revealed nothing had survived.

Pictures, data, all lost forever.

They said that the OS had croaked.

I found this odd, I have two other Sony Vaio laptops, that are much older and still working just fine.

Can I tell you how much I hated using Windows 8 from day one?

My laptop was now as empty as my website.

It was all gone.

I have spent the past five weeks trying to recover, rebuild and save what I could from all of this.

As of today, it is nearly done and as soon as the transfer is complete, perhaps later today, his Navy site will also be in a new home.

Hopefully, when I put it back up, it will be minus the 3,000 pages of purses, shoes and other that have been selling quite freely and illegally on his Navy site from a place called according to the illegal pages: “Chanel Outlet.com”

My feelings about HACKERS are this: they do nothing, they give back nothing.

They are thieves and criminals without consciences.

And when apprehended,  many of them say that they do it for fun.

These past five weeks have NOT been fun!

Yes, our sites have been viciously HACKED and attacked by unknown evil, but we now and forever, will refuse to allow them to beat us.

We will not go away and we,  as you can see are, Hacked and Back.

 

No More!

Tilikum “performing” at Sea World Orlando
Picture credit:  David R. Tribble

 

Today, I am both delighted and beyond proud, to be a part of a group of people, a Global Community that  took on the Giant Sea World, and according to our local news here this  morning, has likely brought the Giant to its knees.

The years of Boycotts, protests, angry words and wholesale withdrawal from this once powerful, popular Global Attraction, with 3 parks across the southern US, in Florida, California and Texas, have made an impact that cannot be denied.

We can all take credit, this was a Global effort and we did it together.

Big Companies no longer ignore us, they know that we will not go away and that they will have to respond and/or change the way that they do business.

As for Sea World, they now know that we are quite serious, animal abuse will not be tolerated.

Was it only a short time ago that a prolific, tenacious Blogger forced Subway to change an ingredient in their bread that is used in rubber mats?

Here in Florida , the news has been non stop that Sea World has lost its leader, CEO Jim Atchison, is laying off 300 employees, and with attendance in free fall and profits and stocks in huge decline, the company is nearly in crisis mode.

The response from Sea World is that because their profits and revenue according to them, are down, they need to make cuts and adjust accordingly, to make up for their losses, which they blame not on their abusive company practices, but on the backlash from the film Blackfish.

Way to go Sea World, accept absolutely no responsibility, just blame your company’s dismal state of affairs on all of those terrible trouble making, activist people.

I am very sorry for any who will lose their jobs, but hopefully they will find employment with an Organization that values ALL life, especially ones that are so profusely used and abused.

If you ever had any doubts about the power of the Human Spirit, think again.

This has all come about for one simple reason.

You cared!!! (Sorry Adam)

Beginning with the film Blackfish and continuing for many months, the relentless, determined Blogging and Activist Communities, have never let up.

They were determined that what goes on at Sea World needs to stop, now.

Sea World Trainer Dawn Brancheau died here at Orlando needlessly.

She should never have been in that water with  Tilikum  who unknown to many, had a history of violent outbursts.

Others had been killed.

Tilikum had been captured, no, kidnapped, near Iceland and kept in captivity since 1983, being used for among other things, a breeding animal and continuous performer.

If this had been a human it would have been punishable by prison time.

What on Earth gives any Human the right to take an animal from the wild and use it for their own financial gain?

The groups that are united to bring down and stop this inhumane behavior are legendary including, PETA, the ASPCA, along with a World-Wide Network of animal activists and supporters, who will not give up, nor yield to pressure from anyone, to stop.

Now with the present day, well-connected era of total social media coverage that includes television, U tube, Facebook, Twitter and currently most used for lengthy and well written arguments, our own beloved WordPress.

We are a huge, global resource and we will no longer be dismissed, shunned, ignored or placated by any Organization that uses and abuses animals for personal profit or greed.

As anyone who uses the public media is already keenly aware of, animals of all breeds, species and kinds, are being abused everywhere around the world, and the public outcry has now become deafening.

We may not have stopped it all, but on this day we can at the very least say:
Attention Sea World, It’s Over!

The voices of a united Global animal community have been loud and long and their prayers and demands have finally been answered.

On this day, we are saying in one resounding voice, no more!

 

Places to learn more:
SeaWorld CEO stepping aside as company announces layoffs

SeaWorld’s Outgoing CEO Gets $10.8 Million Exit Package

A world of trouble for SeaWorld

Trouble at Sea(World): Problems Mount as Dolphin Bites Girl

Sea World CEO Steps Down

SeaWorld CEO Steps Down Due to Low Park Attendance

 

Clear…

Normal and Cancer Cells
Picture credit: Wikipedia/ Pat Kenny (Illustrator)

 

Yes, I am finally back.

And, yes, I am as tired of saying that, as you likely are of hearing it.

Your many words of comfort and support have meant more to me than you will ever know.

At this moment and time, the ugly is all behind me and it would seem that God must have other plans for me because it is all over for right now, I am free of cancer.

You must know, however, that this is written today, while being completely distracted by the NASA channels coverage of Orion’s Odyssey.

This is such an exciting time for those of us here in Florida who are total space junkies and miss the glorious Shuttle days.

But, I digress….

This dark journey began for me two months ago, although, it seems like years, not months, when I had four biopsies done, after not seeing a Skin Doctor for 15 unforgivable years.

Two came back as melanomas, one a Basal Cell Carcinoma and the fourth was diagnosed as being just a really angry mole.

All have now been removed, sent to labs for diagnosis and closed.

The final one that was just angry, was done two days ago and the stitches will be removed next week.

Let the healing begin.

Then I/we  will be taking a cancer/skin sabbatical for a bit.

No, not for fifteen years like the last one that got me into this mess, just for a month or so…..

The most terrifying aspect of this entire ordeal, had to be the Mohs Basal Cell Carcinoma removal that was done last week.

Obviously it was the unknown factor that made it the worst.

Then there was the painful realization that it was to be done on my face.

Yes, this was, in my case at least, a girl thing, as some of us females do tend to get a little concerned about things that could have us ending up looking like the Bride Of Frankenstein.

For the past month, I have had nightmares and thought of little else except the endless possible outcomes of this procedure.

Going online to Dr. Google, not recommended, only gave me scary images and terrifying stories, to run and re-run in my mind.

I thought about leaving town and forgetting it altogether, but was too much of a coward to go.

So, finally the dreaded day came and I went in and faced the formidable unknown.

If this is a new process for any of you,  in a Mohs  Surgery, the doctor takes a small amount of tissue near the biopsied area and then examines it for cancer cells.

This step is repeated, until the area is determined to be free and clear of cancer.

In my mind, I imagined that it would take many cuts and I would end up with a small, or other sized crater in my face.

Yes, I admit it, I worked myself into a lather over this.

What an idiot I was.

So on D-day last week, I went into the office and was taken to a room, but what happened next was enough  to wipe away all of my fears and make my little corner of the world right again.

As I was beginning to put my gown on, a familiar voice came that made me nearly cry.

It was the first person I met  there and she had done my first four biopsies.

She had been absolutely flawless, just prefect and the  biopsies  had been quick and nearly painless..

Seeing her face come through the door on this dreadful day completely dispelled my worst fears.

I knew that if she was there, I could deal with whatever came next.

So, I was prepared for the surgery as usual, I also now believe, that I have enough lidocaine in my body from my numerous procedures, to numb a small town.

The doctor came in and took his first sample of tissue and left.

While he went off to do this, the stitches from my last melanoma surgery were removed.

We stayed busy, chatting and waiting, with me silently wondering how many times he would need to cut and how much skin would leave my face.

I tried not to think, just breathing was an effort.

Then, finally  he came through the door and like the other excellent surgeon who only a mere month ago had removed a life threatening melanoma and sentinel node, this one now also said that same sweet word that has since become my new forever favorite one:

Clear…

 

Deadly Silence

Hide baby, you’re safe, for now!
Picture credit: MWanner

 

Try to picture this scene.

You are strolling along a path in the lovely, tranquil Ocala Forest of Central Florida, walking with your wife/husband and children, when suddenly without warning, you are shot, perhaps killed.

There had not been a sound.

So, how did this tragedy happen and why?

I will explain in a minute.

Now also imagine driving along the familiar road you always take to go into town to the store and you happen upon a group of people and their vehicles pulled over and parked on the shoulder of the road.

They are all, either standing, or sitting, on the hoods or roofs of their trucks.

And what are they doing you ask?

Well, don’t be silly, they are shooting their rifles into the woods at animals.

These are Florida Hunters.

Yes, we are smack in the middle of Florida Deer Hunting Season right now.

But, this is nothing new, this sickening scene is repeated here every single Hunting Season.

So, what is different about now?

Now, these Hunters shooting into the woods all around us, can legally use silencers on their rifles when they hunt.

Why?

Because the State of Florida, aka FFWC, has just given them permission to do so.

This was done at a meeting that just took place way down south, where not many people apparently bothered to travel to, to voice their thoughts.

As if it wasn’t already dangerous enough that these idiots are firing from their vehicles into the woods,  where  they cannot possibly see clearly enough, or  far enough, to be sure, or safe, they can now carry out this insanity using a silencer, so that no one in the woods where they are shooting, will even know that they are about to be shot and possibly even be killed.

Can you imagine how far an errant bullet can go in the woods?

And now no one will even know it is happening!

The NRA and Hunters are as to be expected, simply giddy over this.

Now Florida Hunters, can be just like the 32 other states in America, that also allow this insanity.

I only have one question.

What are these people ingesting?

Oh wait, marijuana has not been approved to be used here, so that can’t be it.

I give up.

The State of Florida once again, defies all reason or sanity.

That’s all folks…

Florida’s Hunters, will now and forver after, be killing in deadly silence.

 

Places to learn more:

2014-2015 Florida Hunting Season Dates

Florida approves silencers for game hunting

Florida set to end ban on silencers for game hunters

BREAKING: Florida FWC removes ban on suppressors for hunting

Silencers, coyotes and waterways: Letters

 

No Means No!

Protestors at the White House
Picture credit: chesapeakeclimate

 

Just in case you have not yet heard, as you were on an extended out of the country journey,  or what ever.

The Keystone Pipeline, although approved by the House last week, was just rejected by the United States Senate.

You heard right, it failed to win approval.

Is this permanent, probably not, but even a tiny or temporary victory in this David and Goliath face off,  feels so good!

Of course those who desperately wanted this passed,  will very soon gather together and push even harder to get it done the next time.

And considering what just happened in the elections with the Republicans now controlling everything, it WILL come up again and soon.

But in the meantime, we, that is you and me, can congratulate each other for a fight, a battle of nearly Biblical proportions,  very well done.

The ball has now been passed to President Obama.

If you have  a spare moment, you might want to sign one of the many letters asking him to do what the American people have made quite clear that they want.

I would so love to be a fly on the wall at the Koch Brothers Headquarters today!

For what seems like forever, this monster issue has been all over social media and especially on FB and WordPress.

As have millions of others, I have signed, called and written about this disastrous plan endlessly.

To quote the NRDC:   ” The Keystone pipeline  is all risk and no benefit for the Americans. “

We never gave up, or gave in and as of right this moment, we the people, those who do not want this nightmare running across our country and through the heartlands of America.

The potential hazards in this are of monumental proportions and the numbers of wild animals and wild places that would suffer from this pipeline are endless.

The Ogallala Aquifer and many other critical water sources for millions of Americans were my particular concern.

As a beloved Geology Professor once said, ” Once water is poisoned, it can take as long as 10,000 years to clean it up.”

This greedy group and their backers have shown so little respect for America’s primary water supplies, as they selfishly pushed hard for years to shove this down our throats.

The company has a very poor track record when it comes to leaks and failures, so why one Earth should they ever be allowed to cross this country and put us all at risk of losing our precious life-giving water?

So, on this joyful day, I am so proud of all of you who fought so hard to stop this.

It is and was, a job well done.

They did their best to break us down and dismiss our demands to reject.

This time money, political power and influence did not win.

The American people did and you can bet that those who just spent a fortune trying to do this, are right this minute collecting their thoughts and funds and getting ready to do battle once again with all of us.

Too many wealthy, powerful people,  have way too much invested in this to allow us, the people, to defeat this and them.

But for now, we have, in no uncertain terms, in a loud clear, unified American voice said:

No Means No!

 

Places to learn more:

Native Americans Arrested Following Keystone XL Pipeline Vote

Breaking: Senate Rejects Keystone XL Pipeline

TransCanada Plots Dirty PR Campaign to Push New Pipeline

Senate Rejects Bid to Force Approval of Keystone XL Tar Sands Pipeline

Victory for Environmentalists: Senate Narrowly Rejects Keystone XL Pipeline 

Power, Panthers, People: Who Will Win?

The magnificent Florida Panther
Photo credit: sfwmd.gov

**Thought about this in my sleep last night and wanted to add it.**
The  “sunshine state” should never build another fossil fuel power plant,
everything from this point on should be green energy, as in solar and wind.
Florida has an abundance of both and should be using them NOW!!

 

The magnificent Florida Panther is without a doubt, the most critically Endangered animal in America, with only 100 or so, still alive today.

This is a sickening fact to repeat here, as they once were everywhere in the Southern United States.

One by one, various Companies have declared war on the land or habitats that the much beloved, beleaguered Panther clings to in its never-ending struggle to survive the ravages of ignorant, selfish and uncaring Humans.

First there was the threat of fracking and now Florida Power and  Light wants to take more land and even more water away from this beautiful Florida treasure.

Animals activists,  FWS and others have been trying to stop the threatening energy exploration and expansion into this fragile habitat for years, but with each step forward, they are ultimately pushed back two.

The Power Companies like Florida Power and Light and the mega monster Duke Energy, which just gobbled up Progress Energy and may likely eventually do the same with FPL,  are running serious campaigns here,  to get every drop of energy out of the land, despite the corpses that will surely  be left behind.

If this happens and Duke Energy does buy them out, they have way too many resources in their very deep pockets, so  it looks like a gloomy future for any, or all,  who choose to  oppose them.

One of the most beautiful parts of Florida has now become a battle ground and the next victim may be the magnificent, pristine Big Cypress.

The big Power Companies, especially Duke, have lobbyists, lawyers and legislators on their side, the Seminoles, Panthers and Orchids, have only a fraction of the money necessary to even stand a chance.

The Seminole Tribe of Florida in their effort to protect themselves and the Panther, have become the latest  champion and partner in what has become a fight for all of their survivals.

Yes, the Tribe has an agreement with the USFWS to do just that, but there is so much more going on here, than just honoring an agreement with a Government Agency.

What Florida Power and Light wants to do next, is to build a new power plant just north of the Reservation, which is also next to the Big Cypress.

Every living thing around this hotly debated area could be put in great peril.

If this Power Plant is allowed to be completed, aside from the obvious damage to the Wildlife, Wild Plants, Environment and Indigenous Culture of the people, this plant will also use 22 million gallons of water, every single day, which will be devastating news for all concerned.

The highly cherished,  fragile Ghost Orchid  also lives in the swamps near this affected area and the thought  of killing it outright or through poisoning,  or depletion of its life-giving water, is absolutely unacceptable.

Whether the Seminoles or the Power Companies will win this war is unknown, but for the Panther, this may just be their very last chance.

Power, Panthers, People: Who Will Win?

 

Places to learn more:

Seminoles fight to save Florida Panther

The Panthers

The Seminole Tribe

The Ghost Orchid

Big Cypress

 

269: Please, Remember This Number

An innocent  Baby Calf
Picture credit: Wikipedia

 

Many years ago when my daughter was quite young, we happened to be at a place where an ugly truth was just feet away from where we spent the night.

It was in a tiny town in North Central California and what happened there that night changed her life and my life forever.

Being the precocious child that she was, she had wandered around the area and come across a few cows that she was gleefully admiring.

I walked over to retrieve her and a man approached us.

He seemed kind,  so we stopped to talk to him.

What he said broke our hearts and neither of us have ever really recovered.

He told us about the baby calf just inside the barn where we were standing and what was soon to happen to it.

I am sure you already  know how Veal is made, so I will not  go into any details here.

With this tragic night in mind, just now an email directed me to a place that brought back those horrific memories and I was compelled to pass this site on to any of you who may,  perhaps feel as we do.

Veal is despicable.

It comes from the torture of a baby calf.

I do not wish to say more here, you will learn more soon enough by going to this place and seeing what they are trying to do, or stop.

I wish them every success in the world, because you see, it will take a Global Effort to change people’s minds and hearts.

Millions of people everywhere, absolutely  love this meat and relish eating it, on a regular basis.

Since that awful night so many years ago, I have told anyone who would listen, why they should never buy, or eat Veal.

This group and their message and intentions are very, very powerful.

But, this is exactly the kind of strength that it will take to reverse and end such a horrific  crime against these innocents.

I hope that you will take a look and pass it on if you agree.

If enough of us take a stand for them and say no, perhaps one day, very soon, no other baby calf’s will have to be tortured and murdered.

I am asking you to share this, we are their only hope.

We are a powerful voice and we will not be denied.

269: Please, Remember This Number!

 

Places to learn more:

269 – The Web site

269 on Facebook

 

We Are All One America

Staff of President Clinton’s One America Initiative, the Initiative on Race
Picture credit: Public Domain

 

Watching the returns for Florida last night was a mixed blessing.

Most importantly to us, Amendment One passed with 75% of the voters in this state approving it.

And thankfully, the elections are over and the dirty nasty commercials are all gone, at least until 2016.

The mixed in this blessing, is that any gains won overnight with the passing of this Amendment and its promise of protecting wildlife, could potentially soon be erased, or at the very least,  at the mercy in the next few years, of the new powers to be.

People all over this country are angry, at anyone and everyone in public office.

I, we,  do not blame them.

So are we.

Our anger is about the way that this state is being run and those in power here who seem to care little for the things that we value most.

But trying  to blame everything that is wrong in this country right now on our President,  is wasting time and energy and getting us all nowhere.

What is wrong in America,  is NOT all Obama’s fault.

There  is plenty of blame to go around.

We are all guilty,  one way or another.

Those in Washington, who fail repeatedly to do their jobs.

Those voters who whine and complain, yet do not vote.

Those who write big checks to buy a result for their own personal financial gain.

Plenty of guilt,  plenty of blame to be shared.

When no one does the right thing, we all end up with the wrong thing.

Last night’s total political flogging  and the resultant prospect of having the country completely run by a single party,  may not bode well for the things that many of us care  deeply about.

So, for the next two years, Walkingfox and I, as well as many of you, will try our best to watch over those with no voice and keep them from harm.

It is not right for animals and wild places to suffer because people want to make a point, to send a message.

But they are throwing the baby out with the bath water.

Florida and the Country need a lot of fixing and it will take both sides, no, all sides, all of us in America working together to fix it.

As long as we keep blaming each other, nothing will ever get better, it will just continue hurting us all.

Pushing us farther apart and still getting nothing done.

I keep remembering the words that Gandhi said to the father who had lost his child to an enemy.

Gandhi told the man filled with hate to go and find a child of those who had killed his and to raise it as his own, but that he must raise it in the culture and religion of those who killed his child.

If America is ever to recover from this basement, this cesspool of shame and blame that we have fallen into, we must reach out to one another  and try to not only understand, but  more importantly,  to accept our individual uniquenesses.

Those glorious things that make us all so special.

We are not simply Democrats or Republicans,  or any political party.

We are all different, we are all the same, we are all One America.

 

Please Say Yes to Amendment One

The Everglades, an exquisite Florida Natural Area
Photo credit: sfwmd.gov

 

On Election Day next Tuesday here in Florida,  although not everyone will be on board, or be all that terribly concerned, a very critical Amendment is on the Ballot and it is not about who will be our next Governor.

It is about protecting the most perfect, precious commodities that this state has, its wildlife, beautiful land and water.

This Amendment will provide a great deal of funding for our water, land, habitat and wildlife protection, for now and many  years to come, through the Florida Forever Program.

Florida has thousands, perhaps millions of acres of open and free spaces that must be protected for future generations.

And this Amendment, if it passes, will protect what many of us treasure most here, for the next 20 years.

Money collected will go to protect the Everglades, State Water Sources, as well as land and wild life habitats all over the state.

And there will be NO tax increases to pay for it.

It will be paid for with money collected on the  excise taxes on documents.

The Amendment is sponsored by the Florida Water and Land Legacy and needs a 60% voter approval to pass.

What this Amendment will protect is basically everything that makes this state the natural wonder that it is.

The wild life, the wild land and the pure clean water.

Mayor’s from six of this state’s biggest cities, have called for the Amendment to be approved.

The good it can and will do for Florida, stretches from the Keys to both Coasts and includes, the very needy Everglades, which will get a big boost as well.

Something that would make Marjory smile, as  she fought hard to preserve them all of her life.

Marjory Stoneman Douglas with a
Miccosukee Tribe member in 1965
Photo credit: Florida State Archives

 

Places to learn more:

Big stake for Keys on land question

Six Florida mayors announce support for Amendment

Editorial: Yes on Amendment 1

Amendment One a no-brainer for Florida

Florida Water and Land Conservation Initiative, Amendment

Amendment 1 Aims to Aid Conservation Efforts

 

A Typical Florida Solution

A Florida Feral Hog or Wild Pig
Picture credit: US Fish and Wildlife

 

As you know we have only been here in Florida for about ten years.

To say that coming here to live was Culture Shock,  is an understatement.

There is simply no way to excuse, explain or define some of the behavior here.

In my email this morning was yet another typical example of how some people here handle a bothersome situation.

In this state, thanks to a Spanish explorer, who along with throngs of others invaded Florida hundreds of years ago, with little concern for the havoc that they wreaked on the places and people, are descendants from  Hernando Desoto’s wild hogs, that  have now become a definite problem for many.

Granted these wild hogs do frequently plow through yards eating and destroying much that they survey, but they are simply doing what they must to survive.

They are omnivores and will eat vegetation or what ever is available to them.

Thanks to repeated ignorant and thoughtless  behavior,  there are now many invasive species here, like the thousands of Burmese Pythons in the Everglades, that now number so many they are in danger of completely taking over the entire area and starving out local animals, not to mention the terror they present when the tourists see them.

It is not that these animals are not a problem, this is understood, it is the recommendation by a local Rancher,  or his idea of how to solve it, that makes this state the one of a kind place that it now is.

His suggestion is that the perfect solution to the pig problem is, to eat them.

One of the loudest complaints about the horrible hogs, has been of course, the damage that they do to the countless pristine Golf courses statewide, which in Florida hold nearly Holy stature.

Too many animals get too little respect here and these wild pigs will be just the latest victim of a mind-set where the next to the most hunted animal after the Florida white-tailed deer, will soon be the wild pigs.

I have always had a very soft spot in my heart for pigs, I love them and this hurts.

I wish there was some humane, kind way to solve this, but that will not happen here.

Not in a state where nearly every one has at least one gun and too may find hunting animals a thrilling sport.

There are numerous Hunting Clubs and Ranches entirely devoted to the slaughter of them.

Doing a Google search for Hunting  animals in Florida delivered over 33 million links.

Any questions?

I wonder if this line of thinking may in the future perhaps also encompass invasive humans or other?

Just asking?

Did I mention that hunting season begins in days, but the gun shots and the howling hounds are already being heard here in the Forest every morning.

Yes, I am in the minority, I love pigs and refuse to eat them.

Childhood memories on my Uncle’s farm in Indiana, simply will not allow me to.

Seeing all of this today and knowing what is happening to them, makes me so sad for their bleak life and hopeless future.

The ugly truth is, that this latest approach to an animal irritation, is yet another typical Florida solution.

 

Places to learn more:

A solution to Florida’s Wild Pig Problems: Eat Them

Wild Hogs in Florida

Can Wild Pigs Ravaging the U.S. Be Stopped?

Hog Wild In Florida! Feral Pigs A Problem

Wild Hogs In Florida: An overview

 

Think Pink!

Stunning Pink Flamingos
Picture Credit: Pedros Szekely
There were hundreds of plastic ones on the grounds of  the Hospital where I had my surgery in Gainesville!

 

As you may already know, October is Cancer Awareness month.

So, it is appropriate for this to be shared right now.

My absence from you was not by my choosing.

Since 1988,  I having been dealing with a well-known enemy, skin cancer, more accurately Melanoma.

Three weeks ago I finally made the long trip to Gainesville for the appointment that I have avoided for three reasons,  for the past fifteen years.

Lack of money, health care and fear.

All quite equal to my mind.

In September with the last payment on our car, money could no longer be one of my  excuses.

So, I found a plan and a Doctor and made the too long put off appointment.

I already knew I was in trouble before I ever walked through their doors.

They took four biopsies and sent me home to wait for the call.

It came exactly one week later.

No matter how much you prepare, you are never really ready for that call.

I had four cancers, one level three Melanoma, two other lesser ones and a Basal Cell Carcinoma.

The kind person on the phone said that the level three would be done first with a wide excision in surgery.

The Surgeons office  called an hour later and I went the next day for a consultation.

The Surgery and Sentinel Node removal were set for the next day.

There was no time to prepare, just go.

The most terrifying part,  other than obviously the surgery, was a procedure new to me, a radioactive injection.

The Surgeon and I had thoroughly discussed this and I reluctantly agreed to have it all done.

With my first Melanoma in 1988, I had refused to allow my Lymph Nodes to be removed,  which really angered the surgeon.

The hideous scar and extensive cut he did, left me thinking that agreeing this time to a single excision of a Sentinel Node might avoid a repeat of the first surgery that left me feeling and looking, like the bride of Frankenstein.

That scar went from my elbow nearly to my shoulder, a fact that really made my soon to be Doctor, the Chief of Dermatology at Kaiser in LA and new best friend, very angry.

As he said,  and I concurred, if the Melanoma has reached the nodes, you’re dead anyway, so leave them to do what they were meant to do.

Over the next 12 years, there were 8 more Melanomas and 22 other moles removed.

But, back to the Radioactive Injection.

Knowing nothing about this was the worst part.

It sounded simply terrifying and dangerous and scared the hell out of me.

I got to  the lab and every single person involved could not have been sweeter.

When it was over, they all looked  a bit surprised at how well I had done.

They claimed I had handled it great.

I told them that this was a piece of cake, the four biopsies had hurt a lot more.

Ok that was done, then they took me to pre-op and did the usual things to prepare for surgery.

I kept looking at my arm and the monster that had been a part of my life for more than twenty years and absolutely dreaded what was to come.

Again the entire team was kind, gentle,  understanding and made me feel good.

When I woke up, I remembered little.

After a brief tine in recovery, we were sent home.

My Surgeon came to chek on me after the operation and said that he had taken a sentinel node and would not know if the Cancer had spread unitl it went to the lab.

He would  call me on Tuesday to let me know the results.

So, we went back to the Hotel that we had checked into for a couple of days to get through it  all.

We stayed two nights and came home.

The thing about Melanoma is this, if it gets to your Lymph System, it is pumping the Cancer out to your entire body.

Unlike other Cancers, once Melanoma reaches the Lymph System is entirely fatal, there is no treatment, you are all done.

And as for that new drug I wrote about a short time ago, I was told by the Nurse  who did my 4 Biopsies, that it is just an extender, it simply just gives the patient a few extra months.

At this time, there is not a cure, or a drug for level five, or Systemic Melanoma.

So, finally on Tuesday at 1:30 in the afternoon,  the call from my Surgeon came.

I held my breath,  waiting to hear the words I was afraid to hear.

Thank God, his calming,  assuring, voice said it all instantly.

It had not spread, I was clear, he could not have asked he said, for a better report.

It was difficult to talk to him and answer his questions, emabarrassinlgy I  was crying too hard.

It  was over.

Now, in a few days,  the stitches will come out from the operation  and then the Derm Clinic Doctor  will tend to the other 3 Cancers.

First the two smaller Melanomas, and then the Basal, which will inlcude another new procedure,  Mohs.

When that is finished, finally I will become just another regular patient at the  Derm Clinic with regular check ups  and moles removed as they present.

For the past three weeks I have been to hell and back.

Now I want to get back to what gives me a reason for living, writing on these Blogs.

My reason for writing all of this today, is for one singular purpose, to encourage any of you with moles to stay on top of them.

Please, Do Not make the same stupid mistakes that I did.

Waiting to make your final  car payment could cost you your life.

It could have cost  me mine.

Melanoma is not like other Cancers,  it is a fast, vicious killer.

The most important thing that you can do for yourself is to look at your entire body on a regular basis.

Have your partner or a friend look at the places you can not see.

Any mole that changes color,  size or shape could be a Melanoma and it can and will kill you, if it is not removed.

I was stupid, but you do not have to be.

Get checked and get safe.

The sun is not your friend and  getting a tan can kill you.

I have been given a reprieve.

I am so very grateful and now want to get back to doing what truly inspires me.

Writing about animals.

Think Pink!