Good Boy

 A coworker who’s involved in dog rescue posted something on our intranet that caught my attention. It was about a Navy Seal who’s also a photographer in Iraq and was looking for pet food donations to help care for the countless stray cats and dogs who were hanging around—and winning the soldiers’ hearts. That’s him in the photo above with a couple of the pups.

People and animals alike, there are so, so many in this world who need a helping hand. I wish I could do more to help everyone. For now, a grassroots plea will have to do.

Can you help?

Here’s what’s needed:

• Cat food*
• Dog food*
• Heartgard
• Frontline
• Medicated shampoo

*Dry food should be emptied into a durable plastic garbage bag and sealed tightly. It’s a good idea to also include the label from the packaging.

Note: Collars and leashes are a no-no. It’s a death sentence for the animal if an Iraqi soldier knows an animal is being cared for by Americans. (That’s just wrong.) 

Perhaps you have some cat food in your cupboard that your finicky feline won’t eat. Or maybe you wouldn’t mind picking up an extra bag or two of pet food when you’re at the store. Or perhaps your vet would have some food or supplies to donate. The flat-rate box cost $11.95 to ship—not so bad, considering how far away it’s going.

The address is:

MC1 Jayme Pastoric SOTF-W DET RAMADI Unit 43501 FPO AP 09367-3501

"Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful, committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has."                                   --Margaret Mead

_________________________________________________________________________ © 2010 Good Karma Housekeeping. Making space on the ol' to-do list so that a few sweet furry creatures might be able to live happily ever after. (Photo from Jayme Pastoric's Facebook page)

Puppies and Kitties are Standing By: Click for a Cause

I've always been an "if it sounds too good to be true, than it probably is" kind of girl. Snackwell cookies, permanent waves, the Cutco knives sales job, Splenda, vegetarian bacon. I'll take a Pass on all of those, thank you.

But when it comes to animals--especially, sad puppy dogs and kitty cats--all bets are off. Cue the ASPCA commercial with Sarah McLachlan or Willie Nelson and I'm a puddle of emotions ready to hand over my AmEx card. Wishing I could be more of a help.

I can't remember who sent it to me, or how many years it has been, but some time ago a friend sent me a link to the Animal Rescue Site. Along with it came a simple plea to click on the site every day. In exchange for my clicks, the site's advertisers would donate food to shelter animals. It seemed simple enough, and I hated to think that any animal--or any living creature for that matter--might go hungry. The Animal Rescue Site says my daily click is the equivalent of .6 bowls of food. Every little bit counts, right? Even though it sounded too good to be true, I kept clicking. Just in case.

In time, I noticed the other tabs at the top of the page: Rainforest, Literacy, Child Health, Breast Cancer, and Hunger. They, too, tugged at my heartstrings so I incorporated all seven pages in my (almost) daily click routine. Then my practical side got ahold of me: What exactly is this site that I'm so devotedly clicking on every day? How do I know it's on the up-and-up?

Enter my favorite rumor-debunking website, Snopes. I'm pleased to report that the Animal Rescue Site (and affiliates) are for real. Check out what the snopes folks have to say. I'm also pleased to report that the Animal Rescue Site amassed enough clicks in the last six months to equal more than 40 million bowls of food. Most impressive, fellow clickers. Most impressive . . .

So, is there a cause for which you are an avid clicker? Did you hop on the L'il Green Patch bandwagon on Facebook, too? (Note, evidence is inconclusive whether L'il Green Patch is accurately capturing everyone's clicks; however, they have made at least one nice-size donation to The Nature Conservancy's Adopt an Acre program.)

 _________________________________________________________________________ © 2009 Good Karma Housekeeping. Making the space--for all creatures great and small--to live happily ever after.

Maybe I Was Born to Run

Personal productivity experts say that one of the best ways to help you achieve your goals is first to put them in writing and then to share your plans with others. So, that's exactly what I'm doing, right here and right now. I am going to start running.

I had pretty much written this off a no-go quite a few years ago, remembering how silly I looked running (or so I was told) as a child, and later as a teen. With my legs flapping and my arms flopping, I too believed it wasn't a pretty sight. No big deal though; I had plenty of other activities to occupy my hours and never gave running a second thought.

Exercise has never really been my thing--that is, until I discovered yoga back in 1994. Heart-thumping, liberating, acrobatic, and introspective all at once, this package deal clicked with me and my long limbs right away. I quickly subscribed to its noncompetitive spirit and never looked back.

However, my body is calling out for some cardio--and my soul is begging for more time outdoors. I enjoy my alone time, like listening to eclectic music, and am inspired to introduce another healthy habit into my life. I need balance. So what if I have floppy arms? So what if my stride makes me look like I am hopping over puddles?

"You achieve much once you stop telling yourself you can't do things."                                                                                   -- Elizabeth Kadetsky

Here I go. I'll start this weekend; one foot in front of the other, one minute at a time. Cool Running has a Couch to 5K running program for raw beginners. In two months--with a commitment of training just three times per week--I should be able to run a 5K (that's just over 3 miles for those of us who never really learned the metric system) by the beginning of October. Just as the air starts to develop its New England crisp and the leaves begin to change colors. All the more reason to be outside.

I've satisfied the productivity experts by declaring my plans. Next, it's time to answer to the fitness pros and register for a race. My favorite part of this assignment is that so many of them are tied to some sort of charity or nonprofit cause. So, pick your platform and let that serve as motivation and inspiration to kick butt.

The plan:

• Get fitted for a new pair of sneakers from the pros at Marathon Sports. Resist the nagging temptation to purchase a heart rate monitor or a cute running skirt.
• Take a nice, long walk in my new sneakers to break them in. Load up the mp3 player with some good, rollicking music.
• Sign up for an upcoming 5K run/walk. (I'm eyeing one in my old neighborhood that benefits the Travis Roy Foundation; I wish the Boston Race for the Cure was a bit later!)
• Begin the Couch to 5K program, starting with 60 seconds of jogging followed by 90 seconds of walking, for a total of 20 minutes.
• Keep at it--three times a week for the next two months, along with twice weekly yoga.
• Celebrate!

Can I do it? Of course I can. Not only am I really looking forward to spending more time outdoors--and getting in better shape--but I'm excited to carve out this additional 90 minutes per week to do some additional mental housekeeping. To-do lists, goals lists, daydreaming, story ideas, more daydreaming . . . bring it on. 

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© 2009 Good Karma Housekeeping. Making the space--mentally and physically--to live happily ever after. (These two photo copyrights are not my own--though I wish I could claim them. Don't you just love that dog face?)