Advocacy: Help Protect Georgia's Pets from Domestic Abuse

I received this email from American Humane and thought it was worthwhile in sharing. If you live or know of anyone in GA with pets, please forward this info to them:

GA 2009 - Pets in Protective Orders

Help protect Georgia’s pets from domestic abuse

Each year throughout Georgia, domestic violence victims risk their lives to protect their defenseless animals from harm. Research has shown that up to 48 percent of battered women remain in abusive homes out of concern for leaving their pets behind. Yet, sadly, Georgia’s current domestic violence law does not address this issue.

House Bill 429 addresses this issue directly. In an effort to stop abusers from harming or threatening to harm companion animals, the bill encourages judges to include animals in domestic violence protective orders. A protective order is a legal order issued by a court that requires one person to stop harming, stay away from and/or cease contact with another person or, in the case of this bill, that person's pets as well.

We owe it to the countless domestic violence survivors throughout Georgia to get HB 429 passed.

HB 429 is currently in the House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee. Please ask Committee Chair Rich Golick to schedule HB 429 for a hearing and to vote for its passage.

Friday Flowers--Valentine's Day, How Do I Love Thee

I located this"Friday Flowers" comic strip of mine while posting the previous one a few weeks ago. Thought it was apprpro for the month of February and Valentine's Day. The captions read:

(Lucy-dog) Oh, how do I love my mama and daddy this Valentine's Day! Let me count thy ways.....one lick, two licks, three licks....
(Steve) Lucy, stop hogging mama. It's my turn!

Never met a man so jealous of a dog. Never met a dog so jealous of a man. It's great to be Queen!


Steve & I celebrated this Valentine's Day at The Cheesecake Factory eating salads and a "slice". We celebrated with Lucy by adding a new toy to her collection, giving her two raw quails and lots of heavy petting. Her "licks" were never-ending. She's such a happy dog!

25 Random Things about Me

Recently, I listed these "25 Random Things About Me" on Facebook. Thought I'd add some additional info and pictures.

1. The 1st time people visit my home, they come to see me. The 2nd time people visit my home, they come to see my dog, Lucy. She is a wonderful entertainer!

(Lucy modeling mom's handmade jewelry)

2. In 4th grade, I was awarded 1st place in the entire school district for coloring a picture promoting fire safety.

3. I prefer to sweep my house with a broom rather than vacuum. (The best vacuum cleaner I've used is a Shark Roadster Euro-Pro. Inexpensive too.)

4. I have MCS (Multiple Chemical Sensitivity) and suffer with severe migraines for days after being in the presence of perfume/cologne, scented lotions, detergent, air fresheners, hairspray, synthetic chemicals and the like.

5. I love flying kites and always take my Crayola kite on vacation: http://tinyurl.com/c8cdgn

6. The moving company said they'd never packed as many cookbooks as I had. I'm into raw food now. A good, easy cookbook is "Raw Food Made Easy".

7. In 2001, my monoprint entitiled "Mummy Dearest" was awarded 1st place in printmaking at ECC.

Mummy Dearest
copyright Susan Calvert
all rights reserved

8. For the last 8 yrs., I've done laundry in this fashion:

* Add 1 cup (plain) Arm & Hammer baking soda to washer bin
* Place clothes in washer by COLOR
* Fill softener cup with white vinegar
* Wash on hot
* Place a waded up piece of aluminum foil in dryer with clothes

Viola! Clean clothes, no static, less expensive, NO CHEMICALS.

9. I use organic unrefined coconut oil as my body moisturizer and in my hair for a new look. I cook with it too. NO CHEMICALS AGAIN!

10. I like modern, colorful, eclectic furniture from Axi: http://www.axifurniture.com, Shoestring Creations: http://www.shoestringcreations.net/Been_There_Done_That/index.htm and Sticks: http://www.sticks.com.

11. I use my (prescribed) far infrared sauna from High Tech Health weekly to sweat out toxins: http://www.hightechhealth.com.

12. My art has graced the pages of Animal Fair magazine twice: http://www.animalfair.com

13. I studied horticulture at 3 colleges and am a certified Master Gardener from the University of IL Cooperative Extension Service in Kane County, IL. I've physically installed our landscapes at our last 2 homes. I use a Neuton battery-operated mower to cut our lawn. Works great even on our hilly landscape and NO CHEMICAL FUMES! http://www.neutonpower.com

14. I feed my dog only human food. Lucy loves veggies!

15. I am a self-entertaining individual with lots of projects. My favorite project in 2008 was my bathroom renovation: http://tinyurl.com/b8svw6

16. People are surprised at all the produce in my refrigerator, especially when they see the trays of live wheat grass growing. I juice it!

(click on picture & find the wheat grass)

17. I get bored easily. I start one project, another and another. Then I go back to the first project and complete it and so forth with the remaining projects I’ve started. Is this ADD? It drives my husband mad!

18. We open the windows whenever possible to refresh the air. I use essential oils and only organic ones as air fresheners when necessary. Tea Tree oil has anti-bacterial properties that purify the air and kills germs and mold.

19. In 2003, my painting entitled “Shortstop” was awarded 1st place-watercolors at the Contemporary Dog Art Competition held in NYC at Sardi’s Restaurant. The judges were Chris Jussel, past Senior Vice President at Sotheby’s and original host of the PBS television series, “Antique Roadshow”; Dr. Anne Imelda Radice, who serves on the art committee of the American Kennel Club and is past Curator of both the National Gallery of Arts and the U.S. Capitol; and Jane H. Willis, Instructor at New York University and President of the Appraisers Association of America. I'm very proud of this.

(L to R)
Judge Jane H. Willis
Susan Calvert with painting, Shortstop
Judge Chris Jussel

(Award-Winning Plaque)

20. I silly dance daily for a change of scenery. Silly dance = dancing to upbeat music with my dog, Lucy.

21. You will hardly find any processed food in my home. I make most everything from scratch. If you drop in unexpectedly, I’ll only be able to offer you H2O or tea. Once in a while, I indulge with a Green & Black’s Maya Gold chocolate bar. They’re the best!

22. I enjoy going to music concerts, especially at Chastain Amphitheater in Atlanta.

23. My home projects receive many compliments and inspire others to be creative.

24. I love hardware, office supply and art stores. Anything to get/keep me organized!

25. I have spent the last 8 yrs. learning about the effects chemicals have on our health: how the food we eat, products we place on our bodies and breathe affects our health. I have a library in my home on the subject. We are merely living test tubes!

Friday Flowers--Pile High Club

There is something magical about Flair Felt Tip Pens I have always loved since discovering them as a child. I don’t remember what it was but I know I have a real fondness for them. The grip is perfect for my hand, the tips flow smoothly when doodling and they do not have a knock-your-socks-off odor.

I’m a cheap date when it comes to making me happy (though there are times hubby might disagree). I like small, simple stuff--a package of Flair Felt Tip Pen/Markers fits the bill. In fact, when I received my last Staples Reward Certificate, guess what I purchased? For some strange reason, I cannot have too many Flairs, especially with all the nifty colors.

I have been nursing a migraine this week and unable to produce any art. I located my comic strip entitled “Friday Flowers” created with a marker back in 2003.

We were all sick the week I drew this one, especially Lucy. She was having difficulty getting adjusted to a new brand of dog food. Come to find out later she was allergic to corn/grains which would lead me down a road to feeding her human food--will save that for another blog post though.

The caption to my Friday Flowers comic strip above reads:

You’ve heard of the Mile High Club? Well, mama always calls our household the “Pile High” Club!