Starting to Doubt

Pipke's full life story is finished, and now I'm not sure what I should do with it!

Four weeks after Pipke's dead, we were invited to a jubilee celebration of one of our friends.

They knew Pipke from the day that she was born, and they asked us how it went with her.

Of course, we had to tell them the bad news. They were touched to hear what had happened.

The other visitors (around 50 I think) asked me to tell her story, they asked me a thousand questions. A few said even: “but actually, you must write a book about her. What you've experienced is unique. We would buy your book immediately”.

I didn't tell them that I was already writing her story, and now: “I really started to doubt”.

I would like that it could become a book, but also – that I could tell her story on my blog. In the mean time I adapted the story so, that it's possible that it can become a book or/and a blog.

Then I started to search for information on the internet, and I found out, that it's not that easy to publish your own book.

It costs a lot of money and you must find the right persons for it. They also must be interested in your story.

It was already December, 10 .

I was still writing Pipke's story – and as I often did – I reread posts in my blog.

Again I found so many stupid grammar mistakes and I thought “this is not good enough”.

Of course finding your own mistakes is improving yourself but then I thought: if I want “this” to become a book – then I need help – and if it doesn't become a book – then it will be at least a “good” blog.

Therefore, we searched on the internet for someone who can help me with my story, and two days later we found someone to subedit it. (Her name is Heidi G.)

I let her read a post of Pipke's story and immediately she agreed to subedit Pipke's full story.

She is a professional subeditor and someone who also loves animals, so I couldn't find someone better. She will understand my feelings.

Then an idea crossed my mind: in fact, there are so many animals living in cruel life circumstances, maybe I can ease their suffering – maybe I can mean something for animals in need.

Why shouldn't I donate Pipke's story on a “*Charity Cause for Animals”.

Maybe I even need to search for *them in the USA, because I write in English, there they can reach a larger audience.

Perhaps, they will help me financially – and with the rigmarole to publish her story.

(Of course I pay the costs for the subediting.)

In return – I would offer them the eventually profits.

I don't need to earn on this – it would make me happy – to know that I can help animals with this gesture.

Of course, I do hope that they understand – that first: I want my name on the story – and second: that I also want to publish it (or at least extractions) on my blog.

Perhaps this isn't congruous, and If this would be the case, then it will become a real dilemma for me. I promised my readers to tell Pipke's story!

(Although, not everyone reads blogs – there's still a large audience that reads books – and they can sell it for their good cause.)

Perhaps this aim is too high for me.

If I don't succeed in it – and it only stays a dream – then at least – I have tried to mean something for animals in need.

Then there is yet an other thing: now you will encounter no more stupid grammar mistakes in Pipke's life story, and that will be more pleasant for you to read .

Just after New Year, I have finished Pipke's story, and this morning I've sent it to the subeditor.

My hubby placed it on his computer in a normal book format (5,51 Inch by 8,26 Inch) to see how many pages it would become in a book and guess what: I have written 175 pages, not all pictures and/or film pictures included (and we have a lot more)!

I still can't believe it!

So now you know that it will not be a short story.

I can't give away too much, but these are the titles of only a few chapters. (I think you call this teasers, correct me if I'm wrong!)

A Blessing in Disguise.

Hubby's Plans.

A Companion for Pipke.

Emergency Call 991.

Living in the Woodland.

Missing Duck.

A Bet.

Help....Robbers!

Pipke on TV.

Sparrows with Mustaches.

Her “Eagle” Eye!

A Stitch in Time Saves Nine.

and many more, but no no, I'm not going to reveal more, I hope that I've made you a little curious.

Now it will take a while, how long – I don't really know, it depends on how the things develop.

I will keep you informed.

In the mean time, I will publish some posts about various subjects. I have written them in draft already some time ago.

I hope till soon!

PS: * Can someone give me a hint, where must I be with my proposition?

Tips are welcome!

Post up date January 19:

This is one site (see under) that I've just found on the internet. Maybe someone can tell me: what do you think about them?
Which one do you know?
If you had to make a choice, which one should you choose from the list on the left side of this site?http://www.animalcharitiesofamerica.org/memberset.asp

A Very Interesting Man

I want to start this year with something completely different. On December, 28 we saw an interview on the Dutch TV.

It was an interview with the American journalist: David Simon (Washington 1960).

He was a crime beat reporter for the Baltimore Sun, and now he's the award-winning screenwriter of HBO's critically-acclaimed: The Wire.

I can assure you, this was one of the best interviews I've seen in years.

We really sat on the edge of our seat, for “one and a half” hour.

We had never heard about him, nor about his brainchild: The Wire.

This interview went not only about The Wire, but also about “Capitalism” these days.

In his opinion, or as far as we can conclude: actually, capitalism in itself is not bad – but without a social angle it's on-ethic. On longer term It even can mean the perdition of the Western world.

He spoke about the rich getting richer, and only thinking on themselves.

About president Obama's plans.

About Social Security and the fact that 200 million people don't have a Health Insurance in America. Also about the improvidence of the car industry. They only thought in short terms and getting rich in no time – without thinking on the future.

It went about many other interesting issues -- he spoke about them with such a clear view: I have never heard such a profound decomposition of society as it exists these days.

His eventual conclusion was in fact not so hopeful.

I've tried to find the same interview on the internet, but unfortunate it's not available.

I have listened to this interview (on this site click on "must-watch interview" if you want to see it) and here he also speaks about the same issues, although the interview I have seen went more profound into the subjects.

I hope it will interest you too.

In fact, not such a joyful subject to start the year, but this is reality.

This is the world from today.

Happy New Years Wishes

To all my followers, commenters

and readers.

My best wishes for 2010!

Click to enlarge

Of course these wishes are for you all. I think you can guess who that "another you" is.

Closing the Year 2009

I never could have thought that I would ever start a blog, and now here I am – closing my first blogging year.

It's not only the closure of a year, but also the closure of an era in my life.

Now it's already 105 days ago since Pipke died, and I still can't cope with her loss.

There hasn't been one day or one hour that she wasn't in my mind.

It comforts me, that I still can write about her, it's in fact a flight from reality. I'm really afraid that I'm going to fall in a deep hole when her story is finished.

It really would be a support for me, to know that there are people reading her story.

At the moment I'm still working on it, and it still keeps on growing, so it will take some time before I'm going to publish it.

I'd hope you have patience with me.

For new readers and the people who haven't followed my blog from the start, here follows the year overview of 2009.

Maybe there are things that can interest you.

January.

Two posts: just try-outs, in fact of no importance. I'm trying to find out how blogging works.

February.

Post: Oei .. oei .. ai .. ai .. plop! I laid my egg. Here I explain how it came that I started to blog and I also show here Pipke's first picture. I also tell here how she started her life, that I found her in an abandoned nest at the moment she cracked her egg-shell.

Post: Through the Eye of the Needle. Not such a cheerful way to start a blog. We feared to loose Pipke, we were glad that she pulled through.

March.

Post: No Good News: Pipke became ill again.

Post: Time for a Funny note. A funny strip about the situation here in my household. I advise you to read this, very funny!

Post: Changing Plans. Here I say: I think for an outsider ...it would be very boring if I would “only” talk about Pipke! So I decided to talk also about other subjects because some variation is always good!

April.

Post: Needle Work from the Past. Here I show you a little tablecloth in cross-stitch that I once made when I was only sixteen.

Post: Conversation at the Breakfast Table. Only a conversation that shows how men often think about women.

Post: Easter … Last Year. Then I found a injured Jackdaw.

Post: Will you be my Running Mate? Here I show you my running circuit.

May.

Post: Sense, Sensitivity and Insensitivity. Here I talk about cruel people, with no feelings at all. We could save a Blackbird and a Thrush.

Post: A Wish Fulfilled. Pipke's 14^th birthday with several pictures.

June.

Post: About Blah... Blah...Blah! About why we are all blogging.

Post: Photography: a New Challenge for Me. Here I talk about my father ( a press photographer) and how I assisted him in the dark room. I also show you a few pictures that I made of my former running circuit on the Belgian countryside.

Post: Warning: Indecent Exposure! If you are curious, look at it.

July.

Post: America .. here we Were! July the 4^th, 30 years ago we were at this place in America. In the future I will talk about this trip.

Post:. Me and the Translater. The translator deceived me. It went about a “scheet in een fles”. Literally translated into English: A fart in a bottle !:):) The English proverb for this is: "to make a mountain out of a molehill". Just read it. The comments that followed on this post, were an example of two naughty grannies.

August.

Post: Greetings from Belgium. Here's only someone waving at you on a sunshiny day.

Post: Our Garden … Pipke's little world. Here I show you our garden and Pipke's pen. Here I placed a picture of Pipke, not knowing that this would become her last picture, before she went ill for the very last time.

Post: Motherhood Fundamentalism! This Is a post intended to “all” mothers.

September.

Post: Sleep Soft Pipke. Her obituary.

Post: Pipke's Very Last Fight. This needs no explanation.

October.

Post: Finally. I received the book: Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien. I recommend you to read this wonderful life and love story of an owl..

Post: Pipke's Very Last Journey. About her cremation.

Post: The Days After. That speaks for itself.

Post: True Love! Film pictures. Here I show you how we cuddled.

Post: Paranoia? About problems that I had with my computer.

November.

Post: Our Little Sunshine. Beautiful film pictures of Pipke, I called this: “Dejeuner sur l'herbe” after the painting of E. Manet.

Post: RESPECT in a Funny Matter. A YouTube film about a funny Dutch song. I tried to translate it for you.

Post: Our Assistant Gardener. Film pictures of Pipke while she assisted my hubby to mow the lawn.

December.

Post: What's Sitting in my Christmas Stockings? A post about OXFAM.

Post: Closing the Year 2009. An overview of my first blogging year.

The closure of the most important era in my life – I only wished that I could turn back the clock!

I'd hope that this post will guide you through my blog, and I thank you for posting a comment , being a follower or only just for being a reader.

I'd appreciate it very much that you've visited my blog.

Till soon.

What's Sitting in my Christmas Stockings?

There we go again!

Santa Claus is coming, and we all have to go through the New Year's hullabaloo!

Many of you will be already joyful with only the outlook too it, but I am not.

It doesn't make me glad!

I'm one of these people who will be glad that it's all over very soon.

Please, don't understand me wrong. I'm judging nobody! Everyone is free to do what he prefers to do and to make his own choices.

Remember the lyrics of that Dutch song: *Respect, in my earlier post: Respect on a funny manner, “so many people – so many differences”!

If you've missed it, than I advise you to listen to it. (*see blog list November.)

But, maybe I'm getting old …. although, here in Belgium there are also many younger people who do think the same as I do.

Why: because it became all too excessive.

It can't be enough, there's too much of everything.

And while we possess plenty, there are so many people in the world who have nothing.

Therefor, this year I've decided to buy no longer presents to enlarge the garbage dumb.

The heap is already high enough!

There's yet an other reason: sometimes you bought something with the best intention but sometimes it can be that the person who receives it is not pleased with it, of course – we all don't have the same taste!

To prevent also this, from now on: enough fragrances and soaps, no more stupid gadgets which are never going to be used.

What is there then going to sit in my Christmas stockings?

These are the presents that I've bought:

1. A set of cooking pans: oh, oh, I hope my stocking will be large enough.

2. A little goat: oei, oei... for this I even need a larger stocking!

3. This is going to be a real problem, maybe this is a little too large for my stocking: a toilet and a washbasin!

And at last:

4. A fishing net: I hope my stocking will be very elastic!

I can imagine that you are now all thinking: “about what is she gibbering now”?

No, no ... I am not joking, I am serious, I am talking about: OXFAM

I am going to donate these presents to people who can use some help and who will be extremely happy with it.

For them, these presents can change their lives completely, and I am going to have a good feeling to know this.

I'd hope that the goat will have a long and beautiful life and that she will give a lot of milk to feed the young children – that the cooking pans may contain many healthy and tasteful good meals –

that the toilets may flush many times and that the washbasin will receive plentiful fresh water.

I also hope that the fishing nets may encounter many fish, although ... for the fish … this will be a less pleasurable experience.

If you have no idea what to buy as Christmas presents, maybe this can inspire you, also you can bring a change in the life of someone less fortunate!

My hubby and me, we are going to have a subdued Christmas and New Year's time, unpretentious – without overloaded stomachs or artificial cheerfulness. We are not yet in the mood to be cheerful, but – the knowledge that the money we've spend on “our” presents wasn't wasted – will cheer us up a little.

Enjoy your Christmas and New Year's time, on your own way!

Have fun, sincere fun – and don't get an overloaded stomach!:)

PS: “Santa Claus” is in fact something that we don't know here in my country, but we have a: “Sinter Klaas” (that's a kind of Santa Claus).

He visits the children on December 6. His helper is called: “*Zwarte Piet”, he always carries with him a large jute sack, and if the children have been naughty – as punishment – *he puts them in the sack! :)

This is an action of Oxfam that runs here in my country: I don't know if the same action runs also abroad.

You can choose among several presents which variates in prices, it starts already from 5 euro.

The most expensive presents are: a cow 146 euro (or 219 dollar), and a beehive, 150 euro (or 225 dollar).

Till soon.

Our Assistant Gardener

It's now more than ten days ago that I've promised you to show these beautiful moments, well here they come.

Sorry that it took so long, but at the moment I'm also working on Pipke's full life story and it takes much more time than I could estimate.

It's not that I had planned to write something down in a hurry, but after I've read the story of: Wesley the Owl by Stacey O'Brien, I discovered that the part of her full life story that I had written so far was not good enough.

Stacey wrote her story much more detailed. What I had written was in fact rather a superficial story.

Thus: I started again, (for the second time) I adjusted what I had already written, and also supplemented it, and now the story “grows”, it becomes almost a book.

I have to do much research to find the exact dates that the events took place because I want it to be correct.

I am also trying to gather as much pictures and film images to supplement the story and it's a real joy to do that.

In fact, we have so many images to “substantiate” her story that it becomes almost like you are looking at a movie, a non fiction movie.

This is a truth story, and the images will show – that I am fantasizing not one element in her story.

I promise you: adventure in the wild world – labor – laughter – tense and tender moments – explosions – love – sensitivity – joy – tragedy and even escape from hell, all ingredients for a “good” book or/and movie.

I am not going to reveal more but be sure, I haven't told you everything, there are still many surprises. (That's for those who've already read my short story on Jen's blog.)

Obvious, there still lacks “the most important" element! To make a book or a movie successful you need also a “good” writer.

The writer is already busy, trying to become better – if she will become “good” – only the future will tell!

If that will not be the case then: at least she has tried it!:)

Meanwhile, imagine – it's a warm sunny day – you're enjoying the sun – and you are sitting in an easy chair in my garden with your feet up high – while my gardener and his assistant do the job!

Doesn't this sound great?:)

Enjoy the images, images of the time that she was still young, joyful and full of energy.

Wasn't she a good assistant gardener and pest controller?

Of course, this is only a small part of the film.She helped my hubby to mow the whole lawn.

Now I am going to write and enjoy myself, and while I am writing down her story I relive the beautiful times.

It seems almost if she is still here!

PS::) I was naughty and only joking in my earlier post! :):)

Of course: it isn't Summer here right now – and it wasn't also 26°C.

Only on these film pictures it was Summer, warm and sunny.

The reality is:

1. It's here late Fall now, and yes - it was raining very heavy and we had really very gusty weather!

2. We only had some problems with the film pictures!

For the U.S readers: Happy Thanksgiving to you all!

Till soon :)

Mowing the Lawn: Canceled

Unfortunate but due to heavy rain showers and gusty weather, we had to cancel the appointment with our assistant gardener.

Mowing the lawn with rainy weather isn't possible.

The weather forecasts for the next few days are: sunny periods, alternated with rain and temperatures around 26° Celsius

(that's 78,8° Fahrenheit).

Our assistant promised to call us when he's available.

We hope that the weather will soon be better!

Keep an eye on it!