Chickenlips Knitting

I'm going to depart from my usual and favorite subject of yarn and the infinite variety of stuff that can be made from it, for just a bit. I'm concerned about yet another distressing trend that is coming out of these economic hard times, but first let me tell you what happened last night.

While I was in the thick of a dyeing session, my daughter saw a huge, black Lab dog wandering about the neighborhood and hanging out in our yard. He wore a collar but no tag, and no one appeared to be looking for him. We live on the corner of a busy street, and quite a few drivers disregard the 25-mph speed limit, thus endangering children and animals. Michelle approached the friendly, although confused and lost, dog and brought him into our fenced back yard to keep him safe. The dog could also hear his owners if they came by looking for him.

Several hours went by with the dog barking and jumping on the sliding glass doors, making me worry if its sheer size would break the door down! Needless to say, my little wiener dog guys, Buster and Jimmy, were barking their heads off. If you are familiar with mini Dachshunds, they have a very loud and sharp bark for a small breed. So to stave off the threat of a migraine, I put them in a crate in the garage.

Finally, after dinner, the dog's owners came by and took him home. As it turns out he is named Harper. Harper is one of the lucky ones. He has a home and owners who love him, and we were relieved to discover this. We were beginning to worry that he may have been abandoned, because this is a sad and unfortunate reality of bad economic times.

And so, as hard as it is to donate when there is little or no extra money, I ask you my friends to consider giving to your local animal shelter. The numbers of abandoned pets will no doubt increase before the economy begins to improve. If you forego that skein of sock yarn, even the one you may be wanting to buy from me, it could make a big difference in the life of a frightened small animal.

Thank you. I love you all.

Sharon/Chickenlips/Stitchjones