KEckerle

Nancy notified me last summer that Discovery Channel’s “Dirtiest Jobs” crew had just finished filming a segment at Oasis. At the time she didn’t know when it would air. I just found out that Discovery will air this segment October 27^th on the Discovery Channel. It airs at 8pm Central Time. Check your local listings. I’m sure you will enjoy it every bit as much as I enjoyed my trip to Oasis Camel Dairy.

Sometimes you don’t have to go that far to see something unique and wonderful. Such was the case last summer as I visited friends in Ramona, California --- quite by accident I happened upon the Oasis Camel Dairy, located 8 miles East of Ramona in San Diego County. Operated by Gil Riegler and Nancy Kobert, who have worked with camels for more than 20 years, this is a marvelous place to visit for both adults and children. It is the only camel dairy in the United States.

[I first met Pierre on a visit to my dear friend Pat's aviary at The Beak in Southern California.  He called me and when I arrived at his aviary, he danced for me and told me he loved me.  I told Pat if I ever dared to have a Cockatoo (I have several other parrot-type birds), I'd want to have Pierre. 

Several months ago she wrote me of the "Massacre on Arnold Way and I cried for hours afterward.  So when I discovered this in my e-mail today I begged Pat to let me share Pierre's story with the world.  She kindly agreed.  Pierre will always have a wonderful home with Pat and Frank.  Her birds are the love of her life and she incubates and hand-feeds the babies til they are weaned.  For those of you unfamiliar with the process, Pat and Frank take turns doing overnight duty when the "peeps

My fifth grade teacher was an expert on ancient Greece and Greek mythology. She had a way of bringing it to life and even when we were each required to recite the Three Gallic Wars before the entire class, we somehow managed to enjoy it. So imagine my surprise when I found myself involved recently in a discussion of Homer’s Odyssey. In truth I doubt I’d even THOUGHT about The Odyssey since English Lit class in high school. But as I listened to a variety of actors, poets and scholars discussing this classic text, I found myself thoroughly enthralled. I must admit I remembered more of the story than I would ever have anticipated. But what really caught my attention was how well the story lines fit into contemporary life. 

Howdy, folks, my name is Justice.*"

While this may not seem like a topic for a business blog, it's a reality many are facing as a result of tough economic times.  Many folks are having to make the tough decision to give up their beloved pets --- either for financial reasons or because a change in housing is necessary.  I have worked for many years with dog rescue groups who saw occasional owner surrenders.  These turnovers were generally the results of poor choices or poor training methods which resulted in dogs which were deemed too difficult to handle by their original owners.

In recent months that has changed and we are receiving numerous calls from heartbroken owners who are no long able to keep their pet with them due to issues like home foreclosure, lay-offs, or the need to move in with other family members.  Parting with their beloved pets is often tantamount to giving away a child.  And while many who are reading this may say they would NEVER part with their pet, we must face the fact that at times in our lives things may truly be outside our control.

My purpose here is to help those on both sides of the transition by giving you some guidelines to work with.

Vacations often mean leaving pets behind. As a location independent professional I opted to live full-time in my RV so that my pets could enjoy this independent lifestyle along with me.

For years, vacations meant leaving my pets behind . . . . something that always worried me. A change in routine can be disruptive and cause digestive upsets. Since my dogs are rescues, they often found boarding facilities frightening . . . I think they were afraid they’d been dumped again. 

So now my Giant Schnauzers and my parrots and I travel together in the RV. Crowded? Yup . . . sometimes it is. The dogs and I have choreographed a little dance. I say “Move” and they look for free space to step into. And just like the sticks and bricks home . . . bathrooms are not meant for privacy! I finally had the door removed and hung up a curtain. 

And, as they did in my home office in SoCal, my birds talk to me (and my clients) all day long. Clients I’ve had for years are often relieved to hear Bleu talking in the background as many feared I left my birds behind when I moved into the RV. Several times I’ve found folks standing outside my RV trying to figure out “what that strange bird whistle is I keep hearing when I walk by your RV. There . . . do you hear it?” Yup, I hear it. Just like my dogs, my birds call me when I’m out-of-sight. It’s music to my ears!

It’s 10 p.m. and I’ve just finished the first round on an emergency project. It’s now floating about in the Ethernet on it’s way to my client . . . ah, the life of a location independent professional. Never a dull moment.   After all, isn' this why we became location independent professionals???

Here I am . . . still wearing the same men’s black boxer shorts, worn t-shirt and floppy bunny slippers I was wearing yesterday morning when the frantic client call interrupted my morning crossword puzzle! (And you wonder why the world continues to resist photo-phones!) 

Since then I’ve managed to brush my hair and my teeth once . . . no, fortunately I didn’t confuse the hair goop with the toothpaste!  I’ve also gone through 2 pots of Turkish coffee, 3 bananas, a bag of tortilla chips, a jar of salsa and a container of cottage cheese.