Wednesday, August 5, 2009

The Visitor

Possum
One of the neat things about writing a blog is the number of "virtual friends" one acquires - people who found my blog quite by chance through a mention or a link on some other blog, and who become regular readers. Yesterday I had the opportunity to meet one of those virtual friends in person.

Or perhaps I should say TWO virtual friends, because even though it is Katherine (the human) who emailed me, it is Possum (the canine) who created the connection between us. About two years ago, Katherine adopted Possum from Turtle Gardens Animal Rescue, one of my fav rescues run by one of the most hard-workingest families I virtually know. Turtle Gardens has a link to my blog on theirs, and so Katherine started reading my blog. And, since we both now live on the island, today she and Possum came for a visit.

Possum is one of the greatest ambassadors Turtle Gardens could ever wish for. He was a bit of a mess when Yvette took him in - both physically and emotionally. Katherine's patience and good care paid off, and he is now an adorable, well behaved two and a half year old. He quickly stole my heart with his combination of teddybear looks, good manners, and playful attitude. He sure loves his toys (or, in this case, my crew's toys!).

A little shy at first, he hung around under the table by his mama's feet:

Shy Possum

But soon he was all smiles:

Cheese!


The toy box soon erased the last of his inhibitions:

Are these for ME????

Oh boy! Lots of good loot in here!

He's pretty funny, Mom!


The I-Cube was the big hit. It holds several balls, which Possum had great fun getting out:

Are there any more in here?

Sadie was MUCH more interested in an old Treat Ball which Charley unearthed from the bottom of the box for her:

Hmmm....this smells interesting!


Nom nom nom


After initially checking out the newcomer, Princess Belle retreated to a safer distance and posed with the new toy Possum gave her:

Gifts for the Princess


Oliver slept through the initial introductions and awoke to discover a stranger in the house. In true Oliver fashion, he watched intensely and followed the newcomer around unobstrusively.

Who IS that?

I shall hypnotize him with my unblinking stare!


Oh, hello! Who are you?


Not to be left out, Allie observed the gray fuzzball from a safe perch atop the fridge:

OMG, Not Another Dog??!!!!!



But Possum just looked at Allie curiously and resumed playing with his toys:

Fluffy dog with fluffy toy

It was a lovely afternoon, and it was so nice to meet someone I've only chatted with via emails. Thanks, Katherine and Possum, for coming to visit us - and thank you Turtle Gardens for rescuing this absolutely adorable boy!

Edited to add: note to family and friends - my Shaw digital phone is on the fritz, sometimes working, sometimes not. If you are trying to call me and getting no answer, please email instead.

5 comments:

Black Jack's Carol said...

Very enjoyable post, Jean. All wonderful pictures, but the "all smiles" one was just perfect. I can't remember any more how I came to your blog, but I'm glad I did. I think it may also have been through Turtle Gardens. I greatly admire the work Yvette and her crew do, and am so happy for Possum (and Katherine). I also love the idea of the three of you meeting after your virtual introduction. One day, I hope that Bill, Black Jack and I can meet you and the critters too.

Anonymous said...

Thank YOU Jean and your family of lovely furry faces. We thoroughly enjoyed our visit with you, Charley, Sadie, Oliver, Princess Belle and of course the ever present but watching from a safe distance, Allie. It was so nice to finally put a face to the blog I have enjoyed reading for some time now. Not only has Possum brought an abundance of love and companionship to my life but also a way to make new friends. Thank you again and we hope that you will make it up Island our way and that we can return your hospitality. xo Katherine and Possum

Jean said...

Carol, I hope we will meet one day too. I think you, Black Jack and Bill should plan a trip to the island (it's a little hard for me to bring ALL my crew over to meet you!) or at least to Saltspring as I'm just a hop and a skip from there. And there's lots of interesting gardens and birds to photograph both on Saltspring and here!

Katherine, a trip up island is definitely in our plans! Well, mine - and perhaps a couple of the dogs. A road trip with all four in the vehicle is a bit overwhelming! LOL

Karen said...

How lovely that you were able to meet Katherine and Possum! Possum was the brother of Tucker, our first TG dog. Tucker was terribly psychologically damaged, and sadly bolted away from Mike when he was broken down in Saskatchewan in mid winter at -30. We offered a large reward, and had people searching for him, but never saw him again. Soon after, Yvette offered us Cody, who is the best little truck dog ever.

Jean said...

Karen, I had forgotten you had adopted Tucker and how tragically he was lost - such a heartbreaking experience.

I always get a chuckle out of your blog entries that feature Cody the truckin' dog - he has certainly adapted to his new life well!