Tribute to our friend Eli

(Photo: Eli from Summer 2007)
This past week, Dolly and Franklin's friend and playmate, Eli passed on to a pain-free afterlife. At the young age of 5, Pat and Brooke's Cavalier Spaniel, Eli was suffering from Syringomyelia. It gave him bouts of uncontrollable scratching at his right shoulder, as well as a host of other issues he has had since he was a pup, like yelping upon being picked up. It's a neurological issue that causes a lot of pain. Last week, Eli wouldn't go up and down stairs, or jump on furniture as he used to. It just got to be too much pain for him, and Brooke and Pat had to make that difficult decision that was best for Eli. Our hearts are breaking for Eli, and for Brooke and Pat. We know that Eli is now playing with Buzz in Heaven and can run and chase rabbits side-by-side with Buzz.
Just so you know, Brooke and Pat learned this condition is very common in Cavalier Spaniels. For more information: http://sm.cavaliertalk.com/

Saturday Stuff/SUN Returns/ Mother's Day

The SUN returned today. Although yesterday had some sun, it did rain last night making rain for the 9th day in a row. Anyway, it seems that the Azaleas in the front of the house enjoyed all that rain... Here they are...
WEEKEND DOG WALKING FUN- Today was the 2nd day we actually got to walk the dogs around the neighborhood - they hate the rain, so seeing the sun was a treat. We made breakfast at home, then walked the "kids." Here they are waiting inside the front door, while I was taking a picture of the Azaleas.
Followed by an inside shot of them... Dolly and Franklin couldn't wait for their walk!
After we walk them about a mile, they always run to the side gate, so they can run into the backyard and run around there, too. This is an everyday occurrence.
MOTHER'S DAY - We decided to celebrate mom's day for Tom's mom today because restaurants are nuts tomorrow. I took her shopping with me in Walmart, while Tom and his stepdad revitalized their front lawn flower beds. Afterward, we treated them to dinner at Outback Steak House! YUM!!

Finished a great book: Code of Conduct

I just finished reading a really moving fiction book called "Code of Conduct" by Rich Merritt. I strongly recommend it! It's about gay marines trying to deal with "don't ask, don't tell," and had a great story about two men that find each other, friendships and undercover military agents that went on witch-hunts to find gay people and get them thrown out of the military. The military really makes these guys hide who they are, just so they can protect our country - Our gov't (like Britian and Australia) needs to just openly allow gay people in the military. Buy this book!
"Code of Conduct" is by Rich Merritt, an ex-Marine, who came out of the closet. It's Published by Kensington Books in 2008.
Summary from Google: At thirty-three, Don Hawkins has spent the better part of his life, in every sense, as a U.S. Marine. Enlisting to escape an alcoholic father and step-mother, he became the unoffical leader of a group of gay servicemen and women, all compelled to guard their sexual identity as faithfully as they serve their country. Ten years now since his lover died, Don is finally ready to love again, and falls headlong for Patrick, a handsome young helicopter pilot. As their relationship develops, Don lets his guard down - in potentially dangerous ways. Because forces are at work in the Naval Investigative Service, in Congress, and even in the bars and clubs that Don views as his turf, with a vicious agenda that will have unforseen consequences.

A Vampire Parody of Twilight: A Book to Get!

Our friend Steve Jenner just wrote a book that should go on your MUST READ LIST! - I just ordered mine today (it just came out today). Steve has a really funny sense of humor, so this is guaranteed to be enjoyable!
It’s a parody of the famously famous Stephenie Meyer’s Twilight book about teen vampire love.
You can also visit his website at: http://www.twilightparody.com Steve's wife Lynn (my friend from work) set up the website- and she wants some royalties for chocolate! :) Enjoy the excerpts!
You can see it on Amazon here: http://www.amazon.com/TwiLite-Parody-Stephen-Jenner/dp/1602643814/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1241808818&sr=8-1

Wash Post Op-Ed by Eugene Robinson, writer

Hi all - Whether or not you agree with equal rights and gay marriage or not- and of course we do because we deserve it. Just like everyone else. Anyway, an Op-Ed in the Washington Post newspaper is a good follow-up to Tom's blog of yesterday. I edited it for brevity's sake, but you can read the whole thing at the link provided. And the Eugene Robinson isn't the gay pastor, he's a columnist who writes for the Post regularly.

WASHINGTON POST OP-ED by Eugene Robinson Friday, May 8, 2009
Believe it or not, often I can see the other side of an argument. I know that tough gun control laws save lives and make our communities safer, for example, but I also see clarity in the Second Amendment. I support affirmative action, but I realize that providing opportunity to some worthy individuals can mean denying opportunity to others. Thinking about some issues involves discerning among subtly graded shades of gray.
On some issues, though, I really don't see anything but black and white. Among them is the "question" of granting full equal rights to gay and lesbian Americans, which really isn't a question at all. It's a long-overdue imperative, one that the nation is finally beginning to acknowledge... (***THERE ARE MORE PARAGRAPHS, I EDITED IT TO JUST GIVE THE IDEA OF IT***)
Does Obama's stance in favor of repeal mean that he believes the federal government should recognize same-sex marriages? Does he also believe that, say, the state of Alabama should recognize a gay marriage performed in Iowa? If so, what is the practical difference between this position and just saying in plain language that gay marriages ought to be legal and recognized in all 50 states?
I'm not being unrealistic. I know that public acceptance of homosexuality in this country is still far from universal. But attitudes have changed dramatically -- more than enough for a popular, progressive president to speak loudly and clearly about a matter of fundamental human and civil rights. FULL OP-ED: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/07/AR2009050703055.html?wpisrc=newsletter&wpisrc=newsletter

Thoughts on newspaper commentary: "It is Acceptable for Blacks to Hate Gays"

Tom's Blogging today (I totally agree on this:)
COMMENTS ON TODAY'S WASHINGTON POST NEWSPAPER COMMENTARY Remember in grade school, there was always one kid in the class that everyone picked on? It was OK to pick on this person because everyone did it. I remember in my 3rd grade class, there was a kid named Steven R. I liked Steve. Steve had ADD. Of course, we didn’t know it at the time. We didn’t have fancy medical terms for such behavioral problems in 1971. The teacher would take Steven out of his chair and put him against the wall for disciplinary purposes. Steven, now sitting on the floor, would violently rock himself pounding his back against the wall. He could sit there for hours doing this. There was a girl in our class named Debbie P. Debbie saw the attention that Steve was getting, so she started aping the same rocking that Steve was doing. Everyone in our class picked on Debbie because it was OK to pick on Debbie. Not only was she chubby, but now she was “copying” Steve to get attention. And that wasn’t cool.

This morning, there was a short commentary in our local newspaper about the apparent cultural divide that has developed where it is now “acceptable” for blacks to hate Gays. No one dares to speak out and call them to task on this matter lest you be dubbed a racist or a bigot.

This week, the D.C. Council passed legislation that will allow the recognition of same sex marriages that are performed outside the city limits. The black community has vehemently retaliated against this action. Angry black preachers are all up in arms vowing to oust every council member that voted “for” the measure. These same black preachers raised such a ruckus at Monday evening’s hearings that they had to be forcibly removed from City Hall.

Yesterday in Washington D.C., black men and women were picketing with large banners in Freedom Plaza. Former mayor, Marion Barry (now dubiously dubbed a “civil rights champion” and is the antithesis of what is right, moral, or even ethical), has spoken out against this resolution and, in fact, was the lone dissenting vote on the bill when the final vote was taken. Loud-mouthed Republicans in Congress, spewing their hatred, are now vowing that they’re going to fight DC’s new law when it comes before them in the next 30 days. Why is this OK? Maybe I can shed some light on the subject.

In every culture, there has to be one group that is on the “outs.” Just like my 3rd grade class used to pick on Debbie P., there has to be one group that’s OK for society at large to pick on. No one is denying the long and exhaustive history of how blacks have been treated in this country. The record is clear and well documented. Blacks, for too long, have been the downtrodden of our society.

But, rather than recognizing the fact that Gays are now in the position that blacks once were, the black community has instead learned that it’s OK to bash Gays because we are now the group that’s on the “outs.” They know this because the black community has witnessed how Gays have been treated by our society and its leaders: Gays have been fired from jobs, denied rightfully earned promotions at places of employment, kicked out of housing, beaten up by rednecks and strung up to fences in freezing cold temperatures to die, denied acceptance in churches thereby kicking dirt in the face of the very tenets of what Christianity is all about – all of this with very little rebuke or retribution.

What is perplexing in all this is that blacks should be focusing their attention on what’s wrong within their own community: the breakdown of the family unit, the large number of fatherless families and unwed mothers with children, the significant number of black children being raised by grandparents, the disproportionate number of black males that make up the country’s prison inmate population, the alarming dropout rates of black children from our educational system, and the unbridled sense of entitlement that has reached apoplectic proportions in recent years.

The right to marry will be granted to the Gay community. It’s just a matter of time. What we are witnessing is the death throes of a hateful movement that needs to die. Because the States have done such a miserable job at handling this matter in a fair and equitable manner, because public opinion can be too easily swayed by closed minded hate mongering groups with lots of money, and because it is the job of our legal system to protect and defend the rights of the downtrodden in our society that cannot protect themselves, this debate will be heading for the Supreme Court very soon.

In the meantime, perhaps the black community should not be throwing rocks when their glass house has a lot of cracks.

World's Oldest Dog is 21 This Week!

Reuters reported that Chanel, the world's oldest dog, celebrated her 21st birthday on Wednesday with a certificate from the Guinness Book of Records and a visit to a dog hotel and spa. The dachshund, a rescue dog from Port Jefferson in New York, wore an orange sweater and red goggles as her owner, Denice Shaughnessy, accepted the award marking her longevity. "Chanel is the Guinness world record holder for the oldest living dog," said Jamie Panas, a spokeswoman for Guinness.
Shaughnessy said Chanel tires quickly, wears goggles for cataracts when she is in the sun, and booties to cushion a benign tumor on her hind leg. Shaughnessy got her pet from a shelter when the dog was six weeks old.

Maine: 5th state to allow gay marriage!

(PHOTO: Maine's Welcome sign- now even more welcoming!) Wow. This is amazing: Mass.,Conn., Vermont, Iowa, and now Maine. It's incredible that during our lifetime we've seen the barriers of hatred and inequality come down in these states. It's a wonderful thing. As for the other states...
By GLENN ADAMS The Associated Press Wednesday, May 6, 2009; 1:04 PM AUGUSTA, Maine -- Maine's governor signed a freshly passed bill Wednesday approving gay marriage, making it the fifth state to approve the practice and moving New England closer to allowing it throughout the region. New Hampshire legislators were also poised to send a gay marriage bill to their governor, who hasn't indicated whether he'll sign it. If he does, Rhode Island would be the region's sole holdout. The Maine Senate voted 21-13. Full article: http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/05/06/AR2009050601681.html?hpid=topnews

Day #7 of Rain... and More Coming

SEVEN CONSECUTIVE DAYS OF RAIN, AND MORE COMING - A stationary front has been draped from the Mid-Atlantic into the south through Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana and Texas for a long time. We've now counted our SEVENTH consecutive day of rain here. Here's the Weather Channel's surface map of fronts. The stationary front is marked by red half circles (for the direction warm air is trying to move) and blue triangles (for the direction colder air is trying to move). It's been a push and pull event for 7 days, bringing showers all along the front, as waves of low pressure (i.e. storms) ride it from southwest to northeast. Since March 1st, we received 9.56 inches (BWI Airport station). Normal is 7.50," so that's 2.06" more than normal (so far). FOR LOCAL WASHINGTON DC/BALTIMORE RADAR: http://radar.weather.gov/radar.php?rid=LWX&product=NCR&overlay=11101111&loop=yes
DOG WALKS UNDER BETWEEN RAINDROPS-We DID get an 8 hour break today here in Washington, DC- so I got to walk the dogs at 6:30am and 12 noon... but it's pouring again at 4:30p.m. **Rain is expected for another THREE DAYS. That's 10 in a row for rain, and colder than normal temperatures. Spring has still really not arrived. Despite having their own raincoats, our Weimaraner Dolly, and Dachshund Franklin hate the rain! (PHOTO: An unknown black lab soaked from a downpour!)

Another Wet Weekend/ My Book - *Send Me Your Ghost Stories*

It was another soaking wet, colder than normal weekend here in Maryland. Fortunately, we went to the seminar on Afterlife communications on Saturday, and a couple drove up from Washington, DC for a nice lunch. Our dogs, Dolly and Franklin didn't like going out in the rain to do their business, even with raincoats on. Who could blame them?
MY BOOK "A MEDIUM IN TRAINING'S GUIDE TO GHOSTS AND SPIRITS" - I made a LOT of progress on it this weekend, after letting it sit for a long time. **IF YOU HAVE A GHOST STORY that you would like included in the book, please send it to me at Rgutro@gmail.com. I have about 20 stories from friends and colleagues around the U.S., and would love to include more. Just tell me how you want your name written (i.e. initials or full name)
AMAZING RACE- This is one of our favorite TV shows. We look forward to Sunday evenings at 8pm, and were glad to see 2 of our favorite teams make the final 3. We don't care for the brother-sister attorneys because we think they're too arrogant (especially the gay brother). We're now rooting for the mom and deaf son (Margie and Luke), and the NFL cheerleaders. It's on CBS Sundays at 8pm, and next weekend is the finale.
UPDATES ON THE H1N1 FLU (from the Center for Disease Control): http://www.cdc.gov/h1n1flu/whatsnew.htm
HOUSEPLANTS CAN BE TOXIC TO YOU AND YOUR PET: (read the Nashville Tennessean article): http://www.tennessean.com/article/20090504/FEATURES01/905040303/1076/NLETTER01?source=nletter-news

My first Public Readings as a Medium- 2 Spirits Come to Me at a Seminar

On Saturday, May 2, 2009, Tom and I attended a seminar in northern Virginia called "A Closer Look: After Death Communications." It was organized and hosted by a local Spiritual Theorist, Lecturer and Para-Physic Event Coordinator named Janice M. Ervin. We met Janice as a result of seeing an article on her in the local newspaper. Once I read it, I contacted her, and we met her and her co-event planner Deb at the local Panera Bread on evening to talk about mediumship and past life experiences. She told us about this seminar. Janice's website is: http://janiceervin.com/.

The seminar featured Dr. R. Craig Hogan, Author, Researcher & Lecturer, Jennifer Farmer, Spiritual Teacher, Intiutive, & Medium, (Of Bob Olson's 10 Best List) and Barb Mallon, Spirit Medium (of Discovery Channel and Channel 9 News). Each of them were fascinating to listen to, and Dr. Hogan explained how the consciousness was "outside the physical brain" among other fascinating things including scientific studies that prove metaphysical activities. Farmer and Mallon did psychic readings around the room that were quite unnerving.

When we arrived, the hotel conference room was already almost filled, so we sat in the last row on the left. I immediately got a headache in the back left corner of my head, which told me there were a number of spirits in the room. I knew they were spirits, though (the ones that had passed in the light and came back to give messages) and not earth-bound ghosts. I slipped Tom a note saying "there are a lot of spirits here wanting to talk."

CHARLIE SENDS A MESSAGE
Right after that, I heard a spirit in my head telling me things, so I wrote them on the pad of paper in front of me. He said his name was "Charlie" and there was a "W" associated with him or the person he was trying to contact. He showed me that he was about 65 when he died. He let me feel pain in the left side of my chest, which indicates to me it was a heart attack that took his life. He showed me snippets of his appearance: short, stocky, short white hair, sticking up, and a large nose. He showed me blue plaid shirt. Then he showed me workboots, and a truck, as if he were a truck driver. He also showed me a white dog. I couldn't tell who in the room he was trying to communicate with, so afterward I told Janice Ervin (The conference organizer) and she said she would let me talk about it at the end of the program. This was the first of two messages.

At the end of the seminar, Janice Ervin let me stand up and say all of these things out loud. Oddly enough, a 30ish year old woman across the aisle said, "That's my grandfather." She explained he looked just like what I described, and said that the ONLY photo she has of him is of him in a plaid checked shirt. She also said that he died when she was six. I told her that he just wanted to let her know that he's with her and watching over her. She was amazed (as I was)!

ANNA SENDS A MESSAGE
Toward the end of the seminar, medium Jennifer Farmer taught everyone how to meditate and focus. She dimmed the lights and played one of her CDs with slow breathing instructions. My mind emptied, only to be filled with thoughts from an elderly woman named "Anna." When I stopped meditating I wrote down everything Anna told me immediately.

She was in her eighties when she died. I wrote "around 87." She showed me the years 1910-1940, indicating that she may have been born during those times. I saw a large open farmland area, with a shack of a house – "like Minnesota" I heard. She told me she was related to someone with a "G." She also said that she was someone's grandmother or mother in the room. She said she's around this person, always watching over them. Further, she told me that the person she "belonged to" lives in a brick apartment or condominium, and she showed me a fountain, indicating there's water around it. (We were in northern Virginia, west of Washington, D.C. so there's no water).

While reading what I had written to the people in the room, a woman sitting four tables up from me immediately said "Anna, That's my mother." The woman, who didn't give her name, said that her mother passed in a community that looked out over an open field and farmland in northwestern Maryland (Montgomery County). She said that she was in fact 83 when she passed away, which was recently. Further, the woman told me that she does live in a brick condominium, and there's a lake next to the building, confirming the water aspect. Sometimes spirits will show you something to make you think of something related. The woman was shocked. She said that she had already "tuned out" for the day, not expecting anyone to come through for her.

I was surprised as well, that the two descriptions of spirits that came to me were so detailed, that two people immediately recognized who they were. I guess my abilities are really developing, and I was thankful that I was able to bring comfort to both of these women, by letting them know their loved ones are okay, and are watching over each of them.

Free Comic Book Day is This Saturday: May 2nd!

At 46, I still collect comic books- and I must say, they're extremely well written, and most have incredible artwork. I love Justice League of America, Superman, Batman, Green Lantern, the Flash, Captain America and others. These are written for Adults. They're not like the comics of the 1960s and 1970s we grew up with. (Although there are superhero versions for kids today). Comic books inspired me to read, and I learned how to write better and create stories. When I didn't know a word that Batman said, for example, I'd look it up and remember it. SO, if you have children, get them involved in reading comic books. Now I write for a living, and I read a novel a week (plus all my comics). There's nothing like reading and writing. - Rob
What is Free Comic Book Day?
Free Comic Book Day is a single day - the first Saturday in May - when participating comic book shops across North America and around the world give away comic books absolutely FREE* to anyone who comes into their stores. *Check with your local shop for their participation and rules.