A furry gift

Bali journal entry

Do you have a morning ritual?
Mine is spent trying to coax my ornery hound onto the bed for a cuddle.
That's right, on the bed.

You'd think it would be a luxury to be allowed there, let alone
stroked and chatted to while mum wakes up with a cup of tea.

This morning as I picked another flea off my arm I pondered life's gifts.
Ten years ago this was hound.


He was thrown away in a plastic shopping bag and left for dead. The vet
said he was a goner, and it was the gentle and loving heart of the
vet nurse who took him home every night to close his fly blown sores,
let him feed and help his fur grow back that he is alive today.

Baxter was my first case as a foster mother for animal rescue,
and the reason I was sure I'd burst into tears
when I met Bernie Berlin.
In fact I avoided her.

She chased me.

On the last day we chatted. Of course about dogs. If you have been
living under a rock for the last five years you may not know that the very talented
ms Berlin owns and runs a doggy rescue in Tennessee. Not only that
she conducts raids on puppy factories with the help of the ASPCA and rescues
drained mother dogs and their produce.

Every cent she earns teaching very cool and contemporary art skills
goes to finance her passion.
She is unassuming, hilarious and tiny.

And I didn't cry.
Almost.
Which is why I spent three days with Stephanie Lee
learning how to solder and make magic with metal.

My wicked friend Margaret (blonde) Stephanie and Kirsty the needle threader(with books)

This would be the third attempt to make friends with metal. If I had a dollar
for every time a jewellers saw snapped in my hand, or a new style manicure
was created with a file or bench grinder I'd buy myself a new manicure.

Some things simply have to be experienced. Like a sunset, a kiss or a fresh
oyster sliding down your throat; metal soldering is one of these.


Like a kiss, it can't be rushed. The perfect moment when solder races
toward it's lover is only achieved by careful heating of the base. Short
cuts end in lonely globs.

Like a sunset it's moment is brief but beautiful then one begins the process anew.
When solder slides onto metal the planets align and angels sing.

Or something like that. For a while I made blackened lonely globs
till the alchemy kicked in. The divine rhythm, the magic formulae that
cant really be taught, but shown. And Stephanie coaxed me on.

I made chain links soldered together, mixed with found jewellery and a doll leg.
Another chain appeared sporting a tiny silver salt shaker.
I was happy.


Solder flowed like molten chocolate and the book was created.
Still officially a WIP, it is a testimony to the "aha" point at which one gains a new skill.

By now another flea has jumped into the mug of tea and it's time
to walk my furry muse. He is glad the routine is back
to normal and I still smell the same.

Dog arrived ten years ago with a matching set of luggage. Boy,
did he have luggage. Friends said I was mad to take such a dog.
They were right. I was mad.

We were both mad together, and we saved each other.
His mum went to Bali and all he got was a stupid dog t shirt.
He will put up with the t shirt but he wont be cuddled.