I Kind of Have to Read This Now.

Imagine my delight when I saw this BBC headline this morning.  A combination of things that fascinate me have collided wonderfully and now I'm frothing at the mouth: Korean culture, Vegetarianism and Beautifully Written Books! 

It's already unavailable at the local library. URGFHFHFHFJFJHDDHHS.. I'm twitching so bad to read it! This might warrant a purchase :)

This So Awesomely BADASS!

I know, they weren't "supposed to" and it may have been dangerous.. But they did it and saved animals in the process :)   And of course let's not forget that there is ongoing efforts to free these trapped animals by city-designated teams as well.  200 rescued animals arrived in Edmonton today :)

Stories like this give me faith in humanity. Thoughts of trapped pets have been haunting me and even though donating money to the humane society (and Red Cross) makes me feel like I'm helping at least a little bit, I still feel really helpless. 

But reading these articles made my day :) Between entering the world of pet therapy and learning how many distraught pet-lovers there are around me, one cannot underestimate the power of the human-pet bond.  

..the Power of Man's Red Flower (c)the Jungle Book

The scale of the Fort McMurray fires is unbelievable.  I can't even imagine trying to drive away from this:
 

Picture from Reddit.

Worst of all, I know there were pets that weren't able to be rescued and this just crumples my heart (as I type this Hachi is sleeping peacefully on his dog bed).  That is truly one of my worst worst nightmares - not being able to save my pet in a situation like that. I would've lost my mind. 

It might've been a blessing in disguise that there aren't as many workers at the camps due to the low oil prices.   At least evacuees were able to take refuge at the work camps.  Despite being called "camps" these facilities can be quite nice. I've stayed in one with a huge cafeteria and gyms (including a separate women-only gym) and a huge game room and movie room.  Now it is probably housing not just parents but kids and pets too.   

Even though I see stupid anti-oil-sands and anti-government comments about the fires, I'm extremely impressed with the warmth and kindness pouring out of not just Alberta but the whole country. Even at my office there are people opening their homes.  The oil companies are housing evacuees in camps and flying them out. Businesses are giving away profits to help.  Firefighters are risking their lives around the clock.