Uncle always looked forward to male companionship as he had a brew or two outside after a hard day’s work, so Buddy was Uncle’s best companion and listener since our household consists of a preponderance of females.

Buddy, a labrador/hound mix, was one of two family dogs, the other being Gracie, a female grey brindle pitbull.  Anyone who has or loves dogs knows how wonderful they are because of how they make us feel.  Special.

One of the biggest drawbacks of owning a dog is that they grow old and pass away too quickly, leaving us with a void in our lives that is haunted with the sound of rustling in the brush or their pantings and tail thumps.

Yesterday, Buddy was found lying on his side and breathing very heavily, and not able to walk.  His back legs would get crisscrossed, and he would lose his balance and fall heavily down.  After a quick google search about crisscrossed back legs, Degenerative Myelopathy turned up as the most likely culprit, and the prognosis was dismal, irreversible.

After a day of walking Buddy around with an improvised belly sling and a night of convulsions and cries, we knew that we had to put Buddy to sleep, asap.  In the morning, we called the great folks over at Island Veterinary Care, and under the very caring and calming hands of Dr. Lau, Buddy was euthanized at home.

Since this is a blog to share lessons, this is a post about the disposing of our family pet with dignity, and not breaking the bank.

The final farewell

The Hawaiian Humane Society at 2700 Waialae Avenue will accept animals – euthanize (you will not be present) and cremate them for $60 when you drop them off.  For $225 drop off, they will euthanize and arrange private cremation so you can pick up the ashes later.

The City and County of Honolulu’s bulk pick up division (phone directory) will pick up dead animals for free, though not immediately.  We did consider this option, but could not detach ourselves enough from our memories of Buddy enough to consign him to a final farewell such as this.

For about $240 plus pick up fees, the Oahu Pet Crematory will retrieve your animal from your veterinarian and/or your place, cremate, and have the ashes ready for you at your convenience.  These fine folk also do the cremations for the Hawaiian Humane Society.

Our house call for Dr. Lau to euthanize Buddy at home was $457.  It could have been less had we taken him into the office, but I am glad we opted to be with Buddy in his familiar settings and watch him leave this world with such peace.  After that, we loaded Buddy’s body into the car, and booked the private cremation services at the Hawaiian Humane Society.

The reality of not having Buddy hit me this afternoon, after I directed Gracie to the backyard and latched the gate.  I usually say to the dogs, “Laters, alligators!”  However, today, with just Gracie to address, it was, “Later, alligator.”

To all the missing alligators out there:  Aloha oe, until we meet again.

Get a PO Box near your home/business that you will visit frequently.  You might be put on a wait list, but keep checking and get one.  Then, change the address on your accounts, licenses, permits, insurance, car registrations, etc.  It is a level of security – if your purse or car gets broken into and the thieves have your keys, they don’t know where you live since your PO box will be the address on all your identifications and papers.  I like the USPS’ boxes because they are open 24/7 for me to access my mail.

Coffee filters can be wonderful little helpers.  Check it out!

If your refrigerator smells and nothing you do helps (though you should clean it out first), try this.  Pack each shelf with crumpled newspapers and set a cup of water on the top shelf.  Let it stand for 5 days.  The newspapers will absorb the odor like magic!  Best to do just before you leave for vacation.

I dye my hair.  What I can’t stand is the roots showing after a few weeks of hair growth.  Hmmmm, I thought, why can’t I use my stamp pads to color my hair?  So I did, just for the temporary fix.  Find a color that matches the dyed color of your hair, and use the stamp pad (the little ones shaped like teardrops work better than the flat large rectangle ones) and run it over the roots area and especially around the root area around the face.  Don’t use the permanent ink type – it might stain your face and scalp, and that will look gross.  Shazam!  Root lines vanish – for now.

I used to be able to memorize phone numbers of all my friends.  Now, I sometimes even forget my own phone number (since I don’t call myself that much – “hello? self?”).  Once, in a casual conversation with someone I didn’t know, phone numbers were exchanged, and he said he used to have a really great phone number when he was living in Hawaii.  It spelled PEANUTS (732-6887).  That was pretty cool.  You can figure out your own phone number analog combinations by playing with the alpha and numerics but the easy way is to enter the phone number at phonespell.com and it will spit out the possibilities.  Not all numbers work out, but when it does, it makes it easy to remember.

Here’s my baby – the first car I ever owned.  The car I met Uncle in as well as pack our entire family of 6 in to watch a movie (Conan the Barbarian) at a drive in theatre.  Today, the new owner just drove her off and it was truly bittersweet.  Since this is my website, I’m posting her picture here with duct tape patches and all.  Aloha dear Karmann.

The single most important decision to make in life is to marry a good person, if you plan to be married, that is.

We are all attracted to the good looking ones, but as Uncle says, it is the heart that counts.  I lucked out because I was attracted to Uncle who is a real hunk, but he also has a heart of gold with a smattering of local yokel rowdiness.  Uncle and I have a really great marriage.  He cherishes me, even with all my faults, grey hair, clutter, and idiosyncrasies.  That is love.

As his wife, I use the “Tuesday” rule (when I remember) since I can be a pain in the butt and don’t want to be a nag.  If Uncle does something I don’t like – like leaving his fishing pole in the way or not putting the cover on the toothpaste, I ask myself, “Will this matter next Tuesday?”  If it will matter, I bitch away (I AM trying to say things more diplomatically nowadays).  If it won’t matter, I just suck it up and don’t say anything.  It’s not worth the sour taste if it’s not that important.  [update:  I have never, ever regretted using the Tuesday rule.  Uncle is obliviously happy and I might have some teeth marks on my lower lip because of the effort needed to hold in my comments not mattering in the Tuesday test, but it has been worth it.  For sure enough, Tuesday comes and goes, and whatever it was that bugged me the week before, it really didn’t matter worth squat a week later.]

Menopause is something else.  It is the worst period in a woman’s life but even worse for husband and family.  It is also a period of power and some never get over it.  I think it is the test of a marriage.  If you’ve passed the test, congratulations.

Also, advice from Alice Kong (girlfriend’s mom) – always wear lipstick.  It makes a difference in how you look, and you should always try to look half way decent in front of the most important person in your life.  Please check out Aunty’s pages on Beauty when you have time.

That’s another thing.  Your spouse is the most important person in your life.  That is who you chose, and they chose you.

At a recent Wealth Summit here in Honolulu, Ian Plummer, a color expert, gave a brief summary of using color to help people in their relationships.  I was very impressed and thought I knew what color I was as he described the traits, especially the not so good stuff.  Here is an Aunty page on the theory, although I suggest you go to the website and take the test.

I feel that being able to understand the other person’s core motivation can be used to enhance any relationship.

Back in college we were given the Briggs Myers personality test, and I was an INTP (Introvert, iNtuitive, Thinker, Perceiver) type.  It is rather fun to know and be “typed”.  Just this year, I took the same type of test, called the Jung Typology test, and I was still an INTP.  I believe Uncle is the exact opposite of me – an ESFJ.  This may be why we get along so well.

For a good marriage, respect is paramount.  With respect, comes trust and actually liking your spouse.

Aunty constantly looks at a quote from the Dalai Lama:  “Be kind whenever possible….. It is always possible.”  It applies to everyone for everything.  It makes for peace, goodwill, and a very happy Uncle – when Aunty remembers.

5 THINGS YOU NEVER KNEW YOUR CELL PHONE COULD DO

There are a few things that can be done in times of grave emergencies. Your mobile phone can actually be a life saver or an emergency tool for survival. Check out the things that you can do with it:

FIRST
The Emergency Number worldwide for Mobiles is 112.  If you find yourself out of the coverage area of your mobile; network and there is an emergency, dial 112 and the mobile will search any existing network to establish the emergency number for you, and interestingly this number 112 can be dialed even if the keypad is locked. Try it out.

SECOND
Have you locked your keys in the car?
Does your car have remote keyless entry?
This may come in handy someday. Good reason to own a cell phone: If you lock your keys in the car and the spare keys are at home, call someone at home on their cell phone from your cell phone.  Hold your cellphone about a foot from your car door and have the person at your home press the unlock button, holding it near the mobile phone on their end. Your car will unlock. Saves someone from having to drive your keys to you. Distance is no object.  You could be hundreds of miles away, and if you can reach someone who has the other “remote” for your car, you can unlock the doors (or the trunk).
Editor’s Note: It works fine! We tried it out and it unlocked our car over a cell phone!

THIRD
Hidden Battery Power
Imagine your cell battery is very low.  To activate, press the keys *3370# Your cell will restart with this reserve and the instrument will show a 50% increase in battery. This reserve will get charged when you charge your cell next time.

FOURTH
How to disable a STOLEN mobile phone?
To check your Mobile phone’s serial number, key in the following digits on your phone: * # 06 #.  A 15-digit code will appear on the screen.  This number is unique to your handset. Write it down and keep it somewhere safe. When your phone get
stolen, you can phone your service provider and give them this code.  They will then be able to block your handset so even
if the thief changes the SIM card, your phone will be totally useless. You probably won’t get your phone back, but at least you know that whoever stole it can’t use/sell it either. If everybody does this, there would be no point in people stealing mobile
phones.

And Finally….
FIFTH
Free Directory Service for Cells
Cell phone companies are charging us $1.00 to $1.75 or more for 411 information calls when they don’t have to. Most of us do not carry a telephone directory in our vehicle, which makes this situation even more of a problem. When you need to use the 411 information option, simply dial: (800) FREE 411, or (800) 373-3411 without incurring any charge at all. Program this into your cell phone now.  This is the kind of information people don’t mind receiving, so pass it on to your family and friends.

Caution about cell phone usage – read this about <your brain and cell phones.> If you have to yack a lot on a phone, use a land line.  Especially limit the amount of time your young one or teenager uses it.

The world has changed with the advent of modern technology.  Moderation is still the wisest use of it.