hi all,
 
Sorry -- the only things I've posted in the last six months have been
bad news :-(  A public thank you to all the friendly strangers who sent
condolences, e-postcards, and poems for Tia.  She was my special girl.
 
After saying goodbye to Tia just two weeks ago, our 2nd eldest ferret
Ariadne passed away this evening.  Ari was a spunky tough grrrl ferret
right until the end.  She had cancer and I'm afraid she was in pain
recently (they are stoic little critters), I'm at least glad she's now
at peace.
 
Ari's nickname was "the Poopus".  She was notorious for going everywhere
*but* the litterbox.  She was a badger-head sable and was deaf, which we
didn't find out about until she was about a year old!  (No wonder she
never responded when we yelled NO!) She had little markings over her eyes
that made her look like she was squinting at you.  She was also an
ankle-biter -- never so hard as to break the skin, but more to get your
attention if you're weren't paying her any.
 
Midge has been going crazy for weeks making fert soup, and giving her
Essiac and vitamin E, and it really broke her heart when Ari had a seizure
and just stopped tonight.
 
Thanks for reading,
 
mark, midge & the remaining three fuzzies.
[Posted in FML issue 3323]