Shoestring Saves: Sharing the Good Life

Change a Pet's Life: Adopt a Shelter Animal

This past Saturday, Hill's Pet Nutrition pet food and hundreds of animal shelters across the country teamed up to host "Change Pet's Life Day", an effort to lessen the barrier to pet adoption (waiving the normal adoption fees) while lessening the burden on animal shelters during this economic crisis (due to the resulting spike in pet surrenders nationwide).

Technical difficulties prevented us from spreading the word in time on Saturday, but wanted to share with you our interview with Dr. Louise Murray (above, left) director of medicine for the ASPCA in New York City. Dr. Murray is a regular guest and veterinary expert on CNN, the Today Show, and Animal Planet's Animal Precinct, as well as the author of Vet Confidential.

Read on for her thoughts on deciding whether or not pet adoption is right for you, and how to go about finding free or low-cost adoption centers near you, or check out this pet adoption story from USA TODAY, including photos from our favorite shooter, Jessica Rinaldi.

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Shoestring: What are your thoughts on Change a Pet's Life Day, sponsored by Hill's Pet Nutrition?

Dr. Murray: It’s essential that we get the word out that adoption is the best option! Events that help broadcast this message help to combat our pet overpopulation crisis. We all need to work together to solve this issue.

Shoestring: How is the ASPCA helping to defray the cost, either on Change a Pet's Life Day or otherwise, of adoption in order to lessen the burden on shelters?

Dr. Murray: Pets up for adoption at the ASPCA are already spayed/neutered, vaccinated, and microchipped. The adoption fee doesn’t cover the cost of these procedures and other care provided to our shelter animals, but we feel it’s important to provide these services to protect the health and welfare of the dogs and cats, and so that the adopter’s financial situation will not be a barrier to bringing home a new animal companion. The ASPCA does provide periodic no-fee adoptions in conjunction with special events at the organization.

Shoestring: What should potential adopters know or think about before going to a local shelter to adopt an animal?

Dr. Murray: Adopting a pet is a big responsibility! Before making the decision to bring any new pet home, from a shelter or any other source, think it over carefully, and have a serious discussion with your family. Even the best-behaved pet needs a significant amount of care and attention. Once you’ve decided to adopt, carefully consider what type of pet is best for your own situation. Although both cats and dogs require a time commitment, some people who work long hours or have space limitations find cats to be easier pets; for example they don’t require walking outside and can get plenty of exercise within your home. You should also think about the personality of the pet you may adopt, and how this will fit into your lifestyle – is a boisterous or quiet pet best for your family? Would you do better with a couch potato, or a pet who’s always on the go? Don’t choose your new pet based solely on looks, which can be a temptation – in the long run, it’s your pet’s temperament and compatibility with your lifestyle that will matter most.

Shoestring: What advice do you give to potential pet owners, in general, in making the decision whether or not to adopt a rescue animal?

Dr. Murray: I encourage everyone to consider adopting rather than purchasing a pet. There are pets of all shapes, sizes, and temperaments eagerly awaiting homes in animal shelters all over the country. As President Obama has reminded us, we all need to work together to solve the problems we face as a nation, and one of the issues we need to address is our significant pet overpopulation, which results in a tragic number of healthy animals being euthanized. This is a problem that is completely solvable if we all choose adoption, as well as spay and neuter our pets. When selecting any new animal companion, it’s important to make the choice wisely, and consider your lifestyle and home situation in order to find the most appropriate pet for you and your family.

Shoestring: What can you tell us about the unfortunate increase in pet surrenders due to the economy and resulting adoption crisis?

Dr. Murray: When families lose their homes due to foreclosure, some find it difficult to bring their pets to their new, often temporary, accommodations. This can result in relinquishment of pets to shelters. Some people have made the error of believing that if they leave their pets behind in a house or apartment, someone will come along and care for them--this has resulted in abandoned pets being left without food or water for long periods of time, with tragic consequences. I encourage pet owners who are experiencing housing difficulties to make an attempt to find temporary placing for their pets, for example, with a friend, family member, or neighbor, until the pet can be reunited with the family. 

Shoestring: How can interested animal lovers find a participating shelter?

Dr. Murray: On the Hill’s Feeding is Believing website, potential adopters can locate a participating shelter in their area. Even if there is not a participating shelter in your neighborhood, the event may inspire you to adopt from your local shelter or rescue group.

Other than pet adoption (especially for those animal lovers who are allergic) how can people help, on Change a Pet's Life Day or all year round?

Dr. Murray: We can all encourage friends, family, and coworkers to adopt, rather than purchase, pets. There’s a pet of every description in an animal shelter right now waiting for a home.  It’s especially important to let people know about the problem of puppy mills, and to explain that puppies in pet stores come from puppy mills. If people stopped buying puppies from pet stores, and chose adoption instead, we would make great strides towards solving two serious problems: the animal suffering that occurs in puppy mills, and the euthanasia of healthy animals who don’t have homes. We can also encourage friends and family to have their pets spayed or neutered; well-meaning people often let their dog or cat have one or more litter, not realizing that there are homeless puppies and kittens in animal shelters all over the country.

Shoestring: How can we solve the adoption crisis in this country?

Dr. Murray: Of all the problems we face, this is one that is completely solvable! We simply all need to make the choice to adopt, rather than purchase, our pets, and to have our pets spayed or neutered. There are dogs and cats of every size, shape, age, and breed to be found in animal shelters and rescue groups across the country; we can all find our perfect animal companion through adoption. We need to get beyond the outdated notion of purchasing purebred pets as status symbols; the truly hip people these days are those who adopt!

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To search for dogs and cats available for adoption in your area--by pure breed, age, and other specific criteria that fit your family--check out (and bookmark!) PetFinder.com.

Protect Our Beaches with Barefoot Wines

I've always been enamored by surfing culture, but it was impossible to learn to surf growing up in Chicago. During college, I transferred from snowy Vermont to sunny Los Angeles, and watched enviously from the shore as others paddled out to surf perfect breaks. It wasn't until one day at the beach, when I met two nine year old girls, that I finally learned to surf. From that very first incredibly short and incredibly shaky ride, I was hooked. One of my favorite surfing foundations, the Surfrider Foundation has partnered with Barefoot Wines to form the Barefoot Beach Rescue.

Speaking of partnerships, Melissa and I are psyched that Mochila, the content syndication service we use to supplement our own articles for Shoestring, has just started offering back issues of Natural Health, one of our favorite magazines.

Check out this article from their September 2008 issue featuring Tristan Prettyman, a singer/surfer who is also helping to keep our beaches "barefoot friendly."

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Gifts that Give Back: Catalog Choice & Food Charities

As some of you may know, I am not a big fan of shopping in brick and mortar stores. I love to buy things, but the idea of wrestling with the masses, waiting in lines, and having to talk to store clerks is enough to send me running to the liquor cabinet, xanax in hand.

To temper this panic inducing feeling, I buy everything I possibly can online. Clothes, food, household accessories—no item is too large or small for me to purchase with 1-Click ordering through my Amazon account.

To thank me for my loyal patronage, these online retailers have rewarded with a mailbox overflowing with catalogs. I’ve made the effort to cut back, either by calling the companies who send them directly and asking them to remove me from their lists, or by registering with Catalog Choice and GreenDimes.

(Pottery Barn: please stop sending me catalogs. Even after calling you and registering with these services, you insist on sending me everything in quadruplicate. I don’t need four of each of your catalogs, and I certainly don’t need four Pottery Barn Teen and four Pottery Barn Kids catalogs. I don’t know why you insist on sending me so many. I don’t even have children, and perhaps you’ve heard of the Internet? If I was planning on buying something for children in my life, I would shop your online store.)

Yesterday, I opened up my mailbox and I found a new catalog from Heifer International. My first reaction was to laugh, but I paged through it nonetheless. Heifer International is a non-profit organization whose goal is to help end world hunger and poverty through self-reliance and sustainability. The gist of it is that you can donate either an animal or the donate a share of an animal to agri-rural residents in developing nations

You can donate a sheep to a family in Peru for $120 or a share of a sheep for as little as $10. The family receiving the sheep can then use the wool to make clothes or sell the wool for additional income.  You can even donate an entire barnyard menagerie, from guinea pigs and rabbits to llamas and water buffalo. To actually donate the heifer, you would need to give $500 for the whole cow, or $50 for a share.

What’s that? You’d rather drink the milk? Then give the milk. With this super cute milk bottle carafe from Three Potato Four, you can do both. A donation of $1 from sale goes to Action Against Hunger, a non-profit group committed to sustainable solutions for hunger.

If you are feeling exceptionally generous, you can buy the Gift Ark for a whooping $5,000. The “Gift Ark” includes two sets of all available animals, after receiving which Heifer International promises that “each family who receives livestock will pass on one or more of the animal’s offspring to other families who are in need in their communities.”  It’s the gift that multiplies each year (or in the case of rabbits, the gift that multiplies once a month.) If you’re not crazy about gifting animals, you can also give the gift of tree seedlings (used to prevent topsoil erosion) or honey bees. It's estimated that one-third of the human diet is derived from insect-pollinated plants, with honey bees responsible for over 80% of this pollination. If you just wanted to gift some honey, try this fair trade variety from Oxfam America Unwrapped, Oxfam's online store for fair trade gifts that support small-scale, rural farmers worldwide.

Heifer International is also a strong proponent of women. Rural women often face extreme poverty and a lack of education, yet are the producers of over 80% of the developing world’s food. Heifer International proudly supports Women in Livestock Development or WiLD, a group that trains women to overcome socio and economic barriers. WiLD also hosts workshops to help men understand the necessities of supporting women. In addition to training and the gift of livestock, WiLD supports micro-lending: an extension of very small loans to the unemployed, poor entrepreneurs, or others living in poverty who are not considered bankable. The smallest donation available for WiLD is $10,000, which is not accessible for most of us, but might be a viable option for corporations looking to give back.

What are your favorite non-profit organizations working to end hunger, both here and around the world? Share them with everyone by posting a comment below—we'd love to hear from you.

Gifts that Give Back: Save the Animals from $5 to $500

In this week's issue of Shoestring, our feature story focused on the trend for nesting and comfort gifts this season, and we honored that trend by kicking off our Steals of the Day series on Shoe Leather yesterday by posting about sock monkey (and sock elephant) gifts under $50—comforting things that uphold our values of craftiness and thriftiness.

As the days get shorter and colder, our real life pets comfort us and give us immeasurable joy. We're hunkering down for winter hibernation, and we’re thankful to still have a roof over our heads, but can’t help thinking about all the furry friends who aren’t so lucky this year. The number of animals being surrendered for adoption is at an all-time high, with heartbroken families facing lost jobs, lost homes due to foreclosure, and a lack of apartment rentals willing to take pets, as we mentioned when promoting the gift of an ASPCA membership. It makes us cry when we think about it for too long, and we try not to remind ourselves that many of these formerly loved animals will be euthanized if they're not adopted soon. Tragic.

When making your last-minute holiday gift decisions this season, please consider grabbing some of these fantastic gifts that give back to humane animal charities like the ASPCA and the Humane Society. According to the ASPCA website, even a donation as small as $18 can help a shelter keep one pet safe (and alive) for another month—enough time for a new loving family to come to their rescue.

Here are some of our favorite gifts and wines that donate to animal charities, from $5 to $500:

GIFTS

Stonewall Kitchens Award-Winning Products Gift Tote, $85
This York, Maine-based gourmet foods retailer promises to donate 5% from each sale of this particular gift basket to the SPCA. A great value at under $100, this reusable canvas bag can later be used for shopping (or for toting along all the accoutrement needed for a run the dog park) and is filled to the brim with best-sellers like the Wasabi Ginger Grilling Sauce, the Fig & Walnut Butter, and the Coffee Caramel Sauce, perfect for a gourmet ice cream sundae by the fire.

Marley & Me by John Grogan from the ASPCA.org Online Store, $14
This New York Times-bestselling autobiography of life with the "world's worst dog", newspaper columnist John Grogan weaves a tale to which any pet lover can relate: that of bonding with, pulling your hair out from, and generally surrendering your life and your home to the animals who capture your heart. Package up the book with a pair of tickets from Fandango.com to the screen adaptation, featuring Jennifer Aniston and Owen Wilson, released in theaters everywhere Christmas Day, for real laughs and levity.

Ornaments from The Animal Rescue Site & Petfinder.com, $10
These gorgeous, sleek and modern sterling silver Pet Promise holiday ornaments perfectly capture the short distance between us and the animals we love and the joy that they add to our lives everyday. It's a great reminder of the promise that we make to them, to keep them safe and happy from the day they set foot in our homes, while at the same time promising a percentage of each sale to support the sensational work done every single day by The Animal Rescue Site and Petfinder.com. (Available in cat and dog versions.) While you're there, be sure to click on the button to donate a free bowl of food to an animal shelter in need!

World Wildlife Fund (WWF) Adoption of the Month Club, $500
This gift is perfect for the families in your life who have school-aged children, providing 12 months of continuous learning about conservation through one new plush animal and corresponding learning materials about that species delivered to their doorstep each month. Choose from either the Endangered Species series or the Most Popular Animal series, or if the monthly club price tag is too far out of your range, adopt a single animal for just $50, like the Blue Footed Booby from the Galapagos Islands (at right), which comes with a 12" plush stuffed animal, an adoption certificate, a WWF blue gift bag, a species spotlight card, and a real life photo of the animal. These make me and Melissa nostalgic for the WWF card boxes and new card deliveries we received from PBS each month as kids, but are even better!

WINE

Doghouse Wines "Well-Bred" Varietals, from $7.50
Based in Santa Rosa, California, these wines are "Versatile, well-trained and eager to please!" Since 2005, Doghouse Wines have received "over 70 medals for quality and numerous praises from Wine Enthusiast, Wine Spectator, Santé, Market Watch and countless local reviewers. We love Doghouse wines because of their relationship with Guide Dogs for the Blind, which is not an animal rescue service per se but a very noble animal charity organization nonetheless. Doghouse donates 50 cents from every bottle to pet charities. Choose from pinot grigio, chardonnay, cabernet sauvignon, merlot, or zinfandel. Use their handy Doghouse Wines store locator to search for retailers near your ZIP code, or visit their wines page to download recipes by varietal for perfect pairings.

Cru Vin Dogs, "Best in Show", "Yogi", and "Lucky" Varietals, from $14 
With a tagline like "Tracking Down Great Wines for Great Causes", you know from the start this this is a winery dedicated to charitable giving. Cru Vin promises that "A minimum of 10% of our sales revenue on all wines, art, and merchandise is split equally between Canine Companions For Independence and the Morris Animal Foundation's Cure Canine Cancer Campaign." The most interesting aspect of these wines, for us, is their combination of original art by Jay Snellgrove for their labels and their dedication to selling both art and wine simultaneously through their website. Use their Find Our Wines section for store locations selling Cru Vin Dogs wine near you, or commission a pet portrait from Mr. Snellgrove for someone you love.

Mutt Lynch Winery "Unleashed", "Merlot Over & Play Dead" and "Canis Major"from $15, Since 1995, Mutt Lynch Winery based in Sonoma, California, has been churning out charitable wines for canine causes, guided by a motto from Sark: "Apply dog logic to life: eat well, be loved, get petted, sleep a lot, and dream of a leash-free world." (Not to apply any bias here, but the owners, the Lynches, also have a rescued racing greyhound named Patch. LOVE.) Mutt Lynch donates to dozens of animal charities and fundraisers, with a full list on their Dog Charities page. While we couldn't find specifics about their individual donations per bottle, Mutt Lynch does have one of the best reputations in the bark business. Check out their wine shop for more information.

Serious wine enthusiasts refer to Petite Syrahs as "Pets." So Vinum Cellars decided to dedicate their 2006 vintage to old-school grape grower, Ken Wilson and his pet-Tanker. Seeing as how Ken Wilson is a third generation grape grower, who supplies the grapes to make this long-legged and bold wine, it really only seems fitting. Plus a portion of the profits from the sales of this wine is donated to the San Francisco SPCA. Vinum Cellars PETs 2006 Petit Syrah,

DOGS 4 A CAUSE wines In partnership with Saint Francis Service Dogs, Château Morrisette has created LIBERTY and INDEPENDENCE, two new wines that pay tribute to service dogs and their dedication to enhancing the lives of children and adults with emotional and/or physical disabilities.

Carivintâs Winery which literally means blending wine with philanthropy, brings you the Dog Lovers Wine Club. A portion of the proceeds (Each shipment starts at $48) goes towards supporting animal shelters, and rescue groups across the country. Don't forget to check out their newest collection; Vicktory Dogs Wine Collection— A two-case set celebrating 22 of the dogs rescued from Michael Vicks' property last year by Best Friends Animal Society.

Perhaps this would be the perfect celebratory drink, as we raise our glasses in honor of Halle, the first Vicktory dog, to be cleared to go to her forever home. Halle will be joining her new owners on December 18th! 

Canine Wines -- Their motto is "Drink good wine, save good animals." In addition to committing a minimum of 10% of their annual profits, Canine Wines will also donate $5 directly to animal shelters and rescue charities. Free shipping through the end of the year, but order by 12/14 for Christmas delivery.

Even if your Holiday shopping is done, and you’re sitting back on the couch with a cup of hot cocoa and a good book, don’t forget that in a few short months it will be tax season. Don’t fret, fearless reader, offset your taxable income by donating to worthwhile charities by December 31st. The Humane society, the ASPCA, and the thousands of smaller private rescue foundations work tirelessly with limited budgets but have saved countless animals from lives of neglect, abuse, or worse.

And, if you happen to know someone looking to bring a pet into their family this year, please, please encourage them to adopt before they shop at a pet store or buy from a breeder. Thanks to PetFinder.com and many breed- and animal-specific rescue agencies, it's easier than ever to find the purebred, puppy, kitten, or gender of animal that you want and save an animal's life at the same time. (PetFinder currently has over 300,000 animals from over 12,000 shelters across the U.S. available for adoption!) Check out Petfinder's online calender for an event near you. If you can't adopt or foster an animal, consider checking out Petfinder's Event and Fundraiser calendar for your next night out. Sometimes you can find a great deal at charity auctions or get more bang for your dinner buck with three- to -five course meals for you and a date at charity dinners, plus you're donating to a wonderful cause.

Friends For Pets, a Los Angeles-area rescue foundation for Weimaraners and other sporting breeds close to my heart, rescued my dog Jebus. Once labeled as a dog who was fearful of people, she seems to have adjusted quite well. (Check out the picture above, that's me and Jebus on a sleepy Sunday morning.

Tweetsgiving: Build an Orphanage a Classroom through Social Media

Happy Tweetsgiving, Shoestringers!

We couldn't believe our eyes when we booted up the laptops this morning to do a quick email check before diving in to delicious dinners and sharing heartfelt thanks with our families today.

On Twitter, Mashable.com had written about something called "Tweetsgiving", which is "a Twitter celebration of gratitude and giving created by Epic Change, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. The project aims to demonstrate the power of the social web by raising $10,000 in 48 hours to build a classroom in Tanzania. TweetsGiving will be held from Tuesday, 11.25.08 (12pm EST) to Thursday, 11.27.08 (12pm EST)."

Without hesitation, we checked them out and donated what we could to this amazing cause. Since Meghan got back from Tanzania in September, we've been trying to brainstorm ways to get better beds to those children, who are, as she blogged from the Karatu orphange, literally sleeping on top of each other by the half dozen to one twin-size bunk bed that was unsafe and uncomfortable. Her heart ached for these kids for that and many other reasons, which is why we're so excited about Tweetsgiving and the opportunity to help enact change in a corner of the world where the discussion isn't "What are we going to be able to buy for holiday gifts this year because of the economy?", it's "Are we going to eat today?" and "Is there enough medicine to go around for everyone who is sick?"

So, if you're on Twitter, please follow us @shoestring and spread the word, and if you have a few dollars to spare and reason to be thankful today, please donate to Tweetsgiving and the Epic Change organization to show your gratitude and your generosity to those less fortunate. As we write this post, they are 77% of the way towards their goal of raising $10,000—let's show them the immense power of new media!

The Africa Aftermath: Frank the Parasite

Some of you all may be wondering where our dear Meghan has been the past month, since returning from her charitable climb up Mt. Kilimanjaro, her Serengeti safari, and her volunteer service trip to the orphanage in Karatu.

Well, it seems that in addition to all the fair trade gifts from Tanzania, our pint-sized adventurer also brought back a stowaway (read: a nasty bug of origins yet to be determined) that's been keeping her on the down low. (I snapped the photo above, of the layer of African dirt that made its way to the U.S. on Meghan's laundry, the night she got back to Boston.)

In true Meghan fashion, she quickly nicknamed her bug Frank, and, while trying to track down her symptoms on the CDC, she managed to find these hilarious Giant Microbes plush dolls, made by a guy named Drew Oliver in California.

While you're waiting for the next installment of Shoestring Saves—our holiday guide for finding gifts that give back—check out Giant Microbes for stocking stuffers and gag gifts for that certain world-wanderer or health professional on your holiday shopping list.

Don't worry, Meghan will be just fine.

Sustainable Shopping: Gifts (and lessons) from Africa

On my way home, I made it to the airport with just minutes to spare. I literally was the very last person to check into my flight. I guess it's OK because the airport only had one runway and three gates. I made a mental checklist of my "taxi" (and, once again, I use that word loosely):

• Seat belts: none.
• Mirrors: broken.
• Headlights: broken.
• Door handles: none.
• Turn signals: none.
• Air bags: What are those?
• Enough speed to become airborne from a speed hump: Check!

I think it comes as a surprise to almost no one (at least, no one who has been to Africa) that one of the leading causes of death in Tanzania is not AIDS but traffic fatalities. Um, holy crap! On one hand, you have an incurable disease whose virus is constantly changing forms, making it next to impossible to find an antidote for it, versus crazy drivers. Hey, I have an idea: seat belts. Oh, and actually picking on side of the road to drive on would help. I'll even give you a hint: it's supposed to be the left, and if you're driving down the middle of the road and a petrol truck is barreling straight for you, don't play chicken with it while the white girl in the back is soiling herself. I shouldn't complain too much. My African driver did get me to the airport in 20 minutes (a trip that usually takes 45 minutes to an hour). He probably would have gotten me there sooner, but we stopped in the middle of nowhere while the said driver looked frantically for an unnamed object to no avail. I narrowly escaped a traffic maiming in Tanzania this time. Hooray!

But, I'm home, and safe now—back in the land of seat belts and airbags and turn signals and traffic cops. I haven't showered in who knows how long, and I'm totally out of clean clothes, but I'm in one piece and I think I was actually able to make a difference, even if it was just a small dent.

I strongly supported sustainable tourism, and all my presents directly gave back to the community in one way or another. Whenever possible when I'm in a foreign country, I try to buy directly from the locals, both for better prices and in order to make the largest local economic impact. The textiles I bought were created by an organization called Upendo, a group that employs Tanzanian women in the production of traditional African garments. Upendo empowers Tanzanian women through education and provides them with an opportunity to support their families. I also bought some hand-woven scarves from a single mother, whose husband recently passed away, leaving her with five children. An amazing group called Shah Industries in Moshi only employs disabled individuals and promotes fair wages. Any shops bearing the seal of the Kilimanjaro Porters Assistance Project (which I mentioned before) guarantees that a portion of their profits go towards improving living and working conditions for some of Tanzania's poorest (and hardest working) residents. The gifts of coffee and tea I purchased came from the slopes of the Usambara Mountains and were picked by the patients of the Lutindi mental hospital. Last, but not least, I bought a doll made by the women of Dollicraft. Dollicraft is a self-help, income-generating project that provides a source of livelihood to 35 women with no other means for income. I bought the doll for my neighbor, Karen, and her daughter, Brigid, which I thought was fitting. :)

After exhausting all of these shops, I still needed a few more things, so I headed to the workshops of the men and women who create the curios you see in town. These places sell wholesale to shops in town, so the prices were way cheaper, but still allow you to shop responsibly. Since they're used to working in wholesale quantities, it's also easier to haggle with them for price. An important lesson for any Shoestring traveler: if the price on an object of your desire is too steep for your liking, put it down and start to walk out. Trust me, the craftsman or shop owner will then try to negotiate and haggle, for fear of losing your business altogether, which brings the price way way down. I looked at some paintings that a gentleman was hawking for 25,000 tsk, and within five minutes the price had come down to two for 10,000 tsk and then four for 5,000 tsk. Amazing.

On African time

I'm waiting for my driver to take me to the airport, and the driver is definitely on African time. I went out into town today to buy prezzies for my friends and family. (Totally could not have done it without you guys.)

I went to the huts of the people making the crafts. Most people live without electricity, so all of the wooden crafts are either carved by hand or made using a manual lathe (pictured above).

Just to reiterate the innate culture of reducing, reusing, and recycling (versus the trendy one back at home), here, all old tires are cut into strips and made into flip-flops. Amazingly durable, but not super cute. Bargaining is the rule, not the exception, but I don't think they could have gone low enough for me to get a pair. (Sorry, folks).

Well, my driver finally showed up, 45 minutes late, but I'm sure he'll drive like a crazy fool all the way to the airport. Wish me luck.

Shalom Orphanage, Karatu, Tanzania: Goodbyes

Today was my last day at the orphanage. It was incredibly hard saying goodbye to all the kids, and there were hugs and kisses all around. I am sorely in need of a shower. My feet are perpetually stained red from the dust. I don't think that I've ever been so filthy in my life, but I almost don't care. As I was washing my umpteenth barrel of dishes today, I spilled water on my feet and stepped into the mud. I just looked down at my feet and kept going. It's amazing how easily you adjust to different conditions. Life just moves slower in Africa. The guides on Kilimanjaro (well, everyone) says "pole pole" which means slowly slowly, and everything really goes at that pace.

For the first time in my life, I'm waking up at dawn and going to sleep when it gets dark out. The little things don't seem to faze me anymore, though. Once again, our lodgings for tonight have been rearranged, and in the past it would really have concerned me not to know where I'm sleeping, or how I'm going to make my five-hour journey to the airport. But, as Jimmy Carter says, "Hakuna Matata" (no worries) and it's really true. I'm sure that when I head back to the US on my flight tomorrow evening I'll slowly get back into my usual, cranky, edgy self--but at least for one more day, I'll continue without worries, and move very "pole pole."

Shalom Orphanage, Karatu, Tanzania: Day Two

In case there was any question, feeding 42 children plus staff is a massive undertaking. At nine in the morning, I started washing dishes. With no running water in the building, the dishwater must be brought from outside. It took me over an hour to wash the dishes and scrub the pans, and then I immediately started chopping spinach. There was only twenty minutes rest before the cycle started all over again. (The photo above is the cooking hut for the orphanage.)

And, I am still shocked by how generous they are to us. They gladly gave us food off their plates. Almost all of their food comes from the farm on the property--their milk comes from their cows and their eggs come from their chickens. I am just humbled by their thriftiness and utter lack of materalism. The children share all their clothes and toys. A group of them were playing soccer with a ball of newspaper and tape, wrapped in netting.

The older children go to public school durning the day, and every night they line up assembly-style to iron their uniforms. Seriously, these kids iron better then I ever could. After school everyone grabs a bucket and scrubs the orphange from top to bottom. Africa is really dusty, and, with dirt floors, you can imagine the mess. Mama Warra's daughter told us that the medical clinic came by and said they didn't know how to take care of the children, and the children were filthy. I can personally attest that these children are amazingly well cared for, and they are certainely not filthy. The staff explained that some orphanges are kept spotless by keeping the children outside, and they sleep on the floor.

At Shalom, the children treat their orphange as their home, and they live in it accordingly. It made me absolutely furious that anyone would accuse Shalom of neglect. I only wish that I could have brought more things, and that I could spend more time. But, while I'm here, we're making the most of it. Before dinner tonight, we all sat on the floor and braided the girls' hair, and apparently I have no clue how to use an afro pick. That was a huge source of amusement.