Sunday, August 9, 2009

Pin It

Racing time and mind

It's well into August, and I fear I've left the blog sitting idle too long. Weeks flee by like fugitives, marked only by my Wednesday visits, brief "supervised" moments with Brindi, after which I do several hours of errands. Otherwise, good or bad, I rarely emerge from the house. And for all that time, I can't seem to get through the growing list of things to be done. An electrician I had to call recently - to help stop the power company from cutting me off, after somebody apparently falsely reported a "dangerous situation" - asked me, "Don't you ever go anywhere?" Not really.

Finally it's summer, after a horrible, horrible winter. I glimpse the baseball games in the park behind my house from my bathroom window. On game days, for the past three years, I'd normally be out strolling the grounds with a dog, Howard or Brindi, and then both of us would hang out with the local team afterwards in their clubhouse. But not this year. I've all but forgotten that I live a few miles from a beautiful deserted beach; the drive down in the car alone, with no warm snout pressing into my shoulder, is no fun, just as a walk through the woods alone holds no interest for me anymore. As a result - naturally, I'm flabby, tired, and pale.

Haven't blogged for many reasons, and no reason at all. Much of the time, there are plenty of things I'd love to write about, but some of them are best left un-blogged - the risk outweighs the communicative purpose and whatever therapeutic benefits I gain from the exercise. Lately, I haven't even felt communicative at all; what is there to say? An entire year has come and gone, a year from hell, that won't end. I don't dare reflect on it any further, for fear of setting off a dozen roadside bombs in my head. Instead I work with images, like this one, which ended up on a t-shirt I tried to give to my favorite Beatle; hopefully, he received it. When I posted the same image on Facebook, suddenly people were asking where they could buy it, so a friend helped me put it on Cafepress.com.

I spend the brief time I am alloted with Brindi each week outside in the pen at the SPCA shelter, in sun or drizzle, taking cover under a tent they put up. I notice Brindi has gotten accustomed to me leaving: she now stands a few feet back from the gate with an expression of a hostess seeing off a guest. She learns quickly; she's adapted as best as she can, in her sporting, willing-to-please way, winning over even the toughest, and she has no idea that she is not supposed to be there. No use trying to get that across, it would only upset a person. I groom her and have been gently introducing the idea of a toothbrush to try to tackle the mess her teeth and gums have become. She licks at the toothpaste, actually meant for cats (but dogs love every sort of food for cats), and after the third time she let me get a good brushing on her canines before wriggling away. Her gums still bleed at the slightest thing - grabbing a toy or chewing a treat.

The Paul McCartney concert was the one notable exception of the whole summer, an occasion for me to leave the house for something other than groceries, court, lawyer interviews or meetings, or other Brindi-related business. In a word, the concert was amazing, truly amazing, no less for the number of ecstatic young (25 and below) people surrounding me who knew all the words, as for the perfection and endurance of the man himself, playing for a good three hours with a fabulous band, including two - or three? - lengthy encores. Just incredible. I stood for over six hours and hardly felt it, even the next day. Still - somehow, it was still hard to get really excited about it, as I did when I was 16 at the Wings Concert in Detroit. This time I was far closer to the stage, and even got a few great pictures (like this one), but the excitement and pleasure were numbed by the way I feel these days, or the way I don't feel - I submerge pain, dread and grief with great effort, and this does not allow joy to seep in very far, even the joy of seeing the 20th century's best musician and songwriter (in my humble opinion).

I now have a court date for the "trial", October 13, rather surprisingly: it seems the court must have been prepared, possibly setting aside this day. The day the date was set (July 15), every bench was packed and March was the date handed out to others. In fact it was so packed (at least 50 people plus about ten lawyers lining the walls), I took the opportunity to hand around the petition. There was an air of solidarity all of a sudden; people were quite willing to sign. Worried about speeding tickets or worse, they were quite stunned when they learned why I was there.

There is truly a sense of solidarity in my immediate community that belies the perception, or misperception, too eagerly circulated in online comments, that my neighbors all want Brindi dead, or at least shipped off somewhere. Most recently the contrary was articulated by the kind woman who rented me a storage unit up the road last Friday. I am using it to store the 20 custom-made wood windows that should have, and would have, long since been installed in my house, had this ordeal not happened. She and I exchanged several phone calls over the last two weeks, as I had to reschedule a few times. She was friendly but I wasn't aware she knew anything about me. When I saw her I realized she was the wife of the local tow truck operator - a man who fished me out of more than one scrapes with my old car through the last two horrible winters, often with her by his side. They live close by, pass my house daily. I forget what a small place this is, in my isolation, so I was a little surprised, when, as my friend and I started loading the windows into the little storage space, the woman asked me, in her great Quebec accent, "When do you think you'll get your dog back? I think it's terrible what they have done." She assured me that many, many people here in East Chezzetcook were on my side. She referred to the way they feel about "them" (the Halifax authorities, I assumed) with disapproval and some derision. I dare say many longtime residents here view HRM's treatment of me and Brindi with the same resentment they feel toward the annexation or regionalization of these smaller communities into the Halifax Regional Municipality (an organizational entity whose logic still escapes me - why a municipality (town) would become a region, eschewing the customary metropolitan area of a city). The loyalties to localities will always be stronger when it comes to certain things.

In any case, it was good to hear her encouraging words, along with the electrician's. He is also a neighbor, living just down the road. He had met Brindi a few times, and regards her as anything but "cross", the local term for a dangerous dog. I am greeted with same head-shaking reaction at the Porter's Lake hardware store, where another neighbor works, and at the bank, where the sympathetic receptionist always asks me how Brindi is doing. Earlier this summer, the former president of the local Lion's Club stopped his car in the road for a good while when he saw me out front, ignoring traffic to express his own disbelief and disapproval. It is over the top, and I guess people are ready to say so.

After he sent a second letter calling for an end to the "nonsense" to his fellow HRM councilors in June, deputy mayor David Hendsbee told me he got an angry letter from one of my neighbors. But it turns out that the person who sent it actually lives in Lower Sackville, a good 45-minute drive away from our constituency. "Well, in that case, I guess I don't have to bother to write back!" Hendsbee said.

Doubtless, there are those in the area willing to join her. I have to wonder how many of them have heard false rumors that Brindi has bitten people or destroyed dogs. The woman with the storage units was adamant that the majority want to see me get her back, and my friend felt the same; I don't doubt it, actually. The thing is, as is true in so many cases, the many are relatively quiet, while the few that have a negative view tend to be loud. Fortunately, the Chronicle Herald has chosen to publish four letters recently, all calling for Brindi's immediate return. Two even proposed that the city reimburse me for legal fees, a welcome idea as far as I'm concerned, and not unreasonable, given that the city's failure to provide a bona fide appeal process and its by-law's sweeping definitions of "dangerous", etc., forced me to have to hire lawyers and go to court. It certainly was not my preference, to risk understatement.

!!!!!NEWS NEWS NEWS NEWS!!!

This coming week: a long-awaited benefit concert, at The Company House - which opened in Halifax last February - on August 13, with tickets priced at $10.
The performers include rising stars Andrea Somers, Ria Mae with Margot Durling, Bruce Stewart (all folk/singer-songwriters), and a new Beatles tribute band, Hard Day's Night.

Bruce's song, "Take Me Home", which he wrote some time ago, says it all, in my opinion...

I owe this touching show of support to Kelly Gray and the owner of the club, and all those helping with PR, and of course, the musicians themselves. I just can't believe the day is already here - in my mind, time is at a standstill; in my mind, it's still February.

13 comments:

  1. Fran: When are you going to stop with the lying? I have read the letter you say that was offensive and came from Lower Sackville and the writer claimed to be your neighbour,actually I see none of your claims in the letter.Maybe you should take up fiction writting. There is one thing that you need to know,that is any person that is worth their salt here in NS do not lie and accept responsibility for their actions. Unlike you.
    You continue to cry,whine,and beg for money why don't you put the bum on your 3 sisters or your mother or better yet do like the rest of us and GET A JOB!!!
    You are coming across like a sue crazy American, well that does not cut it and rest assured that it will come back and bite you in the ass as you will see.
    I know full well that you will not post this on your blog so I will copy it and post it on the Release Brindi site I could add much more however you arn't worth the time or effort, Now you have a wonderful day.

    W Croft

    ReplyDelete
  2. Dear Wayne Croft,

    When are you going to stop your harassment, which you have continued since February? If I were a native Nova Scotian,I would not want you representing my province when it comes to honest and honorable behavior. You come across as hateful, time and time again.

    Not only are you mistaken about how many sisters I have (none of your business anyhow); by claiming I am sue-crazy you only show your ignorance of the basic facts of my case. The lawyer I called the day after they took Brindi told me the ONLY way to stop HRM from killing her was to file a lawsuit right away. I had no interest in suing; I just want my dog back.

    Rest assured I am not posting your comment because you challenged me; rather, I see this as an opportunity to give others a taste of your character.

    Because I don't like such negativity on my blog, don't be surprised if I remove your comment in the near future.

    And my name is Francesca. If you're going to trash me, at least use the correct name.

    ReplyDelete
  3. As a member of the community, I take offense at the comments and negativity of Wk Croft. And I would like to tell Francesca that we support you. We want to see the city return Brindi to you. This has been a terrible and unfair miscarriage of justice. Please keep up your hard work. The changes your hard work has made to the By-Laws benefits all of us with dogs. Thank you.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Francesca,
    Amy is right and she said I better tell you. We hope you get your Brindi back very soon.
    Maxine

    ReplyDelete
  5. Once again, someone from the "Release Brindi But Not To Her Owner" group comes along and spews their negativity. I commend you Francesca for handling that post with composure, and putting Wk Croft in his place. Yes, people are starting to realize just what you are going through with comments like his. Keep up the good work. You are fighting for all dogs in the HRM.

    ReplyDelete
  6. Maxine, not sure what Amy said, but good to hear from you!
    Thanks also to the other encouraging commenters.

    ReplyDelete
  7. Francesca,

    I stand by what I say either you are sue crazy or have to much time on your hands and love the court system you have said countless times you wanted to sue the HRM and SPCA,that along with filing for peace bonds. Why? Just to waste the courts time? You can't even manage to get there on time.

    You have proven to me that you have no respect for the laws or rules in this province by your past actions one visit by AC should of been enough; yep I fully realize that your house is up on stilts, but in the meantime you could of bloody well tied your dog and moved on. However to have 4 complaints filed against you for letting your dog attack other dogs which were on a leash and one for your dog running at large and you refuse to accept responsibilty tells me a lot about your character.

    You claim I am harassing you well if by reporting you to various agencies is harassment, well that is your opinion however you seem to think that anyone that does not agree with you is harassing you.

    For your information I do not represent anyone but myself,or profess to do so, however I am sick and tired of you CFA's moving here and trying to mould the rest of us to your way of thinking it aint going to happen.

    Now you have a wonderful time at the benefit concert tonight, oh by the way have you ever heard of the word JOB? You know than you could become (maybe) a productive member of society instead of a burden to Canadian taxpayers.

    W Croft.

    ReplyDelete
  8. It is a fact that there are many people not only in East Chezzetcook but also the surrounding communities who are not frightened of or hateful towards Brindi. That there is even one is highly doubtful. The only ones who appear to be concerned are the city officials, SPCA (rightfully so - they did something wrong)and some of their supporters who clearly have too much time on their hands and too much hate in their hearts. Wayne, why do people like you and Gail even care? That you spend so much time and effort in your harassment of Francesca is becoming obvious to the authorities; it is bizarre to be so obsessed with someone you don't know in a situation that doesn't affect you. It is probably only a matter of time before you both are charged. Repeatedly unwelcome communications and besetting dwellings is criminal harassment. Wouldn't it be ironic to end up in the same jail you used to work in?

    ReplyDelete
  9. Wayne, you said "if by reporting you to various agencies is harassment, well that is your opinion"....it isn't YOUR business to do that. Why are you being so mean to someone who is a virtual stranger to you? What kind of joy are you getting out of this? This is Francesca's life, and what is happening in her life shouldn't have you all fired up....it's not your life! It's not YOUR business!

    ReplyDelete
  10. This message is for William Croft. If you spoke to my wife the way you have spoken to Francesca, I would slap you with a peace bond myself. Why? You are not a neighbor, you do not have business with her and you have no relationship to her whatsoever, but you go out of your way to try to intimidate her by, according to your own admission, "reporting you to various agencies." What agencies could you possibly have anything to report to that would be valid?

    To obtain a peace bond, someone must have reasonable grounds to fear that another person may cause personal injury on him or her or that such person will damage his or her property. And to me, you fit this description.

    You need to step back and take care of your own business. Or I will personally contact the authorities so there is a report made of your statements. You are out of line, Croft.

    ReplyDelete
  11. Having four complaints filed is evidence of having complaints filed and nothing more. It's called innocent unless proven guilty...something Halifax and a screw on the loose like you apparently just don't get. Why do none of you criticize Officer Hamm and his cohurts for trying to kill a dog that doesn't deserve it? Guess youre too busy licking the boots of the same authorities that'll kick your ass whenever they feel like it - they should be the focus of your attention, not FR. She can't hurt you but they sure as hell can. Don't fool yourself thinking the system is always right.As for coming from away, well, everyone everywhere came from away at some point. I guess we all should stay put and inbreed, like they do on the south shore. BTW, if FR ain't worth the time or effort...why don't you leave her alone? Don't you have a sick wife to take care of? Use your time productively...go get a JOB helping animals instead of supporting people who want to kill them!!!

    ReplyDelete
  12. I support you Fran & your hard efforts to get Brindi back home(RIGHT WHERE SHE SHOULD BE).

    Fran ,for every Wayne Croft there is 100 people more worthy of you.
    Wayne Croft is a big feeling jerk,with no compassion for anyone besides himself.

    He should be more devoted to his wife dying with CANCER, but he persists on tearing you down and goes looking for something you wrote or said, only to post it somewhere else.
    I feel very sorry for Mrs Croft, what a life she must have had?
    Why he and the rest of the release group are so determined to tear you down, is so mind boggling to me.

    My advice to you, fran, is just ignore them, for they are ignorant hateful people.
    Wayne Croft goes to the point of being discriminative.He hates you because you are American, not because Brindi got loose.
    I wouldn't be surprised if he has issues with all the different races & cultures here in NS.

    He is the one who has called the power company on you, he has bragged about it. He has reported you to immigration and other officils, trying to make you pack up & leave our fine province (with the exception of a few people,like him),it is a nice place to live.

    I'm glad you are standing tall, against them & show them what you are made of.
    Then he has the nerve to
    to say "have a nice day"
    -like that will take away all the hatred he spewed on you and about you. It will not, he's hateful and a racist, as far as I have read.

    I am a member of this community and a Nova Scotian, born & raised & I welcome you to NS and to Canada.
    I also applaud all your efforts & pray to God, someone will see the light & let Brindi go home.
    Love & Hope
    I'm sure you know who I am.

    ReplyDelete
  13. I totally agree with Wayne, immigrants to NS need to go...specifically, Newfs like Gail Gallant and Sean Kelly. They're hear in OUR province stealing OUR jobs, trying to mold us to their way of thinking...WEELL it arn't gonna happen! Go back to the Rock!! and take your gravy stuffing with fries crap with you.

    ReplyDelete

Comments are moderated. Only users with Google accounts may post comments. Others may contact me via facebook.