Today was a people day...

Today (Sunday) was a people day. There was an animal cruelty training sponsored by the ASPCA at the vet college at Cornell University. So this morning Mark and I got up, downed our coffee, he walked the dog, I took care of the cats, he headed off to Earth Day at the Ithaca Farmer's Market, and I headed off to Cornell.

I was encouraged by the many police vehicles in the parking lot. It's great to see police taking animal cruelty seriously. I have seen the (excellent) presentations at other conferences so I came by at late morning to touch base with area folk that I might not otherwise run into on a daily basis.

And there were a lot of people there! Stacy Wolf and Todd Cramer from the ASPCAwere both there (along with other people I did not get a chance to see). Leslie Appel from the ASPCA and our local Shelter Outreach Services was there, and as usual she took it upon herself to make sure Person A got introduced to Person B. So, due to her deft handling, I got to meet people from the CNY Cat Coalition as well as folks from the Humane Society of Schuyler County (HSSC). There were other SOS folks there, including Marla Hirsch and Jonathan Reiss (who originally told me about the training), as well as Dr. Heather Murley (also of HSSC). Diane from HSSC was also there. She had come out to my open house last winter.

They had over 100 people in attendence at this training, which is a wonderful turnout.

Afterward, I headed down to the Farmer's Market to be seen with Mark, since apparently my departure from Ithaca College has given birth to some small rumors that he and I have split up. Not likely!

The Earth Day celebration was a huge success to my eyes. Almost all of the Market booths were filled up, and all I could think was "Why wasn't I here with my recycled cats?" Next year I need to make sure I sign up for space to get people to spay/neuter their cats! Mark said that Tom Karl was there, walking a dog with a TC SPCA jacket, but Mark was at his booth so didn't get a chance to speak to him.

The Compost Fair section of the celebration was great. They had a whole end, with many booths, and they were all quite creative. Then another friend, Diane, stopped by, and Mark had apparently suggested to her that she foster Ben or Tiger Tom!!!! They need a break from my place and would love the attention. And Dan Robinson from the Ithaca College Men's Crew Team came by. Dan coached the women's crew team when I was on it oh-s0-many-years ago.

So it was a great afternoon. All the while I was coming down with some sort of cold I picked up in my travels, so I hope I did not pass it on to anyone. I took pains to sneeze out of human range when I could.

It is now evening, and we are sitting by the fire as our first thunderstorm of the year rumbles and flashes outside.

Welcome home to New York.