Two things.

Much ado about...

There's been a lot of talk, all over AOL j-land, about the telling of truth or falsehood in people's journals. As far as I can gather, an issue was recently made of several journals purporting to be by a young cancer patient, his girlfriend, and others. Many people, reading these journals, were naturally filled with sympathy for the plight of the allegedly ill person. It has now been posited, based on what reliable information I know not, that these several journals were the work of one very creative person in need of attention. Apparently, many readers had become emotionally involved with the saga, and felt betrayed by the news that these journals appeared to be somewhat fictionalized. More recently, another journal has come under fire by the j-land community. A young woman claiming to be a former rape victim has had her story scrutinized for, as far as I can tell, poor judgement in the pictures she chose to display in her AOL profile.

Now, I'm not here to dispute the veracity or mendacity of these journalers, but to question those who have chosen to make a big deal over it. Surely you've known someone in your lifetime who's called up the local supermarket using a disguised voice and asked them if they had pop in the fridge. Why does it come as such a surprise to you that there might be jokers pulling the same stunts on the internet? This is the ultimate voice disguiser. With the exception of each account's primary screen name, AOL handles are disposable. Make up a new one, use it for a few weeks, and delete it. You can do that as many times as you like. My wife currently uses two different screen names. So does my son. I have three. For more temporarity and anonymity, there's hotmail, yahoo mail, the list goes on and on. The internet is the world's biggest mask, and Jacks abound.

My advice to those out there who feel that they have been hurt by dishonest journalers is to celebrate a valuable lesson learned. You don't really know these people. You can't really know these people. The next time you come across what appears to be a compelling story of personal tragedy and loss, run to your kitchen. Open your table-salt shaker and remove one small grain. Place it on your monitor. Go ahead and read. Hey, I'm not saying every journaler is a liar. I'm not even saying the ones alluded to above are. What I am saying is, you have no way of really knowing, so exercise a modicum of emotional detachment. You'll thank me later.

 

Funeral for a friend.

My ten year old son lost a Buddy today. He came home from a sleepover at a friend's house to discover that Buddy, his pet hamster was sick.

It came on quite suddenly. The little tyke kept us up half the night with the squeak of his wheel as usual. Sometime during the afternoon my wife discovered that he was hunched up in an unnatural position, and breathing labouriously. Several care filled hours later, he stopped breathing. Matthew was the one that went in to check on him the last time, and found him dead. Matt is a sensitive child. He cried for a long time. Mom found a little gold box in the basement, and Dad dug a hole in the garden. Matt held Buddy for a few moments, stroking his soft fur, then put him in the box, carried it outside, and reverentially placed him in the hole. "Good-bye, Buddy," he said. "I love you." Mom and Dad held Matthew, and we all sobbed uncontrolledly for several minutes. Nobody in this family handles death very well.

This story may seem ironic, in light of the comments that preceded it, but every word is true. I swear.

coming soon: new puppy pictures  (old puppy pictures)