It's been a while. Every time I head over to add a post, I look thru the recent history, end up bawling and leave the site. It's still extraordinarily difficult. I have to pay close attention to not dwell too long on memories of Leonard or I break down.


So, here we go.

Frederick Kirkwood Griffin was married to Ann J. Griffin


Mr Griffin was born July 16th, 1914 and passed away in October 1998 (I think).

Back in 2007, I sent a letter to a man I located through the internet, Frederick Griffin II living in Chandler, AZ. I sent copies of the newspaper articles I have about our house and asked if he could be related to the designer but alas, never a response.

I spoke to a local realtor who had met Mr. Griffin years back and this is what he shared, "I met Fred about what, 15 years ago??? Wow time flies...he's long passed away, I think it was about 2000.

At the time he owned Carefree Realty and was living up there. He had a little office near the Post office that Al Beadle redid. He and his wife worked together and I sold a house he designed and built: a really cool Hogan inspired place in Carefree ranch highlands, sadly now demolished.

His office was filled with drawings and renderings of his houses and designs, built and un-built. As nice a guy as you could meet. He was thrilled that I had interest in his work. I don't suppose his wife is still alive, but I'd love to get a look at his drawings again."


I wish I could locate Mr. Griffin's family....

On another note, have been documenting the MCMs in our neighborhood today.


Built 1959

Built 1955

Built 1975 (by our neighbor, Mike, who now lives up the street)

Built 1954 (cool transom windows in the carport)

Built 1955

Live simply.

Love generously.
Care deeply.
Speak kindly.


Remember, if a dog was the teacher you would learn things like:

When loved ones come home, always run to greet them.

Never pass up the opportunity to go for a joyride.

Allow the experience of fresh air and the wind in your face to be pure ecstasy.

Take naps.

Stretch before rising.

Run, romp, and play daily.

Thrive on attention and let people touch you.

Avoid biting when a simple growl will do.

On warm days, stop to lie on your back on the grass.

On hot days, drink lots of water and lie under a shady tree.

When you're happy, dance around and wag your entire body.

Delight in the simple joy of a long walk.

Be loyal.

Never pretend to be something you're not.

If what you want lies buried, dig until you find it.

When someone is having a bad day, be silent, sit close by, and nuzzle them gently.

Well, it's been almost two months my little bean and I still cry missing you every day.

Leonard & Samuel resting

This was in Salt Lake City one Thanksgiving. Sam, Noah & Ethan were *so* excited to walk Leo, they all had to be holding the leash.

Same visit, Leo planted one on our niece, Emi.

This was the road trip up there.

He loved rolling in the grass or dirt. He would get this back-n-forth motion going trying not to flop to one side or the other. He could keep the wriggle going for quite some time.

Please dad?

He loved sunbathing.

Conked out on his fleece ball.

He loved this garden cart. He would leap into in and start barking and chewing the sides of it. If you pulled the cart while he was in it, he barked even louder and totally attacked the walls of the cart.

I miss you so much, beyond words.

Leonard, May 30, 2000 - August 6, 2010

The pain in our hearts is so great, that there are no words to say...

Parable of Immortality

by Henry Van Dyke - 1852 - 1933

I am standing upon the seashore.
A ship at my side spreads her white sails to the morning breeze
and starts for the blue ocean.
She is an object of beauty and strength,
and I stand and watch
until at last she hangs like a speck of white cloud
just where the sun and sky come down to mingle with each other.

Then someone at my side says, 'There she goes!
Gone where? Gone from my sight - that is all.

She is just as large in mast and hull and spar
as she was when she left my side
and just as able to bear her load of living freight
to the places of destination.
Her diminished size is in me, not in her.

And just at the moment when someone at my side says,
'There she goes! ',
there are other eyes watching her coming,
and other voices ready to take up the glad shout :
'Here she comes!'

Muddy Puppy after playing at the park

Sorry that I have been away...I have been very busy taking care of our little bean and we also had family in town. I don't think I wrote after our last disappointing Oncologist visit.

Irregardless of my affirmations, the ultrasound showed the prostate tumor developing cranial extentions into the bladder and a new mass on either the liver or gall bladder (doc couldn't tell decisively from the ultrasound). After a minor emotional breakdown, we are optimistic and moving forward again.

We are now trying Leonard on a very promising herb called Artemisinin. Remarkably, he showed dramatic & impressive improvement within 24 hours. His urination straining diminished, he was energetic and eating heartily. Unfortunately, the problem with this supplement is bioavailability, after a certain period of time, it's ability to be absorbed diminishes. Because he was on such a huge dose, we hit that mark by Day 5.

So, we have amended his regimen and we are pulsing the Artemsinin with 95% Standardized Curcumin and dosing that with Fish Oil (DHA/EPA) to aid in absorbtion. This regimen is very tricky, the Curcumin appears to be the only Antioxidant that does not interfere with or hinder the Artemsinin's effectivness. Therefore, I had to stop all other antioxidants and avoid any food with antioxidant properties. This is mentally hard to do since the importance of antioxidants for cancer is pounded into us.

On another note, the Artemisinin works directly with the abundant Iron contained in Cancer cells. Because of this, one has to avoid all iron-rich foods near Artemisinin dosing time. It's a very tricky schedule but I think we are getting a system down.

Right now, I think the single most important thing in our fight is exercise and the way this expenditure oxygenates the cells of Leonard's system. We bought him a new basketball and have several play sessions a day - he is like a puppy, I tell you. The exercise has made a tremedous difference in his success.

Breakfast {where else} at The Farm when mom & Dad came to town.

Leonard's FAVORITE toy - a box.Leonard's new basketball! We were so thrilled to have my sister, Adrienne, here for a week in early July. She was here for the 4th of July *and* Jeff's 41st Birthday!

Adi & Leo at Steele Indian School Park.

Leo gets a little crazy over his basketball :)Here is Adi with Trigger at Steel Indian School Park.

Jeff's Birthday pie.Adi and Leo taking a nap on a hot afternoon.
Here's a short poor quality video taken with my camera. He is *so* into this ball, I would love to see him on a soccer field - he is so good at controlling it and volleying it across the field. There was no audio available but if you watch - you can tell he is barking his head off at that ball.

Prescott

We went to Prescott yesterday to get out of the heat, it was supposed to be around 109 in the Valley. It was still 90 degrees up there though. There was a classic car show downtown, the guys walked around and we sat and chatted. Leonard has another UTI so it was challenging, he had to pee a lot and had an accident on Kat's floor. Thankfully, it was tile; but embaressing nonetheless.

We got to visit Kat & Ed's place up north, it has amazing views and a wonderful deck to soak it all in. I forgot to take photos there, though. :(

Hot & tired bulldog.

Lunch @ Pasquales.

Pam & Kat Another tired bulldog.