DAUGHTER UPDATE

She must have been one determined girl!

I am pleased to announce that not only is the daughter currently at the horse show watching her friend compete, she was released from the hospital on Saturday morning!

It was a big surprise when I showed up to hospital on Saturday morning and she told me the surgeon came in earlier and told her that she can go home as soon as she packed up her things.

So my little Saab convertible was filled with life sized teddy bears, 6 bouquets of flowers, a large gift bag full of chocolate, 40 brand new nighties and pajamas, 11 stuffed animal horses, 63 cards, 17 hand drawn pictures, 6 mylar balloons, 13 DVDs, 9 magazines with titles such as "Girlfriend" "Dolly" and "Horse Beats" and one large bottle of scotch.

I think the scotch was meant as a gift for the partner and I.

Thanks for waiting

A big hug to everyone for their wishes and good thoughts about the daughter's recovery.

To give an update, she has had surgery to remove the spleen (which I may have said before, but I can't remember at the moment ie sleep deprivation) on Monday night and this morning had all of her tubes removed.

Her condition is no longer critical, but we are trying to keep her fighting spirit up. She has gained the ability to start walking short distances and sit up for small amounts of time.

Everyday the recovery is rapidly increasing. It does not appear the she will be out of Hospital in time to see her friends at the horse show on Sunday, but she is still keeping hope.

After a weekend of intense sleep, I should be able to have the time an energy to start writing the posts again.

I thought that for the upcoming Musical Monday I would write about Costume Design.

What are your thoughts?

Tuesdays with Tony - Lena Horne

Today's scratchy YouTube video is from the 1981 Tony Awards show.

Lena Horne won the Tony for her one-woman show Lena Horne: The Lady and Her Music. After seductive stroking her award during her acceptance speech, in true musical form, Ms Horne breaks into song.

Ladies and gentlemen, singing If You Believe from The Wiz, here is Lena Horne.

POSTING DELAY

Sincere apologies for the one of you that stopped in to read the Musical Monday post, only to find nothing.

Over the weekend there was a family emergency, where my man's daughter (who lives with us full time) was kicked by a horse and suffered a ruptured spleen.

She has had surgery tonight, and should be on the road to recovery, so look forward to a Musical Monday post (or any other post for that matter) to appear later on in the week when things become more stable.

For now, I will leave you with a quote sent to me by a friend:

All the happiness there is in this world Arises from wishing others to be happy.
- Shantideva

COLLEEN THE WHALE?

From News.com.au:

WHALE MUM FOUND, COLIN WAS A GIRL

"WILDLIFE experts will conduct DNA tests on a whale they believe may have been the mother of a lost calf nicknamed Colin, hours after the young whale was euthanased.

The Daily Telegraph reports the development came as National Parks and Wildlife head Sally Barnes revealed Colin was actually Colleen - a female humpback whale calf.

It is believed a whale carcass being eaten by sharks near Eden on the NSW South Coast may have been her mother, explaining why the young whale turned up alone and hungry in Pittwater on Sunday.

Ms Barnes also defended the NPWS handling of the calf's mercy killing, saying it gave her a “peaceful, respectful and dignified end”.

However, witnesses have disputed this account, saying the young whale thrashed and struggled until the very end."

OUTCOME OF COLIN THE WHALE

From News.com.au:

COLIN THE WHALE 'STRUGGLED TO THE END'

"GROWN men were in tears as Colin the abandoned baby humpback whale struggled as he was dragged behind a boat before being left to thrash on a beach after he was injected with a fatal dose of anaesthetic this morning.

Soon after 8.30am (AEST) officers from the National Parks and Wildlife Service (NPWS) at the Basin in Sydney's northern beaches gave the calf what was believed to be as many as seven jabs of anaesthetic.

"It's a tragic end to a program that dozens of people have put their hearts and souls into," said NPWS spokesman John Dengate, describing the act of ending Colin's life as "harrowing".

NPWS spokesman Chris McIntosh said: "It was a sad moment, but it went quietly to sleep. "The calf has been quietly and humanely euthanised.' A vet on board a small boat administered an anaesthetic through a large needle, by simply leaning overboard and injecting the weakened humpback calf, he said. But activists said more could have been done to save Colin and locals who witnessed Colin's death said it lacked dignity.

Locals were in tears after the whale was euthanased.

In a shallow cove at Coasters Retreat, NPWS officers and Sea World Vet David Blyde administered about seven injections before towing the whale across the bay.

The local community was outraged at how the NPWS dragged the baby whale, bucking and thrashing, across 300m of water. It was still thrashing when it was pulled up on the beach. “I don’t understand why they didn’t let it die quietly,” said Michael Brown.

“It was obviously distressed. I’m 41 years old and almost collapsed.” Mr Brown and other locals were crying as the baby whale - which had sought refuge in the bay for five days - was lashed by ropes to the NPWS boat as it continued to struggle.

"After this comedy of errors of the past few days I thought that they would euthanase it with some dignity,” said Mr Brown. “For God's sake, it’s a baby. It’s been through hell. It was separated from its mother, it’s been starved and confused.”

A spokesman for the Divine Marine Group said they had organised a legal injunction against the NPWS to prevent Colin being killed but could not serve it in time.

"We had five minutes and during that time they euthanased poor Colin," Captain Alexander John Littingham said on Fairfax radio.

"That was a scene that we witnessed ... and then they towed the whale behind their National Parks and Wildlife boat. It looked like a scene out of the Antarctic with a Japanese fishing boat.

"It was absolutely disgusting."

Capt Littingham said the group had wanted to use a force-feeding system with an electronic pump.

The Environment Department said Colin was euthanased without causing the whale any stress.

"Vets who euthanased the animal said it was a smooth operation and the sedated animal remained stress free and calm throughout," it said.

Police kept the media and environmentalists at a distance while the whale remained on the beach.

It was later loaded onto a trailer to be taken to Taronga Zoo for an autopsy.

The autopsy will be aimed at finding clues as to why the whale was deserted by its mother - beginning the tragic story that has gripped the country."

Poor Colin the Baby Whale

From News.com.au:

COLIN THE WHALE EXPECTED TO BE EUTHANISED TODAY

"TEMPERS are running high at Pittwater, on Sydney's Northern Beaches, as authorities prepare to euthanase abandoned baby humpback whale Colin.

Wildlife activists have confronted National Parks and Wildlife Service officers, claiming more could be done to save the mammal.

A small group is at the Palm Beach wharf and more are believed to be in the Basin, where the whale will be despatched with a lethal injection of anaesthetic.

Experts are defending the decision to put Colin down, saying they have run out of time and options and that he is suffering.

"It's the same as you would do with a dog or cat in pain," one officer said today.

Head of the National Parks and Wildlife Service Sally Barnes last night said Colin's condition had "significantly deteriorated" and the most humane option was to euthanase the calf to "put him out of his misery".

It was believed earlier this morning that the whale might have swum out to sea overnight as he appeared to vanish - but Colin was then located again.

"He was listless, was having trouble breathing was not really staying afloat the way a whale should," Ms Barnes said after vets assessed his condition.

"We had hoped we'd have more time to look at arrangements but we've had to make a very, very difficult decision in the best and most humane interest of the animal to put it down," she said.

The NPWS and other animal welfare groups were supposed to meet last night to discuss ways to help Colin but it was cancelled at the last moment after they realised he was suffering and could not be saved.

The decision to inject the three-week-old with a lethal dose of anaesthetic capped a day of passionate exchanges between environmentalists and NPWS officials on the wharf at The Basin as a whale whisperer and a paediatric doctor both tried to persuade authorities to give Colin a second chance.

But, late in the afternoon, the nation's leading whale vet, David Blyde from Sea World, arrived from the Gold Coast and the decision to put down Colin was made after the whale's condition suddenly deteriorated and his injuries worsened.

Although the lost whale - who had not eaten for at least five days - was not expected to live through the night, officials put off any attempts to euthanase him until daylight.

The decision was made after consultation with Taronga Zoo and animal welfare groups ORRCA and RSPCA.

Once euthanased, the body is expected to be taken to Taronga Zoo for an autopsy to provide scientists with clues as to why it was abandoned by its mother.

Colin had spent the past five days nuzzling boats moored in the cove as if they were its mother."