VIPs: Close to Home

The "close to home" of today's title is less than exact. In the spirit of my previous entry, here I pay tribute to the VIPs in my home: Mama et Papa.

All too often I have exposed their shortcomings [plentiful perhaps], and yet that's a defect that all creatures share.

Yes, my loft space is tiny & only sparingly furnished. [for a size comparision between my loft & the Roushanzamir house, see entry July 28, 2006] True, I'm served 2 meals per day [they eat--at least--three]. My collar is not gem-studded, nor is my name tag either gold or platinum.

However:

It is they who saved me from the hard work & deprivation of life on an Idaho farm towards which I seemed to be headed. [I'd almost rather be beheaded]

As the picture above amply illustrates [shot 1 month after I arrived in the Roushanzamir family], Mama comforted me in my infancy when I felt frightened & alone. [One not apocryphal story: In my initial terror, I feared to leave Mama's arms and thus she lost 10 lbs. during my first 3 days in my new home unable as she was to prepare or eat food.] Papa too was, from the very first, a commited [if permissive] caregiver.

Papa spoils me rotten. I adore him & he's simply wonderful. The nicest guy in town. He encourages treats before breakfast. Allows me to chew on his sock & shoes. Lets me drag him along on walks. I stay up as late as I want & he walks me as early as I choose to awaken each day. In short he give me free reign & indulges me in the most endearing way.

Scattered throughout my blog are numerous photos of Papa [only 1 or 2 of the stricter Mama]. [for example, see July 4 & 30, 2006, August 1, 2006, January 18, 2007; for Papa & Grandmere Manijeh see July 8, 2006; also search for Papa shown sneaking me treats; for Papa with Mama, see July 9, 2006] So for this entry, I've selected a picture of Papa visiting Trinity College, Oxford. [his company, questionable]

And finally, although not the slickest or most current of photos, here I share for the first time one my personal favorites.