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Pistol & Buddy
Pistol
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Bonnie & Tina
Pistol & Bonnie
I have a friend in Reno, NV. No this friend is not a childhood friend, or a former neighbor, or someone I met through mutual friends , or through our children or my 'grands' at school functions! She is not someone I met by chance, shopping or out and about my little town here!
Bonnie is an 'online friend!'
I met Bonnie several years ago on a book message board. And reading- of course- was the common bond that drew us together! We both loved to read and the same type of mystery-weird stuff, too! The message board we were on was called 'Koontzmania', of course for Dean Koontz! But Koontz fans are often Stephen King fans, as well...and Jeffrey Deaver, Anne Rice...on and on...
We had some fun times on that old Koontzmania board.
Besides just general book talk, we had a fun game going in which several of us participated . It was a make believe story of 'KoontzCastle.' Anyone could join in and the story would continue in whichever direction the poster chose to take it! We would each take on a character in the story. I was Queen Mother June and I remember Bonnie was The Doc for awhile! We had fun!
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There was also a Prince David... (in our fantasy story.)
David, in real life, was a young man we all grew to know and care for; with his sweet simplicity and friendly ways. He was early 20's-and he took to both Bonnie and me, right from the start! In Email messages from David, I became OGM (other grand mother)-and Bonnie became-OM (Other mother!) Many on the forum became close to him! He was a poet- a boy with deep feelings! We all knew Dave was very ill with an incurable condition. I admired David very much for his ability to keep going under the worst of conditions. He kept writing his poetry...kept in touch with all of his online friends!
He had many ups and downs with his illness but he finally lost his battle. A tragedy we all felt for a long time. He was just 24 when he died-and seemed younger.
His family put together a little booklet of his poems after he passed away, for his online friends. I cherish it!
Just mentioning Bonnie always brings all of this back about David-because we were all so involved and enter twined on that forum!
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Bonnie impressed me right from the start with her compassionate nature and caring ways- about David , of course.
AND
...I soon learned that She is the greatest lover of animals that I have ever known, too. She has Collies-and Collie mixes, maybe . ( not sure) Also cats, frogs, fish etc... :) The girl loves critters!
She sent me some pics today and I want to share her beautiful dogs here!
Bonnie is my oldest online friend. We will probably never meet- still- we are friends!
When I mention her to my husband I always identify her as ' My friend Bonnie - in Reno- that girl who loves animals!' :)
Here are some of her babies!
Love,
Junie
Those dogs are beautiful!
ReplyDeleteI especially like the coloring of Pistol and Buddy.
It is funny how even blog buddies/online friends can become dear to us. They are people whom we get to know, and thus find ourselves going through life WITH.
How very sad that David died. I'm sure his online friendships meant a great deal to him since he was most likely unable to be out and about with people due to his illness.
Jamie Dawn,
ReplyDeleteYep those dogs are beauties-and my friend's pride and joy (s) :)
Yes , it was sad about our young friend-and I am still in touch with his mom, too.
And an ironic thing about David is that he died at the same time as my mom (within 24 hours) So all those memories will always be connected.
~~Mom would always ask me...'How is that boy in Texas doing...she knew about his illness and would always include him in her prayers.~~
Yep-I do value my online friends very much!
Junie
aw, june, you made me cry. thank you for posting this. these guys are all purebred collies. tina is a smooth collie and was rescued from a dirt farm somewhere called stagecoach, nevada about 12 years ago. buddy is a blue merle and was rescued from california and washington -- people kept giving him up. pistol is also a blue merle and isn't technically a rescue but my friend in battle mountain couldn't keep her collies so i took pistol. and little bonnie is a rescue out of elko, nevada. i'll send you pictures next week of The Dog of Destruction, Ozzy. Waverly named him after ozzy osborn. hahaha. he is one of pistol's pups and is quite beautiful. and now the cats are picketing my desk........accusing me of favoritism.......heavy sigh.
ReplyDeleteDavid was special, wasn't he -- never forgotten and forever loved. We've had some really good times, haven't we, Junebug. Thanks again for the post. You're awesome!
The dogs are so pretty! I've always loved Collies too. Thanks for sharing the photos here.
ReplyDeleteI've met a handful of on-line friends, most recently a blogger friend I posted about. Last year I met a man from a writers group I belonged to, and in 2002 I met a girl from a writers group when I was in Utah. I've spoken on the phone with a few as well. It's nice to meet face to face though. Sorry about David. It must be hard losing someone you know like that, even if you never saw them.
Hi Bonnie,
ReplyDeleteWell, I THOUGHT your dogs were all purebred but wasn't sure and with your kind heart I knew if one wasn't purebred it wouldn't necessairly stop you from taking it in! :) Am I right? Sure- I remember Ozzy. You sent me a picture of him- but in my messy files I have misplaced it! Maybe I can find it- or you can send me another one!
Yes- David was a special young man.
...and- Yes- we have had some good times through the years- you and I. I still have that tape your son and his friends made and you sent to me! :) I thought it was so neat that your kids and my 'grands' were near the same ages and were doing the same kinds of things...making those scary movies! haha
Take care- and tell those kitties to stop being so jealous....If they pose pretty enough they might reach the lofty position of starring on Junie's blog too!! hahaha
Love,
June Bug
Hi Carolyn,
ReplyDeleteThose dogs are real beauties, aren't they ?
Yes, there are some ppl you are just drawn to , more than others, online.
When I first started reading your blog -and saw you have Ginger and Daisy- I thought of my friend Bonnie . In fact I told her about your blog...thought she might be interested in the talk about your 2 great little dogs! :) Don't know if she visited you as she doesn't have a lot of time to spend having fun on the computer!
Yes, it was sad when David died -for all on the forum. It was amazing to have developed such deep feelings for someone we just knew , online.
...I think ppl can get to know each other very well-online, tho. I have another friend whom I have known for over 4 years-and we talk -online- several times a week!
Junie
Your story just proved what wonderful and close friendships that can be made online...you never need to actually meet the person face to face..your hearts and souls reach out through the internet:-) The story about David brought tears, how very sad that he would die so young but what a legacy he left behind with his poetry.
ReplyDeleteCollies are gorgeous dogs...my mom often tells me the story of the Collie she had growing up on the farm:-) xox
Dear Pea,
ReplyDeleteYes, I have made a few wonderful friedships online-actually, sometimes I think people open up more in online contacts than in real life. I know it's true for me!
Thanks for visiting.
Junie