A Chance Encounter, a Missed Opportunity [Archive]

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Simplygib

1-21-12, 7:38pm

Argh. I just had one of those forehead-slapping DUH moments this morning.

For the past couple of weeks I was out in the Anza Borrego desert camping with a couple of friends. Last weekend I was flying my little remote control airplane around our camping area (a big dry lake bed) when I lost control and crashed it near our nearest neighbor's 5th wheel. This alerted their dog, a 3-legged German Shepherd, who started to bark. A woman sitting with her back to me spun around and said something, which I couldn't hear too well, so I approached.

Turns out she was interested in the little airplane, so we started to talk. Soon my two buddies were over there, and along with the woman's husband who had emerged from the 5th wheel, we all had a nice conversation about dry camping, traveling, dogs, solar power, etc. for about a half hour or so. Great folks.

Over the next few days my buddies and I were out running around quite a bit, so we didn't get a chance to talk anymore with the couple, and then yesterday morning we left. My buddies went home to Central California, and I to Arizona, where I'm spending the winter.

So this morning I was thinking about that couple and decided to look up their website, a site dedicated to k-9 amputees. While looking at the site, I noticed a link to a PBS show that they appeared in, and suddenly it hit me like a slap in the face: That was HumboldtGirl and her husband!! DOH!!! :doh:

Now I'm just kicking myself for not realizing that while we were still there. I knew their story about Jerry, the German Shepherd they had that got cancer and prompted their nomadic lifestyle. I KNEW that story!! I had even seen the PBS clip about it, and although it was probably about a year and a half ago, why didn't I remember it when I was standing right in front of them? Must be the old brain cells aren't what they used to be.

I sent them an e-mail via their website and am hoping to hear back.

Sometimes, yes, it is a small world.

Stella

1-21-12, 7:44pm

Oh wow! That is a small world. I remember her. I'd be curious to hear what they are up to. Tell her we'd love to hear from her.

Mighty Frugal

1-21-12, 9:23pm

I remember too!

Mighty Frugal

1-21-12, 9:24pm

oops, hit reply too quickly. I hope they reply, Simplygib, and you can all have a big ole' laugh over it!

flowerseverywhere

1-21-12, 10:43pm

glad to hear from you. I remember your old posts and your interesting life. Hope you can get her to post a little and update us.

pony mom

1-21-12, 11:34pm

Several years ago I was at a Broadway Cares event, where theater actors spend the day in Shubert Alley in NYC, posing for photos, signing autographs, auctioning things for AIDS. I met Petula Clark briefly and couldn't think of anything to say. An hour later, it dawned on me that she acted with one of my favorite not-so-well-known actors, Roger Livesey, when she was a child. I would have loved to ask her about him, as I read that he was a very nice man. They were in one of my favorite movies, I Know Where I'm Going. So many questions I had about that movie, and I blew my chance.

I also met Werner Klemperer (sp?) and forgot that he was involved with an animal sanctuary in NY that I was supporting. Celebrities LOVE talking about themselves and what they like and do.

iris lily

1-22-12, 12:12am

S...
I also met Werner Klemperer (sp?) and forgot that he was involved with an animal sanctuary in NY that I was supporting. Celebrities LOVE talking about themselves and what they like and do.
is this the guy from Hogan's Heroes?

SimplyGlub, that's amazing that you met Humboldt girl. Somehow I had the impression that Jerry had died. I guess not.

Wildflower

1-22-12, 2:59am

So they got another 3 legged German Shepherd dog? Their dog, Jerry, that is featured in the PBS special died quite awhile ago....

Mrs-M

1-22-12, 7:08am

What a downer... Reminds me of the old television series, Get Smart, where Agent Maxwell Smart used to always say, "missed it by that much"! Fingers crossed for you SG.

Simplygib

1-22-12, 12:42pm

SimplyGlub, that's amazing that you met Humboldt girl. Somehow I had the impression that Jerry had died. I guess not.

You had the right impression. The new dog is "Wyatt," who they got at 8 months old. He had been tied to a chain which apparently got wrapped around his leg and cut off circulation, at least that was my impression from what HumboldtGrl told me. The owner was just going to have him put down but the vet got him to sign Wyatt over to him instead. Not sure how HumboldtGrl and her husband found out about him. Wyatt is 3 now and gets around great.

Still haven't heard back from her. If you're curious about their adventures, check out their blog:

http://www.liveworkdream.com/blog/

Wildflower

1-23-12, 4:28am

Glad to hear they got another dog. I know it was very hard for them to lose their beloved Jerry.

Rogar

1-23-12, 8:58am

A small world indeed . I'm not especially new agey or anything, but tend to attach some meaning to those chance encounters.

Years ago I was returning from a vacation in Mexico and ran into a couple who I had met, but barely knew at the time, at the airport in Mexico. Turns out later we became good friends and still are.

razz

1-23-12, 9:14am

Rather than regret, may I suggest that you rejoice that you did meet them and enjoyed their company without knowing who they were which may have changed the dynamics of the encounter?
Glad that you mentioned meeting them, BTW, as sometimes one wonders how former SL members are doing.

pony mom

1-23-12, 7:26pm

[QUOTE=Iris lily;63361]is this the guy from Hogan's Heroes?

Yup. "I know nothing".

iris lily

1-24-12, 12:04am

[QUOTE=Iris lily;63361]is this the guy from Hogan's Heroes?

Yup. "I know nothing".

More like "I know nut-teeeng!"

My father hated that show. He was in WWII and he couldn't see why it was funny.

Spartana

1-24-12, 1:17pm

Argh. I just had one of those forehead-slapping DUH moments this morning.

I think this shows just how amazing the world is - and how small :-)! It almost boggles the mind to think that 2 people who have "known" each other online for years, who are from 2 states a thousand miles apart, happen to find themselves camping in the same place right next to each other in a completely different state a thousand miles from either's home, and end up having a long enjoyable conversation without realizing who each other are. Pretty mind blowing! I often look around the library or internet cafe when I go online wondering if any of the other people here are someone I "know" from online, like from this SLF. I think maybe someone would recognize me from my fairly recent profile pic (now removed) and come over and say hello - or maybe just watch me like a crazy stalker :-)! Besides you SimplyGib - I know you're here - always stalking me. You can come out from behind that tree now and say hello :-)! Glad to see you are still posting on this site too - hope you continue as you are missed and always do interesting things now that you are a work-free-man!

Weston

1-24-12, 2:07pm

[QUOTE=pony mom;63635]

More like "I know nut-teeeng!"

My father hated that show. He was in WWII and he couldn't see why it was funny.

Actually that was not Klemperer's character's catch phrase. It was the catch phrase of Sergeant Schultz played by John Banner (who oddly enough was a Jewish man playing a Nazi prison guard).

CathyA

1-24-12, 4:02pm

I agree with razz, that it was neat that you talked with them without knowing who they were. I'm sure they'll answer you and it will be fun!
About Werner Klemperer...........I saw him on TV the other day. I think he was in an old (or more recent?) Law and Order. I didn't recognize his face........but I did his voice.

I've often wondered if I ever come in contact with people I know from the internet and we miss the chance to say "Hey....I know you!!"

Simplygib

1-24-12, 6:49pm

....SimplyGib - I know you're here - always stalking me. You can come out from behind that tree now and say hello :-)!

And I thought I was being so stealthy. I hope you don't have any video of me picking my nose or anything.

I heard back from Humboldt Girl. They were as surprised as I was. All of this serendipity caused me to want to see that PBS show again, so my gf and I sat down and watched it last night. It's a great show, and a real tear jerker where Jerry is concerned. But Jerry is out there in the Cosmos now, watching over things and (I suspect) pulling a few strings here and there. I wouldn't be surprised to find out that my buddy Feeny is right there with him.

Here's the link for anyone who might be interested in seeing it. It's about 50 minutes long:
http://www.pbs.org/wnet/nature/episodes/why-we-love-cats-and-dogs/video-full-episode/4673/

I sent Rene a link to this thread so maybe she'll stop by. Hope so.

Simplygib

1-26-12, 2:26pm

Humboldt Girl really wants to post a comment on this thread, but she's having technical difficulties getting logged in. She's requested that an admin contact her, but hasn't heard anything back yet.

Any mods out there who can help?

This is a quote from an e-mail she just sent me:

I am so, so bummed, I never got an email back from the SL
administrators, and still can't log in. The only error message I get is
that my password is incorrect but when I ask for a new one I never get
the email. I wish I could comment on that thread, darnit. If you do,
tell everyone I said hello and would love to come back if the admins
would contact me.

leslieann

1-26-12, 2:48pm

Darn it! The video isn't available here.....one of the reminders that I don't live in the USA!

I was tickled to see a post from simplygib and wondered when Spartana would chime in......somehow it makes me happy to have the two of you talking here. Awwww....

Simplygib

1-26-12, 4:47pm

Thanks leslieann....

Try this clip on youtube. HumboldtGirl, her husband and Jerry are featured in two segments of the show, and this is the first of those. There's much more to the show, and I think there are other parts of it available on youtube as well, but I couldn't find the later segment about Jerry there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mFLWC_W9KM8

lhamo

1-27-12, 12:16am

Just a quick note to say I am just getting back online after a week away at my inlaws -- I will try to look into the problem with humboltgirl's registration and get it resolved if I can. It'll have to wait a few hours as I am at work at the moment.

lhamo

leslieann

1-27-12, 8:19am

Thank you, simplegib. That was wonderful to see!

jennipurrr

1-27-12, 10:31am

Thanks for sharing the video!

Simplygib

1-27-12, 11:11am

Gregg

1-27-12, 1:31pm

HumboldtGurl

1-28-12, 5:11pm

Woooo hooo! Thank you lhamo, you fixed whatever the issue was (probably me!). :cool:

I had tried re-registering here when the big forum move was made way back, and failed miserably. It's great to be back! Thanks Simplygib for sharing this incredible story, and thank you to everyone for the super warm welcome. I am really honored by your kindness!

It blows my mind that we met the way we did. If Simplygib hadn't have put the dots together, I never would have known who he was. To think that the Universe put us together in that big, vast desert, after all this time, makes my head spin! Yeah, our Jerry probably had something to do with this.

Simplygib has a lifestyle that is remarkably similar to mine and DH's, and the three of us have a lot in common. I hope that we get to meet up again out here in the West, I know we could share some amazing stories around the campfire.

Here's the weird thing, this isn't the first time I've met a SLer, completely randomly. A few years ago I met a gal through my Tripawds website, (http://www.tripawds.com) whose dog had the same type of cancer as our Jerry. We talked on the phone for a while, but it wasn't until after her dog passed away when finally we met in person for the first time, in the middle of nowhere Colorado (hmmm...what is it about SLers and living in the sticks?!). We marveled about how much we had in common, then one of us mentioned SL, and whammo! We instantly made the connection! She was more of a lurker here but we had actually chatted a few times in the forums. Isn't that weird?

So yeah, I'm still on the road with Jim, and our not-so-new pack member, Wyatt Ray (http://wyattraydawg.tripawds.com).

http://tripawds.com/wp-content/blogs.dir/1/files/0809_wyatt/20110914w_animasforks01.jpg
Wyatt came to us almost a year after losing Jerry. He is also a Tripawd, who became one after losing his leg due to neglect and abuse by some awful humans. He is a three-year old German Shepherd like our Jerry was, but couldn't be more opposite. Wyatt has challenged us in so many ways that we've never been challenged in before when it comes to patience and humility. While at times its been frustrating, I know he was brought to us for a reason.

We have come a long way with this pup and he has grown into an incredible pack member. We still miss Jerry every day, and always will. DH and I will continue living this road tripping lifestyle because we love it too much to go back to our old one. It's frugal, it's adventurous, it's unpredictable and it's the way we love living our life. While we did find a pretty piece of property in Northern Colorado that we named "Jerry's Acres," we are on the road more than we're there, we just can't stay in one place very long. There's so much out there to see.

Anyhoo, enough about me. It feels great to be a part of this community again! I'm always wrapped up in the Tripawds community that DH and I manage, but I'd like to consider this my second "home" again and look forward to seeing what's what. Now I need to go play with my user settings. Thanks again!

lhamo

1-28-12, 7:30pm

Yay1 So glad you are back...

lhamo

Simplygib

1-30-12, 11:06am

Awesome! Glad you're back on, HumboldtGurl! And yes, we do have to meet up again. Looks like I will be headed back to AB around Friday, 2/10, so if you're anywhere between here and there maybe we can meet again. All the best to you, Jim and Wyatt Ray.

chanterelle

1-30-12, 11:44am

He's a beauty! so glad that you found each other....Jerry would be happy!

Mrs-M

1-30-12, 10:41pm

A fabulous story/happening!

Spartana

2-2-12, 2:04pm

And I thought I was being so stealthy. I hope you don't have any video of me picking my nose or anything.

No you weren't doing anything embarrassing - just looking at the stacks of library books pretending to read them. But since the library doesn' have any porn I know you couldn't really be reading anything :-)! Glad to hear Humbolt gurl got back to you - and I see she is now posting here (YAY!!). Great phohos in your albums too. Feeny is sooo cute - I know how much you miss him everyday.