History / Background

I have more hobbies then I do time :

List of my hobbies:

Agility training

Aniimals (1 dog, 9 cats, fish, a cockatiel and a ball python)

Dog training

Astronomy

Creating:

Painting

Interior design

Web design/computer

Shirt designing

Sewing

Crocheting

Wood working

Mosaic designs

Ham radio/ Skywarn

Reading

Photography

Martial Arts/ Fitness/Archery/Target Shooting

Collecting figures ( frogs mostly)

Guitar playing

Gardening

KBC Apartments of Seymour

Traveling

Vegetarian cooking

Writing

Those that know me well will notice a few things that I dearly love are missing from the above list. This is because I do not have the oppertunity to continue these activities on a regular bases. These are my lost loves:

Training, riding and showing my own horses. I was luckly enough to do this for over 40 years - but horses reqiure a good barn, good fences and lots of time. I no longer have the barn or the good fences.

Raising sable rough coated collies. My mother once told me that puppies and pigs paid my way through college. I believe the pigs did - but not so sure about the pups. I do know that until I was in my 30's there were always puppies running arond ,but then my dad got sick and my wonderful boys came into this world and puppies slowly left. Collies were replaced by a wonderful short haired dalamation. I throught about raising collies or dalamations after I retired since I still have the kennel but God decided I needed a German Shepherd mix. ( A stray GSD give birth to the puppies on our back porch). I throught long and hard on this decision and actually found homes for all of them - but God was determined and Shoes was returned to us after only one day. When I was working as a mail carrier I noticed so many unloved, mistreated dogs in the area and so I decided that since Shoes has no papers I would have her sprayed.

Farming I love working in the fields - but in reality it is cheaper for me to rent out the fields. I have traded big tractors and large fields for veggie and flower gardens.

Driving my motorcycle. I do not trust my shoulder enough to drive my cycle. I still enjoy riding behind my husband but he doesn't like to ride that well - so it sets in the garage most of the time.

Fishing I can not remember how long it has been since I have been fishing at our pond. It isn't the same without my Granny Greene or my Dad.

These are my lost loves - they mean so much to me because of the wonderful joy that they provided in the past. and I cherish every time I have the oppertunity to revisit these activities.

My Background

I have always lived on a farm and so loving animals is a no-brainier. I was a 4-H member for 10 years and then want to Purdue to study animal science. My mother was a gifted artist - so I begin painting and sewing at a young age, I became interested in the ham radio and weather after I became a mail person. Weather is very important in this line of work.

I became the EMA-RACES officer for Jackson County. This has been a lot of work as I had to become FEMA certified and wrote up the county emergency manual for the RACES team. I retired from the postal service in 2009 due to limited arm movement and started a new business "Animal Spirit Burial".This never really got off the ground so in 2011 I purchased an apartment building along with my husband and one son. Most of my time was spent training my GSD" Shoes" and working on the apartment building and building agility equipment for Shoes.

In 2012 I published not one but two books. The first book entiled So You Want The Perfect Dog: Start Here was the hardest to write since it required a lot of reseach to double check all my facts.The second book entitled Christmas Recipes from Grandma up the Road started out by simply transfering my mother's handwritten Christmas recipes to the computer. I then decided it woould be nice to have them in book form and then it was a simple decision to share them with others.

Life goes on and things chance. Unfortunately most of my ham radio people have either moved or died and the sand hill cranes destroyed my ham antenna - so I no longer use the ham radio much. I renew my licence in case of emergencies but have not replaced the antenna.
Shoes is now 11 years old and no longer able to do the agility course so I have taken most of the course down. Only the teeter totter remains as a reminded of the "good" days. She tore a ligament in her back leg last December while circling the coffee table. She has recovered but that leg will always remain weaken now.
I still enjoy gardening and have invested in a real greenhouse which I enjoy working in. I can easily spend a whole day out there in the gardens.

Kathryn L. Jarvis