The Oppenheimer Report 7/8/19

Last Friday, I made an unexpected trip into Huntsville. I’d left my laptop at the radio station after my Thursday night show, and I didn’t want to leave it there all weekend. During the summer months, I try to avoid Huntsville on the weekends, because it turns into Toronto north. In the hour or so that I was in town, I had three people tailgate me, one nearly t-boned me at an intersection (when I clearly had the right of way), and at least one person rudely pushed in front of me in the supermarket. I’m not used to these weekend warriors; for them it’s business as usual to drive aggressively and rush to go everywhere. I spent much of my life in cities, impatient and anxious, and probably acted the same way. When we moved up to the bucolic Almaguin Highlands, my tolerance for crowds and traffic gradually eroded. What the locals jokingly refer to as “citiots”, racing around to “have fun” with their limited free time, reminds me of who I was twenty years ago.

As some of you may know from Shauna’s Facebook posts, we recently had a memorial service for our dog Jasper. We buried her out front where she will forever overlook the lake she spent most of her life surveying from our front window. I don’t think I have ever missed a dog as much as I miss Jasper. Someday, hopefully soon, we hope to have another Miniature Schnauzer in our home that brings us as much joy and laughter as that little gremlin did. Throughout Jasper’s life, we kept in touch with her breeder, Carla Borrelli, who is well known in breeding circles for her award-winning show dogs. While Jasper was not by any stretch of the imagination a show dog, she was a healthy, wonderful member of our family for her entire life, and we credit Carla for counseling us on how to keep her that way. Like so many purebred dogs these days, Miniature Schnauzers can be a problematic breed. Our dog prior to Jasper was a very sick girl for much of her life. In part, I blame the irresponsible breeder from whom we bought her. Shauna discovered Carla after much research and after we had learned that she had selectively bred out many of the diseases that plague Miniature Schnauzers. Recently, we were in touch with her, and hope we are lucky enough to acquire another one of her dogs. Carla may retire soon, and this next one might be the last litter she offers. Regardless, we value her friendship and guidance. She truly loves all animals and her humanity is palpable.

In a recent phone conversation with Carla, we discussed her various accomplishments, and Shauna and I learned that, not only had she been a successful dog breeder for much of her life, but she had led another, incredible life as well. We told her she should write a book, only to find that she was part way into writing her autobiography. The other day, she forwarded to us some of what she’d written so far. Shauna, her mom, and I have read it and were all astounded by this woman’s journey.

I sometimes speak in my songwriting show about the art of listening. These days, because I am bombarded with so much information, my attention span is shrinking. As a songwriter, the most important asset I have is my ability to observe, and to listen. In this fast-paced world, it can be a hard skill to master. It seems as if the boorish and the well-promoted command our attention, while so many more worthy stories go unrecognized. Reading Carla’s unfinished autobiography  reminds me that there are so many wonderful, untold stories, stories that connect us all. Every so often I get a glimpse of my impatience, and I try to keep it in check. Perhaps even one of those stress puppies tailgating me in Huntsville has a good story to tell. It doesn’t take a genius to recognize the erosion of compassion and empathy in our world today, and I struggle with this daily. I try to remain open and listen to the quiet heroes and role models that drift through my life. They give me hope.   

  

Written by Jamie Oppenheimer ©2019
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
jamieoppenheimersongwriter@gmail.com

Jamie Oppenheimer, Songwriter, Author, Blogger, Radio Producer, & Host has been writing THE OPPENHEIMER REPORT every MONDAY since 1992 and has published the articles on his blog since 2006. We are including Jamie's weekly reports, as a new feature of #HuntersBayRadio, The Bay 88.7FM.
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