Update

Silvia Jay is slated to be at the SPCA at 9 am Friday morning. They are under a court order to let her see Brindi and are to be advised to allow her the space to work with her - unmonitored. 

Without going into too much detail - it seems to me the city is doing its best to stall anything else we do, even things they already agreed to, like providing information about Animal Services officials. Stall. More money, less time, and they just keep on keeping on. I don't understand it. Is the goal to keep people safe from dangerous dogs, or to be right no matter what? Is it no difference to the lawyers whether it's a case about property lines or a dog that means so much to me?

Meanwhile, our meeting at Dalhousie is tomorrow night, Student Union room 316, 7:30 pm. Finally I will absolutely have to be driving into town.

Odd as it may seem in this context, it so happens I have two tickets to DJ Mark Farina at the Pacifico club for tomorrow night - starts right after the meeting. They can go to the highest bidder, whoever shows up. The tickets are worth $20 each in advance, $30 at the door. 

If nobody wants them, maybe I'll ask Bob Riley to step out... ; )

And since each time the city stalls or blocks something, it adds up in my bills, if I may, here's another plug for the epier.com auction - to put in a plug: time is ticking away on it too, and the quilt is still up for sale; there is still time to get it made and sent out before Christmas! Same for the pretty porcelain figurine, the Hallmark Legacy Keeper, and of course the candy-striped dog sofa. Please pass it around!  And thanks once again to all those who have bidded and won other items, as well as their generous donors. More is on the way!

Wake up, it's show time! Two weeks to go!!

Okay, I haven't blogged anything for days because the days have been so rocky, and when stuff happens I need time to absorb and recover and then emails take over...

SO I originally posted this under "seven days to go" - and that shows you how messed up I am trying to keep track of my own life. I've been answering emails back and forth since Monday at a record-breaking case with all sorts of folks including my "solicitor" - at every turn it seems the city's "solicitors" are sending objections to things they already agreed to, generating extra work, time, money for both of us. 

I can report quickly, the Dec. 2 hearing was nearly blown off course because at the last second, the city tried to block it by calling for it to be postponed and merged into the Dec. 16 hearing which is of a different nature altogether. Somehow they succeeded, but not totally. 

I am glad to be able to report that we are getting a court order today for the trainer Silvia Jay to visit Brindi at the SPCA and do an assessment - something I requested through David Green way back in, what was it, August?? The city turned it down then. Now it's not a request; it's a court order. 

Silvia Jay, who I hope will be available, has only tomorrow and Friday to get to the SPCA. And I really hope the shelter will cooperate, the weather will cooperate, and she can do whatever she needs to do in time. 

I am not sure what other details are wise to share, actually, but my lawyer has been working intensely on this for a long time now and we are gearing up for the 16th. I think it is safe to say we have a good case, very good, especially since there is not much on the other side. The attempt late last Friday to block a Tuesday morning hearing was really unexpected, since the lawyers already conferenced with a judge and the city had plenty of time to object before then. They did not leave much time for my lawyer to block their block... It is wonderful that he managed to succeed in getting a conference in chambers; truly a great thing. 

BUT, and it's a BIG BUT (even though I dropped another five pounds): the city, as I was told at the outset by so many lawyers here, is not at all worried about the cost to them of long lawsuits or any legal proceedings, or how long an animal stays locked up. The city's lawyers - somehow there are two of them on the case now - are very likely to appeal if we win next week. They have deep pockets and all the time in the world. They have indicated they do not plan to release Brindi immediately if we win on the 16th. 

So it's another Catch-22, really; if we lose, she'll have to stay there longer while we appeal. If we win, they are going to do all they can to hang on to her so they can appeal. 

In case it wasn't already crystal clear, this is no fight for the faint-hearted. Right now I do feel faint, actually. No sleep and not sure what to do from one hour to the next, as important news comes in every minute. I've been on the phone a lot with D.A.I.S.Y?'s formidable director, Heather Anderson in Calgary, who is rallying more troops, including a man from the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies and others from Voice for Animals, Prairie Dog Society, and NOKA (a no-kill group). Heather has been speaking to reporters , animal services, the mayor's secretary, and anybody else who will listen; she also rallied two women activists way out in BC, one of whom is mailing out an amazing first-person story by Brindi, about Brindi. 

There is talk of a big protest out in Calgary also - it could be quite interesting. The Montreal contingent of angels carry on their plans for fundraising and letter-writing; publicity is so important for the comedy night on Dec. 10. 

I have been getting good luck emails from people in Brazil and Holland; I've been messaging the whole thousand-odd members on the Facebook group, all over the place, and my fingers are aching, while my cats politely visit my bed-office purring their hunger, hoping I'll look up long enough to notice and get my butt downstairs to feed them. 

Tomorrow night is already the day of the meeting at Dalhousie, in the Student Union tomorrow night! And I have to see a dentist in the afternoon, a remnant of normal life cropping up; also I have to work on the auction.

I have been trying to get into Halifax for several key errands for a week and a half now. Every day something happens or I am not awake enough to do it. It's maddening. 

The sun is shining and I just want to sleep. But we are tough, this scattered group, and we are going to make some big noise, one way or the other. You can't kill a dog for a list of grievances that include not having a dog tag, or getting loose twice, for goodness' sake! Animal Services apparently added those to the minor incidents she had in order to make a claim that I had "many chances" - and hope that people won't ask what exactly they mean by that - which they then parlay into a death sentence. If I had to compare it to something, it would be like having a few parking tickets, running a stop sign, and a fender-bender or two add up to losing your license AND your car. But the comparison doesn't work because in those instances, you'd get the chance to go to court if you wanted to - without a lawyer. Not to mention your car is not a living breathing thing.

My stomach is gurgling, and I am drifting.