Ely Kim We Like Him!!

I woke up today with a case of the minor blues. Hard to wrap my head around it though, especially after the joy I'd been feeling since last weekend, from the outpouring of support, friendship and generosity that I've seen around the Praxis Show. It's hard to be bummed out about much when friends are stepping up in ways you've never imagined, and strangers are getting involved as well.

This weekend was a rough one for Praxis though. While the online auction was going strong, and friends from all over were helping to spread the word, Praxis was struggling with the swelling of his mandibular lymph nodes, and a possible enlargment of the mass in his chest. We took it easy, and bumped up our appointment at City of Angels to this morning instead of Thursday. Dr. Tan-Coleman filled in for Dr. Davis and helped me make the decision to continue on with a chemotherapy protocol that won't be too harsh on Praxis, but could potentially reduce the swelling of his lymph nodes and get him feeling back to a little more like normal. He has medication for his coughing now, and he's back on prednisone to get him feeling better. I'm feeling better as well. With the auction doing well, I feel like I have options again, and that I don't have to make any harsh decisions about his care. That feeling of hopelessness is gone.

A deep and heartfelt thank you to everyone who has made that possible for us.

To bounce back from all of that this morning, I devoted some time this afternoon to checking out the 9 and a half minutes of joy created by one of LA's Best Dancers (currently on loan to the East Coast), Ely Kim.

Check out Boombox.


BOOMBOX from Ely Kim on Vimeo.

Wish that you were dancing right now.

Know that you look hot on the dancefloor, but that you have to try even harder to look hotter than Ely.

Next time you get a chance to dance, don't pass it by!

The Praxis Show

For the next seven days, you can view and bid on ebay for artwork by some of my favorite artists. They have created and/or donated work inspired by my dog, Praxis. Most of these artists have met Praxis, or know how much he's meant to me, and donated their time and talent to my effort to raise funds to pay for Praxis' chemotherapy and other medical bills after he was diagnosed with lymphoma in May 2008.

I've held on to these for a while, maybe too long, and I only kind of know why. Since the diagnosis, I've been in a strange state trying to wrap my head around losing a loved one to an illness like cancer. You have to accept that there's no cure, and that treatment can buy you time, but there's never a guarantee of quality of life, and certainly no sense of how long that time will last. Engaging in this artwork, all of it capturing some part of Praxis and my love for him, brings that home for me... and I'm not always strong enough to find a way to deal with the loss that's looming ahead. I think part of me also wants to keep it all!! Each piece is so fantastic... truly. This is a talented bunch and I'm incredibly lucky to have these folks as friends. This is an exciting time in my life. This is the first time I've had so many creative friends who are successful in their endeavors and inspire the same in others.

The work ranges from oil paintings to gooco prints and is a diverse collection of talents and styles, and 10% of the proceeds will go to The Magic Bullet Fund to help other pet owners find funds for expensive cancer treatments. It's a terrible feeling to have... to not be able to afford something that can help an animal you've loved and cared for. It made me feel powerless and disloyal. That was afwul, and I hate to think of anyone being in that position.

Check out the auctions on eBay!

Please enjoy the work. You can check it out on ebay, or on my flickr page. Bid if you feel so inclined and spread the word! Participating artists include Jeffrey Brown, David Horvath & Sun Min Kim, Martin Ontiveros, Seonna Hong, Christiaan van Bremen, Martin Cendreda, Silvio Porretta, and Susie Ghahremani.