Ok, so this post will have more or less 2 seperate parts to it as the gift came in 2 parts.

Part one was a really neat perpetual motion machine with a space shuttle and a planet with rings on it! I got it right as E3 was going on, but it was right before the Sony Press Conference came on, so I hurried to open it up. When I got it all set up, my cats came to see what the sound was, just to sit and stare at it! They sat there for a good hour watching it go as I watched the Sony Press Conference. I also had my friends mesmerized by it during a skype call when I had my webcam focused on it. They kept making remarks about how they kept finding themselves just watching it for a good 5 minutes straight, and I cannot blame them, as I do so myself as well! It makes a excellent addition to my computer desk!

That was when I got a message from my secret santa saying that a second package was on its way though, so I opted to post both at the same time and wait. Well, the package ended up arriving the next day, and what was inside... well, to say it was unexpected was a bit of an understatement. Prepare for sappiness below. I'll try to keep it short, but no guarantees.

Before we delve right into gift 2, I need to give a bit of background. I had a dog growing up as a kid. I don't exactly remember when we got her, but she was a part collie, part shepherd, part golden retriever mix. I viewed her as more of a sister than my own sister and as more of a brother than my own brother, as I didn't get along with them too well. She was everything to me, being there when I was sick and feeling down to help cheer me up, or being there when I was angry to help calm me down. I cannot state how much I love her even to this day. Well, as I said above, I HAD her. She passed away durring summer after my first year in college. On the final night she was alive, knowing we were going to put her down the next day for having advanced stages of cancer that had rendered her blind in both eyes and had a decent sized lump on her side that we tried to remove via surgery three times. I slept on her dog bed with her the whole night, never leaving her side.

While I was laying with her, to try to get my mind off things, I decided to watch my favorite show, which had it's second season airing at that time. SPOILER The episode was one in which a very sad scene on a bridge occurs in which the main character more or less decides to end her life to try to save others, but is stopped by someone who cares very deeply about her, instead going to try to save those by himself. END SPOILER

Now then, this gets embarrassing for me. This is something I don't share with others, with the only one knowing about it being my best friend. I was not planning on going to the euthanasia the next day as I emotionally just would not be able to handle it. After watching that episode though, seeing how determined the protagonist was to see things through to the end, even if it ruined her, I made up my mind that I would in fact go. For anyone who has lost a pet through putting them down, you all know how hard it is to stand there as they give the injection and feel your family member's heart stop and the sudden, sharp, jerky breaths that signify the pet slipping away. It wasn't easy to watch at all, but I would have regretted not being there to see her through on her final moments in this world.

Now then, what was the gift? The bridge from that scene. The exact one, taken from a frame of the show itself. Printed on canvas. Words could not describe my emotions I had at that moment when I opened the box and saw that as memories of my dog who I loved so much came flooding back in. How my secret santa found this out and chose that one scene, nay, that frame to put up on canvas and send it to me as a gift I do not know. I couldn't even make this post for a good 2 days as I tried to sort through what all I wanted to say and if I wanted to share the full story or not, since it's just not something I tell others.

So for you, puddle_stomper, from the deepest depths of my heart, thank you. Words alone cannot describe how much this means to me.

Sincerely, Wolfpup118