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19 November 2019 On Losing Loyal Staffers Diddley Squat began the campaign with a staff of seven - his mother and father, Ruby and Louie, his uncle Seņor Lopez, his great-uncle Beetle, and his two brothers, webhamster Mason and Monaham, his vice-presidential pick. The stage was set for a long campaign. But a hamster's lifespan is tragically short. The candidates' father Louie passed away in his sleep on the 17th of September. His death was a shock as he'd had no illness and was starting to show his age but was lively and in good health. The entire HFP family felt the loss most profoundly. 
A month would go by before it happened again. This time it was Louie's brother and littermate, Leo, our videographer. Leo had suddenly taken on the appearanced of an old hamster, but had no illness. Still, that change is always a sure sign that his time is coming. For three weeks he got special treatment, his cage in the bed with a human caretaker who saw to his every need and made him to never feel alone. Although his death was expected in the not-too-distant future, it nonetheless took us all by surprise, as he died quite suddenly on the morning of the 24th of October, some time before dawn. His loss was mourned by all. 
Not even one whole month would pass before the fmily and HFP campaign suffered the loss of yet another dear hamster - this time Beetle, the senior hamster of the bunch. Beetle was the brother and littermate of the late, great Dolly. Dolly was the mother of Louie, Leo, and Seņor Lopez and grandmother of the three brothers Diddley, Monaham and Mason. That makes Beetle their great uncle, whom they venerated for his wisdom and patience. Beetle was an amazing hamster. A month before he died (see photo below) he still had the appearance of a hamster no older than a year - the prime of life, in other words. That changed, naturally. And a week before his death, he not only slept through meals, but got that too-familiar "old hamster look." His passing had been anticipated for several days, but it nonetheless leaves a huge empty place in all our hearts. 
We must never allow the sadness and loneliness that accompany the death of a dear hamster to make us forget to be thankful that that hamster was with us and we got to share our life with him - that we had the opportunity to give love he might not otherwise have had, good care, and special things like fancy meals, not to mention human interaction, out-of-cage recreation, and lots of adoring attention. And there's no escaping the fact that sometime in the near future we will lose our wonderful, adored, and now senior hamster, Seņor Lopez - born the same day as Leo and Louie. For now he's healthy and happy and energetic, still looking youthful for his 26 months on earth. Ruby was taught by brother-in-law Leo to do the campaign videos, no small task. She has taken to it very well. Mason manages the website and the campaign's Twitter account, @HAMSTER4PREZ, both of those involving a lot of time and effort. Diddley and Monaham have begun to play a larger role in the election effort, taking over many of the functions performed by those we've lost this fall. And Seņor Lopez, semi-retired, continues to be an advisor on all things from strategy to keeping the candidates informed about events around the world. Losses are inevitable. Hamster's lives are far too short. This leaves us with another problem for Campaign 2020. We are already feeling the pinch of being short-staffed. And that brings us to this: Help Wanted The HFP campaign committee would love to hear from other hamsters who may be interested in becoming volunteers. Rats and mice are also welcome to work on the campaign. The work, of course, can be done from home so no relocation is necessary. New staffers should have a good understanding with all humans living under their roof about computer use, the use of cameras and video equipment, all things necessary for whatever activity they volunteer for. All generous rodents who desire to participate in this historical campaign, please write to us at DiddleySquatForPresident@gmail.com and enter into the subject line the words "Campaign Staff." We hope to hear from some of you awesome rodents out there. Thanks for reading this!
 You may contact the Hamster For President campaign at: 
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