Dog days of Fall...

Yeah, yeah, I know it's supposed to be summer. It feels like summer around here. It was close to 90 yesterday. Too hot to trot.

My dog--we'll call her Toots--wasn't even interested in going out for a walk. There isn't much that will keep her from a walk these days, but the heat was too much for her so we stayed inside until late afternoon.

When we finally went out for our walk, it was still pretty warm so she mostly wanted to flop down on the grass and look around...with her tongue hanging out. What is it about dogs and that tongue? And the panting. Boy, when there's a thunderstorm, the panting is almost louder than the thunder.

She's slowing down a lot these day. Sleeping more. And she spends a lot more time up on the daybed with the pillows piled all around her. She has a favorite pillow that she puts her head on and another that she props her bad leg up on. Once she's all comfy, then it's time for some zzzzz's.

She's funny. She used to be such a confrontational dog. Now she's really mellowed out. Somebody's running down the street? Nice. A kid rides his bicycle to close? Peace, man. Some little kid runs up to her to pet her? She yawns.

The squirrels, however are different. Any squirrel, anywhere is in deep danger. She can spy a squirrel across the parking lot and down the block. It's a good thing that they can run a lot faster than her. They zip up the tree and wham! she's dragging my arm out of the socket to get to them.

Today she did something she hasn't done in a long time. While she was sprawled out in the grass she found a stick to gnaw on. When she finished with it, it was just a pile of splinters. I have no idea what she got from chewing on that stick, but she certainly enjoyed it.

Whenever we're gone--whether it's ten minutes or four hours--she greets us at the door like we've been gone for days. There's an entire ritual. The panting. The barking. Following us from room to room. Then I sit at my desk and that's her signal that we're really home to stay. Poppy gives her a treat which she consumes almost faster than he tosses it to her. Then...then she's okay.

The last few nights when we went out, there was a big ol' frog on the front doorstep. The first night she sniffed it and nudged it and backed away when it hopped about six inches away. The next few nights she circled around that frog like it was a bad smell. One night I had to nudge the frog on it's way before she would pass it to go inside. Sad, very sad. Frog, 1; Toots, 0.

I suppose there are worse things to be afraid of. Like squirrels.

Anny

Have you checked Kelly's blog at www.kkirch.blogspot.com to see what she's done with the Blogga Saga? No? Well trot right over there. Then drop by to check out what Amarinda's up to at www.amarindajones.blogspot.com because she's sure to have a unique Aussie perspective on something in life. And then have a good day.

Walking the Dog--Plus Crazy Blog Fourteen

Walking the dog is an adventure in an apartment community. You never know who you might meet or what you might find--and that's besides other dogs. In our small square, there are eighty-four apartments. People work all hours and most nights when I take the dog out sometime after midnight for 'last call' before bed, there are still brightly lit apartment windows and even other people out walking their dogs. One night I counted seven other dogs and their owners out strolling around in the cooler night air.

In our square, we have two fenced off areas that contain dumpsters. When people move out (or in, I suppose) they place furniture and appliances they no longer need next to the dumpsters. And then it's a race to see who notices the new offerings first. If no one takes it by the next time the trash men come, then the apartment maintenance crew removes it. Saturday and Sunday, naturally are prime times for dumpster shopping.

So far, my husband has brought home a beautiful wood kitchen cart (stainless steel top), which only required a quick wipe down, a lighter kitchen cart (ditto), and three dining room tables. As we 'trade up', we end up giving the previous table away to someone else who needs it. That way it works for everyone.

The last table he brought home is going to need some work, but I love it. It has gorgeous tiles inset in the top, three leaves, and the rest is heavy oak. I really like this table. So imagine my surprise when I met a neighbor in the next building this morning who offered me the matching chairs. Turns out one of her neighbors gave her the set when she moved out...but the neighbor can't keep it as she's moving to a smaller apartment herself.

As I have mentioned before, my dog has terminal bone cancer and probably won't be around by Christmas. I don't know what excuse my husband will have for going dumpster shopping then. Now there's the polite fiction that he just happened to see 'this or that' while out walking the dog!

Anny

PS: When last Emmeline was seen, Shade had just been attacked by a zucchini. Herewith, the next episode in the Crazy Blog Serial...

All around them the zucchini zuukers were advancing. Emmeline nudged her goggles up to her forehead, allowing her glowing green gaze to singe the closest ones. Terrible screams muffled the desperate scrabbling of their retreat before the flashing green beams. As they fought to get away, she drew her laser saber with one hand while she fumbled in her toolkit for her peeler.

With the first low singing hum of the peeler, silence feel over the immediate area surrounding them. The zuukers curled into tight little balls that began to grow tough silvery coats to ward off the hum of the peeler. Emmeline breathed a sigh of relief. The immediate danger was warded off. Now to see to Shade’s welfare.

She knelt next to him and turned him over on his belly so she could see the extent of the damage. It was much worse than she feared. The welts extended all up and down his back, twining deep in the ridges of his phallax. Not even the sacred chocolate could heal such damage. There was only one solution. She would have to use the peeler.

And if she did, there was no hope of meeting the terms of the prophesy. The moments ticked past as she debated, torn between the deeply ingrained destiny or saving the man she finally admitted that she loved. What to do?

For tomorrow's episode, check http://www.kkirch.blogspot.com

Time to say goodbye...

When you first acquire a pet, the furthest thing from your mind is how you will feel when your pet dies. I have had many dogs, cats, gerbils, guinea pigs, birds, and hamsters so the death of a pet is not new to me. But today I find myself faced with something I've never dealt with before. Always before my pets died suddenly on their own. Just boom! Or in the case of the dogs or cats, many of them died because they ran in front of a car.

But my current dog was diagnosed with bone cancer today. The vet estimates somewhere between three to six months before the time comes that we will have to be humane and let her go. I've never had to watch a pet slowly pass away.

At the moment, she's very alert and pretty perky except for the huge bone mass on her front knee. She moves slowly and we will have to be careful that she doesn't break the leg. Stairs are tough. And we came home with a bottle of pain killers. The vet said when these no longer work we can put her on something a little stronger. When that doesn't work...it will be time to say goodbye.

She's been a good and faithful companion, keeping me company while I write, while I paint, while I sleep. She follows me from room to room as I move around my apartment, always keeping me in sight. She's travelled to Texas, Arkansas, Florida, and New York with us. She's a well travelled dog.

She's been camping, stayed in fine hotels, gone to the beach, and slept under the stars. She loves squirrels. And deer and rabbits. She'll face down the biggest dog around. She had my daughter's St. Bernard convinced that she was the boss. Tiny dogs terrify her. Can't imagine why.

She's gentle and loving and fiercely protective. She's under the impression that the entire apartment building is "hers" so she doesn't bark at the other tenants or their dogs, but strangers will raise a noisy alarm from her.

I don't have a lot of time left with her, so I'll be spending what time I can just being together. If I seem a little distracted or absent minded, then I hope you'll understand while I take the time to say goodbye.

Anny