A Dog's Day Out

I visited one of Asheville local breweries yesterday and it was one of those open air places where you can actually take your dog. Several people took advantage of that including the girl that was tending bar. Evidently her dog was the mascot of the bar because he pretty much had free reign over the place. When we walked up he was sleeping out in the parking lot and he just kind of roamed around, mostly looking for scraps and handouts, from that point on. He visited our table several times but he always approached with caution.

I'll Keep Your Clothes Warm

Molly loves laundry day at my apartment, especially when they come out of the dryer. I always put the clean laundry on the bed until I can fold it and it is nice and toasty and evidently, very inviting. If I walk out of the room, Molly makes herself a little nest and lays right in the middle of it. As if there is not enough dog hair all over my clothes and apartment. Molly's philosophy is there is nothing like a warm pile of clothes.

"Get Your Ass Up! I Have To Go To The Bathroom!"

I have to take these medications that help me sleep at night plus I have some sort of sinus infection, so I was especially sleepy and groggy the other night. I had only been asleep for about two hours when Molly woke me up needing to go out. She attached a great sense of urgency to this as she started barking at me to wake me up. It took me about ten minutes for me to stagger out of bed and get a leash on her and out the door we went. I remember starting down the steps and I must have missed a step or something as the next thing I know I am laying at the bottom of the steps looking up at the sky. I still do not know exactly what happened but when I snapped out of it, Molly was tugging on my leash trying to get me to moving. That was her way of telling me that she had to go bad. I don't know if the fall knocked me out for a few seconds, a minute or what but I am just glad I held on to the leash. It only banged me up a little bit, gave me a sore shoulder, and a few other bruises but that was about it. Molly was just glad she got to go to the bathroom.

The Frogs Are Back

The first sure sign that summer is here around the apartment complex is the appearance of the frogs at the pond on the property. Molly and I strolled down their this afternoon and the frogs are pretty amazing creatures. They hang out along the edge of the pond until Molly and I get close and then they jump or hop into the water. Some of them can make it about halfway across the pond before they go under water and it almost looks like they are walking on water. One of them was able to stay on top of the lilly pads this afternoon and it was the first time I had gotten a real good look at one. He was very impressive and much bigger than I thought they would be.

A New Arrangement

I am going shopping next week for a new couch (mostly so Molly can hang out in the living room with me) but in the meantime, I rearranged my bedroom. I put the bed more in the middle of the room to give Molly a better view of everything going on in the apartment. She immediately crawled up on the bed after I was finished moving everything and gave her seal of approval by taking a quick nap. I need to go couch shopping to restore the balance of power. Sleeping on the floor really aggravates Molly's arthritis. Plus she seeks that togetherness.

A Pissing Contest

One of the phrases I often heard while growing was about men having a "pissing contest." That meant that one man had to outdo the other one no matter what it was but it mostly involved one upping the other person. I always heard it referred to as a pissing contest. Evidently Molly and the dog that was in the pen next to her decided to literally have a pissing contest. Unfortunately her blanket was the pissing ground. When I went to pick her up Friday afternoon, the guy that brought her out said that she had peed on her blanket a couple of times. I didn't think anything of it until I get Molly and my blanket to the car. It reeked of dog pee and was rather wet too. I can see Molly and another dog now going "Oh yeah! How is this one?" and pissing all over it. Molly, not to be outdone, has to get the last pee in and probably the most aromatic, replying "Really? That's all you've got? Check this out!" and pissing all over it. No dog is going to beat Molly in a pissing contest.

You Have Got To Be Kidding!

I had to take Molly back to the kennel last night and she was less than thrilled. That was the second time in five days that she has had to go to the kennel and she did not seem as reluctant as she normally does. It may not be a bad idea to take her every couple of weeks just to get her more used to the idea of going to the kennel. It is only about 5 miles from here and it is cost effective. This makes it more convenient for me to take weekend trips or to just have a night to myself. Molly will be less than thrilled but we all have to make sacrifices for the greater good.

The Gordie Howe Hat Trick

In hockey, there was a statistical phenomenon that became known as "the Gordie Howe Hat Trick." It was when someone had a fight, a goal, and an assist all in the same game although I think Gordie Howe only pulled that off two or three times in his career. The nickname was more of a tribute to his gritty, team oriented style of play. Yesterday afternoon I think Molly pulled off the dog version of the Gordie Howe Hat Trick. I took her on her afternoon walk and she killed a mole, got into a fight, and took a massive dump by the apartment office. It was nice and steamy and very aromatic but not in a good way. I left that one right where it was because that was Molly's statement on how they have been treating us. We'll let the maintenance man clean that one up with a tube of caulk and a leafblower and see how that works out for him.

A Nap Cures All

Molly is a firm believer in naps no matter what time of day it may happen. Fifteen minutes after she wakes up, early morning, mid-morning, late in the afternoon, it just doesn't matter. Some of the greatest thinkers of our time have been firm believers in naps. Winston Churchill believed in a nap every afternoon no matter what kind of hell was breaking loose around him. The Spanish have the cultural concept of the siesta in which they set aside a period in the afternoon for rest and relaxation and they are a much healthier society because of it. Maybe that is why Molly is such a healthy dog.

The Bed Looks Good In Here

Due to circumstances beyond my control and inept apartment management, my bed has had to be moved into the living room which seems to suit Molly just fine. I don't have a couch in my living room so if she wants somewhere to lay down, she has to go into the bedroom by herself. The bed can't stay in here of course but now I know I have to get a couch and as soon as possible. Molly enjoys lounging on the bed while I watch TV or play on my laptop or play video games and this is the way it should be. A man with his dog by his side. That seems to be when man is in his natural state.

Back From The Kennel

I got Molly out of hock from the kennel a day early this time in a driving rainstorm. She doesn't like the term "being pawned" but if I don't pay, she doesn't get out. She likes being free. I kept her at a different kennel this time and didn't like it as well as I do the one I normally keep her at, they did a good job. She was alive when I got there and none of them looked the worse for wear as my grandmother used to say. You can hear Molly straining down the hallway as he was bringing her to the front and she was so happy to be out. Luckily it is a much shorter drive from this kennel and she was happy to be home. She had a lot of peeing to do and started in immediately.

Grub Worms Are Toys

This morning Molly and I were taking our customary pre-work walk and a light rain was falling so it wasn't a big deal. We come back into the apartment and I start getting ready for work. I walk into the living room and there is a circular, muddy spot on the carpet in front of my chair. I start looking at my shoes because it really wasn't that muddy outside and there was none on them. Molly had snuck a grub worm into the apartment and was playing with it. She had smeared mud in two or three different spots on the carpet. I made her spit out the grub worm and I had to clean it up. Molly pleaded her case that I should not be throwing away her pet grub worm, but it was muddy and nasty and I threw it away. I don't even know how she sneaks them into the apartment. She just reaches down and gently picks it up and carries it back up the stairs in her mouth without killing it. She can be soft and gentle when she wants to be.

Down In Her Hips

The other day Molly and I went out for our afternoon nap and when we came back in, Molly really struggled coming back up the steps and I could tell it was her hips that were giving her trouble. It was chilly and rainy and I didn't exactly sprint up the steps either. I gave Molly a hip massage when we got back into the apartment and she has always enjoyed those so I will go back to doing that as long as it helps her out.