Two Stories

Happy National Dog Day to all my four-legged friends!  Wag your tails, beg for table scraps, and dig in the garden with abandon!

In honor of this great day, I wish to share with you, my loyal readers, two little stories from the last couple of weeks.

Soft Mouth:

Members of my breed are supposed to have soft mouths--meaning that we are able to pick up delicate items in our mouths without causing them damage.  Now, some might think that I missed this gene and, to be honest, I couldn’t really blame them when you consider the dozens of punctured shoes and gnawed on remote controls I’ve left in my wake over the years.  But I definitely do have this trait and it was on full display a couple of mornings ago.

That particular morning, Pa and I were sitting on the side step spending some quality father-son time before he went to work.  After a couple of moments, Pa extended his hand and offered me a small red ball which I dutifully took in my mouth.  But what was I supposed to do with it?  I gently rolled it around my mouth a couple of time, looked back at Pa, and tossed the small red ball back into his hand.  A little surprised, Pa offered me the small red ball again and I again tossed it back to him.  This happened two more times before I suddenly realized that the small red ball I had been tossing back and forth to Pa was in fact a cherry tomato.  Once I came to this realization, I quickly ate the tomato, but apparently I am easily fooled because Pa and I repeated the entire process the following morning (though, to my credit, I only tossed the tomato back to Pa three times before eating it).

Almost No Trace:  

A couple of months ago, Ma discovered undeniable proof that I had taken to spending my days in the basement Land of No (story here).  However, it seems that half the thrill of my super-secret spot was the fact it was indeed secret.  So, immediately after the discovery, I started seeking out a new spot to spend my days and haven't returned to the basement since.

Well, good news.  I found a new spot!

Now, whenever someone comes home after leaving me alone for any period of time, he or she will likely discover, smack dab in the middle of Ma and Pa's bed, a warm spot that matches the shape of my snoozing back-end. 

But unlike the discovery of my forays into the Land of No, I will not be put off from curling up on the bed each day.  I mean, it is just too good a spot to give up on it that easily.  After all, it...

• ...is soft:  The Land of No has tile floors and no comfy cushions while the bed has a mattress, blankets, and pillows to lounge on.
• ...has a view:  With the added height of the mattress, I can stare out through the back window and bark at any four-legged interlopers in my yard (squirrels, bunnies, etc.).
• is nice and cool:  The air conditioner is right there.

So basically, I see no reason to give up on my new spot.  In fact, the only way I can see that spot getting better is if my food bowl (full of course) was left by one of the pillows.

Yeah, that would be great!