Clean Up

It is my overall goal in life to be comfortable.  I want my tummy to be comfortable so I am always in search of a snack I can steal, beg for, or (and this is a last resort) earn.  I want my body to be comfy so I seek out the softest place in the house to sleep (and yes, that means sleeping on the furniture).  And finally, I want to be emotionally comfy which is achieved by having all of my favorite things around me wherever I go.

That is why I have toys in pretty much every room of the house.  For instance, last evening Monkey-Monk was lounging in Sister's room, Nuclear Bunny was in the kitchen, Baby and Lenny the dinosaur were hanging out in the dining room, my toy box (filled with bones and stolen tennis balls from the park) as well as my latest Mini Mecki were in the living room, and Ma and Pa's room was playing host to Lyle-Lyle, Rudy, my red dinosaur (he has no name--no one thought he would survive long enough to require one), and the hippopotamus that my friend Ralphie and his mom gave me.

Unfortunately, my family has other definitions regarding feeling comfortable and, apparently, they include a certain level of neatness, organization, and clear walking paths.

It was just before bedtime and I was doing my best impression of "Puddle Dog" or "look-at-me-I'm-melting-from-the-summer-heat-oh-please-oh-please-won't-someone-turn-on-the-air-conditioner" on the living room floor.  Now, for those unaware (mainly those lucky people and dogs who live in central air), to accomplish this impression properly, one mustn't leave one's prone state unless absolutely necessary (after all, it doesn't make sense that one can be dying of heat yet completely capable of jumping up at will and scurrying away for trivial reasons), so one must choose one's location carefully.  Over the years, I've discovered the perfect spot; a spot in the living room which allows me to keep an eye on everyone in the room as well as anyone who heads toward the bedroom with the intention of turning on the air conditioning (air conditioning is always worth getting up for).

Anyway, on this particular night, Ma got up from her spot on the couch and headed into the bedroom.  Unwilling to give up on my impression of a "Puddle Dog" prematurely (I've been tricked before and now know that I cannot assume that just because someone goes into the bedroom it means that the air conditioner will be turned on), I watched for the tell tale sign of air conditioner use (the closing of the windows, the deliberate walk to the air conditioner, and the closing of the door).  Sadly, Ma showed no indication of turning on the blessed relief that is the air conditioner.

But something was happening because a minute or so after Ma went into the bedroom, she emerged carrying Lyle-Lyle, Rudy, the red dinosaur, and the hippopotamus all the while complaining that there was no room to walk because my toys were all over the floor.  She then unceremoniously dumped all four toys into my toy box.  Adding insult to injury, she then circled through all the other rooms on the first floor and systematically picked up all my toys and deposited them all into the toy box as well.

Well, I was shocked, appalled, and dismayed by this predicament.  I was so shocked, appalled, and dismayed that I gave up on my "Puddle Dog" impression, scurried over to my toy box, grabbed my hippopotamus, and hot footed it into the bedroom.  Once in the bedroom, I tossed my toy back onto the floor and walked away.

Ma was not amused by my antics.  Sister, on the other hand, laughed and told me that I was a good boy.  Pa, however, won my favor by calling me back into the room and turning on the air conditioner.  Thanks Pa!

No Mess In Here!

We've all dealt with it before:  Tummy troubles.  There you are, minding your own business, and suddenly it strikes: the gurgling in the belly, the convulsing hacks, and...well...you get the idea (by the way, if you haven't already figured it out, this post might not be the best thing to read during your lunch break). 

You see, my tummy has been bothering me lately.  On Monday and Tuesday I ended up losing the undigested leftovers of my breakfast (and only my breakfast--dinner stays down just fine) 6 to 8 hours after having ingested it. 

Thank you, I accept your sympathies.

Now, if you are a human, this nauseous feeling is upsetting and inconvenient, but when you're a dog, well, it's a disaster.  With one mighty hack you are suddenly out of a perfectly good meal (and when you're as food motivated as I am, this is a true tragedy).  And what's worse, you get to stare at the sad remains of what used to be your breakfast or dinner until your human cleans it up.  Now, if you had thumbs and could scurry into the bathroom and lift up the toilet lid before the sad event occurred, you'd be much better off.  But alas, you do not have thumbs and apparently one attempt at drinking out of the toilet is all it takes to gross out the humans enough to remember to put the lid down when the toilet is not in use.

As troubling as this tummy trouble is, I'm lucky to have a supportive family who goes to every extreme to make me feel better after the unfortunate event.  Once my stomach settles, Pa slips me a giant Milkbone cookie to make up for the meal I lost and Ma spends the rest of the day babying me and rubbing my belly.  I appreciate both tactics, but I especially enjoy Sister's methodology.  She makes a game out of it (and we played the game this afternoon).

As is customary, I greeted Sister at the door with Lyle Lyle when she stopped off at home during her dinner break from work.  Without even pausing to put down her bag or take off her coat, Sister knelt down, kissed me on the head, and asked:  "You wanna play 'No Mess in Here?'"  My tail went around in circles in a resounding yes.

The instructions for "No Mess in Here" are simple.  Sister and I travel from room to room, upstairs and downstairs, checking to see if I left behind a...ahem "mess."  When there is no mess in a particular room, Sister screams out "Yay!!!  No Mess in Here" and I wag my tail with great excitement.  Then we move on to the next room and repeat the process.

I am proud to say that today I passed with flying colors!

Yeah, feeling sick, and being sick for that matter, is not fun, but at least I can look forward to playing "No Mess in Here."

A Sister Free Weekend

This was a very strange weekend.  It all started Friday evening when Ma and Pa came home from work.  You see, Friday nights usually consist of my humans ordering a pizza (which I am rudely never given a piece of), watching Jeopardy, and playing tug with me and one of my toys until I rip the toy and start eating the pieces.  Not this Friday though.  Immediately after dinner the overnight bags came out, the car was loaded, and my travel t-shirt was pulled up and over my head.  This flurry of activity could only mean one thing; we were going out east that evening rather than Saturday morning. 

Now, it goes without saying that I was super excited about going out east (and considering that I was already excited because it was snowing outside, you can image just how revved I really was).  In fact, I was so excited that I jumped right into the back of the car and didn't even realize that someone was missing until a few minutes later when I did a quick roll call in my mind.  First, I looked to the driver's seat and noticed that Pa was there backing the car out of the driveway.  Then I looked to the front passenger seat and noticed, with horror, that it was empty.  "Oh no!" I thought, "we forgot Ma!"  Just when I was about to start whining with concern, I looked to my left and saw that Ma was sitting next to me in Sister's spot.  We had forgotten Sister!

Now, in hindsight, I shouldn't have been surprised that Sister was not coming with us.  In fact, thinking back, I do vaguely remember Sister trying to get me to sit still long enough to give me a goodbye hug and kiss when all I really wanted to do was race through the house displaying my excitement for the impending trip.  I probably should have just sat down and given her my paw or something.  Hopefully she wasn't too offended.

Anyway, it took us a long time to drive out to the other house because of the snow.  I passed the time sleeping on Ma's lap. 

I had a lot of fun out east.  I sniffed around in the snow, barked at two separate sets of delivery men, and ran around like a crazy dog in the dog park.  Best of all, I had Ma and Pa's undivided attention the entire time since, without Sister around, I was essentially an only child!  Now, don't get me wrong, I love Sister.  After all, she comes home at lunch time to play with me, she lets me sleep on her bed, and she is a bit of a messy eater.  But I must admit, she's a bit of an attention hog and it is nice to finally get all the attention that I so rightfully deserve.

On Sunday Ma and Pa told me that it was time to go home and check on Sister.  Ma and Pa stuffed me into my t-shirt and we all climbed back into the car.  Thoroughly exhausted, I collapsed on Ma's lap and dreamt of my weekend as an only child.

Sister was really happy to see me when I got home and gave me lots of pets.  She told me that she missed me a lot and that the house was really quiet without me around (by the way, I consider that comment to be an open invitation to bark as loudly and as frantically as I want whenever I want).  She also told me that while I was gone she got to play with Mecki at work and Aunt B came over on Saturday night.  I was a bit disappointed that I missed all the fun back at home, but I suppose Sister has the right to enjoy herself too. 

Then Sister told me that she had an extra special surprise for me in the living room.  I rushed in and saw...

Old Friends Waiting for my Return

 ...all my broken and ripped up toys all freshly sewed.  There was Baby, and Lyle, and Green Froggie (now missing two arms), and Purple Froggie (now missing two hands), and Zebra (now missing a nostril), and Rudy, and Giant Fish (now missing a back fin), and Allie the Alligator (now missing some teeth), and Goose, and Hedgehog, and Albino Hedgehog, and Mini Mecki (now missing the top of his skull), and Floppy Bunny, and Floppy Moose, and Denny I and II, and Gingerbread Man (now missing a hand). 

Welcome Back!

It was like a dream come true; all my missing toys returned to me!  I ran into the living room and went from toy to toy not knowing which one to play with first. 

Don't I have the best Sister in the whole wide world?

(Just don't tell her that I've already ripped a hole in Floppy Bunny.)

A Visit From Karin

On Friday, Karin (mom to my bff Mecki) came over to visit me.  Okay, she and Sister were technically just killing time before the Library’s holiday party began, but really, who wouldn’t look forward to visiting me?

I’m sorry to say I barked at her when she first came in, but that was only because I had forgotten that Sister had told me she was coming and I was concerned that the person following Sister into the house was a burglar trying to steal my kibble (one must remain ever vigilant for dinner thieves).  Anyway, once I realized who it was, I quickly grabbed my Lyle, Lyle the Crocodile toy and began circling her in greeting (oh, I also gave Sister a wag of the tail—she’s seen Lyle before).

Now, let me just say right off the bat that Karin is the perfect guest.  Not only did she come to say hello to me, but she also brought food—three gingerbread men dog treats to be exact.  They were really tasty (a quick note to Karin: Sorry I nearly took off your fingers when you gave me the treats—I get a bit over excited when it comes to food and tend to misjudge where the cookie ends and the finger begins).  Cementing her glorified status in my mind, Karin then sat down with me in the living room and scratched my neck.

Then it was supper time.  Sister made my dinner and Karin gave me the go ahead to eat (my family insists that I be polite and wait to be told to eat—it’s very hard to be so well behaved).  While I ate, I heard Karin tell my Sister that Mecki gets just about the same amount of food each day as I do.  I did some quick math and determined that either someone is being overfed or someone is being underfed and frankly, I’m apt to go with the latter.

After I finished eating (and after I burped on Karin) she and I went back into the living room.  I made sure to act as cute and adorable as possible.  I even rolled on my back to give her the opportunity to rub my belly (the highest honor I can bestow on someone).

It was then I noticed them; the sparkly bracelets Karin wore around her wrist.  Those who know me well already know this, but for everyone else, let me interject and say that I have a thing about sparkly jewelry.  It fascinates me, the sparkle of shiny stones and the glint of well polished metal.   I’m hypnotized by it and drawn to it.  One minute I’m begging for belly rubs and the next thing I know I’m absentmindedly licking the jewelry.  Anyway, Karin had a whole collection of shiny bracelets on and I just couldn’t help myself.  Now, if I just sat there licking the metal I would have been fine, but I got greedy.  I wanted the bracelets for myself.  Hoping no one would notice, I stealthily started to nibble on them using my front raspberry picking teeth (the front four teeth on the top and bottom of my mouth between my canines that I use to pluck ripe raspberries off the bush each summer).  Apparently I wasn’t sly enough though because Karin told me to stop.  I did, for a few minutes, then, hoping she forgot her earlier command, I started nibbling again.  What can I say, I’m nothing if not persistent.

Then a sad thing happened.  Karin and my Sister decided that it was time to leave to go to the Library’s holiday party.  Then a very sad thing happened.  I was told that I wasn’t allowed to attend.  Talk about bah humbug!  Anyway, Karin said goodbye to me and I collected the bribery cookie Sister gave me to allow her and Karin to leave the house (granted she had to do this twice because they didn’t move fast enough and I beat them back to the door).  With a sigh, I went into the living room to wait for Ma and Pa to come home from work.

When Sister came home from the party, she told me that Karin had said that I was a very good boy and so well behaved.   She also told me that Karin has declared that she no longer believes all the stories Sister has told at work about how troublesome I am.  I was shocked.  Sister is spreading lies about me a work?!

Before I go:  Happy Birthday Karin!

The Sandy Diaries: Part 1

Weather is weird.  One day I'm playing outside in the sun and all of a sudden the area is hit by something called a "Hurricane Sandy" and everything goes crazy.

I lost power in my house at 3:30pm on Monday, October 29th and have yet, at the time of this posting one week later, to regain it (I'm posting this from Sister's workplace).  Being the technologically advanced canine that I am, this week has been exceedingly tough; no blog posts, no Animal Planet on TV, and no checking in on my bff's blog.  Still, despite these hardships, I decided early on that I couldn't keep my loyal readers figuratively in the dark (even though I am literally in the dark right now) and deny them access to my moving prose and action figure lifestyle.  Therefore, I've kept an ongoing journal of my thoughts which I will share now.

But before I begin, let me first send out a message to my friends who have weathered this angry storm:  I hope you are safe and warm and please thank your two legged (for my dog friends) and your four legged (for my human friends) companions for their loyalty and support during Hurricane Sandy and her aftermath.

Let us begin...

Monday, October 29

All indications this morning suggested that it was going to be a great day.  Ma and Sister's bosses each gave them the day off and though Pa said he was going to work, I thought he was actually going to the doggy toy store to buy me a present.  Boy was I wrong!

As the day progressed, things became rushed and a little bit frantic.  Ma and Sister ran around the house cleaning, washing, and cooking dinner way too early (and I didn't get to test anything they cooked despite the fact that I helped them with the laundry--nothing tastes better than stinky socks, just ask my bff Mecki who actually swallowed one recently (he's okay by the way--the sock, not so much)).  Then Ma and Sister took me outside and said:  "Do your business now; it might be your last opportunity!"  Now let me tell you, that's an awful lot of pressure to put on a little dog and his bladder!  To make matters worse, my tail feathers (technically speaking, the long flowing locks down my back legs and my tail itself) kept being blown by the gusty winds.  Three words:  Very, very disturbing!

When I was done, we all came in and sat by the television.  No sooner had I found a nice bone to gnaw on when everything suddenly turned off.  I got up, grabbed the television remote control off the couch, and started walking around the living room with it hoping someone would turn the television back on.  Sister caught up with me, took the remote, and while scratching my ear, told me that there would be no more TV for a while.

As scary as the words "No TV" are, it got even scarier later when it got dark and the wind started really picking up.  Now, my go to response in similar scary situations is to go to sleep and wait for it all to be over.  I tried, really I did, but I was not able to take a good nap because my humans stayed up late listening to something called the radio.

Eventually everyone decided that it was time to go to bed.  I found it a bit odd when Sister started turning the couch into a bed, but being the loyal dog I am I curled up on my pillow by her side without question.  She thinks I'm staying by her side because I want to make sure she isn't afraid of the storm, but, truth be told, I'm sleeping here because I figure she'd be first one in the refrigerator once the power comes back on.

I plan on dreaming about all the sticks Ma told me would likely be on the ground when I wake up tomorrow morning.  I love chewing on sticks!

Tuesday, October 30

Can I keep it?

Oh boy a lot happened last night!  When I woke up I saw that Ma's prediction was correct; there were a ton of sticks and twigs and branches all over the place.  Ever the helpful pup, I set to work right away turning all those branches into wood chips, but apparently Ma didn't appreciate my help and kept taking my branches away (though somehow I always managed to find another larger and tastier one minutes later).  I found one branch that was literally two and a half times bigger than me!  I pranced around proudly with it.

Similar to the night before, my humans refused to go to bed early despite the fact that it was pitch black in the house.  All they did was sit around and play board games--BORING!

Sister is sleeping upstairs in her bed again tonight and I'm going to make sure I snuggle up nice and close to her so as to keep warm.  I just hope she doesn't kick me out because she thinks I'm hogging the bed (I have a bit of a history).

Wednesday, October 31

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween!  This year, Sister decided that I absolutely had to dress up so she stuck a T-shirt on me and told me I was disguised as an employee where she works.  At first, I was a bit embarrassed, but I got over it quickly once she started giving me treats for being such a good boy and for not ripping the shirt to pieces (I would never do such a thing [insert evil grin here]).   I just wish Sister got me a larger size; the shirt was a bit small for my muscular chest.

 

I didn't even eat the pumpkin!

Anyway, I didn't get nearly enough naps in today.  Every time I laid down on the floor, a miniature witch, super hero, or blood-covered zombie, cheerleader, or office worker would bang on the door wanting candy handouts.  When the knocking first started I barked at the interlopers; they all wanted candy but no one wanted to pet the ruggedly handsome dog (what nerve!).  After a while I got tired and took a ten minute nap. 

Thoroughly refreshed, I returned to the door and started challenging kids to staring contests.  I'm proud to say I won each round.  Feeling bad for the defeated challengers, Sister gave each a bag of candy.

This evening, when my humans sat down to watch movies on Sister's laptop, Ma gave me a Kong filled with peanut butter.  It was tasty.

Thursday, November 1

The house is really getting cold and I'm particularly aware of because I don't have a very thick coat like most Goldens do.  That's why, in the wintertime, I wear a very stylish red coat when I go out.

Keeping warm

All through last night I stayed extra close to Sister so that we could share whatever warmth we each had.  In the morning, even though my belly was grumbling for my breakfast and I heard Pa in the kitchen, I stayed behind with Sister to keep her warm.  What can I say?  When you are part of a pack you always make sure your pack mates (whether dog or human) stay warm.

A sure indication of how cold it is is that Pa actually allowed me to sleep on his bed after I ate my breakfast.  When Sister noticed me there, she pulled up the blankets and tucked me in.  Then Pa came and wrapped his sweat shirt around my neck like a hoodie.  I think he was doing it to get a laugh at my expense, but I didn't mind too much--I was warm and comfortable.

  

Friday, November 2

 

My new stick

Tempers are starting to show as my family and I endure day four with no power.  Sister hollered at me a couple of times today, but I kind of had it coming because I wouldn't stop barking.  After yelling at me, Sister apologized to me and I gave her a big kiss on the cheek to say I was sorry for yapping so much.

Highlights of the day include wrestling another giant stick out of the bushes (Ma and Sister thought they had thrown them all out), Pa allowing me to sleep on the couch (granted, he had his feet tucked under me essentially turning me into a living bed warmer), and having Sister tuck me in under her blanket when we went to bed.

Saturday, November 3

It was really, really cold last night.  Luck for me, Sister has been sharing her blankets with me and Pa heated up the water (or gravy as I call it) that he puts in my kibble in my breakfast this morning.  True, it's not quite oatmeal, but it was really tasty.



I spent most of the day with Ma because Pa and Sister went out east to check on the new house.  When they came home this evening they were smiling and happy because:

Sister out east w/ broken branches

1.  while a lot of branches fell, none fell on the house (I'm looking forward to chewing on some of those branches)

2.  the house had electricity, heat, and hot water

Needless to say, Ma and I were quite jealous.  Pa and Sister said we were lucky they came back.

And to my Aunt B:  I hope your hand feels better real soon and remember, petting a dog is the best physical therapy available (I'm always available for a session)!

 

Sunday, November 4

It is really, really cold in the house right now and Sister's blankets aren't cutting it any longer.  She says she's going to have to look around for some more for tonight.

Today Sister sewed up a few of my toys and I had a lot of fun playing with Lyle, Fish, and Zebra.  She even waived the required 24 hour drying period and sewed up Fish a second time after I tore it again.  I have the best Sister!

Sister told me that everything was going to change on Monday because she and Ma were going to be going back to work.  I'm going to miss them a lot.

Ma put something called flannel sheets on Sister's bed this evening.  Sister says I'm really going to like them, but frankly they don't sound like tasty food to me. 

My Favorite Things

Before I begin, I just want to let everyone know that I am feeling much better after my tragic day last Monday.  To sum up the remainder of the experience, I moped around the house all Monday and straight through Tuesday afternoon.  By Tuesday evening, Ma, Pa, and Sister took pity on me (actually, I think it was more out of necessity--I was refusing to go outside) and took the bandage off my leg (after which I quickly ran to the side door to go out).  Wednesday found me playing in the backyard and on Thursday morning Pa took me to the vet where I received a clean bill of health.  Now I just need to wait for my nail to grow back in.  In the meantime, I'd like to give a shout out to my friends Mecki, who wished me well on his blog, and Rita, who gave me a get well peanut butter flavored Frosty Paws ice cream treat and a peanut butter cookie.  What great friends!

My latest victim

Now, due to my injury, I haven't really gotten a great opportunity to partake in any noteworthy adventures.  Basically, I've just been hanging around the house playing with my toys.  It was while ripping the arm off my frog (see the picture to the right) that it suddenly dawned on me that I hadn't introduced by loyal readers to my favorite toys.  After all, what better way to get to know a dog than through his toys?

Baby

Baby:  Baby is one of only two toys that have survived since I was a little puppy.  When I got Baby, she had a squeaker box that barked three times every time I bit it, but I took care of that fairly early on (the plastic box remains and provides a satisfying crunch each time I bite down on it).  Baby also used to have two ears (I ripped them off) and a tongue (see the aforementioned fate).  In both instances, Sister sewed up the holes (the damage from tearing out Baby's tongue resulted in Baby losing part of her nose in surgery).  With Baby now personalized to my specifications, I stopped ripping her apart.  Baby is a great meet and greet toy--she's big enough that people notice that I'm carrying her while I circle them with my tail wagging yet not large enough for them to try to take her from me (you see with your eyes, people, not with your hands!)

Nuclear Bunny

Nuclear Bunny:  Nuclear Bunny, who started out simply as Bunny, is the second toy that has survived since my puppy days.  I got Bunny from my Sister for my very first Easter (a consolation prize for not catching the actual Easter Bunny).  That day, I ripped Bunny's ears off and a couple of days later, after Bunny dried off (apparently it is hard to patch holes when a toy is sopping wet with drool), Sister sewed him up and gave him back to me.  Next I ripped open his chest and neck and pulled out his squeaker and some of his stuffing.  Sister took him back again, let him dry, reinserted the stuffing (but not the squeaker), sewed up the seams, and gave him back to me.  Then I started ripping out Bunny's eye.  For a third time, Sister put Bunny back together.  By this time, Bunny didn't look much like a bunny any longer and was rechristened Nuclear Bunny.  Having been given a new name, I immediately stopped mutilating him and he, like Baby, became a meet and greet toy.

Lyle & Monk

Lyle Lyle the Crocodile and Monkey Monk (AKA Lyle and Monk):  Lyle and Monk are my two "big boy" toys because they are nearly my size.  Both have had their Doll Hospital stays (Lyle has had three limbs amputated and Monk has lost one leg, both ears, and a nostril) but by and large they have remained almost entirely intact.  Although I sometimes use them for meet and greets, their large size makes maneuvering around visiting people difficult so generally I reserve them for playtime.  Sister says that Lyle is looking pretty grungy and needs to be replaced (I think he looks and smells pretty good), but since she has been unable to find a suitable replacement, Lyle remains.

Bill

Bill:  I got Bill for Christmas from my friend Jim who works with Pa.  Bill holds the rare distinction of being the only toy I own that has never needed sewing.  He also has a really cool squeaker that screams "OHH NOOOOO!" when I bite on it. Sometimes, just for fun, I squeak Bill while my humans are talking and let me tell you, they laugh and laugh when I do this.  Apparently I'm quite good at picking the most opportune moment to squeak Bill--his cry is almost always totally appropriate for the conversation.

Rudy takes a bow

Rudy:  A Christmas gift from Sister, Rudy the Reindeer has had a tough life.  For the longest time, Sister didn't have the heart to amputate Rudy's limbs as I tore each of them apart so she stitched even the smallest pieces of fabric back together as best she could.  Eventually, Sister had to admit that her sewing skills were no match for my gnashing teeth and amputated, throughout the years, Rudy's back legs and part of his neck.

Why are they all looking at me?

The Perpetual Doll Hospital Group:  Some toys are poorly made and break almost as soon as I get them (my family, mistakenly, feels that I am too rough with my toys, but I know better).  These toys spend most of their lives in the Doll Hospital awaiting surgery for an assortment of poorly assembled seams, ripped limbs, and "accidental" guttings.  Some have official names; most do not.

Rigby 2 : Gumby 0

Gumby:  The first one lasted me three days.  The second one only lasted a few minutes.  Now I'm no longer allowed to have Gumbys, but Pa seems to enjoy using them as office decorations.  They are quite the conversation starter.

All Alone

My weekday lunchtime schedule is fairly predictable.  Sister leaves work at lunchtime to let me out, chase me around the backyard, give me lots and lots of cookies (sometimes I earn them, sometimes she just gives them to me because I have her so well trained), and clean up anything I might have destroyed while she was out (the amount of destruction depends on my mood and whether or not I could find a comfortable place to sleep).  It's a good system...a very good system and Sister is very careful not to stray from it.

Well, that is until today.  Sister didn't come home for lunch.  I was home alone, all by by lonesome, for about eight hours!  EIGHT HOURS!  Sister warned me that she wasn't going to be able to come home at lunch.  She said that she couldn't come home because she had an all day class to go to for work.  Personally, I don't think she tried hard enough.  I'm sure she could have rushed home, and, if not, if she had simply explained to the instructor that she needed to take care of me I'm positive the teacher would have understood (especially if she showed the instructor a picture of me--who can resist my handsome face?).

Anyway, when Sister first left the house this morning, I decided that I was going to spend the next eight hours thinking about how I was going to display my displeasure at being left alone.  Maybe I'd snub her when she came in--refuse to greet her at the door or acknowledge her return.  Or, perhaps I'd pick out something of hers to destroy.  After a while, maybe ten minutes or so, I was so exhausted from thinking that I decided to take a little nap (Ma and Pa were nice enough to leave the air conditioner on in the bedroom so at least I was nice and cool).

Lyle when he was new-2010

Seven hours and fifty minutes later, I was awoken by the sound of the side door opening.  "Someone's home!" I thought as I grabbed my Lyle, Lyle the Crocodile stuffed toy and ran to the door.  "It's Sister!" I thought as she walked through the door.  I wagged my tail, bunked her with my toy, and weaved my way around her legs.  She greeted me with a kiss on the snout and scratched my back as I walked around her showing off my toy.  After letting me out and rubbing my ears a bit, Sister brought me back inside and presented me with my dinner which I ate happily.  I showed my appreciation by wiping my slobbery chin on her jeans.

Obviously, I can't stay mad at Sister.