The Bark Is Back

With so many off to that Tropical Paradise, it was time for that Barkley Dog to make another visit. He does seem to miss His People, but he is coping. He is used to taking frequent runs with his Master, but unfortunately for him, The Fuzz is not up to that. They have made it out for a few walks though.

They missed a couple of days there, when The Fuzz was laid up, but he and Young Daughter took that Barkley and their own Stupid, Disobedient Dog for a nice long walk up the road to the grocery store this morning.

Along the way they saw a pile of "Deer Corn" someone had dropped off of their truck. I don't even know why I mentioned that here, but it was one of those "Little Things" you don't see every day. On the way home, they noticed that someone had scooped up what they could. I suppose the squirrels will try and eat the rest, and probably end up as more Roadkill.
Here you can see Barkley with one of his Favorite Toys,"Squeezzel". I don't know if that's it's real name, but The Fuzz calls it "Squeezzel" so I will too. Barkley loves you to throw Squeezzel and he's pretty good at catching it, so The Fuzz usually throws it a few times as he passes though the yard on his way to bigger and better things.

2 Down & 7 To Go

Here he is, kicked back, under the Wood Stove.Yes it's that Well Known, and Popular Cat, Puddin'. Long time readers may remember, that when we first became involved with this fellow, he was already down 1 life out of the 9, having fell out of the "nest" and off the roof. They may remember how he was raised by his foster Mommy, The Fuzz's Sweetie, and grew into the Fine Upstanding Cat he is today. And they may remember our concerns about The Road.
Well yesterday evening, he lost another of those 9 lives. As The Fuzz's Sweetie was taking that Stupid Disobedient Dog for an evening stroll, she noticed that Foolish Cat was following, across the road. And then, a lone car approached. And finally that Foolish Cat did exactly the wrong thing, and walked out in front of this speeding vehicle. First came the "thud", and then the sight of puddin' rolling over and over. Then he lay still in the silence of the night.
She came and got The Fuzz, who pulled on his boots and was going for the shovel when she came back and said, he was still alive. She nearly got run over herself, guarding him on the road. He was gently brought inside. He could hold up his head, and crawl a bit. There was no blood or poop, so we let him lay in the warmth. By this morning, he could walk a little, and now he seems to be OK. For some reason, God had mercy on him.
Well, we all are glad of that. We have grown rather fond of the little fool.

Le Morte de Titan

Alass, the road has claimed another. Oh darkest of days, the mighty Titan is no more. Nine lives weren't enough to prevent such tragedy. Still magnificent in death he was, but still quite dead. Cut down in his prime as it were. Never more to stalk the unwary rat or squirrel, never more to bask in the winter sunlight. Now he has returned to the earth, part of this wonderfully complex cycle of life on this planet. We are glad God gave him to us for a time, but now once more, we must move on.

Boxing Day

Today is Boxing Day. When I was a kid I used to wonder what this was about. It didn't make a lot of sense. All I could think of was people putting on the old gloves and having at it. But it seemed to have something to do with Christmas. According to the calendar, if I had been a Canadian, this wouldn't be a big mystery. But I'm not and it was. I guess I'm just one of those people that can go on in ignorance, figuring that if it's important enough, I'll find out sooner or latter. Many years later the mystery was revealed to me. It has nothing to do with a fight ! Back in those days when folks celebrated a Christmas season rather than a prechristmas frenzy, this second day was for giving a small gift to the people who served you. This was sometimes referred to as a "box" weather it was an actual container or not. Anyhow, it seemed cool to me.
So what does this have to do with a dog ? Nothing. But about the dog, This is a half Chihuahua dog, (not a boxer) and would not normally be laying still unless she had exhausted herself running in circles. But this time she is lucky to be still living. Christmas Eve, we were waiting into the night for our last bits of family to arrive. Sitting out there on the porch under a blanket in our car seat it was getting cold. My sweetie had hot tea, my daughter and I were working on a bottle of Southern Comfort. The doggie was on a chain (a small one). She wanted to get over on the porch with the cats and the rest of us. This is when being soft hearted doesn't pay off. This pooch is not what one would call well-behaved. After a brief pause on the porch with us, she decided to explore the night. The one place she had no business to go was the road. Of course that is the one place she went. There is not a lot of traffic out here that time of night, but what there is is deadly. The youngest heard the thump and the yelp from inside the house and started to scream. The dog took off running and hid in the dark. We figured she was a goner, but when we found her hiding in the neighbor's yard, she was still living. It appears that she is very sore but with no permanent damage, and very subdued. Well as of today she is limping around a bit and it appears she'll be around to annoy us a while longer.
Well, it's back to work in the morning. Happy Boxing Day. Maybe you got a nice box, maybe not. Maybe you gave one, maybe not. Soon we'll be putting a wrap on this year and getting a shot at a new on. I still say, Merry Christmas.