Short Adventure
dog
woman
all
alone
computer
window
rubber
bone
eye-lock
pleading
invitation
one
thrown
bone
brings
jubilation
further
begging
is
for
naught
a
second
later
fun
forgot
For dVerse Poets Open Link Night
It all started with Frida, who I first met as she trotted down the carretera traveling west as I walked with my friend Joe, going east. She was so tiny that I thought she was a big rat at first, but as she drew nearer, I realized it was a tiny puppy who, when she got up to me, immediately stopped and looked up at me with those eyes that indicated that we already belonged to each other. When she got older, for the next 15 years or so, she spent most of her days up on the dome of my house supervising the neighborhood, and when she passed away, it didn’t take long for me to figure out how she should be memorialized. It took me some months to find a terracotta sculpture that looked like her and to find men to concrete it securely in place. Inside are Frida’s ashes. There she has resided for years, surveying all who pass as she did during her life.
As new dogs arrived in my life, they took to occasionally visiting her on the roof, and then a strange thing happened. In the house kitty-corner across from me, two smaller terracotta dogs appeared, on the post beside the entry gate, Frida directly in their line of vision a story above them on my dome.
Then, less that a year ago, the house directly across the street from me sold, and a few days ago, when Yolanda mentioned my neighbors putting dogs on their roof, I corrected her that they were on a pedestal by their front gate, but she said, no–on the roof–and directed me down the street to look back at the house of the new neighbors. There, securely affixed to their chimney stack, almost obscured by the trees, was another Frida!
That is how “In the doghouse” came to be a non-derogatory term in my neighborhood. In fact, I am now just waiting for the next roof dog to show up!!
Click on photos to enlarge.
When I sent my neighbor David a thank-you for sending me the photos of Coco and Zoe on the roof—naughty kids—because their mom and Yolanda forgot to shut the gate up the stairs, he shot back this answer, which I didn’t receive until this morning:
“HECK, WAIT! There’s more. . . . and then there’s Morrie! With some prodding, he got the nerve, too . . . and joined the rooftop party!
Above are the photos I had missed last night as they hadn’t yet downloaded. If you missed yesterday’s post, HERE are the photos of Coco and Zoe he’d sent.
Zoe seems to attract friends wherever she goes.
Please enlarge photos by clicking on them.
Since Zoe joined us, it has been nothing but frolic for Morrie, Diego and Zoey. She has certainly spiced up the family, especially since Cousin Kirk thought to bring out the Kong ball on a rope that I had tucked away. They love it and hassle for hours over it. They look and sound fierce but not once has anyone been hurt. It is all play. If Zoe gets too annoying, pulling Morrie’s face hair or constantly harrasing her, Diego simply puts his leg out and pins her down to quiet her down. Morrie never ever snaps at her no matter what she does. Diego disciplines her but never harms her in any way. He pins her down or rolls her over on her back. It is amazing to see how he cares for her and how patient he is. This morning I went out and Morrie was sleeping in his bed, Zoe was sleeping in Diego’s big cushy bed and Diego was sleeping on the cold stone floor!
Zoe has three cushy beds inside, but had gone out to claim Diego’s and he let her.
Click on photos to enlarge. As you can see, I had their rapt attention.
Click on photos to enlarge.
Morrie’s New Look.
Morrie’s Old Look
Lots of excitement on all fronts today, including Morrie’s day at the spa. This is his new look. Cool, huh?
Click on photos to enlarge and read captions.
Long Morning
When I brought her home two weeks ago,
she was so tiny I didn’t know
what an excess of energy
was going to be required of me.
One older woman and two old dogs
obsessed with squirrel-patrol and blogs
have taken on a task most bold
raising a puppy six weeks old.
At first it was just her and me
Never was I puppy-free.
My favorite bag, a shoulder sling,
has become her favorite carrying thing.
Her head outside to view the world,
when she preferred, she snugly curled
inside its secure little nest
lined with “her” nightgown now—my best.
But daily life behind tall walls
contains the chance of dangerous falls,
swimming pools and dogs and cats
that have been known to prey on bats—
also each possum, ground squirrel, mouse
that threatens to invade the house.
How are they to know that that
tiny creature is not a rat?
But since she seems to have no other,
Diego’s subbing as godmother
when I need a tiny break
to photograph and write and make.
This new member of their gang
is the one that he’ll harangue
to go here, not over there,
but he is a strange au pair.
He’s so immense and she’s so small
that she is hardly there at all.
This period of tear and raze
is just a usual puppy phase.
She’s active now, without surcease.
There’s little time for rest or peace
for old dogs who need their rest,
but still we do for her what’s best.
Since it’s hard to quantify how long
before she knows what’s right and wrong,
the pool is the greatest threat
we’ve had to deal with as of yet.
So Diego and I keep an eye
to see where present dangers lie.
We herd her from its dangerous rim.
Then she’s distracted by a limb
of palm that’s swaying in the breeze—
a new adventure for her to seize.
Diego follows close behind,
mindful of dangers she might find.
An hour passes, then another
as we share the role of mother.
But, it’s up to me to plan our rest
when, exhausted from her youthful zest,
Diego sinks down for a nap.
So, when Zoe jumps down from my lap,
I chase her down and lift her up.
Too old for such a frisky pup,
I pile the hammock with pillows and
put first her, and then my hand
inside that cave so soft and deep,
stroking ’til she’s sound asleep.
In mere seconds, or so it seems,
Diego, also, falls to dreams.
Spread out in the cool grass,
he snoozes as the hours pass
and Morrie goes to do his thing
beneath where she’s content to swing.
It’s five hours since Zoe first woke me up and at least three hours since I put her in the hammock and she’s still nestled there, sound asleep. This is the first time Morrie has shared a bit in her care. He’s dubious of her puppy ways so keeps his distance, but it looks like he’s found his proper role. Zoe, on the other hand, has been asleep for hours and this is what has given me the time to write this blog. You can see where I’m working in the photo above. Zoe’s hammock is in full view and when I’ve seen it rocking a few times, I’ve gone to check. She was awake, but perfectly happy to remain in her little nest. I’ve had the morning outside in the garden where I’ve not only written the above poem but also taken pictures and videos, trimmed a few plants, marked the limbs I want cut off the pistachio tree and taken down the one hammock which finally split in two when I tried to lie in it. (Yes, I wound up on the stone floor beneath it, thankfully with a pillow right below my tailbone, which has already been broken twice in my life.) I went up to get Zoe’s lunch, but although the other two were very interested in it, she has slept right on, an hour and a half past her usual lunch time. So that’s the Zoe report. She is now two months old and weighs three pounds!!! I’ll be posting a video of her later.
Prompt words today are harangue, peace, quantify, raze and other.
lifelessons - a blog by Judy Dykstra-Brown 