If we have much more rain.... and the story of Wrigley

I may have to take the canoe next door to my 'rents. Actually- I sloshed all the way over here this morning for my coffee- so, maybe it's not that bad after all.

It has finally stopped raining... but, looks pretty gray out. The groundhog could not have seen his shadow here-- so that means what? We prolly have six more months of winter. Oh. No. THAT could never happen here in the south. Besides-- it's an early Easter year- so.. that has to figure in there somewhere, right?

It's still cold and my main goal in life these days seems to be... "let the dog out, let the cat in... let the dog in, let another cat in... let one cat and dog out, go out and chase dog so he won't bite the mailman." What a domestically challenged life I lead!

Didn't always used to be that way... I used to have some pretty intense deadlines. Now, I prefer the "when's supper" deadline... and "what's for lunch" debate. My standard answer is "chocolate". It's a vegetable and it's highly new-tricious. It's also highly addictive- but, I'll deal with that when it becomes life-threatening.

My subject today shall be: Wrigley. My very favorite black and white hound-mix dog. He's my constant companion... and worry (besides KID).

Wrigley came to us in a very unique way. We had been driving along the interstate and I began to ask DH, "Barn", for a canine. I didn't want just any kind either. I wanted an Airedale. His response was naturally- NOT happening. We'd had dogs before-- and tho we've been very successful with our felines- the dogs had not fared well with us. Two we'd given away (for various reasons) and Elsa's, the dachsund, demise had been tragic. So- No. No more dogs. Okay. Fine. Forty five minutes later- KID throws his gum out the window and it sticks to my brand new truck-- so we pull over to the side of the road and lo and behold! There's a puppy in the ditch! To make a long story short- I insulted "Barn" about not being able to catch the puppy and he proceeded to chase him for about 150 yards in the slop til at last the puppy half-hid his front self and "Barn" was able to nab him.

Whew! This was a really stinky puppy- but, he was sooooo cute! We had to get to TX- so, we piled puppy between us on the front seat and fed him a potato log and he promptly fell asleep. He was dirty, turns out he had two kinds of mange and was emmaciated. Vet later said another couple of days and this pup would have been a goner. We cleaned him up as soon as we got to TX and offered him to the family there. They were of course, enamoured- but, didn't think that they wanted him.

Their loss turned into our gain! After a day or two- it was pretty obvious that we were gonna keep the puppy. KID adored him. Barn adored him. I adored him- even if he wasn't a fancy dog. Named him Wrigley in honor of the gum. It really wasn't "Wrigley" that KID was chewing at the time-- but, "Bubble Tape" would not have had the same ring.

Thus is the story of Wrigley. He has striking black markings that I call "pat patches" and has an engaging personality. He tries his best to listen and reply to human conversations. He absolutely worships my POP, and is always there to guard me at nights. He knows to bark like crazy when I call home and "Barn's" asleep and I need him to pick up the phone! Such a smarty!

When folks ask what kind of dog he is-- I always tell them- he's 100% Ditch. Talk about your funny looks! But- it's the truth. Wrigs is from a ditch... AND.. Wrigs is very apprehensive about certain things. He is scared of trash bags. He get's neurotic if I cook lamb. I think that his first few tough weeks of life- and probably the demise of his mama (hence the reaction to smells and the unknown; as well as his own awful smell at the beginning) had a lot of impact on him.

He's been with us for almost ten years now- and he's a much better choice than the Airedale I just KNEW I'd wanted.



My thots on life now tend to be-- it's not all about what you THINK you want in life. It's about how you live it when you get handed a stinky pup in the middle of a long road trip and the real blessings you can receive just by shutting up and going along for the rest of the ride. Who knows? You might end up liking it!

Have a WONDERFUL Wednesday!