Sunday, July 24, 2011
GOING BACK TO THE PAST
The three of us, John, Booker, and I went to the old neighborhood last night and had dinner with Dan and Tom and Bruno, Booker's oldest best friend, at their house.
I had some trepidation. Booker hasn't had much luck making new friends lately, at least when I am walking him, so I got a bit too worried that he and Bruno, after a year, might not hit it off.
I could not have been more mistaken.
Booker knew even before we parked that he was on old familiar ground. And that his friend Bruno was probably just around the corner.
We parked our car inside the wall and they closed the gate. We all got out. Pandemonium. The dogs were off and running from one end of the yard to the other. Running in circles. Play boxing. Bruno is a boxer and Booker can do a slight version of the move.
From a canine point of view the evening was a total success.
Booker was totally well behaved and, even more, friendly and ready to be part of whatever action there was to be.
For some reason that we have never plumbed, Bruno has only one toy. Imagine.
They shared. Very nice boys.
They sort of settled down while we all had dinner. Bruno never has any people food. He has a delicate stomach. It seemed that Booker was holding off his near-to-the-edge-and-almost-falling-into-the-abyss-I-am-not-begging positions. It went very well. In fact if anyone was misbehaving, not much, it was Bruno who gets a treat for going out and peeing quickly. Somehow he wasn't getting it last night. Whine whine.
The going out to pee time was a scramble. I don't think Booker knew what Bruno and his dad were going outside for but there was a mad scramble to catch up. Tom said they peed on the same tree and almost each other.
After supper, we took a walk in the old neighborhood but avoided the old house where we hear there is rancor with the neighbors over barky dogs and a shitty attitude by the new owner. But we don't go there. Just a tsk tsk and on with the show.
We wondered if Booker could still smell his marks after a year away. He didn't say. There are certain dog secrets which will never be revealed.
We grown ups had a great time going over the gossip and who has done what with whom. A lot of short sales and foreclosures. One might have predicted some but a few were shockers. An epidemic.
There was a time a few years ago, right at the maximum bubble that our neighborhood became fashionable. Just in time for these people to get themselves caught. No bubble and under water.
It was nice to be back for awhile. But as we left for home we knew and said out loud what a great move it had been. We are secure and happy and don't have a single string left to the past.
Of course, there is Dan, Tom and Bruno but we can go visit them whenever we want.
