My Three Walks Today
#1: After midmorning snack, Baby Dog and I sauntered out to see if we could find the kitties who live at the house on the corner two blocks away. We’ve been retracing this particular expedition every time I have a day off, with limited success. I see the cats frequently on the way home from work or when I happen to be walking by alone for whatever reason, but when I go out with Baby Dog they’re never there. They’re very friendly cats, and I thought it would thrill Baby Dog to be able to pet them. This past weekend, all three of us went out – Baby, Mama, and I – and though we saw one of the cats, it wouldn’t come close enough to touch. Baby Dog gave it her all, though. She’s seen me beckon cats and does a very good imitation of my method. She waggles her fingers and says “Psss psss psss” and “meow” and “kittykitty.” Unfortunately, she hasn’t figured out the part about making yourself small and still. Though she’s naturally small, she makes herself big and certainly not still, bobbing up and down with excitement. A cat knows better. Today, the cats were gone or hiding, so we made a loop around to see Pomo, the Persian that Doggy Dog once took a taste of. He was similarly absent, so we continued on home. Another thwarted mission, but Baby Dog walked almost the entire way; I carried her only to cross streets. She is becoming a skilled walker at last.
#2: The visiting author and I took Doggy Dog for an off leash romp at Point Isabel. I’m not positive, but I think this was the first time I’d been out there with Doggy Dog since Baby Dog was born. Unless…hmmm. I think I have a vague memory of us being out there with the stroller once, so maybe we went when she was very little. Anyway, it’s been a long long time. Doggy Dog had a blast, running around, chasing other dogs (and not getting into any scary fights, happily) and going for a wade in the estuary. The visiting author had a rental with a GPS system which gave verbal directions on the return trip. “In 0.5 miles, turn right. Turn right now.” If you fail to follow the directions, it calculates the route revision and directs accordingly. I thought it would be funny if the robot voice had a little more personality, like… “Turn left now. No, left. Your other left. God damn it, I said left. Now we’re going to be late. Recalculating route. I hope you’re happy. In 0.1 miles, turn right. Did you hear me that time?”
#3: Just for its hell, Baby Dog and I took a late afternoon walk to Wally’s World to get Daddy some more 7 Up. It looked like rain was at last in the offing, so I bundled her up and carried her a lot to make the trip go faster. We still had time to stop and inspect flowers of various colours and listen to dogs bark in back yards. There’s a billboard on the wall adjacent to Wally’s that features, among other things, a picture of a laptop. I pointed and asked Baby Dog what it was. “Com-pu-ter,” she said. We walked that last block with Baby Dog holding my hand, the index and middle fingers of my right clutched tightly in her chubby left fist. As we came into Wally’s, this Isaac Hayes type was coming out. He gave us an avuncular smile in passing and said, basso profundo, “You got love for life, Dad.”
#2: The visiting author and I took Doggy Dog for an off leash romp at Point Isabel. I’m not positive, but I think this was the first time I’d been out there with Doggy Dog since Baby Dog was born. Unless…hmmm. I think I have a vague memory of us being out there with the stroller once, so maybe we went when she was very little. Anyway, it’s been a long long time. Doggy Dog had a blast, running around, chasing other dogs (and not getting into any scary fights, happily) and going for a wade in the estuary. The visiting author had a rental with a GPS system which gave verbal directions on the return trip. “In 0.5 miles, turn right. Turn right now.” If you fail to follow the directions, it calculates the route revision and directs accordingly. I thought it would be funny if the robot voice had a little more personality, like… “Turn left now. No, left. Your other left. God damn it, I said left. Now we’re going to be late. Recalculating route. I hope you’re happy. In 0.1 miles, turn right. Did you hear me that time?”
#3: Just for its hell, Baby Dog and I took a late afternoon walk to Wally’s World to get Daddy some more 7 Up. It looked like rain was at last in the offing, so I bundled her up and carried her a lot to make the trip go faster. We still had time to stop and inspect flowers of various colours and listen to dogs bark in back yards. There’s a billboard on the wall adjacent to Wally’s that features, among other things, a picture of a laptop. I pointed and asked Baby Dog what it was. “Com-pu-ter,” she said. We walked that last block with Baby Dog holding my hand, the index and middle fingers of my right clutched tightly in her chubby left fist. As we came into Wally’s, this Isaac Hayes type was coming out. He gave us an avuncular smile in passing and said, basso profundo, “You got love for life, Dad.”
posted by PapaDogDuvalier | 8:34 PM
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