Summer Travels

Cowboy here. The imp is busy doing imp things. Not sure I want to know what that entails. We were supposed to go out of town yesterday but a last minute glitch delayed our trip for a few days. I have a temporary duty assignment elsewhere and am taking Sar with me.

She's packed and ready to go. We're sharing a duffel that's loaded with chocolate and Cracker Jacks and Twinkies and very few clothes. Fortunately, my uniforms are in a garment bag. I suspect my credit card will get a good workout; Sar will probably buy anything she needs (and wants) when we get to our destination.

We'll be visiting Navy bases. Half of the base commandants are eager to see the imp; she's a favorite of theirs. The other half are using her visit as an opportunity to test their security. I hope she didn't pack her lock picks.

The animals know she's leaving. They don't seem to mind when I go out of town but when they see her pack chocolate, they know she's leaving and they're not happy about it. When I go out of town, Sar feeds them extra treats like all the meat in the freezer and they'll eat a lot more takeout. Beer and wine consumption goes up too. Sar doesn't drink beer and she isn't much of a wine drinker but I notice my Port and Merlot supplies are diminished when I get home. The Rott is a wine-o.

She spent most of this afternoon on the back deck with all her pups. Our outside Rotts think the sun rises and sets on her and rightly so. We rescued them when they were less than a year old and in bad shape and today they are 2 handsome and healthy and well trained dogs. Both of them continue to charge toward her when they see her but also skid to a stop before bowling her over. The male Rott outweighs her by about 10-15 lbs. and the female Rott has at least 5 lbs. on her. One of my favorite photos of her is one with the big Rott's head resting in her lap.

All 4 dogs, 3 Rotts and the Mastiff lay as close to her as they can get. I stand at the back door and listen to her. She talks to them and they talk back making throat sounds. Rotts can be very cat-like. Ours make a soft growling sound that is a sound of content similar to a cat's purr. We are still fostering the much older bloodhound Archie. He lays at Sar's feet and seems happy to be there.

We have a house/pet sitter that stays here when we're away. Sar will call home every couple of nights to make sure all is ok. The house sitter says the dogs get excited when they hear her voice on the speakerphone. Come to think of it, so do I.

We'll try to update the blog during our travels. Sar is bound to have something to say about where we've been and just how much of a Neanderthal I can be when I'm in uniform. Don't let that air of innocence she portrays fool you. I can guarantee she's bound to earn a swat or 2 while we're away.

Cowboy