Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Dude's #1 fan - it's Megan!


I never thought that I'd run into a real fan of my buddy Humper Go-Play Lickerson, but I've done just that here in Michigan. While visiting with friends and family, I met our new friend Megan, a wonderfully interesting young lady with an amazing resume. She's completing high school a year early following a program of homeschool study, an important volunteer in her community, one of the best writers I've ever had the pleasure to read, and she's bi-lingual.

Oh yeah, and she's a big fan of the Dude. I'm convinced that she is Dude's #1 fan. After all, you see who is sitting on her lap. What a lucky dog! Am I just the road crew?

My dinner invite for the evening with Megan was carefully crafted to include a regrettable caveat suggesting that my canine friend was the real dinner guest, but everyone would put up with me if I would simply be his driver for the evening. Okay, so I was a bit hurt, but I figured that I'd get over it. And, I did. I accept my position as the Dude's road crew.

Had I missed the dinner, I'm not certain that Dude could have gotten over the hurt as quickly as me. He loves meeting new people, and especially attractive females, so I didn't dare risk an upset puppy over a silly thing like me taking a back seat to my four-legged travel companion.

The evening turned out great. The meal was wonderful and I was so pleased that they didn't make me eat out of a plastic bowl on the concrete patio while Humper sat at the table with a proper place setting. Of course, the best part of the evening was the great company.

It didn't take long before Dude was given a tour of the house and started helping out on the patio, in the kitchen and in the office. He was quite comfortable going downstairs and upstairs on command, and performing his limited repertoire of tricks like the ever popular "spot check".

We're having so much fun here in the Great Lake State that we've decided to stay a while, using Internet resources from friends and family to make our posts.

Sunday, June 13, 2010

Dude has good horse sense...kind of


My buddy Dude enjoys time with people and animals. He's particularly fond of horses, but he's never had a close encounter - until today. While attending my nephew's Birthday party, complete with a pony, my canine companion got to come face-to-face with a tiny horse. And, even a tiny horse is a large animal for my pint-size puppy.

Hey, it's a different day, so let's do something different - maybe something a bit risky as well - let's play with animals much larger and stronger than ourselves.

While mom held the reins, and Dude perched on dad's lap, the Dude got to sniff and lick at the muzzle of a pony. The pony got a snoot full of Dude as well. Both seemed very satisfied and the encounter was over.

What pleases me is that my little buddy trusts me to never put him in a bad spot, so when he was called up on dad's lap with a horse looming overhead, he didn't hesitate, he simply waited until there was sufficient room and then hopped up on his perch. What amazes me is that the Dude gets to enjoy such a full life of adventure and new experiences. And, I think it amazes him as well.

Earlier that day, my Humper Dude was chasing around with this same pony. Perhaps 7 times as high, 5 times as long, and about 20 times as heavy as my pup, the Dude was a featherweight "in the ring" with this super-heavyweight. Nevertheless, the nimble Dude held his own, steering clear of the galloping pony and playfully dodging in and out of its path. Both were having fun.

The handler was concerned about possible injury to my dog. I told her not to worry, that sort of risk naturally comes with a life of adventure and fun, and I thought he had good horse sense in more than one way - when the going gets too rough, Dude knows to back off and keep distance between him and the other animal.

So, the day included Dude in the saddle, rolling down the driveway on a skateboard, and running through the pond as well. Quite an exciting and fun-filled day for the Dude, and it wasn't even his Birthday party.