Until Charlie gets back from her brief train trip to Southern California, the dogs and I are reduced to staring at each other, trying to think of something fun to do.
Life is a bit different with my wife gone.
For one thing, there’s lots of room at night on our Queen bed. Booger and Baby normally sleep on it, lodged against Charlie and I in whatever space they can find.
Actually, the both of them are pretty good sleepers; they don’t move around a whole lot once they’ve figured out their niche on the bed. Booger usually lays atop the down comforter, like a 25-pound fire hydrant, while Baby typically wants to tunnel down underneath it, and splay out her pointy feet and paws. They are both warm bodies, which is helpful in the cooler climes, but is totally undesirable when the weather gets hot. There’s nothing like sweltering in bed, and then having one of the (hot) dogs cuddle up against you. (And, then, kick you in the testicles.)
JayJay luxuriates in his own bed, which is adjacent to the foot end of our platform bed. It’s plenty big for him, and he sprawls out on it, typically on his back,like a Snow Angel, and snores like a fat pig. JayJay’s noise could wake up the dead.
I wear earplugs every night, because, between his loud, staccato racket and Booger’s unusual noises and Baby’s purring…in addition to Charlie’s snoring…the bedroom portion of our RV sounds like a factory at full-throttle.
Another thing that is different with Charlie gone is the morning dog pooping routine.
In this park, with a nice, enclosed dog run only fifty yards away, I take the dogs over there first thing in the morning. Because Charlie is gone, that chore must be done with three dogs on leash at one time…not such an easy task with three 18- to 25-pound tuggers jostling me in different directions. Thank God that they’ve figured out where the enclosed “poop zone” is, and they have the decency to wait until they get there to let loose.
Unlike the other two, who can’t wait to unceremoniously dump their turds, JayJay likes to draw out the process, peeing and sniffing every raised object and the leavings of other dogs. Sometimes, he doesn’t give up his load, and I am forced to take him back over there later in the morning. Maybe that’s just his way of sneaking an extra walk out of me? The bastard.
Which brings me to another change since Charlie railroaded herself out of here: strolling with the dogs.
Since walking three leashed dogs at a time is suicidal, I can only walk two at a time and leave one in the RV for a later solo outing. The dogs need to get some fresh air and exercise several times a day, and, since I’m retired, it typically falls to me to help out in this regard. So, I’ve been doing the two plus one gig for awhile now, with the caveat that it’s not really advisable to leave Baby alone in the coach because she gets lonely/upset/whiny. Who knows what she might do if she gets pissed off?
The problem with two on a leash (no matter which two) is that the dogs are very different from each other. Therefore, they have different agendas while on the leash. Booger is a socialite (i.e. has to greet all humans and dogs while on her tour) and a hunter (for lizards, squirrels, etc.). JayJay, our guy dog, feels it necessary to sniff and pee on every shrub, tree trunk, and immovable object, and then do his “burning rubber” routine with his hind feet, to spread his scent for the benefit of all who follow him. Baby, on the other hand, is looking for fun: she knows where the park is, and she’s bound and determined to drag me over there as soon as we leave the rig. So, walking her is a misnomer: she walks me…briskly.
What I’ve decided to do, with Charlie gone, is to do many walks, and do them individually. That way, each of the hounds gets to enjoy their “thing” without the distraction of the other two. They seem to like this a lot, particularly Booger, because there are a lot of squirrels and foreign dogs here in the park. (BTW, it’s nice to see Booger enthusiastic and active after her ill health for the past several weeks. She’s back to being a Booger!)
Another thing that is different with Charlie gone is hunger…I probably eat more from the boredom. (Now I know how my large brother Terry feels!)
I’m obviously not any hungrier than I was a week ago, and I don’t really need more sustenance, but it’s easy to lose self-control when you’re just by yourself: snacking increases, and portion sizes balloon, as well. Also, I have the opportunity to indulge myself in delicacies that Charlie doesn’t care for, like red meat, curry, spicy sausage, etc. I’ve got so many opportunities…but only four nights to check off items on my culinary bucket-list. Damn!
If I had a large oven on board, I’d probably buy one of those large Costco pizzas and eat it all by myself…all 12 million calories in one sitting! Shame on me, but it’s true.
One last thing that is different with Charlie gone: watching TV.
We have dish TV here in the rig, and we use the DVR to record all sorts of stuff for later viewing, sans commercials. Charlie likes home remodeling shows, veterinary and zoo reality shows, and murder mysteries. I like them, too, but I also like to watch (or, more likely, re-watch) action movies, history channel stuff, and weird science shit. So, as soon as Charlie rolled out of town, I was re-watching “Goodfellas”, James Bond movies, a historical piece on mining in the Old West, and a couple of pieces on the making of cult movies (“Scarface” and “National Lampoon’s Vacation”).
Tonight, I’ll get to watch “Taken 3” with Liam Neeson for the umpteenth time, “Internal Affairs” with Richard Gere, and maybe Brad Pitt in “World War Z”. What the Hell.
And, maybe I’ll do that while munching on some penne pasta with spicy sausage.
Charlie doesn’t do spicy…
…although, she is one “a-spicy a-meatball”!