Old friends, new friends

I woke up with a lump in my throat this morning.  You know how sometimes you feel like you have the same dream for hours even though you know it probably only lasted a few seconds? I felt like I dreamed about Giddy all night. In the dream, he came back to see me. However, it seemed like no one else could see him but me.  My mom was the only other person who could see him. Everyone else just looked at me like they felt sorry for me. In the dream, he stood in my living room and I hugged him. I held his grey face in my hands. I could feel his ribs under my fingers (he was always a skinny dog).  And then I woke up.

I miss that dog so much. He's been gone for 2 1/2 months but the pain is still so sharp. I will always miss him, just like I will always miss my other furry companions who have crossed over. My current foster dog, a German Shepherd, reminds me of my Karl Lee in so many ways. Agent is currently "blowing his coat."  What does this mean?  Well, he's ejecting his undercoat (German Shepherds are double-coated).  It comes out in big tufts. I keep finding pieces of him everywhere (he assures me that the process will be done soon).  Karl used to do this, too, though his fur wasn't as thick as Agent's. Agent is not a fan of brushing, unfortunately. You'd think he'd like the attention, particularly since he's always stuck to me like glue an overly-attentive boyfriend.

As for Gretchen, she's 9 now. The white hairs on her ears have started to form little unions. She now has a white streak down each ear. She's still sassy (she's impossible to walk because she threatens to kick the ass of every dog in our neighborhood), but I think she's slowing down a bit. She snoozes more than she used to.  However, her naps are about to become less plentiful and less lengthy because . . . our new puppy will arrive soon. I've been telling her, "Soon you'll have a little pup swinging from your collar!" She seems pretty psyched about it.

I said I would never get another puppy. Never say never, I guess.  My daughter is beside herself with excitement. She submitted a list of possible names for the puppy. I had already chosen the name Grover (as in, Grover from Sesame Street). Her list included names like . . .  Cop. And Oreo. Captain was on the list, I think.

"Thanks for the list of names, Sweetie. Why don't you keep thinking about it?"

I told my co-worker, Lisa, about this exchange and she responded, "So, you want her to think about it until she comes up with the name Grover?"

Yeah, basically.

The puppy is coming. Pray for us. (Well, I'm a UU and we don't really pray, so maybe you can meditate for us or something.)

Giddy, who was and always will be, the Goodest Good Boy in the Whole Wide World