Road Warriors
Wednesday, August 6, 2008 Friends recently visited us while on a business/pleasure trip. They road tripped from the east coast to the western states with their two kids (travelin' age kids, not babies or toddlers) and their pet horse dog named Wilbur.
Wilbur is an 8-month old Bullmastiff with a brindle coat (I looked that up - it's tiger stripey). His family says he weighs 130-ish pounds - emphasis on the "ish" - with 80 additional pounds to look forward to as he matures. Wilbur simultaneously fascinated and terrified the kids and Mary. Ultimately fascination took over. Wilbur vocalized like Chewbacca, drooled, blew snot bubbles, lumbered around like Baby Huey, and had the most expressive face. We decided his face was a cross between a bear and an orangutan.
Chris and I were simply fascinated by our friend's ability to:
1) drive from the east coast to the western states;
2) do this with two kids (our travelin' age kids have a rough time on road trips);
3) share the trip with their horse dog;
4) not just bring a bag of dog food, but travel with several pounds of frozen, raw meat to feed Wilbur. (I had never heard of feeding raw but dogs are carnivores and many people feed their dogs raw meat because it's healthy for them - look it up. I did. Mary's not getting any though - meat that is.)
These are hardy, compassionate, life lovin', dog lovin' people!
Chris and I have been on vacation strikes for years at a time because of traveling-with-small-child induced exhaustion. Toddler Child almost killed us in Colorado and the two older boys complained about the long car ride.
We've taken Mary twice with us to Mother and Dad's in Arizona. The first time was right after her near-death experience and she sat on my lap for 11 hours with 50 staples in her stomach. I don't know why we took her the second time. Maybe we thought it'd be "fun" to take the family dog on vacation. Mary spa's it now.
A few years ago Middle Boy was interested in studying and drawing dogs. We bought him a few books on dog breeds and dog art. He spent a lot of time alone in his room reading and drawing. We saw several sketches of Old English Sheepdogs, Dalmatians, and mutts. We didn't know the extent of his breed knowledge.
Shortly after Middle Boy became the dog expert in our house, we planned a trip to Arizona. I packed Mary's suitcase for the Little Dog's Salon and Resort. Chris and the boys waited in the car while I handled Mary's check-in. An outdoor play area was visible from the parking lot, so all the little dogs could wave good-bye as their humans drove away. Middle Boy had been quietly observing the dogs.
As we headed towards the airport, Middle Boy said, "Did you see those two, white Bitchin' Fries?"
Reader Comments (5)
What I would really like to know is how much Lysol you used to combat all that drool and doggy snot. My guess is that the manufacturers are now sending you personal thank you notes...kind of like the Nordstrom sales staff who sends you a card when you spend a small fortune a pair of shoes.
Tristan - Hee-hee. Wilbur actually stayed outside. His "dog-people" parents were very gracious. I found myself windexing the back door several times, then realized it was a "dig a ditch, fill it up, dig a ditch, fill it up, etc..." project.
You're right though. I think I do keep Lysol in business - I have the feeling you also contribute...
But Bitchin' Fries for Bichon Frise is even better than I could have imagined.