Country Dogs

 

 Life in the country is different in many ways. I must admit I’m really enjoying this season of my life living in a rural community.

I can’t say that I felt the same way thirty-seven years ago when as a newlywed I moved to the country. I’m afraid my city-girl roots were still too deep to appreciate what a rural community had to offer. That, and I liked to shop too much. 

As you may remember from a previous posting Chuck and I acquired two Black-mouth Curs a few months back. They had been dropped off in a very remote location, and were posted on a community page on Facebook.

Chuck had just started working from home, and apparently this was the breed that he was hoping for someday. He thought two larger dogs would be a perfect addition to our country home. 

Now it’s taken some time for these two sisters to settle in. Sadly, we had some pretty serious fights between the two, and were at our wit’s end trying to figure out what to do. After a consultation with our vet we made the decision to put one of the girls on medication for anxiety. It seems to have made all the difference, and the two are getting along much better. 

That being said, one of their favorite things to do in the morning is to run out into the woods, and drag back anything they can find. You know, things like deer legs, skulls, and hide. Chuck made the comment that our backyard looked like a bone field. 

The other day I looked out the window and one of them was chewing on a huge turtle shell. There appeared to be no turtle visible, thank goodness. However, I wasn’t sure a turtle shell was the best thing for her to be chewing on so I took it away. 

Moving right along, the other night one of the dogs followed Chuck down the driveway to the gate, and had an encounter with a skunk. Luckily, she somehow managed to escape a direct hit and came away only with a slight odor. Nothing a little baby powder couldn’t help. However, the next time I was in town I stopped by the pet store for skunk spray. 

Next time, and somehow I’m pretty sure there will be a next time, we’ll be prepared. 

We’ve enjoyed having these two as part of the family, and are hoping that as one in particular gets a little older her rambunctious nature will settle down. 

The McDonald’s Playground

Growing up my daughter spent a lot of time at Mc Donald’s, both eating their fine cuisine and       playing on their playground.

Back in those days the playground was outside, and even though the infamous ball pit was probably a cesspool of germs, I never really gave it that much thought. I guess I figured that sunlight was a great disinfectant.

My grandsons, on the other hand, have only been to McDonald's a handful of times in their young lives. It’s always an exciting occasion when they do go, and just like my daughter, they look forward to the Happy Meal toy. 

One thing they haven’t been able to do, though, is play in the inside playground. My daughter, and rightfully so, has been a little concerned about the wisdom of rolling around in a germ factory. So each time they ask we end up mentioning something about the sick kids playing there. 

What we didn’t realize, though, was that my four year old grandson had taken that to mean that the playground was only for kids who happened to be sick. 

The other day my daughter was running to town to pick up groceries. She told the two younger ones that they could stop by McDonald’s for lunch. The four year old it turned out was thrilled because since he’d been sick all week with a cough he figured he’d get a chance to finally play in the playground-you know the one for sick kids!😂

The Library is Always Greener

Every time I move to a new community one of the first things I do is check out the library. My love affair with libraries has been life-long, and I anxiously look forward to getting my new library card. 

When I moved to De Leon I checked out our local library. Predictably it was more on the smaller side, but it appeared

to have a really good collection of fiction. Our local librarian was quite helpful in suggesting a few authors I had never read before. 

My only real complaint was that the non-fiction section of the library was underwhelming. Over the last ten years or so I have been drawn more to non-fiction and generally depend on the library for current best sellers, rather than spend my own money on these titles. 

About a month or so ago I met the head librarian of the Comanche Public Library at a community event. I shared with her my disappointment about the nonfiction at my local library, and she encouraged me to visit the Comanche Library. Apparently since I live in the county I’m eligible to use their library as well. 

I was happy to find that their nonfiction section was indeed larger. However, compared to the city libraries I was used to it still wasn’t quite up to par. 

So somehow in my mind I decided that the Dublin Library that I passed each week on the way to church each Sunday must be the best library around. This was based mostly on the fact that the building itself looked relatively new, so obviously it must be better. 

Well I had the opportunity to visit the library, and found it pretty much on par with my town’s library. As I walked away I reflected on how easy it is to just assume something that may have no basis at all. Because I wanted the Dublin Library to be better I held onto that belief with no real evidence of it being true. 

So right now I’m reading a really good fiction book from my local library. This new to me author has written many books, and my library seems to have them all. If I’m interested in non-fiction I can always drop by the Comanche Library or invest in the book of interest. 

I probably could put in a request for a book or even take advantage of an on-line service provided by my library. What I want to come away with here is that wishing something is so doesn’t actually make it so. 

Appreciating what you have, and looking for real solutions is probably the better way.