Dear Diary

I have a crap ton of blogs that I never post so I think I'm going to go through and post some of them that aren't ridiculously retarded...here's one.

This weekend (and then some) I am dog sitting my brother's dogs while he and his wife are out gallivanting in Las Vegas. You could say I am a dog person. I don't really understand the rationalization of having a dog or why it is that we humans enjoy having dogs but I do like dogs. I like dogs more than I like people. They don't say a lot and they like playing tug o' war. From childhood until I was able to drive I spent most of my time exploring the backwoods of Lindengrove in Northern Minnesota with my dog Grover. We'd chase rabbits, eat berries and do other dog/boy activities. He'd walk with me to the end of the driveway and we'd wait for the school bus to come get me in the morning. When the bus arrived I'd cross the road, get in the bus and watch out the window as he trotted up the driveway. I never had to teach him not to chase cars or to not follow me on the bus, he just knew. And after a long day of school the bus would pull up to my house and there would be Grover waiting for me. Not one time in the entire 10 years I road the school bus did he not meet me at the end of the driveway. On cold snowy nights he'd accompany me as I'd walk over to the hunting shack to play cards with the grown ups. He loved going over to the shack for the same reasons I did. There was a lot of food and a lot of people to play with. I spent 90% of my day outside as there was nothing else to do and he was there by my side for every minute of it. We built snow forts, dug holes in the garden,and chased the Schwan Man every time he came up the driveway. We'd go play by the pond, he'd swim and I'd throw rocks. Later we moved to town while our "New" house in Angora was being built. I didn't have the heart to put him on a leash so I let him run free. He never chased cars but frequently was found exploring the city. He never got lost even though he was at a new house, wouldn't even think of hurting a person, and the neighborhood kids were amazed with the fact that he would eat absolutely anything you told him to. One day we decided to try bring Grover out to the new house in Angora. Once there he wasn't leaving and we couldn't get him to come back with us to town. When we came back the next day he met us on the driveway like he had been there his entire life. He really was the perfect dog. Friends, Family, ...to me they came and went rapidly...but Grover was always there. Grover must of been about 14 when he died and I can remember it like it was yesterday. He started getting sick and sore and one day I came outside and he wasn't there waiting for me. I looked at the parking lot and he was laying on his belly with his tail wagging. I called to him and he wagged it harder and tried to stand up but fell back down. So I walked over there and put him on his feet and he was able to walk with me. The vet came and gave him some pills saying that it might only be arthritis but I knew that after 14 years if he didn't meet me at the door that there was something else that was wrong. I started keeping him inside, in my room so that he wouldn't be cold. It wasn't possible for me to get him in the house before, but now he seemed to accept it. Then one day I came home from school and he was over in the side of the yard laying in a pile of green ooze. I was so sad but he was still alive so I cleaned him up and called the vet. He said he would come the next day at noon and look at him. I carried him to the house and fed him some water and some beef jerky. That night he laid at my side while I played video games and we both fell asleep on the floor. The next day I got up for school and Grover was able to walk outside. I went to school and came back home during lunch to meet the Vet. When I got home I noticed that he wasn't in the yard and he wasn't responding to my calls. I ran through he woods looking for him and I found him miraculously about 200 yards from the house. He looked up at me and wagged his tail and I just sat with him holding him on my lap as I pet him. I remember talking to him and commenting on how his hair was falling out. I was feeling pretty sad and I finally said, "it's OK if you need to die" and then he started convulsing and I tried to sooth him...he then stopped and I sat there petting him for a good 5 minutes until I realized he had died. I just left him there...called the vet, told him not to come. Called my dad and told him where he was, and then I went back to school.
I was sad but I knew life moved on. Soon afterwards my friends Sarah and Shelly randomly bought me a new dog...which I immediately named Homer. Homer is just as nice as Grover but gets himself into a lot more mischief. May be someday I'll write about him as well. Also I'll have to write about Baxter and Chauncey, the two dogs I am watching this very minute...They are good dogs and we have had a few adventures already. Mostly though they are more like cats and they just lie around the house almost annoyed if I get in their way. Still they have their charms. Anyway I didn't intend on writing a sob story about my dog dieing 10 years ago...so just know that I got over it.