Weather and Dogs

Seems like the weather has gone really wacko of late -bitter cold for a few days, rain, snow, warm, springlike temperatures, cold rain -what next?

Remember, I've posted fairly frequently about taking Sammy out for a walk -a good form of exercise for me and a way to keep him from having problems that make Mandy very unhappy about the house. I've actually done pretty good about taking Sam out for walks, regardless of how cold or snowy it may have been at the time and getting some good walking time in for myself then. Even last week when the wind chills were hovering around the zero or even below zero, out we went!

This morning though, when I woke up around 6:30 a.m. and got up to head to the bathroom, I saw that Sam had left us two presents though -one in the living room on the floor and the other, in the kitchen. So I hurried up and got them cleaned up then before Mandy got up, as I know she would have pitched a hissy fit over that. My theory is that he has needs and can't always wait until we get around to taking him out -no different that small children -except that for the fact I don't know of any way to train him to pick the commode seat up and brace himself to learn to use the big potty. Now if anyone out there knows of a way to train a dog to do that, please let me know, would ya?

This morning though, after getting a few things taken care of inside, I decided I would take Sam out for our first walk of the day. Got my jacket and walking shoes on and was reaching for his leash when Mandy called out to me that I should have done that fifteen minutes earlier because it had just started to rain!

Lovely! Not! I don't mind walking him when it's snowing (unless it is the really, really cold blowing snow, that is) and I don't mind walking him in a gentle mist or warm, spring/summer type rain, but when it is a cold type of rain, or an electrical storm, then I draw the line a bit!

So, I backed off walking him right at that moment then, in hopes that the rain would blow over in a little bit.

In the meantime, I called my car insurance agent's office to see about bringing in the paperwork to finish up my insurance claim for my jeep and the fire that totaled that poor little buggy! The secretary in the office told me what hours they would be there today and mentioned that she hoped when I came in to the office that the rain would have passed through there by then. She then informed me that it was really raining very hard in town at that time and I mentioned to her that we had had some rain about 15 minutes earlier but it seemed to have passed then and was now drying off a bit.

So with the rain having stopped then, Sam and I went out and were able to take a much longer than usual walk, almost all the way around town, as a matter of fact. When we got back home and I got ready to leave to go to the insurance office, as I headed for the door, wouldn't you just know it but it started to rain again only this time it was coming down very hard -really pounding on the road and sidewalk -so once again, I postponed going out and waited a bit till that storm passed through and it turned to being just more of a misty rain.

So away I went then! Got the paperwork all completed on the transfer of the title of the jeep and filling out some other stuff and hopefully, I should have a nice little check in about a week from the insurance company and can seriously look at cars available in the price range of what my payoff on the jeep is.

I've been checking one particular local website very regularly now -as has my daughter and even my son too -looking for vehicles that look to have potential for me to purchase. I don't go out all that often but I do still need a vehicle so I can get to some places -like my doctor appointments mainly -without a hassle of trying to coordinate those things with Mandy's work schedule or the kids arrival home from school -or sometimes, I need to make a run to the grocery store and hate to have to wait till Mandy gets home to use her car to run smallish errands like that. So a replacement vehicle is something I really do need to find and as quickly as possible too.

On the way back home today from the insurance office, I stopped at the local grocery store to pick up a couple things and while there, I ran into the mother of the mechanic who towed the jeep and her daughter-in-law. We talked a few minutes -the normal "How're you doing?" kind of conversation and then, the mechanic's wife asked me if I'd had any success in getting another vehicle. I told her no, not yet but that all three of us here were looking for something feasible. She then told me that her husband has a 1999 Chevy Cavalier now out at his garage that is in very good shape if I might be interested in it. Well, I asked how much and when she told me the price, my ears perked up as it was a VERY, VERY reasonable price to pay for a car in decent running condition! So I told her I would have either Mandy or Clate run out to the garage and check it out, talk to her husband about it too so if all pans out okay, I may very well no longer be without a buggy to get around in by the middle of next week, at the latest!

Cross your fingers and your toes, say some prayers and hope it all works out okay!

Tonight now, about 10 p.m., Sammy came and started pawing at my leg, whimpering a little, trying to tell me -I figured -that he wanted/needed to go out. I wasn't really all that keen about doing that then as it was raining again at that time -a bit harder than earlier so that I knew to walk him I would need to balance his leash, a flashlight and also an umbrella -no easy feat to do all that simultaneously ya know.

But I figured well, I better do it -or suffer the consequences then by morning so out we went!

And the rotten little bugger apparently just wanted to just WALK -not to do anything of consequence! Finally, as we were heading back to the house, he did stop once and watered some lump of leftover snow and ice though!

Yes, he can be a very picky dog when it comes to when/where he does his business! I just wish when he insists on being taken out at night, in the rain, he would quickly find a spot and get it all over and done with then!

But, when we got back in the house, apparently that walk in the rain really invigorated him because then he went on a tear, chasing all through the downstairs, jumping up on one end of the sofa, running to the opposite end, then getting the cat to run and chase with him too!

Wish a walk in a cold rain would do that for me!