One dog, Great! Two dogs, Interesting!

I completed my normal workout this morning at the physical therapy place. The owner has really created a great opportunity for several of us seniors to have a place that is lightly supervised to be sure we’re working the equipment correctly and getting the proper conditioning. It is strictly for seniors who have been to him for doctor ordered therapy and have run out of insurance. Medicare, you see, has some restrictions. He chooses who he will invite to these early morning sessions, and none of us misses except under special circumstances.

I mentioned my neighbor came over with some power equipment and cut down the wild rose bushes along our driveway. My wife and daughter had begun the project last week and it was about 20 percent accomplished after two long, grueling days. It isn’t easy cutting down extremely thorny bushes by hand. Neighbor Ed did the whole task in less than 10 minutes. Today, the two gals are making several trips to the recycle center to dispose of the cuttings.


Daughter Gator brought along her dog, our dog’s sister, for me to “doggy sit” while they did the work. It’s very easy work when the gals are here loading the back of Momma Gator’s small SUV; but when they drive off to the recycling place, daughter’s dog gets just a little crazy. And very demanding. We get along fabulously so she’s no trouble. She just wants attention every minute her “mommy” is away. Our dog looks at her as if to say, “You dummy. They’ll be right back.” Of course, ours also would like to play.

They’re rather calm right at the moment. I’ve asked them both to just lie down and be patient. Much to my surprise, both dogs immediately lay down and are trying to be calm. I’m occupying my time here jotting down this post hoping the calm will continue if I sort of ignore them. Both dogs certainly are cute, Golden Retrievers from the same litter, but when their mommy people are away, they can be very trying.


When the day is done, the gals will have taken six or seven trips to the recycle center. But all our winter’s yard rubble and garden cleaning will have been accomplished. The stuff will either be composting in our composting area or at the recycle center’s composting place. We didn’t put the rose bush clippings on our spot because of the thorny stems and Momma Gator didn’t want more wild rose bushes.

Now those bushes along the driveway will have a chance to come back to life and multiply. If the tasks of past seasons are any indication, it really won’t be long before we have beautiful red and white roses along the driveway and new shoots will have spread even further toward the street, closer to the driveway, and down the embankment to the drainage ditch.


Meanwhile, my wife will take a short time off into May when she’ll begin preparing her two vegetable spots for late May planting and doing whatever she needs to do to her flower gardens to make them friendly for flowers. One of the gardens, incidentally, is in full bloom right now with the early spring flowers.

And the dogs are beginning to show signs of restlessness and it won’t be long before they are up and romping around once again. Ah, life in the Gator in Maine’s family.

GiM