As I contemplated a favorite place this afternoon my mind traveled to many places. It was hard to decide on one!! Knowing that I had to decide on a favorite my mind kept traveling back to where I was…in my own yard blowing leaves.
With a soft breeze fluffing my hair, I armed myself with my leaf blower and attacked the yard. It was me against the wind as I forced theleaves scattered across the lawn into a neat and orderly pile. I could smell the faint scent of leaves burning in the distance and reflected that the very leaves I was forcing into orderly piles would soon face a similar fate.
I wasn’t ready for that yet…to much work to be done with only me to do it. The neighborhood was quiet, and no one else seemed to be outside except for me. I focused on my task and allowed my mind to wander to the time years ago when we lived in an area devoid of trees. There certainly was little maintenance needed to care for that yard. Mow and go…kind of like wash and wear hair. I prefer nice and easy, but after having a postage stamp of a yard with no trees at all I welcomed the tender loving labor needed to make my yard as pristine as the other neighbors.
There is a certain feeling of power that overtakes me when I can use my leaf blower to force the leaves to my will. With the breeze, I was working against the wind at some points. If the wind picked up…cleaning up the yard would become more struggle than it was worth. As it is…the leaves were doing just as I wanted them to, and the yard was quickly spotless except for random piles of leaves dotting the landscape. The song…“who you going to call… Ghost buster” kept playing in my head.
I took great satisfaction in attacking my flower beds and discovering the flowers hidden beneath. The geraniums and mums seemed to spring eagerly forth as I forced the intrusive leaves away that previously hid them. As I thought of all the favorite places I could have described…from the snowy mountain vistas to the sparkling sands of a tropical beach to the soothing sounds of the tides rushing in and out, I came to the conclusion that there was no better place for me to be at this given moment than in my own backyard.
Sometimes you can search the world over for favorite places and be completely miserable wherever you actually are. I found contentment in my own backyard beneath the bare branches. I found solace in the silence, the roar of the leaf blower, and later the laughter of my children that filled the crisp air as they stepped off the school bus and raced to greet me. After a long afternoon of outdoor work, my taste buds craved the ice cold refreshment of a can of Coca Cola. Settling into the comfy couch, I breathed a sigh of relief as I popped open the tab, and took that anticipated first swig. Until next time when I give you another glimpse into the life of a trucker’s wife.
Having three dogs, I have had to suffer through numerous barking sessions. I constantly scream myself hoarse telling them to shut the hell up. I mean really, just because some sorry sap jogs by, is there really any reason for all the excitement?? Every time a mouse farts or a ghost passes outside…the dogs go ape $hit. Most of the time I can’t even tell why they are barking. They just bark and bark and bark as I pray for patience. I love my dogs, but after a while, the constant barking for no reason drives me batty.
Fortunately for me, we don’t have many visitors. For this reason, I think the dogs have to make up for lost time whenever someone dares to arrive on the scene. The other day a lady came to the door, and as usual, I had to corral the dogs in the garage so I could hear myself think and determine exactly why she had darkened my doorstep in the first place. Thinking my miniature pinscher Tia wouldn’t cause any harm, I left her in the house as I answered the door.
Her reaction was predictable. She barked and barked. Even long after the lady had left she continued to bark. I had enough. I made a beeline for the nearest Petcoin search of a dog whistle. I had heard of the magical dog whistles but had never put their magic powers to the test. I have had enough barking to last me a lifetime. Desperate times call for desperate measures! The sales associate at Petco was very helpful and once I tore my kids away from the cages holding all the precious kitties they had available for adoption we made a beeline for the aisle holding the training whistles. For the bargain price of $7.00 I snatched up my very own dog whistle and rushed home to try it out.
To my disgust the stupid dogs who are usually so quick to bark didn’t utter a sound when we got home. My daughter and I decided to conduct a little experiment. She ran out the back door, came around to the front and started banging on the front door. Immediately Jolly, Pupster, and Tia predictably fell all over each other trying to get into the front window to see who was at the door barking like lunatics in their wake. Amid all the commotion, I whipped out my handy dandy dog whistle and gave it a toot. All three dogs whipped around and stared at me in stupefied silence. Their ears perked up. Jolly, my Boston terrier looked as if his balls had been clamped in a vice. Even though his balls were removed years ago, he still had the pained expression like they could still have been there. Tia cowered, and Pupster cocked his head to the side.
With that precious whistle, I have gained power and the glory of silence forever. I am loving it! I am queen of my castle, lady of the manor, head lady in charge of the abode!! For anyone whose last nerve is frayed almost in two from the crazy barking, get yourself a handy dandy dog whistle and enjoy the power of silence!! Until next time when I give you another glimpse into the life of a trucker’s wife.
Having three dogs, I have had to suffer through numerous barking sessions. I constantly scream myself hoarse telling them to shut the hell up. I mean really, just because some sorry sap jogs by, is there really any reason for all the excitement?? Every time a mouse farts or a ghost passes outside…the dogs go ape $hit. Most of the time I can’t even tell why they are barking. They just bark and bark and bark as I pray for patience. I love my dogs, but after a while, the constant barking for no reason drives me batty.
Fortunately for me, we don’t have many visitors. For this reason, I think the dogs have to make up for lost time whenever someone dares to arrive on the scene. The other day a lady came to the door, and as usual, I had to corral the dogs in the garage so I could hear myself think and determine exactly why she had darkened my doorstep in the first place. Thinking my miniature pinscher Tia wouldn’t cause any harm, I left her in the house as I answered the door.
Her reaction was predictable. She barked and barked. Even long after the lady had left she continued to bark. I had enough. I made a beeline for the nearest Petco in search of a dog whistle. I had heard of the magical dog whistles but had never put their magic powers to the test. I have had enough barking to last me a lifetime. Desperate times call for desperate measures! The sales associate at Petco was very helpful and once I tore my kids away from the cages holding all the precious kitties they had available for adoption we made a beeline for the aisle holding the training whistles. For the bargain price of $7.00 I snatched up my very own dog whistle and rushed home to try it out.
