We’ve become “those” people…(hanging my head in shame)

         Last night we dined with friends to celebrate Hubby’s birthday (he’s 52, but I’ll deny until my last breath that I mentioned that fact).

         We normally see each other about once a week or so, and after catching up with the latest news – our upcoming vacation and theirs, we arrived at the restaurant.

         As things normally go here “down on the bayou”, Hubby knew just about everyone in the place – both those coming and going – so there was a lot of conversation floating around. This also happens to be one of our favorite places to have a steak dinner. It is located along Bayou Lafourche and is a piece meal of a building, having been added on to thru the years. Monday night is steak night and people come from up and down the bayou to feast on their delectable steak and potatoes.

         Then – it started – Hubby and I have become “those” people. You know the ones – the ones that talk about their dogs – forever! And, as if that’s not enough, we even have pictures of their latest escapades!

         Yes! We have become “those people”. You see, Calypso has been up to her usual escapades and we think she is nothing short of a genius. Of course, we have to share her antics – even if the audience is our captive audience!

        This trick worked – for a while. It was even good at keeping unwanted company at bay. The rule was, if you can’t grab hold of the post and swing your little self around it to the porch; you have to visit from the steps. You would be surprised at what folks will do to have a comfortable place to sit and visit. As you can well imagine, there is a lot of swinging going on at our house.       

           Due to Calypso’s puppy chewing, Hubby came up with the brainstorm of hanging a trawl net across the front porch entrance to keep her off the porch (considering how well this turned out – a more apt name might have been “brain-fart”). She has chewed the legs of two very expensive rockers and the side of a table, not to mention knowing on the 6×6’s that actually support the porch roof. You can see that we’ve had to curtail her activities before the house began falling down around or on top of us.

         Lately, it appears that the only beings being kept off the porch are the human kind. Ryka has gotten quite comfortable with jumping on and off the porch from the side and Calypso…well, Calypso has figured out how to chew and unhook the net from the eyehooks that Hubby installed along the bottom of the porch. Having figured that out, she now knows that she can slip underneath the net and onto the porch. As you can see in the picture, she gets stuck and then she looks around for help. It is impossible for her to gain traction on the concrete steps and nearly impossible for her to claw the porch for traction. Therefore, she spends a lot of time in this particular position – watching Ryka sit on the porch – until she gets tired and backs herself out from under the net, or I take pity on her and work her under the net.

         That’s not the only adventure Calypso and Ryka have had this past week. They managed to sashay across a busy, major highway. Those adventures will be coming soon.

         Meanwhile, we Southerners love our animals and treat them as family members. So, be prepared when visiting your Southern neighbors, to feign interest when they start expounding on the virtues and adventures of their “loved ones”.

Do you hold your company prisoner while extolling the current adventures of your animal’s adventures?