It’s time to travel.  I’d call it a vacation but I’m retired.  It’s really just a break from the beasts, our two dogs and the cat.  They are my only responsibilities on a normal day.  Typically, my working-wife will feed them in the morning, after I’ve taken our two schnauzers outside for their morning business and gone for my morning run.  The rest of the day, if I’m home, they follow me around, hoping I will drop a morsel of food, throw them a ball, or take them on a ride in the car.  The cat is little trouble after I clean her litter box each morning and rarely makes an appearance unless it’s time to eat.

We’ll be gone for twelve days this time. and will hire a pet sitter to stay in our home.  It will cost about $1,000, but it also gives my services some sense of value when I’m home to take care of them.   Pets, if properly cared for, can be an expense luxury.  As a result, there are too many homeless and poorly cared-for animals.  Plus, they tie you to your home unless you have someone who can care for them while you’re gone. We thankfully have several options, our daughter if she’s not traveling and two or three professional sitters.  We have, in the past, also used a boarding facility, but they are equally expensive and a tougher adjustment for your pets while you’re away.  Having someone stay with them in your home also provides  you with a sense of security, knowing everything is OK with the house.  A vacant house can lead to trouble.

I plan to travel quite extensively this year, as I planned for in retirement.  For me, a day of travel is simply a vacation from the pets.  I won’t have to feed them, take them out, or worry about them.  It’s a good break from these responsibilities and a change in the retirement routine. For them, it’s a vacation from me, and for my hard working wife a vacation – period.

Our precious pets are part of the travel expense equation.  Every day we’re gone add $90 to the price of luxury.  That’s only $3.75 an hour if you break it down, well below minimum wage for the job of protecting our “children” while we’re enjoying a cocktail with an umbrella in the sunshine.  Cheers!

Both of our dogs are adopted, but who really rescued who?

Resc-who?

Behind bars.
There you were.
Looking at me,
Not quite sure.

.
I looked back,
Caught your eye.
Want to be rescued?
It’s worth a try.

.
Friendly eyes,
Soft touch.
A pal I want,
So very much.

.
Or should I play,
Hard to get?
After all,
We’ve barely met.

.
Do you want out?
Or want me in?
Open the door,
Pull back that pin.

.
Do you need me?
Or do I need you?
I guess we’ll find,
Which way is true.

.
Are you hungry?
For food or love?
Are you a gift,
From heaven above?

.
Were you unwanted?
Can I be your friend?
Neither knows,
How this will end.

.

We’ll stay together,
Help each other.
And maybe someday,
We’ll add another.

.
I’ll give you treats,
And show you tricks.
There’s no lonely heart,
That I can’t fix.
.
You’re not furry,
Can’t bark like me.
Open the door,
Be my adoptee.
.
Which one of us,
Should say Thank You?
Since the question is,
Who rescued who?

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Copyright April 2011
johnstonwrites.com