Leave it be!

  It has only been a mere two weeks since Ms. Ez, the Bayou Dog's passing and already people are asking me if I am going to get another doggy friend.  LEAVE IT BE!  While I am quite sure the folks have good intentions and do care about my well-being, I AM NOT READY!  It would sort of feel like I am demeaning the friendship that we shared if I quickly tried to "replace" her.  Nothing will ever come close to filling the void left by this dog.  Sure, we have had animal friends before that have come and gone but none quite as part of the family as Ms. Ez...other than Ms. Put, the Bayou Queen, also known as the cat.  (Not to be confused with the Bayou Princess, Ms. Nycto...the OTHER cat.) I pretty much spent the entire last ten years with Ms. Ez.  Our days were spent together and she slept next to my bed.  Twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week and pretty much three hundred and sixty-five days out of the year, she was my steady friend, partner in crime and sounding board.  I repeat...I AM NOT READY...so don't try to shove another dog down my throat.  It ain't happening...yet.  Some day...maybe.  Just not now.

  Anyway, that said, I awoke this morning with a cat hacking up a hairball next to my bed.  Since Ms. Ez is no longer in her usual spot, Ms. Put has decided that I need comforting.  She sleeps in the same spot vacated by Ez.  It is a big difference.  Ez never coughed up hairballs, for one thing, and I never had to pay attention to where I placed my feet if I got up during the night.  The old white dog was easy to spot even in the darkness while the black cat blends a little too well with the surroundings.  The hacking sound startled me a bit.  I rolled over to check the cat and came face to face with a dog!  Geez!  I was not expecting that!

  The dog in question was not a real pooch but rather the "wolf" or "Rougarou" (which is another fine name for a werewolf in Cajun legends).  This wolf is a shapeshifter of sorts as it was once a wire reindeer but I transformed it into the wolf for the clue hunt.  We needed a wolf prop as part of the clues so the reindeer received a massive makeover.  Black fake fur, handmade red glass eyes and a bit of leather completely turned the deer into a huge wolf.  Since the clue hunt is over for another year, all props have been removed and stored...except the wolf.  Just where do you store a larger than life dog?  For the time being, it is obviously being stored right next to my bed!  Waking up to find a wolf staring at you is a tad unnerving even if it is not real!

  After coaxing my heart to stop pounding, I checked the cat.  She looked at me innocently as if to say "Why did you wake me?  Where is food?" Well, that settled that.  If the nigh on twenty year old Queen wishes to dine, I shall serve.  I tumbled out of bed and headed to the kitchen.   A can of cat food for the Queen and a mug of coffee for me....not a bad morning treat after facing the Rougarou!  And for all you well-meaning folks out there who think I need another dog.....I have one!  I have a large, black wolf and I am perfectly happy with that!