TheBanyanTree: A Perfect Day

[Margaret R. Kramer]

After weeks of rain and gloom, our Saturday was awash in sunshine, a breeze,
and perfect conditions to be outside.  It was T-shirt weather as our temps
soared to 73 degrees.

Ray started cleaning out the garage while I worked on gathering the potted
flowers and dumping them out in the compost bin.  Man, those pots were
heavy!  They were weighted down with water logged dirt.  I definitely got in
my workout lugging those babies around.

Ray packed up the plastic lawn furniture and stacked the chairs and small
tables in the garage.  I put all the little garden do-dads in a tub.

Then I mowed the too long for October grass.  While I was mowing I was also
mulching up the leaves and eliminating any need to rake them.

The yard looks bare, but we’re ready for winter.  I heard the rrrrr of my
neighbors’ lawn mowers, too.  It was too nice of a day to let the yard
chores go.

But Ray and I weren’t all work and no play.  We drove to the High Bridge in
St. Paul and walked most of its long span and took some great photos of
downtown St, Paul and the color along the Mississippi River’s banks.  We
drove through a neighborhood that was unfamiliar to us and discovered a
really cool park up along the bluffs of the river.  I’ve lived in St. Paul
most of my life and didn’t know that park was even there!

Well, when we got home, I noticed a candy wrapper on the floor.  I looked in
the candy bowl on the dining room table, and sure enough, all the CHOCOLATE
candy was gone.  I let the dogs outside and then looked up on the internet
to see what I could do.  Chocolate is poison to dogs, but our counter surfer
black lab thinks he’s happy only when his stomach is full.

I drove to PetSmart and the vet there told me to buy some hydro peroxide
whatever and get him to vomit.  She told me that the amount of chocolate he
ate based on his weight was not a lethal dose.  There was a Cub Foods store
right next door, so I bought some at the pharmacy in the store.

I drove home with visions of Shadow having convulsions, but he was fine.  I
let him drink up some of the stuff and then watched him in the backyard.  He
had a few bowel movements and then threw up.  He tried to eat the throw up,
gee what’s better than recycled chocolate, but Ray and I put a cement piece
where he threw up, so he couldn’t get at it.

Then he was fine.  He ate a good dinner of dog food, ran around in the yard,
and went into a deep sleep on the living room floor.  His stomach must be
made of iron, that’s all I can say.

So, we almost had a perfect day, but I guess Shadow eating chocolate and
surviving did make it perfect after all.

Here is a link for a slideshow of my pictures taken with my cheap digital
camera:
http://s64.photobucket.com/albums/h186/saydimae/102007%20The%20High%20Bridge
/?action=view&current=8ac496cb.pbw

Margaret R. Kramer
margaretkramer at comcast.net
margaret.kramer at polarispublications.com
'Tis now the very witching time of night,
When churchyards yawn and hell itself breathes out
Contagion to this world.
~William Shakespeare