Thursday – A Little Personal – Twiggy – Squirrel Dundee

May 27, 2021May 26, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 98 Comments

“Okay, so you think there are squirrels in the yard?”

“Not think, Lucy. I know there are squirrels in the yard.”

“What makes you think so?”

“I’ve seen them.”

“Seen them. When? Where?”

“Near that confounded bird handout thingy.”

“Yeah, that makes sense, I guess. They are after the seeds.”

“There shouldn’t be any seeds, to begin with, for heaven’s sake.”

“We discussed this. You need to share with our natural friends.”

“Okay, I’ll give it to you on the birds, but squirrels are an entirely different matter.”

“I think you ought to worry more about this dry spot in the lawn.”

“That’s above my pay grade.”

“I beliece you ought to give the squirrels a pass.”

“A pass? Are you a dog or what? Where’s the Lucy I once knew?”

“I’m just saying that you can spend your whole day chasing them to no avail.”

“Sounds like a good day to me.”

“Only a bulldog would think that way.”

Thursday – A Little Personal – Something New in the Yard

May 20, 2021May 19, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 102 Comments

“What the heck is that? Hey Lucy. You see this thing in the tree?”

“Lucy? You on the chaise?”

“Okay, this is not funny. LUCY.”

“There you are. I’ve been looking all over for you.”

“I was on the other side, Little One.”

“Come over here. I have to show you something.”

“Man, you move quicker than a squirrel late for lunch.”

“Check it out.”

“Everything looks normal to me.”

“Not over there, Lucy. Over here.”

“Huh. I thought you were seeing the roses for the first time.”

“Look in the tree.”

“What the heck is that?”

“My words exactly. What is it?”

“I have to say I don’t know, Little One. Too high for a dinner dish. Let’s go ask the boss.”

“It’s a bird feeder. Lucy and Twiggy. It is for the birds.”

“I’m still wondering why the birds can’t get their own food. Why do we have to feed them?”

“Tell em, Lucy.”

“Your mom and I like to watch the birds, and like the hummer feeder visits, it is nice to see them. You two should learn to share.”

“As long as the bird feed budget doesn’t take away from the watchdog budget, we are happy to share.”

“Watchdog budget? Hahahaha. I like that.”

Thursday – A Little Personal

May 13, 2021May 12, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 85 Comments

“What are you doing, little one?”

“I’m wondering if we should play ball.”

“I don’t know. The grass is pretty wet from the rain.”

“Yeah, but we can still play.”

“You better check out this grass. I know how you hate to get a wet ball.”

“It doesn’t feel that wet to me.”

“Well, stand there a while and let the water seep into your paws. Then tell me.”

“There sure is no sun, so we might as well make the best of it.”

“I’m walking away, so you’ll have to speak up.”

“Oh, look in the sky. I think it’s an eagle.”

“Get on the porch then.”

“It’s a vulture. He won’t bother you.”

“You sure? I don’t feel like being picked on.”

“If I didn’t know better, I would say that vulture spooked you.”

“Nope, just keeping up with my exercise program.”

“There is one more thing to watch out for. A spider.”

“Yikes. I don’t even like the looks of him.”

“They are good things to have. They eat insects.”

“You have to walk carefully around them for sure. Insects? Yuk.”

“So the final final on the ball game?”

“All this talk about eating makes me want a snack. Let’s pass on ball and go for food.”

“Who was talking about eating? I just mentioned the diet of spiders.”

“Did you mention the word, ‘eat?'”

“Yes. . . Oh, for heaven’s sake.”

“Just beat on the door. You are bigger.”

Thursday – A Little Personal – Lucy and Twiggy Outside

May 6, 2021May 5, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 105 Comments

“Lucy. The umbrella isn’t up.”

“Yeah, I can see that. I’ll call the boss.

“You get a hold of him?”

“Yeah, he’s coming. Sounds like he was heavy into his book.”

“Well, he is pretty quick whatever he was doing.”

“That is a good thing except at bathtime.”

“Why are you still laying out in the yard?”

“I love the sun. It is warm and feels good.”

“I was just about to join you, and you passed out.”

“Just resting my eye, Little one.”

“You coming here or not?”

“Just a few more minutes.”

“Might as well make myself comfortable.”

“You like it?”

Rather have the shade.”

“Okay, I’ll come and do the lounge lizard impersonation.”

There is a lot of sun on my lounge.”

“Maybe the boss will come out and adjust it.”

“Ah no. You know how he is when he’s on a roll with a WIP. I’ll just lay here beside you.”

“You are more than welcome. Little One. Does it get any better than this?”

“Peanut butter would make it better.”

“Dream on.”

Thursday – A Little Personal – Twiggy and Lucy and Sunscreen

April 29, 2021April 28, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 101 Comments

“Hey, Lucy. Don’t forget the sunscreen.”

“Coming Little One.”

“I don’t see a lot of sun out here, Twiggy.”

“You have to look for it.”

“Look for it? If it isn’t in the sky, where would it be?”

“Not behind the chaise, I can tell you.”

“I’m not sure, but I think you might be disappointed.”

“I wonder if it is out front?”

“It comes from above, Twiggy.”

“Maybe there is a below element.”

“Now you are ridiculous. Everyone knows the sun is in the sky.”

“You can’t close your mind to possibilities, Lucy.”

“Hey, where you going in such a hurry?”

“Look out of the way. I have sun to find.”

“Okay then. You go, girl.”

“They laughed at Columbus you know.”

“Believe me, no one is laughing.”

Thursday – A Little Personal – Twiggy and Lucy Face the Cold

April 22, 2021April 21, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 86 Comments

“Hey, you two. Time to go outside.”

Well, you see, Lucy and I are really comfortable, Dad.”

“But the day’s a-wasting. You need your exercise.”

“Um, I think we get a lot of exercise.”

“Well, you can always use more.”

“How about the temperature out there?”

“It’s 48 degrees.”

“Pasadena on the outside. Too cold. Besides, my stairs are out of position.”

“Come on, you’ve been out in colder weather.” I’ll fix them.

“There. Your stairs are in the right spot.”

“Oh, all right. Come on, Lucy, time to go out and play.”

“What did I miss back there?”

“Oh, nothing. I was just giving Dad a rough time.”

“Beat you to the pea gravel side.”

“You could have warned me.”

“Yeah, but then I couldn’t win.”

“Boy, it is a little cold out here. Let’s head in.”

“Hey, Dad. Open the door.”

“Yeah, boss. We are freezing out here. Boss?”

Thursday – A Little Personal – Lucy and Twiggy Outside.

April 15, 2021April 14, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 110 Comments

“Looks like a nice day to be outside.”

“Yeah, it does. Not too hot and lots of clouds.”

“I see mom put out some flowers.”

“Yes, Little One, the first of the season.”

“Hey, what’s this. Somebody left a piece of kibble here.”

“I would leave that alone if I were you.”

“Whoa. This has a real bite to it.”

“I told you to leave it alone.”

“I don’t think I ever tasted anything like that before.”

“That’s cause it’s not kibble.”

“What is it then.”

“I suspect it is squirrel poop.”

“I’m glad you are so fast, Lucy.”

“Yeah, why were you chasing me anyway?”

“Calling that kibble squirrel poop. Hey, do you hear that?”

“Whatever it is, you sure picked up speed.”

“We need to get in. There is danger.”

“Hold on, Little One. Mom will open the door.”

“No time, no time, I gotta save us.”

“Okay, Little one. I’m coming to help bark the door open.”

“See, I told you so. A delivery truck for next door.”

“Well, at least it’s not UPS.”

“I wonder if I can bark this one to Tulsa?”

“Easy Little one. Let it rip.”

Thursday – Anything possible – Lucy and Twiggy Mellow Harsh

April 8, 2021April 7, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 79 Comments

We going to do this, Little One?”

“Sure, why not?”

“Okay, Lucy. I guess we need to lay out the field.”

“The field? What do you mean?”

“You know. Get the lime. Layout the boundaries. Set the goals.”

“Oh, blech. Can we just skip all that?”

“We can, but it won’t be much of a game.”

“My point exactly. Patio, here we come.”

“Lucy. What’s that ladder thing at the neighbors?’

“I don’t know. They are noisy, though.”

“You can say that again. What’s that rumble?”

“I think they are using a jackhammer on something.”

“A little of that goes a long way.”

“Can you say annoying?”

“Wait. Did it stop?”

“I think. you are right.”

“And there it goes again.”

“I have to believe they are going to be here all day.”

“Not sure I can handle this.”

“I know I can’t. I’m going to a quiet place.”

“Not much quiet over here either. I’m heading back to the patio. At least there is sun there.”

“I guess you are right. Little One.”

“Well, it’s not perfect. I guess it is better than nothing.”

“Now you’re talking. I love optimism.”

“Yeah. It starts and stops, so I guess we can put up with it.”

“Dibs on this lounge. Gotta get some serious shut-eye. Send the server over if you can catch his eye.”

Thursday – A Little Personal – Twiggy’s Gotcha Day

April 1, 2021March 31, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 98 Comments

“Hey, Lucy, where you going?”

“I thought I would check to see if my Prime delivery is here yet.”

“Prime delivery? What did you get?”

“It is a surprise, Little One.”

“A surprise? Who are you surprising?”

“I should keep that to myself as well.”

“Look, is that a four-leaf clover?”

“I love your attention span. No, that looks like a weed to me.”

“I don’t know. There are four leaves, and it’s green.”

“Looks like Woodsorrel to me.”

“I still need to know who you are, surprising.”

“I’ll give you a hint. Who’s Gotcha Day is it?”

“Wait, I hear something. It’s the squeal of the Prime van brakes.”

“You sure?”

“Darn right, I’m sure. I’m an Olympic barker, and those Prime guys are easy targets.”

“Okay, I’m going to take your word. I have to go.”

“Gotcha Day? It’s my Gotcha Day. The surprise is for me.”

“Happy Gotcha Day, Little One. Now I really got to step on it. I still have wrapping to do.”

Thursday – A Little Personal – Lucy Visits the Dentist

March 25, 2021March 24, 2021 ~ John W. Howell ~ 103 Comments

“Hey Lucy. Why are you on the couch?”

“I was at the dentist yesterday and am still recovering.”

“Well I better keep watch for you then. I think the UPS person is due.”

“Don’t worry Little One. I’m not in the mood to be barking him to St. Louis today. You’ll be on your own.”

“You rest easy. I’ll handle it.”

“Thanks. ZZZZZZZZZZZ.”

“My goodness. You are out aren’t you?”

“MMMMM fffffffttt.Snork.”

“Gosh. I am alone. This is a big responsibility.”

“ZZZZZZZZZZzzzzzzzZZZZZZZ.”

“Lucy don’t leave me. I don’t know what I’ll do.”

“Snaggle snork. Huh? For heaven’s sake I’m. just trying to get some rest. I’m not going anywhere.”

“Well okay then. Just seems so quiet with you down.”

“Give me a day and I’ll be right back.”

“Oh look. The UPS person. Too bad I don’t feel like barking him to St Louis.”

“Don’t give up, Little one. Do one for the Gipper.”

“Hey Lucy. What are you doing off the couch?”

“I got concerned that you were falling apart.”

“Well it is good to see you out and about.”

“I suppose I could rest up on the patio just as easily.”

“Yeah, and you can listen to me bark the FedEx person to Tulsa”

“Tulsa?”

“She’s already been to St Louis.”