The Labor Day Walk
Luky and I visted Kiki's neighborhood this weekend. That's Avondale Estates (http://www.avondaleestates.org/). It's a pretty amazing community.
Before I learned it firsthand - i.e., met some of Kiki's neighbors - I thought of it as a "Stepford Wives" kind of place. You know what I mean - sort of an overly-controlled, programmed and somewhat sterile neighborhood. There are lots of places like that which, in my way of thinking, can be pretty scary. Luky says that we are going to see more and more of these communities in the extended wake of 9/11 . . . communities with their own private militia and strict rules. He doesn't dislike them, per se, but he says he thinks they will not be that good for dogs. He says a little urea-watering of the plants provides nitrogen and other vital fertilizing minerals. I guess he's afraid that dogs will be unwelcome anywhere canine excretions are not respected for their true chemical value.
He didn't say a word when Kiki bought her home in Avondale Estates. He rode over there with me a couple of times prior to her official decision and we walked the immediate few blocks, including down to the park and lake, which are all of a half-block down the street. Dogs' noses can often see a good thing when hours of human reason leave you blind as a bat. It wasn't until after Kiki closed on the place that I learned the two neighbor houses to the East both had resident dogs.
So, the upshot of the move is Luky's mom lives in a wonderful neighborhood with some of the nicest and smartest neighborhood friends you could ever hope for.
Luky just interrupted me to make sure I add that the lake is also home to a sizeable flock of ducks, a gang of fifty or more turtles, a gaggle of geese, and at least one great blue heron, in addition to lots of other local reptilian and amphibian fauna. He loves snooping around under the bushes and I keep waiting for him to come up howling with a snapper attached to his snout.
We went for a noon walk on Monday, Labor Day, and Luky noticed that Kiki's Azaleas were blooming. He says Atlanta has multiple blooming seasons, depending on the flower, but he thinks that Kiki's Azaleas are the late-blooming variety. I have almost no interest in flowers which is, at least partly, due to the fact that I am significantly colorblind. So lots of his floral observations are lost on me.
We walked down to the park and lake, and across the bridge. We came upon a young couple having a picnic and they were joined by Hank, their new, five month old Malamute-Shepherd mix. Predictably, Luky was all about educating the young'un on how to deal with his new humans. In spite of the gems of wisdom that Luky might have had to share, as I say, Hank is five months. He was 100% into smelling and licking everything, no matter how much energy and jumping his target might require. At nearly eight years, Luky has decided that his sophisticated, thoughtful, less-is-more approach is not only preferable but ought to be the rule. I've often noticed that he seems far more forgiving of humans than he is of other dogs.
It wasn't a long walk, and we were probably back at the house in less than thirty minutes, but you would have thought he'd held a morning-long seminar for lost puppies. And his mom listened and acted appropriately impressed. I relaxed to watch Sci-Fi while they discussed the scope of Hank's future educational hurdles. I heard Kiki's biscuit jar open a couple of times, so clearly she was letting him get away with his wise-dog of the neighborhood routine. As long as Godzilla had to deal with Megalon, I figured I had no reason to butt in!
Before I learned it firsthand - i.e., met some of Kiki's neighbors - I thought of it as a "Stepford Wives" kind of place. You know what I mean - sort of an overly-controlled, programmed and somewhat sterile neighborhood. There are lots of places like that which, in my way of thinking, can be pretty scary. Luky says that we are going to see more and more of these communities in the extended wake of 9/11 . . . communities with their own private militia and strict rules. He doesn't dislike them, per se, but he says he thinks they will not be that good for dogs. He says a little urea-watering of the plants provides nitrogen and other vital fertilizing minerals. I guess he's afraid that dogs will be unwelcome anywhere canine excretions are not respected for their true chemical value.
He didn't say a word when Kiki bought her home in Avondale Estates. He rode over there with me a couple of times prior to her official decision and we walked the immediate few blocks, including down to the park and lake, which are all of a half-block down the street. Dogs' noses can often see a good thing when hours of human reason leave you blind as a bat. It wasn't until after Kiki closed on the place that I learned the two neighbor houses to the East both had resident dogs.
So, the upshot of the move is Luky's mom lives in a wonderful neighborhood with some of the nicest and smartest neighborhood friends you could ever hope for.
Luky just interrupted me to make sure I add that the lake is also home to a sizeable flock of ducks, a gang of fifty or more turtles, a gaggle of geese, and at least one great blue heron, in addition to lots of other local reptilian and amphibian fauna. He loves snooping around under the bushes and I keep waiting for him to come up howling with a snapper attached to his snout.
We went for a noon walk on Monday, Labor Day, and Luky noticed that Kiki's Azaleas were blooming. He says Atlanta has multiple blooming seasons, depending on the flower, but he thinks that Kiki's Azaleas are the late-blooming variety. I have almost no interest in flowers which is, at least partly, due to the fact that I am significantly colorblind. So lots of his floral observations are lost on me.
We walked down to the park and lake, and across the bridge. We came upon a young couple having a picnic and they were joined by Hank, their new, five month old Malamute-Shepherd mix. Predictably, Luky was all about educating the young'un on how to deal with his new humans. In spite of the gems of wisdom that Luky might have had to share, as I say, Hank is five months. He was 100% into smelling and licking everything, no matter how much energy and jumping his target might require. At nearly eight years, Luky has decided that his sophisticated, thoughtful, less-is-more approach is not only preferable but ought to be the rule. I've often noticed that he seems far more forgiving of humans than he is of other dogs.
It wasn't a long walk, and we were probably back at the house in less than thirty minutes, but you would have thought he'd held a morning-long seminar for lost puppies. And his mom listened and acted appropriately impressed. I relaxed to watch Sci-Fi while they discussed the scope of Hank's future educational hurdles. I heard Kiki's biscuit jar open a couple of times, so clearly she was letting him get away with his wise-dog of the neighborhood routine. As long as Godzilla had to deal with Megalon, I figured I had no reason to butt in!
posted by RAM at 8:37 AM
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