Boogie and Joette's Search Two-year Search for A New Home

I know during these difficult times that everyone feels that they have it worse than anyone else.   If you are thinking that way, let me introduce you to the dog formerly called Stanley, now known as Boogie.
  
The little, white Morkie first came into the life of Joette Tavernise when she saw a picture of him posted on a pole.  Someone had found him and was searching for his parents.  Joette fell in love with him at first sight.  His parents claimed him, but then they found themselves in a situation where they could not keep him.  Joette learned that Stanley needed a new home and was happy to provide it for the newly renamed Boogie. But housing would soon become a problem for her.  
 
Joette was trying to get by in her small apartment on just $1,000 a month from social security.  A new landlord bought her building and began to force the current residents out.  Joette found a new apartment, but at the last minute, she was denied housing after her former landlord began an unnecessary eviction proceeding against her.

Joette and Boogie were now homeless.  With nowhere else to go, she drove her CR-V to Target, parked between two cars belonging to overnight workers, and slept with Boogie curled up in the passenger seat next to her.  
     
The night passed uneventfully, so Joette stayed there the next night and the one after that.  Days became weeks, and weeks became months.  Joette looked for apartments, but those in her price range were elusive.  She had two previous marriages, but neither ex was in a position to help her, and she was estranged from her daughter.  All she had was Boogie, and all Boogie had was her. 
     
Boogie proved to be one of those emphatic dogs who knew when Joette needed a smile, or comforting.  He got Joette through many tough times.
   
 Joette, after receiving several warnings, had to move to a new, less patrolled shopping center.  She could not work because of leg problems and memory issues caused by a previous stroke.  Her checks were directly deposited into her account, so she had money to feed both of them.  
     
During the day, Joette and Boogie walked the city, and at night they slept in her car until an out of control driver slammed into it while it was parked in the shopping center totaling it.  Joette watched helplessly as the vehicle was towed away.
Joette and Boogie moved to the park.  Boogie did not know how much more his mom could take, and he prayed to the angels.  We could not fix the situation on our own.  We had to find a human angel, which we did in the presence of Marceil Handkammer, who pulled over when she saw the older woman and her dog sleeping on the ground.
Marceil took a particular interest in Joette and Boogie.  She convinced Joette to go into a shelter, while Marceil took Boogie home until his mom and he found a place together.  Finding an apartment proved to be more challenging than Marceil first thought.  But, she did not turn her back on Joette.  Marceil brought her food, medication, and to visit Boogie.  Marceil was worried when Joette moved out of the shelter last month and went back to sleeping outside, because of her COVID-19 concerns.

A temporary solution was reached when a broken wrist was suffered by the mother of one of Joette’s friends and had to move out of her assisted living apartment while she was in rehab.  Joette and Boogie were able to move in, at least for a month.  Meanwhile, more than $7,000 has been raised via a Go Fund Me page Marceil began for Joette.

While permanent housing may be within reach, Joette doesn’t know how long Boogie, now a senior dog, will be with her.  He was diagnosed with a heart condition, which proved to be serious.  We know Boogie will stay with his mom until she gets her new home, and then his work will be done.

So remember there is always someone worse than you.

But, at least for now, that person has a loving dog to take care of her.

Pocket and the Disembodied Beep

I hate the sound that smoke alarms make.  Luckily, the noise seldom occurs at our house.  My parents make sure they change the batteries every time the clocks fall back or leap forward.  The alarms do make an awful sound when they are changed, and when that happens,  a disembodied voice comes from it, which makes me hide and River stand on her back paws and bark at it.  

    A couple of days after the batteries were changed, my parents were sitting in their chairs, and I was snuggled next to Daddy when there was one long, sharp beep that caused me to stand, look at the monster that made the sound, and tremble.

    My parents looked at the smoke/carbon dioxide detector on the wall.  They knew it couldn’t be the batteries, and there was no smoke anywhere.  Then they decided to do nothing, considering the possibility that the detector just wasn’t feeling well, and would do better in the morning.  I realized my parents were wrong, but they wouldn’t listen to me.  

Sure enough, the next day, while we were sitting in the same spot, the high pitched sound pierced our skulls again.  My Dad got up and looked at the alarm.  I barked to try and get his attention.  I had something important to say.  But he told me to settle down.  He decided to change the batteries.

But that didn’t fix anything.  The same sound was emitted the next day.  Daddy removed the smoke detector from the wall, took out the batteries, and threw it out.  He decided that it was broken.  He ordered a new one.  I tried to tell him that he wouldn’t help, but he wasn’t listening.

    So now, there was a hole in the wall where the device had been.  My parents were confident the problem had been solved.  The next day at 2:30 in the afternoon, the sound happened again.  My parents looked at the hole in the wall mystified. Daddy got a kitchen chair and stood on it to look down into the hole and see if that vast, empty space was somehow beeping. This is what I have to work with.  My parents were stumped at the disembodied sound. Perhaps, they were being haunted by the smoke alarm they had discarded.

    The next day a new smoke alarm arrived. Batteries were put in it, causing the disembodied voice to bark commands, and then it was placed on the wall.  The smoke alarm problem of 2020 had been solved, or so they thought.  I knew the truth.  The beeping wouldn’t stop.

    Two days later, there was another shrill beep.  My parents stared at the new smoke detector.  I jumped in Daddy’s lap and licked his chin, trying to make him look up higher.  River Song was of no help.  To her, the whole thing was just white folk’s problems.  Daddy, for the 87th time since the curious case of the beeping began, changed the batteries.  I sunk in the recliner.  I knew it wasn’t going to work. 

    It took 48 hours for the beep to occur again.  Daddy looked at the device flummoxed.  He said this was impossible.  I tried to get him to look up a little higher.  He was ranting at the fates, and perhaps, in an attempt to eyeball them, he looked up toward the ceiling and saw what I had known was the culprit from the first beep.  There was a second smoke detector, hardwired to the ceiling, a foot away from the accused.  

`    He turned to my Mommy and said, “Honey, has that always been there?

    Now, keep in mind, we have only lived here for nine years.  You can’t notice everything in a house that is 84 feet long, eight feet wide, and only has one floor, even if you are stuck in it for weeks.  I did not want to chastise my parents. I just wanted the beeping to stop, which, with a battery removal from the ancient unit, was accomplished.  

    So now, the terrible beeping is over until batteries run out on the other devices.  I am just happy I was here to help them.   

    They would be so lost without me. 

Wordless Wednesday

Beat This Caption

Finally!  My parents are asleep and I get some me time.

Monday Question

What would you do if your parent was in danger of attack?

Pocket:  Run and hide.  I wasn't built for fighting.

River:  I would fight them off unless they had a treat.  Then my parents are on their own.

 

Tanner Bub Welcomes Max to Rainbow Bridge

One of the great privileges in my life was getting to accompany my best friend Tanner Bub to the entrance of Rainbow Bridge. Tanner was one of my first online friends, and he inspired me to start my website and blog. Walking with him, on his final steps at the mortal side, gave me a great appreciation for life on both sides of the Bridge.

Since then, three of Tanner’s siblings have joined him in the immortal world. First was the little pup who Tanner personally selected as his replacement in his mom’s heart.  In almost every way, Ruger was a perfect choice, except for the fatal flaw of not having enough heartbeats, which caused him to go to the Bridge at a very young age. Cocoa was Tanner’s loyal sister and, once Tanner went to the Bridge, their mom’s best friend and confidant. This week they were joined by Max, the fourth member of Tanner's clan, to transition to Rainbow Bridge.

We angels have never been busier, at least since I ascended to the Bridge. The prayers have been overwhelming because people need as many angels as they can get in the scary mortal world.  In the time since I walked with Tanner to the Bridge, his mom and her family have confronted heartbreak after heartbreak. Tanner had given his mom the gift of resilience.

Max didn’t talk about what life was like before he became part of Tanner’s pack.  His skin sister Ashley found him walking down a road, lost and confused.  She coaxed him to her car.  Once inside, Max knew he was with his family.  Ashley was worried about how her two dogs would react to Max, so she brought him to her mom, who has never turned away a dog in need.  Max became a part of their pack and repaid them with good humor and fidelity. 

This year Max began to feel poorly.  He did his best to hide it from his family.  That is when Tanner went into his dreams and told him to let his family know how sick he was and how bad he felt.  While he had served his mom mightily for years the days were coming when she would have to take care of him, and, while she would gladly do it, this was a time when people needed angels, and Max could serve his mom much better as an angel than as a dog. When Max began to show how much discomfort he was in, his mother made the hardest decision and booked an appointment to send him to the Bridge.  His family gathered for one final goodbye.  Then he joined his three siblings, and his sister Ashley’s dog, the beautiful and regal Savannah, at the Bridge.

Their reunion at the Bridge was both joyous and heart-wrenching.  The pack was thrilled to be together again, but they knew the person who meant the most to them, their mom was shattered. The condition of the world, and the loss of four dogs, would be close to insurmountable for her to overcome. But, few moms have four more devoted angels than Max’s mom does.

When Max arrived, he has treated like Rainbow Bridge royalty because he is Tanners’ little brother, which carries a lot of weight here.  I have rarely seen dogs turn out in these numbers for a new arrival the way they did for Max.  He was overwhelmed by the response, and it helped him with his transition.  

Humanity is facing one of its most significant challenges, and people are all going to need divine intervention to help them through this crisis.  Max’s mom has an army of angels to watch over her.

We pray it’s enough for her and the rest of humanity.

Foley Writes About a Man and a Dog who Cope by Walking

I know a man who has a dog. The dog is fairly new to the household. You see, the kids wanted a pup. So the parents got them one. They were all very happy. 
Both the parents worked, and the kids went to school.  When the dad got home late in the day, he would take the dog for a short walk. The dog sure was grateful to get that little jaunt in.

Then came the virus. The kids stopped going to school, and the parents stopped going to work. The dog thought it was fantastic. He was getting more attention than he could have ever dreamed of before.

The days became weeks, and the weeks stretched to a month. No one had gone out of the house except for short trips for supplies. It's a big house, much bigger than any I ever lived in. It has high ceilings and open rooms. There's even a man cave in the cellar. But when you are quarantined inside a house for a long time that big expensive, house looked like, at least from the inside, an eight by eight cell.

The great thing about dogs is that we're always home. Alas, when every person in the house is home all the ti, me, it is not such a g, good thing for anyone living there.
Within a couple of weeks, the dad needed to get out. But he's a good person, and he didn't risk, infecting his family. Plus, there were strict restrictions about leaving the house, and he wanted to be a good citizen. He looked down at the dog; then, he found his answer.  “Honey,” he said, “I'm going to take the dog for a walk.” 

The wife was equally as sick of him as he was of her. He put the leash on the dog and took it for a walk around the neighborhood. The dog was so happy. He loved going for walks, and this one was s, lower than usual. He got to sniff whatever he wanted to smell.

They got home, and the dog took a nap. Later that day, the father announced he was once again taking the dog for a walk. The dog's tail wagged back and forth. He got outside, and gleefully explored the smells.  He had the best dog life ever.

The next day the dad and the dog went for a morning walk.  A few hours after they returned, the Dad announced that the dog looked like he needed another walk, and off they went.  Two hours after that,t they took another.; the dog kept up its enthusiasm throughout the day, even for the two after supper 15 minutes apart. 

Now the dad is taking the dog for a walk six to eight times a day.  The dad said the dog was a little heavy and needed the exercise despite the pup having legs like a gazelle.  The exhausted dog spent the day hiding under the bed, hoping his dad didn’t notice him, but his fluffy tail, as it always did, betrayed him.  He keeps being pulled out for walks.  He has every smell memorized in the neighborhood memorized.  His pads have been worn down to toilet paper.  He is suffering from hip dysplasia.  All he wanted was just to stay home.

    But, like an old gunfighter called out to defend his town endlessly, the Daddy kept bringing the dog out, even in the driving rain, in which they wore humiliating matching yellow raincoats and their feet and paws going equally drenched.  They cover an area of 87 miles a day. If you look to the east, you may see them still walking with no particular place to go.   

    Each is looking for the way back to normal.