Odd Couple
Since I gripe so much about the tiny remote RedNeckLand town where I retired, I feel doubly obligated to pass along good stories too when I have one. Today's concerns a relationship I never observed before.
One of the good guys around here is an old gent who takes his daily constitutional down my street; actually I get the impression he travels a lot. He loves dogs and when I'm outside he even slows down more to wave at me and maybe chat a second or so.
But today I noticed something different. He was being trailed about 3 feet behind by an old lab mix barking nonstop. Nothing aggressive - a purely conversational tone. When the old gent would stop and turn to look at him, the dog would seem very pleased but not hush for a second. Seems this has been going on for several days; the man has no idea where the dog lives; it just shows up at various points along the route and follows him, barking nonstop all the way. When the man gets home, the dog leaves.
I said if he gets on your nerves too much or spoils your walk, just squirt him with a water gun. The sweet old man was aghast. "I couldn't do that! Besides, he's just noisy. Probably lonesome." Then they went on their mutually congenial way. I thought it was sweet.