Nostolgia

Cool weather is perfect for corduroy jeans. I love corduroy! I started thinking about the fact that you do not ever see young people wearing corduroy. Obviously it is an "old lady thing." This material is so warm, unlike denim which gets just as cold as the air that hits it and is not soft until it is tread bare. My love for corduroy began when I was a little girl. During those days, we had to wear a dress to school everyday-year round. If it was cold, your only alternative was a wool skirt or dress. Since these required dry cleaning, there were not many of those wool garments hanging in the closet. My first experience with corduroy was a jumper my Mamaw James made for me. It was so warm and I loved it. The soft material with the wide ribbing became my favorite winter dress. Through the years, I have always owned at least one corduroy dress, slacks, or jeans. In fashion or not, I love my corduroy and plan to keep right on wearing it!

I have definitely turned the corner back to good health. I am still blowing but the muscinex seems to have done the trick of unclogging. Bobby warns me about giving too vivid of a description of what the past few days have entailed-suffice it to say-"It has not been pleasant." I didn't realize how bad I felt until I began to feel better. Thank the good Lord for "miracle drugs"! The formula for recovery and a box of Kleenex proved to be just what the doctor ordered.

As I sat by my fire this afternoon and enjoyed the warmth and glow, I wrote another short story about Lucky and her adventures. In some small way I feel like John Grissom in that my first writings seem to have been my best writings. Oh well, I will keep searching for the creative spark and in the meantime keep trying. After the marathon, I will try to tackle Louise again, but the stories left to tell will not be as easy to write.

Lucky Girl pulled herself up from the cool concrete floor of the garage and slowly stretched from her front legs to her back. The evening had finally begun to cool off from the long hot sweltering day. Her humans called this kind of day “Dog Days”. Lucky did not really understand why they called them Dog Days. They obviously did not realize how miserable it was to carry around a hairy coat on your body when it was this hot. Lucky had spent the day moving from the concrete floor to the shady yard and finally in the cool dirt in the flower beds. Lucky’s family kept the flowers watered and with the water the dirt became cool and moist. Lucky’s favorite spot! She had to be careful that no one saw when she dug down to get to the really cool spot. For some reason, the woman yelled at her when she spotted her making this damp and cool bed. By the time the water had been turned back on in the late evening, the concrete in the garage had cooled enough to move back under the cover of the shade from the house. Days like today found Lucky mostly lying around and moving around as little as possible. The dark of the evening brought the first thought of a possible check of the neighbors.

Lucky slowly padded down her drive and made her usual turns as she nosed around the neighborhood, checking for any changes. She made her usual stops as she moved down the narrow street leading through the neighborhood, but nothing really drew her interest. The evening was too warm and the effort too great to generate any energetic movement as Lucky slowly made her rounds.

As Lucky turned the corner at the front of the neighborhood, she spotted the gray house in the curve. A thought occurred to Lucky as she quickly made the turn up the drive to the gray house; this house had a wonderful cool water filled hole for swimming. This was the perfect way to cool off before heading home for a night on the concrete floor. Wet hair would lead to a cooler evening and pleasant dreams and Lucky was now on a mission to take a dip.

The only thing between Lucky and the cool water was a “pride of cats”. These cats were the kind that humans kept as pets and though not a mortal danger to Lucky-they could definitely prove pesky when Lucky crossed their paths. Lucky paused and turned to look all around to see if the cats were lurking in the shadows. She pondered the risk of a meeting with the cats and the delight of the cool water. Slowly she inched forward after deciding to take her chances in hopes of a cool dip.

The group of cats at the house could be as many as a dozen, but except for a few they were really no problem for Lucky. The small group that was trouble though could make Lucky’s life miserable. The ring leader of the cats was a big old tom who was smart and crafty. From a distance the old tom appeared lazy and shiftless, but in close encounters he proved to be a back slashing and sneaky opponent. The tom could incite the entire pride to attack, so he was the most important cat to avoid.

The oldest female in the group was not much of an attack risk, but she could set off the biggest cat call. When she was alarmed or agitated the entire neighborhood would be alerted. The cat with the big mouth is how Lucky thought about her.

One of the younger male cats was always sneaking around and lying in wait behind a bush or a tree or anyplace large enough to hide his body. He delighted in jumping out of hiding and clinging to Lucky’s back with those razor sharp claws. Lucky wanted to avoid the young tom at all costs.

The last big threat was a young female that delighted in being on top of a table or any other spot large enough to hold her above any passing animal. She always managed to hide herself well and you were not aware that she was around until you felt the swipe of the claws as she caught you when you passed by. She was a master of attack and run and would be out of sight before Lucky even had time for a yelp.

Lucky gathered her courage and resolve and moved slowly down the drive. She had decided the cat risk was worth it and the swim would be the reward for her bravery. All of a sudden she broke into a full run and jumped into the pool. She saw from one end to the other and was out and shaking off before the cats even realized their territory had been invaded.

Lucky slowly trotted down the drive and headed to her home. This night’s sleep would be cool and restful. The cats had proven slow tonight and Lucky had been once again a very “Lucky Dog” indeed.