A Stranger in the House

Last night as usual, we sat out on our deck and watched Mars rise. The sky was dark and aside from the small light in the living room, the deck was pitch black. By that time, Mars was already well into it’s ascent into the night sky. We sat and talked about the lawn, the tree that shades the patio, the worn condition of the deck and the possible placement of some peonie and lilac bushes that are currently on sale at Bachman’s. As usual, Friday joined us, but this time he was making his rounds of the patio a little more lethargically, suffering the side effects from his vaccinations earlier that day. It was in the middle of these conversations – the talk of trees and shrubs and things that preoccupy new homeowner’s thoughts – that something in the living room caught Friday’s eye. He turned to the glass door and peered into the middle of the living room, as if he was poised for a conversation with someone invisible. He cocked his head in the familiar manner that he does when someone asks him if he’d like a treat or to go outside. Then as if the invisible visitor had done something to prompt it, Friday leapt into a playful bow, chin pressed to the deck, tail high in the sky and wagging.

At first we thought he was catching sight our reflections, but soon realized that we sat too far from the glass door to actually cast one. We exchanged glances behind his back and a playful growl erupted from this throat, rolling into a bark. The bark repeated as did the growls and tail wagging. We hypothesized that he was perhaps playing with his own reflection, but as he hopped up and down the line of the patio door, his eyes remained fixed on the same spot in the middle of the living room, well past the line of sight for one’s own reflection.

Eventually, a sound on the lawn distracted him and he turned, forgetting whatever it was that kept his attention for those few minutes. We exchanged a few inquisitive glances and silently walked into the house.

posted by paula 1:01 PM

Pink Eye for the Straight Guy

Yes, the past two weeks have been eerily silent here at WOF.com. As I’m sure you were all a bundle of nerves and apprehension as to our whereabouts, here’s a short synopsis of our lives since the last post:

First and foremost, I’ve accepted a new communications position with a local company which I’m quite excited about. As I should be. Said company deals with all sorts of media and is moving in new directions and expanding new horizons. This quite possibly might be the most exciting job I’ve had since my spurt with the Internet Grocer, only much more promising. In any case, I took the risk of submitting excerpts of WOF.com in my portfolio; a rather dangerous endeavor for bloggers these days. In the end, the risk paid off and the website (along with my writings) were well received.

We’ve been busy attending late summer parties, including the one in which we said goodbye to a friend who’s moving across the big pond. While most believe she’s primarily moving there to be with her European beau, I suspect that this Tadpole will somehow find something bigger over there which will no doubt make her return a full fledged fish.

This weekend we went to the Great Minnesota Get Together with The Georgian and his fiancée. A great time was had by all, especially while devouring an onion blossom, french fries, an elephant ear, fresh squeezed lemonade, Dino’s gyros and a deep fried candy bar. We would have eaten more, but The Georgian had a red eye which we suspected was pink eye and Ryan’s sore throat was developing into something bigger in the near 100 degree heat. All that heat and food must do something for bacteria because the past two days have been spent nursing his throat while his condition worsens. Today he has eaten little besides some Ben and Jerry’s Karmel Sutra and ice water while he walks about in a groggy stupor. Meanwhile I refuse to acknowledge that my own throat is getting sore, passing it off as the product of living in an overly air-conditioned world.

The once empty house is now filling up quite quickly. The brown boxes are being replaced with plants and end tables and our patio furniture has finally arrived. What little time we do have to ourselves in the evening is now spent admiring the red and purple hues of the sunset from our patio.

posted by paula 10:56 PM