poppety, puppety monsters...

Happy 4th of July, everybody! Early or late, American or not, it's still a great day to be alive, right? Great for everyone but those wee dogs who are frightened of the horrible, shrieking, puppy-eating...POPPY MONSTERS!!!

Dogs and fireworks do not mix. Especially those age old favorites, bottle rockets. The high pitched scream followed by the snapping pop of the rocket bursting doesn't feel good on tender ears. Puppy Misty spent much of her 4th of July shaking from nose to tail, hiding under beds, and cowering in my blankets. She does not enjoy fireworks. Not one bit.

Early this evening she came slinking into my room, clinging to the walls with her tail between her legs. She glanced right, left, right, and then skittered across the floor and pounced on my lap, burrowing her face in the blankets. When it was quiet for a moment, she looked at me with eyes that said, "Why, Georgie? Why do you people like such hideous noises? Why do you let the poppy monsters come?" and then jumped when a second barrage began.

Poor little puppy.

Misty also met a strange new creature at the Freedom Festival Street Carnival yesterday. Dad and I took her to downtown Provo with us to see the different booths and things for sale. I love going to things like that-it's the one time where being in a huge crowd of people doesn't bother me. There are so many things to see, to hear, and to do. The vendors shouting out to people walking by, the smells of cotton candy and roasted nuts on the hot air, the flashes of color and light, the screams of happy children bouncing high into the air on carnival rides-it's all just so amazing to me. But once again, Misty had a different time of it.

Imagine walking down a hot sidewalk with a thick fur coat on, dodging big, clumsy feet and peering up into faces a mile above you. Giants ten times your size stomping heavily past, dropping ice cream on your face and swinging bags across your back. Balloons popping, kids grabbing your ears without permission, and the whole time being stuck on a rope so you couldn't run away. Once I saw that Misty's little head was drooping, I decided it was time for her to see it from my perspective. I picked her up in my arms and immediately received a grateful kiss on the cheek. She didn't mind the fair so much from my vantage point. Still, I don't think that she'll be back.

Anyway, back to the strange new creature. As we were walking down one of the pathways between tents and booths, I saw a puppet display. A lady was "walking" a little dog up and down the length of the tent, it's head and legs attached to strings. Misty wanted to investigate this miniature dog. She walked up to it, gave it a sniff, and jumped backwards looking alarmed. She looked up at me saying "That is NOT a dog, Georgie! What in the name of kibbles is it?" and went forward to take another whiff. Again, she jumped backwards, confused. When she realized that it was not a puppy but a puppet, she again looked at me and said accusingly, "You tricked me." I so did not! Inviting her into my arms again, she kissed my cheek and smiled at me. I don't think we'll be meeting any more puppy-ets again.