Day 100

Wow, there was this big round ball of fire in the sky today. I haven't seen that big ball in a long time. It was not up yet when my Captain took me on my first tour, but it was up there on my tours with the ferry drivers. I was really good for them and had a ball playing in the warmer temperatures. There were a lot of big puddles around but we still had fun without getting our paws wet.

Captain got home late. I think she was running around in circles again because she said something about a bunch of laps and she seemed really tired. Then again, I can't judge because I love running around in circles. I just might do that when my Papa comes home TOMORROW. You would think it was Christmas eve around here. Captain is acting like I did when I helped Santa. She kept running from the garage to the house and even went up those stairs into the room that I can't see and get in trouble for trying to climb the ladder. I think her legs are sore because she really had a hard time getting up and down those steps. I even saw her putting surprises around for my Papa, but I won't tell. I really do think it is Christmas Eve. Only problem is, she is the grown up and is all up and running around and I just want to sleep so that my Papa gets here sooner, just like Santa.

Day 99

99 days with out my Papa, 99 days I've been missing some joy. Take one down, 98 days alone with the Captain, 98 days I've been the big boy.

Captain keeps telling me my Papa is coming home to the Island, but I am really worried that the Island will wash away into the sea before he gets here. It just keeps raining and blowing and has been the most miserable winter ever--more rain and wind than that white fluffy stuff I love. Captain and I were hopeful that when we woke up (which was harder because of that hour that we lost and still can't find) it would at least not be pouring buckets of water and blowing wind. Alas, we were very wrong. When I went out to go on a quick tour, I couldn't figure out how to get from the sidewalk to the garage because there was a huge puddle of water. I just stood there staring at it for the longest time and then finally Captain called me around the other side of the ferry and I was able to make a break for it. Speaking of the ferry, I wonder if it floats?

Later today, parts of the Island were washing away just as I feared. The fancy dinner place where Captain was going to take Papa for his first dinner back is all full of water (it is the red and yellow place in the photo). Just kidding, it is full of water, but Papa and Captain are going to eat with me the first night. I won't let him out of my sight.

I did get to meet some new friends today though. Their names were Saddie and her brother Cooper. They are from some Island that has Collies on the border and beagles both living on it--weird Island. But, I loved Saddie. We walked side by side the entire time we toured the old part of town. Her brother just followed behind us making sure I didn't get fresh or anything. After the tour, the King Ferry driver used those paw covers and rubbed them all over me. I do enjoy them and he seemed to think they were great too. Now, I wonder if the people at McDonald's have them?

I am looking forward to a day with my Captain tomorrow. After taking over an hour to get to work on the ferry and another hour home, I think she is just going to stay with me and work on that box all day.

Day 98

It is STILL raining. Not even just raining, but raining so hard and so much that I dart out to go to the bathroom and just dart back in. I think parts of the Island are washing away. Captain went out for a while and came back telling me that the road near where the mama fox lives is closed and has turned into a big swimming pool. I don't think I like the Island like this. I went out to potty and Captain was telling me to come into the garage, but I couldn't figure out how to get around the puddle in front of it so I stood there frozen for a while. Finally, I darted around the car and ran into the garage that way, happy to be in where it was dry. Captain knew I was bored and while she brought back stuff for my Papa's visit, she was nice and also brought me a big bone to chew on. It is delicious and I like it better than that Pooh bear I keep stealing to get her attention with. Captain also brought home a new tote thing for all of my toys and is trying to teach me to put them away when I am finished playing with them. I try, but I just get so distracted. Finally, she brought home these things that turn her hands into real paws and she rubs them all over me. It feels nice and I don't grumble and roll around as much as I do with the big towels. I think she hopes this will help keep me from running into the walls. I really am trying to stay away from them, but can't always help it. Especially on days like today where the streets are washing away and the wind is blowing things at you--I just want to run in as fast as I possibly can. Captain also showed me all of my Papa's surprises, unlike that dog on tv that shares the family recipe, I think I'll keep my jowls shut.

Day 97

Captain is losing her mind. First she said it was raining cats and dogs, yet I don't see any other four legged creatures of any kind outside. Just lots of wet drops hitting me in the face and deep puddles to walk around so my paws don't get wet. Then, the doorbell rang throughout the house and I dashed to see who it was and Captain told me no one was there. Yet, I know I heard that bell ring and I don't think it can do so on its own.

Since the Captain is losing her mind, we rested a lot today. We cuddled and listened to the rain on the windowns and the wind shaking the screens. I took my cue from her and tried to not get too hyper, but lounge with her. Captain told me my Papa would be home soon to curl up with us both on the couch. I think it might get a little crowded with us all, but I can't wait to try it. I wonder if they'll let me up on the big human bed so we have more room to cuddle.

Day 96

I am the big Man on the Island. Today I helped show another little four legged pup the ropes. He was from Pug Island and was a little cutie. I showed him how to walk in a pack and he walked proudly next to me. I even showed him a couple of "secrets" that I don't show just everyone. I showed him how to be quick and sneaky when you find a good treasure like a pizza crust in a box. You gotta be quick when you snatch it and then get it all in your mouth as fast as possible and don't chew for a minute. Just walk like a good boy and listen. When the human looks away--chew.

Day 95

We greeted the world together this morning, curled up for warmth on the big comfy rectangular cushions. Captain slept with her feet on me for half the night but I didn't mind, I was happy to have her close and I stayed next to her all night.

I toured the Island with a new four legged friend from the Island of Retrievers. His name is George and he is just Golden. Such a cute guy and so fun to have around on tours. I show all the new four legged guys and gals the ropes and tell them where the good spots are to sniff. There were lots of good spots today because those big barrels are out with all the smelly stuff in them.

Captain and I had a quick dinner and then I had some four legged chewing gum while she took a bath. She was not very happy with me and yelled at me. Apparently the stuff under the rug is not chewing gum for me, but is there so that I don't move the rug all around. Oopps. It tasted yummy to me. Off to bed now in our usual beds where I am at least still close to the Captain and can keep an eye on her even if I don't feel her moving around.

Day 94

I pranced proudly around the Island today making the towns people pause and getting lots of attention. Unfortunately, I didn't get the attention of the Captain who came home even later than she told me she would when she left this morning. It is nice of her to make it up to me. She is sleeping on the couch with me tonight since I can't get in her bed with her. I love my Captain. Night world.

Day 93

Today is the day of the animal on the Island. Our morning tour was filled with odd animals. First, we turned our usual second corner only to find an odd animal on the ground. This animal was a no legged animal and had weird scales all over it. It was about a foot long and it's head came into a pointed face with big lips--captain called it a fish and told me to LEAVE IT. I listened since it smelled bad. On our way back home later in the morning I got up close and personal with one of those four legged creatures with the super bushy tails that live in a lot of the bushy wooden things called trees. I was able to sneak up on this one while it was on the ground. It was a small one and tried to leap up on the tree with all four legs out in front of it, odd looking way to jump really as I prefer straight up and not out like that, but it missed the tree. Instead, it fell on it's back. Captain and I were both worried and she let out a huge squeal sound and said "OH NO", but it soon flipped over and took off running. Once again, LEAVE IT she said.

Day 92

Captain and I are laying down together as I write this after a long long day. Captain didn't get home from work until late and she was really tired. As soon as she put on her comfy clothes, we ate dinner together. Then, Captain said it was only fair that once again we both got dessert together so I got one of those yummy ears I love and she put a bunch of frozen fruit that I love (I got to have one of the blueberries, but there were other fruits in there too that were other colors like black and then an orangish colored one) into this loud machine with some milk and even some chocolate chips. I think my dessert was better but she seemed pretty happy with hers too. We are going to cuddle some more and go off to our beds since Captain is tired.

I wonder if tomorrow the sun will be as warm and I can go into town with my friends again? I had a great time today with Otto and my boxy lady Mia. It was so nice and sunny out and I could smell something different in the air. Captain calls it spring. She saw swans on her run this morning and is telling me about them as I start to doze off. . .

Day 91

I am soo tired. It was a busy day on the Island. I was really sick to my stomach in the middle of the night and Captain jumped out of bed to help me. She is so nice to me when I don't feel well. She pet my head and cleaned up after me (and thanked me for not getting near her new walls when I was sick). Because I was sick and she was so tired because she couldn't go back to sleep like she normally does, we slept in
until 6:30! It was later than usual and felt wonderful, I just stretched out on my little round bed thinking of the days when she used to let me cuddle in her bed with her in the early morning hours. Alas, not any longer. We had a very nice tour and heard little birdies singing in the bushes. Captain reminded me that they are not food and seems to have very bad memories of a Spring when I was a puppy and killed on of those little babies.

Speaking of Spring, as soon as we got home from the tour and had breakfast, Captain springed into action. She kept going in and out of the garage with her hands full of stuff and was spraying stuff that made me sneeze onto items and wiping them down before putting them away. She kept laughing because she said even in a week she forgot about some of the stuff she was finding. Sometimes I heard her say "oh well, Papa won't notice" and then she had a different pile for those items. I think she is going to give them to someone else. I wonder if I should tell him. She spent many hours out in the garage and it looked like she got a lot of the items out of there, but my metal crate still remains.

Captain took a break and took me to the green fenced in area with the diamond shaped area. Today, the diamond shaped area was all squishy and felt great between my toes, but Captain didn't like it when I kept going out into that part of the play area. I would come when she called me, but I did test the "water" so to speak and stood in the middle of the mud pond to see if she would come get me.

Shortly after we got to the play area, I was delighted to see my Nesta girl arrive in her ferry with the Queen and King ferry drivers. The King Dan brought 4 brightly colored balls (well they were bright when he first brought them out) and Nesta and I ran and ran and ran chasing them for an hour. We had a great time while Captain and the ferry drivers talked. It was so nice and sunny out. I was really tired and walked slowly home with Captain eager to rest my dirty paws. Captain made me rest them in the garage while she left for a run and then when she killed back she said "we are going to kill two birds with one cold stone." I quickly understood. She took me outside and sprayed freezing cold water all over both of us and soaped and scrubbed me all up. I was okay until she sprayed my private parts. I grumbled do you know what that feels like just as I realized she does when she takes those really cold baths with the yummy cold cubes in them, but still does she have to make me do it to? My muscles don't hurt so leave me alone. Oh well, at least we suffered together. She spent a lot of time drying me and walking me in the sun before we went back in the house and both took a little nap.

Captain couldn't rest long. Soon she was in the kitchen making it smell really good. The nice two legged woman named Danielle came over from next door (she owns four legged creatures that are missing their fur, I don't know what to make of this). She was really nice and I think she really likes me. We ate and she saved some of her dinner for me even though I think she is carrying a human pup inside her. Captain didn't save any for me, she ate all hers. They had lots of different tubs of cold stuff for dessert, but Captain was super nice and got me a little tub out of the freezer too and let me have it all to myself. We all sat around eating out of our cartons and it was a great way to end the day.

I was eager to cuddle with something to make it the perfect evening. I couldn't find Isabella. I think Captain hid my little Isabella pup somewhere. Instead, I found a new little man bear all dressed for bed and decided he should not be on my Captain's bed but should be on my bed. When she came upstairs, I was caught steeling the little cub and she took him away saying he was hers. Geeze, I just want someone to sleep with me.

Day 90

I thought my Papa was coming to see me after being away 90 days, but alas no Papa. Instead, we had nice sunny weather on the Island. It was cool when Captain and I went for our first walk at our usual 5:30 time even though i think it was Saturday. Then when the sun came out it got a lot warmer and was nice out and smelled fresh. Captain said it is Spring. I could even feel these pointy things in the ground coming up and poking my feet, captain called those tulips.

We had a nice AM tour and then I two long tours today with Captain. In between the tours the Captain used that thing on my toes again and then let those men in the house again and made me wait in my metal house. I am so used to seeing them I didn't even bark, instead I just rested after my long tour. For the second tour, our friend Kathey came and joined us and we went to the place with the rocks sticking out of the ground and the big pond. Today there was a new stone with lots of flowers all around it. I smelled everything along the way to the pond and even tried to taste everything. Captain said I was making her arm hurt and that she was tired of saying my name. I like my name, she can say it all she wants. While leaving the pond place, Captain and Kathey saw a friend that had a tiny four legged friend with them. She was wearing a pink coat and was the size of my paw. Her name was Kato and I think she is from a tiny Island called Chiwawa. I didn't even know if she was a real four legged being or not so I totally ignored her and tried to eat a ton of grass instead to help ease my upset belly. I ignored her entirely until Captain picked her up and then I jumped up to see her. She sure is tiny.

After the walk, we had a nice dinner and Captain and Kathey had some of that liquid joy from the bottle. Captain called it wine. She had two glasses and was very giggly. We were all tired even before 9 and I layed on the big rectangular cushions with Kathey. Then, suddenly while they were giggling, I wanted to get a little crazy too. Yet, where was my crazy carpet? It was gone. I had to go back and forth looking for it and knew I couldn't do crazy boy on the floor without carpet, but was totally confused. Finally I just had to lay back down and give up. Not fare that girls have all the fun.

Just as we went up to bed, I was thinking of that little four legged being Kato and hopped up quietly to my Papa's dresser and grabbed Isabella by her head and brought her to bed with me. I just wanted a small friend to lay beside. I even put my head over hers, so Captain wouldn't see and take her away, but Captain did see and said I was "suffocating" poor Isabella and took her away. Once again, no fun for Otis boy.

Day 89

We awoke to an Island lightly dusted in white stuff and slick to tour. It was just a thin layer of white stuff and I had fun with Captain jogging and sliding on the surface of the walk way. I licked the white stuff in several areas and Captain laughed and told me I looked like I was licking the powdered sugar off a donut. Whatever that means. I sure like the white stuff.

To add to the confusion on where I go, Captain put me back in my metal house in the garage today. It was okay with me because she gave me cookies in there. I just wished she'd have come home and played with me a little more. She got home later than usual from the ferry on the tracks and as soon as I ate dinner she was already up in her big bed. Maybe if I could get up there too I wouldn't mind her coming home and not having time to play with me. Please Captain? Please? I think she was tempted today because she kept telling me what a good boy I was. Instead of proving to her that I am good, I decided to pick up her slippers and run around with them sliding on the long run upstairs like I did on the white stuff outside. It was fun and I could tell she was trying not to laugh. It didn't work for either of us, she started laughing and I didn't get invited on the big bed, oh well. I tried. She gave me lots of pets and kisses and curled up in a ball on her bed so I let out and huge sigh and did the same on my little round bed.

Day 88

I am so confused. Ferry room or house, house or ferry room. I was eager to stay in the house after my tour with Captain. She even gave me these yummy new treats that are supposed to be good for my teeth and digestion. Then, when the ferry driver came I followed him into the garage to get the book they always talk about me in and I just decided if I went in my house he too might give me a cookie. IT WORKED. I think I confused him though. When the queen ferry driver came back later she put me in the house and I was happy to stay there. She thinks I prefer the house and that I won't mind when my metal house is gone. Captain doesn't know what to do with me, but still seems awfully concerned about dirt and the walls. She came home tonight and was wiping me and the wall down a whole bunch. She was all wet herself, but I didn't point that out to her in case she would get mad at me. You know what they say about a scorned woman. . .

I did notice her fur looked different. It seemed darker and shorter and while it was wet, I could tell that it was nice and clean smelling and soft. I tried to tell her this with big kisses and didn't even want to eat my dinner because I wanted to be sure she knew I loved her. Even though she gets frustrated with my fur, dirt, and nails; I think she knows how much I love her.

Day 87

I tried to help the Captain with her experiment while touring the Island this am. We were walking along and enjoying a sudden shower of the white fluffy stuff. Captain was distracted and really enjoying it, when I took my opportunity. Each day we pass by this small plastic thing shaped kinda like a human pup's bottom and smelling of, well, a human pup's bottom. Anyway, I can tell that this is related to my Captain's experiment but each day she tells me to leave it. Today, while she was distracted with the white stuff, I went for it. She yelled and me and was really grossed out. Apparently her experiment is only for the four legged bottoms. . .

The Captain came home later than usual and then soon after a quick tour and dinner, she was leaving again. The good news was that she didn't make me go back out into the ferry room to my metal house, I am getting tired of this metal house, but let me stay in the house. She even brought me in my big overstuffed bed and some bones to enjoy while she went to dinner with friends.

I think the Captain is also changing our evening routine. She does her weird sit up lay down things a bunch of times as usual, but now she also smears the peanut butter on the tub and tickles my toes with the grinder thing each night too. It seems she doesn't like hearing me walk around the house. Fine, I'll just go to bed and enjoy that I get peanut butter each night. I don't mind a midnight treat just like Captain and her own bedtime treats.

Day 86

I think my Captain is angry at me. More specifically, I think the Captain wants to pull my toenails out and have my hair all shaved off. Now that the men are all gone and the house looks brand new inside, the Captain gets mad at me for everything. When I try and get my toys and bring them to her, she yells stuff at me about "watching the walls" and "stop with the nails on the floors." I am totally confused, are the walls moving? Why do I need to watch them? I am not doing anything differently and now she is all uptight. I accidentally shock my toy against the wall and she almost laid an egg or something right then. I think she needs a "chill pill." It is a house after all and is meant to be lived in right? Geez!! And as for my hair, it isn't like I pull it out and leave it laying around, it just comes out. I think she knows this, but seriously, she keeps brushing me (which I do like the attention), but she also wants to use that vibrating thing on my toes all the time too and I don't like it. The peanut butter helps, but I have to warn her every once in a while to relax and knock it off. When she isn't yelling at me she is pushing that mop thing around and then gets mad at me for chasing it. I CAN'T take her anymore!!!

The good news is that I can take my friends and at least they don't look down on me for being harry or clumsy or playful. Nope, quite the opposite today. I went on two nice tours. The first was with a bunch of my buds: Simon, my boxy gal Mia, and Max. They are all tiny, even my boxy Mia, and walk right next to me or even under me just looking up at me. I love being the big man, especially when I am the lowly creature at home. On my second tour with Lisa, it was nice seeing her again by the way, we met a baby four legged being from the Island of Pit. She was probably about 7 months of age and was so cute. She came over and rubbed her face all over me and kissed me all lover. I LOVED it and would totally love to have babies with someone like my gal Mia or Ms. Nesta, but I think Captain would totally lose it. I appreciated my friends adoration so much and the love of the little being that I pranced around and was terrific on both my tours with Lisa. I hope she tells the Captain that I am good and to lighten up!

Day 85

We toured the Island this morning in the rain. It was wierd because it was raining but then there was white stuff on the ground covering only the grass and parts of the road, but in other parts it was slushy squishy stuff that was not a puddle but was not white stuff either. I don't like it on my paws but so long as we are on a tour and I can investigate I don't care. After the tour and breakfast I got to stay out in the house while Captain worked on her box.

I went on a lovely tour with Miss Mia at the park with the stones with writing on them and the big pond that is no longer frozen over. It was windy but the wet stuff coming from the sky had finally taken another break. I was glad when I heard it outside earlier in the day that I was on the couch and not in the ferry room. But then, after the tour with Mia, Captain put me in the metal house in the ferry room again and I was not happy about it. I am ready to stay inside. Captain said no way because the men were coming back in the afternoon and I was getting into trouble trying to eat this yummy paper with bumpy scratchy stuff on it that the men use on the walls. I heard Captain walking the men through the house and heard them go up that ladder above the bedrooms that I always try and follow Captain up. I was not happy that I was in the ferry room, but I am tired of not being able to protect my Captain so I mostly slept and only barked a couple of times just as a reminder.