So it turns out, bion1, that Ricky and I are not the only dog/human pair within a 3-mile radius of Devon Road who like to drive cross-country!
We’re at Southport Harbor yesterday for our daily destination walk, and Ricky trots over to a large-but-very-friendly Golden, who’s rolling around on his back in the grass and shaking himself off after a swim in the sound. (Ricky, take notes: Normal dogs actually do go in the water.) Since dog owners almost always try to make polite conversation while the new-best-friends are sniffing each other’s privates (except for the ones — always guys — who just stare down and pretend no one’s attached to the dog’s leash and the dogs are just walking themselves), Joan and I get to talking. One of the first things she says — I don’t remember exactly how it came up — is, “When Toby2 and I drive cross-country . . .” Of course I immediately jump in with stories of LA/XC, and my plans for LA/XC-2 this coming September, since there aren’t that many of us who do this kind of thing. And of course we compare notes: dog-friendly motels; how to keep amused at the wheel; stops worth going off-route for.
Now while Ricky and I were impressed to find kindred spirits, I don’t know if I’m quite ready to put Toby and Joan in our league. For one thing, they only drive to Arizona, not all the way to Cali. For another, Joan drives with a friend, not just solo with her doggy. Also, if I have her story right, once they get there, they stay for a couple of months; they don’t turn around and drive all the way home a week later. And I think Joan told me they fly home, so we’re not talking round-trip driving . . . (Joan: Feel free to correct me if I’m wrong. 🙂 )
Nonetheless, Toby and Joan, Ricky and I are proud to have you as members of our club.
1. This is a brand-spanking-new internet abbreviation I’m coining in front of your eyes. It means: “Believe it or not.” I don’t know who came up with “btw,” “lol,” “lmk,” etc., etc. But I do want credit for this.
2. I had no idea how popular “Toby” is as a name for dogs! According to Dogtime, Toby is ranked 8th among names for male dogs. Even within my own small circle, there’s Jack & Carol’s Tobee (okay, different spelling; what’s up with that, J&C?) and there’s Jeff & Joan’s Toby, the Bichon who was very instrumental in Ricky becoming part of our household. More about that in an upcoming “My Pals” post . . .
And I’ll bet you can’t find that many Crosbys…or, to make it specific: “Crosby the wonder dogs:
I’ll tell you what’s up with that. In Ashkenazi Jewish tradition, we honor respected deceased relatives by naming next generations after them. So we named our (female black Standard Poodle) Tobee after (male black Miniature Poodle) Toby, the dog I grew up with AND Maccabee (male black Standard Poodle) who was our first dog from 1972. Made total sense to us, but poor Tobee: gender confusion because of her name and everyone assumed she was a boy. Think “A Boy Named Sue.”
Okay, I know you’ve been doing very good lobbying for Crosby . . . I like it! No worries, he’ll appear in BEAGLE MAN soon 🙂