Greetings from Ricky!

As Carol came in from the garage to the playroom last night, she was blitzed by an eager, kissing, licking, tail-wagging little beagle. He, of course, had heard the car pull up, and was waiting by the door. I followed Carol a moment later, and got the exact same treatment.

We’d been in Vermont for the weekend — and had been away from Ricky for all of two days.

It’s not the length of the absence, though, that matters. I can drive up Maple to Athletic Shoe Factory to pick up some running socks . . . and when I get back? Yup — the kisses and the licks and the eager lunges and the supersonic tail-wagging.

Now here’s where it gets tricky. Let’s say Matt and Greg, our two older sons, come home from NYC for a visit. And let’s say Luz is cooking dinner when they arrive. You can literally see Ricky’s brain spinning — Gotta go slobber on Matt and Greg . . . can’t leave the kitchen though — what if something really good falls on the floor? . . . but I really should go see Matt and Greg . . . but I don’t know if I can take the chance — as he dashes frantically back in forth from the kitchen to the front door.

Ironically, some of Ricky’s most rousing greetings come right after he’s had a seizure, poor thing. (As I’ve mentioned, he’s epileptic.) When he’s recovered from one of these episodes, it’s truly as if he’s returned to the land of the living, and the way he swarms all over us, you’d think he hadn’t seen any of us for years! Very, very cute — but a little sad, of course.

His #1 greeting of all actually occurs on a daily basis: when Robby comes home from school. I’m talking about a hero’s welcome the likes of which the world has seldom seen. Robby raises this as proof positive that he is Ricky’s absolute favorite human. And I, of course, maintain that if all you ever do with a dog is cuddle him, sneak him treats, allow him to sleep on your bed (under the covers!), and let him do whatever the hell he pleases, you’re gonna get a lot of love.

Still, it would be kind of nice . . .