Anything Is Possible, Just Ask My Dog

Last night while I was making dinner (barbequed burgers, mm!) I dropped a couple of Scoops tortilla chips on the floor. Of course the automatic instinct is to sweep them up and dispose of them, but my aussie shepherd Griffin is usually there hoovering up anything that falls to the ground in a methodic and obsessive manner. However, this time he was outside, and missed this golden opportunity. On a whim, I decided to leave the chips there (we don't have an ant problem...or else I'd be insane to do that!), to see how long it would take him to find them.

So, this morning - 5:50 a.m., I'm in the kitchen making my husband's lunch, when a grand and enthusiastic crunching breaks the silence. I glance across the kitchen, and there's Griffin...savoring his delayed prize. I chuckle and point it out to my husband who is putting on his shoes. And then I notice Griffin turning, and making a thorough sweep of the area.

Me - "Ah yes, just look at that dedication. It paid off this morning, with two chips found. Now he must sniff every inch of the floor becasue... you never know! There might be something else there!"

Hubby - "It's true. He's a total optimist. There could be all kinds of things hidden around here worth looking for!"

Me - "Yeah. For all he knows, there could be a steak dinner under the table..."

Hubby - "Salisbury steak!"

Me - "...all on a plate, with mashed potatoes and gravy. Pre-cut so he doesn't even have to work very hard. Really, it could be there. For him, it's worth looking for."

Hubby - "I guess that's how we should look at life. Don't think of the odds, just trust that anything is possible. The Salisbury steak dinner is there, somewhere."

Me - "Keep hoovering. Eventually it'll pay off!"

Hubby - Turning to Griffin... "Ya teachin' us life lessons today, boy?"


Heh! And, then...Griffin got his two non-wheat apple treats that he always gets in the morning, and hubby went to work. The house is quiet again. Griffin's already back asleep behind me on the floor, and I'm still laughing to myself. And then I remember the Carrot Cake incident. Years ago, we purchased a gigantic carrot cake
from Costco. They are massive sheet cakes, almost two feet long it seems, and so thick one slice could be a meal in itself! We bought it because we had company over, but we only ate a fraction of what was there. So, it was wrapped up on a big cake plate, set on the kitchen table, and left for the next day.

Hubby had to leave for work early that day, so it was one of those rare mornings that I slept in. When I finally came down the stairs and into the kitchen, I was greeted by the site of a clean plate, the plastic peeled back and on the table. 'Hmmm - Lar must have taken it to work with him for the guys but... he could have used that plate, I wouldn't have cared!' And so the morning went on.

Later in the day, hubby calls for a chat while he's taking a break. 'Hey hon, did the guys like the cake?' I said.

'What cake?'

'The carrot cake you took this morning! I bet they were stoked!'

'I didn't take the cake - I thought you guys ate it after I went to bed or something.'

'THAT much cake? Holy cow, who do you think we are? We didn't touch it!'

'Well then what happened to it?'

'I have no idea! The plate's clean...although the plastic looks kinda weird. I mean, it's not in the fridge, it's...' - and right about then, Griffin comes sauntering in. I hadn't really paid attention, but he hadn't been frequenting the kitchen like he was accustomed to. Now, he slunk by the table with a little sidelong glance to me, and I stopped in my tracks.

'Ooooo....nooo.'

'What?'

'I think I know what happened to the cake...'

'What?!'

'Griffin....'

'No way!! No way!'

At this point, I was starting to laugh, hard. I went over and inspected the cake plate. Licked so clean, you'd thought it was washed and jet dried. The plastic had been neatly pulled back to expose the bounty, and not a crumb was spared.

I put the phone to the side and called for my dog. "Griffin... c'mere boy! Did you eat the cake?"

His eyelids drooped in that guilty-but-gawd-it-was-fun look.

I burst out laughing. "Our dog... scored the biggest score of his life. I'm amazed he's not sick!!"

"I can't even blame him. If I were a dog, and walked around the corner to find a giant carrot cake sitting there... I'd do the same thing."

...and so, I washed the plate, put it away, and didn't run our furry guy as hard during his afternoon play time. After all, a gut full of sugar doesn't exactly make you want to run right out and play frisbee!

So, after remembering that, and then thinking of him diligently surfing the floor on the notion that something good might turn up at any moment... I figured there was a lesson to be learned. Yes, why question the odds of a carrot cake showing up on the table just for you, or plate of steak dinner just sitting on the floor, waiting to be snarfed up by a hungry pooch? Just believe. Just hoover like there's no tomorrow, and believe.