Farewell My Friend

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girl interrupted moments

Zoe the pug

June 15, 1999 – February 17, 2012

God couldn’t have created a more gentle and tolerant creature than a pug– this pug in particular.  I spent Abby’s terrible twos (and threes) protecting Zoe from Abby; never the other way around.  And I spent Zoe’s whole life protecting her from an indiscriminate palate– battleship pegs, cat toys, Crayola crayons, strappy sandals, peach pits– nothing was indigestible in her mind.

It’s been 12 1/2 years since I picked her from the litter of my brother’s pug, Pugsley; and 11 days since we said goodbye.  The hardwood floors are quiet– the whole house is quiet– without her.  And I’m reminded in its silence, I miss my friend.

A note about the picture of the sleeping pug and baby:  On Abby’s shirt is a picture of a pug dreaming of a cupcake– very fitting.

Western in Winter

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Henry Hardin Cherry, kissing bridge, Mammoth Cave

I am powerless to the lure of Western’s campus anytime I’m in Bowling Green or within a 20-mile radius—even if it’s cold enough to turn puddles into miniature skating rinks, which it was last weekend.  And so we packed our long johns, long janes, and a variety of other frost bite deterrents for our Western in winter tour.

The route through campus may vary each visit, but the stops do not.  At the top of the hill for which the student body is named stands the bronzed likeness of Henry Hardin Cherry, Western’s founder.  Behind Cherry Hall, a small wooden bridge spans an exposed rock pathway, the last remains of a Civil War fort.

Every structure on campus is named for a benefactor, president, or coach—every structure except that small wooden bridge.  It’s known simply as the “kissing bridge”.  And though I never used it for that purpose, the Jane Austenite in me cheers for those who have and will.

Western is the only place I’ve ever known to build an elevated walkway around a tree—the fact that the tree-circling walkway leads to a library entrance makes the deal even sweeter in a Swiss Family tree house kind of way.

Tree through walkway in background; shivering woman in foreground

Besides increased parking, the best change to campus since the days I thought dark lipstick was a good idea is the addition of sculptures.  My favorites in ascending order from bottom to top of the hill are “Woman Walking” in front of Grise Hall, “Crane Unfolding”, a stack of origamis in front of a math building, and “Chauncey Too”, a bunny near the top of the hill.  Click here for the entire sculpture walk including artist credits.

Woman Walking

Crane Unfolding

Our campus walk made the next day’s 55⁰F cave tour seem downright balmy.  Mammoth Cave was so named because it’s, well, mammoth.  And if you want to know how many jokes a park ranger can make using the word “mammoth”, I’ll tell you—no less than 10 in a 2-hour time period.  But he provided access to 2 miles of a 365 mile cave system, and for that I am grateful.

Just as Todd knows I can’t resist campus tours, I know he can’t resist tinkering with my camera’s shutter speed and aperture settings…especially in dimly lit cave interiors.

As it happened, Todd wasn’t the only underground shutterbug.  The couple in front of us couldn’t keep their cameras off each other.  They alternated at 6-step intervals taking pictures of each other and then holding the camera at arm’s length for couple shots, which sounds romantic until you’ve walked behind it for two hours.  I know a bridge they might like.

Bat!

We squeezed through “Fat Man’s Misery” and ducked under “Tall Man’s Misery” before climbing back to the surface by way of a subterranean fire tower.  Our long walk was followed by a long drive home, during which Todd napped and I read Great Expectations.  Not at the same time.

Harper’s Index

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Harper's Index, list-mania

I must have missed the class where the Harper’s “Index” was introduced because, until I read about it in The Making of a Story by Alice LaPlante this week, I’d never heard of it.  For those who also missed that class, the Index is a set of “ironic statistics arranged for thoughtful effect”, which has been part of Harper’s Magazine since 1984 (Wikipedia).  Click here to read an example of a past Index.  

A writing prompt included in The Making of a Story is to create a list of personal statistics in the manner of Harper’s “Index”.  The point of the exercise, the author says, is to show how specific– and sometimes very small– details can up add up to a big picture.  The following is my stab at a personal Index:

Year Pride and Prejudice was first published: 1813

Years after publication I first read it:  181

Minimum number of times I mention Mr. Darcy each month: 3

Number of books about writing on my book shelf: 9

Number of books written by me on my book shelf: 0

Number of cookbooks in my kitchen:  11

Percentage of those devoted to desserts: 45

Average number of minutes per week spent perusing cookbooks: 0

Chance that I’ll leave Barnes & Noble empty-handed: 1 in 20

Chances that I’ll leave the bathing suit section of any store empty-handed: 19 in 20

Number of days until bathing suit season: 117

Chance that Abby will inquire about dessert during dinner: 100 percent

Ounces of chocolate I received for Valentine’s Day last year: 16

Annual amount I spend on gym membership and hot yoga packages: $1,075

Number of miles ridden on bicycle last year: 626

Number of stoplights I encounter on my 3.5 mile commute to work: 15

Number of stoplights in my hometown when I was a kid: 6

Estimated percentage chance I’ll hit every red light on the way to work: 100

Number of times I’ve been pulled over for running a red light: 1

Number of police officers I’ve dated: 1

Number of times I saw The Notebook at the theater: 3

Percentage of times I’ve cried watching The Notebook: 100

Chance that I’ll fill a notebook before starting a new one: 1 in 7

Number of half-filled notebooks buried in my desk drawer: 6