rvsue and her canine crew

Coming home from Ajo yesterday, I encounter a strange situation.

The Best Little Trailer’s door is unlocked!  Hmm . . . This is odd.  I distinctly remember locking it before we left to go into town.  I look around and neither do I see nor sense the presence of anyone.

I study the lock.  The little slot is in the locked position but the lock is not engaged in the door frame.

How could I have locked the door without it completely shut?  Surely I would’ve noticed that.

 I’m baffled.

This morning the crew and I stumble out for their potty break.

It’s another beautiful morning with a slight chill in the air and the promise of warmth from the glow on the horizon.

Bridget trots a respectable distance from our home and discreetly takes care of her business.  Spike, on the other hand, heads off with no indication he plans to return.

As usual, I traipse along behind him.

I can’t let him go off by himself due to the threat of coyotes.  I can’t call him because he doesn’t hear me anymore.  Instead we have this new routine of him patrolling the desert, sometimes in a sprint, while I chase in my bedclothes a few yards behind him.

(Okay . . . time out:  Before anyone jumps all over me for Spike running down the road off-leash, this is an old photo.  I keep a lot closer to him than the photo indicates.  Plus look at the bright sunshine.  We’re still in early morning, remember?)

Now back to the story . . .

At long last he lifts his leg and gets ‘er done!  Bridget waits patiently at the BLT’s doorstep.

“C’mon, Spikey,” I urge him in spite of his deaf ears.

At the same time I make the come-along-now hand gesture that he’s learning.  It’s something new for him to ignore.

“Time to go in for breakfast.” 

I pull the door but it doesn’t open.  What?  Locked?  I didn’t lock the door!  What is going on here!  Yep, the key slot is in the locked position.  Great.  I’ve got a self-locking door.  Which can also self-unlock whenever it feels like it.

I go to the Perfect Tow Vehicle and retrieve the spare key.  Boy, I’m glad I’ve got this spare!  From now on I’d better make sure I have access to a spare key whenever I shut the BLT’s door.

In a few minutes I’m outside in my camp chair, facing the morning sun.

I drink my coffee.  Bridget waits for her chance to jump into my lap.  Spike lies down.  My limbs soak up the sunshine, an elixir of life.  Well, I’m feeling better this morning.

Yesterday the crew and I begin a walking tour of Ajo.

Sidewalk-walking, on-leash, is one of their favorite activities.  People stop and give them attention, and, of course, there are all those signs to sniff, the ones left by previous tourist pups.

We don’t get very far.

Fatigue covers me like a wet blanket.  Oh, here we go again.  Once or twice a year I’m struck with a debilitating tiredness for no discernible reason.  This has happened throughout my life since childhood.  No big deal.  I sleep for a day or two.  It comes, it goes.

“Sorry, guys.  I can’t do this today.” We walk back to the PTV.  I drive to the water vending machine, fill up seven jugs, and take us home.  That’s when I encounter the recalcitrant door lock.

I settle in my lounge chair and try to read.

Instead I fall asleep.  Later, still dragging around, I remember the thoughtful gift sent to me by a pair of generous readers.  I fix a glass of Emergen-C “health and energy booster.”  A few hours later I feel a little better.  Well, it could be the booster or it could be the placebo effect.  Around eight o’clock I drink another glass of the energy elixir, which, by the way, tastes pretty good for a bunch of vitamins and minerals.

I begin a blog post.

Nope.  Not gonna’ happen.  I close up the laptop, crawl into bed, look up at the stars, and, as the saying goes, that’s all she wrote.

After coffee and a bowl of cereal this morning, I down another glass of Emergen-C.

I’m not running any marathons.  However, instead of sleeping, here I am typing a blog post!

rvsue

Note to cat people:

I’d appreciate your help with the “Shopping Links” pages (See header.)  I’m unable to recommend products specifically for a feline crew.  If you know of a product that helps you enjoy your time on the road with your cat(s), tell us about it (no links please).  If it’s available from Amazon, I’ll add it to the “For your crew” page.  Thanks!