Doggie Downsides

There is much to love about the new dog, Cyprus, who is a terrific dog and the kind of addition to life in the Roediger House that it was easy to fall in love with.

But let's not kid ourselves: there are some notable downsides to having a dog. Sure, because I do like to play fetch and tug-of-war with her, I've gotten my hands repeatedly abused, because I'll manage to get nicked by one of her teeth and so on. Right now there's an unsightly blood spot on my thumbnail, gradually working its way down as the nail grows, from one of those nights where I knocked my thumb against her lunging mouth and it led to bleeding above and under the nail.

This week, I'm getting sort of a triple whammy, though.

First of all, apparently she's gotten into some poison ivy, because I picked up a bad case of it within 24 hours of getting home last week from my work in Virginia. And I've not been into or around it, but I'm sure on her walks she's managed to nose around in it. And it's getting worse and worse, I'm afraid, which makes me think I'm getting repeatedly exposed to whatever traces remain in her fur.

Second, when I was walking her earlier today, just before departing for a meeting up in Surry County, I pulled out my cell phone to check the time to see when we'd have to head back so I could shower and dress. Just as I was returning it to my holster, Cyprus jerked me as she bolted for something, and my Motorola Droid did a huge bounce on the sidewalk. The touchscreen is now shattered, and I'm not eligible for a new phone until the end of September.

Finally, were it not for doing a walk with Cyprus through the West End neighborhood, I would never have known that a house I've always loved and coveted was on the market. This is the John Coleman house, a huge place that has a lot to like about it, and following that walk with Cyprus I contacted the listing agent to show it to me.

That could turn out to be one very expensive walking of the dog.