dragonfly season

Late August is dragonfly season, we see them flitting everywhere like little miniature hovering helicopters with their iridescent bodies and gossamer wings. As a child we were afraid of them, we heard them called "darning needles" and the old wives's tale - that they would sew up children's mouths with their long pointy bodies - a leftover from the Victorian era, I would guess, when children were to be seen and not heard. Well I love them now. In the heat of the late afternoon sun as we walk down the grass lane toward the beach the only sound that we hear is the electrical sounding hum of hundreds of crickets and the air is filled with dragonflies. Large blue/purple iridescent bodies, small bright red bodies with quirky curved tails, all busily zooming around and when one stops to light on a tall blade of grass, we all stop to have a closer look.

It was a busy day yesterday. Quicker than usual morning beach walk because "the boy" had an appointment at the vet "in town" at 9:15. Just a check-up and I also wanted to go to the big grocery store and get a few of the things that I can't get locally. The days have been very hot & humid so I made the decision to get groceries before Jake's appt. so he wouldn't be in a warm car for long. His appointment went very well, I confess to beaming with pride when anyone asks how old he is - because they just can't believe it - 13 years in December. He does not, at all, look or seem like a senior dog, people most often think he's 3 or 4. I know with all my heart it's because he spends 45 minutes every morning from May til the end of October serving his purpose - which is to retrieve things from water. It's not just the physical exercise it's the emotional stimulation and pure pleasure that he gets from doing his job. He's lost 10 lbs since April, which is an amazing amount for a dog to lose in 5 short months but I wasn't surprised because he runs around and swims, each morning, as if he was training for a triathlon.

The vet suggested that in 2 weeks we start to reduce his heart medication gradually with the intention of stopping completely. We're not convinced that he has a heart condition and both my vet and I don't want to continue to give him medication that he may not need. His grave, grave illness back in early April seems to be an ongoing mystery. Perhaps it was something putrid or toxic that he ate (he'll eat anything) when we were walking at the golf course. I suspect we'll never for sure...but he's a healthy, happy dog now and that's all that matters.


Jake... enjoying what he was born to do