The Treasure Hunt

I awoke this morning at 4 (something) because I thought I could hear noises in our backyard. But, when I stepped outside everything was quiet and peaceful... except apparently there has been a steady rainfall all night. Since I was awake anyway I turned on the news and according to the weather man this rain will be with us all day.

Virgil and Stella both did something as I tried to let them out to use the bathroom that got me to thinking that maybe I ought to try and live my life sort of like a dog? Let me explain. Both of them raced to the door as I held it open and each one (as soon as they realized it was raining) stopped on a dime on our stoop and turned around and came straight back inside!

I said, “Alright both of you, c'mon.” I stood there still holding the door open as Stella ran around the corner so she would be out of my sight and Virgil just stood there with his head down so he wouldn't have to look at me. I started laughing and shut the door and when Stella heard that she came back around the corner to look at me, I guess she felt safe now?

Anyway, maybe that's the way to live... if you don't want to do something: don't. I mean, I don't want to go into work today, so maybe I'll just turn around at the door and refuse to go? (I just had to stop typing as my phone started barking... literally. When I got my new phone I set up separate ring-tones for different people I know. Naturally, and for no other reason (: I set Deb's ring-tone for the sound of a dog barking because she likes dogs.)

Of course, even though I might like to live as carefree as a dog there is an important reason why I can't. They have someone to take care of them... me. However, if I tried to live like them and do what I want and when I want, soon there would be no money coming in and they would have nothing to eat. So, I guess I must do what's right and head to work in a little while ):

Whoever coined the phrase “It's a dog's life” and chose that to mean a life of misery... probably never owned a dog. Think about it. They eat and sleep whenever they want, they don't have to exercise, someone pets and plays with them often... and they do not have a single responsibility in the whole world! What a great life!

Years ago I remember reading a story about an investment banker and a beach-bum. The banker, now in his 70's had retired to Florida and he lived on the beach. Day after day he watched this same guy probably in his 40's play on the beach every single day. Months passed and one day the banker stopped to talk to the man he had often seen playing. The banker knew that he couldn't have any type of real job because he was always out in the surf, so he asked him about it.

“No,” he was told, the beach-bum had no inheritance that had been left to him by wealthy parents, and he didn't have a regular job either. He said that he just did odd jobs whenever he had a particular need for money. The old banker began to chide him for the lifestyle he had chosen, and he began to tell of his own career of more than 40 years and how often in a job he despised that he had put in 70-80 hour work weeks. On and on he droned.

The beach-bum quietly and respectfully listened until he was done and then he asked him a simple question. (My phone is barking again... and, yes, I have taken care of all the dogs.) Here is the question the beach-bum asked the retired banker. “Why did you work all of those years and put in all of those hours?”

The banker thought for a minute and then he said, “Well, so I could retire here of course.”

Now, who was right? They both are doing what they want. Except the banker had to work for 40 years to get to the same place the beach-bum had been in all of his life. Yep, I think we have it backwards. So, the next time you hear the phrase, “it's a dog's life” … maybe the person using that phrase is actually talking about some carefree person who is doing exactly what they want and when they want (: