Laika loved to eat crunchy things, like tortilla chips, apples and carrots. She also loved to eat crumbs of any sort, though they were mostly of the crunchy variety. Running the sweeper, therefore, wasn't a necessary regular activity. With Laika the Canine Vacuum around, I readily excused myself of some of the cleaning duties!
Laika patrolled the kitchen at all hours examining the floor for any bits of leftovers. Pushing her nose under and behind appliances and cabinets not only revealed crunchy hidden treasures, but usually adorned her with a beard of dusty debris on her whiskers. She didn't care and happily munched away at the bounty of crumbs. She loved this job and did it quite well, happily inspecting the floor with gusto daily. Luckily, the food I ate was non-toxic for dogs, so she was safe to put in overtime if necessary.
Each time we would visit my parents, she would give their kitchen the same treatment, licking the floor to extract forgotten treats. Much to my mom's chagrin, Laika exposed the truth that no place is completely crumb-free. My reality was already liberated from that illusion long ago. The best spot for Laika was under my dad's chair at the dining room table!
Lynda's house was another cornucopia for Laika, as her friend Mario was known to leave a trail of crumbs emanating from his seat at the table. Laika loved to visit and bat cleanup before getting some quality time and attention on the couch. Lynda was thankful for Laika's tireless efforts in "sweeping" the dining room, kitchen and even the living room. It was as if Mario's every movement was mapped for Laika to follow! From the time we arrived, her tail didn't stop wagging at all due to the endless excitement left for her discovery.
Since Laika passed, I've needed to start sweeping more, just to keep up with the errant crumb control in the kitchen. Her absence has also been felt by Lynda, who frequently mentions missing the services of one wiggly pitbull canine vacuum. In hindsight, maybe Laika's ongoing war against the sweeper was really just about job security?
No comments:
Post a Comment