Morning, O' Morning

I may have stayed up until three AM reading a book. Not a notable book, just one I had read a few times before. As the time ticked, by I did remind myself the importance of good self-care, and how valuable my sleep seemed to be to my overall well being. Orion, after a two hour play date was passed out, eyes twitching, lips flopped on the mattress. Oh, from time to time I'd pat him because he was moving so much in his dreams I couldn't imagine it restful, or toss a kiss his way because he looked so freaking cute all sleepy-like. He'd wake up, then out cold again. Every now and again he'd get up and relocate. Eventually my book ended and I laid in bed thinking why on earth was I not tired? Surely it couldn't be the coffee from 4PM?
And then I slept.
And then at 6:30 I had a dog whining in my ear. Grumbling, I got up and let him out, fed him breakfast and crawled back in bed--I was hoping to at least re-coup some sleep in the early AM hours. But then, I found myself awoken by my elbow being licked. Then my face. I threw a pillow over my head and a nose stuffed under that. My whole arm was cleaned. Then my foot.
"IT'S NOT TIME YET!" I hollered.
A moment of peace.
I may have slept five more minutes.
Then my arm was licked.
Then my armpit was licked.
Who can sleep when their armpit is licked? Even if you're NOT ticklish (which I am).
I wake up. I look at him. I ask him what his plans are for the day. What it is he expected by waking me up. What time it was.
"Did you at least let me make it till 9?"
His ears perked up.
8:57.
"Close enough." I get up and fix breakfast and plunk down on the couch. He lays down at the other end.
I think he was just bored and wanted some company.

Pet Insurance

I crouch down next to where Orion is sleeping. I pat his head.
"Well, that makes me feel better," I say, having just hung up from purchasing Orion emergency pet insurance. "Now I don't have to always to be threatening you that you're life is only valued at how much my Apple stock is worth. I can breathe a little easier. Now that doesn't mean you should go out and get into any trouble... though your friend Scout gets into her fair share so by proxy I suspect you will too..."
Orion lazily lifts his head.
"Then maybe I won't have those bad dreams about you getting injured too. $250 deductible is manageable. I can't imagine what I'd do in Cherry & AJ's case this past year. Savings is not my strong point with all these job switches, moves etc. But I'm working on it."
He flops his head back down. He's done with our conversation. I stand up myself and move back to my desk.

Evening sketches with Orion

Orion is peacefully sleeping. I have been twitching to draw for awhile. Pent up energy likely from months of non-art making. Here's the refined one:

P.s. I missed you

"Yeah, I just wanted to call and thank you for this afternoon," I walk in the door, cell phone tucked between my shoulder and ear, dropping my bags and smiling to the yellow dog at my feet.

"I know," I snag Orion's collar and start walking him outside to go to the bathroom. He is bouncing all around.

"We'll we could possibly hang out on Thursday but my appointment is moved to earlier just this week..." I'm saying as I notice Orion is simultaneously peeing and pooping at the same time. As my friend continues chatting I'm thinking of the physical aerobics Orion is implementing to not be peeing on his chest. The mental coordination...

And then we are upstairs and I'm sitting on the floor talking while my phone is charging and behind me I hear intense licking. Turning my head to peer over the mattress I see him frantically licking my frying pan that definitely wasn't on the bed when I left it...I roll my eyes and try to focus on the conversation rather then the clinging of his dog tags on the edge of the pan.

I think someone missed me today, his first 8 hour day alone in awhile.

Boredom at its Finest

I spent the day painting again today. Someone was less then entertained.

Sidewalk Sounds

I sip quietly on my coffee, feet propped up on the coffee table, Orion snuggled next to me, close enough to get my shorts wet with his post-swim body. A voice floats up from the sidewalk. Orion bolts off the couch barking so enthusiastically his front feet are lifted from the floor.
"HEY! Orion, settle down!" I call after him, having not moved an inch. "It's nine AM. The whole neighborhood doesn't need to know when someone walks by our window."
He comes back and flops back down beside me.
A minute later, keys rattle below the sidewalk and he's off.
"Do you need me to mix up some anti-anxiety drops in your breakfast?" I ask him. "You have to learn to just settle down. You can't be that uptight my friend. Come on..." I pat the spot beside me.
He climbs back up, circles and plops down.
"Much better," I say, and take another sip of coffee.

Sleep In?

I accidentally posted this one on my musingsofmolly blog as oppose to Orion's where I had intended it:

I peel the paint covered tank over my head, precariously balancing it on the bookshelf hoping it will not cover the shelf in Prussian Blue as it did my face earlier.
I slip into my boxers and throw another clean tank over my head. My hair is dripping from the quick shower. The clock blinks midnight. Orion is sprawled out on the floor looking up at me as if assessing wether he can in fact go to sleep or needs to move again to follow after my fleeting form.
I bend down and kiss him between his ears.
"Thank you for staying up while I painted. I love you. Now, try to sleep in."

Solo time becomes swim time

"Well Orion, this is probably our second day rolling solo since April. Seems kind of quiet huh?" I say as I'm sitting on the couch on a Friday morning. "I wonder how I ever lived alone without you around and stayed entertained?" I puzzle, as I'm still sitting in my jammies at 8:30 in the morning.
"What should we do today? We already went for a walk, I've showered... we could paint, we could work on looking up graduate programs, we could go for another walk, take another nap, work on Etsy, write a book...." I find this unscheduled time is new to me. Typically I always have another human to bounce ideas off of and inevitably make plans with the person, but today is a full day on my own in my own apartment and I find the ideas of what to do could go on and on, limited only by the fact I'm not driving still.
"Let's go for another walk after I eat something," I decide, and wander out to the kitchen to poke around for some grub.
Before long, I call Orion over, slipping his wet leash on, and we're out the door walking up the street.
"I think we're going to have to take this slow," I say, thinking my legs feel a little fatigued and not wanting to have a wobbly day. I picture in my head walking with confidence, energy, and normalcy, figuring the good intentions won't hurt. We wander by the juice shop, where a guy sits with his bagel and strawberry cream cheese in front of him, past the gallery shop with the cute oil paintings of the town, and out past the mini park entrance where the pond begins to loop against the road. Orion is happily trotting along, presumably enjoying the sunshine as much as I am. He stops to sniff this and that and I wait patiently, not in any rush. We work our way around the edge of the pond to what I have deemed his "watering hole" and I quickly swap leashes so he can swim at length. Releasing the short leash Orion takes off and jumps spread eagle into the pond. He swims, he jumps out and shakes. Turns around swims again. I sit down on the grass, happy to be outside, happy to be sitting, happy to see my dog enjoying himself so.
In and out Orion goes, once seemingly to chase a frog. I hope I won't have to be pulling a frog out of his mouth and am thrilled to see the pond scum has diverted his attention. A little kid wanders by with his dad and they ask if Orion's friendly.
"Yes, he jumps and he's wet though so let me come up and get him to sit for you," I say. Yet when I get up there Orion is barking and the little boy pauses in his interest to see this now wet, bouncing, barking dog.
"Maybe the dog is scared of zombies," the dad says, as the kids out stretched arms imply his zombie status may in fact be a deterrent on this summer day. Instead, the zombie just scoots beside the dad to whisper in fact he is no longer interested in petting the wet dog, zombie or no zombie.
And so we go back down to the water. Orion strikes a pose and starts stalking something in the grass. I wonder if an animal snuck by without my notice but realize it is just a dragon fly...
After a few more swims, I decide it's probably time to head home. The boy bounces around as we climb up the small hill, runs some loops and dutifully waits to have his leashes swapped and off we head for home. Good day.

Skylights

"Mags, unroll the skylight for us," I say as we're cruising up the highway for yet another trip to New Hampshire. We've been spending a few days here and there up there each week--keeping my duel residency up, visiting with the family and friends, and making my doctor's appointments. Orion, the trooper that he is, comes along for the ride.

The wind rolls in over our heads. Mags slips on a second pair of sunglasses, leaving the first pair on her nose, and pushing the other up to hold her hair in place. I'm smiling. It's been a good day. Orion steps forward in the seat, so his paws rest on the console. 

"Can you see with him there?" I ask.

"Yeah, he's fine," Mags replies before turning off the exit that has us driving by our old elementary school. 

Thrilled to have an extra few inches into the front seat, Orion peers out the front windshield before discovering the open sun roof.

I laugh, as from below I watch his lips flapping in the wind. The pine trees fly by and Orion continues to leave his nose out the skylight, tipped just high enough to check out the views...