Dogsitting on Valentine's Day

This weekend Christopher and I have been dogsitting for a miniature Schnauzer named Fred who belongs to some friends of ours. He's a very nice dog -- incredibly low maintenance, really quite sweet. But he can be just a little needy, which kind of makes sense since he's stuck with strangers (or at least acquaintances) for the weekend.

Even though he's been here in the past for long weekends, I have to admit that it's kind of odd having him around the house. And, well, especially on Valentine's weekend.

Now, before I go any further, I want to say that I am totally in favor of us having him here. I was when the idea came up, and I still am. Mostly. You see, his "parents" are in Milwaukee this weekend, and there was simply no way for him to go along in the car for all of those hours. And Christopher absolutely loves having a dog around in the house. And we like him and his parents, so why not have him here?

For me, though, I guess I'm never going to totally be a dog person. I grew up with cats. Christopher is allergic to cats, though, and so after we started dating I adjusted to having a dog around instead of cats. And I know that there will be more dogs in our future together. But... well... there are just some things that dogs do that I don't know that I'll ever be used to.

For instance... What's with the whole "licking your hand" thing? I don't get that. And don't even get me started on the dogs who try to lick your face. No. Uh-uh. Not even when it's a dog I know. That just is not going to happen.

And I'm good with the whole "throw a toy, fetch a toy" game. That's good for me. I can throw, the dog can go get, and then bring it back for another round. But... well... Fred does a version of this where he fetches what you've thrown and then takes it away and puts it somewhere else. Yeah. That's not exactly a game.

Overall, though, he's really easy to have around. In fact, right now he's simply curled up in his "bed" on the living room floor, napping.

But I've mentioned, right, that Christopher really likes having a dog around? They've been hanging out on the computer, and on the couch, and Fred even got "pride of place" in the middle of the bed last night. And... Well... I have to admit that I'm a little jealous of the amount of attention going Fred-ward this weekend. After all, it IS Valentine's weekend, and I was kind of thinking that maybe Christopher and I would share a few more canine-free moments alone.

Oh, well. Fred will go home later this afternoon (he's been here since Thursday night) and I'm sure the house will seem a little emptier. And, eventually, we'll have our own four-legged addition to the family -- who just might have to go stay with friends next Valentine's Day.