Or kid, or should I say, dog.  Sophie didn’t have the best day today.  She was good, as usual, but she couldn’t find an appropriate place to poop.  You would think she should be able to poop anywhere.  After all, she’s a dog.  I’ve seen dogs drop turds as they walk down the sidewalk because the owner didn’t notice the dog wanted to stop.

But not Sophie.  She is very particular about the right, exact spot and will pace from one side of a patch of grass to the other until she finally decides.  She does this little thing where she squats and then whirls around in circles a few times before actually doing the deed, and it’s not uncommon for a spot to be deemed unsuitable after the first couple twirls if the vibe isn’t just right.

One place we stopped had seed pods as sharp as thumb tacks (I know this because I found one of them stuck in the bottom of my shoe.) She started limping and after that, was afraid to walk anywhere except sidewalks and freshly cut green grass.  She doesn’t sully sweet green grass–that she likes to lay in and roll over on her back.

At one green grass rest stop, we ran into Jesse from Portland, and his dog Jack.  They are also relocating, to Delaware, so we had a lot to talk about.  I told him about my books and gave him a bookmark and postcard, so I’m hoping he might even find and read this post (Hi! Jesse, if you’re out there!  Hope I remembered your name right.) He told me that they’ve been staying at Motel 6’s and they were really reasonable and don’t charge a dog fee.

Ogden Utah has two Motel 6’s, a newer one right near the highway.  But the one a couple of miles away, along a road that has lots of businesses boarded up and a driveway that badly needs repaving, is in front of an actual residential neighborhood with blocks of houses and sidewalks and yes, grass.  Grass that was not too beautifully green, nor sabotaged with paw piercing seed pods.  So guess which one we’re staying at?  You guessed it.  Anything for my Sophie.