Langley Returns

My daughter is visiting at the moment, and she brought her dog Langley. I am delighted to see them both, of course. As I have written before, I like other people’s dogs. I’m just glad not to have one myself.

Yesterday, my daughter and husband went to see relatives in Marshall, Missouri, and I stayed home to dogsit Langley. She helped me write this post. She also helped with laundry, piano practice, crossword puzzles, slides I am drafting for a presentation next month, and editing my current work-in-progress.

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My last experience dogsitting Langley was in late 2015, when she stayed with my husband and me for six weeks while my daughter had a work assignment that required a lot of travel. Originally, I thought Langley would be an easy houseguest and could roam our back yard all day without much supervision—that’s what our dogs did. Unfortunately, Langley learned to climb our fence within days. She also snarled at our Christmas tree lights, began demanding dinner at three o’clock, and pulled her head out of her leash to chase rabbits. She was higher maintenance than our kids ever were, let alone our dogs.

We’ve moved since Langley’s last visit. We don’t have a fence at our new house. Plus, we have dogs on either side of us, and neither neighbor has a fence (yet), including the neighbors with the large German Shepherd. Therefore, Langley must be walked three or four times a day on a leash to relieve herself. Neither of us really likes being outside in the summer heat, though she tolerates it better than I do.

Langley does love our screened porch, maybe even more than I do. And we have picture windows in several rooms that offer views of walkers (some with dogs), golf carts, and the occasional deer—all of which keep Langley well-stimulated. Also, the smells of Missouri are sufficiently different than those of Seattle that Langley sees each walk as an educational opportunity. So Langley seems to be enjoying her visit.

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Langley has matured quite a bit since her last visit five years ago. She is far less demanding of attention than she used to be and waits for dinner much more politely. But she is still a dog. She sheds. She gets dirty paws. She wants out and then in and then out again. She is enough to make me recommit to my dog-free lifestyle. I wouldn’t want to have Langley around every day.

My daughter, on the other hand, is welcome to visit whenever she wants. With or without Langley.

Which houseguests do you love to see come . . . and then go?