The duck flinched first
Wednesday, July 16th, 2008The elements made sport of me today. In midafternoon I decided to try for an early walk. In process of putting Emma out to tend to business before we set out I stepped onto the back porch. And a mighty crack of thunder pealed out.
So I decided the time wasn’t propitious. I waited an hour or two. Then let Emma, who by this time was eager to go for her walk, out the back door.
Only to discover it was raining. She didn’t even want to leave the porch.
Somehow Emma has discovered in rainwater caustic properties, not found in water which is properly lying down, such as we find in ditches and rivers, which threaten to dissolve her broad Lab butt. Despite the fact that she rejoices in soaking in running water up to her wildebeest neck.
I may give the impression, in my account of her foibles and phobias, that Emma is a timid person. She’s not. She just had a rough puppyhood that left scars. And in fact I still seem to recall she didn’t especially fear loud noises when she came to us. I suspect a neighbor, accidentally or on purpose, shot a bottle rocket or something similar at her, possibly scorched her and definitely traumatized her.
Anyway, I was fixing to be grateful that the thunder had warned us away from walking earlier, except that it turned out to be a solo shot, whereas once we got fairly embarked on the ditch it started to flash and crack and rumble like the Bowling Alley of the Gods.
As every schoolchild knows, the Hairy Thunder-Deities Jove and Jehovah enjoy a friendly rivalry. But if you know the respective mythologies you also know that both hate to lose, and neither is above working out his anger issues on hapless random mortals. So I was a bit trepidatious.
Still, I persevered. As I may have mentioned Emma’s a lot less fearful of rain and thunder when we’re out walking. Unless either or both start to get really overt, in which case she seems to decide Daddy’s protective magic isn’t measuring up. Which is true enough, as far as it goes.