Three Dog Day

This was a t-shirt design I created years ago, at least ten or more, and unfortunately these three dogs from that three dog day have passed on to a place in heaven called Rainbow Bridge. But I still have my t-shirt, faded as it is, it reminds me of that three dog day.


Duffy, Fred and Moose (left to right), three more of my nephews, not brothers, even though they do look alike, were cousins. Moose was the oldest and he was my sister Linda and husband Bob's first baby. Linda picked Moose's name from one of Dean Koonz' books, one of my favorite authors, a little on the Steven King side, but less spooky and creepy, depends what you like. I'm not a Steven King fan, I have nightmares when I read his books. To each his own as they say. But if you love dogs, Dean Koonz always has a dog in his stories and sometimes his dogs are the main characters. Koonz' love of dogs is so obvious, he has a great way of explaining what they feel and think, I find it so believable. But you know me, I believe, it may be silly, but I believe!.

Read Watchers, the first book by Koonz I read, you will fall in love with a dog named Einstein.

Our Fred came next. Fred belonged to my sister Deb and her husband Mike and Mike was constantly putting a voice to every look on Fred's face. I can't think of Fred without hearing Mike's silly imitation of him. And Fred was from Boston, so of course he had a Boston accent and pooped by a pahked cah in Hahvid yahd. One time, when Deb, Mike and Fred were visiting, Mike was searching all over the house for his car keys, couldn't find them and was making everyone dizzy watching him.

Whatcha looking for Mike, someone finally asked. My cockies, he said. Can't find my cockies.

Your cockies? You're looking for your cockies? Did you have an accident? Is there something we need to talk about Mike? Do you usually leave your cockies anywhere other than the bathroom? From that day forward, whenever my Aunt Libby and Uncle Richie walked their dog Schmidty, they always picked up his leash and asked him if he wanted to go out and do his cockies!

And Duffy, Duffy was not the baby of his family, I believe Annie and Steve's first was their son Ryan and Duffy followed. Duffy was a New Yorker, so he tawked the same way I do.

That three dog day, well, again, I'm a New Yorker, it really should have said three dawg day, was a great family BBQ, one of those summer days where sometimes I just take a step back and enjoy watching my family all hanging out together, yapping away, laughing, loving. Even my three, four-legged nephews were part of of that day.

I've heard that a three dog night is a night so cold you need to cuddle up to three dogs to keep warm. A three dog day, for me, is a perfect day because you have three dogs to cuddle up with.