Category Archives: TRUMAN

May 13, 2008

May 3, 2008 — Truman and I are huge fans of The Fabulous Esquires Big Band, so when we heard they were playing the Armed Forces Dance at Atomic Ballroom, we knew there was a good time to be had!

Though I did get a little dancing in, we mostly just hung out in the corner with the musicians’ gear, watching the swing dancers and enjoying the tunes with a couple of other friends of the band. Because Truman is so enamored of the saxophone section, he sat in next to the bari for a couple of numbers. He figured his primary job was to look cool and detached, like a real jazz musician.

He was eventually so cool and detached that he fell asleep.

May 2, 2008 — Sometimes you do an outing because it’s a valuable learning experience for the dog, and sometimes you do an outing because it’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. Lots of future guide dogs have taken the train; Truman’s first experience with this form of public transportation was an Amtrak trip down to San Diego. But how many dogs can claim an adventure as an unofficial crew member aboard a historic tool car pulled by an antique steam locomotive?

Thanks to our favorite steam locomotive fireman, Truman and I were invited to ride with the crew of Santa Fe 3751, owned and maintained by the San Bernardino Railroad Historical Society, as they ran the mighty 1927 steamer on an excursion down to Fullerton’s annual Railroad Days festival.

It was an amazing trip! The tool car, pictured below, has open windows in the doors so you can stick your head out and feel the breeze, take a look around, and take in the entire sensory experience as you roll down the track.

The funniest part was watching the faces of Joe and Jane Citizen as we chugged over freeways and past strip malls…even folks who live close to the tracks don’t see THIS every day. Kids and adults alike waved enthusiastically as we passed, and I wish I could have counted the number of people who held up their camera phones (even from the windows of moving vehicles) to capture a little piece of this elegant time machine.

As I’d predicted, Truman was excited and wiggly as soon as we got on board, but settled in quickly and was content to ride on the old wooden floor of the car, getting up only to occasionally seek attention and ear rubs from his friendly crew mates.

Meanwhile, I had been warned that a ride in the tool car could be hazardous to decent clothing, so Truman’s official puppy-in-training jacket didn’t stay on him very long (and in the few minutes he did wear it, he managed to magically attract some grease that took three wash cycles, half a bottle of soap, a stiff-bristled brush and a near exorcism to remove). But any dog who’s riding a steam train needs to wear a bandanna, right? So we went with the skull & crossbones theme, which turned out to be a good choice — on one prior excursion, the crew apparently flew a Jolly Roger from the engine just for fun. Truman fit right in with the rest of the guys.

His jacket wasn’t the only thing that needed a bath when we got home. By the end of the day, after lolling about and picking up some souvenir grime from the collection that has accumulated on the floor over the last 60 or so years, Truman was almost a black Lab.

April 25, 2008 — No education is complete without a little art appreciation, so we spent an afternoon perusing the permanent collection at the Norton Simon Museum in Pasadena.

While my favorite gallery was the 14th-16th century European art, Truman enjoyed the courtyard full of statuary, ducks, and potentially delicious plant life.

A day of pondering the meaning of art is enough to make one introspective.

If you’ve been a reader of this blog for any length of time, you’ll know that Truman’s an exuberant sort, given to great bursts of energy and making friends wherever he goes. In his estimation, everyone is a potential playmate.

Eighteen-year-old Tigger is no exception.

When they first met, she was not pleased about this young punk Labrador thundering into her territory with all the grace and subtlety of a drunken rhinoceros in red sequined tap shoes. The Roo was, of course, fearless as always, but Aged Feline in Residence Tigger planted herself at the top of the stairs and made her displeasure known by standing her ground, emitting some unearthly growls and I’m-not-kidding hisses, and doing her Jurassic best to position her old bones into a semi-threatening arch of cranky catness.

As the months have passed, Truman’s enthusiasm has not waned. While his spirited persistence — sometimes in the form of a springy hop-dance and the generously hopeful offering of a squeaky toy — hasn’t resulted in the kind of camaraderie he would enjoy in a cat of his very own, there is now at least a level of tolerance that seems acceptable to all parties involved.

The growling is softer now, the hissing less frequent, and the proximity ever nearer. Truman followed Tigger around the living room once, getting close enough to sniff the very end of her tail, at which she merely turned and gave him a dirty look before continuing her long and creaky walk back to bed. I tried to explain to him that Tigger is a senior citizen, not particularly interested in rough-housing with puppies or anyone else.

But hope springs eternal, and so does Truman.

April 19, 2008 — Since Truman had been on a couple of Disneyland trips during the day, I thought it was time to introduce him to night life at the Magic Kingdom. Every Saturday night (Fridays too, during the summer), there’s swing dancing to a live band at Carnation Plaza.

It was a very crowded evening, and though he’d managed crowds well during the day, Truman seemed a bit stressed while navigating them after dark. Typical of the little man, however, he did very well as soon as we were at our destination and he had a chance to settle in.

When Truman wasn’t tapping his toenails to the sounds of Stompy Jones, he was hanging out with his auntie Cathryn so I could do a little dancing myself.