…brainiac

Like every little boy, every so often Nelson likes to go to Grandma’s house. Grandma’s house is over the river, two states, and an 8-hour car ride away. I think he actually likes the idea of the car ride as much as seeing Grandma, but he’ll probably never admit that. Like any boy, Nelson considers a few nights away from home an adventure.

Unlike any boy, Nelson can nap in-between the seats and can’t get out of the car without his leash.

Our “boy” is the four-footed canine variety, a Jack Russel Terrier who lives up to all you’ve heard, and then some, about the breed. He thinks he’s three times his size and ten times as tough. He can be absolutely adorable one minute and positively aggravating the next.

In earlier years, “sit” and “still” were not in the dog’s vocabulary, so he rode in his doggy crate. Over time he became a seasoned traveler and graduated to sitting or laying in the back seat.  He is napping as I write this, having just spent a weekend at Grandma’s house, where he played with his two-footed cousins and learned that little girl puppies are not necessarily all sugar and spice and everything nice.

Being a doggie parent, a popular commercial for healthy gourmet doggie treats caught my attention. The spokeswoman says, with a smile, that she has three children: a boy, a girl, and a collie. The collie apparently passed the screen test for the commercial. According to the proud doggie mom, the collie is a boy and highly intelligent. At one point in the commercial, after he has identified chicken as an ingredient in the tasty but nutritious doggy jerky, she even refers to him as a “brainiac.” “Ridiculous,” you might say, but not necessarily. Nelson is no “Lassie,” but he’s still smarter than the average dog.

Hubby packed the car the night before the trip to Grandma’s house. Nelson perked up when his backpack, with his name in colored letters on the flap, came out of the cupboard.

“Don’t let him see that yet,” I said. “You know he gets excited before a trip.”

Ignoring me, hubby proceeded to not only show Nelson the backpack, but to ask him to pick out the toys he wanted to take on the trip.

“Will you stop?” I said. “He’ll be standing on the edge of the bed at midnight trying to convince us it’s time to go.”

I know this only because the last time we went to Grandma’s he was in the car, in the driver’s seat, a full half hour before we were ready to leave, tapping his foot and wishing we would hurry.

Toys selected and packed, we went to bed. Next morning, we went about finishing up our last-minute packing but otherwise had a normal routine of hair combing and tooth brushing. On any other morning, Nelson disappears when I brush my teeth because he knows he will soon go to his kennel for the day.  On travel morning, he sat at the bathroom door watching my progress. He followed us from room to room, not understanding what could be taking so long when he was ready less than 10 minutes after he got out of bed.  Hubby finally let him stay in the car when my suitcase was loaded.

He had a grand time at Grandma’s house. Grandma and Grandpa always seem happy to see him come, and they always smile and wave when he goes. For a little boy his age, he travels well. He is napping again between the seats, having taken a break for a potty stop, a drink, and some lunch.

Why yes, that was fresh chicken in those chicken strips.

Brainiac.