I had always been a dog person. Growing up we had one or two dogs at all times, in fact my parents still had a precious little Pomeranian named Teddy that they got when I first began college. I went to visit them often mainly so I could see Teddy. I would always bring along my best friend, Flip when I would visit.  Flip was a small mixed breed dog I had gotten at the shelter when I lived in my old apartment, which was very pet friendly since it was old.  I did not know Flip's age when I got him. It was obvious that he was a senior doggie due to his white whiskers and slower gait when moving but he had the joyful attitude of a puppy. We would go for many walks around our neighborhood then cuddle up with a soft blanket and watch tv at night. Toward the end he was no longer able to jump up on my bed so I made him a rather comfy spot right next to my side of the bed so that I could still pet him during the night. It was one of the saddest days for me when I awoke to find that he had passed away quietly in his sleep. I wrapped his little body in his favorite blanket and called his vet so I could arrange a cremation. I received his ashes three days before I got a letter telling me that my apartment building had been sold and I would have 60 days to vacate. Yet another sad end to a chapter in my life.  The hurried process for finding new accomendations lead me to a rather nice building tucked away on a quiet street close to work.  I moved out of my place within 6 weeks of the notification to leave. What I did not think to look into at the time was if it was pet friendly.   I was sad to discover that when I went over my contract that did not allow certain pets, a dog was a no-no. I could have a cat or fish or small reptiles like a gecko. I could even have a hamster but no mice.  The contract spelled out a few pets but what struck me was no dogs.

 

I rant about this because I was lonely and in dire need of furry companionship. I had been visiting my parent's home every weekend mainly to cuddle up with Teddy. They lived about three hours away so it was not feasible to visit during the weekday. I had gone to a couple dog cafes and stayed for hours playing with one pooch to the next. I almost went to the local shelter just to visit but I knew that would result in heartache when I would have to leave empty handed. I even caught myself looking at different dog-friendly apartments for rent even though I had a year long lease on my new place. When I looked over my new apartment it had checked many boxes for me, two bedrooms, on suite bathroom for the bigger bedroom, good sized kitchen, an actual dining area and the living room was quite spacious. Each floor had their own laundry room so I did not have to tote a heavy basket up and down. The rent was affordable and the location was only 10 blocks from work. I was the accounts manager for a busy medical practice and being able to walk to and from work most of the time was helpful to relieve stress if the day had been hectic. Overall I liked my new apartment but the lack of a pet did not make it a home. 

 

I had become desperate so I contacted the building manager to ask why cats were allowed but even small dogs were not and was told that cats do not bark for hours on end if the owner was at work. Then in a rather brusque manner I was told that if I violated the no dog portion of my contract I would be subject to a rather hefty fine and my lease would be terminated resulting in another hefty fine. Then they said to weigh my options again to decide if having a dog would be worth the expense when a cat, lizard or guppy would do for the eleven months left on the lease. Regardless they would be checking up on me often for any violations. I had never had such a scolding and as a proper 30 year old lady who always followed the rules I felt rather bruised and quite peeved. If it were not for all the unnecessary loss of funds I would have left the rooms then and there. No one ever said adulting was easy. 

 

The sting over the rude way I was spoken to stayed with me several days. My personality was usually laid back and I had always been complimented on my patience. What people did not always know is that I had a strong sense of right and wrong and the tongue lashing set off my furor over it. I re-hashed the incident with family and friends along with re-playing it in my mind for days. Finally one day I started to come to peace with everything when my friend Jiaun said to just get a cat. She had a cat that acted more like a dog and she even took it for walks on a leash. She told me to come for a visit and meet her Mr. Wiggly. I took her up on the offer and went over the following afternoon after work, I even brought fried chicken and beer to enjoy dinner with my friend.

 

Mr. Wiggly was something else! He let me pet his head and his soft fur. He even hopped up into my lap like my Flip used to. He wore a rather handsome halter with a little red bow tie which set off his long beige hair rather smartly. He was such a sweet boy. Just after dinner my friend asked if I would like to go on her walk with Mr. Wiggly and of course I wanted to. Jiaun clipped a leash to his halter and off we went. Mr. Wiggly had a set path that he liked to walk on. About two blocks into the trek he stopped at a small shop with a bench outside. He jumped up on the bench then stretched to the shop's window where in a short time a little girl came up and pressed her face to the glass while waving her hands at Mr. Wiggly. "That little girl is one of his many girlfriends in the neighborhood. I found out from her mother, who happens to be the owner, that her daughter has a severe allergy to pet hair so she can not come out to pet him but she can watch him through the window." 

 

After a couple of minutes we waved goodbye and continued. We walked for several more blocks until we came to a small park with swings and other playground equipment. There were a couple of children playing on the equipment while someone watched over them. One child must have been a regular parkbgoer since he ran up to Mr. Wiggly and started petting him.  "Hello Tony. How are you today? How was school?" my friend asked. "Ok. I got a sticker today for being good the whole day. It was Iron Man. I left it at home so you can't see it." Such serious conversation from this young boy, I almost giggled.  "Good the whole day? That must have been hard for you. You deserved that sticker, didn't you?" Tony stopped his greeting to Mr. Wiggly and looked up at Jiaun. "What's disfered?" "You worked hard to be good, right?" A serious head shake from Tony was his answer. "You worked hard and were given a sticker for your hard work so you deserved that sticker."  Tony shrugged his shoulders, probably still not quite understanding so he just continued to pet the kitty. Soon a lady approached and asked if her son was bothering Mr. Wiggly to which Jiaun just shook her head no. They made a little small talk about the weather then Tony's mom said it was time to go. Tony waved goodbye to Mr. Wiggly and we set off on our walk again.  He really reminded me of a very quiet small dog with his easy little gait when walking. His long beautiful tail gently swaying back and forth. I thought to myself that if I were fortunate enough to find my own Mr. Wiggly I might be able to handle not having another dog. Plus my lease was only for another eleven months, I could look for a different apartment that was both dog and cat friendly. We returned to Jiaun's apartment about 10 minutes later and before I left I asked her several questions about having a cat. She told what type of food she bought, what type of litter, shampoo, toys, even what type of flea treatment. All the things that having a dog would take. Before I left she did laugh however and told me that cats sometimes looked at people as if to judge them and I admit