This week’s innerview-ee, Miss Misty Dawn Pirone, is ALWAYS ready for her close-up. She’s a beautiful 11-month-old Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, cinnamon an white, an even though she’s young, she isn’t the teeniest bit nervous or clumsy-puppy.
She was right there at the door with her Mom. “WELcome to our home. DO come in,” she said, executing a perfect Wag-n-Sniff, then leading the way.
“Thank you, Miss Misty Dawn,” I said, unobtrusively fluffing my ears.
“Oh, no need for formalities,” she said sweetly. “You may call me Misty. An I shall call you Mr. Click-Click.”
She apparently noticed my blank expression. An my newly fluffed ears. She laughed. “Whenever I read your column, I picture you at your computer, just, you know, clicking away. So … ”
“OH, of COURSE, Miss Mist … er, I mean, Misty. That’s very clever of you.”
“It is, isn’t it? This is my Mommy, Jan, an my Daddy, Tom.”
After we go settled, Misty’s Mom excused herself an went out.
“Mommy had other Cavaliers before me. The last one was Star Mist, but Mommy an Daddy called her Girly. She was cinnamon, white and black, very fancy. When Girly hadda go to Dog Heaven, Mommy an Daddy cried an cried. After they moved down here, they ree-lized their family needed a pooch to make it complete, an it needed to be a Cav. (That’s what humans call my breed. I guess cuz it takes too long to say the whole name.) Anyway, I was born at a breeder in Cape Coral, so Mommy went over. Me an Mommy innerviewed each other and knew right away we were MFEO.”
(I had learned from a previous innerview that was ‘Meant For Each Other.’ Humans do that a lot, so they won’t run out of letters.)
Pretty soon, the front door opened. It was Misty’s Mom an another lady. Misty rushed over to greet them with joyful wags an wiggles. “Oh, Goody! Nana LISA! Oh, Mr. Click-Click, THIS is Nana LISA! I love, love, love Nana Lisa! She’s our NAY-burr!”
The instant Nana Lisa sat down, Misty snuggled into her lap, an began givin’ her kisses. An there she remained for the duration of the innerview.
“So, tell me about your life in Florida,” I suggested.
“It got off to a sorta bumpy start. Back then, bein’ a puppy an all, I loved to jump on an off furniture, even if I wasn’t s’pose to. Well, when I was a liddle 3-month-old fluffball, I hopped off the recliner an pop! I broke my leg in three places!”
“Woof, Misty. That’s PAWful!”
“Indeed. But I had the most wunnerful sur-jun, Miss Leslie. She fixed me all up. She put tiny liddle pins an screws in my leg to hold all the parts together. Now I’m good as new. It was during my convalescence that I got pretty much anything I wanted an, natchrully, I got used to it. Now Mommy calls me (lovingly) a ‘Spoiled Rotten Brat.’ I even have a collar tag that says, ‘Spoiled Rotten.’ See?”
Yep. That’s what it said.
“Frankly, Mr. Click-Click,” she tilted her head. Her voice sounded like liddle bells, “I feel I am simply a girl who knows her own mind and, of course, deserves the best. That’s all. Surely not too much to ask, n’est-ce paw?”
“Absolutamento!” I said with great enthusiasm. “Now that your all A-OK, what’s you day like?”
“I love all my neighbors: people an pooches. When we’re out walking, everybody calls ‘HI, MISTY DAWN!’ I get so many pats. An Mr. Dave waves for us to come get treats. All us pooches look forward to that. Sam’s My boyfriend, he’s a rescue. Luci’s Getting Up There, an she usually growls, so we all respectfully back off. My BFF is Lily, she’s a long-haired chihuahua.
“I also chase Geckos. An rabbits. Mommy says I must NEVER catch one, though. Which isn’t a problem, because I certainly don’t want Fluff Mouth. I’d be peetooing for weeks.
“I’ve still got to work on not chewin’ stuff. I really like to eat paper. Specially those soft rolls hanging in the bathroom. I can make one looong trail all the way through the bedroom an dining room without breaking it one single time! But now Mommy an Daddy lock the bathroom door.”
“Bummer,” I sympathized.
“I know. When I don’t come runnin to greet Mommy an Daddy like usual, Mommy finds me an says, in her Serious Voice, ‘MISTY! WHAT did you DO?’ Then I’m in trouble. It’s just that I don’t really relate to that word.”
“Which word?”
“‘No.’”
I managed to not smile.
Misty continued. “I always wanna know what’s going on. Mommy says I’m NOSY. I call it Healthy Curiosity. I HAFF to know where Mommy an Daddy are every single second. When they’re out, I sit by the window and WATCH. Even if they’re only going to the mailbox. I used to get duh-PRESSED, but it’s better now because I have a million toys, mostly squeaky. I learned how to flip ’em in the air, so I do that a lot. Also, before Mommy an Daddy go out, they put a dog cartoon or movie on TV. I sit an watch an bark. It really makes the time go by. PLUS, I can go out to the padio an play with my bubble maker. Bubbles are kinda wet an tickly, but still fun.”
“Other than paper, what do you eat?”
“Iams kibbles. An lotsa of veg-tubble an froot treats. I insist on water with crunchy ice cubes. So refreshing. Mommy washes my face an brushes my teeth twice a week. I love my toothbrush, cuz it makes my mouth feels all minty fresh.”
Heading home, I was thinking about Miss Misty Dawn an her silly nickname for me. Ackshully, she can call me whatever she wants. Sigh.
Till next time,
The Bonz