Midlife Dirt Bagging

I say it in my mind. She's gone. I say it out loud thinking it will somehow if I hear it, it will make it easier. She's gone. I know she's not with me, I still look. She won't be going with me to run errands. As she got older and older I said to myself, "she's not going to be here much longer...one day she will be gone....you better prepare yourself." I tried...No more visits to the dog park. The pain fades but with the emptiness ever go away? Probably not...

Hell, you hear it so many times. "It's the little things that remind you of someone is gone." That's right, someone is gone. I said someone, and she was a dog, that was the impact she had on me, on us. All pet owners know it. All pet owners dread it. More than two months later, I feel her loss, still, again, it's there. It's so easy to miss her each and every day as she was such a huge part of my life and such a perfect dog, a perfect friend. Maybe you just learn to mask it as another one of life's difficulties.

Do I take some comfort knowing she had the best dog life we could give her? Perhaps...But it was easy. She was a better dog than I was a human. Nearly everywhere we went, everything we did, she was included. Kuri was SO well behaved, SO well socialized and SO well traveled. She visited 14 states, camped in countless state and RV parks, and was very motel/hotel savvy. We had such fun together!!!

Kuri had a laundry list of nick names. Her registered name was Kuri Katahoula, but she was also known as:

FishSauce then Fishy

Brown Dog

Diver Doodle the underwater poodle

Big Dog

Miss Lovely

Princess, and Princess Pea

Missy

Woo Maggo, Watcher Woo, then Woo

Pig Patch and Pig Patchaloo

Sweet Pea

Rock Dog

Sweetness and Light

Bear (pronounced with a bit of an accent, Bar)

Goat

Pork Chop

Kuri, Kur and KurDog

The special traits and memories on behalf of Kuri

Honor those you love - It's important to honor and respect those you care about and love. This is my attempt to do just that. This is the last picture I have of her, hanging out in the basement with me, Jan 11th 2013. She was gone just 3 days later.

Kur Dog Memory: Always getting a cookie before bedtime.

Show style and grace as you age - Kuri relaxing in the shade, So regal and dignified, aging with style, grace and so much poise. I could only hope age half as well as she did. This is at Wanapum State Park, our last camping trip together in Sept 2012.
Kur Dog Memory: "Hello" nose pokes to your hand.

Be accommodating for silly things - A Gnome picture, being covered up with a blanket like a baby and posing under Babe.

Kur Dog Memory: The sound of big dog pa-dump, pa-dump, pa-dump the gallop around the living room.

Be a good companion - Taking a nap in the basement, If I came downstairs, within a few minutes Kuri would always come down to join me. Even though she had a bed on each level of the house she seemed to like to just sleep on the floor. This photo was here in Kirkland in March 2011.
Kur Dog Memory: Doing the chomper leg-lift dance.

Be curious about the world - She always needed to know what was going on, so she pushed the door open to see the activities. Baker NV, Aug 2011
Kur Dog Memory: Shreading empty Christmas wrapping paper rolls and stuffed animal toys.

Love and be Loved - We both had so much love for that dog. We both miss her.
Kur Dog Memory: Missy Bag Inspector

Show acceptance of strangers - This is one of the most amazing photos we have of Kur dog and it shows what an amazing personality she had. Here, during a month long road trip, Kur allows a herd of 6-8 elk a visit our campsite at Estes Park CO, one even drinking from her water bucket. No barking, no growling, no muss, no fuss. Everybody is welcome. Aug 2011
Kur Dog Memory: Watching her rub her face from a big kiss up.

Enjoy simple things - Getting a sip of water in Leavenworth, and going after a stick in La Push.
Kur Dog Memory: Pushing the bathroom door open to check on you.

Show humility - I love this photo. It shows another aspect of Kuri. Remarkable as it would seem, Kuri knew when I was taking a specific picture of her. She was beautiful on the outside, but she also had such inner beauty. I remember this shot as I had the big camera, and she acted totally camera shy. This was in June 2008
Kur Dog Memory: Loving to play with puppies.

Don't be afraid to show your sensitive side - With the winter sun in her eyes, Kuri was so good to hang out with. I will cherish those days more, now that they are gone. This was at the Marymoor Climbing Rock, January 2007
Kur Dog Memory: Get a nervous chatterlip.

It's OK to be lovely - The ladies, looking so lovely @ the California Coast outside of Portuguese Beach, during one of our remarkable road trips, this was in January 2006
Kur Dog Memory: Pushing her nose into my arm for dog wrestling.

You can't shake who you are - Rock packing, a habit she picked up later in life and somehow never broke any teeth. This habit got her the nickname RockDog.
Near Tillamook, at Lookout State Park along the Oregon Coast, March 2005, then again at South Whidbey Island State park in 2009.
Kur Dog Memory: Big Dog bone parade

It's always nice to have a friend - Above, Christmas tree hunting with Abby in northern Idaho, below Meg dog comes for a visit to Spokane.
Kur Dog Memory: Going outside in hopes of avoiding your thinking she needed a bath.

Its OK to be protective to those you love - Even when she was young, she always paid attention to what was going on outside, getting her the name of WatcherWoo. This is at the Sammamish house.
Kur Dog Memory: Her big tail waving like crazy as she looked for a hidden tennis ball.

Stay active and have fun - A hike to Mailbox Peak, swimming at Leavenworth, tennis ball focus at Marymoor, fishing for rocks in Montana.
Kur Dog Memory: I'm a "lonely dog" howl.

We are all remarkable - This is us where she is just over two years old and looking magnificent, can't say the same for me in that hat I'm wearing. Her dad was a pretty big dog and she had show lines in her blood. Regardless of all that, she was a fantastic dog and an amazing friend. This was hiking on a nice weather day on Tiger Mountain, Fall 2001
Kur Dog Memory: The attack of any broom or mop.

Be Plucky - I barely remember this picture, but it makes me laugh everytime I look at it. So funny as Kur gets the Christmas ball. She was hell on her toys. Eventually she learned to pop and pluck all her tennis balls, and was known for pulling the stuffing out of all her stuffed animal toys. This was in Sammamish house in Dec 2001
Kur Dog Memory: The nose shuffle of Spooka-mo

Everyone learns lessons - Looking adorable on the rug, which we later gave away as she plucked it like a stuffed toy....Lesson learned, rug goes goodbye. Sammamish WA, April 2000
Kur Dog Memory: The sound of a big dog sigh.

Everyone feels vulnerable - I cried the night she came home, I cried the evening she took her last breath.
Kur Dog Memory - Dog face at the front window to welcome you home.

Lastly....