She Had Friends All Over the World

　

November 21, 2011

When we built our big family home and decided to get a dog the stars lined up for us. Our nurse at work Mary Vaughn had a Brittany Spaniel who was ready to give birth and after the litter was born we got first pick. My daughter Kathleen and my wife went to Mary’s home and brought back the cutest little bundle of fur you ever saw. Kathleen said she pushed all the other pups aside and tried to climb out of the pen to get in her arms. I have my doubts about her breed but Nicky was a wonderful dog. She played us like Heifetz played the fiddle. The first night we had her she slept in a beer box we had in the service porch with Kathleen right next to her on the floor. As she grew up she became an outside dog and unlike Kathleen’s current Lab she wasn’t allowed on the furniture or in the kitchen. But for those first six weeks or so she slept in that box. I was working on the night shift and since my work shoes weren’t always carpet friendly they stayed in the service porch. On morning I came downstairs to find Nicky in my boot. She was just sitting there waiting to have us see her. Since her breed were water dogs we worried about her with our pool but she fell in by accident a couple of times and never went in again. When the kids went in she ran around the poll barking furiously at them because she thought they were in danger. Nicky was an excellent judge of character. She knew which kids were trouble and let ‘em know she knew. Her favorite place to sleep in the house was under the end table and woe betide a stranger or someone she didn’t trust if they tried to remove her. Nicky patrolled the back yard at regular intervals, she walked the perimeter, looked in the pool equipment running or not, and let us know immediately if anything was going on. Kathleen joined 4-H and one of her projects was to take Nicky to obedience training. The meeting took place at a country house near one of the many schools the kids attended. They had a huge gravel side yard and once a week a dozen or so 4-H’ers and their dogs gathered to be trained. Nicky loved to ride in the car and I learned very quickly to turn onto the country road and shut the engine off. If she heard or saw my car she would tow Kathleen across the yard like a tractor. When she rode her head was always out the window, for Nicky the perfect ride was down the road by the dairy farms, the cows and all the smells really interested her. Nicky was very smart, she learned tricks in a heartbeat. She would sit in a patio chair and catch a tennis ball as long as you would throw it. She loved to run circles around the back yard. Nicky befriended every exchange student we had. She knew they were family members and showed them all her affection. Some had never had a dog and at least two went home and talked their parents into getting one. She had friends in Italy and France and they all lived her. We never worried about her diet, she ate table scraps, pasta, veggies (she liked zucchini) and from time to time she’d take a sip of beer from the palm of my hand. Time passed, the kids grew up and moved out. Her muzzle got gray and she quit getting in the chair to catch the ball. She didn’t want to run anymore and her walks got shorter and slower. When she had problems urinating we took her to the vet and he discovered bladder stones. Gave us the choice of surgery or putting her down. Since the surgery could restore her to some reasonable level of comfort we did it. She didn’t respond well, hid in the pool equipment and prepared to leave us. We offered steak, pasta, every treat in the house, nothing worked. She wouldn’t even raise her head. So I tried as a last resort beer. She licked some off my hand and in an hour she was as close to herself as she was going to get. Had just about what the Vet said, another year. Worth every penny to take her for a walk or a ride in my FIAT with the top down. So lucky to have such a wonderful animal. I am posting this today because Kathleen reminded us that  it’s her birthday. Wherever she is I hope the grass is green and she get to run from time to time. And everybody scratches her ears and pets her. She was special.

Cassolet

We went to a little resturant in the suburbs of Paris with our French friends last year. It's called LaGrange en la Valle and we go there  whenever we visit them. The owner chef has a small regular menu and some specials. Our friends eat there often and the food is always good. Sooo one night the special was cassolet. It was so good I almost cried. I've been hammering Marilyn to try it every since. So yesterday we went shopping. And today she made a meal that while it may not have been good for me was spectacular. Three kinds of sausages, pork belly, duck confit, lardons, white beans, herbes, and what all. Just country food and so incorrect it was perfect. Drank a California barbera mainly because nobody in Stockton has wine from the Southwest of France. Great combination. And the best part is there are leftovers for lunch tomorrow. And they'll be better.

Valentina Calling

We have a wonderful group of exchange kids all over Europe. We have been visiting them and their families for 23 years. I’ll tell you all about them as time passes . We love them all but one of them became our daughter. Her name is Valentina and she may not know it but she came to us almost by accident. Or fate. So I’ll tell her now. Our first student was Marco, The exchange was very successful. I’ll tell you about him in another post. After Marco went home we had summer guests and friends of friends and they were all great but in late Summer 1990 the exchange company called to place a girl from Rome. They told us (I suspect a marketing ploy) that we were her last chance for an exchange. My wife was undecided but I said “How can we turn her down?” We did all the paperwork and exchanged pictures and contact information. Found out her name was Valentina Robles. That she was born in Bari on the Adriatic, had lived in Naples (which she loved) and lived in Rome with her parents. One Saturday morning I was home alone when the phone rang and there she was. She said “Hello, this is Valentina, do you know who I am?“ She sounded so self assured and confident, her English was perfect, and we found out that she speaks German, French and Spanish as well. Surprised me when she told us later how nervous she had been. So some days later, off to the Sacramento airport. Twenty years ago you could go to the arrival gate and presently her flight arrived. She had pictures of us and we had pictures of her so she wasn’t hard to recognize. She was tired, didn’t say much but she was really cute with a dazzling smile and dark eyes that danced when she talked. In three days she was a member of the family. And she still is. I’ve said she has dancing eyes and a megawatt smile, she has a beautiful heart as well. And dark hair and olive skin and a strong chin and high cheekbones. She is one of the most photogenic people I have ever seen. The camera loves her. You can see her heart in every picture we have. And she has a personality to match . She enchanted all my wife’s relatives and all our friends. She protests when I tell her she is beautiful but I’ll convince her someday. It’s my job as Dad. The school year passed very quickly and before we knew it her parents were here for her graduation and a little touring in Nevada and Northern California. Having a really good exchange is a double edged sword. Along with all the fun and frolic comes that day when the plane leaves. Wasn’t easy, but my wife is stronger than I am and we did it. We were driving down the freeway going home and in another lane was a very rare Ferrari F-40. I took this as a sign that we would keep in contact. Don’t ask me to rationalize this, it isn’t rational . The year after she was with us we went to Italy and arraigned to meet her and her parents. We met in Florence, went to dinner and after we were walking around the center when a carload of young men went by and Valentina drew some well deserved male attention. I hadn’t heard a wolf whistle in a while but she got a good one. And said “Here I am, with both sets of parents” When she was here she was 17, we went to San Diego for an extended weekend. One afternoon we went to the Zoo and in her T-Shirt and coveralls with her hair pulled back she got in for the 15 year old junior admission. That night we went to dinner in La Jolla and she put on her sexy red dress, let her hair down and got served when we ordered wine. The toast was “Going from 15 to 21 in 5 hours” Her sense of humor is priceless, and a little wacky. We’ve been to visit her several times, she’s come here a few as well and we always know when we leave her that there will be another time. Failing a visit we chat on Skype or exchange e-mails. Vale has shared her family with us and they are wonderful. She has taken us to Puglia and we have seen the South of Italy with all its history and natural beauty, and eaten in restaurants the tourists are never going to find. In those 20 years we’ve all had our ups and downs. Family life isn’t always smooth but she’s strong and so are we and she’ll always be our daughter. We have a lot of friends that wouldn’t consider for whatever reason having an exchange student. It’s their loss. We’ve never had a bad exchange but if we ever did Valentina would make up for it. I can’t imagine life without that phone call. “Hello, this is Valentina, do you know who I am?” You should be so lucky.