Dropped Emil at Karen and Dick’s at 9 last night and had a couple drinks with them. They now have a second pup, this one a male chihuahua. Dick just rolls his eyes; for a man who doesn’t like having pets in the house, he has put up with a lot over the years. I am developing a new appreciation for my brother-in-law, because it seems to me you have to be particularly tolerant to continually permit animals you don’t want into your living space. They’re cute as can be, but that can in no way make up for the fact that there are now two dogs peeing on the floor. It’s been going on for a while so Karen is getting a little disheartened. Scott is supposed to put hardwood in for them, and she doesn’t want that done till the pups are trained. At this rate, it could be a while. She hasn’t had a long enough chunk of days off work to really focus on getting the training done consistently.

Phoned Dad this a.m. “Still kickin’!” he says. Our conversation about the pets at Karen’s morphed into recollections of Sid Troke, an old fellow I remember living in Margo. Dad says on the farm Sid Troke lived with chickens in his house, and every surface – even kitchen cupboards and table — was covered with chicken shit. Dad went there once and couldn’t believe it. But Mr. Troke showed up in church every Sunday in a nice suit, and Dad wondered how he managed it: “He must have bathed in a slough, because there was no clean place in the house.” He also sang very well, Dad said.

All I remember of Sid Troke is that he was eccentric enough for people to speak of him with a sort of chuckle. I never knew why; Dad says I should ask some of the oldtimers who might be able tell me a few things about the man’s reputation. This is the way it is in small towns, I’ve noticed. Certain people are slightly mocked whenever their names are mentioned. There was one woman who was unmarried in her later years and wore mini-skirts and pantyhose with runs in the them, and who frequented the local bar quite a bit if I’m not mistaken. While she seemed to be somewhat scorned by the locals, it seemed to me that she was always doing things for the old people — driving them to appointments, cleaning their houses — and to me that means she had a very good heart. So why was her name often mentioned with a sort of sneer? Because she was single, she drank, she had boyfriends? I must ask someone who will know. Joanne! What’s the scoop?

~ Ivan had to make a road in the snow
for the tractor; the dog plays lookout ~

NP: Joni Mitchell, Dog Eat Dog

*:-.,_,.-:*'``'*:-.,_,.-:*'``'*:-.,_,*:-.,_,.-:*'``'*:-.,