It was still rather overcast from the overnight storm when we took a walk down the street on Tuesday to see if the Ohio State Fair was ready to open. Even though it was still kind of wet out, there was plenty of hustle and bustle as they were doing the last minute preps for opening day. It’s always impressive to watch how they put everything together.

Then, this morning, when Doc arrived to work, everything was ready to open at 10am. The sad thing is, Doc is so rude, she dropped me off at doggy day care this morning, and she is going to the fair without me. Even though I will be going at a later date to work at the CompDrug booth, I still would like to have been included. I guess the life lesson is that you can’t always do everything you want. I will suffer in silence at Doggie day care with my canine friends as we relax in the swimming pool they have to keep us cool on hot days. I know you feel my pain living the country club lifestyle that I do.

In any event, I will keep you posted on all my adventures at the fair. So stay tuned, you never know what may happen or who we may run in to . There is always something interesting going on at the fair.

Now don’t get me wrong, I don’t have any hang ups about getting older. I don’t feel the need to run to the doggy plastic surgeon for a jowl lift or to have my gray hairs dyed. Dogs just don’t mark time the way humans do. Honestly, my days are spent waiting for the next meal or snack time, but I am always up for a party and so I was happy to be remembered.

Doc decided to have my Birthday party as part of the Stress Management group, so that the patient’s that I work with could be part of the happy celebration. Doc went all out with Birthday napkins, party hats, fresh pastries from the bakery and a doggie cake for me. What better way to relieve stress than a happy celebration with yummy pastries to eat?

I was polite and still acted surprised when they sang Happy Birthday, and a good time was had by all. I feel lucky to have so many people that love me. I couldn’t think of a better way to usher in my 11th year of life.

Just like Thomas Jefferson, the first draft of my declaration took awhile, but after some consultation with my next door doggie friend named Franklin, (after Benjamin Franklin) I had my final document.

Feeling somewhat nervous about how Doc would respond, I approached her with cautious assertiveness. She respectfully read over my demands to be free, then looked at me over her glasses and said, ” I will grant you your independence Grover, but just like the colonists, you will now be totally responsible for taking care of your own needs. No more free housing, a soft bed to sleep in, pup cups from Dairy Queen, veterinary care, dog toys, treats, vacations to the lake or food. You will totally be on your own. But I will grant your request if that’s what you want.”

I was shocked and shivers went down my spine. Apparently I had not thought this through and quickly decided to rescind my request. Maybe for this dog independence wasn’t all it was cracked up to be. Luckily Doc agreed and we did what any red blooded American would do on the 4th of July, we went to the parade and then came home and had hot dogs for dinner.