old dog, new tricks

my sweet dog is getting old. biting aside, there is a lot to love about older chopin. instead of getting up and nestling against you all the time, she now remains on the floor and just howls until you come love her. it is amazing how many times a day she does this. in her 80s it turns out my doggie just wants love. i, too, am totally shocked, but, at the same time, not because it is my dog and all i do is kiss her and snuggle. she also has begun to love car trips. they are her new favorite (except for treats) and she freaks out when i tell her we are going. i guess because it is like a walk but she doesn't really have to move. genius. everything remotely edible in the car has already been destroyed, a small price to pay for chopin in the passengers seat. even wrappers she has already torn to shreds, she continues to lick and tear since i do not clean the car. i guess sometimes it gets boring though and she gets hungry and curious. due to the sheer volume she sleeps, i always imagine she just takes a quick nap when i'm out in the store (when not destroying). today, sleepiness be damned, she was inquisitive. which is why when i reached to change my cd, i discovered my brand new car stereo was covered in dog slobber. upon closer inspection i also saw licks that had already dried, so who knows how long this has been going on. interestingly enough, the majority of the licks were around the cd changer and a few actually were on the cusp....which i think means CHOPIN PUT HER TONGUE INTO MY CD PLAYER. maybe it even sucked it in automatically when she did it! it never occurred to me to ever attempt such a thing, which is why i'm so impressed my ancient dog not only tried it but continued to experiment while i was not in the car. i'm really proud we are related.