Dogtripping

Dogtripping

Mystery writer, David Rosenfelt, and his wife, Debbie, were
about to move from Southern California to Maine. They'd bought a
house. The relocation would be a piece of cake except for the twenty-
five dog family they'd have to transport. Airline fees would be much
too exorbitant. What's a guy to do? Fortunately for us David
documented that adventure in Dogtripping. It has to be the ultimate
road trip saga. I can't imagine anyone passing up this spirited
book. It's not just my opinion. Since I checked it out it has
accumulated a waiting list of about thirty-four eager readers.
A little back story is in order here. When David met Debbie,
she was the devoted human companion of Tara, a golden retriever. He
fell for both. Sadly the threesome was only together a year before
Tara died of cancer. David and Debbie, grief stricken, became
involved in dog shelter volunteering and then dog rescue. There were
so many dogs that would be euthanized if they were not adopted. The
family grew very rapidly.
David and Debbie were able to rent three RVs and recruit a small
army of volunteers to come along for the ride. Still there were
logistical hurdles. Just the simplest should give you an idea.
Imagine at each rest stop having to allow all the dogs to follow the
call of nature without losing any. If you want to learn the rest and
how they were tackled...
...you're just going to have to read the book.
The book has two strands to it. One is the trip narrative.
David takes on the curmudgeon persona, constantly wondering why
everyone else is having so much fun. Fortunately he does it with
enough humor to not sound whiny. "You've never lived until you've
eaten spaghetti and meatballs off paper plates, standing in an area
pretty much covered in dog shit. Of course, it was almost completely
dark out, so there was no way to actually see the dog shit, which made
stepping an adventure, and something to be avoided."
In the other strand he belies this grouch identity. It tells
the very sweet and touching stories of dogs he and Debbie have taken
into their lives and hearts. Let's put it this way--he's not giving
Sesame Street's Oscar a run for his money.
On a personal note, I hope my readers, like myself, are having a great
Labor Day weekend. I hope you're also thinking on what today means.
Leaders and workers, often risking all to do so, have tackled crucial
workplace issues like child labor and unsafe working conditions.
Sadly, today, there is so much to reform in today's global economy
including aspects labor's foremothers and fathers could never have
imagined.
A great big shout out goes out to the fast food and other low wage
workers who are going on strike for a living wage.
Julia Emily Hathaway



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