Hunter's Memories: The Grocery Store

Mommy tells me I should let you know about some of my greatest hits.  I think she is feeling my age (soon to be ELEVEN), but I keep telling her not to worry.  I still have a few good years in me . . . I hope!

This picture was taken when I was about a year old. 

It's one of the earliest digital pictures Mommy could find of me.  Look how HUGE I am already!

Have I ever told you the time about when I helped Mommy shop for groceries?  I was probably a mere six months old (that seems like so long ago).   We lived in Minnesota at the time and there was a small store about a mile from the house.  She only needed one pound of ground beef, so she decided to let me ride with her since it would be a quick trip.  She did not put me on a leash (or even put one in the car) because she never intended for me to get out of the car.  You know what they say: the road to the grocery store is paved with good intentions!

When we arrived at the store, Mommy told me to stay put, but I was up for an adventure.  I hopped over her lap and out into the parking lot of the store.  Mommy was NOT happy.  She tried to call me back to the car, but I have always been stubborn and hadn't totally mastered the "come" command at that time.  She calmly followed me around and around the car trying to lure me back in.  You might be worried about my health and safety from other cars in the parking lot or the street running by, but thankfully the town we lived in was tiny and there were no serious threats.  My only real threat was Mommy herself. 

Mommy was reaching her patience limit (which really isn't that high if you know my Mommy), so she opened the rear passenger door hoping I would choose to jump in on that side of the car.  It didn't work.  I continued to make Mommy frustrated and entertain a few other customers in the parking lot.  I was having way too much fun making her follow me around.  I don't recall exactly what made me decide to jump in the car on the driver's side, but I finally did much to Mommy's relief.  She was so tired of me by that point she even called out "SUCKER" when she clicked the button on the key fob and was finally able to head into the store. 

Mommy went to the back of the store to pick up the mere one pound of beef she needed and then headed to the front to pay.  As she came around the corner from the back of the store, she received the surprise of a lifetime . . . I was INSIDE the store and ran to greet her!!!  She was stunned to say the least!  It had not been an easy task for me to catch up to her.  The store had automatic doors, but they didn't slide to the left and right; they opened in like a regular door and there was a series of two you had to go through in order to be inside the store.  These doors were also seriously slow.  A human might have to actually stop walking to wait on these doors to open before proceeding.  Imagine what I must have looked like trying to get in between those two sets of doors.  The stress of negotiating those two doors was worth it when I saw the look on Mommy's face! 

She was quite perplexed as to how I had managed to find my way into the store when she distinctly remembered locking me in the car.  Have you figured it out yet?  Guess who the SUCKER really was?  That's right.  Mommy!!  She had stupidly left the passenger door open and hadn't noticed.  Dumb-de-dumb-dumb!  It was easy for me to accompany her into the store.  I just had to wait until she went inside, so she wouldn't notice me behind her.  When she saw me in the store, she grabbed me by the collar, took me outside, threw me into the car, went back in to pay for the beef, and took me home to regale Daddy with the tale of her stupidity.  He was full of wisdom as always: "I told you not to take him with you!"  

I am still totally amazed they managed to have ground beef that night for dinner . . .

Wags and Memories,
Hunter