In Memory of Toby

One of my best little friends, Toby died yesterday. He would have been 14 next week.

All kinds of people can change your life, but sometimes a dog can do it too.
I was never much of a "doggie person" and neither was anyone in my family. But Toby was the pet of one of my clients, a client who's been around since about 1997 - so I have gotten to know this client as a friend, and Toby as a faithful assistant. (I realized as I wrote that date, that I guess I have know Toby almost from the beginning.)

My daughter really started pushing for a dog when she was 12 or 13. Toby's owner helped me see what a wonderful pet a Westie can be. She even told me about a store where her friend had found Westie puppies (which can be very hard to come by). Off we went for a look, and the rest is history.

Toby was the kind of Westie you see in TV commercials: well behaved, clean shaven, adorable and practically human. He liked to cuddle up with his owner and watch Oprah in the afternoon. He apparently also liked to sleep on her head. He was more of an indoor dog, whereas, my Westie, Clarence thinks he is a Black Lab. He's always a bit dusty around the edges and is always barking at people and animals outside and telling them to behave. Everyone in my family is a "doggie person" now. We can't imagine what we did before Clarence.

I just saw Toby last week, when I was installing his owner's bedroom curtains. I'll show pictures of that later. Here he is posing with the new living room drapes we put in a couple of years ago. Perfect as usual - Toby, I mean.