Middle of the week day. Board meetings, repairs, pesticide men, a system crash - pretty typical day, actually.
Itzl has been in top form all day, alerting on visitors even before they reach the door. That's because most of them had their cellphones on and they were ringing. So Itzl did what he does best - he alerted.
He had me tell maintenance that one of the doors needed lubricating.
And he had to be charming all day, too. Our office was filled with legislators, board members, and other politicians.
He doesn't like most of them, but he will tolerate them. He's much more mellow than me.
None of them seem to understand that dogs are not plushies that they can pick up and hug whenever they want. None of them pay attention to his service dog tags. Almost all of them comment on "how lucky" I am to bring my "baby" with me, and what a nice "perk" that was - made up for not getting a pay raise, eh?
Grrrr. First, he's not a plushie. Second, he's not my "baby". Third, he's not a "perk". And I'd like a pay raise, thank you very much. I haven't had one since 2002, when I got a 1% cost of living increase which has been offset by a 5% cut in pay due to mandatory furloughs, plus my job duties have increased sixfold since then, due to budget cuts and lay-offs. The furlough, budget cuts, and layoffs were all mandated by the very legislators telling me how lucky I am, the ones who just allowed themselves a pay raise by not voting against it.
It's possible Itzl may not receive his stipend this year. That stipend pays for his health insurance, retirement, and most of his food and grooming care. I can manage without the stipend, but it's been very useful.
Not Itzl pays any attention to any of that. He doesn't care how he's cared for, as long as he's cared for. And he will be.
So, instead of worrying about his future, now that things have calmed down and all the visitors have left, he settles in for a snug little nap.