About last night . . .

Life is one beautiful trip

Now that I haven't been murdered in my sleep, I can share this story and not scare my family half to death. 

What? I'm napping here.

Scooter loves to travel. He has his own little doggie bed in the car. It seems he has no interest in other dogs, just humans, and mostly women. He can turn a perfectly strict disciplinarian into a complete mushball in about two minutes. (Yes, I'm talking about Gretchen and G-na.) He loves hiking, too. But he goes completely goo goo happy over hotel rooms. They are the best amusement park in the world to him. 

A lot of folks think it is a pain in the patootie to bring a dog on a trip. Yes, it does require some re-arrangement of plans. True, I can't take him into fine restaurants, but there are so many great establishments with outdoor cafes which welcome dogs, that it is no big deal. And yesterday, in the pouring rain, I picked up a loaf of French bread, Irish butter, Drunken Goat cheese, and a salad. We had a terrific picnic in the backseat of the car.

Last night, we (Scooter and I) decided to treat ourselves to a hotel room. We put in some extra miles to get around the throbbing hot mess of Atlanta, get closer to Texas, and give ourselves some time to lollygag today.

We pulled off I20 into Tuscaloosa, Alabama because of the many hotel signs we had seen for that exist. Lots of choices. Apparently, everyone else on I20 had the same idea. Who knew Tuscaloosa was so jam packed at 8 o'clock on a Friday night? We pulled up to a chain motel when I noticed that the parking lot was surrounded by a 10 foot high security gate. This did not feel safe at all. Any place that requires that type of measure is not a good place for me to walk Scooter.

So we continued to drive southwest. Let me tell you, there is zero, zip, zero, nothing between Tuscaloosa and Meridian. Or it seems that way after dark.

We pulled up to a Hilton in Meridian. After a quick check at the front desk, I was informed that they are not pet friendly. I got back into the car and informed Scooter, "They don't serve your kind here Darlin'; we are moving on." 

After saying to the Hilton clerk, "I understand, but I'm dead beat, do you know of a close by hotel that is pet friendly?" she recommended the Drury across the street.

The check in lady at Drury, Kathleen, could not have been sweeter. Of course being a dog person herself (chihuahua), she fell under Scooter's spell in about two seconds.

Scooter and I grabbed a luggage cart and hauled our stuff upstairs. He rides a luggage cart like a long board. I really need to video this next time. In the process, people stop to tell me how cute he is. I am accustomed to folks stopping to chat about dogs. We dog people are quite friendly. After seeing the same man three times, though, I got a bit suspicious.

Stuff unloaded. Cart returned. I'm just getting ready to collapse on the bed when the phone rings. I'm thinking it is the front desk; maybe I've forgotten to sign something? I pick up the receiver and the voice on the other end informs me he is the man I've seen three times. He asks me if I need some company.

"No! And I am freaked out that you would call my room!"

I immediately called Kathleen at the front desk. She came up to my room lickety split. Packed up all my belongings and moved me to a different room on a different floor. She asked for a full description of the man and even volunteered to join me when I walked Scooter. She then placed us in a full suite to apologize for my experience. She could not have handled the situation any better.

I went to bed and slept like a rock. Having Scooter with me makes all the difference because he growls at anything that even comes close to the hotel room door. He is my own personal, fuzzy burglar alarm.

I have no fear of traveling alone, and I share this story to remind others that you need to be a bit paranoid and untrusting. That man may have been perfectly harmless, but why take a risk? Plus, I got upgraded to a full suite which I am really enjoying this morning. 

Now, I'm going to go down to the restaurant and get some yummy free breakfast. "Scooter? Would you like a sausage and some grits?"