I sent out a newsletter last week with some book news (mainly that Angel Sister was on e-book sale for cheap, cheap, cheap, but the sale may end tomorrow.) I always have a giveaway in a newsletter, and I often ask if those who respond for the giveaway want to share some kind of story. Usually some of you do love telling your stories and I love reading them. This time I asked people to share how they met their sweethearts. I have had such fun reading the responses. Some I will share in the next few weeks.
I wasn’t surprised when some of those who responded said they met their sweetheart at the local animal shelter. Those furry sweethearts can be wonderful. I’ve had so many of those sort of loves in my life, starting when I was about eight and got my first dog, Ollie. He was part Spitz and not the friendliest dog in the world. He was ready to bite anybody that came around, but he loved me and I loved him. He’s the dog on the left in the picture. The other dog was Blue and I always felt guilty that I didn’t love him quite as much.
Since Ollie and Blue, I’ve had a long procession of dog buddies through the years. Buster was a wonderful collie mix. Jody was my beloved Cockerspaniel. Max was my first Labrador and the one that made me follow up with more Labs or at least Lab mixes. Dub was a chocolate Lab and Oscar was a Lab mix. If you have been reading my blog long you know how I loved my Oscar that I lost to bone cancer a couple of years ago. And now I have Frankie who is probably a mix of Lab and Australian Shepherd. But I couldn’t say for sure since I met this sweetheart at the animal shelter the way some of those did who shared their “how we met” stories. This picture is how he convinced me he was my dog when we first met at the shelter. How could I say no to that?
So here are some of the great furry sweetheart stories I received.
Connie wrote about meeting her husband and those other furry sweethearts. “I met my husband at a dinner party a friend had for Christmas. We were sort of set up on a blind date at the party. I met my four other loves, one beagle and three cats, at our local animal shelter.”
Gerry tells about both her sweethearts too. “I met my human sweetheart volunteering at a KY archaeological site; my furry sweetheart at the dog shelter!”
Linda knows where to find the best sweethearts. “I met my sweetheart at the shelter. He is a 17 1/2 y/o min pin. He was 4 when I met him and it was love at first sight. His name is Puppy because after a year of calling him Puppy, we never came up with another name that fit him. Right now, he is sleeping next to me. He replaced my previous min pin who died at 15 of renal disease (also a rescue).”
Lavon Sheree didn’t have a guy sweetheart story, but did have a story about her furry buddy named Ollie like my first dog. “But I have a rescue story for my Ollie. He’s my little sweetheart now. My grandkids found him wandering their rural road, and convinced me to keep him. I had been halfheartedly looking for another pup. But I wanted a female, non-shedding, lap dog. Ollie was none of those. Initially I said No…but the kids’ dad said they already had enough dogs and he’d have to go to the shelter. So I decided to give him a chance. How could I not, with all those weepy eyes begging me? And of course I’m glad I did now. He’s a clown, and my whole neighborhood is in love with him. One neighbor calls him Barney Fife, because he just has to know everybody’s business. He patrols the neighborhood every day and knows everyone’s routine…especially mealtime. And even though he weighs about 60 lbs now, he thinks he’s a lapdog during a thunderstorm or fireworks.”
And I love how Joan describes her first love. “My first love happened when I was 12 years old! Hair was black as coal, eyes as brown as chocolate, kisses as sweet as honey. Forever loving and happy to see me. Loyal, always willing to hear whatever I had to say, never judgmental. Completely stole my heart. Her name was Dusty my little toy black Poodle.”
Since I’m such a dog person, I loved all these furry sweetheart stories. Hope you liked them too. Next time I’ll report on some of the more expected “how we met” stories.
Do you like to hear how we met stories? Do you know how your parents met?
If you didn’t get my newsletter and would like to throw your name into my giveaway hat for a prize of a one of my books along with either a box of chocolates or Modjestka caramels. (Winner’s choice) I’ll pick two winners by random drawing for that and a third winner will get their choice of one of my books. To enter, simply leave a comment saying you want to enter. But you’ll have to do it quickly. Deadline for entry is midnight EST February 28, 2019. You must be 18 or older to enter. To read the official giveaway rules, click here.
If you want to grab Angel Sister before the ebook sale ends, you’d best grab it tomorrow.