I’m a cat person.
There, I’ve said it. Somehow I tend to relate more to those independent-minded, self-absorbed masters of the art of lounging than their canine counterparts. Cats have always been part of my adult life. Grey tabbies mostly, and, if I may indulge in a little Buddhist philosophy, am pretty sure each one was the same tabby, reincarnated, having returned just to keep me company and for my personal amusement and enlightenment.
Dogs, on the other hand, haven’t always presented themselves to me in a zen-like way. Sure, I’ve been around plenty of them – via roommates, girlfriends and next-door neighbors. I’m just not as keen on them as I am on cats. Because of this I’ve been labeled a “dog-hater,” as if, in a dog-lovers world, you are either with them or against them. I think there is room for middle-ground on the matter. Dogs are good for plenty of things. First of all, have you ever taken a cat hiking? Not likely. They prefer staying home and amusing themselves by destroying the furniture. They also don’t ride in cars so well. Especially not in the back of pickups. Cats tend to seek out that dark space directly underneath your brake pedal and lodge themselves there. That, or you’ll find one crawling up your back while sailing along the interstate at 75 mph.
Dogs will alert you to the presence of strangers at the door. A cat will either sniff its ambivalence or run for its life.
Dogs retrieve things. They swim. Can ride in a boat. They can be useful for pulling things, like sleds and flushing out birds or keeping real dog-haters away from you.
But dogs shed. They knock down garbage cans in the alley. They bite utility inspectors and roll around in dead stuff. And they kill cats … one particularly sore point with me.
So how did Colorado Central come to have a “dog-themed” issue as the one you are now reading?
Well, it started with the cover. One that was chosen months ago to represent January and the new decade. Featuring a dog on the cover led us to ponder the number of stories right here in this region involving canines. Surely every dog owner has one.
Then I thought, “Well, it’s the holidays and this might be an easy way to get content for the magazine so I can focus on other year-end necessities.”
Wrong. The “dog issue” has consumed this editor like a famished Lab consuming Alpo. I’ve been playing my own game of fetch, retrieving this, hunting down that, and slobbering like a Bulldog over the keyboard in the process.
So, here it is. The “dog issue.” We hope even those not inclined towards pooches will find some interest and humor in these pages. Maybe recall a place in their childhood they’ve forgotten or even gain a better understand of the unique relationship in our society that we have with our domesticated animals.
Pictured above is my one and only dog, Monk, a “rez-dog” I inherited of unknown breed who passed away here in Salida in 2003.
– Mike Rosso, Dec. 2009
