Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes. There beneath the blue suburban skies.

14 years ago I sat on my bed in my college house and held the cutest little fluff ball golden retriever puppy wondering what I should name my new best friend.  I was listening to the Beatles and the song Penny Lane came on and we look at each other, she cocked her head and we decided together that Penny Lane would be a lovely name.  Together, we met and fell in love with Conor.  The three of us moved to Key West and made amazing friends, human and doggy.  We spent most of our days on and in the water together.  Conor and my wedding invitation was a picture of the three of us out at snipes.  We sailed through out the Caribbean with you proudly protecting your boat and your tribe.  We camped our way up the east coast of the USA out of a VW bus and watched as you dove in and happily swam around in the frigid waters of Maine.  She welcomed three new human members into our family with the patience and tolerance only a golden retriever can achieve.  Then, she spent her golden years swimming in the green/blue Caribbean Sea in front of her retirement home in Panama.  I doubt there are many dogs that have camped, swam, fished, and visited as many countries as our sweet girl has.  When she showed us it was her time to go.  We were sad; but we knew she was leaving a life well lived behind. 

We said good bye to our Penny Girl a few days after Christmas.  She had been going down hill for the last year or so.  She had a solid 13 years of living the doggy dream.  A life of swimming, digging holes, getting dirty and being very loved.  Near the end, she could barely walk let alone swim and get dirty.  Conor and I would carry her outside to use the bathroom and let her lay in the sun for a little bit.  She would occasionally pick her head up, in her queenly way with eyes barely open, to let the breeze blow through her hair.  The last day she could not get up at all, so Conor and I gently carried her together to the breeziest spot on the porch with a view of the ocean.  We told her we loved her and that she had been a wonderful dog and friend to have in our lives and it was ok for her to let go.  In true Penny fashion, the stubborn old girl hung on til the next day and looked at us with eyes that said, "I need a little help letting go."  We called the vet and she came to the house to help Penny take her last steps into the rainbows.  Although Conor and I knew she was ready to go and knew she had lived a long, full, happy life, it was very emotional saying good bye.  She had witnessed so much.  She had been a part of so much of our lives so far.  Elwood took it the hardest.  He still goes and sits quietly on a rock near where we buried her under some palms.  He comes back teary eyed and in need of a hug.  We tell him it is ok to feel sad, but let's tell some fun stories about Penny instead. 



Remember when she. . .

-ate the dead puffer fish on the beach and had multiple tonic-clonic seizures and had to be hospitalized for several days

-would escape the front yard in our house in Gainesville when no one was looking and we knew we would find her swimming at the Royal Village pool, making friends with the other college co-eds

-ate entire box of butter off the counter after Jer and I left it out to soften.  We were so confused, "I swear I thought I put it on the counter??" and then we see Penny's distended belly and small bits of butter wrapper on the ground.
  
-stole the Christmas rib roast off the counter at my parents house and my Mom started screaming, "Jack! Jack! Help! No wait, I need Conor! Conor! Quick! I need Conor!" Conor ran in and pulled the rib roast out of her clenched jaws and put her on the porch.  Her facial expression said, "It was worth it."

-fell off the bow of the little boat and we ran her over.  Conor and I were cruising around Key West and she was on the bow, as usual.  We hit a wake and she just fell right off the bow of the boat.  Conor said he felt the engine hit her.  We quickly shut off the engine and looked behind the boat, holding our breath in fear, ready to see a horrible scene unfold.  Then, up pops Penny's head, completely unharmed and swimming happily back to the boat. 

-thought the chair was chasing her down the dock in Key West. Conor went to go talk to the dockmaster and tied Penny to a chair outside the office.  Penny decided she was done waiting and went to take off back to our boat. . . with the chair following her.  She started growling and barking at the chair and running harder away from it. . . as it, of course, followed her.  She would stop and do her most ferocious bark and sneer and then take off running. . . as the chair "chased after her" away from the office, across the street, and all the way down the pier, hitting everything in its path.
   
-was hit by the pizza delivery guy's car. Hard.  He was traumatized but at this point we gave her a little check and waved the white faced pizza guy away with a "It's cool.  She's fine."

-capsized the little boat.  We were leaving snipes while the swell was picking up and she jumped off the bow of the boat.  Conor had to turn broad side to the swell to pick her out the water and a big wave swamped the boat, and then the next big wave capsized the boat.  The four humans on board popped up around the boat and confirmed they were ok.  Penny was nowhere to be found.  Conor dove under the boat and pulled Penny from an air pocket and out to safety

-use to dive underwater for conch shells in the Bahamas and bring them to shore

-use to share passage shifts with Conor on overnights on the sailboat. She would take her place at his feet at the helm while he drove and snuggled him on the couch as he slept; leaving me to fend for myself.
  
-saved us from scuba diving robbers in Guatemala by barking ferociously at the bubbles in the water by our sugar scoops.

-use to lay perfectly still as baby Elwood would lay on her and read her books

-would ride up front in the VW bus while I stayed in the back, next to baby Elwood in his car seat.  She would snuggle up next to Conor and look back at me with a smug face that said, "Yes, now this is finally right.  Conor and me in the front and you in the back with that loud baby thing."

-in her golden years, got in a fight with two Panamanian trained-to-fight pitbulls and held her own.

-let each new child push her farther away from her love, Conor.  She never bit, never snapped when each new child petted too hard or held onto her for stability while learning to walk.  She knew these new, annoying little humans were somehow connected to Conor.  Her loyalty and love for Conor gave her patience and kindness towards his growing family.  

When I was finally to have a dog of my own, I pictured a loyal, sweet, best friend. Instead, I was gifted a spirited, alpha, full of personality, aggressive, hilarious, tough, loving, loyal to Conor dog. . . and I wouldn't have had it any other way.  You were a trip to have in our lives, Pen Dog.  You brought joy, laughter, frustration, protection, and love. 
Rest in Peace, Sweet Girl.    




Woody loves hearing the stories of how when he was little, he use to read all his books to Penny, his "first friend." 
Woody knew this was Penny's last day so he grabbed his favorite books and read some last stories to his very first friend.  It was emotional for all of us to experience such an innocent yet powerful display of love.   

Michael and Penny.  One lived a full and long life. One gone painfully too early.  The loss of Penny seems like nothing compared to how my heart aches when I think you, Michael.   

Leisurely afternoon of reading and snuggling.  Life before kids. haha

Snorkel Partners

Passage Shift Partners

This pic sums up our relationship.  Me trying to love you and you tolerating me.  haha! 

We had some sweet moments together too