Shiloh’s Excellent Adventure VII at Kerba’s Kabin
Tara needed saving
On Maturity and Cottage Life.
September 28, 2024, marked the end of a second lap around the sun. It has been a remarkable journey; I've grown in so many ways. I am no longer the little puppy who is out of control. I am now a much more mature dog, but who is still out of control.
I have developed a public persona. People from all over the globe follow my excellent adventures. People from far and wide reach out for updates. If I must say so myself, I do make a compelling case for people to follow me. People from Greece, Australia, numerous states and provinces have commented on how cute I am.
Dad was at a Tartan Terrors show in Pennsylvania, and one of the people in the audience asked how I was doing. Another time, Dad was at a funeral when a total stranger told him just how funny and sophisticated my writing has become.
As I’ve gotten older, more of my adventures need to be shared so I can appease the insatiable appetite of my followers. My vocabulary is becoming more sophisticated, surpassing a two-year-old’s mastery of the English language. You, see? I have even been using words from other languages at just the right time to maximize the reader’s pleasure. This shows a much more nuanced ability to reach out.
Dog’s Age in years
Most people think that a dog year is equal to seven human years. I have discovered a new way to explain the different ages of a Labrador Retriever. If you remember that, your life will be way easier, and it will explain everything:
· The puppy stage is from birth to one year in human years – “Puppy stage”
· One to three-year-old in human years – “Puppy stage”
· Three- to five-year-old in human years – “Puppy stage”
· Five to ten years old – “Puppy stage”
· After ten years of age – “Puppy stage”
We’re going to the cottage, I am the best backseat driver.
Shinrin-yoku, Forest Bathing
The Japanese Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry, and Fisheries conducted several studies during the 1980s. It is proven to reduce stress hormone production, improve feelings of happiness, and free up creativity. It also lowers heart rate and blood pressure, boosts the immune system, and accelerates recovery from illness.
In Dad’s case, he tries to disguise his photo outings as forest bathing. Worse yet, he even says. I'm going out to take Shiloh for a walk. That's why I need to keep him on a leash.
When I use the short leash, it's a walk. When I give him the long leash, he can take the camera and take pictures. He is sneaky these days. He is using the camera on the phone to take photos. He thinks that by not using the big camera, he is fooling me into thinking he’s not out to take pictures. I know otherwise. I’m including some of his phone pictures as evidence.
At times, to make him feel truly independent, we go leash-free. That's a challenging time; I need to be constantly aware of his location.
How can you not feel energized walking on this lane?
What happens at the cottage stays at the cottage.
Under the guise of making an exploratory trip, Dad invited his friends Bill Green and Bob Pope. Ostensibly, they were going to go around the cottage looking to make a list of potential projects. What started as a small list grew. The fact is, it grew immensely by the end of the four-day analysis. Different tasks, both small and large, were identified. I’m exhausted after just a glance at the list.
There is a silver lining to the endless list. It means Dad will have to go to the cottage many more times. I'll let you know what that means to me. Mom and Dad know that I love the cottage. The guilt of going to the cottage without me is unfathomable. As a result, each cottage trip must include little old “Moi”.
Life at the cottage - at the risk of my telling all. In one word, it’s a “Blast!” Generally, I go up with one or two of Dad’s friends. They are “Putty in my hands.” They have no chance when I look at them and give them my patented “Shiloh grovels stare.” I can get them to provide me with food, play fetch with me, give me a much-needed tummy rub, or just plain cuddle. They are entirely overmatched.
Let me tell you about the family cottage. It is located on the tip of a peninsula at the end of Windy Point Road. The shape of the peninsula is similar to Italy’s, a boot. The cottage is situated between the toes and the heel at the bottom of the boot, featuring two bays on the back side and a lake view in front of the large window and decks.
Mushroom admiration society
The family cottage — also known as Kerba’s Kabin
This spot is perfect for me. I love the lake and can jump from the dock to fetch sticks. There are tons of sticks I can chew on and carry around. I can let Dad walk leash-free so he can take pictures on our walk up the hill, around the bend, and to the stop sign. Once we reach the stop sign, we turn around and return to the cottage. Dad says it is for safety, but I think it’s because he is lazy and doesn't want to go farther.
The laneway from the big bend to the stop sign is one of Dad’s all-time favourite photo spots. He has often said that this stretch of road is the prettiest he has ever photographed. Dad says it never gets old; I say, “I’m getting old watching him take so many pictures of the same place”.
One of dad’s most iconic images
I love being at the cottage; I've seen some of the most fantastic sunrise and sunset reflections over the year. Dad often said that he’d seen both sunrises and sunsets everywhere he had been. He still maintains that the ones at Oxtongue Lake are as good as, if not better! From my limited travel experience, they're the best I have ever seen. I am sharing a bunch below. Also, feel free to look at Dad’s other travel story, called Oxtongue Lake and Algonquin Park.
The return and first visit of 2025
I’ve waited all year to return to the place I love. Our cottage, well, now, it’s another part of my domain, I’m being generous by saying ours, when it’s just another place for me to rule over.
My first dip into the water this year was a bit scary at first; I didn’t know there were sharks in Oxtongue Lake. Dad told me not to go too far, or the sharks would be nipping my tail. I was a bit apprehensive at first, then Tara Nadine went swimming with me.
I relaxed completely because I could run faster than her, so if the sharks were coming, I was not going to lose the race out of the water.
The reason we were at the cottage in the first place was that Mom didn’t want Tara to go swimming by herself. I was talking to Chris, and we were unsure how Mom could help Tara if she were in trouble. Maybe she would call 911…
We stopped only a couple of times on the way to the cottage, fewer than the usual 5 or 6 stops. I never know why all those stops happen, because generally, one of them wants to pick up my poop. They call it a poop and scoop mission. I think they like it. I know Dad’s face gets distorted in all sorts of fancy and funny contortions when he is doing his mission.
That means Mom generally goes into the stores. That’s for two reasons: Dad has no idea what Mom wants, what quantity she needs and makes all sorts of mistakes. Thank God for phones, every single time Dad goes shopping with Mom’s detailed list, he has to call her from the store at least two or three times. It’s hilarious because Mom never keeps the phone near her or pretends that she cannot hear it. At times, he takes pictures and sends them home from the store. I get a chuckle when mom finally sees the picture or hears the phone. She sits there and shakes her head.
The other reason is that Dad has a rare illness; he can’t walk past the meat counter if there is a sale. I like it when he finds those sales because he usually buys too much, and I end up helping him eat the big steaks. I’m not sure if you know, but Dad and I pride ourselves on being true-bred carnivores.
The other enjoyable part of the cottage is exploring and taking my promenades (that’s what Mom and Dad call a walk when they don’t want me to understand what they are saying). The funny thing? I know exactly what they mean because I can understand more French than they know. I can also spell - W.A.L.K. Also, it means to walk. At the cottage, I have all sorts of opportunities to get extra cookies.
All I have to do is hide, and then Mom or Dad starts hyperventilating and acting weird. They shout my name and say “cookie”. Don’t they know? I’m safe from the sharks because I’m out of the water. I hide longer to get a bigger cookie.
We also go on Mosquito feeding sessions, which some people consider walks. I take Dad out; he acts as my mosquito repellent. We walk until he can’t stand the bites anymore, and we head back to the cottage.
About the author:
Shiloh is our 3-year-old Labrador Retriever. She has been writing about the world from her perspective for just over two years. As one can imagine, these short stories are from her perspective.