The animals

It doesn’t matter that Rick’s and my combined ages are 146. We still play with stuffed animals, collecting them not just as souvenirs but as story fodder to stimulate our imaginations for other things we may be writing. More importantly we like to make the other one laugh. Here are our major characters.

Petite Cougar (PC) started it all. When Rick visited Argelès in the early days of our relationship he brought her as a gift, a token of my own status as a PC in our couple.

Scooby II: He is the illegitimate son of Petite Cougar and Scooby Do, the TV star, who was staying with D-L temporarily. Scooby Do had a complete history with Llara’s daughter, who returned with him to the States leaving PC carrying a torch as well as the pup. He constantly gets into mischief such as climbing the Christmas tree.

Giggles is the illegitimate daughter of PC and Scooby Do, the result of a brief reunion in the trunk of a rental car in Salem, MA. Rick and D-L were visiting Scooby Do and Llara. “We should never have left them alone,” D-L said. Despite Giggles’ sweet face, she has been known to store away when she was told to stay home. She idolizes her big half-brother.

Slap, the beaver, joined the crew in Montreal. Slap was named for the sound of his tale and his slap happy nature. It was love at first sight when he saw PC, but she was not ready for another romance. He begged Rick and D-L to take him back to Geneva. They did. Slowly he won PC’s affection with his kindness and his caring for her two children. He even was able to rein in some of Scooby II’s bad behavior. The couple were married on the steps of the Argelès 13^th century church with fuzzy and human friends looking on.

Shamrock, the transgender lobster, is a Bostonian. He came to Argelès on a visit with Llara and decided to remain. His biggest problem is staying out of a pot. In a restaurant where we eat frequently, the waiter took him to the chef, who returned him on a plate with lemon and parsley. Fortunately, he was unharmed.

Sanders The Bern Bear, became a member of our little clan when we were in Bern for one of my radiation treatments. He’d been living with other stuffed animals at a merchant’s who sold them at outdoor markets. He had been worried about being sold to a circus or even being assigned to the famous bear pit in Bern. At the moment, he is thinking of running for president despite the Constitution saying only native-born Americans can run.

Scowt is from Edinburgh, a midget representation of the famous Scottish cows. Sometimes he is homesick for the sound of bagpipes, but D-L will play a bagpipe version of “Amazing Grace” for him. Of all the animals, he is the calmest, a plodder, but the deepest thinker.

In Argelès, there are some stuffed rabbits that from time to time joining this group.

When Sherlock, our rescue mixed breed pup, became a member of the family, the animals stayed home more and more. Although they are bit jealous, they realize that Sherlock considers them shakable and chewable and the shelf is the safest place. Every now and then they do a get an outing.