It’s all about where the dogs sleep

This was our living room sofa at The Compound. It was a sofa bed, so we could accommodate guests. Besides the master bedroom, we had only one bedroom with twin beds for guests. This sofa opened to a queen-sized mattress, and it was used when family and friends visited and our guest bedroom spilled over.

Mother lived in the garage apartment (the Dollhouse), and she used the space upstairs for her bedroom and living area, and the downstairs had her dining room table in the open space that included the kitchen.

After Mother moved (several times, to many places in three states), and Timothy moved to Houston, the Dollhouse became his. That’s when couches began moving around. I’d given the twin beds and the hutch that matched them to Lynne, and moved an off-white sofa (that my mother left) into that bedroom.

There were also two workspaces in that room, turning it into an office for Tim and me (we were at that time writing books together, and it was very efficient for us to office in the same space).

Tim bought a leather sofa from Amy for the Dollhouse living room. And we eventually got rid of Mother’s off white sofa and bought a smaller blue sleeper sofa to put in The Compound’s second bedroom. It, too, was used a lot, so it was very convenient.

We didn’t NEED any more couches. They were everywhere. But one day, shopping for something else, I found an antique love seat and chair. IMPULSE BUY.

The big brown sofa bed went downstairs in Tim’s apartment. And then Tim got a sectional sofa group from a friend, and Amy’s old leather couch came to The Compound, and damn if I remember where we put the antique love seat and chair.

AND THEN WE ALL MOVED TO HOUNDSTOOTH HALL in 2015, where there was so much more room, inside and out, for dogs. And for the sofas they sleep on!

The little blue sleeper sofa was in our library along with the antique love seat and chair. Amy’s leather sofa was in our living room. And the big brown sofa bed was in the spacious office.

Tim had his sectional in Fox Den; Debby brought her furniture from Ohio when she moved into Fairy Cottage; and all was well. Until…. the 2017 flood. Goodbye, Debby’s chair and couch. Goodbye, Tim’s sectional. Goodbye, Becky and Tom’s brown sofa bed and little blue sleeper sofa. And thank goodness for flood insurance!

Amy’s leather sofa was undamaged in our living room. Then we had the antique love seat and chair reupholstered (along with a chair Lynne had given us and a chair Sarah had given us years ago that were also flood damaged). We were in no hurry to replace the brown sofa bed.

Debby and Tim replaced their furniture first. Then Tim decided that his replacement sofa (almost the same color blue as our old sleeper sofa) wasn’t durable enough for his large dogs, so we took it and he got something a little tougher.

The blue sofa worked, but look where Jack is.

And look where Anime is.

Those two and Delta always wanted to sleep on those back cushions, often all three of them at the same time, which I knew would gradually break the cushions down. I was constantly plumping them and making the dogs move. Finally, I made a decision. Years ago, Tom and I had a daybed in one of our guest rooms (pre-Compound), and I’ve always missed it. I decided I wanted another daybed in the office, and we could donate the blue sofa while it was still in very good condition.

Pollock is one of the reasons I wanted something that could be slept on in the office. Back in the old days, before the flood, Pollock and his sisters would hang out in our house while I worked from home and Tom and Tim worked elsewhere. But all the dogs were apart for a month after the flood, and when Tim and his dogs returned, Delta and Jack didn’t like Pollock coming over anymore. It was fine. Pollock, Pixie, and Penny were cool in Fox Den, and Debby was nearby with Harley and Stewie.

In the seven years since, a lot of things changed because of aging dogs. Harley went to the Rainbow Bridge. Then Penny. Then Pixie. Then Stewie.

After pandemic restrictions eased, Tim’s work schedule got very busy, requiring him to be away occasionally several nights in a row. After Stewie was gone, Pollock would hang out with Debby. When Debby scheduled a couple of months away on her current trip, I decided if I went ahead and got a daybed for the office, Pollock and I could sleep back there. The Dutch door would keep him and our dogs apart and avoid any drama. (It’s not bad drama. There’s no fighting. But there’s a lot of trash talking, and Tom and I both like to sleep.)

After a suggestion from Lynne, I checked Ikea’s site for daybeds and found exactly what I wanted, and they had it in stock. Tom went to get it. The idea was that he’d put it together weekend before last, and he and Tim would take the blue sofa in Tim’s new truck to Goodwill.

Oh. Did you know Tim has a new truck? His ten-year-old car had served him well, but it had a LOT of miles and was at the point where repairs would be needed.

He’s happy with his purchase, but neither man nor beast will be sleeping in the truck.

Then I read that rain was forecast last Wednesday and Thursday, and since Tim was pressed for time, he and Tom packed the blue sofa into my SUV and Tom took it to Goodwill on Tuesday. That evening, he decided to assemble the bed instead of waiting for the weekend. (He’s one of those people who likes to put things together from diagrams, and they always turn out right. This is not a skill I understand at all.)

So. Daybed was in place. I had plenty of time to get linens and maybe some new dog-friendly throw pillows, and change the room around a little before Debby left and Tim would be away at night, leaving Pollock free to come over for slumber parties with me.

Except as we all know now, we got that rain that was forecast and WAY more drama from wind than dogs ever cause. Without electricity, I ended up sleeping on that daybed days before intended. It was right by windows that let a breeze into the room. Our four dogs could go between sleeping with Tom and with me; there wouldn’t be four hot dogs and two hot humans in any one bed.

When the power came back Wednesday, I was finally better able to ready the new setup for when Pollock sleeps over.

See ya later, Pollock!