It was a hot day in late spring and B and Celeste did not want to leave her outside, but they could not keep her at the mall. B gave Celeste permission to take the dog back to her place and then return back to work. B was unable to have pets at his apartment and so they decided that Celeste would care for the dog until they found the proper owner.
They spoke with their superiors and did all that was required to find the owners. No one ever showed up.
Celeste named her Tyra. A few weeks later, Tyra turned up pregnant.
B and I had already been thinking that we wanted to get a puppy. The apartment we were living in didn't allow pets but we knew that we were going to be moving right around the time the puppies would be born. A couple of months later, we had six adorable puppies.
B went to see the puppies right away, the very day they were born. I unfortunately had to work and so I went a few days later. B said he chose our puppy because when all the other puppies were awake and squirming around, ours was quiet and asleep. When the others were asleep, he was off exploring and making noise. He was the odd ball, the runt. So B chose him.
We had discussed names, but I had told B he could name the puppy as long as it wasn't too outrageous. We were originally set on Tiberius, but once we saw the puppy we knew that that wouldn't do. B picked out the name, "Hal" after the super hero, Hal Jordan aka Green Lantern.
Six weeks later, we brought Hal home. He was so small, we could put him on the bed and cover him with a washcloth. He was so nervous that he stuck close by B for most of the night. I remember that night we had put him in his bed and B said he had to stay there to get used to it. But once we turned off the lights, Hal started crying because he was so nervous. I couldn't let him cry all night and be scared and alone! So I pulled him into the bed with us as soon as B fell asleep.
Hal has been spoiled rotten ever since.
It has been a fantastic four years since the puppy came into our lives. He is a welcome force of chaos and mischief and I wouldn't have him any other way. Today is his 4th birthday and I am on my way to spend the day with him.
I have the best puppy in the world!
lindsayallison
Hal Jordan Mehaffey, July 14, 2007
