Mother often comes to eat with us for dinner. Her cooking days are pretty much behind her. And she never goes anywhere without her shih tzu Winnie.
My two shih tzus, Bailee and Ebony, are pretty territorial. Not being prone to violence, however, they pretty much block Winnie's presence out by ignoring him. But it doesn't seem to bother him. He simply wanders into a few of our bedrooms and trots to the living room to look out the window.
One evening after supper, the three of us took our strawberry shortcake and coffee into the living room. I was surprised to see a couple candy wrappers on the floor. Once a year I go to the Lindt's outlet in Michigan City and get some multi-flavored, brightly wrapped chocolates. I not only give them as gifts but display them in candy dishes in the spare and living rooms.
I quickly picked up the debris, not wanting my mother to think we were pigs. I gave my husband Brian a warning look. I didn't care if he ate some chocolates but throwing the wrappers on the floor was a no-no. I decided I'd talk to him about it after Mother left.
I forgot to speak to him after I took Mother home. When I remembered the incident while lying in bed that night, I decided to just let it go.
The next evening, the same thing happened. We retired to the living room after supper and there were candy wrappers on the floor.
"I know women crave chocolate," Brian remarked. "But you can at least throw your wrappers away." Mother laughed.
"What do you mean?" I asked incredulously. "I would never throw wrappers on the floor. Only pigs do that. Are you a pig?"
Mother was beginning to get edgy. She hates fighting. "I can pick up the wrappers," she said.
"Don't be silly, Mother. They're evidence. Brian, you ought to be ashamed of yourself. You not only throw wrappers on the floor but try to blame me to save face."
"Those aren't my wrappers. Don't blame me if you are untidy and a bad housekeeper!"
"I suppose a phantom comes in and eats candy when I'm not looking and throws wrappers on the floor! I'm not picking them up!"
"Neither am I!" Brian countered. "They can rot for all I care."
All three dogs left the room. They hate fighting, too. Bailee and Ebony ran under our bed, their sanctuary when they are afraid. Winnie also disappeared. But he didn't hide under a bed at all.
We were still fighting, and Mother was practically in tears. I'm guessing that Winnie eats when he gets nervous. For at that moment, he brought a round, orange-flavored chocolate into the living room. He laid down to peel off the golden wrapper and proceeded to devour the confection, discarding the wrapper along with the others on the floor.
Mother began to laugh. Brian and I joined her. Winnie got up to get another chocolate from the spare room. However, this time I intercepted him.
I now have all my chocolates in dog-proof containers. And we close the bedroom and office doors when Winnie comes to visit.
I guess I owe Brian an apology. He also owes me one. So, I suppose we're even. Who would have guessed the chocolate phantom was a white, 12-pound shih tzu?
Laurie Lechlitner can be contacted by email at Laurielech@aol.com.