But the duck on the bed post wouldn't let me sleep.

I let the duck out back and pondered what I would name my dog...

Now, I have to admit, I'm a huge Horror film fan, so my first inspiration came from the genre. Freddy? Michael? Jason? Great names, yes, but somehow they seemed kind of cliche, not to mention none of those names fit this beast in the least.

For now, I felt just "Friend" would do. I didn't really have any and this gentle giant seemed.....well, it just fit.

Now, in my nursing home room-for-one, gazing past my food tray of tater tots, I looked out the window...

The leaves were turning. My favorite time of year.

The signs of another approaching autumn made me smile softly. Funny, I thought, almost every life changing event I'd experienced had happened in the fall. I glanced down at my new canine friend and said..

::: my apologies for using a few more sentences than I should. It's just been so much fun, ya know. I'll limit myself from now on

MY GOD YOU'RE TURNING INTO A DUCK!

Shaking away the illusions... with my new dog, I can now plan my escape!

And I had barely a month to come up with a successful plan.