DOG POV CONT .
Downtown sidewalks often have grates . I freak out over perforated walking surfaces . My human never knows whether I will either engage in acrobatic feats or stop dead in my tracks when interacting with them . He ends up stumbling regardless of my mood about the grates . Tripping him up calls for amusement for me and possible passersby . Lots of grates can be found in the blocks surrounding Bienville Square . That park is another favored spot on long walks . There is another fountain there and lots of huge trees . The biggest draw are the squirrels . I am no fan whatsoever of said tree rats . The juicy specimens in Bienville Square are the size of cats . I am licking my chops just thinking of them . On one occasion , a squirrel stole a pimento cheese sandwich from my human while he was lunching with a friend in Bienville Square . Boy , I wish that I was with him on that day . I would have eaten the sandwich and the squirrel . You know , I give them a run for their money , pimento cheese sandwiches and squirrels . Pulling the human on the lead while pursuing tree rats is the only time my human gets his wish of a canine running campaign . Expectation and reality differ greatly .
Long morning runs always involve a walk up either Old Shell Road , Dauphin Street , or Government Street . These thoroughfares are among Mobile , Alabama ’ s , most evocative thoroughfares . My human is often distracted by the buildings and trees . It is nice to see him in his element . We move at a clipped pace , but both of us are very observant when it comes to what interests us . For him , it is architecture and nature . I am all about the nature , too , only as prey !
Culinary offerings can often be found along streets and on sidewalks , as well . I dig ( not in the literal sense ) street fare . My human has to keep a close watch on me in that regard . I will eat anything , and I mean anything . It is a regular occurrence on our walks that I dart off in pursuit of a particularly enticing morsel . One year , right after Easter , I pulled my human into a yard with a nice clump of monkey grass . In the monkey grass was a brightly painted
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Easter egg . I ate it whole , winking at the fatso as I did it . I was potent for a day or two . . .
By the time the human and I reach our own yard after one of our long walks , I am thirsty and tired . My human would likely benefit from a stronger drink than water after having been put in his paces by the likes of me ! The day is young , though . I lap water out of my bowl and drip it all over kitchen before sitting on my favorite rug , the best in the house . Walks are such fun , just exhausting in a good way .
As we enter into a New Year , I will continue to take my walks , long walks and other ones . My New Year ’ s resolution of further honing my crafty ways is a given . This lady never disappoints , unless she does , and then it is a hoot ! Contemplating the New Year , my mind wanders to all that I will be up to in 2025 . Buckle up , loves !
Maesel the Boykin
MEET CART BLACKWELL
Cartledge Weeden Blackwell III , “ Cart ,” is a historian and a curator . Blackwell was born in Selma , Alabama . He obtained an undergraduate degree from the College of Charleston and his graduate degree from the University of Virginia . He authored Of People and Of Place : Portraiture in Alabama ( 1870-1945 ): Reconstruction to Modernism for the Alabama Chapter of the National Society of Colonial Dames of America ( NSCDA ). His second book , Of Color and Light : The Life and Art of Artist-Designer Clara Weaver Parrish , is to be published by the University of Alabama Press in the winter of 2025 .
Blackwell has penned scores of articles for magazines and numerous essays for exhibit catalogues . An eighth-generation Alabamian , Cart loves his native state . When not found on his family ’ s farm in Wilcox County , he is on the Gulf Coast . Regardless of where he finds himself , Mae , his crafty spaniel , is always by his side !