A Man and His Dog

Posted on Sun Apr 16th, 2023 @ 4:06am by
Edited on on Sun Apr 16th, 2023 @ 4:13am

497 words; about a 2 minute read

Mission: The Way We Were
Location: Millinocket, Maine
Timeline: August 22-25, 2010

"All you'll need to bring is yourselves." The man said, to the group, including Cooper, gathered around him in the homeless shelter. "I'll provide you lodgings for the time there, as well as food, and a small stipend for each day you work the festival. Who's still in?"

After most of the group dispersed, grumbling about having to work, only 8 were left, and Cooper had just one question "Can I bring Whiskey?" He asked, gesturing to the large Saint Bernard currently asleep on his feet. They had been together for nearly a year at this point, and wherever Cooper went, Whiskey could be found as well.

"I don't see why not, he seems like a good boy." The man said, kneeling down to rub the large dog behind the ears. Whiskey gave a soft content sigh, and slight whine, rolling over further onto Cooper's feet. Cooper smiled, as usual Whiskey loved the attention.

"I will pick the lot of you up tomorrow at 8 AM. I'll be parked out front with a van. If you guys work hard, I might also be able to find more work for you." The man said, standing up and shaking each man's hand.

Cooper was awake early the next morning, walking outside with Whiskey to cool down in the pre-dawn air and watch the sunrise, a ritual he and Whiskey had gotten into during the passed year. As he slowly rubbed the dog's belly and watched the sun come up, Cooper thought back over the last year. He'd been kicked out because he wasn't as talented as Derrick and couldn't get a high paying job in IT out of high school. That had started a wild ride where he couldn't have survived if he hadn't met Whiskey. He always joked that the dog ate better than he did, but he knew there was a truth to that. He only used money to get food for himself if Whiskey was taken care of. Thankfully the Humane Society of Bangor gave out free dog food, and through careful usage of that, and the food he could get at the dollar store, he could keep Whiskey fed healthily.

A few hours later, he grabbed the bag of dog food, Whiskey's ball, and some pocket change, before heading out to meet the man, who now introduced himself as Brad Bradley, and the van. The 8 men were soon in Millinocket, each being given a 'festival staff' T-shirt to wear during the festival, as well as their assignments for setting up the festival.

Most of the next few days were a whirlwind of activity with the start of the festival and news slowly still coming in with the epidemic that was slowly spreading across the country. During this time, Cooper had his 19th birthday. When the CDC announced a shelter-in-place order, Cooper rounded up some supplies from the belongings people abandoned at the festival grounds since many of them ran off in panic when the news was announced.

 

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