Sunday morning, we were relaxing on the front porch and I decided to try out our recently placed hammock. Now, this hammock is a little on the old side and hangs about six inches off the porch when occupied. I gingerly plopped down and was watching our dogs, Kate and Juliet, tear around the front yard. They were in rare form and eventually, Kate wandered up on the front porch to check in with me. As she tried her best to find a way to get close to me, I told her to "get on up here" . . .

And she did! I couldn't believe how she just jumped up there, turned around, and sat right there. No fear. Then she jumped down, went to play some more, and came back a minute later to get up in the hammock with me again.

To give you an idea of how old and stretched out our hammock is, remember those six inches I was allowed when I first sat down? They quickly disappeared when I tried to get up . . . I was literally sitting on the porch, in the hammock. I think it's time to retire this old friend.