Two Dog Nights

I am sleeping in a twin sized bed. What a lie that is; 'twin' what? Anyway, that's what I am doing. The house is unheated, but we have plenty of blankets. Last night was cold enough that both daschunds sleep beneath the covers, albethey outside of the sheets. I awoke with Woody's head beside me on the pillow, with him licking my neck. It was 5:20 and time to get up, time for him to eat and go outside. Cosi was more or less the same. Eat, pee and scratch on the screen door. She is so dense that she never comes back to the same door she goes out. So she scratches at the far door. I don't always hear her, but she's trained me to look out for her. That's the thing. Maybe she's just smarter than I am, waiting for me to come over to her view of the world. I don't know. But when they watch me at night for the rigiht moment to leap up onto the bed, I consider it a great honor, being included in the animal kingdom, where for a night and when I am close to the icebox, I am top dog. Excuse me while I go out and piss on the perimeter of the territory.