Saturday, May 02, 2009


Introducing Wilson -

Remember when I talked about Steinbeck, my former Literary Mentor and Transitional Object? Well, just talking about Steinbeck made me miss him. I realized that I needed another Steinbeck in my life. So, while I was out shopping last week, I kept my eyes open, watching for a suitable LM&TO to present itself. Steinbeck was a black and white stuffed rabbit, so that's what I had in mind. I wasn't having much luck until I abandoned the casual approach, walked purposefully into Toys R Us, and headed for the stuffed animal department. I pulled several teddy bears and a couple of rabbits from their perches, one at a time, and gazed into their eyes, but none of them seemed right. The larger animals were a bit expensive. I set them aside and kept trying to find love on a budget. I spotted a shelf full of small dogs and cats, and woo-hoo! they were on sale. I picked up a little black and white puppy, looked him in the eye, tickled him under the chin, scratched his floppy ears, and fell in love.

I named him Wilson, after the volleyball who kept Tom Hanks company on the desert island in Castaway. He is about the size of an eight-week old Lab puppy.

Adopting Wilson was such a good idea. He has restored my failing ability to 'play pretend'. When I sit watching Jon Stewart late at night, I absent-mindedly pet Wilson. Occasionally I scratch his ears, and he goes heh-heh-heh-heh. I talk to him. I plan to take him out for a ride in the next couple of days, so he can have his picture taken sitting in a dogwood tree, or maybe a cherry tree. He likes that idea. I'm even considering a companion for him, maybe one of those teddy bears with a squared-off nose and curly, glossy fur the colour of Kraft caramels.

I found it curious that on both occasions that I've adopted a LM&TO, I've chosen one that was black and white. If I were looking to adopt a real live pet, I would be looking for someone brindle or
black and tan or Just Plain Brown - but stuffed animals are different. I finally remembered that my original Transitional Object, the one I had when I was a toddler, was a panda. Duh.

So here I am, recovering my lost infancy, teetering on the edge of total lunacy, but rather enjoying it.

And no, Wilson didn't type the post. He's just checking it for typos.


4 comments:

California Girl said...

OMG that brings back such memories! My dad always sang that song to us and I'm a fifties/sixties kid so I remember the original very well. Too friggin' cute. And so is Wilson!

btw, my dog, Dewey, perked his ears every time the dog barked during Patti's song.

Unknown said...

Welcome to blogger, Wilson! I like the designation LM&TO-- of course, RFBanjo has two, so you might indeed wish to consider a companion!

Sandra Leigh said...

California Girl, you've reminded me. My sister-in-law has a Chihuahua that she has trained to bark along with her when she sings that song. Oh, dear. Now I'll never get it out of my head.

John, I agree. Oh, and Wilson says thank you very much.

Angie Ledbetter said...

No feeding or cleaning up after? Cool!

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