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16
HARRISON
“Is this his natural size or are you feeding him GMOs?”
I’m firing dozens of silly questions at this dog’s owner, wondering how much he spends in a week feeding this big boy.
Caucasian Shepherds are famed for their size, but this one right in front of me is far larger than a fully grown male tiger.
I’m out on a short walk around the district, trying to clear my head and take in the scenery. A coping mechanism I’ve learned to appreciate over time is drowning out negative concentrations with positive ones. The tensions were too stiff back in the office, so here I am now, talking to this Wall Street guy in a tight-clad designer suit walking his dog.
Who on earth brings a dog this big to work? Apparently, according to the guy, his hedge fund is shooting a commercial and the dog is an integral part of the process. From pup to massive beast kind of marketing tactic, and the pup they brought in is a tiny dog from an entirely different breed. Wall Street people, I’ll never understand them.
The dog guy laughs, jolting me back to my senses.
“He eats only natural dog food and lots of healthy stuff. No GMOs. He’s just from a variety of Caucasians that tend to grow beyond imagination. He was actually bigger than this a while ago. I had to put him on a vet-approved diet. His size made it difficult to mate. The females couldn’t stand him.”
Unbelievable.
This dog was actually bigger than this before?
Stroking the big boy’s dark brown fur, I feed him a few treats from his owner’s go bag. I love dogs a lot, especially these big hairy ones with a history. The Tibetan Mastiff, Huskies, and of course, Caucasians. I’m not exactly a fan of Pit Bulls and Rottweilers. The violent sides are unnecessary in my life.
Still petting the dog, I let my mind wander.
The restaurant on Third Avenue now has brand new glass doors, and I remember the broken one with brown tape plastered out front. There’s a group of guys I recognize from a private equity brokerage standing at a food truck nearby, stuffing their faces with burritos. The coffee shop has a line extending so far it spills out the front, and people are coming out holding six to twelve cups on trays at once. There’s a pigeon ravaging a food wrapping in front of me, and somehow, the dense smell of New York‘s signature foul air doesn’t bother me one bit.
Exhaling deeply, I pat the dog, shake the owner’s hand, and begin my walk back to the office.
Things have been really dramatic around the office lately. I don’t understand the switch-up in Charlee’s interactions with me.
A week ago, everything seemed perfectly okay to me. We were talking more, the awkwardness had become non-existent, and I could go to her at any time with any problems. I found calmness and peace around her, and I thrived, really, letting go of so much pent-up stress.
Now, all of a sudden, she avoids me like a plague. When I try to have a conversation with her, something always pops up and she dashes off to the general office.
I can tell she’s avoiding me. I just can’t figure out why.
Opening the entrance to Building Bridges, I make my way to the kitchen for a drink of water. I’m turning everything around in my head, but I can’t fathom what I must have done or said to Charlee to trigger her new behavior toward me. Is she still hung up on some tensions? Did someone say something to her about me?
I’m not liking this new development but I can’t let anything ruin my mood right now.
And… I’ve jinxed it.
I’m still standing there downing a bottle of water when the object of my problems breezes into the kitchenette.
I know what’s going to happen next, and so I’m faster than her. I don’t touch her, but I reach around and block her path before she can dash out the door again.
“What’s chasing you away, Charlee Fox? Is there a monster in here that I don’t see?”
A mischievous smile spreads across my lips.
“It’s… it’s nothing. I left my mug upstairs. I’m just going to get it,” Charlee says. She tries to walk around me but I move swiftly again.
“Hey, stop this. Stop it, please. Let’s talk like mature adults.” A strain that I don’t like enters my voice.
Charlee probably notices this, but I’m not sure she cares as she desperately tries to maneuver around me.
I keep moving in pace with her, not backing down. “Charlee, what’s wrong, why are you avoiding me? And don’t even deny it because you know I’m right.”
