by Tonya Kappes
“Honey.” Dad entered the foyer with his reading glasses still perched on his nostrils. Thank God, he didn’t have his hair combed over today. His hair made a crown around his bald head. I always made a joke that he had a crown in heaven and on earth from putting up with Mom. He looked exhausted already and it wasn’t even seven a.m. “Mom said that you have some sort of new van in the drive.”
I didn’t say a word. I pointed. I stood with unspoken pride written all over my face with my hands clasped in front of me. It was so gaudy that I loved it.
The horn honked, but it wasn’t the beep-beep of a normal horn or even the Derby call from a couple of nights ago, but a woof-woof instead. Granny popped out of the passenger door with Charlie soon following her. His skull and crossbones arms were bare for the world to see. Inwardly I groaned, half hoping his tats would have been covered up the first time he met Dad and Lucia…but that hope was down the tube.
“Luvie dear, you don’t even know how to groom a dog, do you?” Dad tried to be polite and not act surprised, but I could see the shock all over his face.
He should be used to Gloria Beiderman shock-and-awe tactics. After all, that was how she got so famous in the horse racing industry. She never let a man tell her no or give her advice.
Dad took the glasses off his nose and put them in the pocket of his button-up polo shirt. He placed his hands on each side of my arms and turned me to face him. I knew this stance. Here it came; I was about to get the dad talk. “You spend countless dollars at the salon letting others groom you. How are you going to do this?”
“Daddy, I used to spend countless hours at the salon. This is just a few clients. Dogs.” I assured him. The RV did turn out really cute, and it was a pleasant surprise.
“Look at Gloria!” Mom ran back into the foyer. She had a rag up to her mouth like she was going to cry. “She did this just to spite me. And who is that man with those tattoos?”
Lillian had already made her way out to the RV and stood on the brick pavement in deep conversation with Granny until we walked up.
“So?” Granny did a little two-step and flung her arms out to the side. “You like it? It’s a mobile pet spa.” She rubbed her hand down Charlie’s arm. “Charlie’s idea.”
“You have lost your mind, Gloria.” Mom wrung her hands.
“Mom!” I scolded her.
“Why, Lucia. Those lines around your eyes are getting a little deeper every time I see you.” Granny wasn’t going to stand there and let Mom talk to her that way without getting her licks in.
“Now you two. This isn’t about you, dear.” Dad turned his attention to Mom. “It’s about helping Luvie out in a difficult situation.”
“She doesn’t know how to groom anything. Not even herself.”
“Yes she does.” Granny and Lucia were nose-to-nose. “She groomed Iggy.”
Mom backed away and rushed over to Dad. She leaned into him. He put his arms around her and gave Granny a look of death from over the top of Mom’s head.
“I don’t think she’s in her right mind,” Mom said in her loud whisper after she nuzzled into Dad’s chest.
“Who?” I pointed between Granny and me. “Her or me?”
“Luvie Beiderman, let’s get to work.” Granny laughed and grabbed my hand before she dragged me into the RV.
Behind me, I could hear Charlie introducing himself to Dad and Lucia. I cringed when I heard him say he was a retired tattoo artist. Lucia got a sudden headache and stomped up the front steps.
The RV had been completely transformed in the thirty-six hours since Granny and Charlie had picked me up from the Greyhound Bus Station.
“You aren’t going to believe how handy Charlie is.” Granny showed me all the tools I needed to be a full-time groomer. Suddenly it hit me. Granny thought I was going to make a career out of this job.
Was I? Was dog grooming something I could grow to love?
“Granny,” I gasped and threw my arms around her neck. I whispered, “Thank you. Thank you for believing in me.”
I wasn’t going to question why she had gone through so much trouble for only a day of clients. I was thankful she had so much confidence in me to do this for me.
The folding chairs had been replaced with a stainless steel counter with a pole attached to hook a dog’s leash on so the dogs would be safe while I groomed them. The cabinets had been replaced with open shelving loaded down with supplies. They were all the things I knew I couldn’t afford and had crossed off my list. The small sink had been replaced with a bigger one with a long nozzle hose so I could wash the dogs properly.
I ran my hands along every single thing. “It’s everything they showed in the videos I watched yesterday.”
“Videos? Yesterday? We thought you were resting.” Dad marched up the steps into the RV. “Oh, wow.”
Even he was shocked.
“You and Charlie did a fantastic job. You went to all of this trouble for one day of appointments?” I asked.
“One day?” Granny opened the door to a cabinet where there was a dry erase board and calendar nailed to the inside. The calendar was filled with appointments for the next month. “You have a waiting list. I have been taking appointments all night. I took four appointments at the gas station when we were fillin’ her up. Everyone in town is talking about it.”
“When exactly are you going to be able to help Mom with the fundraiser?” Dad asked. He flipped on and off all kinds of switches to see what they were for.
“I’ll find the time.” Suddenly my mood changed. I was more than ready to get started on my list of clients. There was even a TV in the RV. I could borrow my dad’s old laptop and hook it in so I could play the YouTube videos if I got stuck. “Between this, the event, and grooming school, you won’t even know I’m home.”
Woof, woof. Charlie was back in the driver’s seat and ready to go. Granny hopped in the passenger seat. “Shotgun!” she screamed.
“We have to go.” Granny tapped her watch. “Your first client in is fifteen minutes.”
“Your mom has a meeting with the shelter tonight at seven p.m.,” Dad informed me with a look of you had better be there and on time, because I’m believing in you.
“I will be there.” I walked them out of the RV and brushed my hand along the door. “Especially now that I have my own set of wheels.”
“Come on!” Granny hollered.
“Have fun dear.” My father waved us off as if we were going to go to the races, and then he embraced Mom as though to stop her from making any more comments.
Mom stood at the door in tears, using the cloth to lightly dab her face. I waved at her and she gave a faint smile.
With a couple of woofs, Charlie put the RV in gear and we headed toward the home of the near dead.
“How on earth did you do this?” I sat in the back. I was amazed, still looking around at everything.
“A little elbow grease and lot of kisses.” She winked.
“Okay.” I stopped her. “TMI—you are crossing the granddaughter line,” I warned. There were some things I just didn’t want to know about, and geriatric sex was one of them.
“Oh, come on,” she coaxed me. “Don’t you have something going on with a special someone?”
“Granny!” I shook my head and looked out the window as we zipped across town on Man-O-War Drive. We got a lot of stares and finger points as our Primp My Pet RV traveled down the road.
My phone beeped from deep within the duffle bag.
“My phone!” I cried out with excitement. It was the first time I had heard it ring since it had been shut off.
“I tried calling you last night and got the out-of-service message. I realized you didn’t pay the bill.” Charlie beeped the horn at a few kids waving from a van at the stoplight at Harrodsburg Road. Woof, woof. The kids busted out in amusement. Granny waved like we were in a parade and continued, “I paid the bill. You have to have a phone for all of your appointments.”
I dug my hand deep in the bag
to find it and saw that I had a missed call. There was a message. I hit the button to listen to it. In the depths of my stomach, I sort of wished it was Sasha telling me they had made a grave mistake and wanted my designs for the new collection.
“Hi, we just passed your dog grooming van and I would love to make an appointment. Please call me back.” The woman sounded more excited than the kids who were waving from the car next to us.
“A customer just called because they saw us.” I looked out the window to see if I could find her, but there were so many people pointing from their cars it would have been difficult to make out a new client.
“See, Charlie is good at graffiti—and other things,” Granny elbowed him, “if you know what I mean.”
“Eww!” The thought made me sick and a little jealous. How could my eighty-year-old Granny have a man and not me?
I told myself I didn’t have time for a man. I sat back and for the first time since I had been fired, my soul and mouth smiled at the same time. I didn’t realize just how much I missed being home…had missed Granny.
Chapter Eleven
We pulled into the parking lot of the retirement community next to a big pink tailgate tent with a wooden sign hanging from it that read “Primp My Pet Sign-Ins.” There was a small folding table with a couple of retirees and only one dog.
Woof, woof. Charlie tooted.
The dog jumped up and let out a howl loud enough to wake the rest of the community.
“Good morning, gentlemen.” Granny hopped out of the RV and walked around. “This is my granddaughter and your groomer, Luvie Beiderman.” Each of us nodded at the other.
“Lovely, just like your name.” A little grey-haired man took my hand and kissed it.
“Now stop that!” Granny scolded. “This is James, and his dog is Sparky. They are your first client.”
James? I wondered if Granny got their names backward. He seemed more “sparky” than the dog.
“He’s a Basset Hound?” I bent down and patted Sparky on the head.
Woowoowoowoo, Sparky sang out.
“Yep, he needs a bath, and I hear you are the one that can do the job.” James handed me Sparky’s leash.
“I am.” I smiled and yanked on old Sparky, but old Sparky wasn’t going anywhere. A little embarrassed, I gave James back the leash. “Hold on for a second.”
I went into the RV and put on one of the aprons Granny had hung up on a peg. I unscrewed the treat jar she had placed on the counter and put a few treats in my apron pockets.
I grabbed the clipboard and a pen from the cupboard before I went back outside.
“Okay, let’s try this again.” I took the leash in exchange for the clipboard. “Please fill out your information and I will call you when Sparky is all done.” I reached in my pocket, grabbed a treat and held it up to Sparky’s nose.
True to his name, Sparky just needed a little jump-start and up the RV steps we went.
Getting Sparky in the tub was a little more difficult, but we managed with a few more treats. I grabbed my bag and took out the notes I had taken from the YouTube videos.
It didn’t seem like there would be much to bathing a dog, but there was. I was sure every grooming brush ever made was hanging on the wall. I reached for one of the slicker brushes and brushed down the front, back, underneath and sides of Sparky.
He didn’t pay any attention to me as he chewed his treats.
Then I took a comb and did another thorough combing to make sure I got rid of any dander before I turned the water on. When I turned on the sprayer, it caused Sparky to jump and claw the sides of the tub. He definitely didn’t like the water.
“It’s okay, buddy.” I pushed my weight against him. But a one-hundred-and-twenty-pound woman was no match for a seventy-five-pound Basset Hound who was charging with all his might. With one death grip on Sparky’s collar, I reached my other hand in my pocket to get another treat and quickly fed it to him. “There you go.” I shoved it in his mouth and pulled him back into the tub.
“If a treat is all it’s going to take.” I took another treat out and closed my eyes. I couldn’t believe what I was about to do. How did I go from fashion designer to doggy treat briber? I put the treat between my teeth. If I had to leave it there while I bathed him to keep him from jumping, I was game. “Yuck.”
Sparky sat like we were in the Westminster Championship with his eye on the prize while I held his ears down and ran the water over his head. I used a washcloth to cover his eyes so the shampoo wouldn’t get in them.
First, I shampooed his outer coat and rinsed, then I did a second shampoo to get the under coat. Once I was done rinsing him I gave him the treat and stuck another in my mouth to replace it.
Eagerly, he sat there staring at the treat hanging from my lips and every once in a while, he licked his lips in anticipation. I lowered the stainless steel grooming table so it was even with the tub so Sparky could transition easily.
Once he was on the table, I didn’t need to use the arm clamp to keep him steady. He was happy as a lark lying there staring at the treat and letting me blow-dry him with a hand-held dryer. I was glad to see that Granny didn’t install a cage blow dryer because coming from a family who was a big advocate for the SPCA, cages made me sad.
My phone rang off the hook several times, but I ignored it. I couldn’t believe how many people had my number just from us driving the short distance across town.
I read my notes carefully about how to blow-dry the way I wanted Sparky’s hair to lie. I did it with the natural placement. Without even offering him a treat, Sparky rolled on his back with his legs up in the air. He was in dog heaven getting a good belly scratch with the brush and loving the warmth of the dryer.
The bandanas that go around the dog’s neck once they are finished being groomed had been pre-cut and were in a small pile on the counter. I picked Sparky out one with skulls on it and wrapped it around his neck.
“You are bad to the bone, Sparky.” I tied it loosely and gave him another good scratch behind his ears while I lowered the table. I checked the time and saw that it had taken me about an hour to groom him.
That was a little long, but he was my first, and I knew I would get faster with more training. I clipped Sparky’s leash back on his collar before we made our big debut in front of a line of people starting around the RV and continuing down the road. While I was grooming Sparky, Granny and Charlie had taken appointments that extended well into the next month from more of the residents at the home of the near dead.
The day flew by.
I had groomed five dogs with a little snacking in between. The last woman in line stood patiently with a small white fluffy dog in her arms.
“This is Barkleigh.” A short plump woman held her Bichon Frisé close to her body. The little puff of hair was so nervous he shook like a tree in a windstorm. “The pads of his feet are sensitive. I got him from the pound. He was left out in the winter months by his old owners and got frostbite.”
My heart broke as she told me Barkleigh’s story. I made a mental note to make up flyers for the fundraiser and hand them out to every customer. If they were taking care of their dogs they obviously cared about animals, so it wouldn’t hurt to try to get as many people as possible to the fundraiser to raise money.
But more than making up flyers, my mind started to come up with all sorts of designs for shoes for Barkleigh so his feet wouldn’t hurt so much when he walked.
“I will take good care of him.” I gently took him from her arms. “Did you give Granny your phone number so I can call you when he is finished?”
“I did.” She nodded and gave Barkleigh a lot of kisses on the head before we disappeared into the RV.
Bischons appeared to be a tricky cut, so I decided to do the basic cut I had written down. Before I even attempted to do anything to him, I wanted to see if I could come up with something to help his feet.
I put my mad fashion training to work, and with a little luck, made four little shoes
out of a washcloth. I cut some rubber for the soles from the rubber mat underneath the sink. Deep in my duffle bag, I found my sewing kit—which I never left home without—and began sewing Barkleigh a pair of shoes.
I tried them on him and they seemed to work perfectly. I took them back off and Barkleigh let me put him in the sink and was an angel while I washed him. Grooming him was another story. He wasn’t going to have anything to do with the clippers. I even had to hook his leash to the arm pole on the grooming table to keep him steady so he wouldn’t get cut by the scissors. Even the treats didn’t work.
I did exactly what my grooming notes said. First, I put my left hand on Barkleigh’s neck to pull the skin tight, so all the extra skin and rolls weren’t cut from the shears.
There was just too much hair to continue to use scissors. I put the snap-on combs on the clippers and made my way down his back.
After a short time, he was okay with the noise and let me finish his body. His legs were a different story. I pulled one leg to me as if he was in a running position, slightly lifting it off the table. This was a natural position for dogs, which made it easier on him. I carefully went around his elbows and ankles, all the while telling him what a good boy he was being. With two hours under our belt, I was ready to pick out a scarf for Barkleigh.
I picked out one with angel wings on it because Barkleigh was an angel. With his homemade shoes securely attached, I put him on the ground. He pranced around and danced for a treat, his feet never once stopping him.
I opened the door and he bolted down the steps into his momma’s arms.
“Oh, Barkleigh!” She held him up in the air. “You look so cute.” She held him tight to her and gave him kiss after kiss. “Thank you. I waited for you and had a chance to catch up on all the latest gossip with Gloria.”
“I’m glad you like how I groomed him.” I ran my hands down Barkleigh. “I hope you don’t mind that I made him some shoes so he can walk safely without hurting his paws.”
“Luvie was a big-time fashion designer in New York City before she got the calling to be a dog groomer and come home to co-host the annual SPCA and Homeless fundraiser.” Granny spoke half-truth…very half-truth. This made me suspicious since Granny was the first person to call someone out on a lie.