Sydney Brillo Dog passed away on Sunday. He was a very good boy.
A gentle, good natured shepherd and chow mix rescued from the mean streets of Passaic County, New Jersey in 1996, he brought love, joy and laughter to his pack. A constant companion and home sentry, he offered regularity and certainty in the whirlwind of human affairs and contrivances. He represented home and the responsibilities attending to it. He started our day and he ended our day, and at the end of the day, any day, he would be there in regal repose, cashing out the affairs of the day in sleep, a reminder that the next day is a new one of opportunity.
Defiler of rugs, burner of lawns, licker of kitchen dishwasher plates, scratcher of wood floors, devourer of kitchen can garbage, chaser of squirrels, listener of approaching peril, heaver of gargantuan sighs, comfy chair aficionado.
A very social beast, of visitors he demanded at least five minutes of your dedicated attention to the scruff of his neck or, in his youth, a few minutes with your leg.
He suffered the indignities of babies, of banishment to the basement, and the existence of cats.
An ingenious member of his species, he spent much of his free time observing his surroundings for any opportunity to eat. Long suspected of a string of food disappearances, highlights of his career are said to include the ninja like removal from the back of the kitchen counter of a platter of twelve raw tenderloin steaks awaiting the barbeque; a birthday cake; a loaf of bread scored from the grocery bag as it was being carried into the house; and 12 goody bags full of candy left carelessly on a playroom floor.
His favorite walks included Jockey Hollow National Park in Morristown, NJ; the beaches of Delaware; the C&O Canal Tow Path; the Westland Middle School field; and, in these last years, the streets and grass path near his house in Maryland for short walks to school.
No one rode shotgun like him.
Spring offered sweet, green shoots of grass for his casual consumption; snow astounded him; he loved to stretch out on a 100 degree deck; and every pile of Fall leaves required several minutes of olfactory forensics.
A great and loyal animal, his loss will be felt across the seasons.
He was a very good boy.
Rest in Peace.
