Sleeping with a bitch at Cowboy College

Sleeping with a real bitch at the Arizona Cowboy College.

In the evening we took turns using the lone shower in the bunkhouse which was nothing more than a garage-like room with cots spread around a couple of ratty old couches, one of which I immediately commandeered. I’m a pretty light sleeper and knew that, even as tired as I was, it was going to be difficult sleeping in the same room with six other people, what with the coughs and snorts and farts and whatnot. Still, I managed to fall asleep almost immediately. And stayed that way until I woke up sometime in the middle of the night and realized that someone had crawled up on the couch with me.

It was one of the ranch dogs. I guess I was sleeping in her spot. I kicked her out of bed but two minutes later, she was back, spooning up against me. At this point I figured I had two choices: Sleep with a smelly old dog or grab my bedroll and sleep outside. I chose to move outside.

The ground was hard, the stars were bright, and the nearby horses made a ruckus all night, but I still slept pretty soundly. Until I felt something running over my sleeping bag and across my legs. A pack rat. Who stole my iPod headphones, which I found the next morning in his nest inside the barn along with a sock (not mine), several beer caps, an empty cigarette pack, and a chewed up ten dollar bill. I took back my headphones and, just to be sure, checked to see that my wallet was still tucked into a pocket of my denim jacket. Just to, you know, make sure that wasn’t my ten spot the rat had borrowed.