[nagdu] Haas anyone ever gotten lost in their own yard?

[Allison Nastoff]

Hi List,
I had a rather frightening experience last night.  I was 
wondering if a similar experience has ever happened to any of 
you, or am I the most directionally challenged person in the 
history of humankind (grin).
Usually, I can brag that Gilbert is a perfectly behaved dog.  He 
always obeys me, and when I take him out to relieve, I take him 
to his designated spot just off the porch in the grass, he does 
his business efficiently, and we go back into the house without 
incident.  But every once in a while, and it seems to be when 
snow has just melted, and there are all kinds of new currious 
scents, he will get so preoccupied with sniffing that he leads me 
far past his relieving area, and I get lost.  It has only 
happened twice, but last night was the most frightening because 
it was midnight and I was completely alone.  On top of that, I 
forgot to put my cell phone in my coat pocket, and I didn't even 
bring his harness so he could work me home if I got lost.  Living 
in the same house for 18 of my 19 years, you would think I should 
know the way around my own yard right?
Anyway, I live in a rural suburban area with no sidewalks and a 
two acre yard.  I took Gilbert into the grass, and he peed like 
he was supposed to, but then he started walking and sniffing.  At 
first, I thought he was just sniffing out the perfect spot to 
poop, but after awhile when we started getting farther and 
farther from the house, I realized he was sniffing out of 
naughtiness, not looking for a place to poop.  I gave him a 
correction and tried to tell him firmly, "let's go home.  The 
trainer did recommend that I have Gilbert on a long leash when he 
relieves, but I prefer short leash because on long leash, it is 
harder to tell when he is squatting to poop, and harder to find 
it when he is done.
I turned in what I thought was the direction of my house, and 
used an old trick I figured out when I used to get myself off the 
school bus and walk up the driveway.  I slapped my right leg with 
my hand, and the sound echoes off the house, thus leading me in 
the right direction.  What I didn't realize until last night 
though is that this echoe can also bounce off trees, so before I 
knew it, I was walking into a clump of trees.
A huge weakness of mine is that I am a panicker, so when I 
realized that I had walked into a clump of trees, of course I 
panicked.  I ran in circles trying to pick up an echoe, and when 
I did hear one and follow it, I only went deeper into the trees.  
I tried shouting for help but no one heard me.  I tried waving my 
arms, but there was nobody outside, and even if there had been, I 
now realize they probaly wouldn't have been able to see me from 
where I was anyway.  I don't know how long I wandered in panick, 
but finally rational thinking did set in.  I realized that I 
could either camp out there all night, or calm down and retrace 
my steps.  I knew I was capable of the latter.  I told Gilbert to 
sit, took deep breaths, and realized that I could hear cars.  If 
I followed the sound of the distant cars, I would end up back at 
my driveway.  I turned around, ducked through the tree branches 
and followed the cars.  When I slapped my leg again, I heard the 
familiar echoe, and this time the echoe led me the right way.  I 
have never been so overjoyed to feel blacktop under my feet!
Last night during the ordeal, I was on the verge of tears, but 
since all ended well, I can now reflect back and laugh.  If I 
made it home alive in the worst possible circumstances, getting 
lost on my college campus will be a piece of cake now.  And I 
also learned why cell phones were invented (grin).
Allison and Gilbert