a thousand words
STORY & PAINTING BY ROBERT BECK
DOZER
D
OUG DODGE, WHOM I have painted and written about many times, called me Monday night from Maine to tell me his dog died. That is news of interest well beyond Washington County. Dozer was not just any dog. An old rescue lab, Dozer was one of the kindest, gentlest dogs on the planet. He was also one of the fattest. It’s been said you could land a plane on his back. I’ve written that he resembled a black claw-foot tub. Dozer had stopped eating, and it was clear he was sick. The issue was diagnosed as cancer in the lung, and the vet put him down. Doug brought Dozer home, the neighbor drove over with a backhoe, and they “wrapped him up good and buried him deep, in a spot that gets nice light.” Dozer was a prominent member of Jonesport and Beals Island society (when you read that, hear “DO-zuh” for full Downeast effect). He went everywhere with Doug. If Doug was doing work at the Shipyard, Dozer would wander into town, hang out at the Liars’ Table in the variety store, and listen to the lobstermen as they played cribbage
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ICON | MARCH 2021 | ICONDV.COM | FACEBOOK.COM/ICONDV
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