I had to build a doghouse
for my increasingly large dog
in 2012 he was an unassuming pup
an unremarkable middle sibling
in a half-German Shepherd half-husky litter
there were nine of them, so we named them
after the last Expos home starting lineup
the litter got split and lost their names
Brad and Terrmel became Brutus and Rex
Einar stayed Einar, and Juan became Jean
and then John, and then Big John,
because while, as you know, all puppies grow,
John just kept getting a little bigger every day
by year two he could scare off stallions
just by whimpering for food
by year four he could break a helicopter by
playing with it, and was labelled a danger
to the surrounding environment
so when Big John grew to big for the world
I made the world bend
if you cared to look from space
on a clear day, and you cast your
squinted gaze towards the
central Canadian Shield,
you might see a brown atom
set apart from its surroundings
and if you free-fell from the stratosphere
and landed in just the right spot
that speck would grow and grow
into a palatial oaken doghouse
with an armoured garage door
fit for only the most giant of good boys
and atop it I live in an isolated loft
with a glass floor, and an array of
cameras and computers and phones
and my Rolodex of contractors,
city works officials, veterinarians,
forklift operators, waste management
specialists, bulk pet supply warehouses
I have pulled every string and
signed every dotted line
to ensure that Big John can simply be
I don't know if he knows
but I suspect he does
and is grateful for the trouble
