I am Stella, Queen of the Olde English Bulldogges. The doorbell keeps ringing. I hate the doorbell. Why can’t we just be left alone?
Me: Visitors have been coming by. And neighbors. And packages are being delivered.
Stella: I am minding my own business and then that intrusive noise that doesn’t even sound like human music. Bing, bong, bing, boooong! Bing, bong, bing, BOOOONG! And it makes me jump every time it happens, and I never know when it’s going to happen and…
Me: Settle down, girl. There won’t be so many visits coming up.
Stella: Will all the humans go back to normal now?
Me: Well, yes, at least the ones who were normal to begin with.
Stella: So, no more wild, loud noises, right?
Me: Well…
Stella: What are you hiding from me, Lady Human?
Me: Next week is New Year’s Eve.
Stella: NO! Not THAT New Year! The LOUD, EXPLODING SKY New Year! Already? Again?
Me: Yes. I’m sorry.
Stella: And you said the humans were going back to normal now. For shame, Lady Human! You lied to a dog!
Copyright 2019 H.J. Hill All Rights Reserved.
Bulldoggy 
Oh, Stella! I try to act tough but I am so scared of big bangs and pops in the sky! Woofs and Wags of Commiseration, Sunny
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Dear, dear Sunny, I don’t even try to tough it out anymore. I tuck my head into Lady Human’s blankets and tell myself over and over, “Just keep breathing. Just keep breathing.” Lady Human told me that it costs the humans money to blow up the sky and eventually they run out of that stuff, whatever money is.
Hang in there, my friend. We will make it through. Queen Stella
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Thank you, Queen Stella! I will breathe harder than normal, shake all over, and, depending on how scared I get, I may even skip dinner. Woofs and Wags, Sunny
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