Singed Synapses and Deranged Dendrites

Rover (#round)

Beverly Simpson prided herself on aging with grace. At 86 she still walked a mile every day, attending aqua aerobics on Tuesday mornings, and kept up with her nine grandchildren. 

Today she set out her tea set in anticipation of a visit from her favorite granddaughter, Maggie who had just gotten into college. She had baked Maggie's favorite peanut butter cookies and just brewed some tea when she heard Maggie enter. 

"Good afternoon, Grandma," Maggie said giving Beverly a big hug.

"You dyed your hair purple!" exclaimed Beverly. She was not one to poo-poo modern styles. "It looks lovely, maybe I should try it sometime."

"Oh, grandma!" said Maggie. "You should. It would be easy because your hair is already white. I could do it for you." 

The excited look on Maggie's face almost convinced her to go for it but she had a ladies trip planned to Boca Raton in a month and she didn't think everyone there would appreciate her attempt to be 'hip.'

"So tell me about your plans for the summer," asked Beverly, steering the subject to safer grounds and guiding Maggie to have a seat at the table.

"Oh, I'm working for Rover," said Maggie, helping herself to a few cookies. 

"And who is Rover?" asked Beverly, pouring them each a cup of tea.

"Rover isn't a person, its an app," said Maggie. When Beverly gave her a blank stare she continued. "Like on your phone, Grandma. The button you push when you want to look at the weather."

"You are going to work for the weatherman?" asked Beverly.

"No, Grandma," laughed Maggie. "Rover is a dog walking app. I'm going to walk dogs."

Beverly considered this for a moment. 

"Oh, that's nice. So people will call you if then need you to walk their dog?" she said.

"Well, kind of," said Maggie. She scooted her chair around so she sat next to Beverly. Beverly put on her reading glasses and looked down at Maggie's phone. 

"See this is my profile 'Mags.' People read my reviews and the area I cover and my schedule and if it is a good match they reach out through the app."

"With a text message?" asked Beverly with hesitation.

"Yes, exactly–through the app," replied Maggie.

"And why do so many people need someone else to walk their dog? Are they home sick with the flu?" asked Beverly.

Maggie shook her head. "No, most of them are at work." 

"Well if they have to work why don't they just put the dog in the backyard tied to a tree if they are gone all day."

"Grandma!" exclaimed Maggie. "That would be cruel!"

"Mmm," said Beverly, taking a sip of her tea and thinking how much the world had changed since she was young. This seemed like the most ridiculous thing she could think of. Surely people had neighbors or family if they had to work so much. Or if they were truly away all the time maybe they shouldn't HAVE a pet to begin with.

"And here I set my rates," Maggie continued, scrolling through the app. "I set mine at the average which is $25 for a half hour walk." 

"Twenty-five dollars!" exclaimed Beverly, becoming round-eyed.

"Plus tip," said Maggie.

Beverly did some mental arithmetic. As a retiree on a pension she was always watching her budget. 

"Can you show me how to download this app?" she asked Maggie.