Who Hearts Dog Park?

Well, we're back . . . Mere hours after signing off last month, I took the girls to Dog Park where we experienced a slightly surreal moment. It was a glorious Sunday morning, and the girls and I were the mutts among a pack of five Ridgebacks (the Super Models, the Role Models, and Lolo, who was celebrating a birthday) and two Border Collies (Joey and Coco). The air was cool and dry,  fresh and breezy. People were chatting amicably, in no hurry to go home. Then Erica called out, "Look!" From out of nowhere, a single, red, heart-shaped mylar balloon came drifting out of the sky. It cruised down to just above Doug's head—so let's say more than 6 feet off the ground. None of the dogs but Muzzy took note. She charged up to it and leaped up on her hind feet but could not reach its string. The breeze bounced the balloon along at this height for a few yards, and Muzzy continued to follow it across the field. Then, an updraft suddenly caught it and, within half a minute, it became a tiny dot high in the sky, leaving Dog Park far behind. 

There was a collective moment of contemplation, and then came the comments. One person called out, "Love has arrived!" Someone else cried, "Someone just lost their love!" And someone else, probably Doug, said, "I hate those stupid balloons. They're so bad for the environment!" 

All of which is just to say that Dog Park still continues to yield surprises and bring people together, even if only to disagree. 

For those of you who read this blog entry, I appreciate your attention and interest. I am thinking, though, of ways to change the focus of the blog a little. Now that the days are shorter, and the ground is too damp for sitting on, there are fewer lingering conversations and newsworthy events to report. I'd like to write more specifically about the books and articles I read and the dogs I live with. So we'll see where this takes us. As always, Muzzy and Roma and I hope to see you at the Dog Park. 

-z