Thanks, y’all, for the iShuffle help. Although you didn’t help much, just told me what I didn’t want to hear — that’s it’s not my iShuffle, it’s all of them. Too bad. I’d almost talked myself into a Nano….
We just had the BEST time. If you’re not into dogs (?), then this post will bore you. But the rest of you, oh, I just have to tell you about the walk we just took.
Remember last year? When Lala was out of town being Buddhist-ey, and I took the dogs for part of the time while she was gone, and I found out how much FUN dogs are? There is nothing like the little tiny squeaks and squawks they make when you come home, is there? Those desperate "oh my god you were never coming home and we heard the sun was going to explode and what’s the point in living anymore and no one has ever loved us before this very minute but you’re home and the joy is too magnificent and I will have to bounce and squeak and cry and whimper with the delight that might make us lose our tiny little minds right NOW and oh god we love you we love you we love you."
Now, if you don’t have/like/know dogs, it sounds annoying, but it’s not. (The whimpering in the middle of the night for no reason, now THAT’S annoying.) Even on the bad days, their sheer elation can make you grin goofily, even if you’re foot-stompey and annoyed with yourself for smiling.
So today I came home from an all-day training, and I opened the door to dancing dogs. I grabbed the leash, and we took off for Mills College. (Note to the single girls/non-creepy guys – Mills is a great place to take a dog if you want to meet chicks. Not like I do. But the rest of you might like knowin’ it.)
This is right before the cop pulled us over and told Harriet to slow the hell down, that she was in a school zone.
Crisp autumn and the smell of pencils. We’re back to school! (Seriously, every time I walk/run at Mills, I’m reminded of my two years I spent there in grad school, the expensive ivory tower that I’ve never regretted. Oh, I loved going to school there. I’m a bent twig, as they say, as I followed my sister Christy there. It’s a family thing.)
Almost there now.
A wee dog, and a big hall.
The cafeteria has LOTS of nice chicken bones that Harriet would LOVE to get her teeth into. Not on my watch, baby.
Benches are good for short dogs.
My GOD, she’s happy.
See?
The little dog is running around now, being Much More Brave than we usually are: 
Yes, she looks like a squirrel. She’s heard it before. (Mills squirrels are bigger than she is, actually…)
I believe it’s something about the fertilizer they use on the grass, but both of them went all Yarn-Harlot-in-a-bath-of-kidsilk-haze, rolling around. I shudder to think about them getting in bed with me tonight, but tomorrow is laundry day, and they’re getting a Let’s-Surprise-Lala-Grooming tomorrow, also. Dirty dogs tonight will be beautiful, soft, shiny dogs tomorrow.
Then we had the MOST fun of all. We met ole Bixby here, who made insta-best friends with Harriet. Miss Idaho, as usual, was less interested in the small dog who would of course be competition in the Cutest Wee Dog competition, and ignored ole Bixby. But Harriet and Bixby met, sniffed, and RAN.
And ran and ran and ran. It’s what we always want Harriet to do when we go to the dog park or the beach — get out there and play! Run! But most of the time she prefers our company. Today, she ran, and I almost fell over laughing.
There’s not much better on an overcast day than a walk with two cute dogs on a beautiful college campus in fall. And it’s even better if your girl phones you right after the running part, and you get to talk to her for a brief moment while the dogs romp. Excellent.
