A Walky with Shorty

I've been taking lovely Shorty for walks on the weekends. He is insane. Medically. He attacks his own lead and launches himself at you when he gets excited, which can happen within the space of 20 milliseconds. It's all with good intention, I tell myself, although sometimes there's this funny glint in his eyes... I tried the 'ignore it, he just wants attention' tactic and have the scratches to prove it. Next time, I did the dog whisperer technique: I took him on. 'NO, SHORTY, NO. NO. NO! NO.' If you heard this ringing around the arb on a Sunday afternoon - well, now you know. My success was mixed. He was definitely laughing at me. Also, if he saw any form of dog life he would practically strangle himself trying to say hello, and then we'd reach the other dog and he suddenly would get all shy. I love Shorty - such a sensitive soul. Full of joy, that's for sure, and some other interesting emotions too. Also, if you let him out of the house without a lead he'll bolt, and one time he got brought home in a police car. Short legs, big life.

It's so gorgeous in the arb at this time of year.

We also saw two massive white-tailed deer, who disappeared sharpish when they saw Shorty frolicking towards them. Amazing - it's so quiet there and easy to get lost.

I tried going to the Buddhist club meditation session in the first week here (11am on a Sunday, dedication!) and I'm going to try it again, but really, what's a better way of 'meditating': sitting on an uncomfortable cushion and hoping you don't need to sneeze in the next 20 minutes, or walking through the woods with a happy, hyperactive puppy?

There's the glint. This photo was really hard to take (he does not like standing still) and I almost lost my camera to Shorty's tongue in the ensuing minute. My legs also got a shower. I should clarify: still talking about the tongue.

It's great to get off campus for a bit, remember that there's a real world, forget about screens, breathe some air and get muddy. And then Shorty's wonderful owners gave me zucchini bread, pumpkin muffins and chamomile tea. A loverly jubberly Sunday! I'm taking the equivalent of 22 credits this semester (more details later) - and this kind of thing is what keeps me sane. In short(y), dog is god spelled the right way around.