Breaking the Rules

The humans here, they have all these rules. One of their big rules is that I am not allowed in the room called the "kitchen." I think this is very unfair because the humans get to go in there all the time, and that is where my food and treats are. I usually stay in the dining room, and for the most part, I obey the "No Dogs in the Kitchen" rule. But that doesn't mean I can't test things every once in a while. Bridget and Jake seem to think it's pretty funny when I sit in the dining room with just one paw over the line.

Or sometimes, two paws.

See, I know the rules. But sometimes, it's important to test them.

Big News: Doggie Community Activism Pays Off!

You may remember that a while ago, I got in trouble with THE LAW for being in the Reservoir park, which has all these signs about fuzzy creatures like me not being allowed. Ever since then, Bridget and Jake didn't take me inside, and I really missed hanging with my dog friends there, and generally running around in the grass and whatnot. Bridget and Jake had been talking with other local dog walkers, and had signed a petition asking that the park be opened to dogs. About a hundred people signed! They could have gotten a lot more signatures if they let dogs sign, too!

But this week, there was exciting news! Bridget and Jake went to the Centralville Neighborhood Action Group meeting on Monday night, and they announced that the Reservoir Park is open to dogs!!! It's very exciting! And an excellent civics lesson.

This is my favorite place to nap after a hard day of civic action:


I'm about to go spend a few days visiting my girlfriend, Gertie, while Jake and Bridget are away. It should be lots of fun, since Gertie has three kids in her house who will play with me. I'm very excited!!!

Mischief Makers!

I made a great discovery today, and that is that having two dogs at 83 Durant does much more than just double the fun. And as for doggie mischief, well, we can now officially get into much more than twice the doggie doings than we did before. Take this afternoon, for instance. Jake and Bridget went off to do errands for a couple of hours, and while they were gone, one of us (I can't say which one, but it was probably Gertie) got up on the dining room table and snatched a home-baked loaf of bread that Jake had set there to cool. One or both of us then brought the loaf into the living room, where we (probably both of us) munched contentedly, leaving a big crumbly mess (and about half of the loaf, which is how we got caught). It's great having a doggie girlfriend who helps me get into trouble!

Meet My Guest!

This is Gertie. She's visiting for a few days while her peoples are out of town. She's a very nice beagle, and we get along just fine. Don't we look cute together?

Dirty Dog

I had to have another bath yesterday. I really was a mess. Bridget and Jake were picking blackberries at the reservoir, and I was trying to be helpful by running around under the blackberry bushes, taking care of any critters that might have lived under there. In all my running around, I managed to get a big purple blackberry stain on my back, as well as some seriously dirty paws from all of my digging and scratching. Since Bridget and Jake were having guests, they insisted on a bath. I am very reluctant to go into the downstairs bathroom these days, but she lured me in with many, many treats.
I like treats.
I do not like baths.

My Brush with the Police and Adventures in Ice Cream

I got in trouble yesterday, but not the kinda trouble where Bridget and Jake tell me to get off the couch. Nope, this time, I was in trouble with THE LAW. Yup. We were out for a walk with some of the local dogs (Sammy and Joey) and their people, over in the Reservoir Park, when all of a sudden, the black and white pulled up and told us (very nicely) that we weren't supposed to be there. Yikes! There are signs saying no dogs, but there are ALWAYS dogs there (usually a half dozen or so) so no one took the sign very seriously. But I guess they're stepping up patrols, and we gotta stay out. Sigh. The officers were very nice and didn't give us a ticket. But wow, my first brush with the law! I feel like such an outlaw!

In other news, I have had ice cream, and now I am completely unsatisfied with any food that is not ice cream. Jake and Bridget and Paula (the peoples) and Bus and Marlin and I (the dogs) walked to this very nice ice cream stand where the workers saw us and said "Do your dogs want some ice cream?" What an excellent question.

Here is what I have learned: Ice cream is delicious. Oh so delicious.

All this police and ice cream stuff happened since my return to 83 Durant. As you probably know, I've been off vacationing at Aunt Paula's house with her awesome dogs. It was a good time. I learned that I am obsessed with mice (the kind that hide in your house). Here is what Aunt Paula said about me:

Carter clearly knows where [the mice] are, and gets a little intense in his stalking of them. One day I couldn't find him -- I was calling and calling, no response -- and it took 20 minutes for me to spot him: buried in furry toys (e.t. style) with his head jammed under a bookcase. I believe the spot is a mouse thoroughfare, and he was pretending to be a tunnel.

Someone has pointed out that this is some very cat-like behavior, but I'm just a very complicated dog.

I got to go swimming at Aunt Paula's, and I hung out with all kinds of dog friends. Aunt Paula is the best!