The sheep, at dusk. This is when I do love them.

September 18, 2008 – Today was a bumpy ride along the perfect life. Water ditches under stress, tending (successfully) to a painful injury, trying to run the farm, interviews, photo sessions, dealing with the myriad details of a book tour, tending to my life. When the doctor stuck a needle in me, I asked him if he had a dog, and as luck would have it, he had a Lab/Beagle mix. The dog was a bit hyper, he said, and so he took him to a playgroup regulary to give him some exercise and stimulation. He jumped all over him when he and his wife came home, and wreaked havoc in the house.
  Did he really need more stimulation?, I wondered, looking away, trying not to faint, as I have done when people stick needles into me. Dogs need exercise, and attention, but do they really need play groups, or do we need to see them play? Perhaps the dog needed more downtime, more time in the crate, more time on quiet walks. Two powerful working breeds in one dog getting aroused all day, chasing balls, going to play groups, jumping up and down.
 I saw the bulb go off in the doctor’s head. “You mean, I’m doing a lot of this for me, not him?” Maybe, I said. And then it was over.