There’s something strange going on.  Listen to this.  Duke, a new dog, came to visit me in Vermont weekend before last.  He was cute and curly — a Labradoodle, I think.  At first he seemed kind of wimpy when I started wrestling with him (the way I do with Ruckus all the time), but I have to give h…

I’m often accused, especially by members of my own family, of wasting time pondering things that others find . . . not really important. Like, what makes some towns choose black letters on white background for their street signs, and others go for the white-on-green look? Last week one of my writi…

I’m not a big fan of “authorities” telling me what dogs think.  You’ll read in the pages of some book:  It’s all the same to your dog if you’ve been gone for 15 minutes or 15 hours.  Please.  Did a dog once tell the author this? Which is not to say I don’t find myself constantly wondering what my…

Kemba’s almost two-and-a-half now, and I guess it’s about time I own up to something:  He is not a trained dog. Oh, sure, he’s house-trained.  And he’ll “sit” for you if you care to give him a treat.  But by and large, he does whatever he wants. I meant to have a trained dog this time around.  I a…

Every breath you take Every move you make Every bond you break Every step you take I’ll be watching you. — The Police I give my rolling swivel chair a sudden shove back from my desk, and Kemba, who’s been napping in his doggy bed of red-and-white ticking on the floor of my study, springs to attent…

                                                                            LOOK FOR A NEW BEAGLE MAN P…

Come on, all dogs embarrass their owners — at least sometimes. As they say on those Geico commercials, “it’s what they do.” I, for one, used to eat my own poop. Go ahead, judge me . . . though you really shouldn’t knock it till you try it. The fact is, even the little red duck dog, as Beagle Man i…

Finally . . . back in the saddle!  Vermont this time.  But only after spending seven consecutive nights under the same roof!  Can you imagine?!  For one full week I didn’t get to sniff out a new motel room! Or sit and watch Beagle Man check every closet and every drawer before pushing the luggage…

LA/XC-5 DAY 28:  POSTING FROM WESTPORT, CT Final day’s mileage from Staunton, VA to Westport, CT:  429.7 Total LA/XC-5 mileage (final): 7,420.6 Road Music:  Tons of politics — irresistable after Wednesday night’s “Nasty Woman” Debate #3; Sirius sports; selected albums: 31 (Jana Kramer); Dig Your R…

LA/XC-5 DAYS TWENTY-SIX AND TWENTY-SEVEN: POSTING FROM STAUNTON, VA Two-day mileage from Tupelo, MS to Staunton, VA: 711.2 Total LA/XC-5 mileage: 6,990.9 Road Music:  Tuesday: Entire Elvis catalogue, from Tupelo all the way to Alabama state line, then Sirius cycle, then “Deep Themes in Country Mus…