Hope you all made it through the return to winter that barreled into the midwest this past weekend. Out in our neck of the woods, it never got too bad. Certainly not bad enough to tell the dog "No walk, today." Casey is a Cone-Headed Golden Retriever. I'm not sure that is an official breed recognized by the dog show folks, but it does apply to this canine. From a certain angle, his head looks just fine. From most vantage points, however, he looks like he is wearing a furry dunce-cap. He also tends to be rather lazy. If he is stretched out on a sofa, bed, floor, or, occasionally, child, and you drop some food in the kitchen, he will hear it...open one eye...look at the available treat, then glance up at you as if to say "You know, it'd be great if you could just slide that over here where I can get at it. Think you could do that? Thanks a million." By about 7:00 in the evening he is ready for bed and, if you come home at anytime during the day, his eyes are little slits...and, if dogs can have bed hair and sleep creases, he has them.

Yet, when it is time for his walk, Casey, is raring to go...even in the slick, cold conditions of this past weekend. In fact, the cold seems to wind him up. Usually he gets going a little too fast for conditions and appears to rear-end himself. It's just that the brain wave, which may or may not be smaller than average, takes too long to ripple all the way back to his hind legs and they keep moving long after his front has stopped. There have been times when his backside actually got home and was asleep before the rest of him made it in the door.

This weekend also reminded me of our, now departed, pooch Checkers. She was a true mutt...in the best sense of that word. We were never sure what-all she was made of but I suspect there may have been some husky in there, as she really loved the cold and snow. Maybe it was actually more polar bear than pup. Even when she was very old and seemed to have trouble even standing up, if she got a look out the door and there was snow or ice or sleet, about ten years just fell off of her. She would run around the backyard and chase snowballs for as long as you'd stay out with her. And, if you wimped out and went indoors, she'd just laugh at you and stay put. When we'd go for walks on a cold, snowy day, her tail wagged the whole way.

So, say what you will about the Dog Days of Summer, around our house the Dog Days of Winter are even better.