El Paseo

My parents were supposed to play golf today, but when I got up to go potty-poops, it was COLD!  I slipped on the driveway (last nights irrigation turned to ice) and the morning grass felt like November in Minnesota.  Crunchy!  So the frost delay set them back to a 1:30 tee time, which they would never finish before dark. 

So no golf.  No biggie.  Let's get on with the day!

We started with a 3.10 mile walk in a new neighborhood. No traffic and awesome!

Then we came back and I swam for about 30 minutes.  That felt great!

Then my mama said we needed to go for another walk on El Paseo.  So we jumped in the car and off we went.

El Paseo is FANCY!  And super dog friendly.  It's like the plan ahead for us puppers.  The area is about 10 blocks long, all shopping and restaurants, and about every 3rd store has treats and a water bowl out on the sidewalk in case one of us puppers needs a drink. 

Here is me, outside of Brighton: (see the treats and the water?)

Then my mama told me to sit still in front of the next 2 stores.  She said "this is a long way from where we come from Summer."

I wasn't sure what that meant, but my mama did buy some salsa on our walk.   She bought it at Papa's favorite place (Armandos) and then we came home and had a snack on the patio.  

Here's what I thought was cool about El Paseo:

• Fresh water to drink every 30 seconds
• Good smells in the landscaping
• Other puppers are also window shopping like me

Here's what was weird about El Paseo:

• I don't see humans actually going into the stores to buy something
• Why would my mama buy salsa on a street that focuses on high fashion?

So while my mama was inside buying salsa, my daddy and I stood outside and enjoyed the sunshine.  A lady walked out of the restaurant and in a loud voice said "Oh...my...Gawd...what a beautiful dawg.  What is your name sweethaaart?"  Her voice was really loud and brash.  I didn't recognize the dialect.  My daddy told her "Her name is Summer."  And immediately the lady reached down and petted me.  In an even louder voice the lady said "James, get ovah heah.  You hafta see this dawg.  She's beautiful."  The next thing I know, an even louder man comes over to pet me.  I think he had a hearing problem, because he was really loud.  He said, "LINDA!  SHE IS GOWA-GEOUS!  She is just like our old baby girl."  They fawned over me in a language I tried to understand.  They were loud, but friendly.  Not like the people back home, but not so bad either.  I kinda felt like a celebrity, especially with all that fancy shopping and attention.

I love it here.  New sounds, new smells, new language, and parents who are pretty relaxed.  This was worth the endless car ride.  We are having fun!

Love,

Hollywood Summer