What's got four legs and likes to roll in dead birds?

BILL!

Bill is getting more active in the house, finally. As I work on my computer Bill now spends the first half hour of his day runing up and down the stairs as though he is looking for his favorite toy but not sure where he put it. Apparently this isn't the case, however, because every time I give him a toy he spits it back at me. Maybe he's just exercising...

Bill is always afraid to go out our back gate. This may be a throwback to that one time he ran away and got lost in the woods for three weeks. Either way, once we are through the gate and down the street things seem to get better for him. We have a great neighborhood park where there are many of the usual things you find in a park...dogs, people, trash, etc. Bill likes it there because there's always something to sniff.

Lately there has been a group of people training their puppies on the park. Bill's favorite new activity is to run full speed into the group of dogs and serve as their uninvited and unexpected distraction. The puppies are thrilled but I can see that the owners lack the same enthusiasm after they worked so hard to get their dog to sit and then Bill came along and ruined it. I have to be honest here - I don't stop him because I find it very amusing. Plus, the dogs are going to have to deal with distractions sometime, right?

Our afternoon walk was at the reservoir where there are often dogs chasing balls into the water. It's hot out and I'm trying to get Bill to swim so it was an ideal place for today. Bill is kind of like one of those fish that swim in shallow water with their mouths open inhaling whatever they can get. This too is very funny to watch! What was not funny to watch was the guy sunbathing face up NAKED on the path we decided to walk. Ewwww!