daily constitutional

Well, well, this dog thing has some unexpected upsides, I tells ya! At first, when Hugo was just a tiny little ball of fur, we hardly ever took him out for walks. These days, although he still does a lot of his business on his training pad, I take him out for a couple of walks a day. One long one in the morning (about an hour) and a shorter stroll in the aft. Then, later in the evening, my beloved spouse takes him out for a quickie run in the back yard. I can honestly say that I have seldom enjoyed winter as much as right now. Of course, we've been lucky - the snow cover is fairly light and we haven't had many of the bone crushing deep freezes that Toronto often gets during these winter months. This morning, for example, it was about minus 5 Celsius, only a very light breeze and Hugo and had a ball in the park. I let him run off the leash quite a bit even though it's always a struggle to get him back on (he'll sit down in the middle distance, chewing on a twig and will take a great deal of enticement to come all the way to me so that I can snap the leash on) But seeing him run and frolic and dash through the snow and the low bushes is such a joy - it rubs off on me willy nilly. After about ten minutes I smile and even laugh out loud as I observe the hound leap and slide on the path.

Of course, the other benefit is just as obvious. Since I have to spend a large portion of my day hunched over a keyboard or a guitar or music manuscript paper, it feels invigorating to grab a couple of good walks in the chill wind. And then there's the number one bonus: after a walk, Hugo will sleep for at least a couple of hours or even longer and when he is alert and awake he is a lot calmer. It remains to be seen whether I can keep this schedule up.

This Friday, I'm playing a rather unusual gig: it's a Russian ball. Apart from our usual swing numbers, we'll be required to play a bunch of bossas, waltzes, rock tunes and of course, the inevitable "Dark Eyes", "Midnight in Moscow" and "Katyusha". I know the dance floor will be rockin'! I am half looking forward to playing with a really crack band (Glenn Anderson on drums, Cheong Liu on bass, Doug Banwell on sax and Jarl Anderson on keys. The two Andersons are not related, AFAIK) and half dreading it, as I know this will be an exhausting night. The following day I have to report to the Rex at noon, to play with the vibrant and melodious violinist, Ed Vokurka.

And, fingers crossed, in a couple of weeks I'm starting a weekly residency in Oakville - every Thursday night at the Rude Native. I'll be playing mostly with the lovely and talented Ashley Wey but other people will occasionally sit in. I say fingers crossed because I never believe I have actually inked the deal until I start playing the gigs. In the restaurant business one never knows.

Walkin' the dog...you know I'm walking the dog...