First swim in the Namkhan River

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We're going to need new sandals.

Spot was getting a bit overconfident so I took him for a swim to knock his ego down a few notches. I felt he crossed the line when he growled at me like he was the boss when I was just picking him up to safely cross the street. He thought that I was interested in stealing the goat bone I just got for him. He would later chew up the sandals behind him. That was before he understood what, "Don't do that!" means. I just left him inside alone with some pizza on a small table that he could've easily grabbed, but he understood when I told him, "Don't do that. Don't do that to my pizza." I let him have the rest of the pizza and destroy the box which he really enjoys as a reward.

I'm a person too.

We went to my favorite restaurant and he walked right in like he owned the place. A lot of places in Asia would be offended that a dog just came in and made himself at home, but people in Laos are some of the most chilled out and forgiving I've met in this world.

A lot of dudes use cute dogs as pathetic attempts as a chic magnet, but you couldn't do better than Spot. I do feel that when I go anywhere without him that my popularity drops down by about 90%. He was already named Spot when I met him, but I think sometimes I want to change his name to Seven Spots. This is because he has seven spots and it seems I have to tell him about seven times before he does anything. I sometimes call him, Mr. Wolf. I wonder how well dogs understand sarcasm. When tiny little dogs come at me and I act completely overcome with fear, they seem to be the only ones who don't get it. Maybe they just like the idea of being feared for the first time. Maybe I'm thinking way too deeply down the rabbit hole of possibilities assuming Buddhism is correct about our past lives.

Check it out.

I let him go down and check out the river for himself. Maybe he'd jump in and swim without me. Even though I got in and tried to lure him in too, he just looked at me like I was crazy, so I came back like a crocodile and pulled him in. 

Swim back!

I set my phone to the camera and put it on the steps then threw him in again. I feel bad that he got some water up his nose, but this was the kick in the ass he needed to stop his delusions of alpha. He was so mad that he started leading the way back home by a good twenty meters and wouldn't look at me or shake my hand for almost two days. Whenever we go back to this spot, he'll go down the steps and check the water out so I don't think it traumatized him like it can some dogs. If you do this to a less confident dog it could make them terrified of water forever. Don't ever do this to a cat. They will hate you forever!

Stay on the sidewalk.

Training a dog to run with you while on a bike or staying by your side is much better than training them to be on a leash in my opinion. It better prepares them to interact with other dogs and people. Of course, I don't want him to get hit by a car so I always teach him to stay on the sidewalk and cross intersections while walking right next to me. I'll also go to where I know the biggest and meanest dogs are so he can get along with larger dogs and not run away in fear into the street.

It's cool in here.

I had a scary-looking pit bull two years ago. She was a sweetheart and would never bite anyone so I'd walk her without a leash too, but she wasn't as cute as Spot. Her ugly face and scary muscular body made a lot of people feel uncomfortable and some felt truly terrified of her. Most children when they see Spot say, "Ma rahak." Which means cute dog. He gets away with walking into just about any shop with his cute fluffiness and floppy ears.

temple pose

When it's just the two of us he knows that I'm the boss and doesn't challenge me, but I'll ask him if he thinks that he's the boss when other people are around and he'll bark at me like he's a tough guy.

Run baby, run.

He might still be mad at me but I'm the only person who can protect him from the pack of dogs coming his way. I'll just kneel down and hug him and tell him it's okay and when the other dogs come I'll tell them that it's okay too and let them smell my hand. It seems like all dogs understand, "It's okay."

Your cousin is coming.

Spot is already 6 months old but his husky ears haven't pointed up yet. I wonder if they'll stay floppy like this forever.

Not fair!

He wanted to come inside of the fried chicken shop so badly because of the cool air conditioning and amazing smell, but I made him wait outside which he thought was the greatest injustice in the universe. He paced around and barked at me through the glass until I shared some with him.

Obama's watching you.

President Barack Obama actually did come here and had a coconut at this restaurant. It was probably the best marketing opportunity they'll ever have.

Go home.

Spot is a great dog and I'm very happy to have him in my life. He's also pretty good at posing for pictures.

Mekong sunset.

Thanks for reading about our walk today. Have a great day! 

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