Red rain

Space heroes, Belka and Strelka
ITAR-TASS PHOTO AGENCY/ALAMY

It's raining and raining, making for slick leaf-strewn sidewalks and damp dogs everywhere. Holly and Maia breezed in and out of town, which was lovely, since one of my top five favorite things to do is talk to Holly while we drink coffee together.

Last night the dogs acted ferocious during our late walk, barking insanely at a passing dog as they twisted and lurched around me. I juggled damp poop bags, slid on wet leaves, maintained my grip on their soggy leashes. I did see a terrible outcome flash in front of my eyes, but we made it back without biting anyone, falling down, or running loose into the street, and thus counted it as a total success.

russian commuter dogs

my very favorite recent international news story is about moscow's commuter dogs:

"The clever canines board the Tube each morning. After a hard day scavenging and begging on the streets, they hop back on the train and return to the suburbs where they spend the night."

there is a monument to a stray dog who was killed in one moscow subway station, a group of zoologists studying these dogs, and even a russian website devoted to metrodogs.