A change in my life late, I have a Navigator in the car when Maria and I drive. Red is usually in the back seat, he lies there and does not move rain or shine, perhaps he is hiding from the animal police, who patrol parking lots for hot dogs. Red stays out of sight. Fate does not. She has her rear paws on the back seat, her front paws on the plastic separator between the two front seats. She scans the landscape with great and  unflagging vigilance, for this her ears are down  on either side, one of the many positions her ears take during the course of the day.

Once in awhile, she turns to lick Maria on the cheek or to chew on my ear, which she is fond of doing. Mostly, she has the border collie fixation on movement and shapes, especially those moving past us. I like having a navigator, I feel a bit like Lord Nelson on his flagship. Once in awhile, she goes back to chew on Red, mostly she doesn’t move a muscle.