maybe not the best idea. we hear some barking behind a fence. we think it's behind a fence. two large dogs walk out from behind the fence. they're not on leashes (uh oh). there's maybe twenty feet between them and us. they start approaching.
that's enough! one of our friends says, loudly and firmly. he's a Dog Guy, the sort of person happiest when he's cuddling a dog. he's always had a way with them. the dogs look confused at us, now. but don't approach further. we keep walking. it's done.
wish it worked on my dog, he laughed, and we laughed. their dog a large, loud, and obstinate corgi.
we make our way to the concert. it's one of those standing-room-only venues. happily, we get there early enough to score some space up against the wall where a couple of us can lean. the opener is a young guy. it's his first show, he tell us. we can tell. he's incredibly nervous, but amazing when he plays. a sort of, where the hell did that voice come from?! kind of thing. he loses his place halfway through of the songs, but that's okay. he's checking his phone to make sure he doesn't run over his allotted time, which is cute. late teens, maybe, early 20s? from a little community a long ways east of here. most of the songs, he tells us, just written in his bedroom.
and the main act is amazing (we all agree, probably the last time we get to see him in an intimate little venue), and we leave the humid theatre for the cold night air just before 10:30. we take the streets this time, not the alley. we walk quickly, but the dogs nowhere to be seen. & we head home. grateful for old friends, for good friends, for good music. there are many good things that are possible in this world.