Post Vacation Blues

I took Rocket on his very first post-vaca "real" walk . He was okay when we first started out but then he started to pull on the leash and look back at me as if to say Yo. The leash? For reals? You know I'm cool! I won't run away! Eyes on man! Please! I want to explore! and I looked at him and said "Dude. I know you're cool, but you really do not want to "explore" Tarboro Street.

When it became clear that I wasn't letting him off the leash he started up with Hey. Did we miss the turn off to the beach? And why are we walking on the road? I prefer the path through the forest. Where is my beach? This doesn't look at all familiar...

And I said. This is all painfully familiar. There is no beach here and the "path through the woods" is a half block stretch of Bloodworth through the historic district. This ain't the historic district. Dude, vacation is over. Welcome back to real life.

I tried to point out some positives to this: We had been outside for  ten whole minutes and neither of us were covered in flies or crawling with ticks. He replied that some of us never went out without protection and thus were not bothered by flies or ticks and that he really misses his Michael and that Michael prepared his food "the right way" and I suck at it and even when I make the same exact thing, it isn't as good. He then went on to point out that the quality of available sticks here is tragic and if I think that "a lame leash walk to the post office " is the same as " an unleashed run on the beach" I am sorely mistaken.

He then went on to add that being "misted by the hose in the yard" is not the same as  "taking a refreshing dip in the lake" and he would thank me very much to not try to do that again as it cheapens both of us. I chose to not divulge that we have a very nice baby pool in the basement that he might want to take a refreshing dip in, but I have a feeling that this will also cheapen both of us.