Bao beside the pool of our Mexican hideaway, guarding my knock off crocs.

It's one of those very big, resort pools -- S-shaped, with a couple of little wooden bridges over it. There are actually two pools, which look as if they're connected, but they're not. Instead of swimming boring, monotonous laps, I can circumnavigate the larger pool, which is the equivalent of twenty laps. I really like this as I get a good workout without being continually reminded that I am no longer physically capable of executing a decent tumble turn without damn near drowning myself in the process.

As far as Bao is concerned, I'm swimming in a dangerous ogre's water dish. Why am I doing this? He hasn't a clue. But he is determined to protect me from my human foibles, and so he trots dutifully around the perimeter of the pool, watching me and looking worried. This is a long trot in the hot sun for a little dog.

I'd be a lot happier if he just sat quietly on a deck chair in the shade, and I've been trying to encourage him to do this, without much success. I guess he figures that if I'm going to swim in an ogre's water dish, it's his job to protect me. Wouldn't I love to know what really goes through that mind!