Last winter, Mark and I did a 3.5-month house sit in San Diego, California with Italian Greyhounds Elvis and Frida. During that time, we met up frequently with our friend Amy, as she was a graduating zoologist/environmentalist. “You guys are so awesome with dogs,” she said. “If I ever need someone to take care of Skylos, I’ll get in touch.”

In the summer, Amy secured a six-month position in Peru. Her best friend Cara moved in with her cat Casper to keep an eye on the place and care for the dog as well. At some point during our summer travels in Zesty, Cara and Amy inquired whether we could come to Ocean Beach (a funky neighborhood in San Diego) in December to take over Cara’s “duties” as she visited with friends and family over the holidays. She’d be gone for a long weekend early in the month and a week over Christmas later. The timing was perfect. We happily obliged, as long as we could stay the full three weeks. Continue reading