An Elf in Harrisburg

Went out early this morning to let the dogs have a good hard run in the snow. It is the delight of Zahira's life to be chased, so I took a toy along so Cairo could chase her. She knows that as fast as she is, she doesn't have a prayer of staying ahead of Cairo when they're both running wide open, so she always heads for "shelter": trees, rough country, the backstops of baseball fields, picnic tables, anything that allows her to dodge, dance, and weave. She'd be a handy little cow-horse. And Cairo when he does catch her, doesn't even roll her or take her toy. He merely "tags" her flank, whereupon she either shrieks in terror or snarls in hatred, depending on how surprised or angry she is that she got caught. Never drops her toy, though.

So I always try to find wide open spaces where, for exercise, they will run straight and true and stretch out. Don't want them making cutting horse turns for an hour. Of course, then Zahira will use me as her structure, and as I walk along she'll make loops around me to foil Cairo's hot pursuit, circling ever closer and tighter around me as Cairo gains on her.

Today we were in a big open area so they got a lot of flat out running. At the end of the field there was a small grove of trees. Zahira headed for it, racing across the field. By the time she got there Cairo was galloping hard, ranging up right alongside her. She shot into the trees and it was like the Lord of the Rings scene where the black riders are chasing Arwen and almost catch her until she dives into the trees zigging and zagging, her horse doing flying lead changes right and left, spraying dirt, jumping logs, and she escapes! As Cairo bore down on her and I saw Zahira head for the trees like a streak of lightning I couldn't resist calling out, "Noro lim, Asfaloth, noro lim!"