Occu-puppy... or Orent learns "Under" while putting the "Sit" back in Sit-in

Kaytee and I decided to check out the 2nd planning meeting for Occupy Philly today. Because of its coinciding with dinner time, and Orent's sudden burst of calm maturity, and the fact that we didn't want to stay long or sit in the front or speak, we thought it would be a good time to bring the dog.

We first tried to wear him out a bit in the park near my work. That consisted of me running around like an idiot while he stood there watching me and eating dirt. I thought the puppy was supposed to do the running around...

Then we headed downtown. The crowd to get in stretched around the building! We sensibly waited in the grass across the street, resting and practicing commands.

Then, when the line died down, we went in. It was clear that the church was full to the brim (over 1000 people!) and we would not fit (though we saw a pocket dog and a pit bull head in after we did). Instead, I asked Orent to "Under" (for the first time!) under a bench. He settled right in and I hand-fed him dinner. As long as he stayed in a "Down" he got kibble, and so he caught on to "Under" pretty quickly. Highlight: a guy came over and started petting him aggressively and he just lay right back down under the bench. No stress, growling, snapping, or jumping up to respond energetically, just holding his command. It was glorious.

I don't think Orent has political views, so much as he likes to be where the people are. The "other 99%" is about 99 times more fun than 1%, because it's 99 times more people! And he believes that people with disabilities should have access and resources to live independently... I mean, that's his job after all.