10. Mittens

Lesson: Dogs bring people together... at least they do in S.F.

Taking a dog on the MUNI can be a good experience or a bad experience. Luckily, my dog is small, adorable, and quiet and I rarely get hassled for trying to bring her on the bus... or not paying extra fare if her transfer pass expires.

As soon as Mittens got on the bus she started turning circles out of excitement. I noticed everyone's eyes were on her so I said aloud, "She's excited." A soft chuckle filled the bus. On the way to the groomers I had this long conversation with this woman about our dogs.

On the way back I got lucky. The driver that took us to the groomers was the same driver that took us back. I showed him the transfer- that had expired nearly an hour before- and he just gave me the thumbs up. I sat down near this guy who clearly either did not like dogs or was allergic. He was all tensed up and leaning away from me and Mittens. 

For half of the ride I was talking to this really weird guy. He told me about putting gun powder in dog food. Some other guy kept snapping at my dog trying to get Mitten's attention. Another guy kept saying, "Your dog is so pretty, so pretty."

We got to a major stop where my new friends got off, and I gained two more. Some girl kept smiling, and talking, and blowing kisses at Mittens. The guy that sat next to me took liberty and just started touching my dog. Who touches peoples kids without asking? He started the conversation For once, it was somebody telling me too much about themselves and not the other way around.

All of this happened because of Mittens.