Dog Sitting. Or how doing I something I did a lot as a teenager made me feel more grown up than ever.

Running Buddy had to go to Baltimore last night, so asked me to dog-sit. I was more than happy to help out. (Are you paying attention to this good-deed doing Karma?)

I babysat, pet-sat, and house-sat all through high school, so this was nothing new. And other than somehow managing to lock myself out of the apt. EVEN THOUGH I HAD THE KEY, everything went smoothly. (I got in through the back door eventually.) It was actually really pleasant taking a dog for a walk around the neighborhood. It gave me a sense of really living here, even though I've been walking/running in this neighborhood for almost 2 years. I also forgot how awesome dogs are. Having someone get that excited just about you showing up is really nice.

Running Buddy left me a bottle of riesling as a thank-you, so after the walk I curled up on his big leather chair in front of his big flat screen, found a What Not to Wear Marathon on TLC, ordered a pizza, and hung out with my new best friend (the dog). Basically had the best Friday night ever.

While I may not be ready for the responsibility of owning a dog myself, it was a cool realization recognizing that I was not dog-sitting for some adult I know, but a friend of mine. Because, you know, we're adults now. And grown-up enough to have our own pets. And grown up enough to have to go out of town on business. And grown up enough to be paid with a bottle of wine. I love it.