NOTE: My nephew read this story, sat down next to me, gently patted me on the head and said, "Aunt Jannie, did you forget that in the 70s there were no mobile phones or text messages?" Yoicks! - yeah, I did. So this is hereby a story of S & H transported to CONTEMPORARY TIME!

A TALE OF A DOG

Starsky wasn't sick, not really. Just a little under the weather. Definitely didn't feel up to the weekly detectives meeting with Captain Dobey.

Hutch dropped by before heading out to work. Just to be sure everything was okay. At his side was his Dalmatian, Sparky.

"You and I both know you're faking it, Starsk. So long as that's the case, will you do me a big favor? My dog walker's away for the day. It's very important for Sparky to be on a schedule. Keeps him regular, if you know what I mean. Can you take him for a short walk around 3 o'clock this afternoon so he can do his business?"

"Sure, no prob."

Hutch walked back into the house around 6 P.M. He was shaking his head. He sat down facing Starsky, pulled out his mobile phone, and laid it very conspicuously on the coffee table.

"Starsk." He paused. "You know we always have to keep our phones on, in case of urgent work stuff. Right? And you and I agreed long ago that if we're not together at any time, we'd only text each other if it was an emergency. A true emergency. So that neither of us would be startled or disturbed by receiving a message from the other, say, for example, in the middle of a meeting with Dobey and 14 detectives. Do you recall that agreement?"

"Uh, yeah…."

"Do you remember texting me a couple of hours ago, right in the middle of that meeting?"

"Uh, I might have…"

"No, you didn't 'might have' - you did. Do you remember what you wrote?" He shoved his phone over to Starsky, who hung his head and read:

SPARKY NO SHIT. WHAT TO DO?

Starsky chanced a look at Hutch. "Er…what happened?"

"What do you think happened? I went into hysterics. Laughed myself sick. Disrupted the entire meeting. Take one guess, buddy, how pleased Dobey was with that."

"Well, I wasn't thinking. It was a crisis in its own way. I acted on the spur of the moment."

"Yeah,buddy, I'll spur YOUR moment!"

" I don't even know what that means. But I'm sorry. Are you mad at me?"

"Nah, I guess, and if I am I won't be for much longer. But I'm taking your phone away from you for the rest of the day, you bad little boy!"

THE (WOOF WOOF) END