“Hey, fave hoomans! Spencerville’s Paw Parade was wild today. Think becoming a teen but x10! Met my sparkly dude, Ollie Bob, and flaunted my superhero badge. LiL Dot was there, adding to the mystery as always! Ran the parade route amid heaps of cheers and truly basked in their love. Ah, just an ordinary day at doggie paradise. Tail wags, Bruce the Bully.”

Listen to the story here.

Booming bulldog Bay was alive today, — with the liveliness that can only be summoned by a town preparing for the annual Paw Parade. The excitement was virtually tangible – even Bulldog Bay’s stoic seagulls were humming in anticipation. There I was, Mr Bruce, amid the buzzing crowd that hummed like an overstocked hive.

Compare my feelings starting the parade to waking up and discovering it’s your birthday – not your ordinary, run-of-the-mill birthday, but the kind when you turn 13 and officially become a teenager kind. Electric, right?

The whimsical Bark Shak was just about the perfect place to start my day. The charming fragrance of their legendary meatloaf mingled with the scent of Sharpie markers as the young fluff-balls at the corner booth marked their parade banners.

I strolled out, craving the adrenaline rush that pre-parade frenzy offered, when I spotted my best pal, Ollie Bob. If being a rhinestone-encrusted cowboy hat in a town full of baseball caps was a crime, Ollie Bob would be serving back-to-back life sentences. His larger-than-life aura felt infectious, his charisma thrilling more than the wildest roller-coaster at Spencerville’s pet amusement park.

“Hey now, Brucey,” he called out in his unmistakable cowboy drawl, “Sure you got the badge still?” And when it came to Ollie Bob, I knew exactly what badge he meant. He was talking about my bravery mark, the scar that every superhero has.

Although faded and worn, the 10cm badge was a reminder of a frightening time I faced. I fumbled and caught a whiff — a whiff of the past and the hooded gaze of the villain. It seemed like another realm, another world entirely. But Spencerville wasn’t a place of sadness but celebration. Looking at my badge, I felt more alive than ever.

Turning towards Bulldog Bay, I took a deep breath, the salty breeze brushing past my pristine white coat. At the starting line-up, my eyes caught sight of LiL Dot, sporting a colour-burst bandana opposite mine. LiL Dot was more mystery than revelation, the equivalent to ‘the girl next door who read mystery novels.’ A murmur echoed through the restless crowd as the count began.

“Three…two…one!” The crowd spin out in applause, hoots of joy reverberating with bubbling excitement, and as a unit, we were off.

Snickering through the free falls, gallivanting through the Bulldog Bay streets, we tossed our heads with mirth as the crowd went wild. There was mystery, magic, and a dash of madness in Spencerville, the town of honorable pets and infinite love. Waving to the uproarious crowd, I tipped my hat in a silent litany of devotion to them, to the endearing souls lost and majestic memories reclaimed in this town.

So, this is just another day in the life of Mr. Bruce, an adventure-seeking Bulldog living in a parallel universe, Spencerville, filled with unparalleled fun. Just another day in paradise, really.

The End.