Eyes on the prize

Zorro needs a job. If he has something to do, his fears disappear. So I'm constantly looking for distractions.
On Saturday morning, he didn't want to go far from our driveway in WV. So I loitered around the road with him until the guy who lives above us, Bill, made his daily trip to pick up the newspaper. He drives a red pickup truck and takes his dogs--three yappy little beasts--with him. They bark all the way down the hill.
I pulled Zorro over to the side of the road, and Bill yelled hello above the barking. Then, once he was past us, Zorro and I took off after the truck, following it down the hill for a vigorous run.
I realize some this may sound like I'm encouraging my dog to chase cars. But I don't think Zorro was interested in the truck. He was interested in the dogs inside it. (who are cowards, by the way. If you so much as look at them sideways, they take off into the tall grass).
This morning, I caught an even bigger break that did not involve moving vehicles. On our first venture out, Zorro didn't want to go past the woodshed, so after he took care of his business, I brought him back inside. Then, after we finished breakfast, Denny saw a guy and a black lab run past our house. We're pretty sure he was renting a place nearby because we had never seen him before.
The road deadends at the top of the hill, so when they came back down I was ready. I slapped the leash on Zorro, who was watching them with intense interest from the porch, and we were off. They had enough of a head start that we didn't catch up to them--don't want to scare the tourists--but that didn't deter Zorro. We tore down the hill and didn't stop until we got to the mailboxes. Zorro would have gone farther but it was hot and I was feeling the effects of two cups of coffee and bacon and eggs. So we turned around and ran home. We were both out of breath by the time we got back so I felt we got our exercise for the day.
The forecast this week is standard August torpidity: temps in the 90s and the possibility of thunderstorms later in the week. If Zorro wants to stay close to home, he won't get an argument from me.