This morning, Lucy and I took our usual walk through Amherst and visited the farmer's market. As usual, I got a loaf of Sunny Flax from one of the two organic bakeries that come every week. While I waited in line, a woman and her two children asked politely if they could pet Plato. They said they had a little boxer at home. Plato licked the children's faces, which amused everyone, except for the children of course. I placed my order and while it was getting packed up, I tore a sample piece of olive loaf in half, ate one part, and got Plato to speak for the other half. He expects this now and begins salivating even as we're waiting in line. Plato had to work himself up to a good bark and, by the time, he could produce one, he was slavering with drips of saliva and foam spraying everywhere. While I was handing my bread to Lucy, I lost track of Plato for a moment and when I looked down, I discovered he had found someone's bags and was extracting a baguette. I told him "Leave it!:, and he obediantly dropped it instantly. With horror, I immediately apologized, rather abjectly, to the woman and offered to buy a replacement, but she said it was OK, saying that she had a dog at home and understood perfectly how it could happen. I recognized that she had petted Plato earlier and had appreciated his qualities. She picked the loaf up off the pavement, brushed it off, and said she'd give that one to her husband. Then, thinking better of it, she tore off the end and, after asking if it was OK, offered it to the criminal himself.