Fall 2024

W iinifred and I were cruising Scenic Road when on the radio we caught Mama Cass croon- ing “Dream a Little Dream of Me.” (And if a crooning Mama Cass doesn’t stir your melodic sweet spot, you need to take a road trip with The Mamas & The Papas down “California Dreamin’.”) Cruising and crooning with Cass, I murmured, “Sweet dreams till sunbeams find you/Sweet dreams that leave all wor- ries far behind you…” A wishful lyric, which only made me realize how far from that lovely ideal so many of us are. Unfortunately, my contrarian pen- chant went straight from sweet dreams to:What keeps you awake at night? Uhhhhh… On second thought, let’s go here instead: What keeps your dog awake at night? NOTHING! Watching the ease with which Winifred floats away to dreamland, I should only sleep as peacefully.Which makes me wonder what Winnie dreams about? Could it be anything like what I dream about? I hope not. Because on occasion I have dreams of Winifred somehow getting off leash and lost in a strange city. The idea of her simply gone and suffering who knows what is unbearable. And I jolt awake in panic. Gazing upon my furry angel curled asleep at the foot of the bed, I reach out and gently touch her back, careful not to wake her from her doggie dreamland. Which admittedly is not always a happy place. Occasionally Winnie starts yipping, woofing in her sleep, legs churning, and I wonder if she is running from a coyote or mountain lion prowling the hills where we live. A legitimate concern, though I would love to think she’s trying to save me from that maraud- ing mountain lion. And maybe she is. Because according to Dr. Deirdre Barrett, a clinical and evolutionary psychologist at Harvard Medical School, “Dogs dream similarly to humans and likely dream about their pet parents.” Then again, if dogs dream “similarly to humans” and we occasionally have fantasies about other humans, does that mean our fur babies have similar fantasies about other dogs? Possibly. But what if it is not about other dogs? What if it’s… Other humans ! What if Winifred is having fantasies about a certain younger, handsome neighbor who is always buying his fur baby adorable coats and collars from The Carmel Dog Shop, takes her to “Yappy Hour” at The Cypress Inn, and even goes for electric bike rides with his pooch in a sidecar from Mad Dogs and Englishmen? YIKES! Say it isn’t so,Winnie! On the other paw, if you’ve dreamt about other humans, have you never fantasized about other dogs? Maybe you have a Chihuahua you carry around in a shoulder bag, or stroll in a baby carriage along Scenic Road. But every once in a while, in your wildest dreams, you fantasize about a big woolly Bernese mountain dog you can rough house and wrestle with. Or perhaps you have a big dog and secretly long for an adorable Yorkie who jumps in your lap and snuggles against your chest without suffering the rib-crushing affection of your 180-pound Great Dane. That said,Winifred and I suggest you do not willfully confess such fantasies to your current four-legged family. Or worse, have such fantasies while napping with your fur baby. For your pooch is very attuned to your most secret prurient desires. Your wanton heart will stir them from their sweet dreams. Once awake, they will intuit your lecherous longing in your drowsy smile, your pleasurable moaning. And they will WOOF! you wide awake with a snarling, “You can do THAT with your next fur baby!” Which will probably be the last time your precious pooch dreams a little dream of you ! A screenwriter and best-selling golf humorist in a previous life, Mark Oman forsook his golf addiction and took up with Winifred, co-author of their screenplay, “Murder, Misfits and Mutts!” Mark and Winnie live in Carmel with four-legged little sister, Molly, and two-legged wife, Barbara. Contact Winifred (or Mark) at: mark@markoman.com . DOG TALES M A R K O M A N If dogs dream “similarly to humans” and we occasionally have fantasies about other humans, does that mean our fur babies have similar fantasies about other dogs? Dream a Little Dream of Me 54 C A R M E L M A G A Z I N E • F A L L 2 0 2 4