Running a few feet with unwanted company that puts itself in mortal danger

Being a technoweenie, I love my Garmin Forerunner 305 (while I might be a technoweenie, I'm not necessarily and early adopting technoweenie, which explains why I haven't moved up to the 405 yet). Nothing is cooler than strapping that thing to my wrist, running, and then seeing the route I took overlaid on a map moments after I finish.

Here is a partial view of my route from yesterday, a 6 miler that I did even though it was windy as all get-out and I've been feeling a little under the weather:



Notice there's a yellow circle. That shows where things went a little strange. Zooming on that part of the run, you can see this:



Still not that close, but you can sort of see something that looks like a knot. Luckily, the 305 maps well enough to zoom in close, although not quite exactly over the right place on the map at this zoom level:



What cause me to run around in a circle right in the middle of the road? A dumb dog that tried its darnedest to get hit by a car.

I was running up the road -- during the toughest part of the run, about a mile-long incline that features a nice hill at the end -- minding my own business when this little pug looking thing came out of a yard to follow me. He wasn't even chasing; more like he was just trying to hang out. He was just meandering around behind me and all over the road while cars were driving down it. One driver was alert enough to see the dog a) wasn't on a leash, b) wasn't really with me, and c) wasn't paying the least bit of attention to the car or where its wheels were.

The car stopped and I ran around it trying to shoo the dog away while proclaiming to the driver that it wasn't my dog. He seemed understanding. I finally saw the dog was by the curb, motioned for the car to get while the getting was good and took back off on my run. The dog followed me for a few more feet and then retreated to more familiar territory or something.

I kind of worried about the dog, but I was in the middle of a run, and at the toughest part of it at that, so selfish technoweenie me kept going and only turned back to look to see that the dog wasn't splattered on the road once. Then I turned a corner and forged ahead, cranking up the Motorhead in order to cleanse the brain and get my focus on.

The run was good enough, but I definitely have a cold thing and when I finished I was dizzy and felt nauseated. Bleh. At least I don't have to run until Sunday now.