This is a photo of me, Lincoln Mitchell, and Penny Lane at Purple Waves Cafe in Manhattan. I am a professor at Columbia University, kibitzer and writer. I live primarily in New York, but spend a fair amount of time in San Francisco, a city a write about quite a bit including in my new book Three Years Our Mayor: George Moscone and the Making of Modern San Francisco. I am also Penny Lane’s human. Penny Lane is a three-and-a-half-year-old goldendoodle. She is a wonderful and high energy beast.
What's the occasion for Coffee with a Canine?
I have a regular Friday afternoon with a group of friends. When the weather is nice and we can sit outside, Penny Lane joins us. In general, Penny Lane joins me in the neighborhood a lot, but her favorite place to go is campus, because the students love her.
What's brewing?
This is a very hot day, so I am drinking lemonade. Because of my work and my nature, I spend a lot of times in faces, but perhaps ironically, I do not drink coffee.
Any treats for you or Penny Lane on this occasion?
I am having a piece of lemon cake as well. I did not set out for such a lemony afternoon, but it turned out that way. Penny Lane usually gets treats before and after these outings, but she has water here.
How were you and Penny Lane united?
Because both my mother and my younger son, who is now an adult, both love dogs but are allergic to them, we needed to get a hypoallergenic dog. We got Penny Lane from a wonderful breeder in New Jersey called ChaChaDoodles.
How did your dog get her name? Any aliases?
Penny Lane is named after the Beatles song as you probably guessed by now, but I love the name because she is always in my ears and in my eyes. We sometimes call her PL. Some people call her Penny, but I think she prefers her full name-and I prefer to call her that.
Does Penny Lane do more to help or hinder your writing?
Penny Lane is a very good research assistant and is acknowledged for that in my new book. She sleeps on the job a lot and still has not learned to use a computer, but that is fine. When I have long days at home, taking her out for a walk is a great break.
Your new book is about a fascinating period in modern San Francisco history. Is San Francisco a very dog-friendly city?
San Francisco has become a very dog-friendly city. Penny Lane has visited San Francisco once when she was smaller, but she is now too big go on the plane with me. When I took her out there, people were very friendly to her including the parks and
recreation people who work in the park where I took Penny Lane every morning. Penny
Lane used to visit them when they were doing their morning stretches. Additionally,
there are a lot of goldendoodles in San Francisco. I once saw a guy walking five
goldendoodles there. I chatted with him, and he told me he was a dog walker who only
walked goldendoodles. That struck me as very niche, but the man and the dogs all
seemed happy.
Cat, postman, squirrel...?
Penny Lane has been friends with our postman since she was a puppy. They still greet each other very cheerfully when they see each other.
Ball, squeaky-toy, stick...?
Penny Lane is obsessed with balls, but really anything I can throw. When we take our morning walk in Central Park she insists I throw the ball pretty much the whole time. Last fall I was watching a World Series game on television with Penny Lane. I think I threw the ball during that game more times than all the pitchers for the Yankees and Dodgers did.
Who is Penny Lane's best pet-pal?
Some of Penny Lane’s friends from when she was a puppy have moved away. I think her best canine friend now is Wrinkle. Wrinkle is also a goldendoodle but is about ten years older and is my sister-in-law’s family dog.
What is Penny Lane's best quality?
Penny Lane seems to have figured out that she is so cute and friendly that basically everybody likes her. She loves people and they mostly love her, so the more social situations I can take her to, the better.
If Penny Lane could answer only one question in English, what would you ask her?
I think I would ask Penny Lane the same question I said I would ask Isis [photo right], the dog I had before her, years ago. I would ask Penny Lane “Are you happy?” I would like to know if she is, and if not, what we can do to make her happier.
If Hollywood made a movie about your life in which Penny Lane could speak, who should voice her?
I think Lucille Ball would be great. She would bring the combination of goofiness, humor and intellect that Penny Lane has.
What advice would Penny Lane give if asked?
Penny Lane might tell me “Be here now.” I have always struggled to do that and Penny Lane, like most dogs, is much better at that than I am.
Visit Lincoln Mitchell's website.
Coffee with a Canine: Lincoln Mitchell & Isis.
The Page 99 Test: San Francisco Year Zero.
The Page 99 Test: The Giants and Their City.
The Page 99 Test: Three Years Our Mayor.
Writers Read: Lincoln A. Mitchell.
My Book, The Movie: Three Years Our Mayor.
--Marshal Zeringue
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