In 2017, I was on the road touring playing Las Vegas, then Arizona, and ending in Los Angeles. As part of the night in Vegas, I was doing some press interviews. One of the outlets was with the organization #LOVEPUP whose tactic is an extremely smart and simple one. They ask people in the public eye with large social media followings to come take photos with dogs looking for homes and post them to spread awareness. I was being interviewed while holding a different dog and Spumoni came over curled up and fell asleep in my lap. Her story was that she was a bait dog recovered in a neighborhood in Arizona notorious for pit bull fighting rings. Bait dogs are small puppies that dog fighters use to train their dogs to kill. It’s a disgusting, heartbreaking reality. Spumoni was found sleeping under a dumpster with two male puppy siblings. I fell in love instantly and told the man that ran the organization “I’m taking this one home.” He told me “that’s not how it works” to which I replied, “That’s how it is gonna work.” However, time was not on my side. I had to be on stage in two hours and I was leaving town on a 9:00 am flight the next day. I told them I’d pick the dog up the next morning at 7:30 AM on my way to the airport. When I got back to the hotel I called the local PetSmart and asked if they delivered. The woman who answered the phone laughed out loud, rightfully so, and told me they didn’t. I then asked her if she watched a television show called Impractical Jokers, to which she replied “I love that show.” I explained to her that I was Joe and trying to adopt a dog before I leave tomorrow. She was hesitant to believe me but after she checked the internet to see that I was indeed in town playing the MGM. After I yelled “Larry” a couple times for her to verify my identity, she agreed to put it all together and deliver to my hotel concierge. A true hero. The next morning I was all set to grab the puppy and boom, Spumoni was mine. Spumoni, a Yorkie Terrier mix, is my most loyal dog. She loves me with every hair on her body. And she is my travel buddy because she’s compact, so it’s easy. I often take her along when traveling for work when doing speaking engagements or tours to provide a little comfort of home on the road. Every night when it’s bedtime she makes a little nest between my knees and curls up in the most adorable little way. Just like the first time we met.