If you’ve seen the movie, “Back to the Future,” you know that Marty McFly had to hide the DeLorian time machine, when he went back into the past, because the locals back then wouldn’t know what to make of it.

The same is true of Santa with his reindeer and his sleigh. He’s gotta hide it well, because there are unscrupulous individuals who’d steal a sleigh of flying reindeer, without thinking twice, especially if one of ‘em has a glowing red nose. They’re worth an awful lot, because Santa’s got the only ones, so they’re very rare.

When he landed in Alaska, he found a home in the mountains, which had an old empty barn behind it. The family who lived there were on vacation in the Bahama’s and wouldn’t be back till two days before Christmas, so Santa felt Rudolf and crew would be safe there.

Usually, he can walk around any town in the world in costume in December, because people, when they see him, just assume he’s an old guy playing Santa and is on a break from the mall or the store, where he’s been having his photographs made with smiling and happy boys and girls.

And this pleases Santa, because even though he’s in full costume, he’s incognito. And everywhere he goes, people smile and wave and he knows they’re wishing he was real and he is, but he can’t tell them, because he lives for kids who believe. Making people believe is not what he’s about, they gotta do that all by themselves.

So, with his reindeer hidden and happy, Santa went to Juneau, where he stopped in at the Red Dog Saloon and ordered a Corona with a smile. The smile was because Mexico is one of his favorite countries and Corona’s his favorite beer and here he was, having one in Alaska.

A bar, he’s found, is always a good place to mingle with the locals, to get their views on life, world affairs, their affairs and what they think of Santa Claus. That last one is the one he’s mostly interested in and mostly people tell him, because of the way he’s dressed.

In the Red Dog, he met a woman, who’d just turned ninety-nine, that very day. As it was, she was celebrating with a Corona too and when Santa ordered his, she came over and struck up a conversation.

And just as she sat on the barstool next to him, a Malamute came from across the room and lay down at by Santa’s barstool.

“My name’s Lucinda.” She raised her beer to toast.

“I’m Santa.” He winked and clinked his beer with hers.

“He likes you,” Lucinda said.

“Animals generally do,” Santa said.

“You’re not just some old guy in a store bought costume.” She looked him straight in the eye. “Cowboy would never sit by you if you were. He’s loyal to a fault.”

“It appears he’s smarter than the average dog.”

“He is and he knows I’m not going to be around much longer. He knows I’ve been trying to find him a home.”

“Really.” Santa looked down at the dog. “Cowboy, you say his name is.”

“Cowboy it is.”

“Are you ill,” Santa said.

“Oh no, I’m going on a world tour. Six months in Europe. Then a month long photo safari in Kenya. Then I’m off to Australia. Who knows if I’ll ever be back."

“Ah.” Santa laughed. “So you can’t take Cowboy with you.?"

“Well, I don’t have to, do I?”

“What to you mean?”

He’s your dog now.”

And that is how Santa Claus got the newest member of his Christmas team, an Alaskan Malamute named Cowboy.