One leash...how many ways?

Back in August, I posted Etsy Esoteria, and one of the items I discussed was a multifunctional European leash. Well, I asked for one for Christmas, and Aunt Alicia (Toby's mom) was kind enough to get me one! (Thanks Aunt Alicia!).

Of course, now that I have this glorious device, I have to figure out the way to properly use the freaking thing!

The easiest and most intuitive way (well, maybe second easiest) is to clip the leash around my waist, and clip the loose end to Elka. This provided extremely useful one Friday, when friends were arriving for game night, and I was trying to cook and keep track of the dog at the same time. She wanted to be all over people, and the love of Elka is not a gentle one, so I went umbilical tether-style, and kept her in the kitchen until I could monitor her with the rest of the humans (I'll bet she was saying "thanks Aunt Alicia" to that one, and not in the same way I was!)

Perhaps it was the real reason Elka was pouting yesterday?  (nah, I took the picture on a different day. But dogs' memories are better than we think, I think).

Another way is, obviously, to just use it as a leash. Fasten the...what are those called? This one isn't a trigger bolt. Snap hook? Leash thinger? Snap the leash thinger onto one of the rings and use it as a "regular" leash, at varying lengths. 6 feet doesn't work out well in the house, but does in the yard, and if you're umbilicized (totally a real word), you needn't switch leashes.

There's also over-the-shoulder, which has similar functionality to around-the-waist, but I haven't truly tried that yet. I'd guess I would do it so that it didn't interfere with the treat bag already being around my waist?

So....is it Springtime yet, so we can resume our lovely long walks to the park? Nope. -2 at the time of this post (Fahrenheit).