Rob in the ‘Hood: Canine capers in Uvongo
Considering we have been in lock-down for more than six weeks, doing nothing, it is amazing how the weeks are flying by.
Mornin’ all! Considering we have been in lock-down for more than six weeks, doing nothing, it is amazing how the weeks are flying by. All very jolly, don’t you think? A time for discovery; a time for reflection.
ALSO READ: Rob in the ‘Hood: It’s May, it’s May… the merry month of May
Using those ‘skills’ you didn’t realise you had, especially round the house. Like helping out in the kitchen, fixing that drip in the bathroom, though the CO claims that she has been trying to fix ‘this drip’ for the last quarter of a century. She does have a way with words.
On with the show.
CANINE CAPERS
Under the guise of keeping fit and exercising it has to be said that Lilliecrona Boulevard has never been so active, especially with so many canine friends taking their owners for a brisk walk. True. The weekend was packed with owners being dragged along by their little darlings, straining at the leash.
Big dogs, little dogs, all shapes and sizes, all colours, all delighted to be out and about after the confines of their fixed abodes.The side effects are that owners are now suffering from aching limbs – a result of trying to restrain their mutts, as their four-legged friends meet their canine mates with not-so-friendly barking, and inquiring sniffs. A case of ‘getting to know you’. It is believed pharmacies are doing a roaring business in muscle relief ointments.
Also, walking along the ‘Boulevard of Broken Dreams’, dog owners happily compare notes on their pets, their habits, and what kind of dog food is the best. I swear I heard one owner say she ‘only served fillet steak to her pooch on Sundays’.
HOW MUCH IS THAT DOGGIE?
Nearer to home, the CO has paid the price for volunteering to look after someone’s dog, whilst the owners dashed off to the ‘Berg, and enjoy its isolation. The original idea was to look after the dog and a cat for the initial lock-down period; for just three weeks if I recall correctly.
Eight weeks later, the Lady and the Tramp are still with us, with no end in sight. In the meantime, the CO is black and blue, the result of being dragged around the neighborhood.One irate resident, who has six dogs penned in, let rip at the CO for just walking past her property, accusing the CO of breaking the rules on lock-down, though it was, for sure, 8am in the morning.
The moral of the story is: ‘it’s a dog’s life’, if nothing else, and your arms can take the strain.In the meantime, I have become an expert on cat and dog food, and can sing every line of ‘How Much Is That Doggie in The Window: The One with the Waggily Tail?’, with thanks to Patty Page, the Singing Rage!
BACK ON TRACK!
Exciting news: I have just completed a crash course in the German language, just in time for the resumption of futbol in Germany. I now know how to shout ‘off-side, referee’, in German. not forgetting ‘goal’ and cheering ‘wunderbar’, every time a bit of football magic is created – all in that foreign lingo, which is not English. Nil deperandum: all is fair in love and war.
Even the UK sports channels are asking English footie fans who or what side they will be supporting in the Bundesliga. I have opted for any side that plays in sky blue. What does an ordinary chap have to do to keep his sanity in these days of isolation?
Football scoop: editor David Rush is well known as an avid, if not die-hard Liverpool supporter. It has come to the attention of this writer that David’s seven-year-old son is not following his father’s footsteps as a football fan, and follows, you guessed it, Manchester City. Can only be the mother’s sensible influence.
THIS IS OUR HOME!
Ending on a high note: Amongst the many canine carriers on Lilliecrona Boulevard, was Trudy McCabe, of Uvongo, together with grandaughter Keira, from Germiston. Keira is visiting her grandmum, but is now awaiting clearance to return home. It could be worse, Keira: you could have been stranded elsewhere, other than the Hibiscus Coast.
Trudy, originally from Portsmouth, England, has been in South Africa for 50 years, and is staying put. “It would break my heart to have to leave here,” Trudy commented. Sentiments all round, Trudy.
We all know ‘they’ try every trick in the book to make us despair, but we hang in. It will be all right on the night, rest assured.
See you, Rob.
HAVE YOUR SAY
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