Grist to the Mill

27 June, 2005

DOG

Had a v stressful morning on Sunday… don’t even want to remind myself of it by recapping events – suffice to say, all’s well that ends well.

So, in the afternoon at about 3.30, I went to lie in the Common in the sun for an hour or so, for fresh air and relaxation. Also to take my shoes off and feel the grass under my feet. I put my rug on the floor and dozed off in the sun straightaway. Some time passed and later on I became aware of the sound of a panting dog. It sounded as though it was panting in my ear. I didn’t really want to acknowledge this curious dog for fear it would start licking my face (I was flat out on the ground) so did my best to ignore it. But it didn’t go away. The sound of the panting dog did not get any quieter. Eventually I opened my eyes and sat up. In front of me was the cutest little dog I’ve ever seen with a tennis ball in its mouth. I don’t know much about dogs but I think it was some kind of terrier. Maybe a Jack Russell. Clearly, it had been waiting patiently for me to wake up and play. So I lobbed its tennis ball as far as I could (a feeble girly throw) and the dog scampered off to fetch it… it retrieved the ball and and then came running straight back to me. Immediately. We went through this throwing-and-retrieving the ball game a couple of times but then I started to wonder where its owners were. A woman was standing in the opposite part of the park to where I’d been throwing the ball. She was shouting “Abi!”, “Abeeeeeee!”. I thought this was the name of her daughter. Oops. Still, if she wanted the dog back immediately she should’ve come and retrieved it. I threw the ball in the right direction this time – ie towards the dog’s owner, and the dog didn’t come back this time. I don’t think the woman was very pleased.

Also, there used to be a long haired cat on the same street as me. This cat was about four different colours. Every time I left the house for work in the morning it would come bounding over the street to greet me. Sometimes it would circle my feet. At other times it would lie in front of me - on the pavement - rolling over on its back.

Which shows that you just can't generalise on the friendliness (or otherwise) of dogs and cats.

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