The Woman In The Window

I saw her most days.

Just sitting and staring out the window.

Her house was on my regular route.

I say regular, but that depends on my mistress.

She doesn’t like me ‘wandering around’ as she calls it, so I only get to sneak out when she is busy. She sits at her desk and writes on most days but sometimes she gets wrapped up in her work and she even forgets to stop and eat. On these days I know I can go for a long walk and most likely I won’t be missed.

The lady in the window is Mrs Norris. I guess there must have been a Mr Norris, but I never saw him.

She seemed sad to me, and I know what sad looks like, but it was more than the way she appeared it was the way she looked, as though she was waiting for someone.

She rarely went outside and on the few occasions that I saw her, she barely noticed me, which is unusual. People want to pat me all the time. They say things like, ‘Aren’t you cute, and who’s a good dog then?” I’m not sure if I’m supposed to answer or not so mostly I just wag my tail.

Old ladies are the worst.

They come out of nowhere and start patting me before I know what is happening.

I’ve got a friend, a white Maltese named Zed and he tells similar stories.

The difference with Zed is he collects little old ladies. He just stands there and looks cute, and the little old ladies sneak up on him and pat him. He lets them come in but on the way out he gives them a nip.

He keeps count.

So far this year he has cleaned up 17 little old ladies, and it’s not August yet. You might think that he gets into trouble, but he doesn’t. His owner says, “Serves you right for patting the dog without asking permission. He’s wearing a bright red lead that says CAUTION. If you can’t be bothered to read the warning, then it serves you right.”

So far no one has complained to anyone and Zed reckons he can hit 30 by the end of the year, especially if the tourist season is a good one.

I took Zed to visit the lady in the window, but I made him promise that he wouldn’t bite. He said that he only bit little old ladies, it was a matter of principle, so she was safe.

Even with a cute white fluffy friend, the lady in the window did not pay us much attention.

She always smiled at me, but that seemed like as much as she could manage.

Once or twice I sat next to her in her garden. We sat there for ages; not saying anything at all. I think she enjoyed my company. I wanted to make her feel a bit better. I don’t know if I succeeded, but I didn’t make her feel any worse and sometimes that is as much as you can ask for.

I went past her house again today, and there she was, in the window, just looking. I wonder if she will find what she is looking for? I wonder if what she is looking for will find her?

I’m only a dog, so I may never find the answers to those questions, but that does not matter. Today is what matters; right here and right now. I’ll do my best to keep an eye on the lady in the window, but in the end, her happiness is up to her, all I can do is be there.

When my mistress lets me, that is.

The White Ribbon: Two Years On.

 

A while back I posted a photo of a white ribbon that I had placed on a young oak tree. When Oaks drop their leaves in Winter it is hard to see their branches in the dim light. The little white ribbons were meant to stop the humans from getting poked in the eye.

It’s now more than two years later, and at least, one of the ribbons [there were many] is still attached to the tree. The branch has grown several inches past the point where the ribbon was attached, and the ribbon is a little worse for wear. The green tinge is moss and mould [we live in a temperate rainforest, so it rains a lot].

 

In the background, you can see Zed patiently waiting for me to finish so that I can play with him. He loves being outdoors and often stands on the back deck and barks at me so that I will go outside. Consequently, a lot of writing is done on our back deck, under the watchful eye of Zed the dog.

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Related Post: https://araneus1.wordpress.com/2013/02/28/tie-a-white-ribbon-on-a-young-oak-tree/

https://araneus1.wordpress.com/2013/03/28/he-who-loves-an-old-house/

A Little Closer.

Some days Zed just cannot get close enough!

Today is one of those days.

His tummy hurts and he does not know how to make it stop.

Sitting on my shoulder reminds him of when he was a pup.

It’s the safest place that he knows.

The sore tummy usually sorts itself out naturally so there is nothing to do but wait it out.

A dog’s rumbling tummy that close to your ear can be quite a distraction.