In the water

By / / ACCOMMODATION, BED AND BREAKFAST, DOG WALKING, DOGS, EAST SUSSEX, HOUSE AND HOME, LIFE WITH DOGS, LIGHTHEARTED TALES, SEASIDE, SELF-EMPLOYED WORKING, ST LEONARDS, WALKS / Leave a comment

Well Monday mornings don’t get much better than this. I woke up at 7 with my husband and showered. The Hound and Ruby our new Boxer addition nudged open our door and jumped onto our bed while we are showering. My husband and I are not supposed to realise they do this, but it’s pretty obvious when you see the tell tale loose hairs of Ruby and the twisted knotted duvet cover thanks to Oscar’s inability to settle quickly.

I fed the 2 foreign language students their breakfast and packed them off out the house. One is a 68 year-old Italian retired Art Historian and Philosopher who has decided to try to improve his spoken English in 2 weeks, and the other is a newly-arrived 23 year old French Engineering Undergraduate – who has to have stayed in England to improve his English as part of his degree.)

At last the house and I sigh –  a bit of peace and quiet, but no time to enjoy it as I have to saddle up the dogs and head out for a walk. Today the weather is spectacular- Bright Azur blue skies with only the slimmest wisps of cloud, a beautiful calm blue sea at low tide and (MASSIVE BONUS) – no other dogs around.We race down the shingly pebble banks and onto the unctuous rippled wet compacted sand. I remove my sneakers and feel the cold suelch ooze between my bright cherry red toes.I delve into my beach bag and pull out the illustrious tennis ball. This simple toy has such a high value to Oscar – he’s only allowed it, when out on walks so it’s the canine equivalent of the latest iPad. I can almost hear angels singing as I hold it up to the light….

I take my aim and…… wham! I lobb the ball into the water and Oscar charges in to retrieve it. Crashing through the shoulder high swell he confidently grabs the ball, making a few short swimming strokes and then turns and gallops back towards the shallows only to find Ruby crouching and waiting to pounce and take it off him. A mad frenzied chasing game ensues and there’s fun and joyful barks all round.

It’s days like these that I am so grateful I live so close to the sea.

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About thehairyhoudini

I love books and feel stabs of envy when writers and journalists display their work in print.I want to stop writing in private, and start gaining the confidence to write better, more often and for an audience.Having always kept diaries as a child, and written countless whimsical short stories in a myriad of gaudy hello kitty journals,I thought I would be a writer some day, when I stopped being a fireman (frightened of fire), secretary (does temping count?), shopkeeper (I'd still like to be) and accessory designer (which I am). I then turned 13,and that's when, with the onset of acne and a mono brow, I then discovered FASHION! Clothes, magazines and ANYTHING to do with their mythical creators. I have often daydreamed about writing for a living...witty little columns for Sunday papers, pooling ideas and knitting fragments with my pen until I can form a book.I hope this blog will give me the discipline of doing REGULAR writing, and nudge me closer to this dream. Catch the updates by signing up to the email alerts!

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