David Attenborough has warned us about the amount of plastic in our oceans. I’m thinking of contacting him to highlight the amount of plastic in The Golden One’s stomach. He is a canine plastic recycling plant and the finished article is not ( at this moment in time anyway), reusable. That may sound as if we are negligible in our responsibility to keep him safe…The truth is that he can source every size colour and shape of plastic tut with a single lap of the garden, none of which is initially obvious to the human naked eye but lurking in the undergrowth. The objective is always to get it/them back to base; dog rounders I guess. It’s the journey back where the ultimate feast takes place and unless you’re Mo Farrar on a good day, you can’t stop him. This had a somewhat negative effect on H’s digestive system yesterday and caused a blockage in the tunnel (!) that only decided to right itself at 5am this morning. As Monday mornings go, I’m sure Mr G has had better starts.
I’ve had a clear out of a different kind today…stuff. Who needs it, what’s it for, why do we accumulate it? I’ll admit, I am drawn to attractive packaging, tins/boxes, I’m pretty sure I sometimes refer to them as being collectible… hmmmm. Why on earth did I actively source Quality Street in a tin for Christmas? A tin which now sits empty and is begging not to be discarded to the recycling bin. I’m pretty sure I paid more for this tin than I would have paid for an uglier but more environmentally friendly receptacle. And yes, of course I can use it for other things, but seriously, how many collectible tins does a girl need? I’m still stuck with ( amongst others), Charles and Di looking loved up on a toffee tin from the ‘80s that has developed sentimental value. And that’s the thing about things, stuff. It is just that. What evokes feeling and sentiment for some, can bypass others just as reverently. My collection of tapas dishes evoke no such sentiment. They really are just ‘things’. I’m always trying to pass some on but the best I’ve done is 3 to The Lopper. I was aiming for a full set of 6 ( isn’t a full set always 6?) Anyway, she was having none of it so I’m still stuck with enough of them to host a Spanish evening for the entire community.
I did consider paring down the cutlery drawer too. Ever since it was pointed out to me by one of the wise ones, that I have the biggest and fullest implement drawer in the world but I only ever use one knife! No answer for that, it’s true, I do. It’s a ridiculously long knife with a double serrated edge that can take me from chillies and garlic through to potatoes and squash. It sits proudly as King of the shiny things, and I quite like looking in the drawer to see what it is I need and then choosing the same one each time. Maybe that clear out is for another day.
There’s less cleaning and tidying generally to do since H arrived. Simply because we’ve reduced the size of our living accommodation by about an 1/8 so that he has less space and even less inclination to chew his way through his formative years. Obviously the dust will still be accumulating but we just can’t see it. I thought I’d entered Narnia this morning.. stars and shimmering sparkles in a dim light but it was actually the dining room I forgot we had; with the remnants of Christmas sadly lying around waiting to be discovered. I closed the door again.. it won’t be long til December.
We didn’t use to close doors. It’s funny how the simple act of closing a door can feel brutal and cold. I much prefer the atmosphere of open doors and spaces. It feels much kinder and liberating. Wonder if it feels the same from a canine perspective, I guess it does. He best curb his aim to destroy everything in his path pretty quickly if he wants to enjoy liberty!
I’ve always loved words and am usually quick to embrace new ones. ‘Freegan’ I get ( a person who only eats free food) , hey don’t we all know at least one of them! But ‘Woke’? I haven’t heard a single person use it with clarity. And in this house at this moment in time, it means only one thing and this morning, it happened at 5!
Have you seen my Crocs? 