Double Whammie

It has been a while....... actually for a lot of things!!!!!!!!!

At last the internet is up and running.......I have been typing my emails and saving on the memory stick but the internet is never working when I am here.

Turn off the phones and the TV, lock the doors, brew yourself your favourite brew, grab yourself something to nibble on, get comfortable here goes............. two installments of my life attached.

First is...... THE BUTCHERS DILEMMA

One hot day on my struggle home from Scann I passed a butchers shop called Daylight Butcher. My task that day and there follows many many others was to find somewhere to buy food that would satisfy Kims huge hunger whilst feeding her puppies at a reasonable price.

I entered the butchers and was greeted by a middle aged man with a massive friendly smile. He wanted to know who I was, what I was doing, why I wanted bones etc etc. After this relaxed conversation, it would appear that he was a locals butchers and not many ‘white’ visitors came by, he wasn’t going to let me go lightly. He bagged up an additional bag that he said he had contributed and I wouldn’t pay for.

There started the routine of visiting the butcher. Now one of the ladies in the butchers some weeks later offered me her number so that I could order ahead when I was in a hurry, seemed like a good idea and I have used it a couple of times. It was in fact a ploy to get my number so that the butcher could phone me. He calls when I don’t visit to find out what is wrong, he calls to invite me on trips, and sometimes he just calls me. Yesterday I passed his shop to explain that I am too busy, really not interested and to save his money that is being used on phone calls.

Little did I know…….. I greeted the butcher and ordered as his place was full of people on their way home from work, hoping to get a moment to talk to him discretely. Whilst serving me he reached down below the counter and handed me a parcel, from the feel I knew it wasn’t meat or bones for the dog. I didn’t have time to look inside but protested that he wasn’t to buy me anything, he said it was a gift, (it turned out to be a lovely ‘mumsie’ dress and a jacket to keep me warm). I was duly served with 4kg of dog bones and waste, after only asking and paying for 1 kg. I struggled to carry my load especially the bag of mixed items for the dog, I also became aware how fragile the plastic bag was that was carrying the said load.

I arrived at the matatu stage and found a matatu ready to leave, I was told there was one seat remaining and to get on. Well, I couldn’t find the remaining seat and it turned out that there was to be made space on the already full back seat for me to squeeze into. This is a difficult task when you have nothing you are carrying, when overloaded with bags and slops it is a nightmare. The seats on a matatu as I am sure I have explained before are so close together that it is a real effort to squeeze between them, I always manage to clobber someone with me bag or end up with my rear in someones face, add to this the fact that the matatu doesn’t wait for you to be seated …….. what do you get, mayhem and the locals smirking that you are struggling! I eventually ‘slid’ myself onto the seat whilst negotiating the spare wheel lying on the floor where my feet were supposed to go.

I sighed a sigh of relief, what a struggle, many women do this with 2 kids and a baby on their back whilst carrying bags........nightmare!

The space that had been reluctantly made for me was tight, I was squeezed thigh to thigh with my back seat compatriots, it was at this time that I realised I had not done the usual thing and retrieved my 20bob for the ride, that was still sitting ready in my jeans pocket. I already knew that I only had a note of 1,000ks in my purse. I wriggled to try and make access to my pocket easier, it was no good. I shifted the bags that I had precariously placed on my lap, in horror noticing that the bag of animal waste had experienced a tear and seepage was oozing out onto my jeans along with a nice smell. I wriggled some more and managed to slide my index finger into the top of my pocket realizing that because of the close proximity of my neighbour retrieving my money would not be an easy task as the coin was not within easy reach. I thrust my finger further into my pocket feeling for the coin, in doing so found the man next to me was giving me a strange look, it became evident that whilst wriggling in my pocket I was also wriggling against his thigh as we were so close, I am not sure if he liked it or was offended, his smile confirmed my worry he appeared to think I was trying to catch a feel!

I decided to no longer be discreet, I asked him to hold my clean bag whilst I slid down in the seat to release my jeans pocket so I could reach the coin. I was relieved to find it and held it like a trophy for him to see.

I settled back into my seat and was asked by the conductor for my 25 bob, now having only the 20 available and this being the normal fare I questioned the 25 bob he was trying to charge me, I noticed that there was a lot of disgruntled people ahead of me moaning about the hike in charge without notice. I told the conductor loudly I only had the 20 bob coin and if he wasn’t happy he should let me off the matatu. The lady in front of me turned and smiled, pleased that I had not agreed to pay, having been in this situation before I remembered being told that if the ‘white’ lady agrees to pay no one wants to be made embarrassed by not being able to afford to pay. The man refused to take the 20 bob from my fingers and continued to argue with the other people on the matatu. Everyone now found their voice and argued in unison, the conductor was not happy, he had been hoping that I would pay and the rest would have to follow.

Whilst holding my 20 bob coin in silent protest against him hiking the fare, it was knocked by the man in front shifting in his seat and disappeared onto the floor of the matatu. This just added to my problems, I couldn’t look for the money as I was jammed into my seat and had bags on my lap, I tapped the man in front of me on the shoulder and asked him to see if he could find it. After a lot of shuffling in his seat, muttering and others joining in the money was retrieved and paid to the angry looking conductor, he realised that I was standing by the rest of the passengers and only paying 20 bob.

I got home tired and smelling of nasty bits that were now oozing from the plastic bag and with badly stained jeans. Dominic opened the gate and the dogs greeted me with great gusto added by the smell of the meat. I got to the kitchen having run to the back door with all the dogs in hot pursuit, but I am faster!!! The bag of waste was handed to Dominic to sort into small bags and put in the freezer whilst I investigated what was in the bag from the butcher.

I opened the bag and found a yellow dress which was too big and not me really and a zip up jacket to keep me warm. My dilemma is what am I supposed to do, I would very much like to return the package and say it was a lovely thought but I am unable to accept. I am not happy in encouraging any further attentions from this kind but unsolicited man. I will take advice from the ladies at Scann to find out the best action to take.

Update on the puppies, one left yesterday to a new home, Kim apparently hasn’t even noticed, fingers crossed that it will be well looked after. Mama Sweetie is chomping at the bit for me to take her three puppies this week, I am worried that she will find them an additional problem but she insists that she wants them to provide the family with protection and a deterrent to possible unwanted visitors.

I am watching the CNN news at the moment and just hearing of the tragic earthquake in China. There is so much we have no control of in this world, let us make the most of the things we do have control of, live life to the full it is too quickly over.

On that heavy note, I love you all and will soon be home, take care



Second.....AN UNEXPECTED VISITOR

On Tuesday one of the puppies was found a new home with our neighbour. Dominic went through the procedures of feeding etc and we gave the vaccination record book to show it had been vaccinated against Parvo Virus but would need the others on the 26th of this month.

One down and 8 to go…..

On Wednesday morning I saw through the hedge the neighbour and asked how the puppy had been that night, he said it had cried all night and no one got any sleep. I mentioned to him that when you have 8 sisters and suddenly are alone you would cry too. That evening a knock at the gate proved to be the neighbour asking if they could have another puppy to keep the first one company, Dominic handed over another puppy.

Two down and 7 to go……. Or so I thought.

Kim appeared not to notice that she was two puppies light and the rest of the puppies busied themselves and appeared not to notice either. Dominic and I sat and watched part of a movie as the power went off and we were left with the battery power on the laptop until that died. I went off to bed, Dominic to his nighttime guard duties.

At 2 am I was awoken by one of the puppies howling, not something usual at that time of night. I tried to ignore the noise and went back to a fitful sleep, at 4 am I woke up again and it was still going on, I decided to investigate……I headed towards the garage where the puppies sleep and realised the noise was coming from outside. I looked out of the kitchen window and saw a small black puppy wandering desperately round the garden.
I went out the back door and to the puppy, by this time I had been joined by Kim, the big puppy with Dominic following a short way behind. I was horrified to watch Kim go to attack the puppy, not like her, I scooped up the cold and shivering bundle and went inside. My thought was that one of the puppies that went next door had come through the fence but I knew that we had secured all holes to prevent our puppies wandering.

The puppy kept yelping in pain and was not happy at all, it had obviously been madly digging as it was covered in dirt. I handed the puppy to Dominic who said he would put it by the jiko (charcoal stove) he used at night to keep him warm. In the transaction we noticed the belly of the puppy and discovered it was a boy……………. the only boy we have is brown and not black……………. Curious and curiouser ………….the crazy thing was that the puppy looked so much like the black puppies we had in our litter.

Realising that the puppy wasn’t one of Kims and she wasn’t happy I took the puppy into my room for warmth and safety. All night the puppy whimpered and I discovered why in the morning, I was covered in flea bites and therefore so must the puppy be. I got up at 6am as usual and fed the puppies, it would appear that this one was not yet weaned as it struggled to lap the milk I gave it. My first duty was to douse it in flea powder and leave it to rest. It appears to have sustained an injury to its back leg which is causing it problems. We will wait and see what happens.

One up and now 8 to go…………

Dominic who is as baffled as I am after walking round the fence and realizing there are no holes, cant fathom how the puppy came to be here and where it came from, we haven’t heard of any neighbours having puppies. I told him that as we had passed on two puppies some powers-that-be have decided we have now room for one more lost soul.

The menagerie reduces and increases……….


...... Finished reading ........ all that needs to be said is I need to catch up on news so another one will follow in a few days. In my worry that I would forget various events that are coming up I sent my May wishes ahead of time..,... that is my excuse anyway.... maybe it is just me getting old.

Also attached photos, out of date now of the puppies...... SORRY....... couldnt zip them first, one puppy photo with Dominic in I call 'feeding mania', the second one 'fed and sleepy' I now only have five puppies left and it is much easier that is excluding Kim and Fatso (she was called Pip for a while but Fatso fits much better!)

Love to all, hope the email gets through.xxxxxx
Susannah