MARLEY AND ME (AND PILLOW AND THE GIRLS)

POST # 38


"Molly, ah Maggie, ah Myrtle, I mean MARLEY." Poor Marley the dog must be wondering just how stupid a petsitter he has, as I struggle to have his name come to my lips. I guess that is one of the hazards of having done so many housesits and gotten to know so many dogs with names that start with the letter "m". Marley just gives me this blank expression and delays his tail wagging until the right name spills out. Maybe by writing this blog and seeing his name in print I will remember his name in the future.

Marley is only one of the animals that I now have in my care. There is also, Pillow the cat and then the 6 ladies who live in the chicken house at night and out in the yard during the daytime. In addition to all of these pets, there are numerous bunny rabbits bounding around the property so it all adds up to a very happy place to be at the moment.

Nestled in the hills south of Nanoose Bay on 5 acres, the setting is extremely peacefull and it's a wonderful break from being in the city. I really had no plans originally for this time period, but then out of the blue a one week housesit came up on the housecarers website, so I applied and here I am. It's a great match and I am very happy to be here and very greatful for the opportunity.

Pillow the cat is unique as far as I can tell, as she is the first cat that I have ever met who doesn't purr. Or maybe she does, but just not around me. The first day I was here she went walkabout as cats sometimes do, but since then she's been hanging around with all the other pets so we are all just one big family.

The 6 chickens or chooks as they call them in Australia are fun to be around. They like to be where you are at any given moment and it's easy to see if anyone is missing as there are three different colours, two rust, two grey and two a grey/black speckled colour. Each day they leave a few little gifts for me in their chicken coup in the form of eggs.

Everyday Marley and me spend time near the edge of the property and pick blackberries until we've had our fill. Marley picks a few of the low hanging fruit, but it's much more fun to have me pick them and throw them his way. He's a great catch, so very few berries hit the ground after leaving my hand. There are way more blackberries here than we could possibly get through, and it is wonderful to be able to have some fresh fruit right off the vine each day.

I also have the good fortune of having a trampoline on the property which I have been using on a daily basis to exercise my leg and that, along with a hot tub to soak in seems to be helping my leg during this recovery period. I have been taking longer walks each day without the use of the cane so I know I am getting better, but there is still a long way to go before I get back to normal, that is if I ever do.

This housesit only goes until the end of the week and then I will be back to Vancouver for about 5 weeks at one of my regular sits. In the meantime I will try to soak up as much of the peace and quiet here as I can before I return to the big city.

Marley is looking at me with those "blackberry eyes" so it's time to get outside and start picking. I can't think of a better way to continue this lovely summer morning here in the country.

Bye for now,

Paul
The Thoughtful Wanderer