Comfort Flowers
Thank you very much for all your kind comments on the passing of Little Monkey. She was a unique dog that touched all our hearts.
The out-pouring of love and sympathy that “Little Monkey Runs with the Pack” received helped me to deal with the suddenness of her loss.
Thank You All.
Little Monkey
Goodbye my old girl.
Little Monkey 1
May your legs be strong again, so you can run like the wind with a great big grin on your face.
LM 6
May you be welcomed into the pack, meet Lady and Jack for the first time and reunite with your old friends, Madam, TJ and of course, Mr Spaghetti Legs.
LM and SL
The inimitable Little Monkey.
You Little Monkey
Little Monkey
Hunter – Little Monkey
Little Monkey going to Dog Class
Pensive – Little Monkey
LM and Mud 4
Little Monkey – Always ready for Mischief
Little Monkey Sunbathing
Little Monkey
LM 2
LM Twist 2
Happy LM
Little Monkey stretching 1
What LM Thinks of Wednesday
Happy Little Monkey
Thank you Little Monkey for all the years you shared your unconditional love and boundless enthusiasm for life.
Little Monkey
You take a piece of my heart with you and will be sorely missed.
After a short illness, Little Monkey passed away peacefully in my arms.
Sunrise 2
As the sun sets on 2018 and rises on 2019, I’d like to wish my WP friends all the very best for the coming year.
Thank you for your friendship during this last year and here’s hoping the coming year will be a good one for you all, with health and happiness.
Here’s to a great 2019.
Cheers from Scifi and Little Monkey.
Happy New Year!
I left home when I was 18, but still went home every Christmas.
I left England when I was 21. In the following years, before my parents both died, I was only “Home on Christmas Day” three times.
Though I made my own family Christmases here in South Africa, it is just not the same, celebrating Christmas in a very hot country, in the middle of summer.
Christmas will always feel a little sad to me.
So here is Elvis to sing it like it is.
Wishing those of you who celebrate it;
Merry Christmas;
and those of you who do not;
Happy Holidays.
And sparing a thought for those who are lonely or sad at this time of year and sending you a Sunbeam!
post script: In the spirit of re-using last year’s Christmas wrapping paper, I am re-cycling last year’s Christmas post; because you can’t say it any better than Elvis.
Traditions fall away or are no longer viable (you can’t build a snowman without snow) so you have to start new ones. This is the fourth time I have recycled this post and it is now my new tradition. My Old Faithful (followers) will no doubt remember this post and join in the tradition.
If you have trouble trying to watch this video, you could try here Elvis 1, Elvis 2, or Elvis 3, or else just search on YouTube for “Elvis, I’ll be home on Christmas Day.” It is worth the effort to hear Elvis singing this lovely song.
Cheers!
While many of my WP Followers up in the North are digging themselves out of snow drifts, it is full on summer down here in Cape Town.
I shall be busy with family: sipping champagne under the shade of the ancient giant oaks; strolling along endless white sand beaches while the wind whips a cool breeze in our faces; and enjoying many afternoon teas with a backdrop of vineyards and mountains.
But it’s not all rosy down here at this time of year. Or rather, it is far too rosy!
As you roast your chestnuts on an open fire, with Jack Frost nipping at your nose, spare a thought for those of us in the Southern Hemisphere, who are roasting in our own particular way at this time of year.
To get an idea of what it is like, put your turkey in the oven and turn the temperature up high. Open the oven door, sit in front of it and let the heat waft over you – for 15 hours.
That’s our Christmas!
.
Though I won’t be around as often as usual for the next month or so, I will pop by WP now and then.
Wishing a Happy Holiday Season to one and all
– And see you when I see you.
Dikkop 1
Look what Little Monkey and I found just down the road; a little family of Spotted Dikkops.
They are amazing birds, with bright yellow legs and knobbly knees, giving rise to their other name of Cape Thick-Knees.
Their colouring blends in so well with their stony surroundings, that their main defence is to stand stock still and hope that a predator simply does not see them.
LM and Dikkop 2
As you can see from the photos, this defence works very well. Dogs notice movement more than anything, so often pass by very still prey.
I have walked with three dogs and passed within a metre of a Black Headed Heron and not one of them noticed it. Now, this is a large bird, standing nearly a metre tall, not including its long beak that it held vertically upwards. But it stood stock still and so escaped detection.
Unfortunately, the tiny youngster did not entirely trust this defence mechanism just yet and he started slowly creeping towards one parent. The other parent, on noticing this, also started walking slowly after the chick, trying to distract us.
Dikkop 3
They are very good parents and the first that I knew they were back in the neighbourhood was when Little Monkey and I came across both adult birds outside the property, with one of them right in the middle of the street.
LM and I crossed to the other side of the road to give them as much space as possible, but the one bird remained chirping in the middle of the road.
Then we saw two dogs dragging their owner round the corner of the road ahead of us and then I realised that the bird was trying to distract them and lead them away from her chick.
Now I’ve met this owner and dogs before, so they know LM needs space and fortunately they stopped and waited. This gave me time to gently herd the bird back into its property. It was extremely unwilling to go back, in its mind leading me towards its chick, but eventually I managed to get him safely to the railings.
LM will not chase birds while on the lead, but the other dogs looked like they knew no such rules.
Then LM and I could proceed on our way, in the opposite direction to the other dogs.
So I am very happy that this little family is back in our neighbourhood and hope that the chick makes it to adulthood.
They are unique birds.
Diet rule #1: If no-one sees you eating it, it doesn’t contain any calories.
– Unknown
All the more reason to sneak that mince pie quietly in the kitchen!
