Walking the dogs

Took the doggies for a walk this evening along the boardwalk - it was quite cool, as the sun was going down and the daisies had already gone to bed - we will have to go again in the middle of the day to appreciate the display of white and pink. We each take one dog - they have to be on a lead, as is the law, although for us it is for convenience, as they tend to dash for freedom at the first chance and come home hours later in a terrible mess - and as the walk progresses, HWCFA and Monty get further and further away from Susie and me. We always bring up the rear for two reasons - I have a particularly short stride, and Susie sniffs at every single tuft of grass we pass. I have always found it really annoying to have to stop every few metres when the purpose of a walk is to get exercise, but then it occurred to me that we were imposing our idea of a walk on the dogs, when we have different expectations. For us it is exercise, but for them it is 'picking up the post' as they make contact with the scents of other dogs and leave their own messages to be read later. They have more than enough room in the garden to exercise and they regularly chase cats so can really get their heart rates up. So if we want to exercise, we will have to leave the dogs at home! Seeing it this way really puts it into perspective and takes away the irritation factor.

Another example of how changing your thinking can change your life!

The big seas of the past few days have subsided, leaving evidence of their power in the piles of extremely heavy kelp lying jumbled along the path. Most of it has been cleared away, so the path is no longer blocked, and the rocky shore along the normal high tide mark has been completely scoured of all kelp and jetsam, making it look as though a giant vacuum cleaner has been at work.

The sunset pictures were snapped as I stood among quite a number of photographers with posh cameras and lenses about the length of my forearm. I'm sure their photos are much better, but I wonder if they got the bird placed as perfectly as I did by chance!