Last year’s olive harvest was very poor due to strong winds during the Spring whist the olive trees were in blossom. This morning the trees near the van are in full bloom and I can hear the sound of bees as I walk towards them. There is a lot of local honey available everywhere for about £8 a kilo by the end of the summer.
Yesterday afternoon we had a big meal outside with most of the group of people who were here for the last holiday. My German neighbours were invited and I was sitting next to Martin as he shovelled food into their nine-month-old daughter Paula. (I mentioned that they had gained a puppy the day before which they had successfully returned to its owner). When I got up from the table to give a bone to Dave, I noticed a small furry object lying on the blanket by their van. On returning to the table, I casually mentioned that ‘their dog’ was back.
Later I took my lot for their usual evening walk, somewhat later than normal due to the meal. When I came back I could hear Vagelis playing his guitar and singing. I fed all the dogs and put them to bed but decided I would just go in with Dave and Boris and watch a little TV rather than join the remaining diners. Having fallen asleep I decided to take out Dave and small dog before giving in to the inevitable.
Furry Ball from next door decided to visit a couple of times in the night, triggering barking from the puppies and from Georgia’s dogs. Added to that, the escalating friction between the larger males who are billeted together, I had to get up several times in the night to administer retribution which was biblically swift and effective. The puppies have been becoming more independent and sure of themselves as time has progressed so I decided we needed an example ‘pour encourager les autres’. I chose the littlest as my victim and all was very quiet and reserved following my admonishment. Even Dave and Boris were impressed! He was still quite subdued when I let him out this morning.
I managed to take all four puppies out for the morning walk on leads, with Dave and Boris free of course. By the time we had reached the scrubby area they had managed to turn themselves into a form of canine spaghetti which I unravelled when I finally let them loose. We played and threw sticks and I was able to get 3/4 of them back on leads before returning to the camping – quite an achievement I felt! I tied one to a tree, put Boris by his bed and stuffed the others into their cages. Furry Ball came over in the hope of joining the party, so I tied him to a tree also since the neighbours were still in their beds. I finally caught puppy No 4 and fed them all. including Furry Ball, as he was getting quite stressed tied to the tree watching the others eating.
When the neighbours finally awoke, I handed them back their puppy including a rope to attach him to their van. I suggested that he may decide to introduce himself to Boris which could end badly. Boris is reasonably happy with ‘my’ puppies but still does not take unexpected introductions well.
The neighbours are planning to re-repatriate ‘their puppy’ with its rightful owner later today and they may receive more fruit and tomatoes for their troubles. I had to explain to Martin that Cretan Greeks are mostly generous by nature, feeling they have to repay your kindness in some way. I, however, suggested that he might not rush to let them know of his Germanic background as this might tarnish their views. Especially given that one of the family is quite old and memories are quite long. I also explained the Cretan vendetta obsession…
Anyway, all dogs are out and tied to something or in their cages. It is silent at present which I assume to be either a good or a bad thing depending on what I find when I go outside in a few moments. Tonight, to relieve the stress between the larger boys, I might decide to leave one outside tied up outside to see how that works. After all, it is no warmer in a cage or outside on a blanket. Particularly as there was a bit of a set-to whilst we were out as play turned into a proper fight requiring me to pin both combatants to the ground until they had calmed down a little. There was blood too – not mine I may add. Boris remained calm during all of this and concentrated on his stick. In the past he has been very bothered by puppies fighting together but now seems to be becoming inured to it maybe. I am glad that soon the puppies will no longer be my responsibility…
Georgia mentioned yesterday that we were going to have a serious meeting later today to discuss ways to improve the camping, IT, cameras and so on. I wonder if she will still be feeling up to it later…
Still, onward and upward!
Leave a Reply