Feeling smug this morning - just read an article in the paper (yesterday's paper, I am playing catch-up) that said today's kids don't get enough fresh air and exercise. And where are we off to this morning? The nature reserve, where we went last Saturday morning and where we will go next Saturday morning. The kids love it, they run and play (and nag for ice-creams and whinge a bit about being thirsty and tired, but hey-ho, they obviously just need to build up their stamina).
The dog loves it too. She doesn't come out with the family often enough, and just has the time of her life when she does. I sometimes think she must wonder why we don't take her out more often. She must think that every time we go out of the house we are having lovely walks (because that is the only thing we do when we take her out). It must be quite baffling to her that we only take her with us occasionally for our lovely walks.
I walk her on my own almost every day - it is not a chore, it is the best part of my day. I walked her quite late in the evening yesterday. The sun was getting low in the sky, and as we walked towards the local park, dog off her lead, all was peaceful. Not for long. She spotted a group of teenagers sitting on the grass, a couple of them lying down, hoodies up, eyes closed. She leapt.
The poor girl that my dog had landed on squawked and squawked. Her mates, boys and girls, roared with laughter as the dog enthusiastically sniffed and licked all over her face (and I bet, nibbled at her ears, the dog has a fetish for nibbling ears). I was mortified, kept trying to call the dog off as the girl kept squealing, unable to get up, and her friends just creased up with laughter.
But when the dog did eventually follow me and I called back to apologise profusely, the girl just joined her friends in laughing - the squeals which I had taken for alarm and dismay had apparently been sounds of pleasure. She thought the whole thing was great fun and kept attempting to call the dog back, trying to make her do it all over again, but by that time the dog had moved on, and just kept on going.
Anyway, gotta go get dressed and make the picnic.
Quick book update - it is possible to get paperbacks on CreateSpace or Amazon USA, but then you have to pay postage from America. Paul is working on a way to make the book available to order in the UK, and I am sure he will get there soon. Meanwhile, the Kindle version has been at a low price for about ten days now, and will have to go up again soon. Here's the link if you know anybody who might want to get a cheap copy while they still can. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Surviving-Schizophrenia-A-Memoir-ebook/dp/B0057P6M46
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