I saw something quite unusual this morning. I was walking back from the shops when I spotted a woman in a bright coat with clashing trousers looking intently at her phone while standing at the entrance to the lane into the park. There was a small dog at her feet that was just waiting.
A car then came up the road, towards the woman and the dog. The dog decided to approach the car and was met by a loud toot of the car horn. The dog froze, the car stopped, and the woman continued staring at her phone. Eventually, she noticed what was going on and looked at the dog crossly and ordered him to return, which he did, reluctantly.
By the time I reached them, the woman had set off up the lane towards the park. The dog, however, remained standing, staring down the road. Now, rather than the car, he was staring at me. By the time I reached him, the woman had realised that he wasn’t behind her and had started back down the lane.
I stopped and patted him, told him I was pulling a trolley (I assumed this is what had him entranced) and basically waited for the woman to reach us. I noticed she was wearing open toes sandals (odd Winter wear) with her toenails painted in a colour quite close to that of a yellow highlighter pen. The yellow clashed with her other bright colours. I was tempted to say something about how bright she looked but decided against it.
I did say how the dog was probably inquisitive about the trolley – it happens a lot – and she agreed. I moved on, up towards the park. I assumed they’d be just behind me. When I reached the park, I turned and looked down the lane. She had put the dog on his lead and was standing on the other side of the road talking to another dog walker.
Now, I suppose she could have been doing someone a favour by walking their dog but, if so, she could do with some training in how to do it properly. Standing at the entrance to a park looking at your phone and ignoring the dog, does not equate with going for a walk in the park. If, on the other hand, it was her dog, then she can’t like him very much.
Today’s weather report: Following yesterday’s brilliance, today saw another return to grey and gloomy…but at least it didn’t rain.
