Its been a while since I have got a look in, what with Zuri’s endless shenanigans, and Mum and Dad always away on their adventures but I have been striving to get maximum relaxation in between epic walkies in the African bush.
Things have been weird lately and Mum and Dad seem to have gone away somewheres with talk of a third surge in that Covid-19 thingy, and mention of flying back to that place called the UK, but before now, Zuri and I have been having a great time. It hasn’t rained for ages so its been very dry and hot and although the heat can be bothersome, it means that we can go out and about without fear of my feet getting wet. Zuri of course, does not mind getting wet and positively loves it, but I would rather not.
Christmas was great fun and the parents invited loads of people over for dinner. Zuri and I got so much fuss, we could tell it was Christmas and we even had a special dinner of chicken, beef, potatoes and my favorite, carrots! It was a delightful day all told, and we bathed in the glorious sunlight while stuffing our faces. I brought my bow tie out for the occasion and Zuri wore a Santa hat although she was not keen on it, and eventually pulled it off and ate the white bobble on the end. I don’t blame her for this to be honest, as it was nowhere near as smart as my outfit and God forbid I should steal the limelight from her! She said it didn’t go with her tough image as an attack beast.
We enjoyed this family time and I made myself at home with Mum on the outdoor sofa, whilst Zuri snuggled up to Dad in his hammock. Mum and Dad said we should make the most of the sunshine and the lovely weather as this was our last Christmas in Kenya. Apparently, at the next Christmas, we will be in a much colder climate so Dad won’t get to cook the dinner on the barbeque any more.
We have had the chance to have some fantastic walkabouts while the sun is out and we had a great time recently when Dad made us play Army. We galloped along some tracks through the woods, zig zagging so as not to be a target and I got to sniff all over the place. Well, Zuri galloped, I merely ‘loped!’ I kept us safe though in a bunker and kept the ever- fearless Zuri in check so she didn’t sprint off into enemy territory (a.k.a the African bush). That girl will get us eaten, I’m sure!
We have also continued in our quest to keep the streets safe and Mum has regularly marched us about the area with me sniffing our way round, to make sure there is no danger and with Zuri on constant high alert to ward off any threats. She has managed to not eat any more birds but I always keep an eye on her so that we can share any tasty treats if they come our way.
Mum says I’ve gotten a little podgy but I don’t agree and I certainly don’t agree with the increase in exercise she has forced upon us, notwithstanding that there is plenty of sniffing to be had.
Despite Zuri’s lack of bird catching, her breath has been terrible. She is no lady, has no manners at all and takes pleasure in breaking wind in my face so Mum even took her to the vets to get her mouth checked (you recall the stick-in-the-mouth incident??).
I confess to smiling just a little when she had to have an anesthetic to have her teeth cleaned. I went off exploring with Mum while we waited for Zuri to wake up and it was rather funny to see her staggering around as if drunk. She was not in a happy place but perhaps that will teach her not to eat birds and sticks.
We have recently made friends with another dog called Twiga. He walks up the street all the time with his Mum and Zuri has fallen in love with him. He is a youngster, so I let him and Zuri gallop around together. She loves to run so I let her get on with it. His Mum said he was abandoned on the streets, like Zuri was and his ear was cut off so I have taken pity of him and let him enjoy my house. I have sniffed him A LOT but I don’t like him sniffing me. He’s a bit of a ruffian so he gets on well with the thug that is Zuri.
While we have been entertaining new friends, and enjoying long walkies, I noticed that the crate of doom has made its way into the house. The last time I saw this, I was bundled into it and travelled across continents to get to Kenya.
So, you can imagine that I have started to become a little uneasy. Zuri was oblivious to this box’s presence but then she too has started to notice strange things in the house. For instance, the presence of loads of boxes! Mum and Dad have been packing all their things into the boxes and then, a big lorry came to take those boxes away which was unnerving. They even took our beds.
Zuri and I have been unsettled by such developments and I hope they don’t leave us. I have been an extra good boy lately so hopefully, given that the crate is out, I will be going with them wherever they are going. They can leave Zuri and return her to the streets where she came from! (jokes!) To be honest, we come as a team now so I hope we are both going with Mum and Dad.
It was this time last year when Mum disappeared somewhere (called the Evacuation??) and I just hope whatever is happening, we will all be together.
So then Mum started cleaning the house like a woman possessed. Dad had to keep going to his office, so he was hardly around which again, was most unsettling. She even made us suffer the indignity of hanging out in the garden while she mopped the floors. She said she had to clean up the pitter patter of our paws! And she put us in doggy jail while the removal men were around.
And then she bundled us into the car and we went to collect Dad from his office. They had so many suitcases that it was a little cramped in the car. Zuri decided she was so unnerved by all of this commotion that she wanted to hide away in the crate which had found its way into the boot of the car, so as I LOVE an adventure, I climbed into the boot and sat on a suitcase.
I wasn’t sure where we were going but Mum and Dad said we were going on holiday so I took the liberty of clambering over the suitcases in the car to get a better look at the road ahead and to see exactly where we going. I wriggled on top of Zuri’s crate, but I was too close to the roof of the car and kept knocking my head so I had to make do with perching on Dad’s bag which overlooked Mum so I could breath down her neck.
Mum and Dad were not overly impressed with this but as Dad had to concentrate on driving, he couldn’t reach me. So I had a jolly old time for 3 hours climbing over all the luggage in the car which was fun fun fun. Mum thinks that I am part mountain goat as I love to climb. Zuri does not share my passion for travel and kept crying so I felt sorry for her.
Mum and Dad took us to a place called Nairobi and Dad got us out of the car and we had a little walk around a car park. He chatted to a man called Peter who had apparently, come to collect us to take us away on holiday. I heard mention of hurried flights back to England in light of political disagreements and it seemed that Mum and Dad were in a rush.
We were going to a place called Yappaville. Without Mum and Dad. Just us. All by ourselves. This was all very confusing but there was so much to sniff, I didn’t really notice much as Mum and Dad drove away. Zuri and I huddled together in the back of a strangers car and after sniffing things out to ensure no danger, I consoled Zuri with tales of running, digging and bird chomping in the hope that one day, the Nomadic Family Unit will be reunited.
#wheredidtheygo?
#newadventures
Nomadic Family Unit 
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