The sun is out, the temperature is high and the sky is blue. Don’t we all love a day like this? It brings out the best in all of us. JD and Lola are expert stick whittlers. This stick has been subject to their careful fashioning, sculpting and honing over months now. It’s on the back lawn and every time they go out, it gets a bit more attention.

The beauty of it is that it’s long. That means it is too wide to come through the back door and hence can’t make a mess in the house. It has been attempted many times and you can always hear when one is happening – dooinng…dooinng…dooinng, growl…growl…growl. It’s almost as though they think the stick is somehow attacking them back as it bounces off the doorframe. It’s hilarious.

The bad bit is when they are careering around with the stick in their mouth and they come up behind you. An attempt to overtake often results in felling of human in an undignified sprawl. Occasionally there is injury to more than simply pride!

They take their whittling so seriously that there is a hierarchy. If JD wants it, then Lola sits in the background patiently waiting (see above). On the other hand, when he’s not interested, then Lola can entertain herself with it for seemingly endless time. She’s truly a girl for whom the game is all. Come to think of it, that last statement reminds me of another beautiful girl who was tireless in her pursuit of a game!