The Uncaged Birds

Bailey and I found this street art on our walk yesterday afternoon. I'm not sure what it means. Obviously caged birds being released, but why does the cage have an English flag? Something about letting go of far-right nationalism?

We also encountered a gigantic tour bus trying to snake its way through the relatively narrow streets of our neighborhood. It was trying to round a corner from a side street onto our street, and it seemed to be having trouble making the turn. As I walked by, the driver opened his window and called out to me, "Can I go down this street?"

I said, "Well, the street's open, but I have no idea whether you'll be able to get that thing down it. I've never driven a bus before!"

He seemed unhappy with this answer, so he asked the guy walking behind me the same question. I didn't stick around for his response. Somehow he managed to get out of there because by the time the dog and I had circled the block the bus was gone.

So yes, I still walked Bailey in the morning and then I walked her again in the late afternoon, despite the fact that her dog-walker started yesterday and took her out for an hour. So she got three walks. The whole reason we're getting the dog walker is so I'll have more freedom to leave home and not be tied down by canine responsibilities, but so far I'm still trying to figure out how he fits into our daily schedule. She expects a walk when she first gets up, and I think she needs one in the afternoon, so who knows. My ideal would be to have the walker come in the afternoon, but apparently that's not an option. We'll make it work.

She had fun on her walk, if this video by her dog-walker, Josh, is any indication. She took to him right away and didn't show the slightest concern about leaving me behind -- unlike Olga, who used to put her tail between her legs whenever the dog-walker showed up, and never liked to leave home without Dave or me.

I also took down our inflatable mattress from one of the dark hidey-hole cabinets over our hallway and blew it up to make sure it still works. Dave's nephew and his girlfriend will be sleeping on it when they visit later this week, so we wanted to make sure it's functional, and it appears to be. We still have some work to do to get ready for their visit, mainly re-hanging the drapes in the dining room, which also serves as the guest room on the rare occasion that we have visitors, and moving some furniture to make room for the bed.

The last time anyone stayed with us was Dave's parents, I think, and that was back in 2018! Can that be right?!