Do You Want a Well-Behaved Dog?

Do You Want a Well-Behaved Dog?

When I'm Not A Gypsy...

Jude the Puppy Nanny comes to you

I'm Jude the Puppy Nanny. Did you know that? You've only to scratch the surface to find either one of those personas but when I'm at home on The Sunshine Coast, I don my Puppy Nanny purple and green and go to people's homes to help them get their puppy off to a good start. I also house sit when people go away. Usually then I look after dogs, not puppies, but I can and do take care of cats, hamsters, fish, and sometimes chickens.

Looking out the window

 Right at this moment I'm in a hillside aerie in Sandy Hook
 looking after Ceilidh, an Old English Sheepdog.

Ceilidh

Everyday we take an hour's walk in a beautiful woods nearby called Hidden Grove. A group of volunteers have created signs and pathways which make this place easy to enjoy. Without the signs, directionally-challenged me wouldn't dream of venturing there. I'd be hopelessly lost in a heartbeat.

Lovely old tree

Hidden  Grove

We meet lots of other people and their dogs there and Miss Friendliness wants to greet everybody. Sometimes in her enthusiasm she forgets her manners and jumps up. That's a little disconcerting when you're not expecting it.
One of the things I say so often in my Puppy Nanny blogs is that training never stops. Ceilidh helped me remember this. Now when I see people approaching I give her a treat just to change her focus for a moment and then, if she greets them appropriately, another treat and a "What a good girl, Ceilidh!" She's beginning to 'get it' and looks to me now if she has kept four on the ground while saying hello.
 If you have a new puppy or you know someone who does, go to judethepuppynanny.com  where you can  sign up to download a free gift and be added to my regular newsletter which has lots of helpful puppy training tips.
 Still a wandering Gypsy Butterfly, oh yes, but  a happy Puppy Nanny too.

'Shooping' at the Market

Yeah, I know you think that's a typo but quite honestly, that was what was written on our little sheet of info. Besides, I think 'shooping' sounds more fun than 'shopping'. Shopping always gets such a bad rap.
We loaded onto our air conditioned bus for the 25 minute drive to old Cancun and then were given shooping tips like, "Never pay what they ask. Negotiate whether you're paying in Pesos or US dollars up front. If you're buying silver ( and who wouldn't be in this home of silver jewellery?), make sure it's pure, not pewter or plated."

Colour everywhere!

Thus armed, we were cast forth on the shop keepers who, like everyone else that I've met in this country, offered friendly greetings. They all had inventive responses if we said no to their invitation to come into their shops. It was a fun couple of hours. I think my favourite purchase is a 12" long wooden whistle. It is a gift for great-grandson, Ryland, who I'll be seeing in Oshawa on Tuesday. I hope he has a really good time with it at Grandma Lisa's house. I'm betting it will have a short life once he takes it home!
We sat opposite the same couple on the bus as we had on the Tulum excursion and agreed to join them for a pre-dinner cocktail. Last evening there was a closing cocktail party and dinner ( same as last week). The cocktail party washed around us as we sat outside. Two of the four of us changed for dinner... I was not one of them. Margarita hosted a splendid get-together.
We were treated to a Mariachi band during dinner which was delightful.

Our Mariachi treat.

Then followed the farewell from the staff  that sees them all walking briskly around the room waving while we clap.

Appreciation.

 We were so well looked after here and apparently, staff members were heard to say what an agreeable and happy group we were.
This has been fun...all of it!
Adios, Cancun. Hasta luego.

A Visit to Tulum

The Palace at Tulum

Everybody's heard of the Mayan calendar, right? You know... it was supposedly the cause of all those end-of-the-world predictions for the December 2012 Solstice. I think that apart from hearing somewhere that their civilization was quite advanced, that's about all I knew too. Yesterday's trip to Tulum was too brief to have had the full history lesson but it certainly increased my awareness of how advanced they really were. To begin with, they had a mathematical system based on 20, the number 13 was an important one for them with none of the negativity of it being 'unlucky' attached to it. There was lots more to do with numbers as numbers were a primary focus of the Mayans. Both astronomy and astrology were developed.
The entrance gate to the town was designed so that only one person could leave or enter at any time. If  a resident met someone in this entryway, they were immediately killed as the enemy, it being assumed that the locals knew there was no room to pass.

Entryway in a 4 metre wall

 The place we visited yesterday had some well-preserved ruins in a magnificent setting. Tulum was at one time a port where cargoes of goods from other pars of the world arrived . They cleverly used the setting sun ( or fire on a foggy day) to illuminate from behind, the two slits in the palace wall  thus providing a guiding light to mariners.
Lots and lots of iguanas of all sizes all over the place. Such marvellous camouflage. They are the ultimate heat seekers so are well suited to the hot rocks at Tulum.
Our guides were very knowledgable and spoke a fluent-enough English to keep me listening. They wisely used the 1 1/2 hour bus ride to share with us most of the  information they had for us. It was way too hot to stand outside and listen to very much. Both Lisa and I had second thoughts about going when we found out about the long bus ride but the guides made it an interesting trip and even allowed time for a siesta!
We're glad we event. I salute the Mayans!

Señor Iguana

Waddya think?

Do you like the look? I do.

After walking the beach yesterday...yay me!.. I realized I needed a hat for today's trip to Tulum. Fortunately, Pepe, the hat man, was peddling his wares on the beach and it didn't take long for news to reach him of another potential customer. Lisa had already bought a fetching little number. Lucky for me he also had the wide-brimmed type and I'm pleased with my new look. Bit of a downside to have to wear it home (it's not packable) but a small price to pay for protection and comfort in that 3 p.m. heat today.
 I am happy with the results of yesterday's test walk. I guess I walked (slowly) about 15 minutes each way along the ocean's edge where the sand is firmer and have had no unwanted after-effects.  Goody! The knee is healing.
Neither Lisa nor I had an inclination to chat up the newcomers at the cocktail party held last evening. We opted for an early dinner in the Italian Restaurant where the food was excellent and the service superb. None of the listed desserts had any appeal, delicious though I'm sure they were. I really wanted cheese and Alberto was happy to oblige by bringing blue cheese, slices of parmesan, goat cheese and Brie. So lovely to be able to get exactly what I wanted.
And so... I'm off. First the seminar session and the the big adventure to Tulum.
Hasta mañana!

Manly & macho... my dream hombre?

I have found the perfect man. Hmmm... No, perhaps not. I fell immediately for Señor Silencio as I have named him, as being manly, macho and silent. Upon further contemplation though, he is neither "tuned in, tapped in, nor turned on" to use an Abraham/Hicks phrase.  He would ultimately not provide the challenge and fun that I require so I shall bid him adios and leave him to his never-changing vista.
Not only did I manage the walk to the shopping centre nearby, we walked around it for hours with no difficulty. A clear signal that my knee is healing and also that moving the trip to Tulum to this week was a wise decision. Something nudged me that the pleasure of chocolate was first discovered by Europeans here in Mexico when some conqueror or other arrived here. A young señorita confirmed that but checking out the details became unimportant when I tasted the chocolate frappe´ at this little shop. Pure, rich, chocolate divinity, and not sweet. Trying to figure out how and when I can have another. The bar of 70% dark chocolate? Excellent!

Delicioso!

The staff in all the shops are well accustomed to dealing with tourists and added to their natural charm and friendliness is a level of professionalism and an amazing facility with English. I entertained one young man in a shop with my (to him) awkward attempts to enunciate that Spanish rolling 'r'. I think the laughter enticed new customers. When we looked around the shop was full of people!
We enjoyed our relaxed pace and went where fancy took us. I think we saw only a small portion of this shopping area. When I spotted this jaguar in a shop, I simply had to go in for a closer view.

Beauty, huh?

 Silver jewellery in Mexico is amazing... funny, huh?... and the señor who assisted me in this particular shop had the most beautiful hands. I am always attracted to hands.  This man's were so beautifully shaped, I felt compelled to comment. He handled the compliment with great aplomb.  As Lisa & I admired this jaguar, he said it would be no problem to ship it to Canada. The $11,000. US dollars would include shipping. Adios, Jaguar.  Your beauty must remain here for many to enjoy.
We truly revelled in our free day and today we are ready to begin session 2 with nearly all new faces.

So surreal and yet so very real...

Gonna walk on the beach THIS week! Maybe get in the water?

Today is a free day between seminar sessions 1 and 2. My BIG plan today is to attempt to walk for a full 5 minutes to the local shopping area and then back. For someone who was clipping along for 30 minutes every day since mid February, this feels both a puny and at the same time, huge, deal. My ankle is nearly back to normal size and it's time to exercise the knee joint a little.

Esther is the Hicks in Abraham/Hicks

 The downloads from Abraham were as always, thought provoking, inspirational and had some real Aha! moments. Being amongst 500+ like-minded people was a huge plus. Imagine being in a group that size, all of whom were together for the same reason!
The conference room was converted to a dining room to contain us all for the closing dinner. Beautifully and efficiently done. The staff here are so pleasant and friendly. At the end of the dinner they (presumably the ones who had participated in the closing dinner) paraded around the room. There were many of them.

Can you get some idea of the size of this?

We had an awesome perspective on the closing dance last evening. We sat on the balcony  of our 3rd floor room (where, by the way we get to stay for the rest of this week) watching the folks dance  and interact on the rooftop below us. Bonus: no waiting for an elevator to bring us to our floor!
And tomorrow we get to do it all some more. Are we not truly fortunate?