Hot Walks

I've been taking Basil on a long walk in the evenings. The sun has mostly gone down and the intensity of the heat as dissipated. But still it's hot - somewhere in the low 100's usually.

We have been heading out to new areas of our neighborhood. Sometimes it's to run a quick errand to the small grocery store. Other times it's just a stroll to stretch our legs and get a little bit of non-A/C air. At first, I was concerned that Ol' Baz was just a bit too old for this now. But mostly I think he was out of shape from nearly 4 weeks at the kennels with very little exercise. Now, he's trotting along as usual.

While we're out, I'm usually interested in watching the pace of construction on the many villas that are going up. It's also interesting to compare the "old" villas (say 20 years old) with the newer ones. It doesn't take long in the sun and heat for something to look haggard and worn. These 20 year old villas sometimes look like they're about to crumble. I'm also curious to see the gardens of each place. You can tell a villa with a house maid or not. If the garden requires daily watering with the hose - well then there's obviously a house maid (or house boy - as they're called here).

Last night we saw a speeding youth get pulled over by the police (first time I've ever seen that!) We also met a few new neighbors - who were out because their car got hit by a passing car (the driver was kind enough to stop and let them know so they could call the police). Hence the police were in the neighborhood when the speeding youth passed by. Saw a couple of joggers (why?). And saw a woman (house maid, I think) who was walking 8 small dogs - all of different breeds. The pace of activity picks up around 6pm - people are feeling stir crazy around then. It's nice to get out and enjoy the buzz** of the neighborhood as folks get out and about.

When we get home, Bazil is panting and I'm all sweaty. First thing he does is put his belly onto the cold marble tiles - doesn't even go to get a drink until he's stopped panting and cooled down. Yesterday, I took a quick dive into the pool - ahhhh. It was cool enough to feel good (or I was warm enough for it to feel cool).

** Speaking of buzz - we have a bee hive that has formed out in the back pool area. It's about the size of a loaf of bread - maybe a skinny loaf of bread. Mostly the bees are very calm. But they have their active times (usually in the morning) when they seem to be flying about. So far, we've left it. It's up high above where either Lyra or I could actually reach it. I guess my only concern is that it just keeps getting bigger (of course). It's fun to watch. But are we tempting fate? I always think that if they decide to swarm we'd just hop into the pool for safety. So far, we're letting it bee (haha, couldn't resist). What with all the recent mystery about disappearing bees, I kind of feel like we're doing our part to help preserve them.