[PyrNet-L] Busy day!! (long)

["ARIEGE" <ARIEGE@xtra.co.nz>]

I shall download my mail tomorrow morning but apart from that you wont hear
much from me until after midnight 1/1/2000!!!

 My 81year old Mother makes her annual pilgrimage here to the Hamlet of
Featherston in the company of my eldest sister so I have lots of cleaning to
do ( an done!!).  That woman has the eyes of a ferret. They dart everywhere
and no matter how much preparation work I have done, it's never enough.
First of all she'll start off with " Do you have a wee apron I could borrow
Janella"? No I don't but I've got a wee dog towel you can wrap round your
wee scottish middle!!  "I'll just give this bench a wee wipe"along with the
fridge, stove, bath, loo,walls, ceilings,floors, doorsteps"!! .  "Have you
got a wee polypad?"  WHY Mother!!  "Well that wee one you call Frankie needs
his stainless steel water bowl scrubbed out properly".

  But you don't like my dogs, I have wasted my life with these dogs, I could
have been a millionairess without these dogs, I was a Money Market dealer
and made lots of money and I gave it up for these dogs.(I burnt out after
five years!!)   I had the most lovely clothes, shoes, jewellry, hairdos,
bank balance . My children went without because of these dogs!!!!  ( the
Gospel according to Mother!!)  Of course I didn't say these things, I just
thought them as I do each year.  Who wants to upset their 81 year old Mother
and it's only one day out of 365!!  I laid in a stock of Polypads, washed a
"good dog towel/apron, tried to get rid of cobwebs from a 12 foot stud (I'm
5ft) and washed all the Santa Bears I could find.  As she says "no point in
having white Bears if we are not going to keep them clean". I have dusted
1000 Frogs, I have washed a dozen Pyr Statues, as she says "No point in
having them if we are not going to have them white is it?" I have polished
all my old copper artifacts, as she says "no point in having them if we are
not going to have them sparkling is it?".  Did you know that Pyrenean
slobber eats into old copper?? Bet you didn't. I'll have to find some decent
clothes to put on, nothing with my butt hanging out of and a shrunken tee
shirt saying " I love Great Pyrenees" and I'll have to put some shoes on! If
I've got time tonight I'll dilute that silvering around the temples, she
think's I'm just a girl and I don't want to spoil her illusion!! She loves
my dark hair!!  She loves me, she's terrified of what I'll come out with
next but she enjoys it. My older sister has no patience with anything so
I'll just take the load for the day!!  If she knew that my twin was looking
for husband number three then she wouldn't sleep but we don't tell her these
things, we protect her. (Twin in Turkey meeting future In laws!!) Wonder
what the other side of a yashmak looks like and can you get Gin through the
gap? Does anyone know??

To all of you with Mothers and Grannies, treasure them. Their opinions may
not be yours', their lifestyles may not be yours', but it's real hard to let
them go. My Mother has a wonderful memory and she remembers all my old dogs
so when I ring her and say one has gone she is sad for me because I think
she knows now what they mean to me. I may not be a professional woman like
my sisters ( and I'm a bit short on husbands too) but I think she knows
where my loyalty lies and she respects that too.  So, if there are cobwebs I
have given up on and my bum hangs out my pants and I've got a suntan (from
gardening)" gosh you are brown Janella", shouldn't you take more care of
your skin?" I don't even have to walk out the door to get brown!!  or " when
do you think you'll get a job here?"  Who's looking Mummy??"

I don't just see her once a year, I do go and visit and I phone every 2nd
night but that's different!! Tomorrow she's coming to my little Palace (not
a gin palace) and she likes to think I'm as houseproud as her and my sisters
but I'm not.  It's a real effort for me and I'm sure Barb and Carrie ( why
did I pick on those two??) will understand. Now if it was my Stepmother then
that's a different story!! I would just let 5 Pyrs in here together and
watch her try and get all 5 on her knee at the same time and she would!!!
The one thing I wont do is have my Mother and my Stepmother here tomorrow
though!! Never the twain shall meet.

Jan( getting the ladder out now along with the feather duster) Hey Richard
can I come to your party? Got to be a lot more fun!!.

Jan Chaplin Ariege-Roussillon Pyreneans. Visit my sites at
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Zoo/1920/Christmaspage.html and
http://www.geocities.com/Petsburgh/Zoo/1920/Index.html and
http://homepages.msn.com/PetsPl/pyreneanmountaindog/ and my latest Site
http://homepages.msn.com/HobbyCt/postcardcollections/