ANTHONY LINICK Dog Day Aftermath LIFE AMONG THE DOG PEOPLE OF PADDINGTON REC. VOL X Life Among the Dog People of Paddington Rec, Volume X “Dog Day Aftermath” Anthony Linick Copyright © 2018 Anthony Linick Introduction The same day that we returned after two months in California – having decided that we would not be moving back to the States at the beginning of our retirement – my wife Dorothy and I took our property off the market … and ordered a puppy. Fritz the Schnauzer arrived a few weeks later and by the end of June, 2003, we had entered that unique society of dog owners who people London’s Paddington Recreation Ground. The society in which we were now to take our place remains a unique one, an ever-changing kaleidoscope of dogs and their owners. The dogs represent most of the popular breeds and many of the mutt-like mixtures – and so do their accompanying humans, who come from diverse nationalities and from many walks of life: professionals and job seekers, young and old, family members and loners. They are united in their love of dogs, and on the central green of the park, on its walkways and at the café where they gather after exercising their animals, they often let this affection for dogs carry them into friendships that transcend park life and involve many of them in additional social activities. Fritz had been a member of the pack for about a year when I decided to keep a daily record of his antics and the folkways of the rest of the crew, human and canine. I have done so ever since. I reasoned that not only would this furnish us with an insight into the relationship of man and beast but that it would also provide a glimpse into London life. Such a life, we know, is full of struggles and tensions and these were certainly reflected in the chronicles that followed. I have tried to make this record a candid and accurate one. Has any dog ever received as much dedicated attention as my Fritz? Has any canine society ever received such scrutiny? We turn to the diaries of Samuel Pepys for insights into London life as it was experienced in the latter half of the 17th Century. No wonder some wag has called me The Pepys of Pups – for my project, with its analysis of London life as it was experienced in the first two decades of the 21st Century, is now almost fourteen years old. I must thank all of those who provided photographs for this project, the staff and management of the Rec itself, and my sister- in-law, Naomi, who assisted in editing. Special thanks go to “London Janet,” Daisy-Mae’s mom, for designing the cover of Volume X – one that features Daisy-Mae herself, and for many of the aforementioned photos as well. I published the first four volumes of “Life Among The Dog People of Paddington Rec” in a traditional print format and these are all still available either directly from the publisher at Authorhouse. com or Authorhouse.co.uk or from Amazon.co.uk, from Amazon. com or from any of the other online booksellers. These include: Volume I: Strictly Come Barking, published in 2008 and covering the years 2004-2005. Volume II: Have I Got Dogs For You!, published in 2010 and covering the years 2005-2006. Volume III: DSI: Dog Scene Investigation, published in 2011 and covering the years 2006-2007. Volume IV: A Doggy Day in London Town, published in 2012 and covering the years 2007-2008. In 2013, with Volume V, however, I was able to switch to a new publication format, making Invasion of The Biscuit Snatchers (covering the years 2008-2009) available in e-book format, free for all who want to follow this story by going to my website: anthonylinick.com. Click here. Volume VI, My Dog’s Breakfast, covering the years 2009-2010, was published in 2014 and is available at anthonylinick.com. Click here. Volume VII, covering the years 2010-2011 is called The Great British Bark Off. It was published in 2015 and you will find it too on my website, anthonylinick.com. To download click here. Volume VIII, “And Your Little Dog, Too,” published in 2016, covers the years 2011-2012. You will find it too on my website, anthonylinick.com. To download click here. Volume IX, The Dogshank Redemption, published in 2017, covers the years 2012-2013. You will find it as well on my website, anthonylinick.com. To download click here. The present volume, Volume X, Dog Day Aftermath, covers the years 2013-2014. You will find it now on my website, anthonylinick.com. “Dog Day Aftermath” Life Among the Dog People of Paddington Rec, Volume X By Anthony Linick Chapter 1—June, 2013 (From left): Georgie, Makiko and Davide enjoy summer in the Rec. “Dog Day Aftermath” Saturday, June 1: I am still wearing my leather jacket as Fritz the Schnauzer and I begin our morning in the park. It is official: London is experiencing its coldest spring in fifty years – and today is no exception to this pattern. Sun is expected later in the day but just now it is gray and chilly – as usual. I am more than a little weary (after a day’s ramble on the Capital Ring yesterday and Georgie’s birthday party last night) and so I don’t mind my dog’s slow pace as he samples the grass shoots on the left side of our walkway. The usual Saturday morning activity has yet to blossom in Maida Vale’s Paddington Recreation Ground but there are already plenty of joggers about and footie players are limbering up on the pitches right and left as we make our way forward to the park’s café. Fritz rushes over the greet Renata’s toy Poodle, Maxi, and then we continue on down the Randolph roadway, today getting almost as far as the gate on Randolph Avenue itself. Walking down from the summit of the park’s only hill (and it is an artificial creation) is Janet – accompanied by the naughty Shih-Tzu, Daisy-Mae. Fritz pays no attention to them or to Rebel, the mid-sized black dog with the grey muzzle, heading toward us on the roadway. When we return to the café we are greeted by a most unusual sight; the fenced doggy compound in which we dog people take our morning refreshment is sealed off in lurid yellow tape bearing the legends, “Happy Birthday” and “Party in Progress” as Dan, in shorts, makes the final preparations for the tenth birthday celebrations of his Pug, the infamous Winnie. The coffees are on Dan today and he has brought a veritable feast, a hedgehog- shaped cake from Marks and Spencer for the owners and a platter of chopped chicken morsels and a brick of stilton for their pets. In addition, he has a bottle of Buck’s Fizz for us to drink and I am made to pretend that I am pouring a sample for the birthday girl in a staged group photo that we are soon forced to participate in – crowded around Winnie’s chair, bent over and grinning like idiots. At least I escape a cardboard birthday crown – which most of the other participants have donned. Today my fellow diners include not only Georgie, Renata, Janet and Dan but also Ofra, Peter, Ellen, Hanna and Karen –with Vlad, as usual, occupying a little corner table on his own. The dogs do have a fine time with all 1 “Dog Day Aftermath” these treats but even so I am besieged by requests for dog biscuits. Vlad’s Rhodesian Ridgeback, Tara, and Georgie’s Yorkie, Sparkie, are my repeat customers today – and, of course, the immensely greedy Bailey, Ofra’s Cavalier King Charles Spaniel – who is limited to no more than five-a-day from my blue bag. Many of those present were also participants in Georgie’s birthday (one of those many social events that have outgrown the once casual meeting of dog owners exercising their pets in our park). Ten of us met this time at a Persian Restaurant, on the Harrow Road, called Pars, and we had a really good time, bringing our own booze and overeating outrageously – I came home with a huge doggy bag of lamb and chicken morsels for Fritz. The highlight of the evening came when a chap, described by Karen as an aging Californian porn star, fell in love with our German senior citizen, Renata, and tried to extract her telephone number. Karen had prepared a birthday cake but we agreed to save it for the morrow and now we will have to save it for another day as well since Dan has done such a good job of provisioning our table. After we have been seated under our green umbrella for half-an-hour or so two new owners arrive, Makiko with a second Pug, Emilio, and Michaela with the newly-shorn Cairn, Skye. Michaela, seeing all the yellow tape, says that the place looks like a crime scene. These ladies are all made to admire Winnie’s pearl necklace, a gift from another Pug owner, Cheryl. Ofra says she wants one just like it but I have to tell our Israeli friend that the pendant bears the same Maltese Cross shape favored by Nazi officers. Dan is not offended by this comparison – everyone, especially the joggers, knows that there is a bit of the Gestapo in Winnie. Sunday, June 2: I can tell that we have a lovely day outside, though the temperature is unknown – for the window cleaner, after many unsuccessful attempts, has finally sent the outdoor thermometer into outer space.