[Ag-eq] Guideon and the garden

[Jewel]

Starting at the tender age of 19 and a half in 1960, I have trained all my own guide dogs, with the 
exception of Emma, dog #2, but more of that in the future, if anyone is interested;  so going back 
to my subject line of Guideon and the garden:  Guideon is the latest and what will be the last of my 
owner-trained dogs.  Due to difficulties I have these days with distance walking, he is now a dog of 
all work rather than a specialist guide.
His main tasks involve the garden wherein he will show me to objects that I have left "alone and 
palely loitering" somewhere in my extensive garden. plus bring me my guide/balance  stick.
If, in his educated opinion, it is high time that we packed it in and returned to the house, the 
stick will be brought to me as a not-so-subtle hint whether I have requested it or not!
I am in the lengthy process of digging this season's crop of spuds, and a pretty good-looking crop 
it is too!  I have Rua, Ilam Hardy, Red rascal, and Agra:  a variety I have never grown before, but 
of which I have heard very good reports.
As well as the spuds, I picked 3 whongaparoa Crown pumpkins.  The was a fourth, but it had, 
prematurely, parted company with the vine and had started to rot  so that was thrown in the general 
direction of the paddock fence in the hope that the goats, Minstrel and Heidi would get it.
The remaining 3 pumpkins I called the "three bears" as there was one large one, one slightly smaller 
and one very small.
I left them on a patch of grass while I got on with the digging of the potatoes, but when I, 
finally, took the hint of the oft-proffered walking stick, I found the baby bear pumpkin was 
missing.  Now that pumpkin would have needed help to disappear, and that help would have come from a 
certain black gentleman of my acquaintance.
I asked said "black gentleman" to bring me the pumpkin but to no avail.  Well, I had 2 good-sized 
pumpkins so the loss of the little'n was of no great moment.
My home help was due the next day so I asked Fay to take a look around the garden.  Now I had asked 
this worthy lady, at the time of her last visit, to have a look for the few pears that the tree had 
produced this year:  earlier, I had found a paltry 3, but at the time, they were too immature to 
harvest, but, ready or not, they had to be picked.
After an absence of several minutes, Fay returned to the house, saying that she had checked the tree 
and there were no pears, either on it or the ground.
The following day I picked 5 pears from that very same tree!
but I digress!
Fay did find the missing pumpkin, but a gnawed shadow of its former self:  a guy has to do something 
while he is just hangin' abaht, and the aphorism of "The devil finds work for idlehands/teeth to 
do!" was amongst those that sprang to mind!  I am sure that there is a lot of goodness in a raw 
pumpkin.  I took a slice off it last night and boiled it up to join the rest of the assorted 
contents of Guideon's dinner bowl.
Looking at the undamaged half of it, the pumpkin looks rather good, so Guideon may not get what is 
left!

     Jewel--------------------------------------------------
From: "Jody Ianuzzi" <jody at thewhitehats.com>
Sent: Tuesday, April 16, 2013 11:59 AM
To: "'Jewel'" <jewelblanch at kinect.co.nz>; "'Agricultural and Equestrean Division List'"
<ag-eq at nfbnet.org>
Subject: RE: [Ag-eq] New member replying was

Hi Jewel,

It is good to see you on the list.

You might also mention Guideon your owner trained guide dog.

Of course in New Zealand you have just ended your growing season and you are
getting ready for fall and winter.

JODY