Nice Times (2)

~ beetleypete

After my first post in what looks like becoming a short series, I felt really happy for a long time after posting it.

Nice Times

So I decided to do another one.

A holiday to the Soviet Union, in the late 1970s. I had always wanted to go there, and to see it how I imagined it, in the snow. We went in February, and I hadn’t realised that they did a good job of clearing away the snow as soon as it has accumulated. But I stood in front of the gates of The Winter Palace in Leningrad, and didn’t care at all that it was -25 degrees.

My first full day with Ollie as a pup. He was too young to go out yet, and his wrinkled skin looked like a baby wearing adult clothes. Julie was working full-time then, so I was up and about early, to play with our new pup. He followed me everywhere, and was ready to play any time I sat down on the floor with him. His little teeth were like needles, and he loved to chew my fingers and the sides of my hands. Then he would collapse, tired from play, and I watched him sleep until the next time.

Telling an old lady that nothing could be done for her husband, who she had found collapsed in the bathroom that morning. I said we would put him into some pyjamas and get him back into bed, so he looked peaceful when her son and daughter-in-law arrived to see him. After that, I made her a cup of tea, and waited until the police arrived to report it as a sudden death. She hugged me with her bony little arms, and said that I had made everything so much better for her. At times like that, I knew why I had joined the Ambulance Service.

Sitting on a bench by the river at Beetley Meadows. Ollie is standing in the water to cool down, and I am watching huge dragonflies flying around close to the water. I looked up at the blue sky, listened to the sound of the river flowing, and knew I had made the right decision to move away from London.

The first time someone other than a friend or relative commented on one of my blog posts, in 2012. I had to approve the comment, and was excited to reply. I sat back on my old stool, (later replaced by a proper office chair) and felt like a ‘real’ blogger.

55 thoughts on “Nice Times (2)”

  2. I love the Ollie memories, but my favorite was the person who left a comment on your blog that you had to approve! I remember when that happened to me, when it wasn’t my sister or mother, I was in awe and I too finally felt like a real blogger! xxoo, C

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  14. Yes, this is the fruition of a cool idea for a post. I loved reading about Ollie the pup, his loose skin and needly teeth…how poignant, you dressing the old woman’s beloved husband, giving him dignity in death and her comfort…how rewarding, reading about your rush of pride when you realized your future in blogging…I love it.

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  15. Those are all so special, Pete. I never went to Russia, but if I had, I would also like to have gone in Winter. When you are lucky enough to visit a place you always yearned to see, temperature does not seem to matter! Love little Ollie story The old lady who lost her husband…that is very touching. How lucky for her that it was you who responded.

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    1. Thanks, Carolyn. These memories make me feel happy. I will write down some more of them, I’m sure.
      I went to the Soviet Union three times, and once toured Soviet Central Asia during a hot summer. I saw all the weather that country has to offer. 🙂
      Best wishes, Pete.

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        1. I went to Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan,Tajikistan, and Mongolia. But only to Ulhan Bator in Mongolia. (That was on a different trip). Mongolia was damp and rainy at the time, but the other places were about 33C and humid. (I had also been to Ukraine previously, in March time. Freezing cold in Kiev, but not much snow.)

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  19. I write so much about the good memories in my life one might wonder if I live in the present at all. These all sound like really good days, Pete, and I am glad they make you feel good to recall them.

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