ONE MORE DAY! 10 JANUARY 2007

Sue writes: If I ever harboured a fantasy that 2007 might be s-l-o-w-e-r revving up than 2006 was, that's all it was - a fantasy. Several attempts at an Enzo-update in the past week have failed, simply due to work, endless fragmentation and interruptions (oh, and bushfire High Alert at the weekend, when a nutter deliberately lit five fires in our bit of the Yarra Valley). So . . . here we are again, holding our breath as the countdown run to Enzo's Homecoming to Wombat Bend is into the last few strides. JUST ONE MORE SLEEP! Backtracking a little bit: I had planned to visit our boy on Friday of last week, and was just on the point of leaving home when the phone rang with a booking in our B&B, The Burrow, for that night. Ooops . . . change of plan. So Bill went instead, and spent a happy couple of hours with Enzo, just sitting under a shady tree in the playpen, chatting about boys' stuff. The nicest moment of that was when Bill, having told him that he'd soon be home with us and Ascha and Aerem and Chester, and then in a few more weeks hewould see Atia and . . . MAIA . . . Enzo's ears flew up (both of them), his head turned and his eyes looked straight into Bill's. MAIA ????????????????? This boy knows exactly what is going on. On Monday afternoon, I made another visit. My plan was to trim his legs and woolly feet a little more, then give him a bath to freshen him up. As I reached his gate, he was standing there and in a nano-moment he recognised me and woofed! He was SO excited, he danced, he playbowed, he head-butted & knee-nudged, he skipped off & came back, & wriggled & paddled as I clicked on his collar & lead. He had such a big smile on his face. What really had me chuffed was that he didn't bother with the treats. It was quite plain that he was just happy to see me. We took a little visit to the playpen so he could stretch his legs, then off to the bath and grooming room. He was so good. He let me trim off more of the matted dreadlocks around his legs and paws (which truly are Size 11), and then with some nice fresh chicken wingtips to entice him into the HydroBath, he stepped in and behaved like a perfect angel. As we finished, and I was towelling his back, his head came up and just kind of rested under my chin. Then I looked into his eyes and I told him how much we all loved him, and I swear he knows it. Bill is visiting him again today, briefly, while on business on that side of Melbourne. And very early tomorrow morning, we drive him out the gate of Melbourne Quarantine and home to Wombat Bend. I've just spoken again with Atia, and we are both in tears - again. Neither of us can quite believe it. From Atia's frantic phone call on July 12, 2006 about her Senior Airedale, Enzo, stranded in Czech Republic, to bringing him safely home to Wombat Bend in Australia on January 11, 2007 - six months, but what a journey. Mission (almost) accomplished, thanks to all of you. Happydancing, headbutting and kneenudging - Sue

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