So here we are on our second night of five away from home on our West Lothian tour of dog-friendly accommodation.
Yesterday we packed the Leaf and drove to Uphall to check in to the Oatridge Hotel, which is quite a nice, clean and upwardly mobile first stop (construction going on in the beer garden (I even saw someone mowing the astroturf!)).
We checked in at 4:30pm or thereabouts and I settled up the remainder of the bill. Then my wife and son went to the local chippy for a special fish for myself, a fish supper for my son, a baked spud for my wife and an additional platter (for everyone, which everyone was too full to eat).
Those of you who have been to Uphall may remember the busy high street and intersection and not immediately be able to envision any green areas for dogs to roam, relax and do their business, but we managed to find a nice walk not too far from the hotel left across the bridge over the Broxburn (which is actually a burn (Scots. valley of the badgers)), up a path and right to a big green square.
Although she’d been fine in the car, for some reason our canine family member was extremely unhappy having to wait outside the chip-shop while my wife and son were inside, and slipped backwards out of her harness completely so I had to grab her between my knees to reapply it. Probably a wolf pack thing. Realised we should maybe have done some separation anxiety training with her little by little to help her get used to us randomly disappearing into shops. Who knows where she would have shot off to had she escaped, as un-street cred as she is. Probably the interior of the chippie.
Tried to watch a terrible movie about dragons on the misnamed Great! Movies on the TV with my son but could barely keep my eyes open. The early 2000s CGI was pretty good, however, and didn’t seem to match the poorness of the hairstyles which suggested 80s straight-to-VHS.
Couldn’t sleep due to worrying about the dog needing a pee, her barking every hour at sounds both real and imagined, me feeling too hot while simultaneously a chilly draft tickled across the small of my back due to not getting enough of the duvet as the dog was sleeping between us on the bed, the window rattling in its frame, birds screeching, the central heating humming and the green unblinking eye of the fire escape sign light above the door.
Hopefully tonight will be better.
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