How is your 2026 treating you? I walked into this year with a lot of positivity and gratitude for just being here, healthy, alive and willing to be alive! There is a wise person who once said “may death find you alive”. That is my challenge to myself – to live, and not to exist!

On new years eve, I was treated to Mooshoo drama like I had never experienced it before. The family get togethers were done, and my housekeeper was off to be with her family for the new year celebrations.  I was alone in the house with my Mooshoo – exactly how I like to spend new years eve.  Alone, reflecting and taking stock of the previous year as I patter around the house and the garden.  It was in this alone environment that I put Mooshoo to bed on 31^st December, and went to bed.  I had a funny feeling she was going to have one of her seizures, but I dismissed the thought, went to bed, and listened to my dogs’ bark and howl at the new year fireworks from the neighboring lodges. This was bliss for me!

Come morning, I went to get Mooshoo for her usual bathroom break and breakfast, and I knew she had had a seizure that night.  She looked wobbly and confused.  Long story short, she had six seizures before the vet came and picked her up and admitted her for six days. It was touch and go for some time.  In the process, I learnt that ChatGPT is quite adept at diagnosing illnesses, and also learnt from ChatGPT that seizures are a characteristic of Jack Russels – of course I checked my ChatGPT information with my vet. 

Mooshoo came back home after eight days, looking confused, incoherent and tired.  Home is always best though, and a few days later, she was up and about growling at the big dogs and generally doing sketchy Mooshoo stuff.  She is alive, but she is also the last pure breed dog I will ever have.  The next ones will be from the local shelter!

In other news, the heat is on! It is the season of bush fires, windy nights and dying trees.  The temperatures are hitting the uncomfortable 30 degrees Celsius, and nothing survives this heat.  The chickens sit under bushes, their wings spread out for extra cooling. The dogs walk around in slow motion, panting at the slightest movement and we humans hide in the eves of the house looking for shade and reprieve from the heat.  Given that the short rains season which runs from October to December failed, we are dealing with extreme heat at a time when we should be grateful for it as it would serve to fully ripen and dry the food in the farm – but there is no food in the farm!! They say this is La-nina and El-nino is coming.  I hope so!

In the meantime, we trench the perimeter of the compound, to ensure any bush fires will not break through, and we keep the sand buckets ready, the fire extinguishers checked and the local “bush alarm system” working!