Dog walk and a cake-Cake walk and a dog
Well, no one would guess it, but over time I have developed a few habits that set a certain rhythm. You need constants in life, whether it’s the bakery, a fixed time to get up, or a fixed time to walk the dog in the late morning. Constants are not only the simplest case imaginable in mathematics, but also outside of it! There are dog trainers who say that dogs need variety, not fixed routes. Unfortunately, our dog missed the program, probably during one of his rest periods. He loves the fixed route along the water and back through developed areas. I run this loop alone, without the best wife I’ve ever had. My wife has a habit of spending the morning doing paid work.
This morning loop usually takes 43 minutes. A dog like this covers at least twice the distance. It can also be 41 minutes if it’s raining, but that’s because the dog also likes something dry and speeds up his steps, he doesn’t like to get wet. The other day I wanted to give him a shower, so I went down to the basement to get two big towels, I didn’t say a word, but he was right under our double bed. He knows exactly what a ritual is.
When we meet Picasso for a walk, which is rare, it can take 48 minutes. Just saying hello to two dogs takes about 30 seconds, but as I said, Picasso is usually in his studio or somewhere else at that time. Picasso doesn’t go into the large garden at home alone, he finds it too lonely. He weighs an estimated 45 kg and protects his home from the inside. The time window of 41 to 48 minutes, which is flexible for me as you can see, has unfortunately shifted and that’s because of this café in our part of town. It’s on a street corner and has outdoor seating and two beach chairs. I tend to make the outdoor seating dependent on the weather, I don’t commit to that in advance.
It is the best café in the world, and you know very well that I am an extremely reserved, cautious person when it comes to superlatives, and would never give my emotions free rein in matters of fact. So we have to plan a break of about 25 minutes. This extends the time window for the late morning round to 66 to 73 minutes, so it is still a plannable element in the daily routine. The first visit was difficult, but after that the problems diminish with repetition. It’s like having a first boyfriend or girlfriend.
The dog got a slice of smoked turkey breast there about 4 years ago, I think. He got it from a gentleman who works there, with a full beard, who always wears heavy metal band t-shirts, usually black. As you can see from the turkey breast, he is very friendly, but not a service person like you might expect. It’s more like you’re visiting him and he’s forbidden you to help or get up. But you still pay for what you eat. And these cakes, you wouldn’t believe them. Bündner Nuss, cheese cream with poppy seeds, chocolate cake, fruit elements, caramel cake, the selection changes every day. There are also these little French things in delicate pastel colors. Our daughter loves them, especially because they come from France. I can’t think of the name, but you know what I mean. France, Marion Cotillard, Platini, Becaud, Lagerfeld, snails in Paris in garlic oil, the Carlton in Cannes, Vanessa Paradis, the Negresco in Nice, perfume from Grasse, they’re in that league.
I often see people I know in the café, some teachers from the elementary school across the street, staff from the kindergarten next to the church in the other direction, and the pastors of the church, they also appreciate the quality, there’s no need to say a quick prayer. I also meet the neighbors, I greet them in a friendly but reserved way, but I don’t want to be a nuisance, it also puts my schedule at risk to a certain extent, the time slot is flexible, yes, but it’s not a sliding door either.
Sometimes I thought I’d leave a piece of cake for the next day. It could be that after 31 minutes of walking I’ve already planned a caramel cake, but then it’s not there and I have to reschedule the day, unthinkable. It’s like a mathematical problem without a solution, but even the four-color problem could be solved in the end. Something like that always encourages me to accept adversity, like a missing cake flavor. Now the friendly gentleman with the full beard and perfect tattoos wasn’t there anymore, but a young woman, also tall, no full beard, of course, no heavy metal. It took me less time than usual to get used to it. If he was on vacation, I would have liked to know before, but I don’t want to be petty. The cake stayed the same, as did the coffee and the dog. As I said, constants have their appeal.
In short, I have to go there every morning because of the dog, he stays outside the door, tugging at the leash is pointless, he wants to trace the memory of the cured slice of turkey breast. I give in.
