Late Wednesday Night,
I’m beginning to wonder how we would have ever managed without Lisa, and her home, as means for getting grounded while we recuperate from jet lag, the several days we endured without much sleep, and filled with a good bit of stress.
Lisa was just some stranger whom Bob contacted a couple of weeks ago about the Nissan Sani (like a large Pathfinder) that she had listed for sale on Auto Trader South Africa. She went over and above the call of duty to make us feel comfortable with her and they buying of the car. Obviously it is risks to send nearly $7,500 to someone you’ve never met, living half-way around the world. But Bob and I both felt, intuitively, that she could be trusted and that the Sani was just the right car for us. Then, this woman, for no reason that I can figure, offers to pick me up at the airport (at night), drive me to her house where the car is waiting, all clean and tidy, in her garage, and makes the added offer to let me stay a night or two while I wait for Bob and my luggage to show up.
As it turns out, Lisa is our host for nearly a week and is very reassuring when I suggest we leave because I don’t want to overstay our welcome. I could tell right away that if I were to spend a good bit of time with Lisa, that she and I could become good friends, not just friendly, because we have a lot in common. As it turns out, we do spend a lot of time together and, I believe, we both feel we’ve made a good friend.
Lisa leaves the house very early, like at 6 AM when it is still dark. She drives 15-minutes out of town where she stables her 17-hand thoroughbred horse named Flying Chetah. The horse is exceptionally tall and lithe, as is Lisa who is 6’1″ with legs almost as long as I am tall. It is obvious why she was a swimsuit model in her younger days. After a workout with her horse she’s back home around 9, then off to work at 10 AM, leaving us to putter around her house with her absolutely sweet dogs. I keep trying to insist that I don’t care much for small dogs. However, even my sister’s ill-behaved Schipperkes have worked their way into my affection. Gizmo is one of Lisa’s two rescue mutts, what we call pound dogs. She is half Jack Russell Terrier, part poodle, with a dash of something else added for spice. Gizzy is a gentle princess of a dog with eyes and a look she pins on you that makes it impossible to resist giving her a love. Foxy is also part Jack Russell and part petite Pomeranian. She is small and gorgeous and so soft you just want to cuddle with her all the time. Both are very well behaved as Lisa is a strict, but loving, mama. The two cats are great as well. Fortunately, Bob doesn’t seem to be allergic to them. The tile floors and twice-weekly maid service probably helps.
Our first evening Bob and I picked up some take away food from the Indian/Pakistani restaurant just across the way from Lisa’s home, at her suggestion. The three of us enjoyed a casual meal together that evening when Lisa got home late (after 8 PM) from work. It felt from the first like a happy family.