Success story

For years, a sad little greengrocer's shop stood by bus stop. Wilting veg, tired, overripe fruit, surly attendants, harassed owner. To be frequented only in an emergency. Eventually, it closed. No surprise.

The place disappeared behind hoardings and was forgotten. Until suddenly, many months later, a phoenix arose from the ashes, a butterfly emerged from the chrysalis, a miracle occurred - the Italian owner had transformed it into this bright and wonderfully successful gelataria.

We went there today to celebrate Hon. Husband having undergone a tedious and invasive examination from which he emerged with flying colours - nothing to worry about (we preceded the ice creams with pasta and pesto, it seemed appropriate).

When I went to collect HH after his tests, I was again amazed and irritated by the ridiculous "boutique-ification" of the health clinics in the smarter parts of Rio. Acres of polished granite flooring and wasted space, fancy chairs and all the trappings - why can't they spend their our money on paying the doctors, nurses and technicians a decent wage? Who needs to traverse wide spaces just to get from one room to another? And the cost per square metre for the site must be astronomical. Ridiculous.

The tests and recovery period having taken much longer than expected, we opted not to head for the hills. So I braved Rio prices and took the cat to the vet. Oh, the shame of it - the sores round her neck are caused by an allergy - to FLEAS!! She's infested - which means that the other cat and every inch of the house must be infested too. I'm exhausted just thinking about the hoops we'll have to jump through to get rid of them. That's if I survive giving her pills twice a day for an upper respiratory tract infection - doubt if there will be an inch of my arms and hands unscratched and unbitten.

Today's photo nearly lost out to one of a dignified retriever having a shampoo and set at the vet's, another thing that annoys me intensely. City folk here have recently discovered dogs. I think there are almost as many poodles as people in Rio. Fair enough - even if we have cats in the city because we don't think it's the right place for dogs. What I object to is the fortune spent on grooming them - weekly visits to the salon, clothes, little booties, bows in their hair. Hasn't anyone noticed how many street children there are here, and people begging in the streets?

Right, now that's off my chest, a beer - maybe several - and some food is in order. After all, it is Saturday night in the big city. Have a good weekend, everyone.