Spanish Eyes, English Words

Paddy has been a constant source of love and laughter, tears and frustration ever since he erupted into our lives on March 17, 2014.  Because he was abandoned as a puppy by the canal at La Marina - for which read probably thrown in - we don't really know when he was born. However, for the purposes of the Pet Passport, our lovely vet Madeleine fixed his birthday as 15 January.

I have to say Paddy is the happiest dog I've ever come across. He's also the  bounciest and the most boisterous dog I've ever come across, and he has a real sense of occasion. Obviously, he doesn't know what a birthday is, but he does know when something is different. When we let him into our bedroom for his usual morning cuddle yesterday, we sang 'Happy Birthday' to him, and his tail did a very good impression of a helicoptor rotor. It was so good, I thought he was about to take off, so I held him down firmly but gently. Once he'd calmed down, I asked if he wanted his birthday presents - cue bouncing off the walls again. Bit of an over reaction for a string ball and a squeaky bulldog, but hey, the boy has good manners, and he knows how to show appreciation.

The highlight of the day was a carefully guarded secret. My friend Ian has been saying for a while that I should bring Paddy to the new doggy play park in Guardamar. Life has got in the way, but we decided his birthday was an ideal opportunity to introduce Paddy to the delights of the doggy park - and Ricca, Ian's 15 month old German Shepherd cross. As Gizmo is still here bossing Paddy around, he came along too, with Glenys.  If you're not sure where it is, it's along Avenida Cevantes, near the China Town restaurant. Look for the distinctive green and white mosaic tiled walls with holes in them, and walk along until you see the fenced off area.

Paddy had great fun climbing in and out of the holes in the wall on the way, even though they are not part of the doggy park. He's like a big kid really - has to walk on walls, climb steps, look over gates and fences and investigate holes. By the time we got to the entrance to the dog park, he was very excited and very vocal, and one or two nervous owners gathered up their precious bundles of fur. However, all Paddy wanted to do was play, and thankfully most of those exercising their dogs realised that. He bounded up to Ricca and they introduced themselves, while Gizmo followed at a much more sedate pace, as befits a senior dog of three and a half years of age.

Clearly, it was love at first sight - at least for Ricca, who kept stealing kisses from Paddy. However, she insisted on 'Ladies First' when it came to chasing the balls and sticks that Ian kept throwing. If Paddy got a head start, she just refused to play! For over an hour, they had a great time, although they were rather dubious about the tunnel, venturing part way in and then backing out again. Gizmo was less than impressed with the see-saw. He ambled up it quite happily, but jumped off the moment it started sawing instead of seeing! Maybe next time they'll appreciate the toys and activities the Ayuntamiento of Guardamar has so thoughtfully provided for their enjoyment.

In case your dog is nervous or aggressive, and you've decided the dog park isn't for you, you'll be pleased to hear that there is a section where timid and aggressive dogs can exercise on their own, without entering the main arena. There's water on tap, and there's even a pee post so dogs don't sully the sand. Unfortunately, as even the most intelligent dogs can't read, it's not used as much as it could be!

The day's treats were not over though - when we got home, Aunty June brought down a lamb steak for Paddy's birthday tea. After such a terrible start to his life, it's just one big party now for Paddy Piddock!

Read more of Paddy's adventures at Sandra in Spain.com

Hola everyone, and welcome to 2017. It's time for the annual Red Knickers Report, which is my way of reviewing the year. It's a well established custom now, in fact Dave Allen of Algorfa calls it 'notorious.' Notorious is good but not always suitable for those of a nervous disposition, so if you haven't already sampled the Red Knickers Reports, you may want to catch up on 2015 and 2014 to see what you're letting yourself in for.

Looking back on 2015's report, I haven't done everything I wanted to, but I have achieved stuff I hadn't even thought about this time last year. The Around Algorfa website is still just a domain name, and the book isn't finished yet, but I don't see that as failures on my part - it's just not the right time for them or for me. It's been another very busy year on the professional front, and I've had to prioritise. My main priorities always have been and always will be to entertain, inform and help and support the people who need it with my writing - what I earn from it is a pleasant bonus, but not the motivation behind what I do.

I'm also very keen to help other writers realise their potential,  so I've done a lot more work with  WriteLearnEarn.com and my good friend and fellow writer Spike Wyatt. It can be a bit frustrating when you see people use 50 words when 10 will say it so much better, and some people just can't take a telling, but when just one novice writer takes on board what you're trying to say, and goes on to grow and earn from their writing, it makes it all worthwhile. Thank you Spike, for trusting me enough to ramp up my editing role to take in assessment and advice to our writers. Here's to another great year working together.

I'm proud to have helped publicise lots of initatives in and around Algorfa, whether it's new businesses such as KD Designs or raising awareness of local charities and their work. I've met some truly inspirational people too, such as Karen of KD Designs. Soon after moving to Spain in October 2015, she lost her partner, and it looked like the dream of life in Spain was over, but within a few short months, she was back, running her own jewellery business from a retail base in Algorfa. As we go into 2017, she's moving into party plan and mail order, and she has a new home and a new partner. Seeing her pick herself up from tragedy and start all over again has been one of the highlights of 2016. She's also become a good friend, even if she does lead me astray now and again!

Talking of inspirational people, the production crew behind The Cucaracha Club have to be way up there. If you don't already know - and if you're a regular reader, you certainly do - that's the independently produced spy thriller, filmed entirely in and around Torrevieja. Billie Anthony Gaddess wrote it, and recruited Tom Watt to star in it. Then when the original film crew pulled out 5 weeks before filming was scheduled to start, Clive Gray set up a production company and Rai Woods agreed to direct it - even though it was a first for all of them. Against all the odds, and on a budget of just €23,000, the film saw its world premiere in March 2016 and now has the British Board of Film Classification Certificate that allows it to be shown on general release. The Cucaracha Club 2 is already written and scheduled to go into production in October 2017, and I'm proud to call Billie, Rai, Clive and many of the actors involved in the film good friends.

I didn't become involved in the film until the post production stages, after meeting Rai for the first time in February 2016, and I was in Portugal at the time of the premiere, but in the last few months I've been involved in promoting the film, and I'm looking forward to being in from the start on TCC2. I've even been told there may be a part in it for me. Having chatted to Tom Watt for publicity interviews, I'm secretly hoping I may  feature as his love interest, but hey, I'll take what I can get - a film star at the age of 65 looks pretty good from where I'm standing.

I've also become a Page 3 girl in 2016. No, not that sort of Page 3 girl - my birthday suit needs a good ironing, and I don't want to frighten the natives. However, I was very pleased to see one of my articles featured on Page 3 of the Coastrider newspaper in December, and it looks like I may be writing regularly for the paper in 2017, so that will be more exposure for my writing, and new friends and professional contacts to be made.

2016 has been a year of firsts for me too. I went to my first-ever pool party, and managed two during the summer. I also attended my first psychic development workshop, with Quirky Medium Alison Wynne-Ryder. It was interesting and empowering, so I'm looking to expand on that in 2017. And for the first time in my 64 years, I got to own an original painting. Rai Woods introduced me to local artist Jim Barry back in May. Jim and his wife Jan Cave Barry made fascinating interviewees for my 'No Ordinary Expats' series for Insiders Abroad, and they have since become good friends. So when Tony asked me what I wanted for Christmas, I knew straight away. Jim's fabulous painting of the palm trees at La Mata now has pride of place in Piddock Place, along with a couple of prints from Jim's 'Gaslight' series of paintings of Victorian London.

Another highlight of 2016 was finally meeting my website designer Elle Draper, who runs the successful Spain Buddy.com website with her partner Alan Gandy. We caught up with Alan and Elle in Albox on our way to Portugal, and again when they moved to Velez-Blanco. The subsequent blog post caught the attention of the town's Deputy Mayor, and he's invited me back for a guided tour, so that's something to look forward to in 2017. I love it when people appreciate what I write, and it means more wine sharing with Alan and Elle, and cuddles with their three gorgeous dogs.

On the personal front, we finally made it to Portugal with our friends June and Larry, and we had a fabulous time. Definitely a place to revisit in the future. We continued to make good use of the motor home, and discover new areas of Spain and make new friends. I've also become group secretary for the Motorcaravanners' Club Spanish group, so I'm involved in the organisation as well as the enjoyment. Looking forward to new adventures with them in 2017.

Health wise, it's been a pretty good year, even though I was floored for the first month of 2016 with a vicious chest infection. Spain continues to be my healthy, happy home. Thanks to Paddy's ever-increasing need for exercise, I'm starting 2017 at least one dress size smaller too.

My family has grown too, with the birth of Oliver in January, just 14 months after his brother Harrison. September saw Oliver's christening and Adam and Helen's renewal of their wedding vows after 10 happy years together. We all spent a weekend celebrating at the Harlyn Inn, Cornwall, catching up with family and friends, some of whom we hadn't seen for ages.

The first Red Knickers Report came about after my daughter Elizabeth suffered a horrific stroke which almost killed her in 2013, when we also lost a dear friend and Tony was diagnosed with additional health problems. Elizabeth is living life as best she can, but she still gets very fatigued, her moods are all over the place, and her appetite centre is shot to pieces. She never feels full, and never feels hungry. The all you can eat buffet places in Plymouth double up on the catering when they see her approaching, and on her birthday, her son Daniel insisted they left after her sixth plate of food! She asked her consultant how long these minor but irritating side effects were likely to last, and he said he didn't know, because he had never seen anybody make such a full recovery from a brain stem stroke, so it was uncharted territory for him. Yet another reminder, were it needed, of how lucky we are that Elizabeth is still with us, and in relatively good health, considering what she's been through.

So, all in all, 2016 hasn't been too bad, but there's always room for improvement. Let's hope my new red knickers work their magic in 2017. According to Spanish tradition, they have to be new to be lucky. Thanks for all your support in the past, and please stay with me for more of the same this year.

Keep up with me - and my red knickers - at Sandra in Spain.com