I washed my hair today. And applied a bit of make-up. This was in the daylight – unusual for me, because then I feel like the layers of stuff I have put on make me look a bit… like mutton dressed as a Bedlington Terrier.
But this was all for a good cause. Our friendly camera man, Matt, was coming to take some important footage of us and the dog. Some pivotal footage. The last bit of footage…
We’ve had Linus for six weeks. And even though I thought, initially, that ours might be a boring journey, and not interesting to watch, I have been assured by Matt that we have a story here. He’s a professional, and he found the “angle”.
The angle is, of course, at my expense. Which I don’t mind really. I did, after all, sign up for this crazy scheme. Getting a puppy was a big thing for all of us – the kids have been desperate for one for ages, but for me, it was nothing short of a hurdle to jump: financial, logistical and above all, mental.
Years ago, we got a puppy. And, to cut a long story short, we didn’t keep her long. This has been a source of great personal guilt for yonks, and was a big reason why the kids have waited so long for their dog. Matt the Camera Man, like a consummate therapist, eeked the story out of me, on camera, cleverly and gently, and today, my two puppies, 14 week-old Linus and (nearly) fourteen year-old Valentine, walked side-by-side with the kids and I. It was lovely.
All of this, including my various puppy-anxiety meltdowns, have been captured over the last few weeks by Matt, and will pop up some time soon on BBC 2, when I will hide under a rock until it is all over.
At the start of this process, I was wondering if I might “get” anything out of the BBC’s input in our puppy journey – after all, there have been times when I was wondering why I got involved (for example, after 12 hours driving in 24 hours, and then when facing a camera whilst awaiting news of the fate of a court hearing, when I may have been slightly impatient with Mini Seymour). What I hope to have “got” is lovely footage of our puppy and my children, but also, for me, this process has been hugely cathartic. It has been a kind of therapy!
Now… I wonder if I will feel that when the programme actually airs..? I guess I will have to hope the editors are kind.
Fingers crossed! x
2007.
0 Comments