Also you not a real shop keeper if you don’t have a dog or cat hanging around the place.
There must be a large cage somewhere full of ugly dogs because the street is full of cute and shaggy looking dogs.
A well groomed dog cruising the streets would kill the story, just as a well dressed man in safety gear driving a tractor would look like an alien impostor.
Tourists stop to pet the dog which is a much less aggressive way of drawing attention to your wares than saying hello. Children love dogs and so far all the dogs love children, even when children pole then in the eye they still love children.
#babybernie stopped every few minutes to hang out with a dog and pet them, this often attracted a gathering of Japanese tourists armed with cameras to record the meeting.
Far from annoying this instigated many short but friendly conversations as we walked the lanes for the small village to watch the sunset. It made me think if would would have achieved the same connection if we had been in an open space?
The tight lanes brought us closer together and created a situation where we had to communicate and acknowledge each other – this small “pop-up” micro community happened around the sun set and dog petting. If it had been any bigger we probably would not have made the effort.
