Pet-sitting the crocodile next door (Chapter 1)
When I was 14 years old and looking for a summer job, I came across an ad seeking a local pet-sitter. It read:
Pet-sitter wanted. $30 an hour. P.S. Ask for Bacon and Eggs. — Lesley
Wanting to sound all grown-up for the role, I got my older sister to phone the number on the ad. When she hung up, I could hardly believe my luck. I had gotten the job!
The very next day, I took a bus to the countryside where my new employer, Lesley, lived.
She was a striking woman. At 6 foot, she towered above me, dark ringlets falling across her shoulders. I thought she looked like a giantess. She must’ve been taken aback by my size too, because the very first thing she said to me was, “You’re a lot smaller than I expected.”
Lesley led me up the driveway to her house where two giant crocodile statues perched on either side of the gates. Their jaws were hanging wide open, drinking in the sun’s rays. But there were no signs of any pets around the house.
When I asked Lesley where they were, she told me that they were “sunbathing.”
Sunbathing? I pictured two dogs wearing sunglasses lying underneath the sun.
