Yesterday’s essay On The Road To My Horizon was chronicled shortly prior to attending my inaugural Pilates class. An impulse booking made the previous evening whilst scouring the Active Leeds website for suitable classes to maintain my recently commenced fitness regime.

Prior to taking my place on the Pilates mat, apart from an understanding the exercise scheme was orientated towards strengthening core and improving posture, I’d no real idea what situations the next hour would throw at me.

On arrival, though, amiable instructor Jenny re-assured me there’s nothing to be concerned about; advising just to ease my way steadily into the classes activities. Going on to confirm my above notions Pilates is an activity aimed at introducing body core and posture benefits.

The next hour was an enlightening experience. Sixty minutes where I learned you can ‘get a sweat on’ even while participating in an activity not containing any major cardio-vascular exercises. Thoroughly enjoying the core and posture workout, I intend to return to the Pilates studio in the near future.

Earlier, I was accompanied by my canine buddy Coco on a meander around a Huddersfield park. As is her want, the lab/retriever cross melting my heart with her unconditional and  exuberantly affectionate persona….. Or should that be dogsona?!

Today saw the six year old in an excessively, but still endearingly, giddy mood. At one point, while sat at my feet in the park cafe, her tail wagged so energetically in this excited state it brushing the park mud from my trainers.

Adorning beard oil and face moisturiser prior to rendezvousing with my furry pal turned out to be a misguided decision. Both oil and lotion licked from my visage shortly after meeting courtesy of an overly-enthusiastic kiss from Cokes.

Whether my little lab/retriever lady friend was driven to remove the moisturiser in a fit of pique due to it’s Bull Dog branding is unlikely. However, unless I somehow attain Dr Dolittle’s powers of conversing with animals, I’ll never know that for a fact. What I can posit with certainty though is, as much as I love her, the moisturiser bears a more pleasing redolence than Coco’s slobber.

Mid-afternoon, I returned back to Leeds having to postpone my aspirations of journeying to pen this piece at my habitual domaine d’écriture – A White Rose Shopping Centre coffee house. My mud covered jeans, consequential of my lab/retriever buddy’s penchant for leaping when giddy, rendering me reticent to visit the retail outlet.

A situation resulting in this essay now being quilled at home on late Thursday afternoon. The aural backdrop that of my mum snoring, along with the South Africa v England cricket test match playing out on the gogglebox in chez Strachan’s living room.

Anyhow, despite the sandy furred canine’s kisses not bearing the fragrance of a cosmetic lotion, you”ll never catch me complaining about her love, giddiness and devotion. With apologies to the McCann-Erickson agency, who conceptualised the iconic 1971 soft drink commercial, as far as I’m concerned ‘Cokes – She’s The Real Thing’.