Roli’s playgroup called us late this week and asked us not to bring Roli on Saturday. He is a bit of fluffy menace, so he needs the right kind of group. I was a bit frustrated as we were due to have a booth at the Tamworth Street Fair and knew he would not do well tied up all day.

Leaving him home is not a great option as he has some separation anxiety since we moved home from London. We have been easing him back into it, but he has only been alone for about 45 minutes.

I took him with me to set up, gave him a nice walk by the river, then came back to our booth. There were a bunch of other dogs around, which was riling him up, so I decided to bring him home.

After five hours at the fair, Trish and I arrived home wondering what we would find. To our happy surprise, no mess and nothing broken. Roli was quite excited to see us, but we pretended it was no big deal, hoping he would believe us. This might help him deal with it better next time.

Reflecting on it Saturday night, I felt lucky he was turned away from play group. It forced us to leave him alone and it turned out fine. Of course, I still cannot be sure it was a good thing; consequences are unpredictable.

Do you lament bad luck and celebrate good luck? If so, how can you really be sure which is which?