An Encounter with Pete the Duck at the Flower Shop on the Way to the Apple Store:
A funny thing happened on the way to the Apple Store in downtown Los Gatos to pick up my new IPhone 7 Plus.
The plan was for Cecile and I to take a shortcut from the parking lot through the back door of ‘Bunches Flower Shop” and out the front door which faces the Apple store across the street. I was apprehensive of the process. It seems whenever we upgrade any electronic device Murphy’s Law seems to come into play.
When I turned to my left while in the flower shop, I noticed a Duck wading in a stainless steel basin. It was a 106° that day, so the Duck was definitely in the right place.
In fact, I felt a little jealous, and thought if I was his size, I would have loved to trade places with him.
How did I know it was a “he?” Well, I found out that “he” was called Pete, the store mascot. I had bought Cecile flowers at Bunches on many occasions but never noticed him.
I found out many mothers go there for a bouquet of flowers because the owners are always nice to their kids. But, the real star attraction is Pete, their vegetarian duck who eats cherry tomatoes and cabbage and whom they been caregivers of—for about ten years. Raised as a chick he never had the urge to split as he grew older.
What a marketing coup for the owners. Buy some flowers and have your kids get to see and visit a duck. But, truth be told adults look forward to seeing Pete too. I for one was charmed by the whole experience.
Ducks are amazing creatures. Their feathers are waterproof and have a waxy coating that keeps their downy underlayer dry no matter how long they stay in the water.
Contrary to popular belief, most male ducks are silent. Very few actually “quack.” The sounds they produce are more like squeaks, grunts, groans, chirps and growls. Ducks have been domesticated pets and popular farm animals for over 500 years.
Ducks love slow, moving water, drifting along meandering ponds and lakes. They can travel by water, land and air, giving them flexibility to travel from one adventure to another.
They symbolize enjoying your life, going with the flow, yet being ready to navigate pitfalls and hazards along the way.
Ducks don’t hold a grudge. If they get into a scuffle with another duck, they shake off the stressful encounter from their feathers and get on with their day.
This turned out to be a good lesson for me. When we went to buy my new IPhone. It was crowded and busy. Due to new security concern policies AT&T made it difficult transferring data from my old Samsung Android to the IPhone. We didn’t recall our billing account password. It took over several phone calls by the young tech person assisting us. It seemed like we were there forever and we were running out of mental bandwidth. Fatigue was setting in. I thought of Pete the duck at Bunches and how ducks intuitively know how to go with the flow—be at peace. So, we shook off the stressful encounter and got on with our day, focusing on the great photos I will be able to take for my next blog.
