Three Black Spots

The full Gooch

When Hamid Karzai became the President of Afghanistan, he was not lauded for his leadership, or his statesmanship. The most complimentary words came from Tom Ford, he of the full Gooch fame, hailing his look. What incredible combinations of brown, gold and green. The long shawls, the headgear, the regal gait, and the saturnine face with the noble bearing. For a while it looked like Kabul chic would sweep the runways.

Six years later, Karzai is still President. And still perhaps the nicest things people can say about him have to do with his look.

We are what we wear. We are what we look like. Nobody knows this better than Mina, and no one gets more attention on his outfit than Yoda. It seems that there are two ways to construct a look. Either be so different and ethnic, that the only PC thing to do is to admire it. Or, go with the brand names.

It was obvious that Yoda could not go the Indian route. No tie-dye bandanas, or zari encrusted leash/harness combos. No ‘pink is the navy blue of Jaipur’ confections. No kanchipuram-sari patterned coats, and no chiffon and sequin bows. He is not from the cast of Monsoon Wedding.

And so, we turned to Fifth Avenue. First came his carrying case. Mina began her research before he was born. The case had to conform to airline mandated dimensions. It has to be sturdy, and soft, so he would not get battered about. It had to be small enough for him for now, and big enough for him to grow into There are some excellent cases that would do the job functionally, but only one that would also make a style statement.: LV of course.

So, before we went to get Yoda, we embarked on the carrying case hunt. The LV store in Manhattan did not have them, but they were willing to call around their other stores. We were told that they were made in small quantities, usually on order, and never available off the shelf. Still, they would try. We were not given much hope. Mina was distraught, but determined.

The next day, we got a breathless call. They had found one in Dallas, Texas and it was on its way to us. When it arrived, it was marked Rodeo Drive. Strange and mysterious are the ways of package shipping. No matter, Yoda now had a case from the coast, and we could go off to get him.

I think the LV company should pay us a small promotional fee for all the publicity we have given them. The most common comments we have heard go like this ‘ I wish I could travel in style like this dog’ and ‘ Now my husband can’t say no when I want an LV handbag’ .

The next to come was a coat for the winter. Who else but the finest purveyor or raincoats for humans – Burberry. I love watching good sales people in action. They are great listeners, and they know when to pounce. When we asked for a coat, she produced not one but two. The warm coat lined was for the cold weather, and another lighter one for the rain. We were assured that the raincoat was specially treated so that water would slide off. We emerged triumphant, armed with both the coats.

People tried to deflate us. ‘Why does he need a coat, when he already has such a rich coat of hair?’ ‘When will this dog be ever out in the rain? Are you going to take him out in the monsoons?’ We have been considered shallow and wasteful, and some people have been kind enough to tell us so.

Small people will never get the big picture. There are needs, and then there are needs. The internet has truly been our downfall. We are now one click away from nirvana. And so there is a steady stream of bows, leashes, harnesses, bandanas, dog houses, blankets, grooming stuff, and toys that keep landing up at home.

Not all of them are famous brands. No matter, they look like they could be. Mina has a great eye. Like Karzai, we have learned that it’s more important to look the part. And in Yoda’s case, he also plays it well.

Does Yoda care? No, he does not. But he is conscious that when he steps out, he has a certain something extra. Does he know what it is? No, but we do. And they do. And that’s all that matters.