Kawaii or 乖?

I get baths twice to thrice a week which godpa thinks is too much but his parents think otherwise. Why should I complain when I can cool off in cherry scented lather and be treated like a fashion model getting her hair blown. I do miss my stylist though because I look like a puffy furball now. I hope to get a cute cut for Christmas at least.


I'm proud that I was better behaved during this evening's walk. No heel command was given but I walked nicely beside godpa, and I hardly got agitated by strangers. Godpa believes it's mainly because he brought out his 法宝 (ultimate magical treasure). Yep, he spent time revising obedience training notes, especially the one about recalling under distractions. Fortunately for me I can remember the lessons even without the notes. The sound and scent of the 法宝 was enough to remind me to pay attention to godpa.

While godpa is happy about my good manners, he's also happy in getting a good deal on a camera accessory. His old flash had conked out and with rising costs and his humble pay, he got himself a second hand flash that was hardly used except for a wedding event. I've asked him not to use it on me as I look horrid under the harsh flash light.

One and a half

Godpa's feeling dejected by what I did to him, like a parent who had a teenage child rebel against him. It was just our usual walk in the estate under twilight skies and we had our usual encounters with strangers walking or jogging past us. I got very agitated and accidentally bit godpa on two separate occasions. His right leg got scratched but his left received worse damage.

Maybe it's the terribly hot weather that made me hot headed. Or perhaps because I got an ugly hair cut from godpa's dad. Godpa ignored me for a while after the incident but relented, knowing that it's just another unfortunate accident. Furthermore tomorrow's a special day reminding both of us how we came to be together.

Tomorrow will mark 18 months under godpa's care. Even after one and a half years, that wolf side of me pops up now and then to swallow Red Riding Hood.

Vamoose

Godpa left hurriedly early on Friday morning for a retreat. He came back late at night tired and tanned. Well it's puzzling why humans need to work so hard for a retreat or go away to another country to do it. It would just be good to rest at home for a day doing nothing except eat, play, and sleep. A good day at home with me would have been great therapy for both of us.

Anyway he shared that he visited a fruit farm in Desaru, went kite flying at a beach, and saw fireflies on a river boat tour. I suppose seeing fireflies is fascinating as godpa described how hundreds could be found twinkling on each tree as if they were Christmas fairy lights. Too bad he couldn't record the lights as they could only be appreciated by the naked eye.

Another fascinating thing he saw was a monkey born in captivity who thinks rabbits are his relatives. He was rather rough with them but all in the name of play, just like how I play with godpa sometimes.

Now let me show you how a real retreat is done. No hassle at all.

Vanishing act

Nah, I didn't get lost like Bruno but godpa not updating my blog sure made me feel virtually lost. In addition, he'd gone off for a short holiday in Penang. A rather nice place, especially when godpa showed me how dogs are a common sight there.

Some faith-ful dogs lived by the temples, and some lived on church grounds. All looked content and healthy. Godpa even met two friendly bitches coming up to greet him; it just makes me jealous.

The other aspect I'm jealous of is the gastronomic delights of Penang that godpa got to enjoy. The most emblematic of Penang is of course its famous Penang laksa. often with a generous topping of prawn paste that will probably appeal to my tastes too. Can you see me salivating already?

Remembering a relationship

Godpa had a conversation with a friend who lost his dog, Hugo, to old age and illness. Though Hugo left earlier this year, he still feels the emptiness on returning home each day after work.

Hugo had spent twelve years with him and in recent years had asthma and had gone blind. His human and him slept in the same room and sometimes woke each other up in the early morning hours. Hugo would wake him with his asthmatic coughs and he'd get up to soothe him. His human sometimes woke him up too because he was more sensitive to sounds after becoming blind. Godpa commented that his friend was like a caregiver, and this was very true as Hugo was family to him.

Of course Godpa recalled about Benji too. But with me around, he doesn't have much chance to feel too sad. Not forgetting he is well loved looking at how he is well fed and has birthday wishes granted.

Yep, he got a cool looking Sigg water bottle as a present. The symbolic prints are actually quite meaningful if seen up close. And today he had lunch at Lobster Place in Simei. He didn't order lobsters but the very cheap $4.80 set lunch. I guess heaven for now is a place on earth for both of us.